The mystery of Fort Gwynedinas Companion

An Adventure companion for Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition by Leo E Gunnemarsson

What’s in this book

There are two sections of this companion. A guide to
Albion which describes the society land and also
holds rules for playing an Albian tribesman.
A tale of Truthsayers and Dark Emissaries, which
tells of these bitter enemies and powerful magic or-
ders, their conflict, their role in Albion society and
their roles in the outside world. This section also
holds the rules for playing as a Truthsayer or Dark
Emissary.

What if I can’t spoil the adventure?

The parts are not filled to the brim with spoilers but
there will be some among plot-hooks, alternative
suggestions and other things. Talk to your GM about
what is safe to read, most should be. Avoid the
thoughts about the campaign note here though.

Thoughts about the campaign

The Mystery of Fort Gwynedinas is a short adven-
ture set in Albion I whipped up in respons for some-
one looking for just that for his son to use. I asked
what the kid was looking for in an Albion adventure
and with the answer of hill-forts and mystic parts the
idea of a haunted hill-fort came to me and then the
idea of a ghost of a powerful spellcaster desperately
clinging to the lands with the help of the mighty Og-
ham stones. I tried to get as much of the traditional
Albion things into the game as I could. Ogham
stones, fen terrain, fenbeasts, a dark emissary, a
truthsayer and even a giant all became part of the
adventure. In addition to that I also added some local
fauna of my own, neither bogdogs, bogimps nor gi-
ant otters are officially part of Albion but I felt the
need to expand a bit on what could be found in the
Albian fens. The names are not easter eggs like in
some official adventures, rather they were randomly
generated. The swords name however came from my
desire to have something with an unnecessarily long
and hard to pronounce name.
 A guide to Albion
The land of Albion
There large isle known as Albion was once a land
warmer than its location would suggest and flourish-
ing but as the Ogham stones were erected to siphon
dark energies from the winds and ground them the
land was cursed by the sacrifice. As the rituals pro-
tected the world Albion itself drew to it foul rain and
dark magic. Its skies filled with cold rain and sharp
hail, with neverending downpour wetting fens and
mountains. Once verdant lands found many of their
plants dying from too much water and too little sun,
woods and steppes turned to soggy fens and animals
that could not thrive in the bogs and fens died out.
The few cities of the men on the land sunk into the
deep fens and civilization was abandoned for a tribal
existence within the marshlands of Albion.
The old ones had left and their halls stood empty, as
monuments to the glorious future that could have
been, the tales of them passed on by generations of
truthsayers.
Civilization
There are settlements on Albion but most of its peo-
ple do not live there. They dwell in the wilds. This is
not merely due to a lack of the knowledge found in
more civilized realms but also a consequence of the
way Albians look upon the very concept of civiliza-
tion. To the tribes there it is unquestionably evil to
seek to be civilized. While lands like the Empire and
Bretonnia see it as important and good Albion call it
a corrupting influence that moves them away from
what the gods intended. If the old ones truly intended
for them to be so primitive is questionable but it is
how their plans have been interpreted and thus some
of the more zealous people of the land look for signs
of civilization in the same way a witchhunter would
look for signs of chaos worship.
This view has been tested the few times travellers or
invaders have reached the isle, most greatly by “the
dark master”, but so far the tribes have stood against
the influence of civilization.
 Tribes of Albion
Most people of Albion live in tribes out in the fens or
up in the mountains. These tribes are a place be-
tween nomadic and settled, they move about and do
not hold permanent settlements but they do hold
lands, decided areas on where they can roam about.
Naturally these are often redefined by war. Each
tribe is led by a king or a queen of an ancient blood-
line barely remembered. Under the king stand giants
and after that Hedgewises and Woad-warriors. Spell-
casters and fighters used to ensure the tribes survival.
Food is not farmed, it is gained through hunting or
gathering in the swamps. When a Truthsayer visits a
tribe his words weigh heavier even than those of the
king and every command is seen as holy, every story
an important lesson. But such a visit can never last
long for the Truthsayers have a large land to tend to
and can not work for only one tribe.
Hill-forts of Albion
Some few permanent settlements do however exist in
the land. Defended settlements on the top of hills,
kept from sinking by the natural elevation of the land
and its relative dryness. Such settlements are rela-
tively small, rarely including more than twenty
buildings and often a good deal less. They tend to be
placed near Ogham circles or even have them within
them, making it their holy mission to protect them.
Some of the hill forts have buildings from before the
catastrophe and thus use keeps of stone to house
their kings or queens.
Bol-a-hat
Bol-a-hat is the largest populated settlement on the
island and the only one that could be considered a
village by other lands standards. Naturally the tribes-
men deem it a massive metropolis and a hive of sin.
Many would never consider living there and look
down upon those that do. The people of Bol-a-hat
are however proud of their ‘city’. They don’t see
themselves as too civilized like many others see
them but instead as just a bigger group of tribesmen.
The land upon which Bol-a-hat stands is dryer than
most, being rocky and situated on the west side of
the large mountains. The rocky ground holds true
without sinking allowing the ’city’ to not sink into
the depths. In Bol-a-Hat the size of the hut a person
has is directly correlated with his social standing and
as a result many try to add to their huts specifically
to improve their standing. This usually works for a
while until they get too ambitious and the building
collapses. This is seen as a sign of the evils of civili-
zation by tribesmen not living there. While tribes do
talk about the evils of civilization in Bol-a-hat many
young flock to it and those that visit often gape in
awe at the ‘huge city’.
Giants of Albion
The humans are not the only people of Albion, they
co-exist with giants. It is said that the giants of Albi-
on were once as advanced and great a civilization as
the sky-titans of yore but the catastrophe when the
gates broke ruined their civilization. If this is true or
not can not be verified but today the giants of Albion
are no more advanced than those of other lands. In
the plans of the old ones as interpreted by the truth-
sayers the giants duty is to patrol the coasts of the
land and the giants make sure to have groups doing
so, launching boulders at any approaching invaders
and throwing the invaders themselves back into the
sea if they make landfall.
Many giants of the land hold a love for whiskey,
hunting and sports, spending much of their free time
with this. Giants show respect to the people and titles
of Albion but none but a royal or truthsayer can or-
der them around.
Cyclops
Long ago cyclops started to appear in Albion. Giants
with but one eye. Perhaps it was a stable mutation
spread amongst them, perhaps it was in the old ones
plan all along. This has less of an impact on their
vision than one would expect. One would think it
should give them far worse depth perception but they
are no less accurate with their boulder throws than
two-eyed giants. Cyclops are accepted as giants by
both tribesmen and other giants alike and neither
makes much difference between the two kinds. Only
the truthsayers sometimes take a deeper interest in
the cyclops. Thinking through stories and gazing up-
on old stone tablets trying to learn more of their pur-
pose.
Borgach Sinéad
The giantess Borgach Sinéad was created as I
wanted a giant in the scenario for further Albion
flavour but didn’t want one that took over and
solved things instead of the players. Thus the idea
of a lazy giant came to my mind and I made Bor-
gach a lazy slob. She was also a great opportunity
to show the more co-existing relationship be-
tween giants and humans you find in Albion that
well contrasts the empire and other lands.
If you want to make her even more distinctly Al-
bion flavoured feel free to make her a cyclops,
this won’t really affect anything other than fla-
vour but can potentially change the way the play-
ers see her.
 Faith of Albion Lasscot
In Albion a pantheon of gods known as the Old Ones (The Old One Tlazcotl in Lustria)
