Monster A C MV H D T H A C 0 # A T Damage SA SD A L

Griffon 3

HobgoblinKenderKender

(Hugon Barker)Lamia NobleLeopard, SnowLizard, SubterraneanMan, BanditMan, City GuardMan, FarmerMan, Highseeker

MasterCouncilor

Man, Holy GuardianMan, HunterMan, NightshadeMan, PlainsmanMan (Raven-eye)Man, RefugeeMan (Sunstar)Man, TownsmanMastodon, SkeletonMummyOgrePegasus

58

12, Fl 30(C, D mounted)

96

71 + 1

1

5 6 33 9 10+16 1 5 3 + 25 12 68 1 2 1d48 1 2 210 12 2

884810109108104356

7542423121

1 36 + 34 + 1

PiercerPudding, Deadly (Dun)Ram. GiantRat, GiantRoperSatyrsShadowShriekerSkeletonSkeleton WarriorSlug, GiantSnake, PoisonousSpectral Minion,GuardianSpectral Minion,PhilosopherSpectreSpider, HugeSpriteSylphTreantTrollVulture, GiantWarthogWhite StagWightWill o� WispWolfWolf, DireWolf, WinterWraithWyvernZombie

3777057777

286

121 21 21 2121212121 21 21 569

24, Fl 48(C, D mounted)

11 212

12, SW 63

181 21

1 26615

42

8 + 12

1d4 hp105

3 + 331

9 + 1 212

2 + 1

2 30 6

2 30 42 15, Fl 30(B) 7 + 36 18 2 + 26 9, Fl 18(B) 1

9 12. Fl 36(A) 30 1 2 114 12 6 + 67 3, Fl 24(D) 2 + 27 12 3

- 5 24 105 1 2 4 + 3

- 8 Fl 18(A) 97 18 2 + 26 18 4 + 45 18 64 12, FL 24(B) 5 + 33 6, Fl 24(E) 7 + 78 6 2

131919

171 11715

17-19

1919

1 31517191 719171919197

1317

17191 3192011151 71 71911919

15

171319191 791319171115111915151 51319

311

1131111

1111111111411

31111

1 + 11101111

1

111102312311111121

1d4/1d4/2d8 NilWeapon Nil

1d6 Sp.

NilNil

Sp.

NLE

LN/CN

1d4 Sp. Sp. CG1d6 Sp. Nil CE

1d3/1d3/1d6 Sp. Sp. N2d6 Sp. Nil N1d6 Nil Nil NE1d6 Nil Nil N1d6 Nil Nil N

1d8 Nil Nil CG1d8 Nil Nil CG1d8 Nil Nil LG1d6 Nil Nil N1d4 Nil Nil LG1d6 Nil Nil CG1d4 Nil Nil CG1d4 Nil Nil N1d4 Nil Nil CG1d4 Nil Nil N

2d8/2d8/2d6/2d6 Nil Nil N1d12 Sp. Sp. LE1d10 + 2 damage Nil CE

1d8/1d8/1d3 Sp. Nil2d6 Surprise Nil4d6 Sp. Sp.1d4 Charge Nil1d3 Disease Nil

Sp. + 5d4 Sp. Sp.2d4 or weapon Sp. Sp.

1d4+1, sp. Sp. Sp.Nil Nil Noise1d6 Nil Sp.

1d12 Sp. Sp.1d12 Acid Sp.

1 Poison Nil

CGNNN

N(E)CEN

CENN

NN

1d8 Nil Nil LG

1d4 Nil Nil N1d8 Sp. Sp. LE1d6 Sp. Nil N

1d4 or 1d3 Sp. Sp. N(G)Nil Sp. Sp. N(G)

4db/4d6 Sp. Sp. CG1d4+1/1d4+1/1d8+4 Sp. Sp. CE

1d4 Nil Nil N2d4/1d8 Nil Nil N

1d6/ld6/1d12 Nil Nil LG1d4 Sp. Sp. L E2d8 Sp. SP CE

1d4+1 Nil Nil N2d4 Nil Nil N2d4 Frost Nil NE1d6 Sp. sp. LE

1d6/2d8 Poison Nil N(E)1d8 Nil Nil N

AbbreviationsAC = Armor Class, AL = Alignment. #AT = Number of attacks per round, CE = Chaotic Evil, CG = Chaotic Good. HD = Hit Dice. hp = hit points,LE = Lawful Evil, LG = Lawful Good, MV = Movement Rate, N = True Neutral, NE = Neutral Evil. NG = Neutral Good, SA = Special Attacks.SD = Special Defenses, Sp. = Special, THAC0 = Number needed To Hit AC 0 1990 TSR, Inc All Rights Reserved.

The best-selling DRAGONLANCE® saga begins again, better than ever before!

TSR, Inc. TSR, Ltd.POB 756 120 Church End, Cherry Hinton

Lake Geneva Cambridge CB1 3LBWI 53147 U.S.A. United Kingdom

ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, AD&D, DRAGONLANCE, PRODUCTS OF YOUR IMAGINATION, and the TSR logo are trademarks owned by TSR, Inc.

Official Game Adventure

DRAGONLANCE® Classics,Volume 1

by Hickman, Niles, and Dobson

Table of Contents

Prologue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Much is revealed to the Dungeonmaster.

Chapter 1: The Road Travels East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Darkness spreads over the land, and the heroes move toward an ancient city.

Chapter 2: Lost City of the Ancients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22The heroes reach Xak Tsaroth, a once-great city.

Chapter 3: Descent into Darkness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Beneath the ruined buildings of Xak Tsaroth lies the greater city and its lost glories.

Chapter 4: Lair of the Dragon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29A mighty dragon guards treasure and knowledge in the ancient ruins.

Epilogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 3 5More and greater trials lie ahead for the heroes.

Chapter 5: Que-Kiri and the Plains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36The fires of the Dragon Highlords spread.

Chapter 6: Solace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 8Dragonmen hold sway over first home and the Last Home.

Chapter 7: The Slave Caravan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 1The wagons move toward the slave mines of Pax Tharkas.

Chapter 8: Elvenhome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 5The heroes rest, hear songs and legends, and, learn of the Sla- Mori.

Chapter 9: To the Walls of Pax Tharkas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50Through the perilous tunnels of the Sla-Mori.

Chapter 10: The Tharkadan Towers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 5In the heart of the Dragon Highlord’s dark fortress.

Epilogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 65Though a great task has been completed, the quest beckons.

The Refugees of Pax Tharkas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 6The plight of the refugees is explained for the Dungeonmaster.

Chapter 11: The Way . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 8The heroes attempt to find safety and shelter for the refugees of Pax Tharkas.

Chapter 12: The Outpost Mines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77The heroes discover remnants of a once-mighty dwarven kingdom.

Chapter 13: Skullcap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 1The tomb of Fistandantilus is found, and the mysteries of the Dwarfgate War revealed.

Epilogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..89Events to come cast their shadows, and the fate of the refugees is revealed.

Chapter 14: The Doors of Thorbardin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 1The heroes dream dark dreams and seek a long-lost kingdom.

Chapter 15: The North Gate of the Dwarves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 4Entering Thorbardin, the heroes encounter evil and a legendary dwarf.

Chapter 16: The Honor of the Hylar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98The Council of Thanes meets, and the heroes receive a quest.

Chapter 17: Kalil S’rith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101The heroes seek a mystical treasure in the Kingdom of the Dead.

Chapter 18: Dark Realms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0 6Verminaard returns for the final confrontation.

Epilogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 0This book of the saga ends, but the path is long ahead.

Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

CREDITS:

Editing and Development: Mike BreaultOriginal Story and Design: Tracy Hickman,

Harold Johnson, Douglas Niles andMichael Dobson

Interior Illustrations: Jeff Butler,Jeff Easley, Larry Elmore, andKeith Parkinson

Original Cartography: Diesel, DennisKarth, Elizabeth Riedel, BillyClemons, and Steven Sullivan

Songs: Tracy Hickman, Carl Smith, andMichael Wil l iams

Additional Cartography: Sarah Feggestad

Distributed to the book trade in the United States by RandomHouse, Inc., and in Canada by Random House of Canada, Ltd. Dis-tributed to the toy and hobby trade by regional distributors. Dis-tributed in the United Kingdom by TSR Ltd.

A D V A N C E D D U N G E O N S & D R A G O N S , A D & D ,DRAGONLANCE, PRODUCTS OF YOUR IMAGINATION, and theTSR logo are trademarks owned by TSR, Inc.

This adventure is protected under the copyright laws of the UnitedStates of America. Any reproduction or other unauthorized use ofthe material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without theexpress written permission of TSR, Inc.

Permission granted to photocopy or print this product for personal use.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in U.S.A.

Let your mind float free, Dungeon-master; enter the mind of Astinus ofPalanthus, Lorekeeper of Krynn, whosighs as he rises from the crystalglobe of wisdom, weary from travel-ing the world in his spirit form, wearyfrom following the trails of history totheir ends Slowly he stands, andshuffles across the floor to a tablepiled high with parchment scrolls, Hedips a quill pen into an inkpot and be-gins once more to scribe.

. . . Darkness has fallen over poor, suf-fering Krynn. Thus it has been sincethe great Cataclysm, when the oldworld fell. Curse the High Priest of Is-tar, whose pride caused him to give or-ders to the True Gods! For the Godspunished Krynn for this blasphemy,and much was forever lost. Lost werethe great cities, the accumulated wis-dom and knowledge of many genera-tions. Lost as well was all knowledgeof the True Gods, and mankind sankinto idolatry. Priests lost their power,and mankind lost hope for its salva-tion.

But hope always spring from themost modest of causes, and so it wasthat the lnnfellows began the salva-tion of Krynn. Originally there wereseven: Tanis, Kitiara, Flint, Tasslehoff,Raistlin, Caramon, and Sturm. Fiveyears ago they set out from the Inn ofthe Last Home, seeking knowledge ofthe True Gods. In five years they foundnothing, and so all returned to thesleepy town of Solace, the tree-citybuilt in a vallenwood grove. All re-turned save one: Kitiara the beautiful,whose whereabouts are yet unknown.

Tanis is the leader, a half-elf born ofan elf mother who was taken by a hu-man turned savage in the terribletimes that followed the Cataclysm.The elves took him in, and he wasraised in Qualinesti, elfhome. But he isever torn between his human and el-ven halves, and has found the wan-der lust s t rong wi th in h im He hasroamed the world and seen much. Hisheart is split between the fiery Kitiara,a human woman, and the elf maidLaurana.

Caramon and Raistlin are twins—yet unlike as night and day. Caramonis bright, Raistlin is dark. Caramon is afighter of great strength and courage;

Raistlin is a mage gone cynical, adoubter. They have survived great andterrible trials. The tests that Raistlinunderwent to become a mage left himwith skin the color of gold and pupilsthe shape of hourglasses—he sees theconstant, terrible effects of time.

Sturm Brightblade is the son of aKnight of Solamnia. Now taking upthe mantle of his father, his most puis-sant knightly aim is to die nobly in abattle against his enemies. His mottois Perunde ocadaver—ObedienceUnto Death. He is a man of militarybear ing, o f great d ign i ty , and ofpower—a true knight.

Flint Fireforge is a fighter of the hilld w a r f r a c e , d i s t r u s t f u l o f a l l —including other dwarven races (espe-cial ly the cursed Aghar, the gullydwarves). Now of grandfatherly age,he is but two dwarven generations re-moved from the great Cataclysm it-self! His family was killed through theneglect of the mountain dwarves, andnow he seeks to avenge his people.

Tasslehoff Burrfoot is a handler (Iwould say thief) of the kender people,a halfling in size but a giant in curios-ity. He is a treasure of odd informa-tion, of useful insights, and of cleversolutions to knotty problems.

These are the original Innfellows,but the puzzle is not yet complete. Ontheir journeys, the heroes will meetothers who seek to battle the evil thatthreatens all.

Where will the heroes, armed withscant knowledge, go from here? Theymust hurry, else Krynn is doomed.

A l t h o u g h w e a r y , I m u s t k e e pwatching. I shall return to my goldenchair, once again gaze into the crystalglobe, and let my spiritjoin the lnnfel-lows on their quest. . .

From the lconochronos of Astinusof Palanthus, Lorekeeper of Krynn,in the 351st year after the Cataclysm.

The World of Krynn

There are important differences be-tween the world of Krynn and stand-ard AD&D® game campaigns.

True priests have been unknown inK r y n n f o r c e n t u r i e s . T h e r e a r epriests, but they do not have spellpowers s ince they worsh ip fa l segods. PC priests who enter Krynn

4

f r o m o t h e r w o r l d s l o s e a l l t h e i rpowers (but these can be regained, ifall goes well).

All PC elves are Qualinesti elves.O t h e r e l v e s a p p e a r i n l a t e rDRAGONLANCE ® adventure mod-ules.

The equivalent of a halfling in thisworld is called a kender. Kender re-semble wizened 14-year-olds and,unl ike hal f l ings, they wear shoes.These folk have two special abilities(in addition to the usual halfling abili-ties):

1. Taunt. Kender are masters at en-raging others by verbal abuse. Anycreature a kender taunts must roll asuccessful saving throw vs. spell orattack wildly at once for 1d10 roundswith a -2 penalty to their attack rolland a +2 pena l t y to the i r a rmorclass.2. Fearlessness. Kender are immunet o f e a r , b o t h m a g i c a l a n d n o n -magical. They are, however, curiousabout everything—a tendency thatoften gets them into trouble.

Finally, dragons have been absentfrom Krynn for nearly 1,000 years.They are considered merely legendsby all who have not personally be-h e l d t h e m . C h a r a c t e r s m a y b ethought foolish, or liars, if they talkabout dragons to the wrong people.

Gold is worth a lot less on Krynnthan on o the r campa ign wo r l ds .Steel is the metal standard on Krynn;one steel piece (stl) is the equivalentof one standard gp in purchasingpower (i.e., on Krynn, the prices forcommon items found in the Player’sHandbook are in stl rather than gp).But when players from other cam-paigns convert their gp to stl, theirwealth decreases greatly. The officialconversions are as follows: 1 stl = 10gp = 20 sp = 100 cp = 2 ip (ironpieces) = 2 bp (bronze pieces) = 1/5pp.

(The most commonly given reasonfor the relative values placed on goldand s tee l i s tha t , i n a wor ld aswracked by turmoil and conflict asKrynn, a metal that can be craftedinto weapons is much more valuablethan a soft, fragile metal.)

T h e D R A G O N L A N C E ® saga is acomplex epic, filled with detail, leg-end, and history not found in mostmodules. To run this adventure prop-erly, you must think of it as a story,and try to motivate your players sub-tly to follow the right path. It is partic-ularly important that you read theadventure several t imes, visual izethe story, and think about the differ-ent things your players might do. Nomatter what, it will be necessary foryou to improvise from time to time.

Several enemy NPCs, members ofthe Dragonarmies appear through-out this adventure. Try to make themhave “obscure deaths” i f they arekilled; if at all possible, their bodiesshould not be found. Then, when theN P C s a p p e a r l a t e r , y o u h a v e achance to explain their presence. Becreative; think up an explanation fortheir “miraculous” survival . I f th isbecomes awkward, or your playersbecome suspicious, then let the NPCdie, but be prepared to create a simi-lar (but not identical) NPC to take thedead NPC’s place later in the adven-ture. If you are willing to do this, youmay eliminate the “obscure death”rule entirely.

After Goldmoon becomes the firsttrue priest on Krynn, other priestsmay obtain spellcasting powers bydedicating theselves to the worshipof Mishakal or Paladine. Goldmoon’sMedallion of Faith will create Medal-lions for other true priests.

Sections of boxed text contain in-formation that should be conveyedto the players. You may either readthe text to the players verbatim, oryou may paraphrase it.

At certain times in the adventure,characters may have to make anAbility check. If such a check is nec-essary, the player rolls 1d20. If the re-sult is equal to or less than the PC’sappropriate ability score (Strength,W isdom, Dexterity, etc.), the checksucceeds.

NPCs: Statistics and other infor-mation for NPCs are found either inthe NPC capsules (pages 116-117),for major NPCs, or on the CombinedMons te r S ta t i s t i cs Char t ( i ns idecover), for minor NPCs.

Keep in mind that the statistics

given for an NPC are those at thetime the PCs first meet that NPC. Ifthe PCs have gone up in level sincethe first time they met this NPC, theNPC should have advanced also. Ifthe PCs easily overpowered an evilNPC the first time they met, advancethe NPC faster than the PCs. Con-versely, if the NPC got the better ofthe PCs, have him advance slowerthan the PCs.

The supplementary NPCs (Laur-ana, Elistan, etc.), l isted on pages114-115, can be attached to the partyas NPCs when they are met (unlessthe text says otherwise). They cannotbe used as player characters duringthe course of the adventures in thisbook (though this option is availablelater in the saga).

Players and PCs: Don’t feel thatyou and yourplayers have to march inlock step with the DRAGONLANCEnovels! Feel free to allow your play-ers to play the DRAGONLANCE sagawith characters from other worlds.This wi l l entai l some juggl ing onyour part, as certain portions of thisadventure (dream cards, for exam-ple) refer to specific characters in thesaga. Reassign them to the most ap-propriate members of your party.

Be sure that any PCs you allow intoKrynn are no more powerful than thePCs depicted on the cover of this ad-venture. Lower their levels and stripthem of their fancy armor, weapons,and devices, if need be (if the playersprotest, stand firm to keep the ad-venture balanced).

If your players decide to use theheroes of the saga as their PCs, givethem the character cards on thecover. Each player gets 500 stl toequip his character at the beginningof the adventure (the items listed onthe cards already belong to the PCsand don’t have to be paid for).

Try to ensure that the PCs don’trise in level too fast (or the adventuremight become too easy for them). Again of one level per four chapters orso is good.

Though this adventure follows afairly set story line, part of your job isto mask this from the players. Whenonly one choice out of several will ad-vance the PCs along in the adven-ture, use your wiles to subtly make

5

that choice the most logical, mostappealing one for your players. Onlyyou can do this, as only you knowhow to best tantalize your particulargroup of garners. This is a test ofyour skills as a DM—to keep yourplayers interested and to make thembelieve that they are free to makeany choice they wish.

While reading this adventure priorto play, note the various methodsgiven in the text for steering way-ward players back into the story (thewhite stag, etc.). Make a list of theseand add a number of your own. Asyou use each one during the adven-ture, cross it off—try not to use thesame method twice. Also, don’t letyour players get the impression thatno matter what choice they make,you’ll steer them back on course withno harm done. Set a batch of dracon-ians on them every so often whenthey stray, then let them limp backon track. Teach them that thinkingthings through often avoids danger-ous situations.

Events and Encounters: Most ofthe occurrences within each chapterof this adventure are categorized aseither events or encounters. Eventsare t r iggered at speci f ic t imes orwhen specific conditions have beenmet. Encounters are triggered whent h e P C s e n t e r a s p e c i f i c a r e a .Encounters occur as soon as the PCsenter the indicated area, unless oth-erwise noted in the text. Be sure tokeep careful track of time and loca-t ion so you know which event orencounter to run next.

Time: Assuming that you have theDRAGONLANCE Adventures hard-back book, try to keep track of thephases of the moons of Krynn, not-ing how these affect the wizards ofthe various Orders. (In this adven-ture, Raistlin is a wizard of the RedRobes.)

Hear the sage as his song descendslike heaven�s rain or tears,

and washes the years, the dust of the many storiesfrom the High Tale of the Dragonlance.

For in ages deep, past memory and word,in the first blush of the world

when the three moons rose from the lap of the forest,dragons, terrible and great

made war on this world of Krynn.

Yet out of the darkness of dragons,out of our cries for light

in the blank face of the black moon soaring,a banked light flared in Solamnia,

a knight of truth and of power,who called down the gods themselves

and forged the mighty Dragonlance, piercing the soulof dragonkind, driving the shade of their wings

from the brightening shores of Krynn.

Thus Huma, Knight of Solamnia,Lightbringer, First Lancer,

followed his light to the foot of the Khalkist Mountains,to the stone feet of the gods,

to the crouched silence of their temple.He called down the Lancemakers, he took on

their unspeakable power to crush the unspeakable evil;to thrust the coiling darkness

back down the tunnel of the dragon�s throat.

Paladine, the Great God of Goodshone at the side of Huma,

strengthening the lance of his strong right arm,and Huma, ablaze in a thousand moons,

banished the Queen of Darkness,banished the swarm of her shrieking hosts

back to the senseless kingdom of death, where their cursesswooped upon nothing and nothing

deep below the brightening land.

Thus ended in thunder the Age of Dreamsand began the Age of Might,

When Istar, kingdom of light and truth, arose in the east,where minarets of white and gold

spired to the sun and to the sun�s glory,announcing the passing of evil,

and Istar, who mothered and cradled the long summers of good,shone like a meteor

in the white skies of the just.

Yet in the fullness of sunlightthe Kingpriest of Istar saw shadows:

At night he saw the trees as things with daggers, the streamsblackened and thickened under the silent moon.

He searched books for the paths of Humafor scrolls, signs, and spells

so that he, too, might summon the gods, might findtheir aid in his holy aims,

might purge the world of sin.

Then came the time of dark and deathas the gods turned from the world.

A mountain of fire crashed like a comet through Istar,the city split like a skull in the flames,

mountains burst from once-fertile valleys,seas poured into the graves of mountains,

the deserts sighed on abandoned floors of the seas,the highways of Krynn erupted

and became the paths of the dead.

Thus began the Age of Despair.The roads were tangled.

The winds and the sandstorms dwelt in the husks of cities,The plains and mountains became our home.

As the old gods lost their power,we called to the blank sky

into the cold, dividing gray to the ears of new gods.The sky is calm, silent, unmoving.We have yet to hear their answer.

6

EventsEvents take place at specific times.They may happen anywhere unlessstated otherwise. The first event be-gins the adventure, then each followsat its stated time in the sequence be-low.

Event 1: The AdventureBegins.

Your players stand at the locationmarked “X” on the Wilderness map(Map 1). Begin by relating the follow-ing to them:

The air surges fierce and sweet,carrying the clear musk smell ofthe woodlands. The soft murmursof st i r r ing leaves, insects, andsmall animals fill the landscape.The c lear h ighland sky blusheswith the end of day and fades intostarry sleep. This is home.

From this rock outcropping thevalley below seems peaceful, un-touched. Dense forests of p inecarpet the mountainsides, brokenonly by thick aspen woods. Themountains, deep blue in the dis-tance, circle the valley floor andform a soft highland bowl.

Five years ago, you and yourfriends parted to search for a truecleric. Tonight, you meet on theroad to Solace Town and report onyour discoveries.

If the players are using the charactersprovided in the center of this mod-ule, they should now read aloud thebackgrounds written on the backs oftheir character cards. Not ice thatGoldmoon does not begin the gamewith the party, but joins them shortly.Players choosing to play their owncharacters have no stories to tell.

Af ter each player reads his back-ground, read the following:

None of you have found any signof true clerics during your travels.

The bushes to your left rustle.Sudden ly , da rk shapes scu r ry

from the woods on both sides ofthe road. Their yellow-green skinpales against their heavy black ar-mor; their twisted faces glare fromt h e e v e n i n g d a r k n e s s . T h e ycrouch in a large circle about you,well beyond sword range.

A stout pony struggles up ontothe road, sagging beneath a flabbyfigure who resembles a larger ver-sion of those who surround you.The pony rider suddenly turns hishead toward you and yells, “Onyxdemands the blue crystal staf f !Forfeit the staff now or die!”

Fewmaster Toede waits for no replyfrom the party: he has no intention ofgranting mercy. Roughly turning hisswayback pony, he shouts, “Destroythem and bring the staff to me!” Hethen gallops into the woods. Ten hob-goblins attack the PCs.

Left to Toede’s business, the hob-goblins attack. Any captured hob-gobl ins know only that they wereordered to search the road at nightand find a blue crystal staff.

When the combat is finished, pro-ceed with the adventure. By now, thePCs are on the road east of Solace(area 1).

Event 2: Goldmoon Found.

Roll 1d4. The result indicates howmany encounters take place beforethis event.

Suddenly, soft music begins. Itssource is a sl im, beaut i fu l g ir l .Lyre in hand, she sits gracefully asshe plays; nearby, a large plains-man raises a flute to his lips.

The girl’s eyes are a bright skyblue; her skin is a buttery tan.Most striking of all is the flowingwhite gold of her hair. Plush whitefurs trim her woven cape. A singlefeather folds back along the rightside of her head.

Her voice clear as winter air, shebegins to sing . . .

The Song of Riverwind is in the cen-ter of this module. If Goldmoon is aPC in the adventure, have the playerread the lyrics aloud or, if he or shehas natural minstrel abilities, singthem with the music provided.

If any PCs present at the event suf-fe red any damage f rom p rev iouscombat, a strange thing happens: Acrystal staff falls from a fold in Gold-moon’s robe, rolls over to the injuredPCs, and heals their damage. If noPCs suf fered damage, then Gold-moon simply puts her lyre away inher pack and, standing, draws forththe staff.

If Goldmoon is a PC, her playermay now take over the character andjoin the rest of the PCs. When shejoins the party, her p layer shouldread the back of her character card.Then, as Riverwind offers his back-ground, you should read the back ofhis character card to your players. Ifno one plays Goldmoon, she will fol-low Riverwind (who is always anNPC) and be an NPC herself for therest of this module.

Unless the party takes some actionto jo in wi th Goldmoon and River-wind, they gather their belongings,bow to their audience, and leave. Thep layers may meet them aga in inEvent 3.

Event 3: Goldmoon SeenAgain.

If Goldmoon does not join the partyin Event 2, the PCs may still meet herlater. Roll 1d6 every game day, add-ing 1 to the number for each dayGoldmoon does not meet the heroes.When the result is 6 or more, the PCsglimpse Goldmoon and Riverwind inthe distance somet ime dur ing theday. The strange musicians pause,nod, and give the PCs a chance tomeet them.

Event 4: Reading of theCanticle.

On a night the party is camped (yourchoice), pass around the Canticle ofthe Dragon. As though around thecampfire, have each player read one

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verse aloud, from first verse to last,until they finish the poem.

Event 5: All Winds TurnCold.

On the fourth morning after the ad-venture begins, a chill breeze beginsto blow from the north.

Event 6: Thunderclouds.

During the fifth game day, thunder-c louds hover angr i ly to the west,south, and north of the party.

Event 7: The DragonarmiesMarch.

Just af ter dusk on the f i f th gamenight , the Dragonarmies begin tomarch and conquer all the lands tothe south; every four hours there-after, one encounter area falls intotheir hands. Treat areas that fall asDragonlands (as area 43). In order tofall, an area must either border area43 to begin with or have bordered anarea captured in the previous hour.The general trend of captured areasshould direct the PCs toward XakTsaroth (area 44).

If PCs are in a captured area, theysee the front lines of the draconianarmy approaching at a movementrate of 9. This gives them the chanceto flee the army, toward Xak Tsaroth.

Two regions cannot be captured bythe draconian army at this time: theQualinesti Elflands (area 19) and theDarken Wood (22-26). Their times oftrial will come later in the saga.

EncountersEncounters are episodes in the ad-venture that are keyed to areas onmaps. Whenever the PCs enter anarea, the designated encounter takesplace at once. Some areas have thesame number; this is to create a fur-ther sense of certainty as your play-ers follow their journey across theirunnumbered map. If the PCs crossfrom one encounter area into an-other with the same number, simplyrepeat the encounter.

1. Solace Township

A warm autumn breeze rustles thegreat vallenwood trees of Solace.The road that wanders through thetrees blazes in the bright colors ofautumn. The richly stained build-ings of Solace rest cradled over-head in the boughs of the trees.

Around 500 people live in Solace,not counting the farmers of the out-lying fields. The town is built entirelyin the huge boughs of mature vallen-wood trees.

Solace is primarily a farming com-munity. It has no local government,but is ru led by the Theocracy ofSeekers from their central city of Ha-ven, some three days’ journey to thewest.

All services that adventurers ex-pect from a town of this size are avail-a b l e f o r r e a s o n a b l e r a t e s . T h eexception is smithwork: Theros Iron-feld, town smith, charges usual ratesfor work on iron items, but becausesteel is so valuable, charges extra forweapons. Because he works with pre-cious steel, Theros is the most re-spected man in town.

1a. Inn of the Last Home

Read the first description as the play-ers approach the inn. Read the sec-ond i f they enter, the th i rd i f theplayers are using the PCs provided inthe module.

The Inn of the Last Home rests cra-dled high in the boughs of a val-l e n w o o d t r e e — a s d o a l l t h ebuildings here, for Solace is a tree-top town. Warm laughter tumblesfrom the inn. The worn steps windaround the heavy trunk up to thefamiliar, carved door.

The Inn of the Last Home neverchanges. The pol ished woodenbar curves around several livingbranches. An old man weaves sto-ries in the corner and delights thecrowd gathered about him. Thedelicate windows of stained glass

behind the bar are being polishedby Otik Sandath, the barkeeper.He turns and waves, smi l ing atyou, and motions the barmaid inyour direction.

The low murmur of voices fillst h e i n n . T h e b a r t e n d e r t u r n sthoughtfully to polish the glasses.At a far table, near the storyteller,a man and a woman sit togetherand speak quietly. Another manstands beside the now-silent story-te l le r wh i le a smal l boy s ta resthoughtfully into the fire.

The barmaid steps toward you,smiles, and shows you to a table.Something about her seems famil-iar. The hair? The intelligent glintof her eyes.? Could this be Tika,the little girl who swept the tavernfloors a short five years ago? Theinn never changes, but its peopledo.

The people in the inn all speak in low,hushed tones. Any NPC the PCs ap-proach reacts, friendly 50% of thetime. Each reveals the following ifquestioned:

The barkeeper: “A magical staff! 1bet it was forged by demons from theterrible Darken Wood. There are ter-rible mysteries in that place, thereare!”

A man at a table: “Hooded menhave been in town asking about thatstaff! An evil lot they were, too. 1 won-der if they were offering a reward.”

A man by the storyteller: “A manof the Holy Guard rode through twodays ago asking about that staff. Hesaid that anyone who had it or hadknowledge of it should make haste toHaven and meet at once wi th thePrelate of the Temple there—but 1certainly don’t want to get involved!”

The old storyteller: “I foresee greas,and terr ib le dest iny in your eyes.There is a blue staff that you must re-turn to Xak Tsaroth. There, in but afew days hence, you shall face yourgreatest peril in contest for the great-est gift given to man.”

A girl at a table: “It was probablyfound in Darken Wood. 1 hear that the

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ruins there are fil led with wealth—and dangers to match. No one whohas entered that place has ever re-turned to tell the tale.”

A boy dreams by the fire: “I saw thewhite stag up near Prayers Eye Peakjust a few days ago! If only 1 couldcatch it. He who walks the paths ofthe white stag is blessed, 1 hear tell.”

2. Crystalmir Lake

The blue of the autumn sky dark-ens on the deep stil lness of thelake. The soft forests of giant val-lenwood border the serene waterson the eas te rn , sou the rn , andwestern shores. To the north, apatchwork of fields stretches to-ward the d is tant purple moun-tains.

3. Solace East Woods

The huge vallenwood trees towerabove soft forest paths. Sunlight

dapples the floor of the woods,and sparrows and squirrels quar-rel overhead. The musty smell offallen leaves rises through the fra-grance of late wildflowers.

4. New Haven Road

The Solace Stream sparkles be-neath an ancient stone bridge. Wa-ter tumbles out of the forest, overt h e r o c k s , a n d t o w a r d t h eSouthpass that l ies between thesouthern Sentinel Peaks. West ofthe bridge, the road splits in two,branching to the south and thewest. Both roads wind among thegreat vallenwoods, whose boughsform a brill iant canopy over theroadway.

Despite the apparent calm here, unfami l iar creatures lurk among thetrees near the fork in the road. Theseare Baaz draconians, wai t ing fortheir leader up the road (see area 6)

to sound a horn. They are so wellconcealed behind cut branches thata PC would have to climb a tree tofind them. Even then there is only a30% chance of discovering them. Ifany draconian is spotted, all of themattack, sounding a horn and fi l l ingthe woods with cold, rasping battlecries.

If your PCs spot the draconiansand the attack takes place, the en-emy g l i des f rom the va l lenwoodtrees and blocks the heroes’ retreatto Solace. A distant horn blares inanswer to their battle call. The dra-gonmen fight to the death in an at-tempt to destroy the party.

The hornblast is a warning to thosedraconians who follow this party—not a call for aid. The dragonmen in-t e n d t o r e m a i n d i s g u i s e d o rconcealed while traveling the humanlands. They are sure that soon theira r m i e s w i l l s w a r m a c r o s s t h e s efields; for now, they are searching forthe Crystal Staff, although they donot know why.

1 2

5. Prayers Eye Peak

The f laming colors of fa l l sur-round you, and an autumn breezeripples through your hair. To thesouthwest, the white-capped out-line of Prayers Eye Peak soars inthe distance. Barely visible fromhere, a sharp crack splits the peakas though i t cons i s ted o f twohands pressed together.

When the party passes through thisarea, there is a 30% chance that oneo f i t s m e m b e r s ( d e t e r m i n e r a n -domly) will spot the white stag. If en-emies pursue the heroes into thisarea, this chance increases to 80%.

If it is spotted, the stag crashesthrough a tangle of bushes and trees,emerging well ahead of the party. Itstays just ahead of the heroes, af lashing whi te form in the under-growth, until it has led them throughthe crack in the middle of PrayersEye Peak. After that, it bounds at fullspeed into the Darken Wood (24).

The stag cannot be captured. If theheroes k i l l i t , dark thundercloudsform overhead. These hover abovethe party for seven days during whichtime players suffer a +1 penalty totheir Armor Class. The body of thestag disappears.

6. Twin Flat

A clear mountain valley sprawlsabout. To the northwest and south-east, thick vallenwoods flash yel-low and scarlet against the brightautumn sky. To the east shimmersthe cool b lue of the CrystalmirLake. Westward, the valley entersa canyon rimmed by granite cliffs.The valley floor itself continues tothe northeast.

Some distance away, a group ofhuddled men pul ls a large cartslowly west down the Haven road.They sway rhythmically. Coarse,heavy robes completely concealtheir features.

These forms are 1d100x30’ away.They see the party at the same mo-ment the party notices them. If theheroes don’t approach, one of the fig-ures points in their d i rect ion; an-other slowly walks toward the party.

These are 11 Baaz draconians ind i sgu i se . Hoods and b lack c lo thmasks cover the i r faces . Heavygloves shield their hands and thickleg wrappings cover their feet. Al-though it is autumn, they seem a bitoverdressed against the cold.

As its companions join it next tothe party, the leader speaks: “Goodday to you, travelers! Please pardonthe questions of an old cleric. Somedays ago, our healing staff was stolenfrom Xak Tsaroth. Now one of ourflock is dying, and we desperatelyneed that item to bring our brotherback to health. He lies yonder in theback of the cart. Have you heard anyword of a blue crystal staff?”

If the heroes claim to know noth-ing about the staf f , the disguisedleader signals its comrades, who stepaside and allow the party to pass. Ifthe heroes suggest that they haveseen or heard of the staff, the dracon-ian leader rattles off more questions,its voice shaking slightly: Where didthey see it? How long ago? In whosehands? If the adventurers reveal thatthey have the staff, the draconianleader screams and reaches for itsweapon. At the scream, the robeddraconians attack, limited to theirlowest movement rate because theirwings are bound. Once each round, adraconian may tear off its robes in-stead of attacking. Each has a 20%chance of doing this, which frees it tomove faster. The draconians try toforce the party back east down theroad. If they can drive the party intoarea 5, the draconians sound a horn.If their comrades in area 4 are stillalive, they sound their horn in an-swer, then rush to close the trap. Allof these draconians fight to the deathtrying to gain the staff.

7. Jakanth Vale

Trails lead deeper into the woods,but even at its edge an unnaturalstillness has settled on the place.The woods seem much the same,but there is a subtle difference, aheaviness in the air. Even the in-sects are silent.

Heavily wrapped feet tread upon thist ra i l a shor t t ime ago . Fo l l ow ingthese tracks will bring the heroes to acampsite in a glade.

The campsite smells like burnedhair. Charred bones lie in the ashes ofthe f i re p i t . The g rass has beenstamped down around the area.

Searching the area uncovers abright silver bracer fitted with fourgems (500 stl each). inside the bandis engraved: “Firehawk, warrior ofQue-Shu.” Que-Shu Plainsmen canidentify this as the bracer of the war-riors whose task it is to defend thetribe. These bands are forged aroundthe warriors’ arms. Death alone re-moves them.

8. Northfields

A sea of grain sweeps across thenorth flats. Stalks sag with rip-end grain, ready for harvest. Butno one is around to harvest thegrains or tend the crops.

The few farm houses in the areaseem to have been abandoned in agreat hurry. The adventurers haveonly a 20% chance per turn of dis-covering, here and there in the fieldsand at some farm homes, signs of afierce fight. Footprints of draconianssurround these marks of struggle,but only those heroes who have metdraconians can identify them, andthen only 60% of the time.

All tracks lead east (to area 35).

9. Nearfields

Here, farmers and their workerstread through fields of grain. The

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thick wheat falls smoothly beforethe flickering scythes.

The workers here seem a bit ner-vous and speak with the PCs only20% of the time. “Good luck on yourway. We want no trouble,” is all theysay. Only 20% of the time will thosewho have spoken say more, and ifthey do, their thoughts are almost asone: “We don’t know what is goingon, but people have been disappear-ing in the night from our camps andhomes. Now we fear all strangers.What terr ib le devi l has struck ourhomes?”

10. Sentinel Gap

Walls of granite soar on either sideo f t he na r row canyon f l oo r . Achilly breeze whistles and rumblesbetween the cliffs.

11. Twin Peaks Vale

The twin peaks, Tasin and Fasin,stand to either side of the ShadowCanyon, over looking the northroad to the capital city of Haven. Infront of them, a lush mountain val-ley echoes with the sweet soundsof the forest.

12. Shadow Canyon

Solid granite cliffs vault high over-head, forming walls that seem top-less, casting deep shadows intothe crevasse. The canyon floor isnarrow but well-traveled and clear.

13-15. North SeekerReaches

Green farmlands stretch betweenmountain walls in a great valley.Farm houses and trees dot thelandscape and many well-traveledtrails lead south to a central road.

There is a 15% chance per turn thatthe heroes find a typical farmer andhis family moving toward the south,pulling all their belongings behindthem in a dogcart. On the main road,this chance increases to 30% in area13 and 70% in area 14. In area 15 afamily can always be found travelingsouth down the main road.

The people flee south, intent onnothing else. Their eyes fixed to theroad ahead of them, these refugeesstop to talk with PCs only 20% of thetime. If they do stop, however, theyhave an interesting story: “See thesmoke rising from the valley yonder?Dev i l s f rom the Catac lysm, theywere, that started the fires! Camedown from the north, only three daysago, and ever since they’ve plun-dered and killed. Now we’re fleeingsouth to the capital, to Haven. Surelyfrom there we can get to happier andsafer country.”

16. Haven’s Vale

Dust cloaks the highway, whichstretches down the center of theplain. A stream of refugees shuf-fles and limps southward towardthe gl istening, distant spires ofHaven.

Refugees flee down the road, stag-gering and occasionally squabblingover food. All of them are too busy orworried to speak with the PCs. Nowand then, a cont ingent of SeekerGuards rides up and down the linesof refugees trying to keep order (andlooking for the Crystal Staff).

All of these people have but a sin-gle thought: to get to the city of Ha-ven as fast as they can. There theybelieve the Highseekers can guidethem and grant them the protectionof the new gods. There they hope tobe safe from the invaders. All of thefields in this area are abandoned. Oc-casionally, (10% chance per turn) afight starts on the edge of a roadsidefield, as 2d20 refugee men scuffleover who shal l steal i ts crops orfruits.

Now and then (25% chance per

game hour) a troop of Holy Guard-ians passes. Fifty percent of the timethese troops are going away from Ha-ven.

PCs have a 30% chance of stop-ping the Guardleader. If they do, heshakes his head and says: “Totalmadness, that’s what it is! We marchup and down this rag-tag line of beg-gars, trying to keep some kind of or-der. But it ’s impossible. What hashappened to the world? These peo-ple run to Haven, but there is no es-c a p e f r o m H a v e n e x c e p t t o t h eQ u a l i n e s t i E l f k i n g d o m o r t h eDarken Wood. Now Qualinesti hasclosed its border, and no man entersthe Darken Wood and lives.

“By the way, have you heard any-thing about a blue crystal staff?”

I f the heroes make known thatthey have seen or even heard of theCrystal Staf f , the guardsmen pul lthem up onto horseback and escortt h e m d i r e c t l y t o t h e C o u n c i l o fHighseekers in area 17b.

17. Lordcity of Haven

Read this description when the partynears Haven:

Six whi te towers r ise f rom thefoothills of the eastern mountains,encircling the delicate architec-ture of Haven. A long file of refu-gees chokes the road entering thecity’s main gate.

Read this description once inside Ha-ven’s gate:

The bases of delicate fluted pillarsare covered by swarms of people.Every street surges with panic-stricken refugees, milling and cry-ing beneath the ancient, serenebuildings.

The Lordcity of Haven is a glisteningp l a c e o f w h i t e m a r b l e t o w e r strimmed in gold. A low wall, moredecorative than protective, stringstogether s ix spindly towers l ike anecklace about the city.

“City,” however, is a misleading

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term for Haven: its inner circle is onlyone mile across, and only three milesacross counting the homes outsidethe wall. The normal population isonly about 5,000.

Almost all the services one mightexpect in a town of this size are avail-able; however, the ironsmith is in thedirect employ of the Highseekersand works only at their bidding.

Two areas may be of special inter-est to adventurers in this city: theSteel Tankard Tavern (17a) and theCouncilhall of Highseekers (17b).

The city overflows with refugees.All of these people are close to panic;they have horror stories of the in-vaders to the north. Only 5% of therefugees have actually seen the dra-con ians and hobgob l i ns o r t he i rarmy well enough to describe them;the rest tell obscure and greatly ex-aggerated tales about “demons tothe north.” None of these people isthe least bit helpful. Their only desireis to find safe passage from Haven tothe south.

O n e v e r y s t r e e t c o r n e r , H o l yGuardians try to keep the peace—animpossible task.

Though they leap in to break upscat tered f ights (20% chance perturn) or help people find their way(40% chance per turn) , the mostpressing mission for the Guardians isto find the bearer of a blue crystalstaff and bring him before the Coun-ci l of Highseekers with al l haste.They have been told that this personmay be the only hope for the city andits people.