are worshipped and the tales of them are known from Lasscot is the old one goddess of courage in Albion
the teachings of the Truthsayers. These are the same known for her fearlessness and her cold, unflinching
Old Ones worshipped by the lizardmen of Lustria demeanour. It is said it was impossible to ever un-
but with oral traditions some names have changed nerve her and the many tales of her focus on heroism
and some interpretations have deviated from the Lus- and bravery. She is associated with the colour yellow
trian norm. Still, despite some difference in name the and at times scared people are ironically called
two share the same gods, Sotek alone has no Albian ‘yellow’ as they clearly fail to please her ideals, at
counterpart. Albion religion is lead by the truthsay- other times its used unironically about someone truly
ers and their druidic orders and no priests, nuns or brave. Her symbol is a yellow head.
templars in the way of the empire can be found in
these lands. It is the sacred duty of the truthsayers Cotte
and none other to interpret the old ones will. Both (The Old One Chotec in Lustria)
humans and giants follow this faith in Albion and Cotte is the godess of the sun and as a result not giv-
strive to follow the divine plan. en as much focus as the rest. The sun is rarely seen
in Albion and it is better to worship Old Ones whose
The plan of the Old Ones aspects are more readily seen it’s said. She is said to
It is said the Old Ones planned everything that ward off cold and it may be true but most Albians
should happen in the world and every peoples role in see it as better to harden yourself against the cold
it. It is believed in Albion that it is the duty of every- than to ward it off. Her symbol is the sun.
one to follow this plan and the duty of truthsayers to
interpret it. But not much of the plan is known and Hansi
what is has often been mixed with folk-wisdom over (The Old One Huanchi in Lustria)
the generations. Leading to a far different belief sys- Hanki is the cat god, described as a massive cat with
tem. Still one of the things that stand true and is fol- weird spots that stalked the world once. It is praised
lowed as part of it is that the Ogham stones must be for stealth and ferocity, said to be the greatest beast
protected and maintained. A sacred duty in Albion ever to live. The symbol of Hansi is a massive cat.
which warrior and truthsayer alike gives the highest
of regard.
Tepot
(The Old One Tepok in Lustria)
Sonnkee Tepot is the bestial god of air, protection against
(The Old One Tzunki in Lustria) magic and the sacred teas of Albion (giving the pour-
Sonnkee is the old one associated with water, sea ing vessels for the drink their name and later also the
and bogs and thus naturally held in reverence in the drink). It is Tepot that blesses the sacred woad-paints
soggy, moist lands of Albion. Tales of Sonnkee tell to protect their wearers and taught humans how to
of various great deeds of swimming and diving such make charms to guard against sorcery. Tepot is de-
as swimming around the world or diving into the picted as a great dragon and its symbol is a dragon or
deepests depths of the ocean to retrieve an item one snake.
of his fellow gods had lost. They also speak of how
he created a race of ocean-living lizard people to
hold a sunken city whose location remains unknown. It
A hybrid between lizard and fish is his symbol. (The Old One Itzl in Lustria)
The three-horned beastial god of the old-ones whose
domain is all cold-blooded beasts is known only as
Ketsa ‘It’ by the people of Albion. They say ‘It’ still stalks
(The Old One Quetzl in Lustria) the world and kills those that dare oppose the wis-
Ketsa is a legendary warrior amongst the old ones dom of the old ones. It is worshipped in fear and de-
and a warrior king wielding a strange weapon of ob- picted in a variety of ways with its three horns the
sidian and metal. His deeds as a warrior and only feature never missing. The symbol is three
weaponmaker are legendary and some truthsayers spikes signifying the three horns of ‘It’.
attempt to recreate weapons in his mythic style. A
spiked club is used as his symbol.
 Campaigns in Albion The threats
Holding a campaign in Albion can be quite different Albion shares many of the threats that the empire
from holding one in the empire. The land is very dif- has. Beastmen can be found in the wilds, monsters
ferent and the primitive nature of Albion along with stalk the fens and greenskins hold a presence. There
its distinct climate makes it seem as if you are play- are also numerous Fimir in the bogs, ready to abduct
ing in another world. Embrace this. Try to make the virgins from the tribes for dark rites. Chaos worship
lands of Albion feel alien to non-natives. Make the holds a very different style here however. Long re-
lands feel primal and strange. Make the weather sisting most of it, with what little took root being
seem bizarre with rain almost ever-present. Make fought off by the truthsayers, Albion did not have a
strange flora and fauna a regular occurrence. large problem with it until the arrival of the dark
master. He corrupted many of the order to dark emis-
There are no cities saries and more have fallen since. These individuals
Albion has no true cities, Bol-a-hat is the closest and are masters of deceit and powerful spellcasters.
it would not be seen as more than a village by an im- These spread the influence of the dark master, start-
perial standard. Most people live in a tribal existence ing cults in his name and sometimes leading them
out in the wilds sleeping in caves or temporary shel- themselves. More of the Truthsayers and Dark Emis-
ters. This does a lot to change the way a campaign saries will be explained in the next chapter.
here is played. There is no infrastructure to rely on,
no large governments, no tolls, no places of civiliza- Lands corrupted
tion. It is a wild land and there is no respite from The land of Albion is corrupted by magic for the Og-
that. In the empire characters could expect to get out ham stones channel it into the isle to ground it. This
of the wilds and spend time in an urban area for a greatly helps the world but it does so at a cost for the
while, in Albion there is no such thing as urban. As a land itself. The magic seeps into the fens and makes
GM make sure to drive home how much smaller the magic effects commonplace. Show this corruption
societies are in Albion. When finding a tribe it is rea- through descriptions of the weird lands and minor
sonable to get to speak to the king, its rare they get magical encounters in the wilds. Make the players
over 100 people and the king may be their leader but feel they are not in ordinary fens and bogs but in
he is not far removed from normal people. When something far more wicked and weird.
there are permanent buildings as with a hill fort they
are likely less than 15, a far cry from the cities of the Higher fantasy but no more heroic
old world and a situation where everyone knows The isle of Albion has more magic than the main-
everyone. Don’t handwave away this aspect of their land, the winds flow here by the Oghams and seep
primitive lives, their societies are small and this af- into the land at a greater degree. More people are
fects everything. born with the gift becoming hedge witches or if they
are foreseen for greatness truthsayers. Dark Emissar-
The two species of Albion ies stalk the lands with devastating power at their
Albion has two species that coexist as the sentient fingertips following a dark lord. A campaign in this
peoples. Giants and humans. While dwarfs, elves, land, much like one in Ulthuan, will naturally feel
halflings and others could certainly visit they would more ‘high fantasy’ as magic is more common and
be very rare and unknown to most people of the land. normal people know more of it. This is as it should
Giants and humans however live in relative harmo- be but there is a pitfall easy to fall into with this and
ny. Giants are not as common as humans but they are that is equating ‘high fantasy’ with ‘heroic fantasy’.
not rare. Many tribes have one or two and there are Don’t let that happen. The greater ability to find mi-
even tribes of only giants. Make sure to include both nor charms, meet giants and trade with spellcasters
in your campaign and get interesting people that are should not let the players feel more like heroes than
both giants and humans. Also make sure to make if they were in the empire. The monsters are more
giants more than just wandering monsters, they are common but its still a bad idea to face them without
as (un)civilized as the humans of the land and no less backup. Magic isn’t as rare but that doesn’t mean it
a part of it. suddenly lacks risks. You are not raised above the
common people of Albion just because this cam-
paign setting is a bit more ‘high fantasy’.
 Warrior Career