17a. Steel Tankard Tavern

The tavern is packed shoulder toshoulder with men and women try-ing to forget the reason they havecome to the city. The heat is sti-f l ing despi te the bi t ter autumnweather outside. The crowd is ee-rily quiet, each person drawn intoh i s own though ts and so r row .Th ree peop le—a man in a fu rcloak, a tall man dressed in thegreens and browns of a forester,

and a woman, in leather armorand wear ing an eye -pa tch -a reless brooding than the others.Though they seem rather quiet,they busy themselves with helpingolder people find places to sit andclear ing places for women wi thsmall children.

Though most here are deep withintheir own thoughts, adventurers canconverse with the three people men-tioned above.

“I should leave town right now,”the man in the fur cloak says. “TheHighseekers say we are safe here, butthey have no power. Where is theirmagic? Where are their miracles?How can they speak for gods if theyhave no powers?”

The forester: “The guards of thecity are looking for someone bearinga crystal staff. 1 wonder why? Couldthe staff preserve us from the in-vaders in the north?”

The woman: “The ways south area l l b l o c k e d . T h e e l v e n l a n d s o fQualinesti are closed—the elves turnus away. The Darken Wood may bee n t e r e d t h r o u g h t h e s o u t h e r npasses, but I’ve never heard of any-o n e r e t u r n i n g f r o m t h e r e . T h a tleaves the River White-rage betweenthe Darken Wood and Qualinesti: amost dangerous route. Not a happychoice!”

17 b. Councilhall ofHighseekers

In the center of the city, a hall sup-p o r t e d b y s i x t o w e r s g l i s t e n sabove the shouting crowd below.Holy Guardians encircle the build-ing, barring all entrance.

The PCs must pass the 100 HolyGuardians before they can enter thehall. If they do, they may address theCouncil of Highseekers directly.

The guardians let no one pass ex-cept those who bear news of the bluecrystal staff. They stare cautiouslyfor a moment at those who bear thisnews, then usher them before theCouncil.

A large hall rises to a ceiling sup-ported by pillars on either side. Atthe far end, nine chairs sit in asemi-circle on the polished gran-ite floor. Upon each chair sits aman in clean white robes trimmedin gold. A steel girdle bands eachman’s waist.

The Council Hall is large and elegant.The counci lors are desperate fornews of the blue crystal staff. Thedraconian army to the north has of-fered not to invade if the crystal staffis returned to its place in the easterncity of Xak Tsaroth. The council ’sprayers to the new gods have goneunanswered and they have no stand-ing army; the Crystal Staff is theirlast hope to save the nation.

The council asks for the news theparty bears. If the party has the staffand makes this known, the counci-lors plead passionately that they beallowed to take the staff. If the partyrefuses to hand over the item, thecouncilors plead with them to returnit to Xak Tsaroth.

The Crystal Staff has other ideas.Any councilor who touches the staff(roll 1d8 and determine randomly; itis beneath the dignity of the Masterto rise and touch the staff) will be hitby a lightning bolt from the staff for4d6 points of damage. If this hap-pens, the Highseekers declare thestaff an evil artifact and commandthat the PCs return it to Xak Tsarothto save the nation.

118. River White-rage

The rivers of the Haven Vale, theD a r k w a t e r R i v e r f l o w i n g f r o mDarken Wood, and the clear wa-ters of the Elfstream join in this re-g i o n t o f o r m t h e f r o t h i n g ,powerfu l River Whi te-rage. Thewater crashes swiftly between thecliffs that its current has cut intot h e p l a i n . T o t h e n o r t h , t h eD a r k w a t e r R i v e r p o u r s g e n t l yfrom the deep shade of the DarkenWood trees. A path leads beside

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t h e D a r k w a t e r r i v e r i n t o t h ewoods . To the sou th , t he ta l l ,straight trunks of the Qualinestiforests march into unseen dis-tance.

The PCs may cross the rivers easilybefore they join, but the River White-rage is impassable wi thout somekind of raft. Those trying to walk orswim across must roll a successfulStrength check to swim back to theside of the river they started from. Ifthe check fails, they are swept downthe river, swirling and plunging for100 feet and suffering 1d12 points ofdrowning damage. There they mustcheck their Strength again. Repeatthe process until the PC succeeds ordrowns. PCs cannot be swept to theother side of the river.

The heroes may elect to build araft. This takes 1d4 hours for everyPC the raft is built to carry. Thus araft for a party of six would take 6d4hours to build.

The river is safe for rafts, and if theheroes allow their craft to float downthe river, they enter area 20.

19. Qualinesti Elflands

Aspen trees stand in thick clus-ters, their trunks only a few feetapart . Beyond them, the forestdarkens.

After the adventurers have spentmore than one hour in the area, 15e lves sudden ly emerge f rom thetrees and surround the party.

T h e i r b o w s a r e n o c k e d , t h e i rswords drawn, but the elves do notattack. Instead, they call for the partyto surrender. These elves have ordersto take the PCs to the centaurs ofarea 23 for a special purpose.

If the party fights the elves, theymust take on the rest of the elvenarmy, one uni t every game hour.These units are identical to the firstunit encountered; they keep on com-ing, wave af ter wave, f ight ing fortheir homeland with cold fierceness.They fight to the death. They do not,

however, pursue the PCs farther thanthe borders of their land.

If asked why they have orders totake the PCs into the Darken Wood,one of the elves replies, “We haveseen signs of unspeakable evil in theland. Haven and all the Seeker landswill fall unless a miracle takes place.A glorious being passed through ourland and said you would be coming.We do not know his name, but wehave orders to take you to the edgeof Darken Wood at his bidding.”

20. The White-rage Cut

Here the frothing torrent of theWhite-rage River spills betweentall cliffs and funnels loudly down

its course, crashing between twosoaring bluffs.

Raft pilots must check both Strengthand Dexterity once per turn here. If apilot fails any check, his raft splinterson a rock in the river, casting all pas-sengers into the rapids. If this hap-p e n s , t h e r a f t i s n e a r e r t o t h enorthern shore of the river. Use theswimming rules from area 18 to de-termine if the characters can reachthe rocks on the northern shore. PCson the northern shore find paths upthe cliff face into area 22.

The raft moves three hexes perturn.

21. Magical Mountains

The mountain valley runs east andwest between Prayers Eye Peakand a second ridge of mountains.Tall aspens, still green well into au-tumn, shiver in groves about thevalley. The vale itself is carpeted intall, soft grasses. Both exits fromthe valley, to the southwest and tothe east, lead into the dimmnessof deeper woods.

22. Spirit Forest

The canopy of leaves thickens; thesunlight dapples, dims, then fades

altogether. The trunks of the treesa re gna r led and kno t ted , t he i rb a r k a l m o s t b l a c k . A h e a d l i edeeper and deeper shadows.

Those who enter the Darken Wood(22-26) are subject to its confusingcharm. When a PC leaves the DarkenWood, he cannot express what he sawor experienced there, even though hismemory of adventures and encoun-ters there is quite clear. If the playerscontinue, read the following:

Between the twisted shapes of thetrees, strange shapes flit nearby. Itis hard to see their shape or sizethrough the dense woods.

Unless the PCs withdraw from thewoods, the spirits challenge them,asking their names. If they answerfalsely, then the guardian spectralminions attack. If at any time eitherbefore or during combat, the heroesgive their correct names or showGoldmoon’s Crystal Staff, the min-ions hal t any at tack and let thempass.

Heroes who are allowed to passhear the leader of the minions say,“The Forestmaster awaits. You areexpected.” The shadowy spirits partbefore the heroes—all but one, whoescorts them down a path to area 26.

If the PCs ask their escort aboutthe spirits, he replies, “Ages ago, be-fore the world changed, we were or-dered to keep this land safe. That wasour purpose. We failed. Now we re-pent by protecting the land while wecan.”

23. Centaur Reaches

“Halt!” The broad torso of a mansuddenly rises above a head-highbush. He looks down from at leasttwo feet above eye level. His mus-cular arm poises, spear in hand.“Ye be trapped. Come with me tothe j udge o f t he f o res t , o r bejudged by my lance and those ofmy fellows.”

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If the heroes resist, the centaurs fightto the death. Otherwise they relievethe party of their weapons and, pull-ing the PCs onto their backs, takethem to area 26.

The cen tau rs a re re luc tan t t ospeak about anything to the PCs un-til they have seen the Forestmaster.To the adventurers’ questions theysimply reply, “The Forestmaster willanswer all things.”

24. Dryad Forests

Tremendous , deep - roo ted oaktrees tower overhead. Though thegrass and brush continue underthem, l i t t e red w i th aco rns andtwigs, it is hard to see more than afew feet into the forest.

Unless another creature of this forestescorts the PCs, the dryads makethemselves known after the heroestravel more than 1/4 mile into thearea. PCs see them only briefly—long-haired women whisper ing insweet low voices to one another.They make no effort to address theheroes, and vanish if approached. If aforest creature escorts the PCs, theydo not see the dryads.

The Forestmaster gives the dryadstheir home and protection in returnfor their guarding this forest. Theywhisper to one another when theys e e i n t r u d e r s a n d f o r e w a r n t h eForestmaster.

25. Starnight Canyon

Craggy canyons c l imb s teep lyamong the peaks of the SentinelMountains. Clouds race over blue-green mountain glades.

1‘he party has a 15% chance eachturn to encounter pegasi in this area.The pegasi graze calmly, untroubledby the party’s presence. The crea-tures are so doci le that PCs canmount them.

Once the heroes mount them, thepegasi bound into the sky. However,once they are in the air, they fly di-

rectly to area 26 regardless of whatthe heroes try to direct them to do. Ifa PC threatens a Pegasus, the crea-ture bucks once in the air, causing itsrider to roll a successful Dexteritycheck or fall from the winged horse.

26. Unicorn Grove

The dense oak forest suddenlyopens into a forest g lade. Sof tgreen grasses carpet the floor up ahillside, at the top of which sits anoutcropping of rock. Atop th isoverhang stands a majestic uni-corn, i ts head ra ised high andproud, but a strange sadness in itseyes.

If the PCs approach the outcropping,the unicorn speaks with them; he cancall forest creatures to his aid if PCsare foolish enough to attack him.

As the PCs approach, the unicornspeaks. “I am the Forestmaster. Youhave entered my Great Forest: I grantyou passage and the aid of all crea-tures whi le you remain wi th in ourborders.” From now until the PCsleave the forest, no creature attacksthem unless they attack first.

At a moment of your choice, theForestmaster tells the PCs: “Somedays ago, a great and glorious beingcame among us. He held great wis-dom and power rare in the land to-day. He foretold your coming and leftyou a message: ‘You must fly straightaway across the Eastwall Mountains.W ithin two days you must be withinXak Tsaroth. There, if you prove wor-thy, you shall receive the greatest giftgiven to the world.’ Those were hisvery words—‘the greatest gift givento the world!’ ”

The Forestmaster knows no moreof this, but he is aware of a terribleforce of evi l that wi l l destroy thebeauty of his domain shortly.

I f the PCs request the help ofForestmaster, he summons pegasi.The beautiful and powerful animals,one for each PC, silently circle over-head and land with feather gentle-ness in the nearby grasses. Theyallow the PCs to mount them, then

hurtle into the air, their wings whis-pering on the wind, and soar abovethe glade. PCs looking back see theForestmaster standing proudly onoutcropping. He calls to them, “Thegreatest gi f t g iven to man awaitsyou. Carry the peace of my homewithin your hearts—soon it will livenowhere else.” PCs f ly ing out ofDarken Wood are subject to the con-fusion of leaving (see area 22). Theyalso must roll a successful Constitu-tion check each turn or fall asleep.

If the PCs foolishly decide to at-tack the unicorn, he calls at once formagical forest creatures to defendhim. Roll immediately on the Ran-dom Encounter Chart for the DarkenWood. From now until the PCs leavethe woods, all creatures encounteredattack them on sight; if, however, theheroes are headed out of the woods,the creatures try s imply to chasethem from the area.

27. Gateway Pass

The bri l l iant leaves f loat soft lyfrom the trees to the floor of thecanyon. The road leads peacefullybetween the spires of the SentinelPeaks.

28. Gateway

Smoke drifts lazily from the chim-neys of Gateway. The comfortablehouses and shops nestle in thearms of the Sentinel Mountains atthe base of the Gateway Pass toSolace. The smell of baking breadsweetens the autumn breeze.

Gateway resembles Solace in manyrespects, except that its buildings areon the ground and the town has noironsmithy.

Gateway’s citizens know of no dan-ger from “demon men” or “evil arm-ies” and brush off such talk as talltales. “Dragons in the night” is theirname for stories of things that don’texist.

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29. Westplains

Grassland plains sprawl for mileseast of the Sentinel Mountains.Their brown grasses bend in a fallwind turned suddenly cold.

30. Que-Teh

T h e c h i l l w i n d r u s t l e s s a d l ythrough the silent village of Que-Teh.

Signs of hurried flight are scatteredthroughout the village: half-emptiedfood jars, meals half finished, andchi ldren’s rat t le-beads cast aside.Rangers have a 50% chance to findthe tracks of the villagers, which leadstraight to area 38.

31. The Great Crossroads

In the midst of a rol l ing plain,three roads converge. At their in-tersect ion, a s ingle stone pi l larpoints the directions to Que-Teh,Que-Kiri, and Que-Shu. Cold windswirls about the stone; a singlehawk circles to the east.

The g round he re i s t r amp led . Aranger has a 30% chance to identifysome of the tracks as those of dra-conians (only, of course, if he has en-countered the creatures before). Thedraconian tracks lead east, towardQue-Shu (36).

32. Que-Kiri

Thin columns of smoke rise fromthe chimneys of Que-Kiri. As youapproach the town, men, appar-ently from the town, move cau-tiously in your direction.

These c i ty guards escort the PCsthrough the town but do not allowthem to stay. They speak with the he-roes but are worried about the safetyof their city and do not trust stran-gers.

If the PCs kill the guards and try toenter the town, the entire town drivesthem out and gives them no aid or in-formation whatsoever. Adventurerscan get one of the guards to speakwith them 80% of the t ime. I f hespeaks, he says: “We don’t knowwhat the danger is that’s on the way,but we know it is coming. Our scoutshave seen great fires in the north.Many of our number have disap-peared in the last week. But now weare prepared for the enemy. Thereare over 600 of us-who could standagainst us?” They are sure that theycan defeat any enemy; nothing willstop them from doing so.

33. Kiri Valley

The forest darkens and thickensbeside an ancient trail. A cold, dryst i l lness hovers in the air . The

trees are knotted and bent. Every-Things seems to watch you.

An evil wizard died here long ago.Only his essence remains.

34. Western Que-Shu Plains

A chill, biting wind cuts across thef la t l ands . Car r i ed on the w indfrom the east is the sharp smell ofburning grass.

35. Northern Desolation

T h e g r a s s l a n d s s o o n t u r n t oburned stubble under foot . Formiles the once grassy plains arec h a r r e d . T h e a s h y t a s t e o fsco rched ea r th l aces the a i r .Large, heavy creatures have tram-pled the ground everywhere.

A ranger who has encountered dra-conians before can ident i fy theseprints as theirs 80% of the time. Aranger also has a 20% chance to tellthat the prints first pass south, thenreturn north.

36. Que-Shu

Read this when the heroes enter thearea:

Ch i l l w inds sca t te r the smokefrom dying fires in the midst of thevillage.

Birds wheel over the motionlessvillage, descending slowly amongthe huts. Everything else is stilland quiet.

Read this as the heroes enter the vil-lage:

They are gone. The huts and tentso f Que -Shu l i e abandoned . Astrange, creaking sound comesfrom the center square of the vil-lage.

The birds stare coldly into noth-ing. They perch atop a strangeconstruct ion thrown together inthe center of the square. Two stoutposts have been driven into theg round by unspeakab le f o rce ,their bases nearly splintered bythe impact. Ten feet above theg r o u n d , a c r o s s p i e c e p o l e i slashed to the two upright posts.All the poles are charred and blis-tered. Three chains, the iron ofeach cold but apparent ly oncemelted, creak in the wind. Sus-pended from each chain, appar-ent ly by the feet, is a corpse.Though b lackened and seared,the three bodies are certainly nothuman. Atop the dark structure, asign, roughly clawed into a shield,has been stapled to the crosspiecewith a broken sword blade.

The PCs can find signs that the vil-lagers left their homes in a hurry.Tracks from the vi l lage obviouslylead east toward the mountains.

Each PC has a base 15% chance toread the writing on the shield. PCswho have read language abilities mayadd that score to the base percent-age. The sign reads: “Know ye, myservants, the fate of those who takeprisoners against my will. Kill or be

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killed. Verminaard.” The corpses arethose of hobgoblins.

37. Sageway Broken

The broken stones of an ancientr o a d w a y c u t t h r o u g h b r o w n plains. The stones lead north andsouth.

A close look at the road uncoversmany footprints. It seems that a greatnumber of people and heavy crea-tures moved south along this route afew days ago.

38. Refugees

A single figure, scantly clad, scur-ries over the rise. He is a man—byhis looks an exhausted one. Be-hind him, three figures lope stead-ily, tirelessly in pursuit. They arelaughing, taunting their prey, wait-ing before closing for the kill.

The man is 500 feet away when theencounter starts. The grasses of theplains are three to four feet tall andcan easily hide the heroes. The mancan run 550 feet farther before hecollapses. The Baaz draconians, in-tent on their prey, do not notice thePCs until they are within 50 feet—not at all if the PCs take cover.

Since the PCs pose a real threat tothem, the draconians give up theirpursuit of the man and attack the he-roes once they notice them.

If they rescue the fugitive, the PCsmay speak with him. He gasps fromexhaustion as he tells his story: “I amNightshade from the village of Que-Teh. The dragonmen are taking all ofus south as slaves. This morning themen of my tribe held secret council,chained though we were in the cara-van. I was chosen to escape, to go toQue-Shu for aid, while the rest of mycomrades rose against the dragonmenand drew their attention. A tremen-dous army of evil lies to the south. 1have overheard them speak of a sec-ond army that wai ts to crush theSeeker Lands from the north. They

hold back their armies only for fearthat a crystal staff will return to XakTsaroth while they are not watchful.Why, I do not know.” His voice be-comes desperate. “Do not go south,for only slavery and death lie there.Find the crystal staff, and take it toXak Tsaroth. It is our only hope.”

If the PCs cure his wounds, thisman will go with them. He has noequipment at all.

39. Oldroad Bridge

Read the following when the heroesenter the area:

In the distance, an ancient bridgespans the torrents of the White-rate River. Several dark shapescrouch on the northern side of thebridge, many others on its south-ern side.

When the PCs get within 300 feet ofthe bridge, they discover that theforms are Baaz draconian guards; 4watch the north and 10-20 the south.

O r d e r s h a v e c o m e f r o m t h e i rDragon Highlord not to take anymore prisoners. They will kill anyonewho approaches. This is a l l theyknow about the position and situa-tion of the Dragonarmies.

If the heroes approach on a raft,the draconians leap onto them fromthe bridge, capsizing the raft andspilling both heroes and dragonmeninto the r iver. Use the swimmingrules from area 18.

The guards on the northern side ofthe river are the only ones who are al-lowed to pursue north of the river.The reserves may pursue anythingsouth of the river.

40. Southway

The tall grasses of the southernbank bend oddly against the wind.Occasionally, the gleaming pointof a spear or the flash of a helmflickers through the grasses to thesouth. The cold, fall sky is over-cast, and thunder rumbles to thesouth.

If the PCs move south, they encoun-ter the southern draconian army, oneunit of 1d10 + 10 Baaz per gamehour. The number of units they canencounter is limitless.

These guards have orders not topursue anything north of the riverbut to attack and kill anything cross-ing south of the river. They have nofurther information.

41. Sageway East

Here in the canyons of the Foresa-ken Mountains, an ancient roadlies broken and abandoned. Yetthe grasses and weeds growing be-tween the broken stones of theroad are trampled flat. A cold winddives out of the east.

A ranger has a 50% chance to notetracks of human pla insmen mixedwith other, heavier t racks. I f theranger has met draconians before, hehas a 30% chance to identify theirtracks here as well.

42. Cursed Lands of Newsea

A f o r e s t o f i r o n c l a w t r e e sstretches eastward to the Newsea.Beneath an umbrella of branches,t h e s t r e a m s o f t h e F o r s a k e nM o u n t a i n s c r a w l t h r o u g h aspongy swamp. Still waters encir-cle islands of soggy ground. Thelandscape extends into the swampand is darkness.

Each turn there is a 15% chance thatthe soggy ground the heroes arewalk ing on wi l l dead-end and theparty must cross 1d4 + 5 feet of wa-te r t o ge t t o the nex t sec t i on o fground. See the Random Encountertable for details.

43. Dragonlands

T h e f l a m e s f r o m a t h o u s a n dcampfires glitter in the distanceon the burned plains. Nearby, sev-eral creatures stoop about theirown campfire.

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If a PC can move silently to within 30feet of the guards, he hears themspeak in the common tongue. Thelarge draconian says, “We can crushthis human scum. So why wait untilo ld Verm inaard ge ts some fancycrystal staff? Why, he even has Khi-santh tied up waiting for it, when wecould use her help out here!”

If the PCs move past this outpost,they meet the bulk of the draconianarmy, one unit of 1d10 + 10 Baaz pergame hour . The number of theseunits is limitless.

44. Xak-Tsaroth

When the adventurers enter the an-cient city, they begin in area 44a. Usethe Swamp of Xak Tsaroth map.

44a. Swamp Ruins

The exposed roots of i ronclawt r e e s t w i s t i n t o t h e m u d a n dswamp water. Vines, trees, andferns block vision beyond a fewfeet. The ground is soaked and

spongy . A l l i s i n shadow; suns h o w s o n l y a b r i e f g l i m m e rthrough the jungle overhead.

Occasional ly , (1 in 6 chance perround) ruined items jut from the un-derbrush: broken foundation stones,shattered urns, ancient carvings.

Many creatures passed throughthis area within the last three or fourhours. The tracks look faintly reptil-ian. If the adventurers have met dra-conians before, they have a 20%chance to recognize these tracks.

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44b. Waters of the Swamp

G r e e n s c u m c o v e r s t h e d a r ks w a m p w a t e r . S o u r , m e t a l l i csmells float on the air.

The water depth is unpredictable(1d6 feet, roll once for every 30 feettraveled). Whenever anyone entersthe water, for whatever reason, roll1d6. If the result is less than 4, roll1d4 + 20 on the Random Encountertable to determine what creaturerises up to attack.

44c. Vine Bridges

Thick v ines, woven into st rongropes, stretch like a long spiderweb between two sections of land.Each end is knotted around sev-eral ironclaw trees. Slimy mossescover the ropes.

This makeshift bridge is surprisinglysturdy. PCs must each roll a success-ful Dexterity check with a -5 penaltyto cross the bridge without trouble. Ifsomeone fails, he falls into the waterbelow and disturbs a monster in thewater (same procedure as in 44b).

44d. Battle of the FallenIronclaw

The soaked ground s lopes in tothick swampwater. A giant iron-claw tree has fallen here, spanningthe waters to another section ofground. Thick green moss drapesthe log.

Behind the trees and brushes, only15-20 feet away, lurk six Bozak dra-conians. Four are on the heroes’ sideof the river; two are on the far side.

These ambushers plan to capturethe pa r t y and take them to the i rcamp for questioning. They attackfirst with web spells. PCs must rollsuccessful saving throws (with a -2penalty) or be tangled in the trees be-hind them. After that, the draconianstry to cast sleep on the party. Theytake all captives to their camp (44f)and hold them there.

If the draconians suffer more than

50% losses, they retreat.

44e. Broken Bridge

This group knows that the CrystalStaff is a very powerful item. It hasbeen stolen from the ruins, and it isthe one th ing their leader Vermi-naard fears can upset his plans.

Amid drooping vines and mosses,a br idge spans two sect ions ofground. Its ornate wooden lattice-work, carved to resemble vines, isb r o k e n i n m a n y p l a c e s . T w ohooded figures stand on the north-ern side of the bridge.

44f. Temple of Baaz

Massive ruins break the jungle un-dergrowth. Small broken towersrise through the cover of trees.Ferns and bushes sprout througha flagstone plaza surrounded bysmall shacks and lean-tos; a hugebonfire blazes its northern side.Beyond the fire, set in the remain-ing half shell of a crumbled dome,a huge black dragon stands, itswings outfolded!

The black dragon is only a wickermodel. The draconians nearby, oneBozaak and seven Baaz, attack anyunescorted intruders. If the PCs areprisoners, their equipment is placedrandomly in one of the six huts; thePCs themselves are held in a bamboocage.

The Bozak d racon ian runs t hecamp and conducts worship servicesbefore the great wicker dragon. Heorders that the PCs be held for threedays until Khisanth, the group’s com-mander, comes to claim them. If thePCs have the staff, he tells them,“The Crystal Staff is the greatest dan-ger to our masters we know.” If theydo not have the staff, the draconianasks them if they know where it is. Atany rate, it tells the party, “Now thatyou are here, we only hope that youdo not die as easily as those of Que-Shu did at our hands.”

The black dragon is a draconianidol woven of vines and branches.There is an opening in the figure atthe base between its legs. The main

braces for the wings are tied together

them screaming into the jungle for

just below the dragon’s mouth. The

1d6 turns. The whole structure, how-ever, has a 30% chance to fall face-

mouth itself forms a funnel. If a PC

f i r s t i n t o t h e b o n f i r e a n d b u r nfuriously if a PC tries this. Anyone

gets inside the wicker dragon unno-

caught inside must roll a successfulDexterity check to escape the idol

ticed, leaps up and down on the main

and the damage from the fire. He suf-f e r s 1d6 po in t s o f damage each

brace and shouts through the mouth,

round he fails his Dexterity check.

he panics the draconians and drives

The cage that holds the heroes ismade of bamboo. A Baaz draconianguards it night and day. There is a10% chance each daylight hour thatthe guard fal ls asleep next to thecage. The chance increases to 30%each hour after sundown. Any suc-cessful bend bars roll breaks the barsapart.

44g. Tower of Truth

A graceful tower, crumbling yetstill beautiful, rises from the wa-ters of the swamp. Finely carvedand polished stonework walls stillg l in t beneath the jungle under-growth.

It is sad to see the remains of a capi-tal city brought to silence and decay.

Although the wooden floors andrafters have long since rotted away, acarved staircase circles up the inte-rior of the tower to a stone floor at itstop. The tower provides a view of allthe surrounding swamplands; a clus-ter of ruins (44k) lies to the north-east.

44h. Breeding Pool

A pool of black water stands amidthe tower ing j ung le t rees . No teven the mighty ironclaws grow inthis water.

Five leathery egg shells lie on theshore. All of these are cracked openand unoccupied. Each is about twofeet long. Black dragon hatchlings

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lurk beneath the water and rise sud-denly to attack if the PCs disturb thesurface of the water.

44i. Swamp Falls

The soggy jungle floor suddenlyends in a 1,000 foot cliff! Waterfrom the swamp trickles down thestone bluff to a crashing seashore.The Newsea spreads to the easternhorizon, covering what was once afertile plain.

44j. Fallen Obelisk

A tremendous obelisk lies besideits broken pedestal base. Strangespidery runes cover its surface.The obelisk bridges two sectionsof ground divided by swamp wa-ter.

The PCs have on ly a 15% basechance to read the runes, althoughthose who have read languages abili-t ies may add their score to theirchances. The runes read:

The Great City of Xak TsarothWhose beauty surrounds you

Speaks to the good of its people

And their generous deeds.The gods reward us

In the grace of our home.

44k. Plaza of Death

Emerging from the dense jungle,a broad cobblestone street runssouth and north among the ruins.A roadway branches to the west. Alarge cobblestone courtyard liesto the east amid crumbling build-ings. Beyond the courtyard arefive tall free-standing columns; notrace remains of the building theyonce supported. In front of thesepillars, a huge well plunges intothe earth. Vapors rise from thewell. To the north of the well, a sin-g le bu i l d ing s tands who le , a l -though time and the weather haveworn its outer walls.

The heroes may enter the building tothe north, taking them to area 46a.

The building to the north is a tem-ple of the ancient goddess of healing,Mishakal. The only entrance to thewindowless temple is through thef ron t doo r—go ld doo rs we igh ing1 5 , 0 0 0 g p w e a c h . T h e y a r e o ncounter-poised hinges so they openas normal doors. Whoever enters the

temple finds himself in area 46.A dark and terrible stillness lies

around the well. PCs who gaze into itsee no th ing bu t vas t b lackness .Rushing air, deathly cold, swells frombelow. Suddenly, a fantastic shape,huge and black, bursts from the welland unfolds its tremendous leatherwings! Magical darkness (from thering of darkness the dragon wears)covers the entire area.

The dragon (named Khisanth) usesits first combat round to gain speedin the air and circle around for a bet-ter attack position. PCs are suscepti-ble to the fear a dragon generates.The dragon then attacks the heroesf r o m t h e a i r , h o v e r i n g t o a v o i dswords and hand weapons. It bom-bards the heroes with magic missileand sleep spells (it can cast two ofeach). The dragon then makes twopasses, using its acid breath weaponto sear flesh with deadly accuracy. Fi-nally on the third pass, feeling theneed for the safety of its lair, it fliesover the well, folds its wings, anddrops like a stone down the well.Deep below it, it will break out of itsdive and move toward its lair.

After this encounter takes place,the adventurers may explore the well(area 45) further (see the Cavern ofXak Tsaroth map).

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45. The Great Well

The shaft plunges into darkness,from which a fowl air rises. Steam

and the heavy odor of rottennessmake it hard to see the bottom.

The masonry shaft of the well drops100 feet before it opens into the ceil-ing of a vast cavern beneath theswamp. On the floor of the cavern,some 800 feet below, lie the shat-tered remains of Xak Tsaroth. Muchof the city slid into this cavern at thetime of the Cataclysm. It is the mostpreserved part of the ruined ancientcapital. The well sits directly over thecentral plaza of the ruins (area 67).

46a. Temple Entrance

Double doors of tarn ished goldclose off each end of the corridor.Blue oval archways rise 30 feet toform the ceiling. A second pair ofstained gold doors stands shut atthe other end of the hall.

These doors weigh 15,000 gpw each.They move on hinges and open asnormal dungeon doors.

46b. Mishakal’s Form

The golden doors open into thecentral chamber of the temple. At r e m e n d o u s d o m e r i s e s h i g habove the del icate t i le f loor. I tseems as though time has stilledin this room. In the center of thecircular room stands a polisheds t a t u e o f s i n g u l a r g r a c e a n dbeau ty : the de l i ca te fo rm o f awoman, draped in flowing robes.Her hair cascades about her shoul-ders and neck, which is adornedby a detailed amulet. The look onher face is one of radiant hopetempered with sadness. A feelingof warmth and love abides in theroom.

The statue is the likeness of Misha-kal, the ancient goddess of healing.Her power st i l l f i l ls the chamber.Through this statue, Mishakal will re-veal the destiny of the adventurers

and the purpose of their quest. Thestatue also has the ability to rechargethe Crystal Staff.

If a priest brings the Crystal Staffinto this room, the statue comes tolife and speaks to him: “Beloved dis-ciple, the gods have not turned awayfrom man. Man turned away from thegods and now seeks gods who do notexist. But the end of darkness nears.Krynn is about to face its greatesttest. Men now need the truth morethan ever. You must return the truthand power of the true gods to men. Itis time to restore the balance.

“To gain the power, you shall needthe truth of the gods. Far below thistemple lie the disks of Mishakal: cir-cular plates of platinum that are allyou need to call upon my power. Youmust recover these disks.

“But your way will not be easy. Thedisks now lie in the lair of the dragon.Therefore, I charge your staff: if youpresent i t boldly, never wavering,then you shall prevail. Even then,your journey is not complete; youmust leave here, must search for atrue Leader of the People.”

The arms of the statue are curvedas though they once held a long, thinpole. If any PC places the CrystalStaff in the statue’s arms, the staffglows brightly and recharges.

46c. Southern WorshipRoom

A greenish tinge covers marblebenches throughout the room. Itlooks as though this room has notbeen used in a long time.

46d. Northern WorshipRoom

The marble benches are coated ina thin, greenish film. Opposite thedoor, three figures crouch over adais, Their robes hide their fea-tures as they spring to attack.

In their haste to attack, the Baaz draconians leave the scroll they were in-specting lying on the dais.

The scroll is a wizard scroll for a10th-level lightning bolt.

The heroes may capture these dra-conians if they inflict more than 50%damage on them. The draconiansk n o w t h e w a y i n t o t h e c a v e r nthrough the well (area 45), thoughthis is helpful only to f ly ing crea-tures. The draconians a lso knowabout the elevator system at 47c,and the location of the dragon’s lair(70k).

46e. Southern Holy Circle

A high, domed ceiling caps thisc i r cu la r r oom. Fungus c reepsdown all the walls, covering fres-cos faded beyond recognition. Tothe west, five squat figures claw atthe wall with stubby fingers, scrap-ing the frescos into a heap of wetplaster on the floor.

The five Aghar gully dwarves are toobusy scratching and scraping to no-t ice the PCs. In common speech,their leader says: “Claw, mates, claw!We gots to get these here pictures offo’ the walls! I hear tell that humansused to keep pretty treasures behindwalls like these. That Highbulp kingof ours down in the cavern-city mightgive us special favors if we bring ap re t t y to h im . ” W i th a s ta r t , t hedwarves suddenly realize that the he-roes are in the room.

“lt’s the lords, mates!” shouts theleader. Al l the dwarves drop l ikesacks to their knees. Faces pressedagainst the slimy floor, they grovelout, whimpering, “We didn’t meannothin’ by it, your lordships!” Theyjump up and head out to join the lineof other gully dwarves (47b).

If the PCs stop them, the Agharbeg for mercy. If the heroes promiseto spare them, the Aghar draw a verycrude map that shows the way downinto the cavern city. They advise: “Gov is i t ou r k ing , t he g rea t PhudgeH i g h b u l p . H e ’ l l h e l p y o u r i g h tstraight!”

46f. Northern Holy Circle

A circular fresco, faded and dampwith age, covers the walls of this60-foot-high room. A domed ceil-

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i n g v a u l t s o v e r h e a d . F u n g u screeps down the walls.

46g. Paths of the Dead

A domed ceiling caps this 60-foot-h igh c i r cu la r room. V ines andmosses dangle from great cracksin the ceiling. Fungus covers thewalls. In the center of the roomstands an empty pedestal, the topof which cannot be seen from thef l oo r . On the wes t s ide o f t heroom, just in front of the doors, acircular staircase, its flagstonessl ick wi th green f i lm, descendsinto darkness.

47a. Hall of the Ancestors

Dim light shines up through thebroken floor. A vast hall stretchesto the east. The ceiling, heavily re-inforced, stands solidly above, butbelow, the floor has fallen away inseveral places. Hot mists, carryingthe odor of decay, rise through theholes in the floor.

Any dwarf can tell that this floor isunsafe. The holes open to a 700-footdrop straight into the lower ruins ofthe city. Anyone who weighs morethan 500 gpw and comes within fivefeet of a hole’s edge runs a 25%chance that the floor below him willcollapse.

Even if a hero makes it to the edgeof a hole, all he sees is foul mist swirl-ing below.

47b. Southern Crypts

Crypts line the hallway. Cloaked infoul mists, a group of squat formsfiles into a line.

Many gully dwarves slouch and stoopin l ine. Every three turns, a whipcracks and half of these dwarves (15)rush through the eastern entrance tothe hallway. The rest move up to theentrance. In one hour, the same 15gully dwarves that rushed out the eastend of the hall come in the west endand get back in line.

If they notice the heroes, theseAghar only put dirty fingers to theirlips: “Shhhh!” They run if attacked.

47c. Going Down

Hot m is t r i ses f rom two la rgeholes in the floor, one on the northand one on the south. A tremen-dous black iron pot hangs from alarge chain over the northern hole.The chain runs around two largewheels, crosses the ceiling, anddrops through the center of thesouthern hole. Two large figurescrouch beside the pot.

The holes, each ten feet in diameter,break through the ceiling of the ca-vern below, dropping 700 feet toarea 66. Every three game turns, agong sounds far below; then one ofthe draconians cracks a whip and 15gully dwarves from 47b clamber intothe room and scurry into the pot.When the pot is full—dwarf arms andlegs sticking out, some Aghar evenhanging on the sides— it slowly de-scends, pul l ing the chain wi th i t .W ith in f ive rounds, another hugepot, containing draconians, groansup the chain through the southernhole. The machine is the Aghar ideaof an elevator. The two Baaz dracon-ian overseers order the Aghar into ei-ther the northern pot or the southernpot, using this crude pulley system tobring up their comrades.

If the heroes attack, the overseerspanic and leap into the pot. The potsinks slowly, and PCs have a chanceto jump aboard; however, the heavierthe pot gets, the faster it moves. Youshould warn the PCs that “the pot isfalling quickly” if more than two tryto climb aboard.

When the second pot rises into theroom, it contains six Baaz draconiantroops.

These are shock troops, trained tofight to the death. They do only whatthey are told and know nothing ex-cept the way f rom their quarters(64g) to their post (44e). They are notabove having a snack along the way,however, and the adventurers lookpretty tasty to them.

47d. Northern Crypts

Row upon row of dark and mustycrypts line either side of a ten-foot-wide, 30-foot-high hall.

47e. Floorless

Four a rchways en te r a squareroom, well preserved but for oneexception: there is no floor. Mistb i l l o w s f r o m t h e g a p i n g h o l ewhere the floor once was. Onlyabout one square yard of floor re-mains in the northeast corner. Asmall box sits at the edge of thisfloor section.

The room is 30 feet square. The boxcontains five gems (1,000 stl total).

47f. Watch Room

T h i s r o o m h a s r e m a i n e d u n -touched for centur ies. A greenf i lm b lanke ts every th ing ; co r -roded metal fittings lie where abanded table once stood.

The fitt ings crumble at the touch.The floor is slippery; all creaturesfight here with a -3 penalty to theirattack rolls.

47g. Treasury

Six stone coffins lie in the room.Th ick fungus and s l ime cove re v e r y t h i n g i n s i g h t . A h o l l o wvoice, as if from the bottom of adeep well, calls to you: “Who en-ters the tomb of kings?”

T h e g u a r d i a n s p e c t r a l m i n i o nwatches the tombs of the kings andmay not leave until relieved of duty.He is tired of his eternal watch. If theheroes speak kindly to this spirit, hetells them his purpose. If someonetells him that the party has come torelieve him, he is released from hisvow and departs.

In each coffin lies the skeleton of aking of ancient Xak Tsaroth. Eachskeleton holds a gleaming sword+1, the hilt at its chest, the point to-ward its feet.

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47h. South Temple

This 30-foot square room rises 20feet to a flat ceiling. Wall carvings,coated in a slimy green substance,adore the walls.

47i. Temple of the Dead

The 30-foot-wide octagonal roomrises 60 feet to a domed ceiling.The back wall bears a relief statueo f t he goddess M ishaka l . Thearms of the statue reach down as ifto receive something. Exits lie tothe north, south, and west.

47j. North Temple

T h e c e i l i n g h a s p a r t i a l l y c o l -l a p s e d ! A f o u r - f o o t - d i a m e t e rsewer constructed of fitted stoneapparently fell through the roof,caving in the northeast corner ofthe room. Now, the jagged edge ofthe broken sewer juts through therubble-strewn f loor. I t looks asthough a man could fo l low th istunnel downward in to the dark

quite some way, but there wouldbe no room to swing a sword.

If Riverwind is with the party, he re-members having been here before.The sewer opening leads to area 48.

48. Sewer Entrance

Mosses and a sl imy green f i lmcoat the walls of the three footdiameter sewer.

The walls are extremely slick. Unlessthe PCs have both hands f ree toclimb down, they have to roll a suc-cessful Dexterity check here (with a-4 penalty) or slide down the shaftto area 49.

Those who slide do not slide alone.Five gully dwarves are crawling up thistunnel, halfway between the junction(area 49) and the top of the sewer. Anyhero who slides down bowls them overand tumbles with them all the waydown. Since the tumble is more a gen-tle slide than a fall, PCs do not sufferfalling damage.

The dwarves are irritated at the ac-cident, but do not bother the PCs. If

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no hero falls down the tunnel, theAghar back all the way down to area49 and let the party pass by.

49. Sewer Junction

The slick sewer tunnel suddenlybranches downward. The corridor

continues steeply before you, butthe branching looks even steeper.

50. Sewer Branch

Moss and slimy green muck coat

the four-foot-diameter tube. Watertrickles slowly down the shaft.

51 a. Cellar Above

A sewer pipe breaks through thecavern ceiling only ten feet abovethe floor. What is left of the roomappears to be upside down. Ceil-ing rafters span the floor, and thedoors hang three feet above therafters.

A huge spider has wandered into theroom in a search for food. It attacksthe first PC to slide down the sewer. Itfights to the death.

51b. Tipped Hallway

What was once pol ished p lankflooring covers the ceiling.

51c. Ceiling Cooks

Cooking utensi ls are scat teredabout the room. A large woodentable hangs from the floor above.

If the heroes enter this room, theysee three spectral minions guardiancooks standing on the ceiling, behav-ing as if nothing is wrong. The cookstry to chase the adventurers out oftheir kitchen.

51d. Bottoms Down

Broken tables and chairs sprawlabou t t he room. Swamp wa te r

seeps through the shuttered win-dows and col lects in pools be-tween the ceiling beams below. Ahuge fireplace against the far east-ern wal l receives the overf low,which drains down the chimney.Thin music and hollow laughterfloat through the hall. Overhead,spirits float upside down as if sit-t ing at tables. They laugh andjoke.

Unless they are attacked, these spec-tral minion revelers go about theirbusiness and ignore the PCs. If thePCs attack them, they scatter andvanish.

51e. Sleeping Inn

Rotted cots l ie in a jumble al labout the room. Water seeps inthrough the shuttered windows,collecting in pools on the floor.The overflow drains through thesouthern door.

52. Chimney Down

Water trickles down this chimney.Loose bricks provide handholdson all sides.

The chimney now descends from thefireplace, water trickling down its in-side. A man could easily fit down itsshaft, and there are plenty of hand-holds in the loosened bricks to helph im descend . The ch imney endsabruptly in mid-air, 15 feet above thesloping floor of a small cavern (area58a).

53a. Bakery

A sewer tube of fitted stone breaksthrough the ceil ing of this shop.Water trickles from the tube ontothe floor and streams out the doorto the east. On the floor directlysouth of the slanting sewer tube sit20 large rotting sacks.

This shop was once a bakery. Thewindows in its east wall overlook theruins of a city street. The roar of rush-

ing water comes from that direction.If any PC slides down the sewer

shaft into this room, he launches intothe rotting sacks. The sacks disinte-grate in a sudden explosion of white,and the flour within them covers thePC. Although the hero suffers nodamage, until he cleans off the floureveryone he meets asks him why heis covered in it.

53b. Slidestreet

The buildings that once lined thisstreet have toppled against oneanother, forming a rough arch ofmarble slabs over the cobblestonestreet. The place is still but tense,like the nave of a haunted cathe-dral. Doors and broken shop win-dows yawn in to the s t ree t ast h o u g h t h e b u i l d i n g s h a d e x -ploded from inside.

54a. Philosopher Front

Books line the northern wall of theroom, their spines stained wi thgreen fungus. The r ich, mustysmel l of rot t ing paper f i l ls theroom.

The books ‘bear familiar titles: Humaand the Lance of Dragons, Tales of theGreystone Wars, Chronicle of Kith-K a n a n , T h e G o d s o f K r y n n , andIconochronos, Vol. II. Why, you, As-tinus wrote the lconochronos. In fact,you’re working on Volume X rightnow! These books are so rotted fromthe swamp water that they crumbleat the touch.

54b. Philosopher’s Court

A large golden chair sags to oneside atop a platform at the westernend of the room. Floating abovethe chair is the bright, transparentform of a man in robes.

The heroes in the room hear theghostly figure speak: “I am Ossamis.It is my vow to answer one last ques-tion before 1 may leave. Ask: yours isthe answer.”

Ossamis answers any question as

best he can. He knows the location ofthe disks of Mishakal (area 70k) andhow to get there.

55. Treasury Court

The street emerges from archedbuildings into a plaza. Tremen-dous cracked and crumbling pil-l a r s s t r a i n b e n e a t h t h e r o c kce i l i ng . Wate r f rom the s t ree trushes into a river flowing westfrom the east wall toward a steadyroar of water. Across the plazariver, blackened steel doors standin the face of a solid, square struc-ture.

Those who try to wade across theriver must roll a successful Strengthcheck (with a +5 bonus) to cross theriver. Kender and dwarves do not getthe bonus ment ioned above. Anyhero who fails tumbles ten feet far-ther down stream toward the falls(area 56). He has to check again untilhe succeeds or goes over the falls.

The steel doors weigh 5,000 gpweach and are worth 5,000 stl each inSolace, Haven or Gateway. The doorsare on counterpoised h inges andopen easily for the adventurers.

56. View from the Falls

Water rushes around columns andplunges from hanging steps into avast cavern. Overhead, mist thick-ens beneath the fading ceiling. Asingle shaft of l ight i l luminatesthe vast underground area. Over500 feet below, ruins litter the dimfloor of the cavern. The ancientc i ty of Xak Tsaroth is in manystates of decay: some buildingsare almost intact, many are noth-ing but rubble. Several waterfallspour into the cavern, and many ofthe streets are rivers, all of whichf low into a s ingle abyss to thenorth. A huge chain extends fromthe mists overhead down into asmall courtyard below. Vines atyour feet twist over the edge andappear to reach almost to the floorof the cavern.

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The vines are slippery and damp. Ifa hero wants to climb down them, hemust pass two Dexterity checks. Afall (failing the first means a fall of130 feet and 13d6 points of damage;succeeding on the first but failing thesecond means a fall of 60 feet and6d6 points of damage) would cer-tainly attract the attention of the dra-conians.

57a. Outer Treasury

A long counter of chipped, dustymarble bisects the room from eastto west. Against the southern wall,four ghostly forms stand at atten-tion, their weapons drawn. Justbehind the counter stands anotherl o n g - f a c e d g h o s t l y f o r m . H espeaks as you enter: “So you’ve fi-nally arrived. Kathal! Well, you’rethe last, so pay the tax!”

The counter has a three-foot gap atits eastern end, and is about four feethigh. The spectral minion warriorshover around it and demand the pay-ment o f Ka tha l ’ s taxes : 500 c layTsarothian culli. The accountant ac-cepts no other currency; payment re-leases him from duty.

If the PCs have no culli, the ac-countant orders the guards to kil lthem for trying to impersonate Ka-thal.

57b. Vault

Hundreds o f ro t t i ng sacks l i ewithin the room. Clay tokens spillfrom their split sides. Three skele-tons, two holding shovels, sprawlhal f -bur ied in the c lay tokens.Their faces grin hideously. Two al-coves sit in the eastern wall; themoss-covered inscriptions abovethem are difficult to make out.

The PCs have a 30% chance to readthe inscriptions. The northern onereads “Treasury,” the southern one“Taxes.” The alcoves are both dimen-sion door portals to the ruins of theTreasury Tower (area 62).

58a. Northern Cavern

The fragments of a chimney hangdown f ive feet f rom the caverncei l ing. Water t r ick les f rom thechimney and from fissures in thesurrounding cavern walls. Fifteenfeet below the chimney, the cavernfloor slants sharply to the south.

58b. Drain

The steepening floor of the cavernsuddenly narrows into smooth,yard-wide, nearly vertical drain.Water collected from all the fis-sures in the cavern swirls steadilydown the sides of the shaft.

58c. Down the Sink

Water splashes down the s l icksides of the shaft. The tunnel ischilly; the noise of the water isdeafening.

The PCs can ei ther fa l l down theshaft (suffering 15d6 points of dam-age) or they can lower themselvesdown via ropes, or “walk” down bybracing their backs against one sideof the shaft and their feet and handsaga ins t the o the r s ide . Th is l as tmethod entails two Dexterity checks,one at 100 feet above 59a, and theother at 50 feet above 59a. Failure ofei ther check means a fa l l to 59a(10d6 and 5d6 points of damage, re-spectively).

A f te r t rave l i ng abou t 100 fee tdown the shaft, the PC who leads theway suddenly hears something com-ing toward him: sniffling, muttering,a loud curse or two. It is eight moregully dwarves, climbing up to addtheir weight to the lifter.

The dwarves grumble, move backdown to 59a, and let the heroes go by(they flatten themselves against thesides of the shaft to avoid fal l ingPCS).

59a. Windows Below

A natura l shaf t o f smooth rockcarries a spray of water into the

cramped cave. The ceiling of thesmall area is covered with runningwater. On the floor the water fallsthrough what appears to be 30-foo t - ta l l w indows la id i n to thestone floor. The glass is gone, butt h e i r o n w o r k o f t h e w i n d o wframes remains.

Curtains of woven metal strands fallfrom the northern ends of the win-dows (what had been the top beforethe room capsized) down to the floorof the room below. These can sup-port any PCs trying to climb down.

59b. Dance on the Wall

The vast hall lies on its side. Itsnorthern wall is beamed like theceiling it once was; its southernwall is a great, tiled floor. Now theceiling and floor of the room arewindowed. Water pours into theroom from the upper windows andou t t h rough t he b roken l owe rones. Mosses and fungus coverthe hall. The fungus on the floorappears to be moving. From thenorthern ends of the overheadwindows, curtains made of somec o r r o d e d , w o v e n m e t a l h a n gl imp ly toward the wa l l be low.Each of the three upper windowshas these drapes, but those fromthe wes te rnmos t w indow havebeen pul led over to an archedopening in the western wall, wherethey have been fastened. Thisopening, 30 feet up the westernwall, leads to a dark corridor.

T h e c u r t a i n s e a s i l y s u p p o r t t h eweight of a man. Each adventurerwho attempts to move from one cur-tain to another must roll a Dexteritycheck or fall to the floor (3d6 pointsof damage from the fall) and be at-tacked by the ten poisonous snakesthat live there.

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60. Entrance to the Hall ofJustice

Only a dim light from above re-lieves the darkness in the cavern,shining faintly on the ruins thatcover the cavern floor. The air isheavy with moisture and heat. Thefacade of an ancient building jutssideways from the cavern wall. Itsroof lies half buried in the rubbleof the cavern floor to the north, itssteps now rising to the south. Thedelicately carved pillars that stoodin front of the building now lie bro-ken amid rubble that slopes westto a cobblestone street. Fartherwes t , a r i ng o f b roken s tonesmarks the foundation of a tremen-dous tower. The tower itself l iesnext to the foundation, its top bur-ied in the cavern wall. Water poursi n t o t h e c a v e r n f r o m s e v e r a lplaces high up the walls.

61. Cobblestone Street

This cobblestone street is heavilydamaged. Rubble is strewn aboutand many smal l f issures makepassage di f f icul t but not espe-cially dangerous.

62. Treasury Tower

A broken foundation circles thearea where a tremendous toweronce stood. Two ten-foot cubesstand within the circle, apparentlyuntouched by the catastrophe thatdestroyed the city. Each cube hasan arched opening in its side. Theopenings face each other, 20 feetapart. To one side, the fallen towerlies on its side, its top buried in thecavern wall to the north. Inside thehollow cylinder the tower is onlydarkness.

The cubes are permanent dimensiondoorportals both of which lead to thevault of the treasury (57b). Thesewarp space so that they appear to benormal arched entrances into thevault.

63. Northern Mall

The catastrophe has marred once-beautiful buildings. Moss-coveredrubble hides the carefully laid cob-blestones of the street. Rushingthrough the rubble and cobble-stones, an icy river surges north-w e s t . T h e r e t h e s t r e e t e n d sabruptly in a chasm: mist billowsfrom the hole, and falling watercrashes somewhere below.

The water charges out of the cavernhere. Heroes trying to cross the swiftwater within 50’ of the chasm musteach roll a successful Strength checka n d D e x t e r i t y c h e c k t o m a k e i tacross unaided. Those who fail eithercheck are swept ten feet toward thetwisting whirlpool in the crevasse.Then they must successful ly rol lboth checks again or be swept an-other ten feet toward the maelstrom.Anyone who falls into the crevassedrowns, unless he has a spell, potion,or device of water breathing, in whichcase he finds himself at the bottomof a 1,000-foot-high cliff, floating outinto the Newsea.

64. Palace Guard Hall

The shattered walls of the city bowdarkly above the street. Mossesand fungus cling to the ruins, as iftrying to drag the walls down. Inthe middle of the street that runsbetween the ruins, a river flowsswiftly north. A dim shaft of lightoverhead centers on a great plazato the south. To the east , onebuilding seems to have held upmost admirably. Dark growth ob-scures the lettering above its dou-ble doors.

The adventurers have a good chance(60%) to read these runes: “Guard-ians of Justice.”

64a. Entry

Dark stains spot the walls. Theten-foot-wide hall curves before aset of bronze double doors. In

front of the doors, mosses coveran ancient, faded mural.

The heroes must clean off the muralbefore they have any idea that it is amap of a city. Even if they discoverthis, they have only a 30% chance ofrecognizing their current location onthe map.

Anyone who figures out which partof the mural is the cavern area candiscover the way to the Great Plaza(67), the Pillars of the Palace (70a),and the Treasury Tower (62).

64b. Northern Cell

Dark stains streak the walls of the20-foot-square room. Two sodden wooden doors open to the eastand south

64c. Northern Armory

Ancient bronze weapons danglefrom broken racks on all the walls.A low cei l ing, heavy with mois-ture, strains on sagging beams. Inthe center of the room, two squatshapes bat their leathery wings,chat ter ing loudly and tugging asteel weapon between them.

The two Baaz draconians in the cen-ter of the room are arguing over ashort sword. They and their threeBaaz companions stop bickering andattack the party, fighting until death.

64d. Assembly Hall

This room is dark, but the echo ofyour footsteps suggests that it islarge. From deep in the darknesscomes a shrill, hiccuping sound.

The h i ccups come f rom a s tonedrunk Baaz draconian, lying in thenorthwestern corner of the room. Itthinks the adventurers are its dracon-ian brothers, so they have no troublegetting it to babble at them in com-mon tongue. It is drunk and upset:“The Captain an’ I was havin’ a littlecelebration when we got a bit too cel-

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ebrated! 1 remember that a bunch ofstinking gully dwarves came alongand carried him off. If they let the hu-mans in on our real plan, the wholething could be ruined. I’m pretty suret h e y d r a g g e d h i m o f f t o t h e i rguildhouse west of here. I’ve got toget a rescue party together—just assoon as I’ve had a chance to sleep. . .off . . . this . . .”

The draconian wi l l s leep for atleast three hours. It cannot be awak-ened in that time.

64e. Southern Cell

Dark stains streak the walls of this20 - foo t - squa re room. A g reen ,slimy substance coats its ceiling.

64f. Southern Armory

Bronze weapons, corroded anduseless, hang askew from brokenwal l racks.

64g. Quarters

Mosses drape the darkened corri-dor . Inky a lcoves branch of f toboth sides of the hall. A putridsmell hangs in the air.

Snorts, hisses, and whistles rise fromthe 15 sleeping draconians lying inmany of the cells in the hall. Thesefellows do not sleep well, and eachhero who enters this area must bequiet or risk awakening them. Even ifhe is trying to be silent, each heromus t ro l l a success fu l Dex te r i t ycheck to avoid awakening the sleep-ers. I f awakened, the draconianshave but one thought on their minds:to kill the intruders.

64h. Mess Hall

Smoky to rches l i gh t t h i s l a rgeroom. Broken tables lie scatteredabout, and a fireplace, cold withdisuse, is built into the easternwall. Three unbroken tables standupright in the center of the room.

There, under the sputtering torch-l ight , three, dark shapes argueloud ly .

“What are we waiting for?” roars thefirst Baaz draconian. “I’ll tell ya! TheDragon Highlord needs th is herecrystal staff, see? If he don’t have itwhere it be safe and sound, thenthem humans might just be able toclean our noses.”

The second Baaz replies, “If oldVerninaard, our h igh and mightyDragon Highlord, needs a staff, thenlet him get it! I don’t see why it’s soimportant. Khisanth guards the onlywrit ings of the true gods we knowabout—without them the humanscan’t stop us.”

“Look, all we gotta do is wait untilthose spineless Seekers in Havencome up with the staff. Then we crushthem and take it. What’s a few days’wait for a little extra safety, eh?”

These draconians are spoiling fora fight! They fight to the death.

65a. Larder Office

Three figures squat in the centerof the room, their wings folded flatagainst their backs. They seem tobe tossing something on the floor.In the northwestern corner, a fig-ure lies bound head to toe. Hiseyes glitter above the gag over hismouth.

“What luck,” says the largest of thethree Bozak draconians, “that this lit-tle morsel fell into our hands! We’llcast our bones on the floor until oneof us wins him. He’ll make a nicechange of diet.”

The kender (Hugon Barker) heldprisoner by the draconians is in seri-ous trouble: Caught up in the middleof wanderlust, a natural time of ken-der life, he felt as though he had tofind out what was at the bottom ofthe cavern. He knows nothing aboutthe plans of the dragonmen, or evenwhat they are. If rescued, he gladlyjoins the party.

65b. Larder

This 30-foot-square room has nonatura l source of l ight . Wickerbaskets are stacked against i tswal ls.

Anyone who checks the room care-fully notes a glint of metal from be-hind the baskets against the westernwall. A cache of extra weapons: threelong swords of superior craftsman-ship (+2 to attack and damage rolls)and an elven bow with a marchingquiver of 12 arrows ( + 1).

66. Court of Reception

A th in sha f t o f l i gh t ove rheaddimly outlines a dismal courtyard40 feet in diameter. Broken cob-blestone streets run east, west andsouth from the courtyard; ruinedwalls sag threateningly toward thestreets. Against the northern wallof the courtyard, a ten-foot- ta l lwicker dragon stands, bearing al a r g e r o u n d m e t a l p l a t e s u s -pended in a hole in its chest. Arobed figure stands next to thestatue. A huge black metal pot sitsin the center of the courtyard. Achain rises from the pot and disap-pears above into mists.

The robed figure is a Baaz draconian.W ith in a few minutes, a group ofeight Baaz arrives in the plaza.

Their leader nods to the robed dra-conian by the statue, who takes a mal-let from its robes and hits a roundmetal gong in the statue. Moments af-ter the sound rocks through the ca-vern, the chain overhead grows tautand the pot begins to rise, with theeight Baaz draconians scrambling in.A second pot, bristl ing with stubbyarms and legs, descends on a chainand passes the ascending pot. Withinf ive minutes, the descending potbumps to a stop in the courtyard. It isfull of 15 gully dwarves, some havingridden down on the outside of the pot.

They wait until the robed dracon-ian yells. “Now, you scum! Climb outor else!” Then they leap from the potand scramble from the cavern, backto area 47c.

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67. Great Plaza

A single column of l ight piercesthe overhead mists and spreadsonto a vast plaza at least 120 feetacross. Steady streams from theeastern and western streets flowinto a large pool of water, which inturn empt ies into a r iver chan-neled down the northern street.The roar of waterfalls fades to si-lence, the moss-covered ruins thatsurround the plaza recede into thedarkness when a l ow , t h roa tynoise rumbles from the entranceof one of the southern buildings.

A huge, black creature archeslike a cobra on the steps to thebuilding. The plaza stills. It seemsas though light and air flee thespot on which the creature stands.

T h e d r a g o n ( i t m u s t b e ad r a g o n : a w i n g e d d r a c o n i a nkneels before it) speaks in a low,hissing language from the stairs.Beh ind the d racon ian , severa ldir ty forms grovel in the moss,turning their eyes from the glossyblack scales.

The dragon Khisanth whispers fur-ther to the Bozak draconian, whothen turns and yells to the Aghar:“Begin the search.” While the dragonlooks on, the search party and its dra-conian leader scurry off. A momentlater, the dragon retreats througharea 70a into its lair (70k).

The PCs would be seen before theycould get close enough to hear thedragon’s instructions. However, thedraconian’s voice carries throughoutthe plaza, saying, “Aghar slime, hearme! If this prisoner escapes, 1 will beeaten alive for breakfast, but not be-fore 1 eat you! 1 want that prisonerand 1 want her now!” The draconianc racks a wh ip ove rhead and theAgha r sca t t e r down each o f t hestreets. The draconian follows one ofthe search groups randomly.

They are looking for an escapedprisoner— a Que-Shu tribeswomanwho is hiding in area 67b.

67a. Eastern Falls

Torrents of water from high abovebatter the rubble, hur l ing mistsinto the air , then sett le into ast ream running west down thestreet. Vines grow up the side ofthe cavern next to the waterfall.

The wet vines are very slippery. Thea d v e n t u r e r s m u s t r o l l D e x t e r i t ychecks twice to climb to the ruins ofthe treasury (see area 56 for details).

An escaped prisoner of the dracon-ians hides, t rembl ing, behind thecurtain of water.

The woman (Sunstar) crouches inthe rubble, as far from the water asshe can get. Cornered, she fightsfiercely and to the death, unless theparty shows that they mean no harm.She is one of only two survivors inher tribe, and is desperate to escapethe dragonmen. Her cell (70g) is nearthe dragon’s lair (70k). If the party isfriendly, she joins them gladly.

68a. Alley

A nar row passage , f ramed bycrumbl ing wal ls , winds throughthe vine-covered ruins and endssuddenly in a door.

68b. Scum Entrance

The room is damp and chil l. Anold and terr ib le quiet ru les theplace, as though stunned by thepast—by something unspeakablethat happened here once.

68c. Slud Rooms

Brown and dry ing mold coversevery wal l . A dul l stench r isesfrom beneath the lumpy, wovenmats piled about the floor. Faintsounds rattle from each of thesemats.

The room i s an Agha r ba r racks .Thieves must moue silently to walkamong these sleeping dwarves with-out waking them. Non-thieves whoattempt to enter the room wake the

Aghar. If they awaken, these Sludclan Aghar rush toward the door andsafety; if captured, they know (andtell) about the elevator (47c, 66) butnothing else.

68d. Glup Room

Fungus and water stains streakthe wal l . L ight f l ickers into theroom through four vertical slits inthe northern wall.

Heroes looking through these slitssee the torch-lit room (68c).

68e. Welcome Room

Torches spu t te r and smoke i nsconces mounted on the easternwall. Darker than the smoke arethe slits in the southern and west-e rn wa l l s . These s l i t s a re twoinches wide and four feet long.

The southern slits look into an emptyroom (68d) . The sound of hear tysnoring rumbles through the westernwall slits. The guards (in 68f) that aresupposed to make this a death-trapare napping. No amount of noise inthis room awakens them.

68f. Guard Post

With their backs to the slits in theeastern wal l of the room, threegully dwarves lean against eachother , as leep. The huge roundnose of the largest bobs up anddown with every rolling snore. Hisarms are folded across his chest;his notched short sword rests onthe floor well out of his reach. Heleans against the second dwarf,whose ears curl in cycle with hisloud snoring. The feet of the third,smal l dwarf st ick out f rom be-neath his f r iends, wear ing twohuge boots, their soles tattered.The snoring of the guards couldawaken a mountain.

These are crack Aghar guards! I fwakened, they try to bully any onetrespasser but run away from morethan one. If they run, they go straight

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to the Highbulp’s throne room (68m),report that “an army” has broken in,and ask for orders.

68g. Waiting Place

The streaked walls of this room lieburied under tapestries and deco-rations almost too gaudy to be be-l i e v e d . T h e t a p e s t r i e s h a n geverywhere, some upside down ors i d e w a y s . F r a y i n g g o l d c l o t hdrapes between statues of everyshape and kind. It is the Agharidea of the good life.

Other than the obvious doors in theroom, a secret door in the easternwal l leads to 68h. Anyone wi th inth ree fee t o f th i s door w i l l hearthumping sounds against the door,followed by muffled growls and yells.

68h. Treasury

A single Bozak draconian glaresfrom the darkness. Its hands andfeet are bound tightly, its wingstied securely against its body. Oneither side of it, two small gullydwarves stand, bearing woodenspears. They prod the draconianwith their sticks, then jump backas though it is not tied. Each timethey jump, their oversized hornedhe lmets ro l l a round a top the i rheads , somet imes fa i l i ng overtheir eyes.

The dwarves notice the heroes aftertwo rounds . They t r y to f l ee theroom. The draconian, stripped of itsweapons and its uniform, is the cap-tain of the draconians and has awak-ened with a horrible hangover!

If untied, the draconian captainuses every means it can, but mainlyits spells, to escape and regain com-mand of its troops.

The captain te l ls the fo l lowing,only if threatened with death or ifcharmed: “Verminaard is our DragonHighlord! True cleric of evil, he callsupon the powers of darkness to bringthis land under his rule. Yet he fearso n e t h i n g : t h e u p r i s i n g o f l i g h tagainst the darkness. We guard thatwh i ch m igh t k i nd le hope among

men and lift the darkness! We guardthe true knowledge of the gods. Un-der the eye of Khisanth, the truth issafe in the secret!”

68i. Messy Mess

Lukewarm, s t i nk ing g lop f l i esabout the room. Bowls shat teragainst the walls, knives clatter onthe floor. Gully dwarves are set-tling a wild argument over dinner.

Each round a hero is in this room, hesuffers a 70% chance that a bowl ofgoo hits and splatters on him. This isAghar stew, made by throwing justabout anything dead or near deathinto a pot. The stuff stinks violently,and keeps on stinking. It wears off in1d20 turns, but during that time otherheroes must each roll a successfulConstitution check to be able to staywithin ten feet of the smelly goo. Nei-ther the hero or anyone with him has achance of surprising an enemy.

The Aghar do not notice the he-roes until five rounds after they enterthe hall. Some of them throw food atthe intruders, though their chancesto hit the heroes do not increase. Ifthe heroes t ry to f ight , the foul-smelling dwarves simply run out oneof the doors of the room.

68j. Bulp Rooms

Grinding snores and whistles echofrom the dirty cells of the hallway.

If awakened, the eight aghar try torun away. If captured, they revealsome va luab le know ledge : Theyknow of the tunnel from 69b into thedragon’s lair.

68k. Highbulp Quarters

A huge bed—carved, rotting postsat the corners—sags in the middleof the room. Tattered hats, someof which sport shredded or soiledfeathers, hang on racks lining thewestern wall. Caps and loud cloth-ing of all kinds are piled about.

This is the bedroom of the HighbulpPhudge. There is a secret door in the

western wall. Any heroes who searchthe clothing piles find an old, stainedmap.

The map shows the location of thesewer access (69b) and the tunnelthat leads from there to the dragon’slair at 70k. Crude notes on the mar-gins of the map read, “Big treasure,much goods. Old bark of a dragonnot miss if great Highbulp take hisshare!”

68l. Secret Exit

Thieves of old used this exit whenthey needed to get into the streetquickly. The secret doors are oneway only—out of the old guild hall.

68m. Court of the Aghar

Heavy, frayed gold cloth adornsthe hall. Statues line the walls, andcarpets of every color and descrip-tion form a patchwork across thefloor. At the western end, a hugethrone sits, the gold leafing peel-ing badly from its carved frame. Ashr i ve l l ed f i gu re , nodd ing be -neath a tarn ished crown threesizes too big for him, sits buried inrobes on the throne. Four armeddwarves, their heads rattling in-side their helmets, stand besidetheir king.

This is the court of the HighbulpPhudge I, King of the Aghar. He bar-gains with whoever comes into hiscourt. The guards attack only if theyor Phudge are attacked first. ThoughAghar general ly run away from afight, when backed into a corner theyare ferocious!

The Highbulp does not l ike dra-conians. He feels that pickings wereeasier before they came, and hemisses the times when Aghar couldgo for weeks without working. Fur-t h e r m o r e , t h e d r a g o n m e n h a v ecleaned the place up far too much forhis tastes. The Highbulp knows thatthe disks of Mishakal lie in the drag-on’s lair at 70k; he also knows aboutthe tunnel from 69b into that lair. Heoffers the party guides to var iousplaces in the caverns, but he offersno other aid.

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69a. Delvers Welcome

Water seeps down the walls in theroom, pools, then winds out thes o u t h e r n d o o r . A l o n g s t o n ecounter b isects the room f romeast to west. Behind it, anotherdoorway leads north.

69b. The Secret Way

Rivulets of water trickle down thewa l l s o f t he room. A l though agreat deal of water is flooding theroom, there seems to be only oneor two inches of it covering thefloor.

PCs who check the floor near thecenter of the room find a closed trapdoor operated by a pull ring. Add thestrengths of all PCs trying to pull thedoor open to f ind the percentagechance of their success.

The trap door is four feet squareand opens over a four-foot-squareshaft 20 feet deep. There it opensinto a masonry tunnel half-filled withwater.

If the PCs enter this area, check fora random encounter. If an encounteris indicated, roll 1d20 to determinehow many rounds later it takes place.Treat a rolled encounter with Khi-santh as no encounter.

Water trickles into the main tunnelt h rough gaps i n t he s tonework .North of the access shaft, the tunnelruns 30 feet to a cave-in. The tunnelextends south into the darkness,

Through the darkness, the tunnelruns 200 feet south, then turns 340feet east to another cave-in. Thirtyfeet before the end of the tunnel,however, a shaft ascends 30 feet to agate in the floor of Khisanth’s lair(70k).

70a. The Pillars of thePalace

Broad steps lead from the greatplaza to a pillared courtyard. Allcracked, same, shattered, the pil-lars support a sagging stone roof.In places, the cavern wall has bro-

ken t he s tonework and f o rmsmuch of the courtyard. A largearchway leads into a huge darkroom to the east. At the back ofthe courtyard, a set of sta inedsteel doors stands closed. Thesealso lead east.

70b. Honored Dead

Tremendous, 40-foot-tall statueso f anc ien t k ings s tand a t t henorthern and southern walls of thehall. Their deeply carved featuresare masked in shadows, but theyseem to watch intruders.

70c. First Hall

Soi led wal ls r ise 30 feet to anarched ceiling. Mosses and an off-whi te fungus l ine the hal l . An-cient , man-sized statues standthroughout the chamber.

Two Bozak draconians guard thenorthern end of the hall. They attackthe PCs on sight.

70d. Palace Treasury

Huge chests, their wood rottedand split, spill their contents intothe room.

There are 30,000 Tsarothian c layculli in this room—absolutely worth-less. However, i f a PC searchesth rough the cu l l i , he has a 30%chance of finding one of the follow-ing: two throwing daggers +3, 1 pairgauntlets of climbing, one spellbookcontaining wizard lock, knock, andinvisibility spells, and a shield +1.

70e. Bozak Quarters

Cel ls branch nor th f rom a longhall that runs to the east. The hallis silent.

70f. Bozak Captain’sQuarters

This 20’ x 30’ room is quite spare:A bedroll lies on the floor, a packin the corner.

The pack contains dried meats and amap showing the exact layout of thepalace (70a-70h).

70g. Prisoner Cell

The door creaks open to reveal aman hanging limply by his wristsf rom manac les d r i ven in to thew a l l s . H i s t o r s o i s b a r e a n dstretched, showing signs of tor-ture.

T h e m a n ’ s n a m e i s R a v e n - e y e .Though weak, he speaks: “Our tribewas set upon by demons from thenor th. We fought bravely . To ourshame, we still fell into their hands.Only two of us are left—the other is awoman who escaped just a few hoursago.” He knows the way to the drag-on’s lair (70k) and will join and aidthe PCs.

70h. Bozak Commander

The door opens onto a room lit bya smoky torch. A crude desk sitsin the middle of the room. Sittingbehind it, a scaly winged lizardc rea tu re wear ing pa r t i a l a rmorsuddenly looks up and leaps to hisfeet!

If badly outnumbered, this sly Bozakdraconian surrenders, then tries tolead the players through the westerndoors of area 70j, insisting that it isthe only safe way to enter the drag-on’s lair.

70i. Long Hall

Wate r seeps down the a r ch ingwalls of the ten-foot-wide hall. Acold, musty smell rides the air.

The hall runs south into the rubble ofa col lapsed cei l ing. Steel double

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doors, weighing 500 gpw each, standclosed on the right of the corridor.These lead to area 70k.

70j. Hall of Sound

A 3 0 - f o o t - h i g h c e i l i n g a r c h e sabove the hall. Mosiac patternscover the floor with meaninglessdesigns.

The hall is 90-feet-long. Forty feetfrom either end, pressure plates inthe floor activate a loud gong, whichresounds throughout the palace andarea 70k. If the PCs fail to note thistrap and sound the gong, the dragonpushes her head out the easterndoors and uses her breath weapon onthe party in this narrow space. Shethen calls for draconian guards, un-aware that there are none in the area.

70k. Court of the Balance

A vast chamber stretches beforeyou, 100 feet in diameter. The cir-cular room rises four stories to acracked and broken translucentdome. Dim l ight f i l ters through

the mists above, spreading ontothe center of the rotunda. There aglossy black dragon straddles apile of jewels, steel weapons, andintricate items.

This is Khisanth’s la i r . Khisanth,known commonly as Onyx, is dutybound to keep the disks of Mishakalfrom the PCs. If she has a breathweapon or any spells left, she takesto the air and uses these. Otherwise,she must slug it out on the groundwith the PCs.

If the PCs have the Crystal Staff,the PC who holds the staff while inthis area hears a soft, feminine whis-per: “Retrieve the disks and strikethe dragon with this staff. All will bewell.” If the PC manages to hit thedragon with the staff, the staff ex-plodes on contact. Read the follow-i n g b o x e d d e s c r i p t i o n i f t h i shappens:

The staff shatters as it strikes thedragon. Blue light bursts from thestaff in brilliant spherical waves.The figure who broke the staff islost in l ight , d isappearing as a

ringing sound fi l ls the chamber.The shining blue light pulses, itspower shaking the earth itself. Thegreat dragon is covered in theglow and falls, screaming, into thelight. The walls shake; pillars inthe room sway and topple. Thecracked ceil ing begins to crum-ble. Above the falling ceiling, thecavern walls themselves begin tocollapse.

Everywhere the PCs go in the cavern,from now on, rocks tumble from thewails, and water gushes under tre-mendous force, into the area. Al lcreatures encountered are t ry ingdesperately to escape the collapsingcavern. The water level in the cavernrises one foot/turn. It is up to theplayers as to how their PCs makegood their escape from the floor ofthe cavern. If they manage to escape,direct them to the Temple of Misha-kal (46b) and read the Epilogue.

The dragon’s horde contains thedisks of Mishakal, 26,000 stl in gems,a cloak of invisibility, and 1,000 pp.The dragon wears a ring of darknessthat projects up to a radius of 100feet.

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Sta r t t he cha rac te rs a t t he spo tmarked “X” on the map. They aremoving westward on a cloudy, chillafternoon.

Great pillars of smoke rise frombeyond the Sen t ine l Peaks—agrim sign that there is trouble inSolace. How much of the once-mighty forest of vallenwood treeshas fallen to fire? The grasslandsthat st retch toward Que-Kir i—atown at the gap in themountains—are hot and dry. Thesmoke adds an ee r i e t ouch o fda rkness to t he au tumn a f te r -noon.

“Your journey is not complete;you must leave here, must searchfor a true Leader of the People.”This strange message, spoken bythe statue of the goddess Misha-kal, suggests that your mission isfar from over. Where in the vastwor ld of Krynn wi l l th is searchlead?

Here on the barren Plains ofAbanasinia, the late autumn windbites sharply. The yellow-browngrass withers in the rushing cold,but the feeling is much more dis-t u rb ing than tha t o f a no rma lchange of seasons.

In many places, the plains aremarked by the t racks of crude,t w o - w h e e l e d c a r t s a n d m a n yc lawed foo tp r i n t s . Thousandsmust have passed this way. Noth-ing is alive here—neither the wilda n i m a l s t h a t n o r m a l l y i n h a b i tthese areas nor the occasional set-tler scratching a living from theharsh land.

Most ominous of all these signsare the great black scars stretch-ing for hundreds of yards alongthe g round , o f t en t h rough t hecharred remains of farmhouses.F i re has gu t ted and co l l apsedthese dwellings. The thick smell ofdeath and decay fills the air, andeven the wind is silent.

The PCs should have no randomencounters during this trek, sincethe Dragon Highlords’ army has laidwaste to the area. As the PCs ap-proach Solace, this army is sacking

the southern cities of Gateway andQue-Teh and advancing to the White-rage River. To the south, they haveseized the fortress of Pax Tharkas,aided by treachery from within thecitadel. Even now, their slaves areworking the Tharkadan mines.

71. The Witness

Que-Kiri is almost as barren as thesurrounding plains. Most of theb u i l d i n g s a r e s h a t t e r e d a n db u r n e d , a n d m a n y b l a c k e n e db o d i e s s p r a w l i n t h e e m p t ystreets. The air is hot and thick,laced with the odors of ash and de-cay.

S p l i n t e r e d t i m b e r s a n dscorched stones litter the narrowstreets, and smoke drifts throughthe abandoned town. Everythingis dead and silent. Suddenly, afa in t g roan r i ses f rom beh indsome collapsed beams.

T h e g r o a n c o m e s f r o m a b a d l yburned old man who lies at the vergeof death. If the PCs investigate imme-diately, they find him before he dies.If they wait more than a round, how-ever, they are too late.

The old man lies under the wreck-age of an inn, the heavy crossbeampinning his legs to the ground. In ad-dition to his burns, he has lost muchblood. The man has been blinded, sothe PCs must make noise to alert himto their presence.

The old man is very confused andfrightened. His pattern of speech isjerky and halting, but he says this:

“Didn’t you see it? You must haveseen it! From the north . . . theycame from the north! From be-tween the mountains. First the ter-rors that rode the great wyrms . . .they came into our town and fearf i l l ed ou r b reas ts . We fough t ,though. Yes! We fought long andhard, but still more of them cameon leather wings.. . straight out ofthe old legends they came, firesp lash ing l i ke waves over ourhomes.

Many fled. . . many died. Those

who ran fe l l among the sma l ldemons—man-sized but lookinglike their larger masters. 1 don’tknow where they took my people

I was too clever for them. 1 hid!Yes, I hid!

“When shall my people return?What shal l become of my gar-den?”

72. The DraconiansNine Kopak draconians still skulk inthe wreckage of Que—Kiri, concealedin some rubble in the center of thetown. They attack the PCs at somepoint. If the characters seek out andlisten to the old man, this attack oc-curs as soon as he dies; if they do notfind the man, have the draconians at-tack at any time when the party is inthe ruined town.

The Kapaks a re ove rcon f i den tfrom their recent victories: they toywith the PCs before attacking. Themonsters emerge into pla in s ight180 feet from the PCs and then pausea round. They lick their swords withlong, reptilian tongues. (This enven-oms the blades for three rounds.)The next round, using their wings toaccelerate the charge, the dracon-ians attack. They fight to the death.

73. Journeys Across theLandIf the PCs decide to continue to Sol-ace, go to chapter 6. Read the open-ing encounter as the party crests thepass in the Sentinel Peaks betweenQue-Kiri and Solace.

If the heroes decide to spend thenight here, begin to roll wanderingmonster checks immediately. Thisreflects the growing tide of scaveng-ing creatures following the DragonHighlords’ army from a distance.Treat Que-Kiri and areas just east of itas plains; the PCs reach mountainsas soon as they leave the town to-ward the west. The dragonmen haveconquered all of the areas off thenorthern and eastern edges of the El-ven Mosiac map. If the PCs leave themap at these edges, move immedi-ately to event 75: “Captured!”

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74. The Dragonlands

At the start of this adventure, theDragonarmies have conquered all oft h e l a n d s o n t h e m a p e x c e p tQualinesti. Although folk still live inthese areas, the Dragon Highlordshave absolute power. If the PCs wan-der through these areas, let severaldays pass wi th the usual randomencounters, then go to encounter 5:“Captured!”

All these villages and towns out-side of Qualinesti have been cap-tured and damaged, but most havenot been entirely destroyed. Que-Kiri, New Ports, and Que-Teh havebeen razed; no buildings stand andno original inhabitants remain. Treatthese areas as “ruins” for randomencounters.

All other communities are in thesame shape as Solace—they havebeen conquered, losing some build-ings and some people. A few busi-nesses and farms survive to provideservices for the Dragonarmies. Theconquerors terrorize the people: Forexamp le , d racon ians may use afarmer’s family as hostages to forcehim to help feed the Dragonarmies.Treat these areas as “towns” for ran-dom encounter checks.

75. Captured!This encounter returns the PCs totheir epic path if they stray or dally.Run the encounter when the party isin open terrain (plains or low moun-tains) and has no place to hide.

Two specks of crimson approachin the far northern sky. As theyrush south they grow, formingmigh ty eng ines o f dea th—redd r a g o n s . T h e m o n s t e r s d i v eswiftly, and upon their backs sitcreatures who seem to be minia-ture versionsof the terrible steeds.The riders’ faces bear a look of ser-pentine evil: lizardlike faces andcold, gleaming eyes.

The dragons land less than 100feet away. From one of the riders,a hollow, metallic voice rings:

“ D r o p y o u r w e a p o n s , p u n yones, or you shall feel the heat ofmy pet in anger.” He strokes his

dragon’s broad neck. Both drag-ons bellow menacingly; their eyesglitter, and wisps of smoke curlfrom their nostrils.

The two old red dragons and theirtwo Kapak riders try to capture theheroes if at all possible, but they arewilling to fight to the death.

W ithin an hour of their capture,the heroes are surrounded by severalhundred Kapak draconians. Thei rweapons and possessions are re-moved and they are loaded into ahuge wheeled cage and taken to Sol-ace. There they become part of thecaravan to the south. Go to chapter7.

At Solace, Tika Waylan, Theroslronfeld, and the elf Gilthanas arethrown into the cage with the PCs.

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Begin this section when the heroesreach the pass in the mountains justeast of Solace.

The scene bears no resemblanceto the lofty forest that was hereonly a week ago. The beautifuland legendary vallenwood treeshave been hacked, uprooted, andburned. Only a few of the mightytrees still stand among a vast ruinof blackened branches and low,thick stumps.

The elegant tree-city of Solaceis now only a few ramshackle hutson the ground amidst the wreck-age. South of the c i ty , s t rangecreatures are building a tall polefence. Apparently they intend tofence in the ravaged community.

In a central square cleared ofscorched branches and smashedhomes, many blackened stakeshave been driven into the ground,like a dark parody of some ancienttemple of the True Gods.

Unlike Que-Kiri, however, Sol-

ace is not a ghost town. A fewlights twinkle in the windows ofsome of the buildings, and hu-mans, dwarves, and elves can allbe seen aiding in the constructionof the fence. They seem to be tak-ing orders from a number of whip-wielding dragonmen. Many otherbands of dragonmen are visiblepoking through the brush of thefallen trees. These bands are heav-ily armed, and seem to be orga-nized into patrols.

As darkness fa l ls , l ights begin toflicker in a number of buildings intown. If the PCs ask, tell them thatthe guard patrols seem to be casualand unorganized. It seems as thoughslipping by the patrol and into townwould be fairly easy.

In fact, the PCs can get to the Inn ofthe Last Home without incident, un-less they are downright belligerenttoward the draconian guards. In thiscase, use the Random Encounter ta-

ble for an encounter with Kapak dra-conians.

Once the PCs are in the town, theycan see the remains of the inn, oncelodged in the branches of a vallen-wood t ree, s i t t ing somewhat awk-wardly on the ground. Not only halfremains, but makeshift walls and akitchen enable it to be open for busi-ness.

Many other bui ld ings sprawl onthe ground, most of them smashedbeyond recognition. Fires smolderhere and there amid the wreckage,and survivors scratch through therubble in search of a few former pos-sessions. Moans of pain and the criesof babies carry through the town.

Very few healthy men remain intown; those who survived the inva-s ion now work the m ines o f PaxTharkas. Most of the inhabitants aretoo old to fight, or are the widowsand children of soldiers killed in thewar.

The only business other than theinn that have survived are a largeblacksmith shop, which was always

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on the ground, and a battered gen-eral store, which apparently landedon its side and was righted. Dragon-men have taken ove r these twoplaces.

Frequent patro ls of dragonmenwander the streets of Solace, moreconcerned with bullying lone peas-ants or carousing wi th thei r com-rades than with guard duty. If the PCsdo not start any trouble and do notdisplay weapons, the draconians donot bother them. If, however, the PCsact belligerently or show weapons,the guards attack them: consult theRandom Encounter table for a battlewith Kapak draconians.

If the PCs do fight the draconiansin the streets, they find themselvessurrounded by over 100 Kapak rein-forcements when the battle is over.The Kapaks disarm them and loadthem into a cage of the slave cara-van. Go to chapter 7.

76. The Inn of the LastHome

Use the map of the Inn of the LastHome to run this encounter. The mapis scaled for use with miniatures; ifyou wish you may remove it from thebook and place the miniatures righton the page.

A smoky f i re s t rugg les in theblackened stove, feebly challeng-ing the gloom in the town. In sharpcontrast to the usual lively crowd,the few patrons present are lost int h e i r o w n t h o u g h t s . N o o n esmiles, nor does anyone seem in-terested in the arr ival of a fewmore customers.

A thin, cloaked figure sits aloneat a table near the door, an un-touched glass of ale before him.Three old men crouch above a ta-ble in the back of the inn, staringsilently at the dirty tabletop. Theusually bustling inn is otherwiseempty.

One familiar note carries goodcheer with it, however; the aromadrifting from the kitchen—a mix-ture of onions, chives, garlic, andmys te r ious he rbs—shows tha tOtik Sandath still rules the realm

of cooking. The cheery sizzlingcan only mean that h is famousspiced potatoes are heating evennow over glowing coals.