Albian characters
If you want to play a campaign set in Albion it Woad-Warrior
would make sense to allow characters of the land, in Human, Giant
fact it may make sense to only allow such characters
or allow others only with a good reason. Thus the
following rules are here to help with that. While the
setting is perfect for it a GM should carefully consid- The tribal warriors of Albion go to war decked out in
er if he wants to include giants or not. If included woad-paint to protect them from dangers and fight
follow the rules for custom PC species on page 314 not in tight ranks like the men of the empire but as
of the core rulebook with the specie skills of Albion howling masses of fierce warriors fighting less like
humans and one random talent. Giants do not get any united armies and more as gloryseeking individuals
points in Resilience or Fate at the start and generate happening to share the same foe. Many of the kings
their career from the same table as Albion humans. and queens of Albion have won their titles as woad-
warriors and the rest have ancestors that did.
Species Skills and Talents
Skills: Animal Care, Charm Animal, Charm, Cool, New Talent:
Evaluate, Gossip, Haggle, Language (Grumbarath), Woad-Paint
Leadership, Lore (Albion) Melee (Basic), Ranged Max: DexB
The character gets the Ward (10) trait. If he or she spends at least one
(Bow) hour a day applying woad-paint. If taken multiple times halve the
Talents: Strider (Fen), Warrior Born or Coolheaded, time needed to apply woad-paint for each time (so half an hour for
2 Random Talents two ranks, a quarter for three ranks, an eight of an hour for four, a
sixteenth of an hour for five, etc).
Random Career
Apothecary 1-2
Druid 3-4 WS BS S T I Agi Dex Int Wp Fel
Teutonic Crossed Skull Shield Teutonic Teutonic
Advisor 5-6 Cross Halberds Cross Cross

Artist 7
Dark Emissary 8-9 Career Path
Noble 10
Aspiring Woad-warrior — Brass 4
Servant 11
Skills: Consume Alcohol, Cool, Endurance, Melee (Basic), Melee
Spy 12 (Brawling), Ranged (Throwing), Athletics, Dodge
Talents: Ambidextrous, Berserk Charge, Coolheaded, Warrior Born
Warden 13-14 Trappings: Handweapon
Bailiff 15
Woad-Warrior— Silver 1
Hedge Witch 16-20 Skills: Ranged (Bow), Melee (Polearm), Climb, Swim, Outdoor Survival,
Navigation
Herbalist 21-40 Talents: Woad-Paint, Dual-wielder, Frenzy, Resolute
Trappings: Two weapons of any kind
Hunter 41-60
Miner 61 Woad-Champion — Silver 3
Skills: Drive, Ride (Horse), Intimidate, Melee (Any)
Scout 62-64 Talents: Combat-Master, Battle Rage, Fleet Footed, In-fighter
Trappings: Three great trophies
Villager 65
Woad-Legend — Gold 1
Entertainer 66-68 Skills: Language (Grumbarath), Leadership
Messenger 69-70 Talents: Frightening, Furious Assault, Iron-will, Noble Blood
Trappings: A legend being told about you.
Pedlar 71-72
Huffer 73-74
Riverwoman 75-78
Wrecker 79
Outlaw 80-85
Thief 86
Guard 87-88
Pit Fighter 89
Woad-Warrior 90-100
 A tale of Truthsayers and Dark Emissaries