Suddenly the door of the make-shift kitchen bursts open, and thespill of torchlight outlines the fig-ure of Tika the barmaid. She holdsa steaming pan in her right hand, afoaming pitcher in her left. “Sitdown!” she orders, her loud voiceout of place in the somber town.“Git somethin’ to eat—you looklike a pack of starved rats.” Hervoice fal ls as she approaches:“and then we’ve got to talk.”

Tika guides the party to a table in therear, away from the few customers.After serving the PCs whatever theyorder, she pulls a chair to the tableand sits in it. She sets a heavy ironpan full of steaming potatoes next toher, after she sees that everyone getsa portion.

Curly auburn hair tumbles aroundTika’s lightly freckled face. Herstriking green eyes match her low-cut blouse. A fur-trimmed leathervest actually doubles as effectiveleather armor if she gets involvedin unexpected trouble. She wearsa gold ring on a chain around herneck.

Tika is a brash young barmaidwho looks older than her 19 years.Rough l iv ing has hardened herand she presents a tough image asprotection against her sense ofvulnerability. Indeed she has cer-tain childlike qualities: a fascina-t i on w i th mag ic and a fea r o fheights. Formerly quite happy atthe Inn of the Last Home, she nownurses a bitter hatred toward thedragonmen that have invaded herhome. She realizes that it is just aquestion of time before her pa-tience with the brutal conquerorswears out and she does somethingrash and foolish.

Tika fidgets in her chair and looksover her shoulder at every sound.She whispers that she wants to leaveSolace and accompany the PCs on

their journeys. She quietly leads theconversation around to this topic,pretending to be bored with life intown. This “boredom” disguises hervery real fear of the dragonmen. Asthe PCs talk with Tika, move directlyinto encounter 77 below.

77. Unwelcome GuestsShort ly af ter the conversat ion be-gins, f ive Kapak draconians burstinto the inn, sit down at a table nearthe PCs, and loudly demand service.Tika grimaces and rises to wait onthem, doing her best to ignore theircrude behavior.

While the barmaid spoons pota-toes from her large pan, the cloakedfigure who was seated near the doorrises and approaches the PCs. Therobe still covers his head and most ofhis face, but as he passes the dracon-ians, one of them pulls the garmentoff to reveal a handsome elf. At oncethe invaders begin to shove the un-fortunate character around, gleefullybullying him.

No matter what the PCs do, Tikahas had enough of this bullying. Witha scream of rage, she slams the pandown on the head of one draconian,automatically hitting him for doublethe normal damage.

If the PCs join in, a melee obvi-ously begins. Any dragonmen whospends a round in which PCs orfriendly NPCs do not attack him lickshis blade to envenom the weapon forthree rounds.

If the PCs do not come to Tika’sa id , t he d ragonmen subdue he rquickly and carry her out of the inn.The PCs next meet her in the cage onthe caravan to Pax Tharkas.

78. Prisoners of the GuardRead this passage to the players afterTika has been arrested, or, if the play-ers have come to her aid, immedi-ately after the melee in the inn:

Heavy feet clatter outside, and ee-r i e t o rch l i gh t f l i c ke rs th roughchinks in the doorway and wall.Suddenly the door spl inters in-ward, and a crowd of draconiansbursts into the room.

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Leading the band is a swagger-ing ugly hobgoblin, the stench ofhis unwashed body preceding himby several feet. He sneers as he ad-vances across the room, flankedby four Kapak draconians to eitherside. Beyond, dozens more of thecreatures stand in the sinister lightof their torches.

Fewmaster Toede’s wispy whitehair tops a very ugly face. Hisspeckled gray skin, double chins,and pot belly all resemble those ofa vicious little toad.

Toede is a bully. He snivels andwhines around superiors but is fullof bluster and threats when he hasthe upper hand. Like all bullies, heis cowardly, but he possesses acertain crude cunning that helpshim to stay alive and prosper.

If the heroes helped Tika fight thedraconians, Toede arrests them forbrawling. Otherwise, he sneers as herecites charges of “trespass and ma-licious destruction in the realm ofXak Tsaroth,” then places the partyunder arrest. If the PCs resist, 40Kapak draconians outs ide the innswarm indoors to overcome them.

The draconians disarm the partyand seize all visible possessions ex-cept for rings and armor. A characterhas a base 50% chance to hide asmall object on his person. Make thischeck pr ivately, modify ing for anyfactors that seem relevant. Thieves’tools and spell books cannot be hid-den!

The dragonmen t ie the heroes’hands and lead them through therubble of Solace to an open spacetha t once f unc t i oned as a t ownsquare. Tika Waylan and the elf fromthe inn are brought with them. AllPCs and the two NPCs are herdedinto a caged wagon.

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Here the dragonmen load the heroesonto a slave caravan and move themsouth. On the way, the PCs learn afew things and, if they are patient,benefit from a timely rescue.

Gritty smoke drifts from a few lin-gering fires through the clearing,adding a ghostly dimness to theair. Many hobgoblins and a fewdragonmen scramble about, load-ing things onto several large wag-ons. Beyond these wagons, thesmoke l i f ts br ief ly around threelarge cages. Each is mounted on asturdy four-wheeled carriage.

T h e h o b g o b l i n c o m m a n d e rscreams his orders above the bus-tle and chattering, and all of themonsters leap to obey FewmasterT o e d e . A n o t h e r g r o u p o fp r i sone rs—mos t l y women andchi ldren—are dragged into theclearing and roughly loaded intoone of the cages. At the sametime, Fewmaster Toede unlocksthe door of the heaviest cage. Hisescort prods the prisoners forwardat sword point and thrusts thembehind the solid iron bars. Thecage door shu ts w i th a heavyclang, and Toede locks both of itslocks himself.

Toede is assembling a caravan toca r ry p r i soners to Pax Tharkas ,where slaves are needed to work theiron mines. The huge cages carry thecaptives, while the other two wagonsare loaded with routine supplies. Theheroes’ possessions are loaded onthe first wagon, where Toede intendsto examine them and claim a fewitems for his own.

The heroes’ cage also holds Gil-thanas (the elf from the tavern), twosold iers f rom Solace who foughtagainst the Dragon Highlords, andElistan—a high priest of Haven whobelieves in the false gods. Elistan willgive no clue to his identity. He is anintelligent and perceptive man, how-ever, and if confronted with evidenceof a true cleric, he will question hisfaith. At this point Tika may becomea player character.

Al l three of the heroes’ humanc o m p a n i o n s a r e s i l e n t a n d d e -

pressed, since they know that theirfami l i es have been taken to PaxTharkas as hostages. I f prodded,they reveal this information, as wellas the fact that they turned them-selves in because of the hostages.

The bars of the cage are much tooheavy for even the strongest charac-ter to bend. The cage has two sepa-rate locks, both of which must beunfastened to open the door.

79. The Elven Stranger

The heroes quickly recognize the elfthat approached them at the inn. Hishood is thrown back, since he nolonger needs a disguise, and he talksto the adventurers.

Gilthanas was serving as a mes-s e n g e r f o r t h e e l v e n k i n g a tQualinesti when he was capturedby the dragonmen. A feeling thathe has failed overwhelms him, butthis does not show to outsiders. Hesucceeds in appearing both calmand confident; indeed, he is surethat elves will make a rescue at-t e m p t a s t h e c a r a v a n p a s s e sQualinesti.

Although he provides no details, Gil-thanas suggests that fate is not al-ways as unkind as it appears to be.He is friendly to the PCs and makesan effort to cheer them up.

The caravan does not move, andthe captives are left without food orwater for an entire day and night. Thetemperature at night drops alarm-ingly, causing some very uncomfor-table and sleepless hours. Manyhobgoblins and draconians walk be-side the wagons. Some of them carrybows; they shoot at characters whodo anything suspicious.

If the PCs hatch any rash plans ofescape, Gilthanas counsels caution,say ing tha t the chances may bemuch better later. If asked what thismeans, he only smiles.

80. A Chilly Sunrise

As dawn colors the sky, the au-t u m n c h i l l m a k e s a n o t h e ronslaught. Heavy mists obscure

the nearby ruins of Solace, andghos t l y f i gu res f l i t among thewagons. Several of these figuresapproach, and it becomes clearthat they are draconians. Theypour a fou l - sme l l i ng s lop in tobuckets in the nearby wagons.

A fierce clatter of swords dis-r u p t s t h e m o r n i n g c a l m . D r yscreams and yelps of the dragon-men rise above the crash of metal.Somewhere a deep human voicer ings out in chal lenge, and thesounds of f ighting move towardthe voice.

Gilthanas starts at the sound ofthe voice. A look of alarm cloudshis face. “That is Theros Ironfeld,elf-friend. The evil ones must havelearned of the aid he has given mypeople. I fear that he will pay withhis life.

“The dragonmen would havetaken me days ago, had it not beenfor the courage of that smith. Hehas smuggled elves out of Solacesince the city fell, with no regardfor his own safety.”

The sounds of combat cease. Alarge band of dragonmen hobblefrom the mist, carrying the bleed-ing figure of a huge man. Underwatchful eyes of 30 archers, thecage door is opened and the manis thrown inside.

Blood f rom the stump of h isright arm pools, on the dirty floor.Moaning softly, but apparently un-conscious, Theros lronfeld slipstoward death.

Any use of magical heal ing savesIronfeld’s life, although he will bevery weak (1 hp only). Without suchaid, he will become still and lifelessone turn after he is thrown into thewagon. One of the soldiers from Sol-ace then shouts at the nearby dra-conians, “You’ve kil led him!” Thenthe draconians open the cage (usingthe same procedure as when theyth rew l ron fe ld i n ) , d raw ou t t hesmi th ’ s body , and cas t i t i n to anearby pile of rubble.

If any of the PCs uses magic tosave Theros, Gilthanas looks on withslightly raised eyebrows. The threecapt ive soldiers react more obvi-

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ously, staring wide-eyed at the healerand muttering about a “miracle.”

81. The Wagons Roll

A long day passes underneath asurprisingly warm sun. Draconianand hobgoblin guards remain onwatch throughout the day, but nonew prisoners are added to thecages. An ai r of wai t ing hangsover the wrecked town square.

As the sun drops behind thestumps of the vallenwood forest,the waiting comes to an end. Thesquare suddenly swarms with hob-goblins, goblins and draconians,all following the orders of the re-p u l s i v e T o e d e . H u g e e l k a r ebrought forward from the vil lagepens, and four of the beasts are at-tached to each wagon.

Darkness fa l ls as the guardsform ranks before and after thecolumn, which consists of threecage and two supply wagons. Adriver and a guard climb into thefront of each and urge the elk for-ward. The reddish glow of twilightprovides one last look at the ruinsof Solace as the caravan sl ipsaway to the south.

Toede rides a small, shaggy ponyalong the column, shouting orders tohis soldiers. He taunts the prisonersa s h e p a s s e s w i t h t a l e s o f t h edungeons of Pax Tharkas and of theDragon Highlord wai t ing to meetthem there. His servant, a young, un-kempt gul ly dwarf named Sestun,follows his master as best he can.Sestun is constantly falling down orgetting splashed by mud from thepassing of wagons, and he finds it im-possible to keep up. The PCs see himjog past their wagon often, his newmetal helmet askew over a face dom-inated by a massive red nose. A bat-t le axe of doubtful qual i ty swingsfrom the dwarf’s side.

A t t h e f r o n t o f t h e c o l u m nmarches a troop of 45 Kapak dracon-ians, preceding the goblins by about1/4 mile. One hundred goblins followthe draconians in a long line endingjust before the first supply wagon.The three cages are next (the heroes

are in the first cage), and anothersupply wagon follows. Last in line is aforce of 100 hobgoblins.

Two hobgoblins man each wagon.The front supply wagon contains allof the PCs’ equipment as well as aload of swords and shields. The lastwagon is filled with grain,

82. Gilthanas’s Tale

Through the long night the wag-ons roll ever southward. The tow-ering summits of Twin Peaks Passsoon fall to the rear. Winding outof the mountains, the caravanpasses through a dark and silenttown—the formerly bustling com-munity of Gateway. Obviously theDragon Highlords have been atwork here.

South of Gateway, the plains ofAbanasinia spread to all sides. Forseveral hours, the caravan makesgood t ime across the dul l f lat -lands, until the sound of flowingwater whispers far to the south.Shortly, the caravan trundles overt h e o n l y b r i d g e t o c r o s s t h emighty White-rage River.

Now the land rises. More treesl i n e t h e a s c e n d i n g t r a i l . T h eE l v e n h o m e o f Q u a l i n e s t i l i e ssomewhere to the west.

“Pax Tharkas,” Gilthanas saysquietly, “That must be our destina-tion. It is bitter indeed that a mon-umen t to peace has beenperverted to the evil purposes ofslavery:’

If any PC questions him, Gilthanasbegins the following tale:

“Long ago, in the near-forgottenAge of Dreams, Kith-Kanan ledthe elves to Qualinesti. The Sec-ond Dragon War of Silvanesti hadbrought these western elves greatfame back in their ancient home.But Silvanos, King of Silvanesti,felt uneasy at the rise to power ofthe Qualinesti elves.

“Yet when the Kinslayer warwith the human kingdom of Er-goth erupted, the king did not hes-itate to call upon the Qualinesti.

The war was long and bloody, leav-ing scars that no treaty could heal.Thus, when borders were agreedupon and the bloodshed halted.the elves of the west felt removedfrom their kin and wanted no partof the ancient home of Silvanesti.

“With the scribing of the Sword-sheath scroll, many problems ofthe world were laid to rest. TheKing of Ergoth gave the westernelves a magical wooded place ofg r e a t b e a u t y a n d n a t u r a lharmony—the land that has cometo be known as Qualinesti.

“Sad was Si lvanos the k ing,when his eldest son Kith-Kananchose to lead the western elves totheir new home. Deep was thesplit between the two elven king-doms. Silvanesti continued to fol-l o w t h e l o f t y a n c i e n t w a y s ,removed from the other peoplesof Krynn, whi le Ki th-Kanan andt h e Q u a l i n e s t i m a d e p e a c e ,t raded , and in te rmar r ied w i ththeir neighbors.

“Perhaps the greatest accom-plishment of a great life was Kith-Kanan’s signing of a permanentpeace with the mountain dwarveso f T h o r b a r d i n . S h a r i n g t h e i rknowledge and skills, the two peo-ples built the mighty fortress ofPax Tharkas at the border of theirtwo lands. For many centuries PaxTharkas was a bastion of peaceand safety—a symbol of the coop-erat ion among fo lk of d i f ferentbackgrounds and trades.

“Even now, as we hear that thefortress is in the hands of the dra-gonmen, I cannot believe that ithas fallen to storm. Only the dark-est treachery from within the wallscould have led to this sorry out-come.”

83. Fight for Freedom

Suddenly, a wavering cal l rol lsfrom the woods off to the west,like the cry of some elegant bird.Gilthanas stiffens, brings a fingerto his lips. Another call floats fromthe east, and now the elf respondswith his own call.

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I m m e d i a t e l y , t h e c a r a v a nguards begin to shriek and whim-per. The driver of the cage wagonslumps forward, an arrow bristlingin his neck. Quickly, the guard atthe driver’s side draws his swordand leaps to the ground; a deadlyarrow whistles into his breast.

Fewmaster Toede gallops fromthe rear of the column, screamingto his troops to draw arms andface the unseen foe. He barrelsinto his gully dwarf servant, andberates the poor creature with avolley of curses.

“On your feet, you pitiful worm,and cover my glor ious retreat .Above all, dog, these prisoners arenot to escape!” Stagger ing be-neath his weight, Toede’s horsecarr ies h im to the f ront of thecolumn, where the sounds of fight-ing are the faintest.

The l i t t le dwarf c l imbs to hisfeet, muttering under his breath.He adjusts his oversized helmetand raises a fist in the direction ofhis master. He still grumbles as his

eyes wander to the cage holdingthe heroes.

Hoisting his dented battleaxe,he moves to the locks holding thecage shut; he shatters them witht w o s o l i d b l o w s . A s t h e d o o rswings open, the little gully dwarfdisappears into the underbrush.

Although freedom lies just be-yond the swinging cage door, thebattle outside is becoming moreviolent. Several elven warr iorsglide from the darkened woods,but 20 of the goblin guards haverushed to the scene as well.

Characters may leave the cage at therate of two per round. They can pickup shortswords in 1d3 rounds: manyof the guards dropped their weaponswhen felled by arrows. The 20 gob-l ins arr ive at the rate of two perround, and all concentrate on theprisoners from the PCs’ cage.

The three warr iors f rom Solacerefuse to escape, because their fami-lies are imprisoned in Pax Tharkas.Gilthanas, however, joins the fray.

The elven rescuers free the pris-oners, mostly women and children,from the other two cages, and escortthem into the forest. If the PCs followafter dispatching the goblins, theyhave no more combat here.

The heroes may try to regain theirpossessions from the supply wagon,which has halted immediately beforethem.

If they try to recover their supplies,they must d ispatch a detai l of 16hobgoblins that has rushed back tothe battle. Once they have done this,they may recover everything andmake an escape into the forest fol-lowing Gilthanas. If they choose togo elsewhere, turn to encounter 84;though he will urge going into theforest, Gilthanas accompanies theparty.

Carefully laid elven traps tangledraconian patrols who might want topursue. Soon all sounds of pursuitgrow faint and disappear.

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The heroes are taken into the sacredrealm of Qualinesti. There they learnof a high task that may fall to them.Of course, any elf PC is receivedquite hospitably—but half-elves aretreated with the same suspicion ashumans and dwarves.

Dawn lightens the woods as thelast sounds of pursuit fade. Thetall elf who seems to be in com-mand calls a halt. The escapedprisoners and their escort of twodozen elven warriors stand in alarge clearing bright with dew andstriped by the shadows of ghostlypines.

Gilthanas speaks earnestly withthe leader of the war party, then in-t r o d u c e s h i m a s P o r t h o i s .Porthois then turns to the freedprisoners and says: “People of Sol-ace. . . you are free from the cagesof the Dragon Highlords. Whereyou can go I cannot say, for all theland is wracked by their evil.

“I suggest you try the south, foronce past Pax Tharkas you mightfind safety in the realms of thesouthlands. I am not sure what youmay find there; but the heavy fistof our foe has battered everywherein the north country.”

He turns from the mass of pris-oners to the PCs: “I would ask thatyou please come with me, throughthe sacred realms of Qualinesti toour capital of Qualinost. Gilthanashas to ld me something of yourstory. I know it would please mypeople to hear more.”

84. Away From the ElvesIf the heroes accompany the elves,skip this section. If not, here is de-tailed the state of the world in whichthey may travel.

To the north, two Dragonarmiesm o v e s o u t h f o r t h e i n v a s i o n o fQ u a l i n e s t i . T o t h e s o u t h , P a xTharkas blocks the only path. To thewest l ies Qual inest i , st i l l an elvenstronghold.

If the players go north, they haverandom encounters (see RandomEncounter table for the next gameday). Then they run into one squad ofKapak draconians (use entry #4 on

the Random Encounter table) pergame hour. These dragonmen fightto the death, and there is an infinitesupply of squadrons. I f the partygoes south, run the adventure thesame as if they were going north oreast, as one day from the rescue, thesouthern Dragonarmy leaves PaxTharkas to march on Qualinesti. (SeeE n c o u n t e r 8 9 a n d 9 1 . ) T h e P C sencounter an elven war party (con-sisting of 40 normal elves, three el-ven fighters, and an elven mage) ifthey attempt to enter Qualinesti un-escorted.

The mage is invis ible, fo l lowingthe PCs closely. If combat breaks out,the elves attempt to subdue and cap-ture the heroes. Gilthanas will try tostop the fight, but he does not join ei-ther side.

I f t h e P C s m o v e a w a y f r o mQ u a l i n e s t i , G i l t h a n a s g o e s w i t hthem, tak ing Theros l ronfeld wi thhim. Have them meet Eben Shatter-stone as described in encounter 92. Ifthe party is captured and taken toQualinesti, pick up the adventure asdescribed in encounter 86.

85. The Secret Ways

The tall elf called Porthios leadsthe way through the pine forest.As dawn creeps to daylight, a deeproaring thunders in the far dis-tance. After several hours, it is ob-vious that the source of the soundis a huge waterfall, plummetingfrom an unimaginable height.

The path westward is blockedby a massive gray cl i f f of darkgranite. The pines march right tothe cliff base; from there smoothstone ascends for nearly a mile. Afringe of green at the summit sug-gests that more forest lies beyond.

Porthios leads the way througha chuckling stream to the base ofthe falls, where a deep, clear poolcollects the outflow of the tower-ing spume. Stepping nimbly fromrock to rock, the elf crosses thepool and enters a darkened hollowthat gapes behind the waterfall.

Here, a steep stairway, cut fromthe living rock of the cliff-face, be-

gins to ascend. A curtain of silverywater sheds light on the secretway. The path is strangely easy,turning beneath the waterfall untilit finally emerges under a clear au-tumn sun, atop the high plateau ofQualinesti.

Aspen forests shiver in the noonbrightness, the trunks reflectingin i vo ry wh i teness . The f resh ,earthy scent of moss rides the air.A soft trail spread with evergreenneedles seems to appear magi-cally before Porthios as he leadsthe way farther into the wood.

86. Qualinost

After several more hours of pro-viding a smooth path through thewoods, the needle-strewn forestf l oo r ends ab rup t l y i n a deepchasm. Rolling blankets of mosscoat both sides of the gap; billow-ing mist far below suggests thatrapid waters cut along the chasmbottom. A narrow footbridge, sus-pended from sturdy aspens, spansthe chasm.

Gilthanas speaks: “Qualinost isprotected on all sides by such bar-riers. Yet 1 fear that even these willbe of little aid against the Dragon-armies.”

Across the bridge, a few slimtowers appear through the aspensahead. Now Porthois walks withbouncing steps, like travelers, andGilthanas sees their home on thehorizon.

The dense aspen forest thinsou t i n f r on t o f t he sp i res andarches of Qualinost. The city issmall by human standards; by thesame token , no humans cou ldever bui ld a ci ty l ike this. Fourslender towers l ined with si lverm a r k t h e f o u r c o r n e r s o f t h eroughly square city. Between eachof these towers, strings of slenderarches—also silver—stretch in anelegant chain.

A high tower of burnished golddominates the city, throwing offsunlight in a whirling, sparklingpattern that gives the impressiono f m o v e m e n t . O f c o u r s e , t h e

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tower is quite still, but the illusionis very realistic indeed.

Beyond the arches, the wide,quartz-lined avenues of the city liedappled in the strange green forestlight. Many of the city buildings aremade of quartz, too, and of aspenbeams inlaid with silver and gold.The buildings are tall and slender,blending gracefully with the manyaspens that fill the city.

And everywhere, there is franticac t iv i t y . Female e lves and e l f -children either rush about carry-i n g l a r g e b u n d l e s t o w a r d t h ecentral tower, or scamper towardhouses, empty-handed. The adultmales are al l armed and alert ,g r a c e f u l b o w s a n d s l i m l o n gswords ready to meet any foe.

Any elves in the party immediatelyrealize that this hustle and bustle isvery much out of place. Because ofthe screen of warriors around them,the PCs do not attract attention rightaway. Soon, however, an elf-childspots a dwarf PC, if one is present (ifnot, a human will do) and, shriekinghys te r i ca l l y , f l ees to h is mother .Soon all activity ceases as the citi-zens gawk at the procession of PCsand elf warriors.

Gilthanas and Porthios have beenta lk ing qu ie t l y . Now G i l thanasturns: “I know you are all tired andneed a well-deserved rest. I askthat first you accompany us to theTower of the Speaker, where youwill meet the Speaker of Suns, myfather. As soon as possible we willsee you to comfortable quartersand refreshment.”

All of the elves are moving inthe general direction of the loftygolden tower. Porthios and Gil-thanas start off in that direction.

87. The Speaker of SunsThe following council occurs in theTower of the Speaker. At first, the he-roes are only spectators as the elvesconduct business. At any time, ofcourse, a PC may have something tosay; this should be worked into thedescription.

The Speaker is aloof toward all butelves—especial ly cool toward thehumans. He is not, however, hostileo r i nsu l t i ng . As the s to ry g rowsclearer, and particularly if the charac-ters fought beside Gilthanas at theInn of the Last Home, the Speaker’sattitude warms up, but only slightly.I f Tan is i s w i th the heroes , theSpeaker recognizes him, but is verycool toward him.

A pair of gilded doors swings si-lently open into a chamber thatlooks much bigger than the out-side of the tower. The huge roomhas a white marble floor and walls.Many windows admit the sunlightand fresh air. Many elves standthere expectantly.

The tallest elf is dressed in a re-splendent yel low robe, and hishair is tinged with silver. He stepsforward eagerly, opening his armst o e m b r a c e G i l t h a n a s a n dPorthios.

“My sons! I thought 1 wouldn e v e r m e e t y o u i n t h i s w o r l dagain!” For a moment, joy rises inhis voice, then his manner be-comes serious. “Gilthanas, whatof your raid?”

“Lord Speaker, my father,” saysGilthanas solemnly, “I have failed.We traveled with all stealth south-ward as was planned; yet fate hadus meet a northbound army of theDragon Highlord. I was st ruckupon my head and fell into a ra-vine, thinking that to be the end ofmy days upon the face of Krynn.

“Some time later I awoke andfound tracks leading northward toSolace. Thinking to free my war-riors who may have been takenprisoner, I followed. I found thatSolace has been taken and its val-lenwood forest razed.”

A gasp rings through the coun-cil chamber at the thought of themighty forest leveled. Gilthanaslowers his eyes and speaks hisnext words with difficulty. “I foundmy companions in the square, tiedto stakes made from the fa l lentrees. A large red dragon soaredabove them. I watched the peopleof Solace forced into a large circlearound the captives.

“A great and evil leader, hiddenby a beast-like mask, rode the redd r a g o n d o w n w a r d b e s i d e t h estakes in the square. He spoke asthe serpent landed: ‘I am Vermi-naard, Dragon Highlord of th isrealm. I have need of all mortal be-i ngs i n t he g rea t wo rk o f t heDragon H igh lo rds . Those whoobey shall serve me. Those who donot shall feel my wrath!’

“ T h e n t h e d r a g o n b r e a t h e dflame upon my fellows . . .” Gil-thanas’s voice trails off, and hegestures toward Theros Ironfeld.“A k ind of madness came overme , and had no t t h i s man re -strained me, I too would have beenb u r n e d i n t o n o t h i n g n e s s . H erisked his life for me, and indeed,suffered the loss of his arm for thecrime of protecting a frightenedelf.”

Gilthanas then relates his acquaint-ance with the heroes; he mentionsany priest spells that he has seenused.

The Speaker becomes more politetoward the PCs if they do nothing todeserve otherwise. If they mentionpriest spells, he acts impressed, say-ing that it has been more than a cen-tury since such knowledge has beenheld by the children of men. He doesnot volunteer anything about elvenmagic; if the PCs persist in question-ing him on the subject, however, hetells them that all the elven priestsdisappeared to the south at the timeof the Cataclysm.

“I t was the worst of t imes, theG r e a t S u n d e r i n g , ” c l a i m s t h eSpeaker. “We keep what we knowin memory and song. It was thenthat a great darkness fell, but now,as our poet will tell you, the dark-est of the gloom is lifting.”

At this time, the court poet steps for-ward and recites the Canticle. Readthe Canticle to your players or haveyour players read it aloud. After therecital, the Speaker makes the fol-lowing statement:

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“Travelers, I shall have a place pre-pared for you while you are amongus. Follow my daughter, and sheshall see you comfortably tended.After you have had a chance towash, eat, and sleep, I shall sendfor you. Time is indeed short.”

An except ional ly beaut i ful el-ven maiden moves forward fromt h e o n l o o k e r s . S h e c u r t s i e sslightly toward the Speaker beforeblessing the weary travelers with asmile like a spring sunrise. Herb e a u t y s e e m s g r e a t e r a s s h emoves closer; yet a child-like airabout her belies the wisdom in hereyes.

She gl ides toward the gi ldeddoors and they part for her, almostas if a gentle gust of wind per-suaded them to open. She leadsthe way into the sun and leaf-speckled streets of Qualinost.

88. Laurana of QualinostLaurana is a very spoiled little girl.

In childhood, she and Tanis were “be-trothed,” although it is uncertain howseriously the half-elf takes this child-hood vow. If Tanis is with the party,she fawns on him, showing all of thesigns of an adolescent crush. If he isno t w i th the PCs , t h i s a f fec t i onshould be directed at a male PC elff rom Qual inest i , i f at al l possible.She tends to sulk when she does notget her way; she is skillful at usingher good looks and charm to her ad-vantage.

Destiny has an important role forLaurana in this saga, and she will becalled upon to grow up in a hurry. Byhighl ight ing her immatur i ty at th ispoint, you can increase the dramaticeffect of her growth upon your play-ers. This little girl possesses an in-ner strength that will one day leadarmies!

Laurana takes the PCs to a pleas-ant, sun- dappled grove of aspensthat flourishes in the heart of the city.Clear springs furnish fresh water, andmany mossy beds seem to invi tesleep. Pears, apples, and peaches allg row i n p ro fus ion , and Lau ranaurges the heroes to eat their fill.

89. A High CouncilAs twilight descends over Qualinesti,Laurana rouses the heroes from theirslumber and asks them to attend acouncil in the Hall of the Sky. This“hal l ” turns out to be the centra lsquare of Qualinost, where a clusterof stars is just appearing overhead.As the heroes arrive on the scene,read the following. At the same time,allow the players to look at the ElvenMosiac map.

T h e e n t i r e p o p u l a t i o n o fQualinesti seems to be gatheredaround the wide square. The war-riors are in the center ring, aroundthe Speaker and several of h ischief lieutenants; the other men,women, and children are more dis-tant, but stil l observing the pro-ceedings.

A path opens through the crowdto the center of the circle, and theSpeaker looks up with a cool stareas the heroes of Xak Tsaroth enterhis s ight . “Forgive our somberair,” he says slowly. “These areheavy times, and we face the be-ginning of a long and lonely road.

“Look, if you will, upon our situ-ation.” The Speaker gestures to adetailed mosaic on the ground.The colors and shapes seem torepresent a map of some kind. Asthe circle of elves draws back, theland of Qual inest i and i ts sur-roundings are displayed entirely.

“Here and here,” the Speakersays, tapping the end of his staffagainst the northern communitiesof Solace and Haven. “Two hugearmies of the Dragon HighlordVerminaard have gathered. Evennow they prepare to invade the an-cient Elvenhome of Qual inest i .There is no way we can standagainst the might of such hordes.

“ O u r o n l y c h o i c e i s t o f l e eQualinesti to the west, and hope tobring our people safely to someland in that unknown region.” TheSpeaker pauses to let his remarksink in; for it is indeed stunning tothink of the elves of this fabledwood—elves who have lived heresince the Age of Dreams—forcedfrom their ancestral home by the

c r u e l m i g h t o f t h e D r a g o nHighlord.

“ S t i l l a t h i r d D r a g o n a r m ypoises against us here.” Now theSpeaker’s staff strikes sharply onthe narrow pass of Pax Tharkas.“We have learned from captivesthat the Dragon Highlord wouldlike to see the race of elves drivenfrom Krynn; and they have nearlysucceeded with respect to our kinof Silvanesti.”

The heroes may wish to say some-thing here, as the Speaker pauses.Al low them to speak, and answerquestions if you feel they are appro-priate. Eventually, work the conver-sation around to the speaker again,as he continues.

“ H e r e , i n t h e d e p t h s o f P a xTharkas, work the warriors of Sol-ace, Haven, and the other north-ern lands. Why would they slave inthe mines, gain ing i ron for theforges of the Dragon Highlords?

“Because also here,” and theS p e a k e r ’ s s t a f f s t r i k e s P a xTharkas with a vengeance, “aret h e i r w o m e n a n d c h i l d r e n —hostages lest the warriors can dis-play the rage and hatred that theymust feel against their villainousmasters. This was the reason forGi l thanas’s mission only a fewshort days ago. He and his bandwere to enter Pax Tharkas by ah i d d e n r o u t e — t h e S l a - M o r i —known only to the elves. Theywould free the hostages and leadthe slaves in a revolt, escaping tothe south and drawing the Dragon-army in pursuit.

“The humans can reach safetyand elude the dragonmen, for themountainous route contains manysecluded valleys where they canhide. Yet they will never have amoment of freedom unless somemeans of rescue is offered.

“It is our belief that you shouldaccept this heavy task. Gilthanashas of fered to accompany yourparty and show you the ways of theSla-Mor i , even the room of theGrea t Cha in—the qu i ckes t en -

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trance to the fortress itself. If youaccept this opportunity, you notonly of fer f reedom to those ofyour kin trapped within the wallsof the fortress, but you offer ourbeleaguered folk a chance to es-cape Qualinesti alive, a chance tolive that many of ours were notgiven when your people causedthe Cataclysm, the turning awayof the gods.”

Thus is presented the plight of theelves and the suggestion for the he-roes’ help. If the heroes take on thequest, go directly to encounter 90below. If they decline, go directly toencounter 91.

90. Kidnap!Speed is important; Gilthanas feelsthat the party’s chances to enter PaxTharkas are greater if they enter theSla-Mori at night. Therefore, the elfurges that the party leave the nextmorning. This should bring them, af-ter a long day’s travel, to the mouthof Sla-Mori. Also, since draconianspre fe r no t to t rave l by day , th i slessens the chance that the PCs willrun into them.

The counci l has adjourned. Asthey part, the people sing an ancient,haunting song of the elves. At thistime, you may read or sing the song“E lvenhome. ” Immed ia te ly a f te r -ward read this passage.

Laurana leads the way back to thequiet hilltop grove. “Sleep peace-fu l ly , for the road tomorrow islong,” she whispers, then movessilently down the hill.

S u d d e n l y , t h e s t i l l n e s s o fQualinesti shatters. A sharp fe-male scream rises from the direc-tion Laurana has gone. Even asthe echoes bounce from the hills,a d a r k s h a p e b l a c k s o u t t h emoons, settling among the aspensof the city.

A wyvern , r i dden by Fewmas te rToede, lands in Qualinost. Toede hasdecided to capture one of the partyas a peace offering to Verminaard,who is surely going to be angry that

the caravan was raided and Gilthanasfreed. Six Kapak draconians havealso been carried to the elven city,and even now move to attack thecharacters. Whether the PCs move toi n v e s t i g a t e o r s i m p l y h o l d t h e i rground, they are at tacked by theKapaks as the huge serpent, nowbearing two riders, rises across thered moon as Toede shouts, “Your loy-alty is touching, my little Kapaks! Togive your lives is all that my grand-ness could ask of you!”

The Kapaks were sent by Toede tocreate a diversion, then abandoned.Left on their own, they fight to thedeath. The noise of the ski rmisharouses the community, but no elvesare near enough to intervene untilthe battle is over. By then, it is obvi-ous that this was an isolated raid andnot a general attack.

If the PCs mention Laurana, theelves know of her absence at once. Ifnot, it is morning before they realizeshe is missing. In either event, noth-ing can be done about the kidnap-p i n g . T h e e l v e s r e a c t t o t h ekidnapping with sad acceptance, andtell the heroes to sleep while theyhave the chance, for the next day’smission must go ahead as planned.

While the heroes sleep, the elvesload their packs wi th two weeks’worth of the nourishing elven quith-pa, a kind of dried fruit. Quith-pafunctions in all respects as iron ra-tions.

At this point, Gilthanas may be-come a player character . Theroselects to remain with the elves.

91. If the Heroes Refuse theElvesOf course, the Innfellows may rejectthe elves’ appeal. In this case, theelves are considerably colder to thePCs; they no longer extend their hos-pitality, asking the PCs to leave. Thenext morning, Gilthanas and a bandof hand-picked elven warriors leavefor Pax Tharkas, gravely weakeningt h e f i g h t i n g s t r e n g t h o f t h eQualinesti nation.

The elves do not bother the PCs ifthey consent to leave Qualinesti qui-etly. At the first nightfall, priests inthe party have a prophetic dream.

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Take your priests and read them thispassage!

The landscape you l ie upon isblurred, as is often the case indreams.

The wind has died away, and theair seems far less chilly than it didbefore. Indeed, a glowing warmthspreads across your back.

W h e n y o u t u r n t o w a r d t h esource of the heat, you see thatQualinesti forest is burning. Thef i re withers aspen, snaps ever-green, and the woodland eruptsinto red columns of flame.

Dark shapes lope toward youout of the fire. A rain of arrows andspears cannot stop the rushingdraconians, their wings flappingas they charge across the groundl ike large, wounded bats. Yourcomrades fa l l around you—firstone, then another, as your weapongrows heavier in your hands.

Finally, seven draconians turntoward you—toward you alone.Three of them lick their swords.Their lidless eyes stare hungrily atyour throat. They move coldly andfirmly in your direction, whisper-ing in dry, rattling hisses. Theysurround you; one of them lungesat you with a spear, and a white-hot pain explodes in your chest.

The dragonmen appear to dou-ble in s ize, and then suddenlyshr ink to the s ize of sparrows.Your weapon falls to your side.Your legs do not work. Everythingis dark now.

If the PCs stil l do not take up thequest, the dream comes true almostto the let ter. Qual inest i is in thehands of the Dragon Highlords in1d6 days; no matter which directionthe PCs go after one game day theyencounter draconians as they did inencounter 94. These skirmishes con-tinue, one every game hour, until allthe PCs are dead.

The heroes make a long day’s marchand are at the Sla-Mori at nightfall.T o d a y , a l s o , t h e D r a g o n a r m ymarches out of Pax Tharkas towardQualinesti.

Dawn is just beginning to color thesky as Gilthanas leads the wayt h r o u g h t h e a s p e n w o o d o fQua l ines t i . The t ra i l descendsgradually to the south. Soon thewhisper of a rushing stream risesfrom nearby, as the path begins tofollow a clear brook. The routegrows steeper and steeper, and thewater deepens and roars as it tum-bles toward the sea with increas-ing force.

The aspens of Qualinesti blendwith the tall pines of the lowlands,and by the time the sun is high,there are no signs of the silverytrees of the plateau. Dark andlooming, the evergreens crowdt h e t r a i l , m a k i n g t h e b r i g h t l ysunny day seem closed and dusky.The stream st i l l roars, but thesound has become threatening,l ike some unspeakable th ing intireless pursuit.

Suddenly, the pines spread toreveal a clearing about 150 feeta c r o s s . T h e g r a s s h a s b e e nchurned into mud by a fur iouscombat. The bodies of both men

and hobgoblins lie grotesquely inthe places where death claimedthem.

A groan sounds from the centerof this carnage, and a battered hu-man warrior rises from a pile of hob-goblins. His eyes appear glazed andunfocused as he turns his headabout, finally looking at the trailwhere it enters the clearing. Hestruggles to stay on his feet, butgives up with another groan.

Sudden ly a l ook o f su rp r i secrosses his face, and he points tothe dense pine forest. “Look out!Dragon . . .” The effort proves toomuch, and he topples onto h isback again.

92. AmbushImmediately after this statement, 12Baaz draconians rush from the pinesto attack the party from all sides. Ifthe heroes heed the wounded war-rior’s warning, they are not surprisedby the ambush; otherwise, checknormally with a 1d6.

The draconians attack savagely,fighting to the death. If the battleseems to be going in the heroes’ fa-vor, the wounded man climbs to hisfeet, joins the melee, and strikes aBaaz from behind after most of thedraconians have been killed.

The wounded man is Eben Shat-te rs tone (see Supp lemen ta ry PCcards, page 114, 115). Eben wearsclothes that once were very fine, buta lot of rough wear has tattered themsomewhat. He has straight, jet-blackhair, cut fairly short, and his face isruggedly handsome. A faded redcape hangs from his shoulders, andh is f i ne cha in ma i l i s ra ther ta r -nished. He also wears a scarlet hat.

Eben is completely self-serving,will ing to do anything to win favorwith those whom he sees as in power.R i g h t n o w , t h i s i s t h e D r a g o nHighlord Verminaard, who has sentEben to infiltrate the party and try todirect them to Pax Tharkas, where heis to betray them. Eben is not evil,nor will he risk his life for the DragonHighlord, so if he does not have achance to betray the party safely, hewi l l not do so. I f at al l possible,Eben’s mission should not be discov-ered. If it is, however, and the PCsturn on h im, see to i t that Ebenmeets an obscure death—that hisbody is lost.

Eben has blood upon his legs andarms. He graciously denies that heneeds any magical healing and sug-gests that the magic should be savedfor a later time. In fact, he is notwounded at all: he has staged the en-tire encounter so that he might join

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the group of heroes. He will attemptto betray the party later.

Eben thanks the PCs many times,and of fers his aid wherever theymight be bound. Gi l thanas urgeshaste in continuing to Pax Tharkas,and if his opinion is sought, remarkstha t an ex t ra swordsman a lwayscomes in handy.

Soon the pines give way to theopen plain, and in the southern dis-tance, Pax Tharkas sits wedged be-t w e e n m o u n t a i n s . B y m o v i n gs t e a d i l y , t h e p a r t y c a n s e e t h eTharkadan walls by late afternoon.

93. The Hidden Valley

The sun has almost disappeared inthe west; the important fortress ofPax Tharkas is nearer still. Thetops of its two mighty towers rivalthe mountain peaks for control ofthe sky. Between the towers, amassive wall closes off all passagethrough the mountain gap. A sin-gle gate, 30 feet tall and 20 feetwide, seems to be the only en-trance.

Sudden ly , the mass ive ga teswings open. Even before it fin-i s h e s m o v i n g , c o l u m n a f t e rco lumn of armed t roops marchout. Rising clouds of dust soon ob-scure their exact numbers, butsurely several thousand pass fromthe fortress onto the plains. Ther o a d t h e y f o l l o w l e a d s t oQualinesti.

“The Dragon Highlords’ power,”says Gilthanas grimly. “The timehas come. ” The e l ven war r io rpoints to a narrow vale leadinginto the mountains just east of PaxTharkas. “Here lies the approachof the Sla-Mori. We must movecarefully: this valley is sometimesnot a safe place.”

The elf refers to rumors of a band oftrolls that has come down from thehigh mountains into the valley. Hetells the PCs about this if they askhim. Urging haste, he then leads theparty into the valley, to the secretga te o f t he S la -Mor i , o r “h iddenpath.”

A narrow trail climbs steeply fromthe plains into the wooded valley.Splashing with impartial cheer, aclear brook emerges from the cutin the mountains, as Gi l thanasleads the party ever higher. Soon,the elf leaves the path and beginsto p ick h is way through under-brush made especially dense bythe falling of night.