The Old Ones and the Truthsayers By concentrating their attack on Ulthuan and leaving
the isle of Albion, the Chaos hordes made a fatal
flaw in their plan of conquest. The Truthsayers, or
In a time long before Man first discovered the secret Druids as they were called by the people of Albion,
of fire, millennia before the first Elf learned the art gathered together the Giants and bade them also to
of the bow, a race known only as the Old construct a series of stone circles. With such im-
Ones forged the world. Legends tell of how they ma- mense strength at their disposal, the Truthsayers
nipulated the ebb and flow of magic to mould the soon had a great many of these circles whose mysti-
land to their will and of how they sowed the seeds cal properties would allow them to channel their
that would form into the vast forests that cover the spells and bind the forces of Chaos to the north.
world. The races of Elves, Dwarfs and Men were
like children to them, whom they nurtured and In many ways their mastery of this form of magic
taught. It is said that even the great Dragons were was better than that of the Elves. Not only were they
mere playthings to these godlike beings.[3a] able to contain the Chaos mists, but they were also
In time, the Old Ones chose the island of Albion as able to use the stones to weave their own veil of fog
one of the locations to build their homes. Little is around their island, protecting what they called the
known of their settlements for few have ever visited Ogham Stones from danger. The Elves would cer-
Albion, let alone returned from this mysterious tainly have been overrun had the Druids of Albion
place. They forged an island paradise where the sun not stemmed the flow. But the mist that shrouded the
shone bright and the crops flourished. Gathering to- isle also blocked out the sun. Something in the na-
gether the wisest and bravest individuals of each ture of the stone circles attracted rain and storms,
race, they taught them magic and other skills. They and over a short period of time the fertile land of Al-
demonstrated the secret of forging runes to the bion became a boggy region where few crops grew.
Dwarfs and to the Elves they taught the mastery of
spellcasting. In absorbing much of the Chaos energy, the soil of
Albion itself became tainted and once fertile fields
The Old Ones believed that the race they called Man quickly changed into quagmires where a man could
was too primitive to learn, but they were quickly sur- sink without trace. The thick woods and forests be-
prised at the speed Mankind adapted to its surround- came wild places where hawthorn and poisonous
ings. They were so impressed that they chose to plants choked the life from the trees. Many feared to
teach a select few of the cave-dwelling tribesmen enter these once beautiful glades, and many of those
some of their secrets. Those they taught went by the who did were never seen again. Even the creatures of
name of Truthsayers for it was their duty to teach the Albion were not able to escape the mutating effects
other tribesmen the true path to enlightenment. They of Chaos and after only a short period of time the
instructed their students to spread across the world tribesfolk told tales of terrible monsters lurking in
and populate the continents, whilst all the time the the darkest reaches, emerging at night to prey upon
Old Ones kept a watchful eye over their subjects. the unwary.
They, in turn, were worshipped as gods, and temples
were erected in their honour. The race of Man im- It was a price the Truthsayers had little choice but to
pressed the Old Ones the most for he seemed to be pay. If the dark forces of Chaos were to be con-
able to adapt to any climate, and small tribes quickly tained, then Albion had to remain hidden. The Truth-
flourished in every corner of the world. sayers gave the task of guarding these stone circles
to the Giants who had constructed them. Said to have
Carvings upon the Slann pyramid temples found been formed from the earth itself, these Giants were
deep within the jungles of Lustria and the earliest highly intelligent beings and knew the importance of
songs of the High Elf bards tell of a Great Catastro- their vigilance. For a while stability was created.
phe that befell the noble Old Ones. A magical gate-
way, their portal to other distant worlds, collapsed, During all this time the Truthsayers continued to
and they were forced to flee the fledgeling world that teach a chosen few of each successive generation
they had created lest they become stranded. Unable their secret magic, waiting for the day when their
to help those races they had brought into the world, masters would return. Each Truthsayer would be
the Old Ones had little choice but to leave them to taught in minute detail the ritual ceremonies that
fend for themselves. Their parting gift was to create were needed to maintain the mists that enveloped the
a race of giant warriors to protect the people of Albi- island. They would each learn of the nature of the
on. stones and the offerings that must be made so that
the magical power of these circles never waned. As part of his curse, a destiny was placed upon this
Over time, though, the ancient lores were slowly for- now insubstantial and random Chaos spirit. Over
gotten and, although the Truthsayers still practised thousands of years, there have been many Chaos in-
their art, it was but a shadow compared to the pow- vasions of the world, led by all manner of fell dae-
ers that used to be at their command. Some practices mons and mortal warriors. However, some of these
still survived, though, and on the night of each full leaders stand out from the others, mighty conquering
moon the Truthsayers would gather and perform cer- champions particularly favoured by the Dark Gods.
emonies in order that the mystical energies remained These powerful leaders have each united the follow-
bound to the stones. ers of the dark gods of Chaos and led the great incur-
sions of Chaos that have ravaged the world. Each
The Dark Master and his emissaries one of these invasions could well have overtaken
everything, but each has been pushed back at great
cost. The mark of the Chaos gods’ favour on the ele-
The powerful being called, in these times, the Dark vated warlord who leads the incursions is the dread
Master has been known over the centuries by count- Crown of Domination, a powerful symbol to the
less other titles and names, including the Harbinger, creatures of Chaos that the Greater Gods have
the Bearer and the Darkening. It is written in ancient marked out this mortal leading their armies.
tomes that the creature’s original name was Be'lakor,
but this is known only amongst a few scholars spe- Before each coming of these powerful incarnations
cialising in the forbidden texts, for this entity is of Chaos, Be’lakor wakes from his tortured insanity.
thousands upon thousands of years old. A being of It is his curse to lead these mighty warlords to the
eternal despair and doom, the Dark Master was once eternal resting place of the Crown of Domination, to
a mortal being - indeed it is widely believed that he guide them along the hidden paths where they must
was the first earthly creature to achieve eternal life, face a number of mortal challenges in order to prove
being raised to the status of daemonhood by his in- themselves in the eyes of the gods. Once the crown
fernal masters for countless deeds that attracted their has been retrieved, it is the Dark Master who is com-
attention and favour. pelled to complete the ceremony, and place the
crown on the warlord’s brow in a dark coronation,
Reborn into his new body as a Daemon Prince, the the fallen Daemon Prince filled with jealousy and
Dark Master was a terrifying and overwhelming hatred. Once the crown has been placed upon the
creature, and soon came to be worshipped as a deity warlord’s brow, Be'lakor begins to fade back into his
in his own right. With unimaginable power at his mad state of existence, no how much he struggles to
fingertips, Be’lakor strode at the forefront of the ar- resist the pull of insanity. Each time he witnesses the
mies of Chaos, leading endless legions of daemons rise of the Uniter of Chaos he is painfully reminded
in great wars that ravaged the land. No mortal could that they take the place that is rightfully his own.
stand before him, and he slaughtered thousands at a Such is his curse, that he must aid them on their path
whim. to greatness, filled with the knowledge that it is they
and not he who will lead the glorious incursions
As his powers grew stronger with each passing day, against the mortal world.
so too did his pride, which was to prove his down-
fall. And so for a sixth time the Dark Master rose from
his madness and regained his wits in order to fulfill
Swollen with arrogance and pride, Be’lakor eventu- this preordained fate. Be’lakor’s memories of what
ally incited the anger of the Greater Gods of Chaos. occurred in his past resurfaced, and he once again
It is written in the dark volumes that he saw himself recalled how he was hurled from his exalted status
as equal to the gods of Chaos rather than giving into darkness. Hatred towards the higher powers of
them their worthy respect, and that it was this act Chaos filled his being, and he was determined not to
which caused his fall from grace. The Dark Master let history repeat itself once more. Be'lakor set about
was cast down from his exalted position and cursed on a desperate action that would enable him to avoid
by Tzeentch, the Changer of the Ways. From being fulfilling his pre-ordained destiny and regain what
the favoured son of Chaos, he became a hate-filled he had lost. Before the rising warlord was ready to
and confused spirit-creature, denied physical form. receive the crown, the Dark Master swept unseen
His sanity was stripped from him and he became a over Albion, recognising that this isle held the key to
random and unpredictable entity that ruled a dark his chance for escape, feeling the pulse of magical
realm of his own madness. For thousands of years energy emanating from it. He alone knew the resting
the Dark Master has existed in insanity, time drag- place of the Crown of Domination, although it is part
ging agonisingly slowly, each passing minute feeling of his curse that he cannot touch the Crown until the
to him like a month. The confines of his tortured hand of the chosen warrior retrieved it. However, if
mind is constantly awash with random thoughts and the power of the Albion Ogham stones focused into
ideas, filled with frustration, anger and hatred. his being, Be'lakor realised he could regain his much
-coveted physical form and breach the defences that the time of unholy coronation came.
kept the Crown of Domination out of his reach. If he
could claim the Crown for himself, it would be he As the forces of darkness faltered, they began to turn
who could claim the mantle of the Uniting Warlord upon each other, and former allies killed many of the
of Chaos, and it would be he who would lead the Dark Emissaries. The Truthsayers, united within the
daemonic legions on their rampage into the mortal Bastion of the Old Ones, began to perform powerful
lands of the south. Be'lakor set about attracting serv- incantations, their magic converging to counter the
ants, those he could corrupt and lure to his side, for assault of the Dark Master. In a fit of rage the Dark
he needed minions to do his bidding and focus the Master, now almost completely in solid, corporeal
power into himself. form, realised that his plans had been thwarted. He
knew that with the advance of his forces halted, he
The Dark Master turned his attentions to the Truth- could not filter enough power into himself in time.
sayers of Albion, the protectors of the Ogham As his destiny began to pull at him, he knew that he
stones, and set about weeding out those who he could not resist.
could turn against their brethren. Promised great
power and gifted with potent magic, these so- His semi-formed, shadowy figure filled with power,
called Dark Emissaries began to abuse their ancient the Dark Master rose to his full majesty and swept
knowledge of the Ogham stones, turning their power from the towering Citadel of Lead as his destiny
towards feeding and fuelling the power of the Dark tugged him unwittingly onwards, leaving his min-
Master. A tremendous battle erupted between the ions to continue their battle against the Truthsayers
Dark Emissaries and the Truthsayers, both groups without him.
seeking help from far shores, securing allies from all
the comers of the Warhammer World, and the battles But with his new-found power, a number of realisa-
escalated. Thus, the War of Albion was begun. tions came to Be'lakor. He knew that the great incur-
sions were becoming more frequent, and the time
Albion was soon soaked in blood and devastation, was nearing when the world would be assailed by
and countless stone circles-had been desecrated, one almighty incursion that would last until the end
their power turned to infernal, abhorrent uses. Be’la- of time. It did not matter how long this incursion
kor revelled in the bloodshed and horror. As they would take to conquer the lands, centuries perhaps,
gained control of the stone circles, the Dark Emis- for time is nothing to the gods of Chaos. Hatred
saries used their corrupted powers to siphon off the burned through the Dark Master, for he knew that he
wild energy of the land, sucking the vitality from the would not be leading the forces of Chaos in these
isle of Albion to feed their Dark Master. As his pow- final, glorious battles.
ers grew, the shadowy Daemon Prince grew increas-
ingly more solid, and he gloried as he slowly began With this hatred came another curious thought.
to regain his long lost physical form. Be'lakor realised that with the power he had gathered
into himself during the war on Albion, he was able
Goading his minions ever onwards, and greedy for to resist descending back into madness. He was free
the feel of material form, Be'lakor knew that his of his cursed destiny. Though he had not achieved
chance to escape his doomed fate had come. He be- all that he had dreamed, the Dark Master was far
gan to exert his own power as it grew, and many on from finished with his treacherous scheming.
Albion could feel his dark shadow like an oppressive Scheming against the gods, chaos or otherwise,
cloud hanging in the sky. To others, this feeling was scheming against the world, scheming against all to
more intense, and the Truthsayers themselves could become a god himself. And to aid him in this he re-
feel the power of the Dark Master as a heavy pres- tains his dark emissaries.
sure forcing itself into their minds. At the same time,
Be’lakor began to probe the defences surrounding The Dark Emissaries on their hand spread the cor-
the Crown of Domination, feeling them begin to ruption across the land, creating cults to their Dark
yield before him. Master and waging a shadow-war against the Truth-
sayers who protect the land from evil. Sometimes
Meanwhile, the forces of the Truthsayers had been bringing in outsiders to fight these battles for them
busy securing new allies, and the forces of darkness leading to invasions and the spread of civilization.
were ground to a halt. The Dark Master raged, for he The failed imperial colony of Neuland is said to
knew that time was short. He could feel that far to have been mired in their influence and when it fell
the north, the time was nearing when the powerful cults of the Dark Master journeyed back to the em-
warlord was ready to receive the Crown of Domina- pire along the retreating colonists.
tion. The Dark Master knew that he must have the
powerful artifact within his grasp before then, for
even his will could not resist the pull of fate that
would require him to fulfill his hated destiny when
 Playing Truthsayers
The truthsayers of Albion is an ancient order follow-
ing the words of the old ones and using mighty mag-
ic. They are strong of body and of mind able to ac- Gift of Life
complish deeds of legend. But not anyone can be- CN: 6
Range: WPB yards
come one, not even anyone with the gift for magic. Target: One ally in range.
They must be fated for greatness through difficult to Duration: Instant
read signs interpreted by the great truthsayers. Then The target immediately regains all lost wounds or one bleeding con-
they may embark upon the journey to become druids dition (casters choice).
and should they succeed beyond expectation they Special: This spell is available to druids, it is not added to the spell list
may become true truthsayers. for all characters with access to arcane magic.