94. TrollsThe trolls in this valley always place aguard to cover the approach from theplains. This troll alerts its partners,and the three monsters attack therear of the party as it leaves the trailand begins to move toward the Sla-Mori. Check normally to see if thePCs are surprised.

The trolls try to kill two PCs andcarry the bodies to their lair—a smallcave on the opposite side of the val-ley, about 1,000 yards away. Thecave is 30 feet wide, 50 feet deep,and ten feet high. It contains a collec-tion of bones, worthless scraps of ar-mor and weapons, a rusty key amidthe rubbish at the back wall, a shield+ 1, and a locked strongbox. The keyopens the strongbox, which contains257 sp and three gems, worth 150stl, 100 stl, and 200 stl.

95. The Gate to Sla-Mori

Gilthanas leads the way along thebase of a tall granite cliff for sev-eral hundred feet , hal t ing at aslight niche in the wall. He takes asmall, glowing gem from beneathhis tunic and holds it forward withhis right hand. Making a set of mo-tions in the air, he chants an an-c i e n t s e r i e s o f i n c a n t a t i o n s .Suddenly and silently, a tremen-dous stone block moves to theside.

Use the Sla-Mori map for the follow-i ng encoun te rs . The numbers o fthese and all further encounters arekeyed to areas on maps.

96. The Ways of the Sla-Mori

A whiff of musty, dead air emergesas the huge block moves aside.The passage plunges directly intothe heart of the mighty peak thatguards the eastern flank of PaxTharkas. A thick coat of dust lay-ers the floor, and cobwebs hangloosely from the ceiling nearly 15feet above. The tunnel is 20 feetwide and completely dark.

Desp i te the many b i rds ands m a l l a n i m a l s i n t h e n e a r b ywoods—all chattering noisily buta few moments ago—the area isnow covered by a stunned silence,as though the mountain proteststhis break-in and the animals havepaused in sympathy.

Gilthanas advances firmly into thetunnel. If the PCs falter, he pausesand urges them forward with a whis-per. He knows this area only throughlore—he has never traveled it—andthe grim passage makes him uneasy.

The tunnel is obviously ancient.Whether it was carved by hand or cre-ated by the flowing of water is impos-sible to determine. Loose chunks ofrock litter the floor, and the walls andceilings are crumbling. The dust onthe floor looks as if it has not beendisturbed since the Cataclysm.

97. The Crossroads

A crossroads offers a choice of di-rections 120 feet into the moun-t a i n . T h e c o r r i d o r c o n t i n u e sstraight ahead but it also branchesto the right.

More significantly, the dust onthe f l oo rs o f t he tunne l s nowshows the passage of many feet.The marks extend into both of thep a s s a g e s c o n t i n u i n g i n t o t h emountain; only the corridor lead-ing to the gate seems to have beenuntraveled before.

The tracks in the dust were made bya number of different types of crea-tures. Most of the tracks seem to behumanoid, although it is impossibleto te l l more . Mos t o f the an ima lt racks are those of smal l , c lawedcreatures.

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The corr idor cont inuing st ra ightahead has more tracks in it.

98. Hall of the Ancients

An eerie, gigantic hall has falleninto decay. Many tall columns riseto a lo f t y ce i l i ng , o thers havefallen over and litter the center ofthe room l ike the fel led val len-wood trees of Solace. From be-hind the rubble comes a chitteringand scratching.

A huge , g ran i te th rone s i t sagainst the eastern wall, flankedby two large statues. The stoneguardians are warriors three timesthe height of a man, each armedwith a broad, granite sword.

Dwarfed by these images, thedecayed remains of a man sit atopthe throne. Gaunt, empty socketsand bared teeth stare from an an-c ient skul l . A worn, once-regalcloak covers his body; a sheathedsword lies across his lap.

Further examination of the chamberreveals that the wall opposite the tun-nel entrance has collapsed, appar-e n t l y t r i g g e r i n g t h e f a l l o f t h ecolumns. A huge pile of rubble hereis riddled with small tunnels and pro-vides shelter for thousands of rats.The rodents are t imid creatures,however, and represent no threat.

The double doors at the westernend of the room are closed, but theyswing open easily. They are made ofbronze, now well-tarnished, and cov-ered with a rel ief drawing of PaxTharkas.

This is the burial chamber of Kith-Kanan, founder of Qualinesti. The el-ven prince and his dwarf comradesbuilt the fortress of Pax Tharkas dur-ing the Age of Dreams. His tomb hasbeen sealed fur ther by the cata-clysm, which has closed off access toPax Tharkas proper. Your adventur-ers, of course, will have to find thisout the hard way.

The sword across Kith-Kanan’s laprepresents one of the most potentweapons of his age: it is Wyrmslayer,a two-handed sword +3. I f drawnfrom its scabbard, it gleams brightlywith magical radiance.

99. The Closed Corridor

The corridor widens to 60 feet,still continuing forward. The air inthe room is stale and musty; loosebou lde rs and s tones l i t t e r t hefloor, but apparently a wide pathruns down the center of the corri-dor. This path is free of any speckof dust.

The far end of the corridor has beencaved in by the Cataclysm. Bouldersthe size of houses are wedged to-gether to form an impenetrable wall.

A giant slug has cleaned the paththrough the chamber. It lives off therefuse created by the rats in Kith-Kanan’s tomb.

The slug is wedged amid the boul-ders at the far end of the room. Itdoes not detect the heroes until theyadvance to within 60 feet. Then themonster s l ides for th and at tacks,pursuing if necessary. The slug canturn around in a 20-foot-wide corri-dor; in any area narrower than this itmust cont inue forward unt i l i t lo-cates a wider space.

100. Chamber of Doom

The winding of the narrow tunnelfinally ends in a dark chamber.The air is heavy and cold here, anda nameless sense of evil throbssomewhere w i th in these s l i ck ,stony walls. A thick layer of dustcovers the floor, as if the fright-ened creatures living in the tun-nels know bet ter than to comehere.

Lurking in the northwestern alcoveof the room is the source of th isnameless evil: a wraith. This potentspirit begins to move forward as soonas it detects life in this room. Its at-tack is swift and merciless.

This undead creature is the evil rem-nant of a graverobber who broke intothe Sla-Mori trying to plunder thetomb of Kith-Kanan. Forcing entrancethrough the gate, he became trappedinside. Nourished only by the force ofhis own evil, his mortal body perishedand left only the sinister presence thatnow dwells in this room.

The wraith pursues trespassers. Ifthe intended victims enter area 102,the zombies emerge and aid thewraith; if the PCs flee into the loop at101, the wraith follows them beforethe sliding wall closes.

101. The Sliding WallIn the area marked on the map is asliding section of wall, constructedcenturies ago as a trap for tomb rob-bers. The wall cannot be detectedwhen open, as it is when the partyfirst passes by.

When they reach the western sec-tion of the loop (marked with an X),the lead characters feel the floor sinkslowly down one foot. There is noother percept ib le ef fect unless acharacter is very near the sl id ingwall, which closes when the trigger issprung. When closed, the sliding wallcan be discovered as a secret door,and opened when pushed by com-bined Strength of 50 or greater. Up tothree characters may push at once.The door cannot be opened from theoutside.

102. Tomb of the Zombies

The tunnel breaks into the cornero f an o ld ha l l , obv ious ly con-structed with care in some distantage. A wide center aisle stretchesto the limits of sight, and a row ofstone doors line each side.

Rats have passed over the duston the floor throughout the Sla-Mori, but much less often in herethan in most other areas. None ofthe t racks approach the doors,which are supported by huge ironhinges spiked right into the stone.Each door has an iron handle, butapparently no lock.

This is the tomb of Kith-Kanan’s eliteroyal guard. Through a lifetime ofvalued service to their lord, thesehonored elves, dwarves, and menhave earned the right to burial here.

In the centuries since, however, anevi l perversion has corrupted thebodyguard, creating a band of 44mindless zombies dedicated to onlyone task: kill all intruders!

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The undead lie on stone biers, twobehind each door. They arise and at-tack when any of the following occur:

* One of the tomb doors is opened.* A magical spell, rod, wand, etc. isused in the room (not including mag-ical weapons used to shed light).* The double doors in the westernend of the room are opened.* The wraith (from area 30) entersthe room and commands the zom-bies to arise.

Coldly and silently, the zombiesclose in on the party and try to de-stroy them. Any that are turned by acleric escape by the most convenientroute, returning to their tombs if theycan.

The double doors at the westernend of the room are made of solidb ronze . L i ke t he doo rs t o K i t h -Kanan’s tomb, they bear a raised out-l i n e o f P a x T h a r k a s , d o n e i ncons ide rab le de ta i l . Th is des ignadorns each side of the doors. Theyare unlocked, and open silently witha push.

103. Hall of Columns

This large chamber echoes softlywith the sounds of any passage, nomatter how quiet. Puffs of dustr i se w i th each foo t fa l l on thefloor—here again is an area thatseems not to have known the pas-sage of a living soul in decades.

The passage gradually widensfrom the doors, but the true di-mensions of the room are lost indarkness. A row of stately granitecolumns lines each wall. These areplain supports with no ornate carv-ings or unusual shapes, but theyseem to have been constructedwith great care. The fact that theyhave survived the Cataclysm in-tact indicates that their builderswere accomplished engineers.

This chamber is the fruit of dwarvenlabors, designed as a fitting entrywayto the resting place of Kith-Kanan’selite.

You should make careful note thatt h e c h a m b e r s f r o m h e r e t o P a x

Tharkas (103-107 on the map) havenot been traveled in over a century.The rats and other small creaturesroaming the outer tunnels, as well aswander ing mons te rs , never passthrough the Tomb of Zombies intothis area. Therefore, thick dust cov-ers everything, and the adventurershave no encounters in these areas.

104. Trap

A single bronze door swings openeasily into a short corridor thatruns for 60 feet to another bronzedoor, identical to the first. Eachdoor bears the inscription of a jew-eled crown.

The dust in this corridor is veryth i ck , and und i s tu rbed by anytracks.

Dwarven engineers rigged the last 20feet of the corridor as a trap for un-wary trespassers. When any pressureis applied to the false door, eitherpushing or pulling, a 20-foot sectionof the floor drops away. All charac-ters standing on it fall 20 feet into apit and suffer 2d6 of damage.

105. Chain and Support

The long, dusty corr idor f inal lypasses through a bronze door intoa large, circular room. Here, as inthe co r r i do rs l ead ing i n to thechamber, the dust on the floor isth ick and unmarked. A cur iousfeature of the room is the columnin its center, which slants to oneside and climbs far out of sightabove.

A closer look shows you that thec o l u m n i s a c t u a l l y a m a s s i v echain, supported by a huge ironbracket sunk into the center of thefloor. Each link is as long as aman, and the iron bands formingthe links are nearly a foot thick.The bracket in the floor is 15 feetacross and nearly three feet thick.

This chain is the final support mech-anism for the heavy stone defensesthat protect Pax Tharkas against at-tack from the north. If it is released,massive blocks of granite drop be-

hind the gate of the fortress, block-ing any attempts to batter down theportal with even the most massive oframs.

The chain rises through the ceilingof the room, 100 feet above, in a nar-row channel, to the Chamber of theChain in Pax Tharkas (see area 131).Although the chain nearly fil ls thechute, a small individual (a kender ora human man child) could climb thechain and emerge into the chamber.Such an ascent would require thiev-ing abi l i ty and a successful c l imbsheer surfaces roll.

106. Tharkadan TreasureVaults

Having detected the secret door,locating the concealed latch is asimple matter. It releases with asof t c l ick, and a sect ion of thestone wall swings silently inward.

The room beyond is fairly large,a n d n e a r l y f i l l e d w i t h y e l l o w ,b r i c k - l i k e o b j e c t s t h a t g l i t t e rthrough a layer of dust.

Stacked 25 high, 25,000 gold ingotsline the walls around the room. Eachcontains the equivalent of 1,000 gpof the metal. Gold was valued highlyby the dwarves of Pax Tharkas in theAge of Dreams, but it is of little useto the current adventurers.

107. Gates to Pax TharkasDo not read this passage until the ad-venturers have discovered the secretdoor.

The wall seems to block the corri-dor is a secret door, apparently ac-tivated by a small catch near theground. Beyond the portal is si-l ence .

F i n a l l y y o u r a d v e n t u r e r s h a v ereached the walls of Pax Tharkas it-self. If they decide to advance, usethe map of Pax Tharkas.

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The cut-away map displaying PaxTharkas should be used for the fol-lowing series of encounters. Notethat the map does not show the en-tire fortress, only those areas the he-roes are able to visit. This includesthe ground floors of each of the twotowers, as well as the undergroundlevel and second floor of the easterntower. Also shown are the wall con-necting the two towers and the hold-ing bin for the tons of rock used toblock the gate.

In area 133, immediately insidethe doors to both the eastern andwestern towers, are two ropes at-tached to an alarm mechanism. Ifa n y m e m b e r s o f t h e D r a g o nHighlord’s army see the heroes andmanage to pull one of these, the for-tress is alerted. In this case, doublethe number of random encounterchecks and double the number ofcreatures encountered in the for-tress. Surprise is impossible after thedefenders are alerted.

As the party enters the fortress,Gilthanas should mention that thereis a gate-blocking mechanism withinthe walls. This can be used to seal thegates for a long period, and—if theparty could act ivate i t—would beuseful in delaying pursui t by theDragonarmy that just marched off tothe north.

108. Cellar

Three tunnels lead from the secretdoor through a maze of crushedstone and broken t imbers. Thetunnels have been cleared from anarea that was once totally cavedin. A th in, undisturbed coat ofdust covers the floor.

The tunnels all lead to a large cellarroom, with rough and rocky walls tothe east, but a finely crafted, smooths tone wa l l t o the wes t . A la rge ,wooden door stands near the centerof the western wall.

To the heroes’ left as they enter is apile of wooden crates, nailed shut.These conta in c loth ing, pots andpans, curtains, heavy coats, boots,and blankets. A character passing aWisdom check can identify the items

as coming from Solace and Gateway.Also in the large room is a deep

well, capable of providing fresh wa-ter in times of siege or if the streamsflowing from the mountains outsideof the fortress should dry up.

109. Lower GuardroomListening to the door to this room re-veals the rasping voices of dragon-men mingled with a woman’s voice.The woman sounds upset. The dooris solid, but not locked or stuck.

If the heroes open the door slowlyand carefully, they can watch the fol-lowing scene for a few moments. Ofcourse, if they smash down the door,

t he d ragonmen move to f i gh t a tonce.

A s a v a g e - l o o k i n g d r a g o n m a nhauls a young woman by the arm.He hurls her toward a door on thefar s ide of the room, growl ing:“My lo rd Verminaard requ i resyour presence! Who are you tore fuse h i s nob le ca l l i ng? ” Themonster advances toward the girl,menacingly, while three other dra-conians watch, their faces twistedinto hideous grins.

The Kapak draconian takes the girlfrom the room, unless interrupted by

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the heroes. If combat erupts whileshe is in the room, the girl runs to thesouthern end and crouches there un-til the fight is over.

If attacked suddenly, the Kapaksh a v e n o t i m e t o e n v e n o m t h e i rblades. If more than one of them isslain, survivors try to escape throughthe western door and alert the for-tress.

Although Laurana is quite startledby her sudden rescue, she is spiritedand courageous, and she quickly re-covers her wits. She has been kept inarea 112, but knows that 111 and110 also contain some of the womenfrom the north. The keys to all ofthese rooms are kept on the belt ofone of the draconian guards.

If the PCs do not enter the roombefore Laurana is dragged out, she istaken before Verminaard. If not res-cued by the heroes, she dies an “ob-scure death” and returns later in thesaga.

110. Women’s Prison #1This cell holds 34 women from Sol-ace, Gateway, and Haven. Rude strawmats line the walls, and several lowchairs are scattered about. No otherfurniture or other accommodationsare present.

Maritta the Seamstress is one ofthe prisoners in this room. She isgenerally regarded by the women astheir leader and spokesperson. It isshe who l eads t he g roup o f t enwomen each evening up to the cham-ber on the ground floor (room 117) tofeed and tend to the children. Theyoungsters are imprisoned there un-der the watchful eyes of the reddragon Flamestrike.

Also in this room is a battered Elis-tan, injured from a fall in the mines.Because of his influential position,t h e D r a g o n H i g h l o r d s a l l o w t h ewomen to tend him, when they wouldlet most prisoners die unaided. Evenso, Elistan is near death and needsmagical healing.

If the PCs heal Elistan, he aban-dons his disbelief and embraces thetrue gods. He renounces his past be-liefs and begins to worship Mishakal,or whichever of the true gods the PCpriest who healed him worships.

111. Women’s Prison #2

This chamber is the prison of more ofthe mothers f rom the nor th lands.Sixty women between the ages of 18and 40 are locked up here, in muchthe same conditions as the womennext door.

112. Maidens

This room holds 45 young women,between the ages of 12 and 20, whohave not married or borne children.As in the other two rooms, the condi-tions are squalid and dirty.

The women from all of these cellsreact with quiet joy to the thought ofrescue; this reaction, however, coolsw i th t he know ledge tha t t he reddragon above still watches the chil-dren.

The women explain the situationto the heroes, including the proce-dure for tending the children everyevening. The women also know thatmany other women are held on thebottom floor of the western tower.The men are forced to work in themines, and are kept in a crude cavesouth of the fortress during thosebrief periods when they are not work-ing.

The women also send a group of12 up to the mines to feed the menevery night. They wear heavy shawlsand robes to protect against the au-tumn chill, and the guards pay littleattention to those on either feedingmission. Thus, any characters con-cealed as these women would be ableto move about the for t ress fa i r lysafely, as long as they could conceiv-ably be on one of these feeding mis-sions.

If the heroes do not think of this,Maritta suggests that armed men,disguised in women’s robes, couldenter the chamber where the chil-dren are kept and rescue them.

If the PCs decide to make a rescueattempt in this way, Maritta has thefollowing advice about Flamestrike:

“You must try to pass the dragonquietly, as she sleeps very deeply. Idon’ t th ink she would normal lyharm the chi ldren—in fact , sheseems very fond of them—but do

not attack her, even if she shouldawaken . She i s ha l f mad , andthere’s no telling what she mightdo if aroused.”

113. Chamber of the Aghar

A ser ies of strange noises r isefrom behind this door: first, a loudcrash, followed several secondslater by a dull thump, and thengales of raucous laughter . Thelaughter dies down slowly, and af-ter a minute the pattern repeats.

The women have no idea what is inthis room. The door is quite typical,and does not seem to be locked. Infact, it is not even stuck and opens toreveal the following:

A long timber is balanced on aboulder in the center of the room.At each end of the t imber is awide, dish-shaped container. Seton the ground by these containersis a pile of large stones and a tallwooden box. Huge mattresses ofstraw have been spread on thefloor beyond either end of the tim-ber. A dozen short, stocky crea-tures scurry frantically around thetimber, shouting and cursing eachother. They wear oversized tin hel-mets, and several wear swords intheir belts. Because these swordsare several inches longer thantheir legs, those creatures whowear them often get them tangledbe tween the i r f ee t , sp raw l ingheadlong onto the floor.

Shortly a pattern emerges. Oneof these creatures (who by now arer e c o g n i z a b l e a s A g h a r g u l l ydwarves) climbs into the dish atone end of the timber, droppingthat end to the ground like a largesee-saw. Three other Aghar climbonto the wooden box at the otherend of the t imber, where com-rades have already raised three ofthe large stones. The Aghar on theboxes drop the stones togetherinto the dish below them, drop-ping that end to the ground andcatapulting the dwarf at the other

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end through the air, over the headsof the three on the box, and intothe mattress of straw.

After each of these stunts, allt he Aghar l augh up roa r ious l y ,then run around crazily for a whileuntil the process is ready to startagain.

These Aghar are servants of the dra-con ians , amus ing themse lves intheir off-duty moments. If the PCs donot announce thei r presence, thedwarves do not notice them for 2d4rounds.

When and if the Aghar discoverthe adventurers, they cease theirgame immediately and dive for coverbehind the timber and stones. A min-ute later, several of the tin helmetspeek out from behind this cover.

Finally, one of the sword-bearinggully dwarves swaggers forward. Hisface is hidden behind a bushy beard,and his tin helmet shadows his eyes.In fact, he can see very little; as henears the party, he tr ips over hissword and falls headlong, his helmetrolling to the feet of the forward PCs.The dwarf rushes to snatch his hel-me t back , b lus te r i ng abou t t res -passers and uninvited guests.

This is Highklahd Drooth, leaderof the Klahd Clan of the Aghar. An-gr i ly he demands an explanat ionfrom the party; although what theyare supposed to explain is unclear.

These 12 Aghar are no friends ofthe Dragon Highlords and only re-main here because Pax Tharkas hasbeen their clan home for centuries.A l t hough susp i c i ous and c ranky ,they will not betray the party, andmay offer aid if approached with “ap-propriate honor.”

The Aghar are quite familiar withthe layout of the fortress, and evenu n d e r s t a n d h o w t h e s t o n e d r o pmechanism to seal the gate operates.Their services must be purchased,however ; rope , weapons , a rmor ,food, clothing, or things that mightwork as toys can all be used for bar-ter. Note that the Aghar are essen-t i a l l y c o w a r d l y , a n d d o n o tvoluntarily get involved in risky busi-ness.

The Aghar are aware that Sestun is

being held prisoner in area 120 forthe crime of aiding the escape of agroup of Fewmaster Toede’s pris-oners. If the heroes aid in his rescue,the Aghar are much more willing totake risks for the party.

114. Storage RoomThe door to this room is locked.

Many rows of crates, boxes, andbarrels line the walls of this largeroom. Several boxes containingiron nai ls are open nearby. Al lother containers are closed.

Stored here are 72 barrels of oil, 20barrels of fresh water, 12 barrels ofsalt, 20 crates of nails, 140 boxes ofgrain, 43 crates of wool woven into 4’X 8’ pieces (430 pieces total), 12crates of leather in the same dimen-sions (60 pieces total), and 30 boxesof pots and pans.

If the oil is ignited, the contents ofthe room burn up in two turns. Oneturn after such a fire begins, the hall-way outside fills with smoke. PCs inthis area suffer 1d6 points of damageper round until they reach fresh air.

The smoke continues to spread atthis rate, fil l ing all adjacent areaseach turn if no door blocks the way.Areas behind doors take two turns tofill with smoke. Those rooms adja-cent to rooms filled with smoke fillon the following turn (or two, if adoor blocks the way), and so on for20 turns, when the fire extinguishesfrom lack of air.

115. Upper Hallway

Th is ha l lway i s fu rn ished w i thgreat care, creat ing an atmos-phere of comfort and luxury. Aplush purple carpet blankets thefloor, and many tapestries of richred and golden colors decoratethe wal ls. Each of the severaldoors is made of dark-grained val-lenwood and has golden rivets,hinges, and latches.

A t c lose r examina t ion , how-ever, the luxury begins to wearthin. Dark stains blot the carpet inmany places, and a wide, muddy

trail mars the center of the floor.Some of the tapestries, depictingpastoral woodland scenes, havebeen defaced: charcoal has beenused to add a beard and mustacheto an elven pr incess, and longslashes ruin a scene of elves anddwarves in council.

This hallway connects most of therooms on the first floor of the tower,and thus receives a lot of traffic. Dou-b le t he usua l number o f r andomencounter checks while the party isin this area.

Standing outside the throne room(area 121) are two hobgoblin guards.They do not attack on sight but arevery suspicious of any armed charac-ters in the hallway and demand iden-tification. If alarmed, they rush to gettheir comrades from area 119.

116. Reception Room

Much like the outer hallway, thisr o o m h a s t h e a p p e a r a n c e o fformer luxury now fallen into de-cay. The carpet is s lashed andspotted; many fine pieces of furni-ture are strewn across the dirtyf l oo r . Some fancy cha i rs havebeen spl intered, apparent ly sotheir legs can be used as firewood,since a smoky blaze struggles in ahuge fireplace.

A strong smell of ale hangs inthe air, and a large keg lies on itsside in the center of the room. An-other keg sits in the center of theroom. Another keg sits in the farcorner, and around it crouch fivedraconians.

These Kapak draconians have beendrinking. If they are disturbed, theyreact aggressively. They take time toenvenom their blades as they chargeacross the room.

If three draconians are killed, theremaining two realize that the PCsare tougher opponents than theythought, and they bolt for the otherdoor. Once in the hallway, they raisea cry, alerting the fortress.

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117. Dining Room

For some reason, th is e legantroom escaped the des t ruc t i onrampant throughout the rest o fthe fortress. A shiny table made ofsmooth vallenwood occupies thecen te r o f t he room. I t i s su r -rounded by a dozen finely craftedchairs. An undamaged carpet, ofthe same rich purple found in thehallway, covers the floor.

Three golden chandeliers hangfrom the ceiling, each ablaze withdozens of candles. Many morecandles fl icker from sconces inthe wa l l , ba th ing the room inbright and cheery light.

The table is set for four, withfine china and silver. A large plati-num pitcher is placed in the centerof the table; beads of moisturehave collected on it. Four match-ing platinum goblets stand next tothe pitcher.

The pitcher contains ice water. If aplayer asks about the length of thecandles, inform him that no wax hasdripped from them, so they have ap-parently been lighted very recently.

If the party remains in this roomfor two rounds, the gully dwarvesfrom the kitchen enter, carrying traysof steaming food. (See area 118 forgully dwarves’ reaction to the PCs.)Note that these Aghar are encoun-tered in one place or the other, butnot in both areas!

118. Kitchen

A long counter is covered with awide variety of foodstuffs, and sev-eral ovens spew smoke into theair. Four Aghar run busily aroundthe room, armed with pots, pans,and in one case, a large meatcleaver. Several inches of liquid—perhaps some k ind o f g ravy—spread over the floor, and the gullydwarves are coated with all kindsof food.

As the door opens, two of theAghar turn their attention towardit and collide headlong with eachother, fa l l ing to the f loor amid

great splashes and loud cursing. Athird gully dwarf snarls: “Dinnerain’t gonna be ready for hours ifwe can’t get some privacy what towork in! Now get lost!” He movesforward, a heavy frying pan raisedaggressively.

These Aghar are the official cooksfor Verminaard, present lord of PaxTharkas. While they are afraid of theDragon Highlord, they are rude andunpleasant to everyone else.

If the heroes attack them, the gullydwarves turn and run.

If the heroes identify themselvesas enemies of the Dragon Highlord,the gu l l y dwarves become muchfriendlier, although they are still sus-picious. They explain that they arepreparing Verminaard’s dinner, andthat he is planning to entertain one ofthe women from downstairs as hisguest. The meal consists of freshbread, a fine haunch of venison, po-tatoes, and apples. These Aghar areactually not bad cooks, so the mealwill be a good one.

The Aghar cooperate very little ifthe heroes ask for any kind of aid. Inno case do the gully dwarves do any-thing (such as poison the meal) thatmight cost them their heads. Theymight provide secret aid, however, ifthey have very little chance of beingcaught.

These dwarves know that Sestun isimprisoned in area 120. If the heroesaid him, the gully dwarves will bemuch friendlier to them.

119. Guardroom

If the heroes listen at the door here,they hear loud laughter and argu-men t w i th in . The vo ices a re no tthose of draconians.

Many chairs and benches of rudewooden construct ion are scat-tered about this room. Sitting ormoving around the room are sev-eral dozen ugly guards, their grin-ning faces displaying yel lowedtusks. Their skin is a ruddy yellowcolor, and they are all armed withswords and daggers.

This room is the duty quarters for 28hobgoblin guards. They have beenplaying var ious gambl ing games,eating, or practicing with weapons.They rush to attack any intruders.

If the heroes enter the room andfight with the door closed, the for-tress is not alerted. Otherwise, thealarms certainly go off. The hobgob-lins fight to the death.

Hanging on a nail in the wall is akey that unlocks the cell next door(a rea 120 ) . Sca t te red abou t t heroom, on tables and the floor as wellas carried by individual hobgoblins,are 54 stl, 187 sp, and 327 bp.

120. Prison Cell

The door is heavy and barred andhas a small hatch near the bottomA massive lock protects the latchto the door as well as the hatch.

If the heroes pick the lock, or use thekey found in area 119, read the fol-lowing. Note that this door cannot besmashed in.

The large room contains only as i n g l e o c c u p a n t : a d i r t y , u n -shaven, and very smel ly gu l l ydwarf. He looks up angrily from astraw mat on the stone floor, thenseems surprised by the appear-ance of his visitors.

This is Sestun, the gully dwarf whofreed the heroes from their cage int h e s l a v e c a r a v a n . A l t h o u g h h eslipped away from the caravan, hewas captured by a party of dracon-ians as he moved southward. Now heis being held prisoner while Vermi-naard attempts to come up with asuitably vicious punishment.

As revealed by his actions in thecaravan, Sestun is an Aghar of highcourage and spirit. He despises theDragon Highlord and hates their dra-conian and hobgoblin servants.

Sestun is willing to participate inanything that is likely to anger Ver-minaard; he knows that he has no fu-t u r e w o r k i n g f o r t h e D r a g o nHighlord. If he is offered a chance toescape, he wi l l do so, causing asmuch trouble on the way out as pos-

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sible. When the slaves make their es-cape to the south, Sestun will tagalong in the background.

I f any PCs are captured in PaxTharkas , they a re d i sa rmed andplaced in this room. Their posses-sions are taken to Verminaard andplaced behind h is throne. In 2d6hours, the Dragon Highlord calls thecaptives before him, asking them tobetray their comrades and explaintheir purpose in Pax Tharkas. Re-fusal results in being fed to the reddragon Ember.

121. Verminaard’s ThroneRoom

The massive double doors that leadinto this room are unlocked and pushopen si lent ly. I f the heroes openthem only slightly, they may hide andobserve the discussion descr ibedhere.

The PCs may also observe this dis-cussion from the balcony (area 130)or through a crack in the wall of thechain room (area 131). Of course, ifthe par ty v is i t s severa l o f theseplaces, they observe this scene onlythe f i r s t t ime they look in to thethrone room.

This huge, looming chamber wasobviously the throne room for theelven and dwarven races that builtthe great fortress. Tall columnsbrace the ce i l i ng , and a huge

stone throne occupies a centra lspot.

Ta l l , s i l very mi r ro rs l ine thewalls, creating the impression thatthe room is even larger than it re-ally is. In the middle of the westwall, a pair of huge doors—easily12 feet high by 20 feet wide—leadfrom the throne room.

A figure seated in the thronewears the h ideous mask o f aDragon Highlord. His hoarse voicerasps from behind the grotesquecovering, addressing a cringingfigure before him:

“Toede, you miserable rodent,you have the gift of ruining thesimplest plans! As if kidnappingthe elf maiden wasn’t bad enough. . . now thanks to your idiocy, your

incompe tence , t ha t p r i es t hasbeen allowed to live, bringing myopposite power back among men!Find them and slay them all . . .bring me their heads before theday is out!

“ I f that t ra i tor that I p lantedamong them does not do the job,then the task is on your shoulders.Hear me well, Toede: either yourhead or theirs will decorate mythrone room tonight!”

The figure before the DragonHighlord cringes even more, andbeg ins to speak in a pa the t i cwh ine , “Your mos t worsh ip fu llord, I offer my hopelessly inade-quate apology. If I had known thatthe ones you seek were impris-oned in my caravan, I would havebrought you their heads person-ally as I brought you the elf maidLaurana. If not for the treachery ofone of the loathsome Aghar, theywould even now be kneeling be-fore you, prisoners to your tendermercies . . .”

“Enough ! ” r oa rs t he D ragonHighlord. “You have my warning,now go!” The voice lowers, heavywith menace. “And Toede, do notfail me again . . .”

Toede turns and scut t les for thedoors, while two draconian guardspull them open to allow the Fewmas-ter quick exi t . Of course, any in-truders at the door are discovered atthis time.

As Toede races for the door, Vermi-naard leans back in his throne andslowly surveys the room. If any he-roes are watching from the door, thebalcony, or the chain room, he seesthem in the mirrors. He calls: “Em-ber!” and the red dragon immedi-ate ly pushes through the doubledoors on the west wal l . “Destroythem!” is Verminaard’s next com-mand.

There are s ix Kapak draconianguards in the throne room, as well asVerminaard (an 8th-level priest). Thedraconians enter the combat only if,for some reason, the dragon seemsto have trouble making the kill. Ver-m inaard s tays ou t o f range andwatches the fight; if Ember suffers

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h a l f d a m a g e , t h e d r a g o n f l e e sthrough the double doors and upthrough the chimney, but not beforehe has stopped and let Verminaardmount. (Statistics for Ember and Ver-minaard can be found in the Com-bined Monster Statistics Chart and inthe capsules, respectively.)

Verminaard’s face is concealed be-hind the grotesque mask of a DragonHighlord—a vicious visor that has apair of wicked horns curving fromthe forehead. He wears shiny blueplate mail and a billowing blue cape.Standing well over six feet tall, Ver-minaard presents an imposing im-age of evil.

Verminaard is dedicated to theruthless destruction of good in all itsforms. No shred of conscience dis-turbs him in his quest for power. Hecontro ls a l l of the lands f rom theS e e k e r k i n g d o m s s o u t h t o P a xTharkas. He is constantly striving toextend his power.

122. Verminaard’s QuartersVerminaard has taken over thesethree connect ing rooms as l iv ingquarters. The doors are all polishedval lenwood, and locked securely.Verminaard himself carries the onlykeys.

122a. Waiting Room

Th is room has kep t i t s f o rmersplendor: The plush carpet on thefloor is undamaged, and the chairsand couches are all richly uphol-stered. A small table sits in thecenter of the room, and a pair ofcrystal goblets and a crystal de-canter fil led with a golden liquidsparkle from atop the table.

A large tapestry covers the farwall. This is the only indicationtha t the fo r t ress has recen t l ychanged hands: it displays a huge,red dragon, jaws agape, spewingflames over a small village. Sev-e ra l l a rge cande labra p rov idesteady light for the chamber.

122b. Private Dining Room

Half of this chamber is filled by apolished table of gleaming darkwood. A buffet with glass doorsdisplays a priceless collection ofchina and silver. Light spills from apair of golden chandeliers, eachsupporting many fl ickering can-dles.

A pair of tapestries has beenadded to the eastern and southernwalls of this room. One shows amassive red dragon landing amida troop of armored horsemen andwreaking gory havoc. The secondshows a region of black moun-t a i n s , h e a v y w i t h m i s t a n dshadows, where a looming for-tress rises up in the distance.

A small, locked drawer in the bottomof the hutch is trapped with a poisonneedle (successful saving throw vs.poison or suffer 15 points of dam-age). With in the drawer are foursmall bottles containing two potionsof extra healing, a potion of gaseousform, and a potion of invisibility.

122c. Verminaard’sBedroom

This chamber seems to be a com-binat ion of f ice and bedroom. Ahuge bed, lushly canopied andquilted, nearly fil ls the southernend. A large wooden closet sitsnext to i t . Across the f loor arespread rugs made from the skinsof many of the large carnivoresfound throughout Krynn: brownbears, jaguars, panthers, wolves,and a tiger.

The other end of the room istaken up by a large desk, plainwooden chair , smal l table, andwashbasin. Three tapestries, pic-turing scenes of dragon-wroughtdestruction, add a dark touch tothe walls. Several smoky torchesflicker in sconces. Several candlesand a lamp sit on the desk, butthey are unlit.

Sp read upon the desk a re manymaps of th is por t ion of Ansalon,

show ing the g radua l i nc rease inlands con t ro l l ed by the DragonHighlord. On top of the pile is a mapof Qualinesti, showing that peacefulland pierced by three great daggers:one each moving from the northeastand northwest, and one advancingstraight from Pax Tharkas, just as theelves had reported.

Another sheet of paper diagramsthe pe rmanen t de fenses o f PaxTharkas, showing how the chain andstone mechanism (room 132) oper-ates to block the massive gates.

The desk has one drawer, firmlylocked and guarded with a dose ofsleep gas. If the lock is picked with-out deactivating the trap, all in theroom fall asleep for 2d6 turns, nosaving throw. This drawer containstwo sheets of rolled parchment, eacha priest scroll. They contain thesespells:

Scrol l #1: cure ser ious wounds,prayer, find trapsScroll #2: l ight, augury, cure l ightwounds

The closet contains several robes, ablack cape, a pair of boots, and a suitof black plate mail.

123. Children’s Playroom

This door is barred on the outsidewith a heavy wooden beam.

This large, open room has no fur-niture. Scattered about, however,are many small bits of wood andrags carelessly carved or sewnin to do l l s , wagons , ba l l s , andother toys. A tall arch in the east-ern wall leads into darkness, andn e x t t o t h e a r c h i s a n o r m a lwooden door. A pair of huge doorsin the southwestern corner appar-ently leads outside, since four win-dows in tha t same wa l l admi tsome cool, fresh air.

The double doors are held by a veryheavy beam, requiring a total Strengthof 25 to remove. There is a similarbeam on the ground outside thesedoors that may be used to bar themand keep something (i.e., Flamestrike)inside. The door to room 124 is not

locked. If the fortress has been alerted,there are six Kapaks here. Use Ran-dom Encounter 4.

124. Storeroom

Many shelves line the walls of thissmall room. Stacked upon themare blankets, cloaks, tiny boots,and a number of toys similar to theones strewn about the playroom.

The cloaks are all children’s sizes.

125. Chamber of theNursemaid

The arched tunnel enters anotherroom, even larger than the play-room. No windows shed light intothis area, but a sof t , wheezingnoise gives evidence of anotherpresence here. Soon, the torch-light falls across a monstrous redtail, then massive crimson flanksthat rise and fall with a slow, rhyth-mic pattern.

Now the great head appears:eyes c losed, forked tongue ex-tending f rom wicked jaws, andnostr i ls f lar ing ever so sl ight lywith the slow breaths. This cham-ber is occupied by an ancient reddragon!

At first, Flamestrike looks everybit as awesome as is usual for herkind, but a closer look reveals thatthis dragon suffers some of the ill ef-fects of age. Many of her teeth areblunted or broken (accounting forher lessened bite damage), while oneof her eyes is cloudy and apparentlyblind. Long scars mark her weath-ered flanks, and she looks unusuallyslender, even scrawny.

F l a m e s t r i k e l o s t h e r b r o o d o fyoung to an unknown enemy yearsago, and th is t ragedy has deeplyscarred her personality. She is a verycareful guardian of the children, andwould never harm one of them underany circumstance. She deals harshlywith those she bel ieves threaten“her” children. The only visitors sheallows are the ten women who, oncea day, arrive to feed and care for theyoungsters.

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126. Food Storage andPreparation

On the r i gh t -hand wa l l o f t h i sroom, several shelves are piledhigh wi th goods. To the lef t , ala rge oven and a po t -cove redcounter run along the wall. Thesmall room is cluttered with foodand utensils.

In this room the women prepare thefood for the children. Barrels of saltpork, beans, salt, flour, lard, driedm e a t , a n d p o t a t o e s s i t o n t h eshelves.

127. Children’s Room

This large room bustles with sev-eral hundred children, ranging inage from infant to about 12 yearsold. Their frightened, questioningfaces stare at the doorway. Severalof the older boys and girls standprotect ively before the youngerchildren, as if to spare them thesight of anything horrible.

A l t hough fea r and ha rdsh iphave struck these youngsters un-justly, their spirit has not been bro-ken. Courage and resolve shine inthe faces of the older children, andthe younger ones look to thei rolder brothers and sisters with re-spect and pr ide. Not even thesmallest baby is crying.

There are 180 children in this room.They will recognize and instantly re-spond to Maritta, if she is with the he-roes. Otherwise, a very mature boyand girl advance to talk privately withthe PCs, seeking information aboutthem. The children will never consentto leave unless convinced that theirparents will join them in freedom.

If the heroes begin to rescue thechildren, they file slowly and silentlypast the sleeping Flamestrike. Thered dragon stirs in her sleep, butdoes not awaken until all but a fewdozen of the children have passed—unless of course, a PC attacks orarouses her.

When the dragon wakes up, readthe following:

The great red dragon slowly raisesh e r h e a d , m u t t e r i n g s o f t l y :“Maritta, you take all of my chil-dren together . . . is it not easierwith a few at a time?” Blinking herone good eye, Flamestrike slowlylooks around and sniffs the cham-ber. Suddenly, she screams withrage and springs to her feet!

“You cannot steal my children!”

Flamestrike tries to attack the he-roes with teeth and claws. She willnever use her breath weapon whilethe children are nearby!

If the heroes escape with the chil-dren to the outside, Flamestrike can-not follow them through the doubledoors. She will not emerge from thefortress until the moment describedin “Escape from Pax Tharkas.”

128. Upper Landing

The stairway emerges into a long,narrow room. Two silver-coateddoors, embossed with an image ofan elf and a dwarf holding a lutebetween them, lead to the left. Thelure is an ancient symbol of peacein Krynn, so the ar twork datesthese doors to the period of elvenand dwarven cooperat ion whenPax Tharkas was built.

The secret door operates by twistinga stone that is set into the door itself.

129. Gallery

This huge room is chilly, exposedto the autumn drafts by a numberof slit windows along the curvingwalls. To the left, it follows the an-gle of the wall of the fortress out ofsight.

The en t i re ou te r wa l l o f t heroom is covered with paintings.The different styles and varyingdegrees of aging indicate that theywere created over a long span ofK rynn ’s h i s to ry . The pa in t i ngsshow woodland scenes, ruggedmountains, several views of PaxTharkas, and portraits of variouselves and dwarves, dressed in finecostume.

Nothing lives in this room, so the he-roes may take their time here with-out being bothered. If they wish toexamine the pictures closely, theywill see that the oldest paintings aredirectly before them. They seemedto be organized chronologically, get-ting more recent as the viewer movesto the left.

Read the fo l lowing i f the partytakes some time to look at the art-work.

The first paintings show a highmountain pass gl i t ter ing in thelight of the sun. Snowfields flashamong the peaks, and thick for-ests cover the lower slopes. Manystreams, frequently interrupted byponds and waterfalls, wind intothe lowlands.

A large band of sturdy dwarveslabor in the pass, building a lowstone wal l across the opening.Now many elves appear, bearinghuge logs on low wagons, and thewall takes on a familiar form. Firstthe main wall of Pax Tharkas goesup, e lves and dwarves workingside by side in the monumentaltask. Then, even as two curtainwalls rise on the slopes below themain wall, two mighty towers be-gin to inch their way into the sky.

After a few pictures displayingthe various stages of construction,during which the seasons makethe yearly cycle several times, thef o r t r e s s a s s u m e s i t s c u r r e n tshape. Following this series are anumber o f po r t ra i t s d i sp lay ingvarious elves and dwarves, usuallydressed in shiny plate mail andbear ing g leaming weapons . Anumber of these paintings havebeen crudely defaced.