As a GM consider if you want to have a Truthsayer

in your game carefully before allowing them as PCs,
they are first and foremost intended as NPCs as their
mystical and legendary nature can easily be diluted
by a player using them. Academic Career

New Talents:
Woad-Paint
Truthsayer
Max: DexB Human
The character gets the Ward (10) trait. If he or she spends at least one
hour a day applying woad-paint. If taken multiple times halve the
time needed to apply woad-paint for each time (so half an hour for
two ranks, a quarter for three ranks, an eight of an hour for four, a
sixteenth of an hour for five, etc). WS BS S T I Agi Dex Int Wp Fel
Shield Teutonic Crossed Teutonic Teutonic Skull
Cross Halberds Cross Cross
Triskele
Max: WpB
Tests: Language (Magick) to counter spells
Tattoos of the holy Triskele of the old ones protect this character Career Path
from all harm. The character gets the Ward (5) trait against the X
first attacks directed at him each battle. X is equal to the characters Novice Druid— Silver 1
ranks in this talent. Skills: Animal Care, Channeling (Qhaysh), Charm Animal, Cool, Entertain
(Storytelling), Language (Magick), Language (Grumbarath), Lore (Albion)
Talents: Aethyric Atunement, Petty Magic, Woad-paint, Warrior Born
New Trappings: Trappings: Spear or Staff
Staff of light
This staff can only be wielded by a truthsayer. A truthsayer wielding Druid— Silver 5
it counts it as a spear in melee but may also counter one more spell Skills: Athletics, Art (Tattoo), Charm, Dodge, Heal, Lore (Old Ones)
Talents: Animal Affinity, Arcane Magic (Life), Arcane Magic (Light), Holy
than normal using ”Language (Magick)”.
Visions
Trappings: Spear or Staff
New arcane spells:
Druid Elder — Gold 1
Skills: Endurance, Intimidate, Leadership, Outdoor Survival
Blessing of Valor Talents: Triskele, Commanding Presence, Instinctive Diction, Iron Will
CN: 4 Trappings: Spear or Staff
Range: Willpower yards
Target: Two allies in range. Truthsayer — Gold 5
Duration: Instant Skills: Climb, Track
The targets are blessed with courage and valor. Each target gets one Talents: Attractive, Combat Master, Noble Blood, War Wizard
Trappings: Staff of Light
advantage and can not lose that advantage until the beginning of
your next turn. You can spend +2SL to increase the ammount of
advantages received by 1 any number of times.
Special: This spell is available to druids, it is not added to the spell
list for all characters with access to arcane magic.