Then begins a series in whichmighty dragons rage about thetowers of Pax Tharkas. Acid, light-ning, fire, and cold all rain downupon courageous defenders, driv-ing them from the parapets toshe l te r w i th in the so l id wa l l s .Soon, the mighty dragons land allover the fortress, and it seems thatmighty Pax Tharkas has fallen.

But then new weapons appear.Long, slender, and gleaming like

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polished silver, these lances arecarried by fighters of highest cour-age. Slowly, at a fearful cost, thedragons are driven from the tow-ers and walls. Great gashes bur-row into their scaly hides, as theybegin to bleed and die. Finally, al-though the parapets are red withthe defenders’ blood, the skies arefree of dragons, and it seems thatpeace has once again returned.

At this point, the course of his-tory has carried halfway aroundthe room. Several more portraitsfol low, th is t ime displaying hu-man leaders in histor ic poses;then the series ends.

Faded spots on the wall showthat more paintings hung here atone t ime ; a p i l e o f b lackenedashes at the far end of the roomprovides a clue to their fate.

130. Balcony

Many slender columns support ahigh ceiling. Twenty feet from thewall, the floor drops sharply into adeep pit-actually, two pits sepa-rated by a stone wall. The larger ofthese is well lit, and voices risef r o m i n s i d e i t . T h e s e c o n d ,smaller pit is dark.

If the heroes advance into the lightedpit, read the scene described for area121 (unless they have already wit-nessed Toede’s interview with Vermi-naard from another vantage point, inwhich case room 121 is empty). Ifthey look into the darkened pit, readthe following:

Enough light filters over the walland through the huge connectingdoors to cast a faint glow on thebottom of this pit. Curled up there,alert eyes blinking warily here andthere, is the serpentine form of amonstrous red dragon!

Any untoward noise from the PCs, orother signs of their presence, bringsEmber flaming upward for the kil l.Her statistics are listed in the Com-bined Monster Statistics Chart.

131. Chamber of the Chain

This cavernous room can be enteredthrough the secret door in room 128,or (by a hal f l ing) by c l imbing thechain that is anchored in the Sla-Mori.

A th ick layer of dust coats thefloor of this vast chamber. Muchrubble, in the form of bouldersand sma l l s tones , l i es s t rewnabout. Running along the wall is amighty chain, made of foot-thicksteel bars bent into six-foot-longlinks and held taut by unimagina-ble force.

A th in t r i ck le o f l i gh t l eaksthrough a crack in the wall, lead-ing into a large room. Voices canbe heard through the crack.

If a player looks through the crackinto the throne room, describe thesituation there as in area 121 (unlessthis incident has already taken place,in which case area 121 is empty). Re-member that the mirrors enable Ver-m i n a a r d t o c a t c h s i g h t o f t h eeavesdropper eventually, at whicht i m e h e w i l l s e n d E m b e r u p t obreathe fire into the crack.

Although an intell igent hero canavoid the fire by moving to the side,the chain turns bright red, then whitefrom the heat of the blast. Finally, itstretches, snaps, and releases thestone blocking mechanism, sealingthe mighty gates for at least a month.

A stairway in the northwestern cor-ner of the room climbs to the nextlevel of the tower. Six more levelscan be found this way, but all therooms are dusty and empty.

132. Gate-BlockingMechanism

A narrow stone walkway, coveredw i t h d u s t , l e a d s t h r o u g h t h elength of the Tharkadan wall highabove the ground. To the right, tenfeet below you, are scattered pilesof massive granite. To the left, themighty chain stretches across thed a r k n e s s . M a n y c h a i n s , o n l ysl ight ly smal ler, lead from thismass ive cha in undernea th the

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walkway, apparent ly connect ingsomehow with the stone blocks onthe right.

At the far end of the walkway(marked “A” on the map), a largescrew and winch mechanism canbe used to release the chain. Thisrequires a combined Strength of40 t o ope ra te , and takes 3d6rounds to activate.

When the rocks fall, the crash-ing shakes the foundations of theent i re for t ress. Anyone in area133 is kil led outright by tons ofstone. Area 132 fills with so muchdust that movement and vision areimpossible for 1d6 rounds.

133. The Great WallThis area is basically a large corridorthat runs the length of the Tharkadanwall. Massive winches operate themighty gates, requiring a Strength of80 to move. Even then it takes twoturns to open or close a gate. Thenorthern gate is slightly open (a six-foot-wide crack), while the southerngate is shut.

134. Western Hallway

The double doors leading from 133into this area stand open.

The walls of this hallway are dirtyand bare, and the floor is coveredwith mud. Several broken chairsand a small table, only two of itsfour legs intact, are the only furni-t u re . The doub le doo rs i n t henorthern wal l and a s ingle i rondoor in the western wall are allclosed. The double doors look asif they have been hacked with ablade of some kind.

The iron door is locked; the doubledoors are not. Listening at the irondoor reveals low sounds of conversa-tion and occasional laughter.

135. Western Guardroom

Several ugly guards sit at a table inthe center of this long room, play-ing some kind of gambling game.T w o m o r e o f t h e g u a r d s a r eg r a p p l i n g — a p p a r e n t l y i npract ice—at the far end of theroom, while another two, swordsdrawn, rush toward the door!

The eight hobgoblins in this rooma r e c h a r g e d w i t h g u a r d i n g t h ewomen held in area 136. Seven at-tack any intruders, fighting to thedeath, while one slips out the backdoor and tries to get help from themonsters in area 137.

If the escaping hobgoblin is not in-tercepted, five rounds after the he-r o e s e n t e r t h i s r o o m , t h e y a r eattacked from behind by the sevenBaaz draconians and six hobgoblinsfrom room 137.

Scattered on the table are 23 stl,15 sp, and 2 pp. One hobgoblin car-ries keys that open the doors to thisroom and room 136, as well as apouch containing a 300-stl ruby.

136. Large PrisonThe single door to this room (from135) is made of iron and is solidlylocked. It cannot be smashed open.

A cavernous chamber stretchesfar off into darkness, but the num-be r o f peop le c rowded i n to i tmakes the room seem small. Sit-ting, standing, or lying down, sev-era l hundred women turn thei ra t ten t ion l i s t less ly toward thedoor.

Those nearby leap to their feetin surprise; a wave of excitementspreads through the room like aspring breeze. All of the womenrush toward the door. A thousandquestions fill the air, but no onewaits for answers.

I n t h i s r o o m a r e 2 8 7 c a p t i v eplainswomen. The PCs receive manyfrantic questions about the children,followed by queries such as “Who areyou?” and “Where d id you comefrom?” Since it is likely that some

alarms have sounded by this time,the PCs run risks by stopping to an-swer many of these questions.

Any attempts to smash open thedouble doors leading outside suffer a-2 penalty to the roll.

137. Monster Mess HallIf the heroes have already battled themonsters from this room becausethe gua rds f rom 135 have sum-moned them, read only the first para-graph of this description.

This room is dimly lit by a numberof flickering fireplaces, and the airis gray with smoke. Many long ta-b l e s a n d b e n c h e s s i t i n t h eshadows, and the stench of foulfood and cheap ale fills the air.

Suddenly, scraping sounds ofmovement erupt from the dark-ness, followed by gruff challengesand the whisper of swords beingdrawn. A bench falls over with acrash, and shadowy figures lungeout of the darkness. Blades up-raised, the troops of the DragonHighlord charge!

The seven Baaz and six hobgoblinsattack desperately, fighting to thedeath if necessary. If any of themmake it through the door, they try tosound an alarm and alert the fortress.

The stairway in the northern partof the room climbs to the secondfloor, which is a huge, empty roomthat the draconians once used as abarracks. The former residents werethe troops that the party saw march-ing to the north toward Qualinesti.

A stairway leads from the secondto the third, fourth, and fifth floors.Each of these was used as a barracks;each contains 1d20 Kapak dracon-ians that somehow were left behindwhen the army moved out . Treatthese as random encounters (seeRandom Encounter 4 or 2 1). Nothingof value can be found on any of theseupper floors.

138. Western Supply Room

Th is i s a we l l - s tocked supp lyroom. Many sturdy shelves line

the walls, and a wide aisle runsdown the cen te r o f t he room.Three sets of doors give access tothe room, and the shelves coverthe rest of the wall space.

Stacked on the shelves are hun-dreds of suits of leather armor, asimilar number of shields, rows ofheavy boots, cloaks, and capes,and a number of sealed woodencrates and barrels.

The sealed wooden crates contain amysterious smoked meat (wild dog).The barrels contain oil. If a fire startshere, it spreads with the same smokyeffects described in area 114.

139. Kitchen

This kitchen served the draconianhordes while they were stationed inthe fortress. After cooking the lastmeal before the army moved out, thehobgoblin servants simply left thingsas they were.

A deep well, four feet in diameter,sinks through the floor in the north-ern end of the room. The water is 20feet below, and it is quite drinkable.This well can be used to support thegarrison in times of siege.

140. Armory

The double doors to this room aremade of thick timbers and are solidlyl o c k e d . A n y c h a r a c t e r t r y i n g t osmash them suffers a -2 penalty tohis open doors roll.

This room resembles a large mili-tary kitchen that has been ravagedby a tornado. Stale food coversthe floor and counters, ashes fromthe ovens are spread around, andpots and pans lie overturned, spill-ing sticky garbage over the rest ofthe mess.

Row after row of wooden rackscover this room. Although most ofthese racks a re empty , a fewchipped swords, broken spears,and rusty daggers show that this isan armory. Many thousands of

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weapons could easily be storedhere, if the racks were filled.

I f the players t ry to gather someweapons here, they find that most ofthose remaining are unusable. Theywill, however, be able to pick up 23short swords, eight long swords, 108spear heads (no shafts), and 60 dag-gers. All of these are somewhat rusty,but may be cleaned up and used.

The Tharkadan MinesAreas 141-143 are not in the fortressproper, but have been excavatedfrom the mountainsides south of PaxTharkas. They represent an impor-tant part of the Dragon Highlords’operations in the region.

If the heroes leave Pax Tharkas to thesouth, read the following passage:

A narrow mountain valley windssteeply down to the south. In theeastern wall of this valley are themouths of two large caves. Fromthese caves, several narrow andtreacherous t ra i ls wind up theslope to a gaping scar on themountainside, two hundred feetabove.

A band of dull red streaks therocky surface of the scar, whilehundreds of human- l ike f igurestoil to scrape the rock away and re-veal more of the rusty red mate-rial. This is the fabled Tharkadaniron mine.

If the heroes talk to the miners beforethey rescue the children, either dis-guised as women or by sneaking uphere at night, they discover that theminers are slaves and that the slavesare very lightly guarded (since thechildren are held under the watchfuleyes o f F lames t r i ke , the DragonHighlord has very little fear that theminers will escape).

Indeed, no prisoner is will ing tojoin any risky undertaking withoutassurances that the women and chil-dren are safe.

141. Smelter and Mill

This deep cavern has a huge en-trance, about 80 feet wide and 20f e e t h i g h . A c r i d , s u l p h u r o u ssmoke billows in the chamber anddr i f t s ou t to the va l ley . Gu l l ydwarves scramble to and fro inthe i r usua l hec t i c fash ion , a l -though there seems to be a bitmore organization than usual.

Many of the Aghar use hugehammers to smash red rock intogravel. Every few minutes, an-other batch of rock falls through ahole in the ceiling, and the Aghara t tack i t f i e rce ly . O ther Agharcarry the pulverized rock acrossthe cave, to huge vats that sit atopsmoky fires.

Great bellows feed air to thesefires, while gully dwarves pile onc o a l . T h e s u l p h u r o u s s m o k ebelches from the vats in great, yel-low clouds. Although the Agharwork furiously, there is no sign ofdraconians or other masters.

This is the processing plant for theiron ore that the slaves mine on theTha rkadan s lopes . A l t hough thegully dwarves are unsupervised, theydo not s top work ing for anyth ingshort of a cave-in; they have beenthreatened with death if they do notproduce a high quota of iron.

142. Slave Quarters

This huge cave is deserted now,but the floor is virtually coveredwith dirty straw pallets. Severalf i re scars dot the inter ior , andsome rotten wooden buckets leakdirty water onto the floor. Any un-fortunate souls that live here putup with hardship indeed.

This is home for all the male prisoners from the north. They are at themines for 16-18 hours a day. There isnothing of value in this cave.

143. Mines

Hundreds of swearing, muscularmen toil across this great strip ofmoun ta ins ide , ra i s ing p i cks o rpushing shovels to scrape a rustyred ore from the earth. Severaldozen draconians are scatteredabout the area, but they seem totake l i t t le interest in their pr is-oners. After all, with their womena n d c h i l d r e n s a f e l y l o c k e d i nmighty Pax Tharkas, these mencan ill afford any thoughts of es-cape!

When they have co l l ec ted agreat pile of ore, the slaves drag iton pallets across the mountain-side to a hole directly above thesmel t ing cavern . Other s lavesshovel the ore into the hole, whereit lands among the gully dwarvesbelow.

There are 310 men working here. Ifthe s laves see the i r loved onesbrought from Pax Tharkas, they turnon their guards and slay them easily.Running down the narrow trail to thebottom, they soon rejoin their fami-lies and begin rejoicing. Despite thepleas of PCs, the people insist on lo-cating those closest to them, a proc-ess that takes 15 or 20 minutes.

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I f t h e h e r o e s h a v e r e s c u e d t h ewomen and children, Flamestrike isbattering against the barred doors,the men rush down from the mines,and the thousands of t roops thatmarched out of the fortress to thenorth are rushing back to answer thealarms. The mass of people, around800 of them, should be collected onthe southern side of the great for-tress.

At th is t ime, read the fo l lowingpassage:

Suddenly, with a splintering crash,the double doors holding Flame-strike fly outward. The great beastslithers out of the tower towardthe crowd of prisoners.

“My children! You shall not havemy children!” Her voice is shrilland strained. “Leave me my chil-dren!” she demands, lumber ingdown the gradual slope.

N o w a n o t h e r g r e a t c r i m s o nshape appears, flying. Bellowing acha l l enge , a second huge redd r a g o n l a n d s o n t h e m i g h t yTharkadan wall. On its back is theimposing f igure of the DragonHighlord Verminaard, st i l l con-cealed by the fearsome mask. Hisvoice booms through the valley.

“This is the final insult! I havetolerated your impudence far toolong. . . slaves are cheap and plen-tiful. Now you pay for your foolishdaring!” As the people scream andturn to flee down the valley, hisevil voice picks up more power:“Now, I destroy you! I destroy yourwives! I destroy your children!“

As Ember leaps from the wall,Flamestr ike pauses in her ad-vance. Confusion shakes her asshe looks from the children to thegreat engine of death above her.Suddenly, her dim eyes take onclear focus as she makes a deci-sion.

Curling her long neck upward,Flamestrike sends forth a horrify-ing spout of fire, straight at the fly-i n g d r a g o n a n d t h e D r a g o nHighlord. With a scream, Vermi-naard vanishes in the glowingcloud, and his dragon-steed bel-lows in pain. Quickly, the two

dragons lock in a fearsome melee,th rash ing the i r m igh ty bod iesacross the val ley and br ingingb o u l d e r s t u m b l i n g f r o m t h emountainsides.

If the heroes take advantage of thisdiversion, they can lead the banddown the valley and out of sight ofthe fortress while the two dragonsstruggle. Verminaard barely survivesthe fight, and it takes 12 hours beforehe sends his army after the escapees.If the heroes have succeeded in drop-ping the gate-blocking mechanism,it is four days before he can send anarmy.

If the heroes make good their escape at this time, read to them fromthe following passage:

The autumn sun disappears be-hind a mountain r idge, as 800people huddle among a cheerygrove of tall pines. Tired and hun-gry, they are nonetheless happyfor their near ly miraculous es-cape.

This small s ide val ley shouldprovide shelter for the night fromany draconians that have beensent on the hunt. No doubt freshproblems will arise tomorrow, butfor now the plainsmen are safe.

The b i t i ng ch i l l o f t he w indbrings warnings of the winter thatis soon to come. The wildernessy i e l d s l i t t l e f o o d , b u t m a n ymouths need to be fed. The greatsilver moon rises and the starsblink into sight.

The heroes may easily locate skilledteachers among the rescued pris-oners . Th is enab les a l l f i gh te rs ,mages, and thieves to gain one levelof experience immediately. Mult i -classed characters advance in theclass that requires the least numberof experience points.

Priests who have learned of Misha-kal or another of the good True Godsof Krynn may gain one level by medi-tating and praying to their deity.

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Much of this adventure involves lead-ing 800 refugees (not counting lead-ers, PCs, and named NPCs) throughthe wilderness to safety. Use the fol-lowing rules to run the refugee popu-lation.

MovementThe entire refugee population mov-ing as a group can travel one hex perhour on the Abanasinia Wildernessmap. The refugees have carts andsupplies that slow down their move-ment. If the refugees panic (during adraconian attack, for example), theycan flee at a rate of 18 for up to 20rounds. Panicked refugees automati-cally lose all supplies and wagons. Ifthe refugees decide to abandon allsupplies and leave behind the weakand sick, they can move two hexesper hour.

Regardless of movement rate, therefugees can travel no more than 12hexes per day.

SupplyIn their rush to escape the mines ofPax Tharkas, the refugees plunderedwhat they could. There is one wagonfor every 20 refugees (40 wagons to-ta l ) . The wagons conta in enoughfood to feed all the refugees for twodays, and they also carry enoughblankets for everyone. Keep track ofthe total food supply. Each wagonlost means 20 hungry and cold refu-gees.

AttritionT h e r e f u g e e s w e r e s t a r v e d a n dbeaten in Pax Tharkas, and the cruelweather and conditions of their es-cape has weakened them further. It islikely that some of them will die be-fore they reach safety. Attrition pri-marily affects the weak and ill, ratherthan the few rema in ing f i gh te rsamong the refugees. Keep track oflosses in the refugee population.

Consult Table 1 for conditions thatcause attrition.

Table 1: Refugee Attrition

Circumstance Chance AttritionEach night in theopen without cover 80% 2d10Each day in campwithout moving 60% 1d10Each day withoutf o o d Panic or rout

Each time thatcurs that mightpercentile dice.

2 0 % 1d10100% 4d20

a circumstance oc-cause attrition, rollIf the result is less

than or equal to the chance of attri-tion, roll for attrition as listed. De-duct losses from the total refugeepopulation, taking only 10% of anya t t r i t i on loses f rom the f i gh te rs .Spread losses evenly among the fiverefugee camps (see “Politics”), un-less common sense says that onecamp should suffer most or all of theattrition.

CombatThe refugees are far from combatready. Only 10% of the men (80 to-ta l ) have combat exper ience, andonly hal f of these have weapons.Treat these as 1st-level fighters. Keeptrack of the fighters separately fromthe main refugee population.

The following system is used to re-solve mass combat involving refugeefighters. Use normal combat rulesfor smaller melees. All combat in-volving PCs or named NPCs usesnormal combat rules.

For mass combat, compare TotalRefugee Strength and Total AttackS t r e n g t h . T h e T o t a l R e f u g e eStrength is the sum of the remainingrefugee fighters, plus 5 for every PCor named NPC present and fighting.The Total Attack Strength is the totalnumber of attackers.

Roll percentile dice. If the result isg r e a t e r t h a n t h e T o t a l R e f u g e eStrength, the refugees panic andflee. (See “Attrition” for the effects offlight. All wagons and supplies car-ried by panicking refugees are lost,regardless of the outcome of the bat-tle.)

Next, determine the Combat Modi-fier for each side, using Table 2.

Table 2: Combat Modifiers

Circumstance ModifierTerrain Advantage + 2 0Surprise + 1 0Defending + 2 0Outnumbered by 50% -10 f o ror more each 50%Magic Use +20 per

casterUnarmed Fighter -1 each

Al l modif iers are cumulat ive. Usec o m m o n sense w h e n j u d g i n gwhether a modifier applies.

Each side rolls percentile dice andadds their Combat Modifier to theroll. Consult Table 3 for casualties.

Table 3: Combat Losses

ModifiedRoll Losses Result

100 ormore 4d20 Enemy pan i cs80-99 3d20 Enemy re t rea ts60-79 1d20 Continue Battle40-59 1d10 Cont inue Bat t le20-39 1d6 Continue Battle10-19 1d4 You retreat

9 or less 0 You panic

All losses are taken from NPC fight-ers. Civilians become combat casual-ties only if all refugee fighters arekilled. Player characters, henchmen,and named NPCs can be killed onlyin individual melee. Repeat this proc-ess until one side is destroyed, sur-r e n d e r s , r e t r e a t s , p a n i c s , o rwithdraws. Unarmed fighters can ac-quire weapons from dead enemies.

PoliticsBecause the heroes liberated the ref-ugees from Pax Tharkas, they auto-matically have a leadership role inthe refugee community. However,politics is part of the human condi-tion, and there are other leaders whoalso play a role.

From the time of the escape fromPax Tharkas until the refugees firstmake camp, the heroes are com-pletely in charge. The refugees dowhatever the players wish.

When the refugees make their firstcamp, they begin to select their ownleaders: the Council of Freedom. The

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dracon ians ens laved commun i t yleaders as well as regular folk. Now,those people are again assert ingtheir authority.

The Council, once established, di-vides the refugees into five camps,each with one representative. ThePCs are appointed Advisors to theCounci l , but they have no votes.Laurana, whose political and diplo-matic skills are very strong, shouldbe the PCs’ primary liaison to theCouncil.

The Counci l members and thei rcamps are as follows:

Elistan, leader of the Believers. He isac t i ve ly f r i end ly to the PCs, andvotes according to their wishes 70%of the time. He and Laurana workclosely together on matters concern-ing the party.

Locar, leader of the Seekers. Locarh a t e s E l i s t a n , w h o w a s o n c e aSeeker, for his new faith. Locar wantsto take control of all the camps, pre-ferring to lead than follow. He is ac-t ively unfr iendly to the PCs, andvotes according to their wishes only10% of the time. He works to under-mine the PCs’ role at all times. If thePCs try to kill him or remove him byforce, Briar and Brookland both turnagainst the heroes.

Briar, leader of the Plainsmen. He isneutral to the PCs, except for Gold-moon and Riverwind, both plains-men . He i s bas ica l l y a good bu tsuspicious man. Locar can influencehim on complex matters. He votesaccording to the PCs’ wishes 30% ofthe time, but is more cooperative onmatters that are simple, straightfor-ward, and easily explained. Politicalpersuasion used on Briar tends tobackfire.

Brookland, leader of the Woodfolk.He is friendly to elves and half-elvesand can be swayed by Laurana. He isa good man who seeks on l y t hesafety of his people. He votes accord-ing to the PCs’ wishes 40% of thetime, but he cannot be stampededinto a vote without consideration.

Eben Shatterstone, leader of the FreePeoples. As a secret agent of Vermi-naard, he plays a complicated game.Publicly, he is friendly to the heroesand supports them. Privately, he is al-lied with Locar to discredit the he-roes and take control of the refugeemovement. He is very charismaticand is working to sway Br iar andBrookland to the side of Locar. Tokeep on everyone’s good side, he al-ways votes last and votes with themajority. If he is forced to break a tie,he votes according to the PCs’ wishes50% of the time. If the PCs shouldsuspect Eben, try to kill him, or exilehim, he heads for Verminaard anddoes not reappear until later in theadventure.

The voting tendencies of the Councilmembers are meant to be advisoryonly. Not even Locar will vote againsta plan to gather food or to build shel-ters for the sick. However, if the deci-s ion to be made i s even s l igh t l ycontroversial , p o l i t i c a l i n t r i g u ecomes into play.

The Council must vote on any de-cision affecting all five camps. Eachleader is responsible for running hisown camp, and decis ions by thatleader are final. (Locar, for example,can refuse to allow PCs access to hiscamp.)

T h e v o t i n g t e n d e n c i e s o f t h eCouncil, and the reactions of any in-dividual leader, are modified basedon the political rating of the PCs.Consult Table 4, in the next column.

All political rating modifiers are cu-mulative. In addition, add or subtractup to 10 points based on your judg-ment of the PCs’ proposal. To deter-mine the Council’s decision, add thecumulative political reaction modi-fier to each Council member’s basechance to vote as the PCs wish, androll percentile dice. If the result isless than or equal to the modifiedchance, the Council member votes infavor of the PCs’ proposal.

Do not let these rules get in theway of common sense! The politicalintrigue and goals of each Councilmember can make for very entertain-ing role-playing. Encourage the play-ers to act out the situations, and play

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the parts of the Council membersyourse l f . Encourage ro le -p lay ingand active participation rather thanjust rolling dice.

Table 4: Political Rating

(Base Political Rating = 40)

Modifier Circumstance- 5 Each vote taken- 5 Each day in wilderness- 5 Each time refugees

must break camp andmove

- 1 0 Each combat- 1 Each refugee death- 2 0 Each day without food- 5 0 PCs use violence

against any Councilmember

+ 1 0 Each 800 food unitsfound by PCs

+ 2 0 Refugees reachEncounter Area 21

+ Reaction Charisma ofAdjustment character trying to

persuade the Council

Experience PointsIn addi t ion to normal exper iencepoints for combat and treasure, eachPC receives 10 additional experiencepoints for each refugee still alive atthe end of this adventure.

This chapter is divided into encoun-ters (keyed to areas) and events(keyed to time). The order of eventsand encounters depend on the play-ers’ actions. Keep track of both loca-tion and time to know which event orencounter to run next.

E n c o u n t e r s a r e k e y e d t o t h eAbanasinia Wilderness map—thinkof it as a large, outdoor dungeon inwhich Encounters happen as soon asthe PCs cross an encounter border.The adventure begins with event 1.

Events

Event #1: Escape

The PCs start at the location markedwith a cross on the Abanasinia Wil-derness map.

Your lungs ache from breathingthe bitterly cold air. A heavy snow-fall blurs the Kharolis Mountainsto either side. Behind you is theevil Dragonarmy. Before you arenearly 300 families just liberatedf r o m t h e d u n g e o n s o f P a xTharkas.

Suddenly, you hear the war criesof your draconian pursuers!

Four Baaz draconians at tack thePCs. The sounds of the fleeing refu-gees recede sou thward i n to t hesnows. As soon as the draconians aredefeated, more screams come fromthe north within 1d6 rounds.

Unexplored canyons of sheer rockand snow form a maze before you.The ever-present shock troops ofthe Dragonarmy pursue you re-lentlessly as you plunge headlonginto the snowstorm.

If the PCs stay where they are, an-other party of draconians attacks.Each time the PCs are attacked afterremaining in place, one more dra-conian than before attacks.

If the PCs flee southward, they areattacked again, but this time by onefewer draconian than before. Each1d4 turns, they are attacked again,but by one fewer each time. Finally,

the sounds of pursuit stop and thesounds of the refugees get closer.

Af ter 1d6 turns, the characterscatch up to the fleeing refugees.

W ind-dr iven snow at tacks 800huddled forms as the refugeestrudge wearily through the moun-tain pass. They move slowly, push-ing their heavi ly laden wagonsthrough the snow and ice.

Event #2: The First Night

This event occurs the first time therefugees stop for the night.

A few campf i res f l i cke r i n thesnow-covered wilderness. Aroundthem are gathered t i red, weak,and scared families. Several refu-gees ask you to attend a meetingof the leaders of the people.

This is the formation of the Councilof Freedom. Introduce the Council,using the information given under“The Refugees of Pax Tharkas.” TheCouncil begins by thanking the PCsfor their valiant help, and offers thema non- voting advisory role. If the PCsargue for voting membership, Locarexplains that the people are morelikely to follow known leaders thanstrangers. (Locar’s opposition to thePCs should be revealed gradually.) Itis apparent that Elistan is the PCs’best friend on the council. Lauranaoffers to be the PCs’ primary liaisonto the Council. Remind Gilthanas’splayer about his sister’s diplomaticskills.

Once the Council is set up, all po-litical rules are in effect.

The Council then discusses whatmust be done to ensure safety for therefugees. It is clear that the Dragon-army will attack soon. The PCs’ expe-rience with draconians shows thatthe refugees must move quickly. El-istan suggests that a way south befound. The Kharolis Mountains leadinto a val ley, s i te of the ancientDwarfgate Wars. Somewhere in thatvalley are the gates to the Kingdomof Thorbardin, home of the moun-tain dwarves. The only escape fromthe valley is through the dwarven

kingdom—yet no one knows where itcan be found!

The Council requests that the PCshelp find a temporary resting placefor the refugees and the gates to thed w a r v e n k i n g d o m . O n e c l u e i sknown: that the location of the dwar-ven gates might be found some-where in the tomb of Fistandantilus,rumored to be deep underneath amountain shaped like a skull.

Event #3: Elistan is CalledThis event takes place following thefirst meeting of the Council. Gold-moon (or another PC priest) sud-denly has a vision of Elistan clothedin the robes of a priest of Paladine.He carries the disks of Mishakal and isb r i ng ing wo rd o f t he T rue Godsthroughout Krynn. This vision lastsonly a moment. The pr iest has astrong feeling that Elistan must readthe disks of Mishakal right away. Thisvision takes place whether or not El-istan was converted to the worship ofPaladine earlier.

If the priest speaks with Elistanabout the disks, he appears mildly in-terested and says he will look at themlater. That night, he takes the disksand s tays up a l l n igh t . The nex tmorning he emerges refreshed andwith new power and determination.Overnight, he has become a 7th-levelcleric of Paladine. From this pointon, use Elistan’s character card.

Event #4: Changing Weather(Day 2, Turn 1)

The dawn breaks clear and cold.T h e s n o w - l a d e n c l o u d s h a v emoved off to the east, leaving achilly, blue sky.

For the next seven days the weatheris clear.

Event #5: DragonarmyBreaks Through

If the characters sealed the gates ofPax Tharkas during the escape, theDragonarmy takes four days to getover the wall. If the characters didnot seal the gates, the Dragonarmytakes two days to organize pursuit.

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W h e n t h e D r a g o n a r m y b r e a k sthrough, this event takes place.

In the distance, clouds of snow risefrom the ground as though kickedup by some t remendous w ind .

Soon, the glint of weapons and ar-mor can be seen. The Dragonarmyhas escaped Pax Tharkas!

The Dragonarmy advances in a cau-tious yet disorderly fashion. They arehighly suspicious of a trap and slowto a movement rate of 10 when theyfirst see any PCs or refugees.

The Dragona rmy occup ies oneencoun te r a rea eve ry fou r gamehours. In order for an area to fall, itmust border an encounter area previ-ously occupied by the Dragonarmy.The D ragona rmy canno t occupyencounter areas 161 (Snow Passage),163 (Hopeful Vale), 174 (The Bog), or175 (Skullcap) at this time.

If the Dragonarmy and the refu-gees are in the same encounter area,50 Baaz draconians attack the camponce per day.

If the PCs enter an encounter areaoccupied by the Dragonarmy, doublet h e n o r m a l n u m b e r o f r a n d o mencounters. In addi t ion, the PCsencounter parties of eight Baaz dra-conians once every six turns.

Event #6: Dragon Attack!This event occurs after Event #5.There is a 10% cumulative chance,checked every six hours, that thisevent takes place. It can happen sev-eral times. Each time the event takesplace, start the checks over again.

An ancient , huge, scarred reddragon appears ove rhead . I t sgreat wings send gusts of wind tomark i t s pass ing . The DragonHighlord Verminaard is clearly vis-i b l e o n i t s b a c k . T h e d r a g o nwheels overhead, then swoops toattack.

Verminaard and Ember make twopasses against the refugees. Vermi-naard casts spells and Ember useshis breath weapon. They do not land.Attacks made against PCs are re-

solved normally; each attack againstthe refugees causes 1d6 casualties.Once the attacks are made, the greatdragon flies off. If Verminaard or Em-ber is killed, he should meet an ob-scure death.

Event #7: Fizban FoundThis event takes place only if the PCsenter encounter area 160 before theyenter encounter area 162.

A strange, shabbily dressed oldman is just ahead of you. He wearsa long beard and a floppy hat. Heseems to be deeply involved inconversation with a large tree. Thetree does not seem to be respond-ing. As you watch, the old mangets very frustrated that the tree isnot answering.

Fizban welcomes any invitation tojoin the party, since he has nothingbetter to do. Even if the party doesn’tinvite him to tag along, he will followanyway.

Event #8: The Final Battle

When the Dragonarmy occupies allencoun te r a reas i n Even t #5 , i tpauses for two days to consolidate itsconquests—then it advances oncemore. It takes one encounter areaevery 12 hours, saving encounterarea 164 for last. If the refugees havenot escaped by then, the Dragon-army f inds them. Each hour , 100Baaz draconians attack until all refu-gees and PCs die, flee, or are cap-tured. If this happens, the PCs havefa i led. Make a note of how mucht ime remains before the Dragon-army conquers all—this determineshow much time the PCs have to com-plete the remaining adventures ofthis first book of theDRAGONLANCE® saga.

Event #9: The RefugeesEncampThis event takes place on the firstnight the refugees reach encounterarea 163.

The chill of night is pushed backby a t remendous bonf i re in thecenter of the camp. This night, atleast, the people do not live in fear.The sounds of merriment and mu-sic float over the crackle of thefire. Elistan, with quiet majesty,stands. A hush falls over the peo-ple.

“Hear now the retelling of theGreat Tale, the Canticle of our peo-ple,” he says.

Ask each player in turn to read aloudone verse of the Canticle, from firstto last.

EncountersEncounters in this chapter are keyedto the Abanasinia Wilderness map.Whenever the PCs cross an encoun-ter border on the keyed map, theencounter takes place immediately.If the PCs enter an area with the samenumber more than once, simply re-peat the encounter.

144. Ice Passage

Sheer walls of granite form a nar-row canyon through the snow.From the north comes the distantthunder of s iege engines. Thesou th i s s i l en t , excep t fo r themournful wind.

Each turn that the PCs are in thisarea, they are attacked by eight Baazdraconians who fight until killed.

145. Pax Tharkas

The fortress of Pax Tharkas loomson the horizon. The sounds of agreat army resound over the stonewalls. A thundering boom shakest h e e a r t h . T h e a r m i e s o f t h eDragon H igh lo rd demand pas -sage!

Dark forms climb onto the wall,spread leathery wings, and glidedown to the canyon floor.

This assumes that the gates to PaxTharkas were blocked during the es-cape. If not, then the Dragonarmy is

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mustering before the gates.Eight Baaz draconians discover

the heroes after three rounds and

fight until killed. PCs who try to hidehave a base 50% chance (thieves addtheir hide in shadows chance) of es-caping the notice of the draconians.Check once every three turns.

If the PCs are discovered, the dra-conians attack and also call for help;1d4 draconians join the melee everythree rounds.

Draconians cont inual ly c lamberover the walls of Pax Tharkas. Oncedown, they form into squadrons andmove south down the pass.

Any captured draconians coercedinto talking (60% chance) say thatthe entire Dragonarmy is inside PaxTharkas, but it is only a matter oftime before they march against therefugees.

146. Southern Road

The broken remains of an ancientroadway gl i t ter wi th windsweptice. Here and there, old monu-ments of stone jut from the frozenground. Their surfaces are cov-ered with snow-filled runes.

To the south, the way branches.The roadway, mostly buried in thesnow, turns to the east. To the westis a mountain pass that leaves theroad. A set of small footprints fol-lows the southwest route.

The monuments are ten feet tall andfour feet in diameter. The runes arewritten in the Thorbardin dwarf lan-guage. Anyone who can read dwarv-ish has a 70% chance ofunderstanding the runes. The runestell of the ancient dwarven kingdomof Thorbardin and of the Road ofKith-Kanan that linked the dwarveswith their e lven neighbors to thenorth.

A ranger inspecting the footprintscan tell they were made by a dwarf.The prints are close together and canbe easily followed.

147. Canyon Trail

The snow-f i l led canyon s lopesgently upward. Footprints form awavering line up the canyon floor.

These are the same tracks that werediscovered in encounter 146.

148. Spire

The canyon opens into a greatmountain bowl rimmed by majes-tic peaks. In the center of the bowl,a s ingle mountain peak towersinto the sky. The wind howls andsnow spirals upward.

Several canyons open into thisbowl: one to the north, one to theeast, and three, filled with snow, tothe south. A lone set of footprintswinds from the eastern canyon tothe middle canyon on the south.

These are the same tracks that werediscovered in encounter 146.

149. Neidar Trails

A pine forest blankets this valley.Winding through the trees and upinto the craggy canyons are manywel l - t raveled paths through thesnow. In the snow are tracks thatshow tha t someth ing recen t l ymoved this way, dragging largeobjects behind it. The trail runs upinto a narrow canyon.

The first time the PCs follow any ofthe Neidar trails, they encounter 12dwarven axemen of the Neidar (Hill)dwarf tribe gathering wood. They areled by a dwarf named Zirkan.

Zirkan and his people do not truststrangers. They fight unless the he-roes make it clear that they come inpeace.

If the heroes convince Zirkan thatthey mean no harm, Zirkan offers totake them to his village, and escortsthem to encounter area 150.

150. Kingdom of the Neidar

A tribal village lies beside a frozenlake. Wisps of smoke issue fromthe lodge-pole buildings and curlinto the air.

This is the village of the Neidar tribe.If the heroes have made friends withZirkan, they are invited to stay in theguest lodge for the night. The lodgeconsists of one room and a fireplace.

If the heroes have not met Zirkan,they are greeted with suspicion. TheNeidar are always ready to fight, andthey attack unless the heroes man-age to convince the t r ibesmen ofthe i r good i n ten t . The re a re 50Neidar tribesmen and 100 noncom-batants in the village.

Since Flint is a hill dwarf, he is wellreceived. The Fireforge family isknown to the Neidar, but Flint doesnot know any of the Neidar person-ally.

The Neidar are fascinated wi thfighting prowess. If a battle breaksout between the Neidar and the PCs,each dwar f re t rea ts a f te r h i s h i tpo ints drop below 50%. Af ter 15dwarves have retreated, the Neidarchieftain orders the battle to cease. Ifthe PCs agree to a truce, the chieftainp ra ises the i r f i gh t ing ab i l i t y andseems quite friendly.

The chieftain grants an audienceto the PCs. Al though cordia l , hemakes it clear that the refugees canonly stay overnight. He does grantsafe passage through his kingdom.He l is tens to warnings about theDragonarmy bu t re fuses to f l ee .“Better to die in battle than live incowardice,” he says.

If asked about escape from theDragonarmy, he says that the onlyescape is through the kingdom of themountain dwarves, sealed off longago during the Dwarfgate War. Hedoes not know where the gates are,although he believes that importantclues lie within the tomb of Fistan-dant i lus under Skul lcap Mountain(chapter 13). He says that others ofhis tribe have tried to explore thetomb, but none have ever returned.

If asked about food, the chieftaintells the PCs about encounter area

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153 (Honeycomb). He insists that thePCs give the Neidar 10% of all foodgathered there. If they bring back theroyal jelly, he gives them each a bat-tle axe +1 and a shield +1.

If Flint is with the party, the Neidarchieftain gives him a gift of a battleaxe +2, a shield +1, and a suit ofchain mail +3, because of his nobleancestry.

151. Valley of Clouds

The ta l l peaks o f the Kharo l i sMountains disappear in a deep,rol l ing fog that seems to ar isefrom somewhere in the canyonahead.

PCs who enter the valley find them-selves in the midst of the clouds. Thefarther they go, the warmer the airgets. Soon the humidity becomes al-most unbearable.

At the southern end of the valley,vents in the earth spew forth boilinghot steam. Anyone who falls into avent suffers 3d6 points of scaldingdamage each round.

At the far end of the valley, wherethe visibility is only a few yards, PCsfind the following.

The hot, clinging mists part to re-veal a large, carved archway, morethan 50 fee t h igh . Runes a recarved into the surrounding stone.The s tonework i s obv ious l y o fdwarven manufacture.

Anyone who reads dwarvish has an80% chance of understanding therunes, which state:

Enter ye herebyThe lands of Thorbardin

Follow the road that lies beyondInto the justice

Of the Nine Thanes below.

Through the arch lies a hall that goesinto the mountain. The hall leads toencounter area 176 of chapter 12:Outpost Mines.

152. Southern Exit

Thin clouds of vapor billow froman arch carved into the stone ofthe mountain. Over the arch arecarved dwarvish runes.

Anyone who reads dwarvish has an80% chance of reading these runes.They say:

Exit ye herebyThe lands of Thorbardin

Leaving on the road behind youThe justice

Of the Nine Thanes below.

Beyond the arch, a hall extends as faras can be seen. A cobblestone roadruns from the arch and turns to thesouthwest.

The hall leads to encounter area189 of chapter 12: Outpost Mines.

153. Honeycomb

Sheer cliffs lead into a beautifulvalley. The cliff face to the west isp e r f o r a t e d w i t h h u n d r e d s o fcaves.

There is a 20% chance (thieves addhear noise chance) to hear a deepbuzzing sound coming from withinthe caves.

There is a 30% chance each gameturn that 1d10 giant worker honey-bees emerge from the caverns.

If the heroes enter any cave, theyf ind a swarm of g iant honeybeesworking inside a vast complex ofhoneycomb. In the lair are 48 giantworker honeybees, seven giant sol-dier honeybees, and one giant queenhoneybee. The bees attack intruders.

The re a re 2 ,400 food un i t s o fhoney here. If the queen bee is killed,the PCs find a deposit of royal jelly,the equivalent of four pot ions o fextra-healing with the side effect ofcure disease, worth 3,000 to 8,000 stlif a buyer is found.

154. Cold Cathedral

A w a t e r f a l l i s f r o z e n i n m i d -descent, forming a wall of ice overa steep ravine.

Characters can climb down the fro-zen falls by rolling successful Dexter-ity Checks (failure means a slide of60 feet and 3d6 points of damage).

155. Crystal Lake

A clear lake ref lects the snow-capped peaks that surround thevalley. To the southeast, the frozenmeadowlands drop steeply into acanyon. To the northwest, a can-y o n o p e n s i n t o a m o u n t a i n -rimmed bowl.

156. Bridge of DerkinIf Fizban the Fabulous has not yetbeen encountered, run event #7 im-mediately prior to this encounter.

The highlands end in a precipicethat drops into a steep canyonleading southeast. On the north-ern edge, an ancient cobblestoneroad runs straight into a sheer cliffface in one direction and onto alarge bridge in the other.

The bridge is weathered, and itsstones are loose. Great arches riseou t o f t he g lac ie r be low . Thebridge leads to a road on the otherside. The span of the central archhas given way—a gap of 30 yardsblocks passage across the bridge.

The glacier drops 50 feet andlevels off. its ice is very smooth; aclimber could easily slide into thecanyon and the unknown lands be-yond.

“Stand back!” Fizban suddenlycries, acting as if he just woke up.He stares out across the bridgeand then spreads his arms wide,h i s s l e e v e s f l o p p i n g o v e r h i shands. “I see the way! Behold!” Hishat topples over h is face. “Thepowers. . . I. . . uh . . . powers. . .I . . .” He bats at the tassel thatswings in front of his face. “Uh . . .oh. . . yes. . . powers I bring forth!”

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With a flurry and rustle of looses leeves , the s t range mag ic ianlooses his spel l . Improbably, abridge span appears to cover thegap, bathed in bril l iant light andapparent ly made completely ofsilver and gold.

Fizban’s triumph is short-lived.Moments later , the br idge col-lapses completely, on both sides,taking the ground on which youstand with i t . Fizban fal ls f i rst ,quickly disappearing into the can-yon below. Uncontrol lably, youslide down the glacier chute. Thelast thing you see as you slide offat breakneck speed to the south-east is the golden span, still float-ing high overhead.

The characters slide into encounterarea 157.

157. Glacier ChutePlayers find themselves sliding downthe chute on their faces, backs, andsides, in complete disorder. Each PCmust roll six Dexterity Checks; eachfailure results in 1d6 points of dam-age.

If the refugees also slide down thechute, total losses are 1d10 wagons(and all supplies carried) and 1d10refugees.

158. Ice Forest

Pine trees coated in ice sparkle inthe l ight . Bi l lowing clouds swir labout. The frozen remains of as tone roadway lead sou thwes tthrough the trees.

The c louds cover encounter area152. The road leads to encounterarea 162.

159. High-Mountain Bowl

This snow-covered valley is filledwith pine trees.

160. Ice Forest

Ice-covered pines gl i t ter in thesun. Broken sections of an ancientroad run from southeast to north-wes t .

This road connected with the road inencounter area 158, but that was be-fore the Cataclysm. Now the south-eastern route ends in a solid cliffface.

161. Snow Passage

The canyon narrows here, wi thhuge snowdrifts piled on eitherside. The drifts creak and groanunder their own weight, threaten-ing to collapse at the slightest vi-bration or sound.

Any sound louder than a whispercauses rumbling and shaking. Smallchunks of snow tumble down the cliffface.

There is a chance that an ava-lanche occurs. Score any noisesmade as follows: Normal Voice = 1;Loud Voice = 2, Shout = 3. Noisescores are cumulative. When the to-tal noise score reaches 7, an ava-lanche occurs.

An avalanche hits everyone in itspath. PCs and named NPCs suffer1d10 points of damage. Refugeescaught in an avalanche lose 1d20wagons (and supplies carried) and1d20 people.

On the first occasion that PCs en-ter any encounter area 161, run thefollowing section. If the PCs have al-ready met Fizban, he disappearsshortly before this section is run. Seeevent #7 (and Fizban’s NPC capsule)for details of Fizban the Fabulous.

As you enter the canyon, you see alone figure scurrying in the dis-tance, busy at some task. It seemsto be an old man making a snowfort. Beside him is an immensewall of snowballs.

The snow fort is shaped like a smalligloo, about four feet high and fivefeet in diameter. Inside, it seems sig-

nificantly larger—in fact, it is largeenough to hold one more than thenumber of people who enter it.

The old man is, indeed, Fizban theFabulous, absent-minded sorcerer.He introduces himself, whether ornot he has already met the party. Hetalks in a very loud voice, causing thecanyon walls to rumble ominously,but his voice never adds to the ava-lanche score.

He explains that he is building a“secret defense” against the Dragon-army. He urges the PCs to bring there fugees th rough the canyon tosafety.

If the refugees enter the canyon,the dark shapes of draconians ap-pear just behind them! A major forceof nearly 1,000 foot soldiers chargesthe party!

An avalanche does not occur untilthe refugees are safely through thecanyon and past the snow fort. Fiz-ban tells the PCs to wait until the ref-ugees are safely past the small fort,then says, “Now for my secret de-fense!” He points with pride at theimmense wall of snowballs. “We’llthrow them at the enemy!” he sayswith glee, and then does so.

Of course, the thrown snowballsdo not stop the draconian advance.But, as the snowballs are taken fromthe wall, the overhang of snow overthe pile becomes dangerously frag-ile. It creaks and rumbles, and thenbegins to collapse.

“Hurry! Into the fort!” Fizban criesas the wall collapses.

The ava lanche c res ts over thesnow fort and decimates the oncom-ing army. All attackers perish. Whenthe heroes emerge, they find nothingbut silence. Most of the draconiansare buried under huge snowdrifts.However, enough short swords arefound to equip all the fighting refu-gees with weapons.

162. Southern Bowl

Several canyons lead into the gen-tly sloping valley before you. Thebi t ing wind moans through thetrees.

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163. Hopeful Vale

A valley five miles wide, carpetedin great evergreen trees, lies be-fore you. In the middle of the val-ley is a wide clearing containing afrozen freshwater lake.

Tracks of game animals are eve-rywhere. Loose and broken timberis scattered about. The howlingwinds are now just a gentle breeze.

T h e r e f u g e e s m a k e c a m p h e r e .Enough food is available for the refu-gees to gather at least 800 food unitsper day. On the first night in this val-ley, run event #9.

164. Southern Branch

The canyon wal ls broaden intosnowy plains to the south. A riverruns down f r om two moun ta i ncanyons and through the center ofthe valley into the plains.

165. Fallen Forest

A hardwood forest provides someshelter, yet there is something pe-culiar about these woods.

The western edge of the woods isnormal. Toward the east, however,the forest changes. Trees lean towardthe west. The eastern side of thetrees have burn marks of increasingseverity.

Dur ing the f i na l t h roes o f t heDwarfgate War, the wizard Fistandan-tilus cast a devastating spell that de-stroyed the Plains of Dergoth andmuch of the forest that covered it.

166. Blackened Wood

Blackened and scarred tree trunkscan be seen through the snow. Thetrees all seem to have fallen in thesame direction.

These trees are also part of the dev-astation caused by Fistandantilus.The refugees can find shelter here fora night against the wind and cold.However, this position cannot be de-fended against the Dragonarmy.

167. South Road

The pla in of Dergoth st retchessouth. A few miles away is a towerby a huge stone slab. Next to themare the faint tracings of a roadleading south. Beyond the towerare roiling hills dusted with snow.In the distance, purple mountainsline the horizon.

168. The Eye of Elar

A solitary stone tower stands inthe lonely plain. A single door ofiron hangs twisted and open.

Next to the tower, about 100feet away, is a giant, black slab ofstone. Once runes were carvedacross its face, but they have wornsmooth over the centuries and canno longer be read.

The tower is a hollow stone cylinder100 feet high and 100 feet in diame-ter. A ten-foot-wide spiral staircaseleads to a platform at the top.

On the plat form, a steel f rame-work supports a huge glass lens, nowchipped and pitted at the edges. It ismounted so that the lens can be ro-tated as wel l as t i l ted. A smal lerframe just to the right holds a sec-ond, smal ler lens that is f ixed atabout eye level.

A hammer symbol is engraved onthe floor of the tower behind andslightly to the left of the large lens. Tothe left of the hammer is an engrav-ing of a sunset. An arrow is engravedin the base of the frame perpendicu-lar to the plane of the lens. An arrowis also engraved along the tilt axis ofthe large lens.

This strange device has two pur-poses: showing the location of thegate to the dwarven kingdom and re-veal ing the wr i t ing on the marbleslab.

If the arrows on the plane and tiltaxes of the lens are aligned to pointto the hammer mark, a characterlooking through the smal ler lenssees the magnified image of a sheerc l i f f f a c e . T h i s i s a c t u a l l y t h eDwarfgate, but there are no land-marks or clues to help locate it.

If the large lens is aligned so that

the arrows point to the sunset markswhen it is actually sunset, a ringingsound comes from the lens. A bril-liant red shaft of light appears and il-luminates the stone slab. Glowingletters of gold appear where the lightstrikes. As the sun slowly sets, theshaft of light moves slowly down theslab, il luminating the mystic writingline by line. The runes are written in adialect of dwarvish easi ly read byanyone who can read dwarvish. Theystate:

In the time of Derkin,Lord Thane under the mountain,

Did the world sunderAnd darkness fell upon Krynn.

Look now upon the plain of warWhereon brother slew brother,And surged as a tide of death

To take that which was not theirsFrom those who were cold of heart.

Look on as did Fistandantilus,Magician past his age,Through the Eye of Elar

At the Gates of Thorbardin,Sealed now and forever against

Love and life.Now only he holds the keyBuried with him far below.

169. Way of the Warrior

Powdery snow b lows i n gus tsacross the ancient stones of aroad.

Scattered about are re l ics of theDwarfgate War—here a rusted helm,there a broken weapon. All foundi tems are rusted beyond use andhave no value.

170. Winterfruit Grove

Here, the dead forest comes alivewith strange, copper-leafed trees.

These are winterf ru i t t rees, whichbloom and give fruit in the winter.The fruit of these trees is unusuallynourishing; PCs can gather 2,400food units here. Although there isfood, there is no safety against theDragonarmy here.

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171. Trampled Plain

The mountains march north on ei-ther side of this three-mile-wideval ley.About a mile away is a dark spotin the snow.

The dark spot is a party of eight Baazdraconians lying dead in the snow.They have been stripped of valuablesa n d w e a p o n s . S u r r o u n d i n g t h ecorpses are large footprints of crea-tures that are not draconians.

If the PCs do not turn back, theya re a t tacked by a pa r t y o f 1d10ogres. Every 1d6 turns that the PCsremain in this area, they are attackedby a new group of ogres—each groupconsisting of 1d4 more ogres thanthe previous one.

172. Hills of Blood

Snow-capped h i l l r o l l i n seem-

ingly endless procession to the ho-rizon. There is no wind here, yetthe moaning and rushing soundsof wind are heard.

173. Battle Plain

This flat plain shows scars of theDwarfgate War. The blasted heathis punctuated by the rusting hulksof ancient, broken war machines.The wind howls across the plain.

Rusted, broken swords, shields,and armor l i t ter the plain, ob-scured by sand and drifting snow.The great iron war machines standdraped in ice, monuments to de-struction.

There is nothing of value here.

174. The Bog

warm surface of the swamp and fillC louds o f vapor r i se f rom the

the area with a thick chilling fogBrown reeds clog the area so thatyou can see only a few feet ahead.

The characters hear the distant clat-ter of swords and faint battle cries ine v e r y d i r e c t i o n . S o m e t i m e s t h esounds seem very far away; at othertimes they appear to be very close.

The waters of the swamp are sur-prisingly warm to the touch. If PCsenter the swamp, the sounds of bat-tle seem to get closer. Within 1d10rounds after PCs enter the swamp,ghost ly spir i ts (guardian spectralminions) rise out of the swamp tofight each other. They ignore the PCsfor 1d6 turns unless attacked. There-after, one spectral minion attacks thePCs. Each round the PCs remain inthe swamp, one more spectral min-ion attacks. No more than two spec-t r a l m i n i o n s a t t a c k a n y P Csimultaneously. This process con-tinues until the PCs leave the swampor are killed.

175. Skullcap

A great mound of rubble r isesfrom the swamp. Its craggy fea-tures resemble a skull half buriedin the bog. The eye holes of theskull are gaping caverns leadinginto the mound.

Any exploration of Skullcap leads di-rectly to chapter 13: Skullcap.

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The dwarven kingdom of Thorbardinonce controlled this entire region.Outposts—smal l c i t ies—were bui l tin convenient caverns. When thegates of Thorbardin were sealed for-ever during the Dwarfgate War, thesmall outposts were left to fend forthemselves. Only one of the outpostssurvived, but even that is inhabitednow only by the ludicrous Aghardwarves.

Use the Steam Caverns map forthe encounters in this chapter.

Encounters176. Northern Entrance

Clouds of warm steam pour from acarved opening in the mountainwall. A 60-foot-wide corridor runsdeep into the mountains. Giantstatues, now broken, line the hall.

The broken statues are of long-deaddwarven heroes. There is nothingspecia l about them. The corr idorruns 600 feet south to encounterarea 177. The air grows warmer far-ther down the corridor, becoming un-

c o m f o r t a b l y h o t . T h e n o r t h e r nentrance connects to encounter area151 in chapter 11.

177. Junction

T h e s t e a m g r o w s h o t t e r a n dthicker here. Three corridors in-tersect at th is point : one leadsnor th, one southeast , and onesouthwest. To the southeast, thesteam gets denser and hotter anda distant hissing sound is heard.

All three corridors are 60 feet wide.Giant, broken statues line the way.The ceiling is 100 feet overhead.

178. Southern Route

A co r r i do r runs sou thwes t f o rabout 850 feet and then turnssouth for about 1,000 feet. As youtravel down this corridor, the tem-perature changes f rom uncom-fortably hot to comfortably cool.The clouds of steam thin and dis-appear.

179. Southeastern Road

A corridor runs southeast for 280feet, then turns south for 50 feet.T h e c l o u d s o f s t e a m b e c o m ethicker and hotter. Vision is lim-ited to ten feet, regardless of thelight source.

The heat quickly grows unbearable.I f cha rac te rs take o f f a rmor andwinter garb, they can progress nor-mally. If they do not remove these,they lose 1 point of Const i tut ionevery round they remain in the area.If a character’s Constitution reaches0, he faints and does not revive untilbrought to a cooler location. LostConstitution points return after 1 d 10rounds in a cooler environment.

180. Steam Caverns

Natural vents in the earth blastforth steam. The roar of the escap-ing steam is deafening. A maze ofstalagmites and stalactites weavesthrough a huge cavern.

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Characters cannot see farther thanten fee t , regard less o f the l i gh tsource. lnfravision cannot be used.For every five feet characters travelin the steam, there is a 1 in 3 chance(1 or 2 on 1d6) that their path isblocked by either a steam vent or astalagmite.

Lu rk ing i n the cave rn a re tenogres, a vanguard of Verminaard’sarmy that is searching for the refu-gees. They wandered into this cavernthrough the south entrance and, lik-ing the warmth, have decided to stayfor a while. They attack the heroes,t ry ing for surpr ise, and f ight unt i lkilled.

Constitution penalties (as in area179) also apply here.

181. The Steam City

Although th is c i ty once held over1,000 dwarves, now only 200 Aghardwarves live here. The Steam City isa fine example of dwarven architec-ture, consisting of traditional mapblocks grouped together to build acommunity. Now, most of the cityhas fallen in one encounter section.The players should not try to explorethe entire city. If the players stray offcourse, improvise encounters withthe Aghar society, such as it is.

182. East Gate

This corr idor leads into a widecourtyard. Before you is a widegate, obviously the work of masterbuilders. In front of the gate is as t range s igh t : a s ing le Aghardwarf standing guard in the mid-dle of the gate. His helmet is fall-ing over his eyes and he is havingconsiderable di f f icul ty keepinghis oversized halberd from fallingto the ground.

This dwarf is supposed to guardagainst intruders, but he has a pooridea of how th is is to be accom-plished. As the characters approach,he calls out in his most challengingsqueaky voice, “Halt! Answer me be-fore I let you pass! Are you supposedto come into this kingdom?” If theanswer is “Yes,” he lets the party passwithout question.

Once the guard has decided thatthe party can pass, he asks, “Are youhere to see the great secret treasureof the Aghar?” If the answer is “Yes,”he offers to lead the heroes to theAghar Highphulph, Lord of PhulphClan Aghar. If the heroes ask whatthe “great secret treasure” is, theAghar won’t tell them, since it’s a se-cret.

This map block consists of theGreat Gate and various shops andstorehouses, mostly empty. All stairslead nowhere. The Aghar leads theheroes direct ly to encounter area183.

183. Court of the Thanes

You walk down a wide corridorwith large columns on either side.The guard opens double doorsthat lead into a huge court. At thefar end, a semicircle of thronessits on a raised dais. On one of thet h r o n e s s i t s a n o t h e r A g h a rdwarf—this one wearing a crownthree sizes too big and ill-fittingrobes. The guard whispers, “Don’tbe afraid. I t ’s just His Magnif i -cence, the Highphulph!”

The Highphulph welcomes the he-roes in his squeaky voice. He asksthem if they have come to see thegreat secret treasure. If the heroesanswer “yes,” he leads them to asmall temple room (labeled “A’ onthe map). In the center of the room isa great slab of black stone. Beforethe stone is a circular dais of whitestone. Gold letters are carved aroundthe edge. Unfortunately, the Agharcannot read (the Highphulph admitsthis with some embarrassment), andthus they have no idea what to donext.

The inscription is written in an olddialect of dwarven, readable by any-one who knows that language. I tsays, “Stand and ask, if you would re-ce ive know ledge . ” I f any pe rsonstands on the dais and asks a ques-tion in dwarven, fiery letters appearin answer on the slab.

A l l q u e s t i o n s m u s t b e a b o u tdwarvish matters, or else the answerwill always be, “What has this to do

with the Dwarves of Thorbardin?” Ifasked about Skul lcap, the Dwarf-gate, or Fistandantilus, the devicete l l s the s to ry o f F is tandan t i l us .(Read the introductory material atthe start of chapter 13.)

The device answers only threequestions per day.

The Highphulph is ecstatic that hehas finally found out how to use thegreat secret treasure. He asks the he-roes what boon he can offer them,and provides anything within reason.(The Aghar are poor and stupid.They cannot provide very much.) Heoffers to allow the heroes and all therefugees to come live in his kingdomforever. (If the PCs propose this to theCouncil of Freedom, the leaders ofthe Woodfolk and the Plainsmen bit-terly oppose living underground withAghar.) He can provide up to 400 footunits, all unpleasant-tasting.

The rest of encounter area 183consists of royal chambers (squalid),temples (mostly useless), and store-rooms (filled with garbage).

184 & 185. Walls of the City

The great wall forms a defensive pe-rimeter about the ancient city. Store-rooms and barracks, both empty, canbe found here. There are stairs thatonce went somewhere, but no longer.Pits lead deep into the earth. Anydwarf with the party recognizes themas the Pi ts of Reorx (god of thedwarves), a religious feature com-mon to dwarven settlements.

There is nothing here of value orparticular interest.

186 & 187. ResidencesThese blocks formed the residentiala rea o f t he dwarven commun i t y .Now, most of the houses are empty.The ones inhabited by Aghar are eas-ily found by their smell. Stairs leadnowhere.

188 & 189. PassagesThese passages are identical to thosein areas 177-179, except that area188 runs between 180 and 181, andarea 189 leads outside, through area152.

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Fol lowing the Cataclysm, the hi l ldwarves and men of the Xak Tsarothregions fled southward seeking ref-uge in the kingdom of the mountaindwarves. This kingdom, known asThorbardin, could not support thehundreds of thousands of refugees,and thus the Thanes (rulers of theKingdom) closed the gates againstthe refugees.

Disorganized and without leader-ship, the refugees proved no matchfo r t he o rgan ized and mo t i va tedforces of Thorbardin.

Then came Fistandantilus.F is tandan t i l us was an anc ien t

mage of the Age of Might that pre-ceded the Cataclysm. Magic at thattime was despised as an “impure”profession. Wizards, both great andsmall, became outcasts. Yet Fistan-dantilus foresaw a time when mageswould again be important in Krynn.He knew not when, but he swore thathe would be there when the t imecame.

The years came and went, but theday of magic’s reign did not come.Eventually, Fistandantilus used mag-ical means to prolong his life, untilthere was nothing left of him except

the magic. It was in this form that hegreeted the Cataclysm. It was in therabble at Thorbardin’s gates that hesaw his chance to regain the powerhe had lost.

He built a magical fortress at theroots of a mountain, and formed agreat army to take Thorbardin. Thebattle raged across the valley. And,when his defeat looked certain, hisvengeance knew no bounds . Heloosed the most powerful magic heknew, and both his armies and his en-emy’s were consumed. His mountainfortress was blasted until only theshattered and glazed form of a giantskull remained—Skullcap.

Deep beneath Skul lcap, legendhas it, are the remains of Fistandanti-lus and the path to the gates of Thor-bardin.

Encounters190. Jaws of Death

The mou th o f t he sku l l - shapedm o u n t a i n , 8 0 f e e t a b o v e t h eswampy p la in , fo rms a cavernleading deep inside.

Rubble is piled 50 feet high beforethe cavern. It can be climbed easily.The remaining 30 feet is made of theglassy black material that covers allof Skullcap.

The surface of Skullcap is blue-black, as though burned and meltedby tremendous fires. It is now icy andcold to the touch, and impossible toclimb normally (climb walls penaltyof -50%). Ropes or other devicesmust be used.

Jagged stalactites and stalagmitesform the “teeth” of the skull. Onceinside the cavern, characters see thefollowing:

Stalactites and stalagmites formgrotesque rows of teeth. At theback of the opening, a natural tun-nel descends into the mountain.

The tunnel is made of the same fusedblack rock as the outside of Skull-cap. After 20 feet of gentle down-ward slope, the angle of the tunnelchanges to a 70-degree incline—toosteep and smooth to walk. Charac-ters can use ropes and spikes to de-scend, or they can slide down the

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smooth tunnel. The tunnel leads toencounter area 194. Climbing up thetunnel from the bottom is the sameas climbing the smooth exterior ofthe mountain.

191. Eye of the Dead

T h e e y e s o c k e t s o f t h e s k u l l -

shaped mountain form cavernsleading deep within.

Both these caves are identical. At theback of each is a small tunnel leadingdown at a 70-degree angle. However,they are not made out of the fusedglassy material, and handholds areavailable for an easy descent.

Both tunnels lead to the sameplace: a metal framework overlook-ing encounter area 203. There are nohandholds down; characters must tiea rope to the metal framework andlower themselves to the floor, or useequivalent means.

192. Rubble Crater

A large crater forms the top ofSkullcap. The crater is filled withr u b b l e . S t r a n g e a n d t o r t u r e dshapes of stone twist skyward, ob-scuring the bottom of the bowl. Apool of water has collected at thebottom.

If characters explore the bottom ofthe bowl, they find a 20-foot-wideshaft descending at a 60-degree an-gle. It can be climbed slowly and withsome di f f icul ty. Af ter 70 feet , thewalls become glass-smooth.

The shaft leads to the upper ledgeof encounter area 193. The pool ofwater has an outlet at the bottom fivefeet wide; it leads to the waterfall inarea 193.

193. Shadowlair

The sound of rushing water fi l lsth is la rge cavern . A wate r fa l lpours into a large pool coveringthe cavern floor. In the middle,surrounded by water, is a small is-land, on which are piled gems andweapons.

The cavern is 100 feet across. A poolof water covers the cavern floor fromthe exit to area 203 to the lower plat-form (area 193a). Behind the lowerplatform is a small tunnel (leading toarea 218) that serves as the drain forthe pool.

A waterfall empties into the poolfrom the bowl above (area 192). Atthe level of the waterfall is an upperplat form (area 193b). A f ive-foot-wide ledge at the level of the upperplatform goes around the entire edgeof the cavern.

On the upper platform, beside thewaterfall, resides a shadow dragon.

The shadow dragon, an ancient,huge member of its race, was boundby Fistandantilus long ago to guardthis fortress as long as Fistandantilusremained alive on this earth. Theshadow dragon, who can speak,mentions this to anyone it has not yeteaten.

The shadow dragon prefers to reston the upper platform and wait foradventurers to raid its store of trea-sure. Then it attacks, using breathweapon and spells first.

The shadow dragon has an Intelli-gence of 18 and speaks common, hilld w a r f , m o u n t a i n d w a r f , a n d a l ldragon tongues. It has the followingspells (cast as an 8th-level mage):1st Level: magic missile, phantasmalforce2nd Level: darkness (15’ radius), fogcloud3rd Level: fireball, suggestion4th Level: confusion, shadow mon-sters

The treasure consists of 900 pp, 21500-stl gems, 3,000 stl, one suit ofhuman-sized chain mail +2, two po-tions of clairaudience, and boots oflevitation.

194. Lords’ Hall

Faded tapestries, depicting menand dwarves at war, line the walls.

195. Generals’ Way

Ancient dust f i l ls the corr idor.Stains streak the metal finish oneach of the doors.

These doors are oak covered with sil-ver, worth 1,000 stl each.

196-200. Empty Rooms

Broken furniture is strewn about.

The room is otherwise empty. Thereis nothing of value here.

201. Brass Buttons

On a broken table is an old tunicwith brass buttons on it.

A spectre appears and attacks if thebrass buttons are disturbed.

202. Priesthood WestThis room is empty.

203. Great Stairwell

A central stairway descends deepinto the mountain. Torn by thesame terrible forces that long agoravaged Skullcap, the iron frame-work that once supported thesestairs is now twisted andwrenched. Overhead, the ceilingis shattered, reveal ing the i ronframe that once held the stairway.

The stairwell is 60 feet in diameter. Aten-foot-wide staircase circles downabout 20 feet to area 2 14 (TwistedIron). The dome above leads to area191.

204. Armory

A grey hemisphere shimmers inthe center of the room. Armorstands gleaming against the walls.

Anyone who enters the room can seeinto the hemisphere. Read the fol-lowing:

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A gleaming metallic dragon is fro-zen in mid-flight, its mouth gapingopen. Below it, a goblin is also fro-zen , th i s one in m id -s t r i de asthough fleeing for its life.

If a nonmagical piece of iron or steeltouches the grey hemisphere, it van-ishes l ike a popped soap bubble.Nothing else will break the spell. Theinstant the hemisphere vanishes, thetemporal stasis that holds the twocreatures breaks. With a lunge, thebrass dragon devours the goblin in asingle bite. Then it notices the party.

The brass dragon is understand-ably confused, since it has been fro-zen for 350 years. Shocked by thechanges, it pauses. If the charactersattack first, it will fight back, but ifthey do not, it asks them what hashappened.

The brass dragon’s name is Blaize.It was part of the attacking force dur-ing the Dwarfgate War, and the lastthing it remembers is Fistandantiluscasting a spell. It does not know any-th ing about the d isappearance ofdragons from the world, or about therecent reappearance of the evil drag-ons. When the current state of theworld is explained, it does not haveany idea why the good dragons havenot entered the fray.

Blaize is a bit of a braggart andloves to talk about its great feats inthe war.

The dragon is very interested inthe history of the current war. It tellsthe characters that it will seek outgood dragons, if any remain, to helptheir cause. In the meantime, it offersto accompany the heroes for the awh i l e . I t can f i t t h rough doub ledoors, though not through s ing leones.

Blaize remains with the party untilone of three events occurs: Vermi-naard and Ember attack (see Event#6), the heroes battle the shadowdragon (area 193), or the heroesleave Skullcap.

If Blaize fights the shadow dragon,r u n c o m b a t n o r m a l l y u n t i l t h eshadow dragon is dead.

I f Blaize f ights Verminaard andEmber, he flies up and engages thered dragon. When Ember uses his

breath weapon, the brass dragonflees and Ember pursues. Blaize fliestoward the nearest mountain andweaves among the sandstone cliffs.Both weave out of sight and do notreturn.

B la ize i s a smal l , adu l t b rassdragon, and has the following spells:1st Level: magic missile, protectionfrom evil, sleep2nd Level: continual light, web

The armory contains the followingtreasure: three suits of plate mail,three shields +1, two javelins of light-ning, and two cloaks of protection+ 2 .

205. West Guards HallThis room is empty.

206. Arrow SlitsSix wrai ths are in each of theserooms. They are armed with bowsand arrows and fire through the slitsat anyone in area 207.

207. Gateway

The iron doors are bowed inward,yet remain shut. A half-inch slit isopen between the doors.

Any character checking the walls dis-covers the arrow sl i ts. I f anyoneopens the doors at the northern end,the wraiths close the doors at thesouthern end and begin firing.

208-209. Trashed Halls

Each of these rooms contains lots ofsmashed furniture and a nest of 4d10giant rats.

210. Guardians

The doors open to reveal a once-plush room, now in rags. Goldendouble doors at the far end of theroom are closed. Shadowy formslurk about.

These are the harmless spirits of thef i n e l o r d s a n d l a d i e s w h o o n c efeasted in this hall, but died duringFistandantilus’s defeat. They ignore

any attack and do not fight back.

211. Ballroom

An immense hal l s t retches intodarkness. Shadowy figures swingand sway to a music that cannotbe heard.

Most of the dancers are harmlessspirits like those in area 210. How-ever, the room contains two spectresthat were once generals in the armyof Fistandantilus. They move to at-tack.

212. Altar

A skeleton lies draped over a lowaltar along the far wall. Its armor isrusted, but a gleaming sword liesnext to the figure, still grasped inits hand. A rolled parchment isclutched in its other hand.

This is the skeleton of a good warriorwho died in battle here. It is not ani-mated in any way. The armor is use-less, but the sword is a vorpal longsword +3. The scroll shows generaldetails of the mountain forest beforeits destruction. It shows that a gate-hall once extended from the northside of the mountain to what is nowarea 207. The map shows that thecentral stairwell was the only way toreach the lower levels. The chambersof Fistandantilus are marked on themap. They appear to be directly be-neath the bottom of the staircase.The chambers can be reached onlythrough a huge room that is not de-scribed on the scroll map.

213. Eastern Priests’ RoomThis room is empty.

214. Twisted Iron

The stone steps circle down about20 feet, and then stop. The shaftonce occupied by stairs is torn andblasted. A tangled mesh of twistediron framework hangs down intothe cold darkness below.

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All the floors between the first floorand the bottom of this staircase weregutted by Fistandantilus’s final spell.Nothing remains but rubble. Most ofthis shaft, in fact, is now made of thesame glazed material as the exteriorof Skullcap.

The iron framework hanging in thedarkness once supported the centerof the fortress. It now hangs sus-pended from the top seven floors ofthe collapsed area, and hangs freelydown to a depth of 270 feet. By fate,one end of the frame was imbeddedin the wall ten feet above the cavernentrance at area 215.

Although the frame looks danger-ous , i t i s ac tua l l y we l l secured .Climbing down, however, is tortur-ous work at best. There is a 20%chance per turn that the characters’movement causes the entire struc-ture to sway. Each person not se-cured by rope or other means mustroll a Dexterity check. Characterswho fail start to fall off the structure,but they get to roll a second Dexter-ity check, this one with a -5 penaltyto their Dexterity, to catch onto an-other part of the frame. If the secondcheck fails, the character falls to thebo t tom, su f fe r i ng no rma l f a l l i ngdamage.

Blaize cannot climb down or flydown the shaft. He offers to wait untilthe characters return.

215-216. Crevasse Climb

The blast caused a deep fissure inthe rock here. Although the fis-sure is made of g lazed stone,cracks in the stone make conven-ient hand holds.

The tunnel rises steeply for 150 feetand then descends slightly to area217.

217. DrainThis is where water from the tunnelat area 193 runs out. The tunnel con-tinues west.

218. Waterway

The water from the tunnel at area193 washes down here. The tunnel

cannot be climbed without magicalaid.

219. Collapsed

Once, there were additional levelshere. Now, only the edges of thef l o o r s r e m a i n , e d g e s g l a z e dsmooth, jutting from the walls ofthe shaft.

Ropes can easily be secured on theseledges. I f characters t ry to c l imbfrom ledge to ledge without ropes orequivalent aid, they must roll a suc-cessful Dexterity check when theyreach each ledge, or they fall to thebottom.

220. Shifting Corridors

At the bottom of the shaft, a tan-gle of jagged stone and iron formsa steep mound. In the center of themound, a narrow funnel leadsdown to the top of an iron frame-work that was once a dome. Be-neath the dome is a rubble-strewnfloor.

Climbing is easy here. If the rubble issearched, broken bones and skullsare found.

As soon as characters reach theiron framework, they are attacked bythree skeleton warriors. These be-ings are still enslaved by Fistandanti-lus’s powerful magic, and they attackthe adventurers until dead or the ad-venturers flee. While attacking, theybeg the heroes to recover the circletsand free them from their servitude. Ifthe characters succeed in recoveringthe circlets and give them to the war-riors, the warriors instantly disap-p e a r . P C s s h o u l d r e c e i v e f u l lexperience points for such a nobleact, as if they actually defeated thecreatures.

221. Skeleton Key

A ske le ton i n once - f i ne robesslumps over a stone table in thecenter of the room. A set of rustedkeys on a ring hang at its side.

Neither the skeleton nor the keys aremagical. The keys (there are seven)are the Keys of the Guardian, and willcome in handy later.

222. LockerThis room is empty.

223. Crystal Maze

You are standing on a balconyo v e r l o o k i n g a 7 0 - f o o t - s q u a r eroom that is 60 feet from floor toceiling. The balcony you are on isten feet from the ceiling. Acrossfrom you and on the wall to eitherside are identical balconies—fourtotal, including the one you oc-cupy. Beneath you is a second setof four balconies, each 20 feetabove the f loor. Four archwaysexit the room from the floor level.The room is brightly lit by a globein the ceiling.

But none of this is as impressiveas the creature in the middle of theroom —a hydra constructed en-tirely of metal. As you enter theroom, it grinds slowly into motion.One of its 12 heads turns towardyou whi le another spews f lameagainst the ceiling!

The iron hydra is a mechanical con-struct. It is AC 0 and hits as a 12-HDmonster. Its breath weapon causes6d6 points of damage (successfulsaving throw reduces this in half).Each head can a t t ack once pe rround, inf l ic t ing b i t ing damage of2d8 po in t s . Each head takes 20points of damage to destroy; the en-t i r e m o n s t e r c a n w i t h s t a n d 1 0 0po in ts o f damage be fo re fa l l i ngapart.

Once, each of the 12 heads couldbreath fire three times per day. Nowthe hydra in the western room hasonly three functioning heads, whilethat in the eastern room has only onefunctioning head. Both creatures ex-pend one breath against the ceilingin warning.

Bo th the eas te rn and wes te rnrooms are actually magical mazes.The open room the adventurers seeis the product of permanent invisibil-i ty and permanent i l lus ion spel ls.

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Actually, there are three floors ofwalls, ceilings, stairs, and shafts—amaze of crystal to trap the unwary.

The actual room contents can beseen only if a wizard casts both detectinvisibility and detect illusion (eitherone alone will not suffice), or a detectmagic spell.

The invisible walls of the maze re-sist the hydra’s breath. If the properroute is followed, adventurers canwalk through each level of the mazeto the appropriate exit, descend tothe next level, and eventually departthe maze. If a character walks intothe shaded area of the map, he fallsinto the pit (there are no railings onthe magically concealed stone walk-ways), suffering falling damage, andis attacked by the hydra. If a charac-ter walks into an area not protectedfrom the hydra by a wall, the hydrafirst breathes and then attacks with1d4 heads.

In addition to the iron hydra, theroom is also occupied by three invisi-ble stalkers (detect invisibility also de-tects them) that attack anyone notca r ry ing one o f t he Keys o f t heGuardian (encounter area 121). IfFistandantilus is finally destroyed,these stalkers vanish.

Each room’s maze occupies threelevels. The exit from each maze (la-beled “E” and “F” on the map) leadsdown to Level 3, where the PCs ad-ventures in Skullcap will conclude.

224. Western Entrance

A grotesque statue of a man with asingle huge eye stares at the stair-case. A set of golden double doorsstands on either side of the statue.

The giant eye seems to follow thecharacters as they move about theroom. If they move toward the west-ern doors, the statue appears tosmile. If they move toward the east-ern doors, the statue appears tofrown. It does nothing else.

If the statue is attacked, it falls andshatters. The head continues to func-tion as long as it remains intact.

225. Wrong Turn

This room is lit by dim red globeson the ceiling. In the center, ala rge s tone s ta tue o f a dwar fstands. Its legs are planted on thefloor, its hands press against thece i l i ng . Ano the r se t o f go ldendoors is behind the statue.

The stone walls have scorch markson them. I f the golden doors areopened, a smaller room is revealed.There is nothing in it.

Once, long ago, there was a fire-ball trap here, but it was triggeredlong ago and never replenished.

226. Trap!This room appears identical to area225, including the stone statue.

This room has a permanent reversegravity spell and a stone golem oper-ating in it. There is only one way totravel through it without activatingthe golem.

When Fistandant i lus wished topass through this chamber, he en-tered through one set of doors andwas immediately pulled to the ceil-ing by the reversed gravity. To avoidhitting the ceiling, he grasped an in-visible stone ladder to the right of thed o o r s . O n c e o n t h e c e i l i n g , h ewalked to the other set of doors,where the reversegravity spell ended,and he used the invisible stone lad-der by those doors to prevent himselffrom smashing onto the floor.

I f characters miss the invisiblestone ladder, they fly up and hit theceiling (or fly down and hit the floor,at the far doors) for 1d6 points of fall-ing damage. Any character who fallsto the ceiling or floor immediatelya c t i v a t e s t h e s t o n e g o l e m . T h estatue attacks all moving creaturesin the room. The golem senses itsprey by movement: if all charactersstand still for two rounds, the golemreturns to its original position andthe characters can move safely. How-ever, if anyone falls again, the golemis reactivated.

227. Eastern Entrance

This area is identical to area 224. Theonly di f ference is that the statuesmiles at movement toward the east-ern doors and frowns at movementtoward the western doors.

228. Pressure Pot

Th is room i s empty excep t fo rstone double doors in the middleof both end walls.

If the stone door at the southern endis opened, a fireball trap is sprung,causing 10d6 points of damage toeveryone in the room.

229. Alcove

A statue stands in the shadows ofan alcove where the two corridorsmeet. Double doors made of ironface north.

The iron doors are wizard locked andcan be opened only by a knock spellor by the Keys of the Guardian (fromarea 221).

The statue is of Nuitari, the god ofdark magic, in his aspect of Knowl-edge. This is one of the Seven Facesof Nuitari. A magical spell allows Fis-t a n d a n t i l u s t o s e e a n y v i s i t o r sthrough its eyes, so he cannot be sur-prised.

230. Rites of Passage

The iron doors open to reveal ashort corridor 20 feet wide thatleads to a second set of iron dou-ble doors. On either side, alcovescontain statues draped in heavyshadow.

Four sets of double doors separatearea 229 from area 231. Signs of thefinal blast of Fistandantilus streakthe walls here.

Each set of double doors is wizardlocked, and can be opened only witha knock spell or with the Keys of theGuardian.

The shadowy figures in the alcoves(two in each segment of corridor) are

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statues of the remaining six faces ofNuitari. Each statue radiates magic.As the characters move through theco r r i do rs , t hey pass th rough themagic f ie lds between the statues.The magic effects, described below,can be prevented either if a dispelmagic spell is cast, or if the Keys ofthe Guardian are inserted in a smallkeyhole at the base of each statue.

The first pair of statues representsDeath and Chaos. The magical fieldcasts dispel magic on anyone andanything passing through. There isno keyho le i n the base o f t hesestatues.

The second pair of statues repre-sents Might and Wealth. The magicalfield polymorphs any weapon pass-ing through it into wood. The weap-ons re tu rn to no rma l i f t hey a repassed through the field in the oppo-site direction (when exiting, for ex-ample).

The third pair of statues representsYouth and Passion. The magic fieldcasts a charm person spell on anyperson passing through, wi th thespecific effect that charmed charac-ters cannot harm Fistandantilus.

231. Chambers ofFistandantilus

The ceiling, once a dome of mar-ble, is now shattered. Huge stoneblocks litter the floor and blockthe opening above. In the center ofthe room, a metallic object shinesbrightly.

The metallic object is actually threecirclets—the controllers of the skele-ton warriors at area 220.

The circlets lie next to the brokenskull of a human lying among shat-tered bones in a pile of rubble in thecenter of the room. If the charactersapproach within 20 feet of the skull,the following occurs:

The broken skull rises into the air,the dust from the rubble swirlingup in a howling wind and formingabout it in the rough shape of aman!

This is the demilich form of Fistan-dantilus. If the characters do not at-tack it, after three rounds it settlesback into dust. It does not move fromthe spot where it stands, and doesnot stop the passing of the adventur-ers into the next chamber.

Recovering the circlets is not con-sidered an attack.

232. Treasure Junction

Twenty-foot-high archways openin both the western and easternsides of this hall, leading into bril-liantly lit treasure rooms. A set ofi ron doors to the nor th s tandsclosed.

The doors to the north are wizardlocked and can be opened only with aknock spell or the Keys of the Guard-ian.

I f cha rac te rs l ook th rough thearchways, they see areas 235 and236. Read the descriptions of thoseareas if requested.

The archways are actually telepor-tals. The western archway leads di-r e c t l y t o a r e a 2 3 3 ; t h e e a s t e r narchway leads to area 234.

The only way into the t reasurerooms is by casting a dispel magicspell, which negates the teleportalfor the duration of the spell, or by in-serting the Keys of the Guardian in asecret keyhole (discover as a normalsecret door).

233. Western Cages

Rows of cages contain the skeletalremains of those once t rappedhere.

Anyone entering the great archwayleading to area 235 suddenly findshimself in area 232.

234. Eastern Cages

Rows of cages contain the skeletalremains of those once t rappedhere.

Anyone entering the great archwayleading to area 236 suddenly findshimself in area 232.

235. Western Treasure

A dome of brilliant white light illu-minates the room. Piled about thefloor is the treasure of Fistandanti-l u s . A s h i n i n g d w a r v e n h e l madorned with large gems is promi-nent in the pile.

The treasure consists of 4,500 stl,8,000 pp, 52 800-stl gems, 12 piecesof jewelry worth 1,000 stl each, a setof dwarven plate mail + 3, and thehelm of Grallen.

The helm of Grallen is a dwarvenhelm set with 12 large gems (1,000stl each). The enchantment of thehelm is that if the wearer should beki l led, his soul is instant ly magicjarred into one of the gems.

The helm was made for Grallen,Prince of the mountain dwarves andson of the great dwarven king, Der-kin, when he rode off to fight Fistan-dantilus in the Dwarfgate War.

Anyone who puts on the helmetactivates the magic jar spell. The soulof Grallen possesses the wearer (nosaving throw). The wearer’s life forceis transferred to a gem.

When this happens, Prince Grallenimmediately bows to the charactersand tells the following story:

I am Grallen, prince of the moun-tain dwarves, killed by the forcesof evil in the Dwarfgate War.

By means of this magical helm,I have survived these centur iesthat my tale and fate may be told.

I rode forth on the morning ofthe last battle in the great chargeof Hylar dwarves. We came fromthe No r th Ga te o f Tho rba rd inacross the Plains of Dergoth. Myt roop assau l ted the moun ta inhome of the Dark Wizard here. Mybrothers fought with courage andvalor; many fell with honor at myside.

Y e t w h e n t h e t i d e o f b a t t l eturned in our favor, and I con-fronted the wizard in his lair, hesmiled, and a great magic rushedfrom his being. A flame of powerand horror broke through stoneand steel.

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Thus, in his rage and despair, hedestroyed both his allies and hisenemies.

Thus did I die.Now I beseech thee, return my

soul to the kingdom of the Hylar inThorbardin, tell my story to theCouncil of Thanes, and give me aproper resting place in the Valleyof the Kings.