Boon of courage
CN: 8
Range: Willpower yards
Target: Two allies in range.
Duration: WPB rounds times three
The targets are immune to psychology for the duration of the spell.
Special: This spell is available to druids, it is not added to the spell
list for all characters with access to arcane magic.
 Playing Dark Emissaries
The dark emissaries of Albion are a vile order origi- Ciaran and the new spells
nating from corrupted truthsayers. Their dark council In the scenario Ciaran does not have any of
has twisted many to the service of the dark master, these unique spells, trappings or talents.
knowingly or not. The talents and trappings should not be
changed but if you wish it fits perfectly for
As a GM consider if you want to have a Dark Emis- him to know the three unique spells of the
sary in your game carefully before allowing them as dark emissaries.
PCs, they are first and foremost intended as NPCs as
their dark and vile nature can seem weird in the
hands of a player and dramatically shift the kind of
game you are playing.

New Talents:

Dark Spiral of the Master

Max: WpB
Courtier Career
Tests: Language (Magick) to cast against enemies
Tattoos of the dark spiral of Bel’akor adorn the caster. When the Dark
Emissary casts a spell he gains the Ward (8) trait for a number of
rounds equal to his ranks in this talent.
Dark Emissary
Human
New Trappings:
Staff of Darkness
This staff can only be wielded by a Dark Emissary. A dark emissary
wielding it counts it as a quarterstaff in melee but also adds one SL
WS BS S T I Agi Dex Int Wp Fel
to any spells targeting an enemy.
Shield Crossed Teutonic Teutonic Skull Teutonic
Halberds Cross Cross Cross

New arcane spells:

Bolt of Dark Light Career Path

CN: 8
Range: Willpower yards Dark Apprentice— Silver 1
Target: 1 Skills: Bribery, Channeling (Dhar), Charm, Gossip, Haggle, Intimidate,
Duration: Instant Language (Magick), Lore (Albion)
Talents: Petty Magic, Briber, Cat-tongued, Criminal
The target is struck by a ray of dark energy ripping apart flesh and
Trappings: Staff, Dark cloaks
lifeforce as the caster madly cackles. The target suffers +10 damage.
Special: This spell is available to dark emissaries, it is not added to Dark Emissary— Silver 5
the spell list for all characters with access to arcane magic. Skills: Cool, Consume Alcohol, Evaluate, Entertain (Acting), Language
(Any one), Lore (Chaos)
Waking Nightmare Talents: Dark Spiral of the Master, Arcane Magic (Shadow), Arcane Magic
(Death), Kingpin
CN: 2 Trappings: Strange mask
Range: Willpower yards
Target: 1 Dark Herald — Gold 1
Duration: Instant Skills: Language (Any one), Leadership, Secret Signs (Any one), Stealth
The target gets nightmarish visions and must struggle against the (Any one)
will of the dark emissary. The target tests cool opposed by the dark Talents: Etiquette (Any), Linguistics, Lip Reading, Master of Disguise
emissaries intimidate. If failed the target suffers two broken con- Trappings: A weak-willed minion
ditions. 2SL can be used to increase the broken conditions by one.
Dark Lord — Gold 5
Special: This spell is available to dark emissaries, it is not added to Skills: Melee (Basic)
the spell list for all characters with access to arcane magic. Talents: Etiquette (Any), Master Orator, Night Vision, Hatred (Any)
Trappings: Staff of Darkness
Fog of Death
CN: 15
Range: Two times Willpower yards
Target: All enemies in range, special
Duration: Instant
A fog comes up from the ground and deadly shapes move in the
mists. All enemies in range are affected, all allies or neutral parties
other than the Dark Emissary has a 50% risk of being affected. All
affected units suffer +4 damage.
Special: This spell is available to dark emissaries, it is not added to
the spell list for all characters with access to arcane magic.