Grallen stands silently after his storyis told. He explains how to find theNorth Gate entrance to Thorbardin ifasked. He answers any other ques-tions put to him to the best of hisability.

Once a l l ques t ions have beenasked and answered, Grallen sendshis life force back into the gem. Thewearer of the helm becomes normalagain, though he is disoriented andcannot fight for 1d6 turns.

236. Eastern Treasure

A globe of brilliant white light illu-minates the room. Piled about thefloor is the glittering treasure ofFistandantilus. Prominent amongthe treasure is a dwarven mapcase.

The map case contains a map show-ing the route from Skullcap to thegates of Thorbardin.

In addition to the map, there are5,000 stl, 5,000 pp, 42 500-stl gems,and 12 pieces of jewelry worth 1,000stl each.

237. Access

The doub le doo rs open i n to asquare room with great archwayson either side. Each archway leadsto a 10-foot-deep alcove.

The western alcove is a teleportal toand from the southern alcove in area235. The eastern alcove is a telepor-tal to and from the southern alcove inarea 236.

8 8

This portion of the adventure endswhen the heroes find a safe tempo-rary home for the refugees (area 163)and discover the route to the doors ofthe dwarven kingdom. When thoseconditions are met, read the follow-ing:

Tonight is a time for feasting andcelebration-the first moments ofhappiness in many long days. Forthe refugees of Pax Tharkas havefound at least temporary safetyfrom the advancing Dragonarmy,and you have discovered informa-tion leading to the long-lost dwar-ven kingdom of Thorbardin.

Tomorrow you wi l l adventureonce more, but tonight the Coun-cil of Freedom toasts your suc-cess. Even dour Locar, the Seekerleader, praises you tonight. AndEl is tan, a t rue pr iest and goodfriend, pledges you the support ofthe people.

You accept the cheers of the ref-ugees, and you drink the newly-made mead a round the wa rmcampfires. In spite of great dan-gers to come, tonight there ishope.

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The PCs’ MissionEight hundred refugees are fleeing thearmy of the Dragon Highlord. Theywere forced to enter a wildernessringed by impassable mountains. Theonly route to safety is through the an-cient dwarven kingdom ofThorbardin—but the gates to Thor-bardin have been hidden for over 300years. The PCs must find the gates toThorbardin, get permission for the ref-ugees to cross through, and get backbefore the Dragonarmy attacks therefugee camp.

TimeAs mentioned earlier in this adven-ture, the Dragonarmy conquers ar-eas of wilderness on a regular basis.Be sure to keep track of the timeavailable to the refugees. If you havelost track, assume that the heroesnow have seven days to completetheir quest. Do not tell the playershow much time they have. The Epi-logue tells what happens if the he-roes succeed or fail.

EventsEvent # 1: Departure ofElistan

The adventure begins in the camp ofthe refugees at midnight of the samenight in the Epilogue after chapter13.

You are summoned to a late nightmeeting of the refugees Council ofFreedom. When you arrive, youn o t i c e t h a t E l i s t a n s e e m sstrangely peaceful. “The Dragon-army is approaching, and now youmust find the way to the gates ofThorbardin. It is the only hope forour people. There is little time;waste none of it. As for me, I nowknow what must be done,” he says.

“To the hope of safety!” he says,lifting a flagon and drinking.

Although the flagon contains onlywater, as soon as Elistan drinks, hegrows pale and shudders once. Then,eyes rol l ing back, he pi tches for-ward.

Elistan has received a dream vi-sion from Paladine, and has goneinto the dream world to battle Vermi-naard. The PCs do not learn this untilthe end of the adventure.

Elistan cannot be revived by anymeans available to the party. He ap-pears dead, but his body does notgrow cold.

The Council asks the PCs to leavein the morning to find a way throughThorbardin. If the characters found amap to the gates earlier, they knowwhere to go—otherwise, Fizban theFabulous (see the NPC Capsules)now reveals that he knows exactlywhere the gates are.

Event #2: Dreams ofDarknessThis event takes place the samenight as event #1, as soon as the he-roes fall asleep. All sleeping charac-ters have the following dream:

You are standing in front of a hugedoor. You feel that there is a greatevil behind it. The voice of Elistan,now very weak, is calling for you.

“I have entered this door andcanno t f i nd my way back , ” hecries. “Please! Come and bringthat which I left behind!” He doesnot seem able to hear anythingyou say; he just repeats his cryover and over again.

Ask each player in turn if his PC willopen the door. If all players refuse,the dream ends and the PCs awake;skip event #3 below. If even one char-acter opens the door, read the nextboxed section.

You feel yourself floating in a vastn o t h i n g n e s s f o r a n u n c e r t a i nl e n g t h o f t i m e — w h e t h e r m o -ments or centuries, you cannottell. Suddenly, you are standing onan empty plain. In the distance,mountains are silhouetted againsta starry sky. Before you is a towermade of crystal, silver, and purewhite marble. Beside you are yourcompanions in adventure.

You walk toward the tower. The

ground is soft beneath your feetand a sweet, warm wind blows. Butas you walk, the tower changes.Now it is made of steel and stone,and the wind is bitter. And now it ismade of tough, decaying stone,and the tower is in ruins.

There are seven open archwaysinto the tower. As you watch, ag roup o f hooded p i l g r ims ap -proaches. As they come closer,they begin to change into dracon-ians, but they do not attack you.They enter the tower.

You see a long, dimly glowingtunnel that leads inside. You andyour companions enter, and sud-denly find yourselves in a largechamber!

Seven hal lways radiate fromthis room. Six are brightly lit; oneis dim. From the dim hall whispersthe voice of Elistan: “I have en-tered this door and cannot comeback. Please! Follow me and bringthat which I left behind!”

In the six bright hallways arey o u r h e a r t ’ s d e s i r e s — g l o r y ,power, wealth. But you know thatyour doom lies down the dim cor-ridor.

Suddenly, you wake in a coldsweat, deeply disturbed. Some-th ing horr ib le happened to youand your companions—but youcan’t remember what!

Event #3: The DragonHighlord Arrives

This event takes place the followingmorning. If no hero opened the door,t he event does not occur.

Out of the rising sun comes a darkshadow and a rush of wind. It is ahuge red dragon, its wings terriblyscarred. Astride it is the DragonH i g h l o r d o f P a x T h a r k a s —Verminaard!

The huge dragon hovers aboveyou, its mammoth wings beatingslowly.

Verminaard calls out to the heroes,using both voice and telepathy. “Piti-ful fools,” he sneers, “to think youcould defeat me in the Mind of Evil!”

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When Verminaard uses the phrase,“ the Mind of Evi l , ” any hero whoopened the door in event #2 sud-denly remembers the terrible dreamof the night before.

Memories flood into your mind. Inthe dream, you walk down the dimcorr idor, afra id and despair ing.Each step you take is harder thanthe last. At last you enter a largechamber.

There, before you, stands Ver-minaard, holding Elistan prisonerin a crystal cage. A small goldenlock holds the cage shut. Elistansees you and tries to speak, but hecannot.

Verminaard raises his hand. Outof the darkness step fearsomefighters. He laughs, and lowers hishand in a chopping motion. Thefighters attack!

G ive each p layer an appropr ia teDream Card (see the Appendix; youmay pho tocopy these ca rds andhand them out). Once the playershave read their dream cards, Vermi-naard laughs chill ingly. “So, fools,now you remember your night in theMind of Evil!”

The Dragon Highlord speaks toeach member of the party, revealingthat he knows exact ly what hap-pened to each person in the dream.He mocks the futile efforts of the he-roes to resist him, and belittles theiraccomplishments both in the dreamand in the real world. He gloats of hisvictories and their defeats.

“It is pointless for you to continuein this lost cause,” he says. “Wealthand power can be yours if you buttake your place beside me, and placeyour swords in my service.”

Verminaard has no intent ion ofkeeping his word. If the heroes be-tray the refugees, Verminaard takest h e m b a c k t o P a x T h a r k a s w i t hp romises o f r i ch rewards . Oncethere, he orders his troops to feedthem to Ember.

If the heroes attack, Ember fliesout of missi le range. Verminaardlaughs at the futility of the attack. Ifthe heroes actually hit either Vermi-naard or the dragon, Ember attacks

with spells, but it does not use itsbreath weapon.

If the heroes reject Verminaard’soffer, he says, “Fools! I could destroyyou as you stand. But I have otheruses for you...and there are thingsworse than death!”

W i t h t h a t , h e c o m m a n d s t h edragon to fly off to the north.

Event #4: the Dwarven GatesAfter event #3 (or the next morning,if event #3 does not occur), the Coun-cil urges the PCs to seek out thedwarven gates without delay. Usingthe Abanasinia Wilderness map, amap discovered earlier, or instruc-tions given by Fizban (who goes withthe party in any case), the PCs reachthe doors after four hours’ travel.R u n n o r m a l w i l d e r n e s s r a n d o mencounters. After four hours’ travel,the heroes see the following:

The steep defile suddenly opensup onto a narrow, five-foot-wideledge. Below you, a c l i f f drops1,000 feet to the valley. Above, thecliff climbs 500 feet to becomepart of the mountain range. An-other defile can be seen at the farend of the ledge, almost 100 feetaway.

A large secret door is in the middle ofthis cliff face. There is only a 15%chance that it can be found by non-elven races. Elves and half-elveshave normal chances to f ind thedoor. If the PCs have a map, theyknow that the door is supposed to behere.

The defile on the far side of theledge leads into a box canyon deadend.

If the PCs cannot find the door, Fiz-ban locates it for them.

The following methods can openthe great door:

* A fireball spell can open the door. IfFizban is with the party, he tells ev-eryone to stand back, then casts hisfireball. Fizban stupidly stands rightin front of the door, and appears to bedestroyed in the blast . The doorslowly opens (see below).

* A knock spell can open the door.Fizban does not use that spell.* The door-opening mechanism canbe found if any elven or half-elvencharacter successfully checks for se-cret doors a second time. The deviceis a two-foot-square door that is eas-ily opened. Within the door is a smallopening with a mechanical hand init. If any character shakes the hand,the door slowly opens.

When the door begins to open, adeep rumbling sound (like an earth-quake) is heard. The ledge and cliffface begin to shake. The door sud-denly breaks free and pushes out fivefeet; anyone standing in front of itmus t ro l l a success fu l Dex te r i t ycheck to avoid falling off the cliff. Nomatter how the door is opened, Fiz-ban manages to be caught on theledge, and falls down, apparently tohis death (though his body is notfound). The door continues to moveoutward at a rate of f ive feet perround.

The door is built on a giant screwsha f t p rope l l ed by a mechan ismwithin the mountain. Originally, thedoor would rest on the wide ledgethat once was here. However, duringthe Cataclysm, much of the ledgecollapsed. Therefore, after the doorhas moved out 15 feet, the machin-ery begins to strain. Strange noisesare heard. In the next round, thescrew shaft breaks, and the door,which weighs several tons, plungesover the cliff face, falling 1,000 feetand crushing anything beneath it.

The entrance to the lost dwarvenkingdom of Thorbard in has beenfound. The door, once opened, re-mains open forever.

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Using the DwarvenKingdom MapsThe great kingdom of Thorbardin isdeta i led on the color Kingdom ofThorbardin map. This map shows thelocations of cities, major corridors,lakes, caverns, and the like. Also onthe map are the 16 city blocks thatmake up the dwarven cities. All thecity blocks have north at the top.

It has been said that if you’ve seenone dwarven city, you’ve seen themal l . Nothing could be more t rue.Once a dwarf f inds something helikes, he sticks with it. Dwarves leavearchitectural innovation to the elves,who enjoy that sort of thing. In theworld of Krynn, all dwarven cities aremade of the same city blocks, re-peated endlessly.

To find your way around a dwarvencity, a third type of map is used. Thismap resembles a crossword puzzle,made up of small boxes with num-bers and letters in them.

Each chapter has one or more ofthese maps in it. Each box on themap represents one of the 16 cityblocks on the large map.

In each box is a place for a cityb lock number (one of the 16 c i tyblock types), facing (a compass direc-tion: N, E, S, W, or R for Random),and encounter (keyed to an encoun-ter number in of the chapter). Allboxes have a city block number anda facing; only some of them haveencounters.

The lef t box in the example onpage 97 contains a “2” and an “E.”On the large map, “2” is a Great Hall.(Remember, all city blocks on thelarge map are facing north.) Sincethe direction is “E,” rotate the block90 degrees so that the top of the cityblock, which formerly faced north,faces east. It connects with an “8E.”Looking again at the large map, yousee that “8” is a Court of Thanes.Since it, too, faces north on the largemap, you must rotate it to face east.The court contains an encounter, aswell. Refer to the current chapter’sencounter section to find out whathappens in the court.

(Note: If the direction is “R,” assigna facing at random.)

Some areas of the dwarven king-

dom are currently inhabited, othersare in ruins. Modify the block de-scriptions below based on the infor-mation in each chapter.

City blocks are connected to eachother by the little extensions on eachblock, which are open. If a city blockdoesn’t connect with anything, theextensions are just alcoves.

Some of the cities of Thorbardinare not visited in this adventure. Youcan create your own dwarven citiesjust by preparing “crossword puzzle”maps, and set your own adventurestherein.

City Block DescriptionsThe 16 dwarven city blocks are de-scribed below. Some areas of thekingdom are currently inhabited andactive. In those areas, use the full de-scription. Some areas are desertedand lie in ruins. In those areas, ma-chinery does not work and every-th ing is covered wi th the dust ofcentur ies. In the Northgate area,scars of the Dwarfgate War are every-where: skeletons, rusty armor, etc.Nothing is of use to the players.

Because it is important for the he-roes to get through the dwarvenkingdom quickly, not a lot of detail isprovided for the various cities. Keepthe characters on track as they movethrough the kingdom. If they wanderinto areas not described, or need alevel of detail not provided in the ex-planation, you must improvise to fitthe situation.

If you decide to create additionala d v e n t u r e s i n t h e h a l l s o f t h edwarves, you can add whatever addi-t ional detai l you need to the ci tyblocks.

1. GatehouseGatehouse blocks control access tothe dwarven city. The immense gateis powered by a water-driven ma-chine that turns a huge screw.

2. Great Hall

The Great Hall forms the main streetof a dwarven k ingdom. Merchantshops line the passage.

3. Kings Wall Corner 1

The Kings Wall is an inner defensefor the dwarven city. It is made up ofcity blocks 3-7. The Kings Wall isgenerally an upper-class area, filledwith expensive inns, homes of therich, and lush temples.

If there is a city level below a KingsW a l l b l o c k , t h e n t h e p i t d r o p sthrough to the next level, 100 feet be-low. If there is no level underneath,the pit is 50 feet deep.

The temple in this block is used byvisitors to the city, rather than by cityresidents.

4. Kings Wall Gate

The Kings Wall Gate controls accessto the inner city. The drawbridge ismade of wood and can be burned (tenrounds until collapse) or removed bysoldiers (this takes five rounds).

Beyond the drawbridge are heavyiron doors and portcullises lined witharrow slits on either side.

In inhabited areas, guards are sta-tioned at the drawbridge and also oc-cupy the guard houses inside thewall.

5. Kings Wall IIn this block are the homes and tem-ples of the upper class. If this block isabove another c i ty b lock, the airmoat opens onto the level below—otherwise it drops into water 20 feetbelow the floor.

6. Kings Wall IITh is b lock con ta ins uppe r -c lasshomes, temples, and shops.

7. Kings Wall Corner IIThis area is similar to city block 3.

8. Court of ThanesThe royal court is lined with sculp-ture and tapestry—the finest art ofthe dwarven kingdom.

The seven th rones a re fo r t heSeven Ru l i ng Thanes Under t heMountain, the rulers of each of themajor dwarf races. Once there was aHigh King of Thorbardin, but no onehas risen to claim the throne since

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the days of Derkin.This block also contains quarters

for visiting thanes, as well as templesfor use by the court. Government of-fices are also located here.

9. ResidenceM o s t d w a r v e s l i v e i n r e s i d e n c eblocks. A few stores operate in theres idence b locks , bu t goods a remostly purchased elsewhere.

10. Transport Shaft

The Transport Shafts are the primarymethod of travel between levels inthe dwarven kingdom. The centralc i r cu la r chamber i s a sha f t t ha tstretches through many levels aboveand below.

Driven by a mechanism at the bot-tom of the shaft (city block 15), chainladders and great hanging bucketsmove up on one side and down onthe other. Platforms lead out over thepit so that it is easy for a traveler tostep into one of the buckets as itmoves slowly past, and then to stepoff when the desired level is reached.

In deserted areas of the dwarvenkingdom, the shafts are abandonedand the driving mechanisms disen-gaged. The chains and buckets donot move unless someone climbs on,and then they allow only downwardmovement. The chains cannot beclimbed unless the locking mecha-nism in city block 15 is engaged.

To get onto the chain or into abucket in a deserted area, a charac-ter must jump ten feet from the edgeand catch a chain. This requires aDexterity check. If the check suc-ceeds, he descends s lowly. I f thecheck fails, the player makes a sec-ond check to arrest the fall. If thatcheck succeeds, he catches a chain,but suffers 2d6 points of damage. Ifthe second check fails, a third checkis made. If the third check succeeds,the character fa l ls 30 feet beforecatching a chain, and he suffers 3d6points of damage, but then descendsnormally. If the third Check fails, thecharacter falls the full distance of theshaft and suffers normal falling dam-age of 1d6 (cumulative) per 10 feetfallen to a maximum of 20d6.

The Transport Block is in the cen-

ter of dwarven life. Assembly hallsare the homes of plays and music.Major bazaars and shops are locatedhere. There are also smaller publicworship halls and guildhalls for thedwarven artisans.

11. WharfDwarven cities sometimes open ontounderground lakes and rivers. Thedwarves in these cities carry on tradeby water, and occasionally fish.

The wharf area contains boat slips,warehouses, government of f ices,and repair facilities for boats.

12. Great TempleT h e d w a r v e s o f T h o r b a r d i n a r ea m o n g t h e f e w r a c e s o f p o s t -Cataclysm Krynn to retain knowl-edge of the True Gods. The primarygod o f t he moun ta in dwarves i sReorx, the forger.

According to dwarven religion, theholy kingdom of Reorx is located farbeneath the earth. If the temple is lo-cated above another city block, thepit opens up onto the next level. Oth-erwise it is at least 1,000 feet deep,for the dwarves believe the deeperthe shaft, the more holy the temple.

Climbing down a Shaft of Reorxwould be considered a vile sacrilegeto a dwarf.

In a typical Great Temple blockthere are small stores selling reli-gious items. Dwarven priests nor-mally live in a Temple Block, andhave a private temple in the block fortheir own use.

13. DungeonsA l t h o u g h f i e r c e i n b a t t l e , t h edwarves allow opponents to surren-der.

The dungeons have cell areas ac-cessed through special rooms calledtransit areas. A special mechanismcontrolled from the guard area oper-ates f i rst one portcul l is , then theother, serving to control access tothe cell blocks. A key is required tooperate the mechanism. Outside thecel l area are guard quarters andweapons storage areas.

The internal areas are the cellsproper, including dining and exer-

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c ise fac i l i t i es . Not a l l ce l l s werelocked, depending on the status andbehavior of the prisoner, since exitfrom the cell area is so tightly con-trolled. If Dungeon Blocks are adja-c e n t , t h e r e i s f r e q u e n t l y f r e emovement between them, but a l lconnection with the outside is stil lcontrolled by the guards.

14. SmithyIn the great smithies, the dwarves ofages past created wondrous works.Stone troughs convey metal from thecentral furnace to the many stallswhere dwarven craftsmen work. Alarge cauldron hangs over the cen-tral fire pit, controlled by complexmach ine ry . The cau ld ron can beswiveled, tipped, or pulled out of thefire to be filled. The floor of the firepit is covered in several feet of sootand ashes. The floors and walls of thesmithy are streaked with hardenedbits of metal and scorch marks.

15. Transport MachineryThe large pit in the central chamberis filled with the machinery that oper-ates the transport system. A net issuspended above the machinery. Thenet serves two purposes: it reducesfalling damage by 50%, and it pro-tects the machinery from anythingfalling into it.

16. GardensThese beautiful, well-kept gardensare the parks of the dwarven realms.They are lighted by shafts of crystalleading to the surface (a primitive fi-ber optics system). The garden con-tains smal l trees, shrubs,mushrooms, and fungi.

Encounters in theNorthgateThere a re bo th random and se tencounters in Northgate. Use therandom encounter chart in the Ap-p e n d i x t o d e t e r m i n e r a n d o mencounters; do this once for eachcity block the PCs enter inNorthgate. Whenever the chart indi-cates that a random encounter oc-curs, roll 1d8. Each city block has

the numbers 1-8 located on it. Theencounter occurs at the die result(e.g., a roll of “6” means that theencounter takes place in location 6in that city block).

The heroes may decide to bringthe refugees along with them intoThorbardin. If they do, 20 dwarves ofthe Theiwar kingdom (also known asdark dwarves) attack 1d6 turns afterthe refugees enter Northgate. An ad-ditional 20 Theiwar attack each 1d6turns. After three attacks, if the he-roes have not a l ready decided tohave the refugees retreat, the refu-gee council decides to turn back.The refugees make camp outside ofNorthgate to wait for the heroes’ re-turn with permission to enter. Therefugees have heard many awful ru-mors about the dwarves of Thor-bardin, and they are very fearful.

Because the refugees have nowmoved farther from the approachingDragonarmy, the heroes have an ad-di t ional 48 hours to get passagethrough Thorbardin.

All drawbridges in Northgate aredown and can be crossed. The draw-bridge mechanisms are rusted andcannot be repaired.

238. Dwarfgate

The scars of fierce battle streakthe walls. The floor is littered withb roken sha rds o f po t te ry andrusted metal . Ancient wagons,their axles broken, litter the majorc o r r i d o r s . T h e s k e l e t o n s o fdwarves and men lie where theydied so long ago, clothed in rustedarmor and rags, silent witnesses tothe te r r i b le con f l i c t t ha t onceraged in these halls.

Everything is deserted and in ruins.There are no random encounters inthis block. The mechanism that onceoperated the doors is rusted and bro-ken.

239. Arman Kharas

I f th is encounter has already oc-curred, do not repeat it.

An armed party of dwarves stepsinto the corridor before you. Theleader steps forward. Strength andcon f idence show in h i s eve rymove. The large hammer at hisside is held loosely but ready. Herumbles, “What business have youstrangers among the halls of theHylar?”

The leader is named Arman Kharas(see the NPC Capsules in the Appen-dix). With him are 12 Hylar dwarves,each wearing chain mail and carry-ing shield and war hammer.

If the heroes attack, the dwarvesfight fiercely. If it looks like the Hylarwill be beaten, Arman surrenders. Ifthe heroes ta lk, Arman l is tens totheir story, though his men remainready to fight.

If the heroes treat Arman with re-spect and honor, he decides to takethem before the Court of the Thanesfor judgment. There they might begranted safe passage. If the heroesare d i s respec t fu l , A rman o rde rsthem out of Thorbardin and attacksif they refuse.

The Hylar usually avoid Northgate,s i n c e i t i s h e l d b y t h e T h e i w a rdwarves, sworn enemies of the Hylar.However, the Theiwar have capturedArman’s half-brother Pick, and Ar-m a n i s s e a r c h i n g t h e h a l l s o fNorthgate for him. If the heroes offert o h e l p A r m a n r e s c u e h i s h a l f -brother, Arman takes them to theCourt of the Thanes even if they aredisrespectful.

Arman has an idea where Pick maybe held (see encounter 241), andleads the heroes toward the dungeonif they agree to help him.

Once Pick has been rescued, Ar-man leads the heroes to the City ofthe Hylar (chapter 16) by the most di-rect route.

It is very important that the heroesaccompany Arman and do not fighthim. Encourage peaceful negotia-tion and highlight Arman’s good in-tentions and behavior.

240. The Dark GuideI f th is encounter has already oc-curred, do not repeat it.

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A stunted dwarf, pale of skin andwith large eyes, sits mumbling tohimself and pulling at his hair. Heis clothed in black, oily rags withbits of leather and metal sewn intothem. He looks up and begins tocower before you.

This is Krothgar, a Theiwar, recentlyousted by his clan for cowardice.

If he is offered food or safety, heagrees to guide the party through thedwarven kingdom. Actually, he plansto guide the party to the Theiwarc o m m u n i t y o n t h e u p p e r l e v e l(encounter 244) hoping to redeemhimself by of fer ing his c lan thesestrangers from the outside world.

241. PrisonersNo random encounters occur in thisblock. In the spot labeled “1,” two Hy-lar dwarves are held prisoner—one isPick, Arman Kharas’s half-brother. Inthe spot labeled “5” are 2d4 Theiwarguards. At the “8” are other pr is-oners, including Aghar, Hylar, andKlar dwarves.

If Pick sees the party, he calls outfor rescue, and says his family will re-ward his safe return. The other Hylardwarf in the cell is dying of a rottingdisease; he dies an hour after rescueif nothing is done to cure him.

Once rescued, Pick would gladlylead the party through Thorbardin,b u t u n f o r t u n a t e l y d o e s n ’ t k n o wwhere he is or how to get home.

242. Anvil’s Echo

A vast cavern opens up beforeyou, spanned by a br idge thatleads off into the darkness. Theslightest whisper seems to echoendlessly in the black depths. Lowstone rails, three feet high, lineeach side of the wide bridge. Therails are held up by carvings ofsmall dwarves.

The cavern is called the Anvil’s Echo.Legend has it that the sound of adwarven hammer on an anvi l wi l lecho for eternity in this dwarf-madecavern. The ceiling is 100 feet above:the floor of the cavern (encounter

245) is 100 feet below.The bridge is part of the Northgate

defense system. Murder holes in theceiling were used to drop missiles,boiling oil, molten lead, and boul-ders on attackers—but the defendersof Northgate are long dead.

Halfway across the bridge are tworopers, flattened against the stoneguard rails, waiting to ambush theparty.

Attack of the Theiwar

A clan of Theiwar dwarves is forag-ing in this block. Unless the party istotally silent, the Theiwar are not sur-prised. There are 75 Theiwar. As theheroes approach the center of theblock, the dark dwarves fill the mainhallways to the south and the east.

If the party is being led by ArmanKharas, he races down the west endof the hall shouting for all to followhim. He leads all who follow to thenearest Transport Block, and jumpsto catch one of the chains. All of Ar-m a n ’ s m e n f o l l o w h i m o n t o t h echains; they all succeed in catching

the chains. See city block 10 for op-eration of the transport system.

The Theiwar can ride the chains,but they do so only in emergencies.Since they do not see this as an emer-gency, they do not pursue.

If Krothgar is guiding the party, heruns back in the direction from whichhe came, since these Theiwar arefrom a di f ferent c lan, and wouldgladly kill him, too. Krothgar findsthe nearest stair and runs to the up-per level, which is occupied by hisown clan. The Theiwar do not pursueinto what they consider enemy terri-tory.

244. City of the Theiwar

Krothgar’s clan occupies the smallwal led for t on the upper level ofNorthgate. There are 250 Theiwarled by a savant. If the party enters theclan fort, the Theiwar try to capturethe party, take their possessions,then throw them into the well of An-vil ’s Echo (encounter 242) to theirdeaths.

245. Floor of Anvil’s Echo

A huge , rec tangu la r cave rn i scarved out of the solid stone. Thefloor is lined with rubble. Scat-tered about are skeletons longdead, fallen from the great bridgeabove.

Northgate

Encounters246. Leaving NorthgateIf the party leaves Northgate in thecompany of Arman Kharas, Armanguides them through the dwarvenrealms to the city of the Hylar by thesafest and most d i rect route. Heknows where the Theiwar st rong-holds are, and he avoids them when-ever possible. Arman wishes to avoidcombat, in tending only to get h ishal f -brother Pick to safety and totake the party before the Council ofThanes.

Arman answers questions aboutthe dwarven kingdoms to the best ofhis ability. As a son of Thane Hornfel,leader of the Hylar, he knows muchof the rivalry that plagues the king-doms of Thorbardin (especially be-tween the Hylar and the Theiwar). Atevery occasion, he talks about hissupposed descent from the dwarvenhero Kharas.

I f the heroes depart Northgatewithout Arman, they must find outwhat to do and where to go by them-selves. Most of the possible encoun-ters in this region of Thorbardin arewith Theiwar dwarves, who try to lureunwary adventurers into a trap. If theheroes reach the West Warrens, theyencounter numerous Hylar farmers,who call for guards to capture the in-t ruders. The guards impr ison any

captured heroes for 24 hours, thenbr ing them before the Counci l o fThanes in the Hylar city.

The party departs Northgate eitheron the First Road of Thanes (if theyleft Northgate from the lower level)or on the Second Road of Thanes (ifthey left from the middle level).

247. The First Road ofThanes

A wide tunnel through the moun-tain leads into darkness. Metaltracks in the center of the stonef l oo r a re wo rn smoo th . Once ,thousands of dwarves must havewalked here. Now, there is onlydust and emptiness. Your foot-steps echo in the deserted corri-dor.

The Roads of the Thanes are the ma-jor highways that connect the citiesand outposts of Thorbardin. In thecivilized areas of the realm, smallcars rol l a long the metal t racks,pulled by cables connected to dwar-ven engines. Cars pulled by beasts ofburden travel along the roads, as dodwarves on foot.

The First Road leads to the lowerlevel of the North Hall of Justice.

248. The Second Road ofThanes

This is identical to the First Road, ex-cept it leads to the middle level of theNorth Hall of Justice.

249. The North Hall ofJustice

The North Hall of Justice (see map) isa small complex of city blocks thatonce served as government officesand a second line of defense. WhenThorbardin was sealed off from theoutside world, the North Hall of Jus-tice fell into disuse. It is now occu-pied by Theiwar, who prey on unwarytravelers.

Sentries are posted in the GreatHalls on the lower and middle levels.A p a r t y o f 4 0 T h e i w a r w e a r i n glea the r a rmor and ca r ry ing l i gh tcrossbows with poison arrows is sta-tioned in each Kings Gate Block inthe complex, where they can fire onintruders through arrow slits in theKings Wall. All Theiwar are of thelowest type. Arman knows nothingo f t h e i r p r e s e n c e ; h e c a m e t oNorthgate by a different and moredangerous route.

If the party inflicts more than 50%casualties on the Theiwar, the remain-ing fighters flee; they are not inter-ested in prey that fights back. Armanand his warriors help the heroes.

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An additional 250 Theiwar, led bya 7-HD savant and a 6-HD student sa-vant, live on the upper level. They at-tack the party only if the PCs ventureupstairs.

The First Road of Thanes (lowerlevel) leads on toward the Hylar re-gions. The Second Road of Thanesleads southeast to the city of theTheiwar. Arman insists on travelingthe First Road. If the party should de-part the North Hall of Justice on theSecond Road, they encounter a warparty of 1d10 Theiwar led by a 5-HDcommander after 1d4 turns. Every1d4 turns thereafter, they encounteranother party, each with 1d6 moreTheiwar than the previous one, untilthey turn back, are killed, or are cap-tured.

250. Road to the WestWarrens

After many long hours of travel,the Road of the Thanes opens upinto a large, natural cavern. Thec a v e r n t e a m s w i t h l i f e — h u g emushrooms, s t range fungi , andother odd plants.

This area is called the West Warrens.The no r the rn sec t i on , whe re thecharacters enter, is a wi lderness.Much of the land in the Warrens is un-der cultivation: Farmers from sev-eral of the dwarven kingdoms raisefood here.

251. The West Warrens

The wilderness of fungi gives wayto greater order. Here are fields ofmushrooms, carefully fenced in.Dwarven fa rmers labor i n thefields. Cars full of mushrooms andfungi, pulled by stunted ponies,travel on dirt roads heading south.

Four shr iekers are located at thenorthern edge of the farms. They be-gin to cry out when the party ap-p r o a c h e s . A p a t r o l o f 4 0 H y l a rsoldiers, wearing chain mail and car-rying war hammers, arrives in 1d6rounds. Their leader cal ls for thepar t y to s top and iden t i f y them-

selves. If Arman Kharas is with theparty, the guards behave with defer-ence and offer to escort the party totheir destination. If the heroes arewi thout Arman Kharas, the guardleader orders then to surrender theirweapons. If they refuse, the guardsattack, and are joined by an addi-tional 1d10 guards every five roundsuntil the party surrenders, is cap-tured, or is killed.

If the characters are captured, theyare held in the prisoner block in theGuardian Halls for 24 hours beforebe ing b rough t t o t he Counc i l o fThanes.

252. Guardian Halls

The Guardian Halls (see map) controlp a s s a g e t h r o u g h t h e d w a r v e nrealms. The Gate Blocks at eitherside are normally open, but they canbe shut in case of invasion. Guards int h e b l o c k c o n t r o l w h o p a s s e sth rough . A l a rge dungeon ho ldsthose who are caught crossing intothe wrong kingdom.

If the heroes were captured in thefarms, they spend 24 hours in one ofthe prison cells, and then the guardstake them to the city of the Hylar. Ifthe heroes are with Arman Kharas,they pass through the Guardian Hallwithout incident.

253. The Sixth Road ofThanesThis dwarven highway is in workingorder. An endless chain of cars trav-els along the metal tracks, pulled bya strange dwarven engine.

Either in chains or in the companyof Arman Kharas, the charactersboard a car and are pulled slowlyalong the road. The ride lasts abouthalf an hour.

254. Docks

The ride ends at one of the Hylarwharfs (see map). The wharfs give ac-cess to the Urkhan Sea. Looking outat the sea, the PCs’ attention is drawnto an amazing sight: the Life-Tree ofthe Hylar.

The Life-Tree is truly one of thewonders of the world. It is an im-mense stalactite, half a mile high and

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as wide at the top, inside which an en-tire city has been carved (see map).

The city can be reached only bycable-boat (another dwarven inven-tion). The cable-boat leads to Level 1of the Life-Tree.

If the characters should comman-deer a boat and try to visit any of theother cities that line the Urkhan Sea,they are attacked by a dragon turtle.

255. The Life-Tree of theHylar

A working transport shaft providespassage up the Life-Tree. Hundredsof Hylar dwarves clog the shafts.Most of them have never seen a non-dwarf before, and they gawk as thestrangers pass. Young children makerude remarks. Riding the transportshaft is quite safe, though the charac-ters may feel otherwise as they lookdown the long shaft.

The dwarven city is illuminated bya species of glowing coral that worksas a continual light spell.

If the characters are currently pris-oners, they are taken to a dungeonblock on level 17 of the city (area “C”on the map). If the characters arewith Arman Kharas, they are taken toa well-appointed inn (area “B”) onlevel 28 (the home of the very richand powerful) in the Kings Gate justoutside the Court of Thanes (area“A”).

If the characters are free, they canwander a round the dwarven c i t ywhile waiting for the meeting of theCouncil of Thanes on the followingmorning.

256. Audience With theCouncil of Thanes

The Council of Thanes rules Thor-bardin. Each of the n ine dwarvenkingdoms is theoretically entitled toan equal seat on the council. In prac-tice, this is not the case. The Neidar(Hill) dwarves split with the dwarvesof Thorbardin during the DwarfgateWars, and so their seat is empty. Theseat of the Kingdom of the Dead isalso vacant . The Kingdom of theHigh King has been vacant for over300 years—since the time of Derkin.The NPC Capsules of the Thanes of

T h o r b a r d i n p r o v i d e s o m e b a c k -ground on the six Thanes that arepresent.

The Thanes are Hornfel (Hylar),Bluph (Aghar) , Gneiss (Daewar) ,Realgar (Theiwar), Rance (Daergar),and Tufa (Klar). Hornfel is the fatherof Arman Kharas; he is sympatheticto the heroes’ plight. Realgar is anagent of Verminaard; he sees this asan opportunity to have the Theiwarrule Thorbardin.

To run the Council meeting, firsthave Arman Kharas (if present) intro-duce the heroes to the Council andintroduce the Thanes to the heroes.Then have the heroes present theircase and make their request. Hornfellistens with interest, but Realgar be-gins to speak with hatred about thehill dwarves and men that brought onthe Cataclysm and the DwarfgateWars.

Have each player roll an Intelli-gence check with a -5 penalty to In-telligence. Any who succeed feel thatRealgar’s speech patterns are verysimilar to those of Verminaard. Infact, Realgar is being telepathicallycontrolled by the Dragon Highlord.

During Realgar’s tirade, tell thep laye rs tha t the The iwar Thaneseems to be swaying the Counci lagainst them. Finally, the discussionis finished, and the characters are

asked to leave the room so that theCouncil can make its decision.

The Council’s debate lasts an hour,then the heroes are invited back in.Hornfel speaks.

“ I t i s t r u e t h a t y o u h u m a n sbrought the Cataclysm upon theworld, and it is true that the Neidarmade war on Thorbardin. But darktimes are here again, and ancientgrudges must not control our des-tiny.

“Here, then, is the decision ofthe Council—that whosoever re-covers the hammer of Kharas, thatperson will the dwarves of Thor-bardin befriend. If you agree toour terms, and bring the hammerto us, then your people may pass.

“There is one other condition—that one of your party remain hereas a hostage for your safe return.”

Hornfel names Eben as the hostageto be kept (this is Realgar’s idea, butthe heroes should not know this). Ifthe heroes refuse the quest, they areimprisoned. If they agree, Hornfelte l l s them tha t the hammer l i essomewhere in the Valley of Thanes,burial ground of the dwarves. If theheroes have the helm of Grallen,Hornfel thanks them for its return,

and asks them to take it to the Valleyof Thanes and leave it in the tomb ofKharas. He tells them that the helmwill be of help to them in their quest.

Hornfel raises his hand, and twodwarves enter the chamber. One car-ries a drum, the other a scroll. Theychant the Song of Kharas (see Ap-pendix).

257. Leaving the Kingdomof the HylarIf the heroes do not agree to thequest, they are impr isoned in thedungeon on level 17 of the Life-Treeand left to rot.

If they agree, Arman begs his fa-ther to allow him to accompany theheroes. Hornfel agrees. Arman and aparty of Hylar guards escort the he-roes away. Eben stays behind as ahostage.

The trip out of the Hylar city is thesame as the journey in. The partytakes a cable-boat across the UrkhanSea to the Eighth Road of Thanes.The trip down the Eighth Road is bycar. The journey ends several hourslater at the Guardian Hall complext h a t a d j o i n s t h e V a l l e y o f t h eThanes—where all the dead of Thor-bardin are buried.

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The final kingdom of the dwarves isKalil S’Rith, the Valley of the Thanes.Here are buried the dwarven dead.Those of royal lineage are entombedin cairns; commoners are interred inhumble graves in the stony plain.

If the heroes posses the helm ofGrallen, its wearer suddenly realizesthat he has the power to turn undeadas if he were a 12th-level priest.

Encounters258. The Valley of theThanes

The sun seems a strange sight af-t e r many hou rs unde rg round .Ahead lies a dreary, barren valleybetween soaring mountains. Eve-rywhere, desolate mounds in thenaked earth form bur ia l cai rns.Far away, in the heart of the valley,there is a small patch of green. Ris-ing from it, forming a stony pinna-cle, is an awesome tomb. The

wind whines about the hil locks,seeming to carry the groans andlaments of dying warriors. A freez-i n g r a i n b e g i n s , s o a k i n g t h eground and limiting vision to 100yards.

259. Tomb Mounds of theThanes

Carved tombs, pitted and worn, re-place the simpler cairns. The windand rain raise a mournful howl.

259a. Tomb of Rathkar

A rotting figure limps down from ala rge tomb. I t s a rms a re ou t -stretched and it is mumbling. Be- hind it trail dwarven undead.

This is the mummy of Rathkar, whocannot rest until forgiven by 77 menwho listen to his entire life story. Hehas been fo rg i ven by 31 so fa r .

Rathkar’s story takes hours to tell,and he mumbles. His sin was that henever told his wife that he loved her.

I f t he pa r ty does no t l i s ten o rrefuses to forgive, Rathkar attacks.He commands 21 skeletons and 19ghasts. None of the undead can leavethis hex: they are turned as undeadtwo levels higher (e.g., the skeletonsare turned as ghouls and the ghastsas mummies). If destroyed, Rathkarregenerates, but th is takes sevenyears.

259b. Spectral TombThe undead here hate all life and at-tack to destroy al l intruders. Onespectre, two mummies, and eightghasts are present. They can leavethe mound for one turn only, andthen are te leported back to theirgraves for the rest of the day.

260. The Garden

A green oasis surrounds a lake at thevalley’s center. Stone tombs, cov-

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ered with ice from the freezing rain,fill the oasis. As soon as the heroesenter the oasis, the rain ends and thesun comes out. Overhead, loomingabove the lake, is a giant floatingrock c rowned w i th a cas t l e—theTomb of Derkin.

One tomb stands empty before theheroes. On the opposite shore of thelake is a ruin.

260a. Tomb of GrallenRegard less f rom wh ich d i rec t i ont h e y a p p r o a c h , G r a l l e n ’ s t o m bstands before the heroes. A 15-footobelisk stands on the lake shore. Be-hind i t is a statue of an armoredd w a r f , a r m s s p r e a d , b a r e h e a dthrown back. There are Hylar carv-ings that read: “Raised to honorPrince Grallen, hero of the final as-sault on the fortress of Fistandanti-lus.”

If the players have the helm of Gral-len, it speaks to its wearer, saying,“Bless you, for my brow has beencold these long winters.”

When placed on the statue, thehelm turns to stone and the statuespeaks. “What you seek is above. Itsonly entrance is across the lake. Say‘I mourn for Kharas’ and step throughthe unbroken arch.” The statue thencrumbles. I f the heroes keep thehelm, the wearer must roll a success-ful saving throw vs. spell once pertu rn o r t h row the he lme t t o t heground. The helm vanishes oncedropped.

260b. Broken Gateway

The ruins across the lake are over-grown with lilies, jasmine, and snap-dragons. The ground is carpeted withpetals. In the ruin’s center stands anarch broken in the center. Nine frag-ments are scattered about it.

If the heroes search the area, theyfind the nine fragments and a stoneplaque engraved in Hylar script. Itreads, “I wait and watch; he will notreturn. Alas, I mourn for Kharas.”

The heroes must fit together thenine pieces to rebuild the arch. Whenthe pieces are put in place, they mag-ically merge together until the archis unbroken again. If the heroes donot think to rebuild the arch, Arman

suggests that they do so.Once the arch is rebui l t , i t be-

c o m e s a t e l e p o r t a l l e a d i n g t oencounter 261. Saying the phrase, “Imourn for Kharas” activates it.

The Floating TombDerkin’s Tomb was built before theCataclysm. Upon his death, Kharascarried Derkin to his final rest, andhere Kharas met his own doom.

Shortly thereafter, Evenstar, thegold dragon, arrived in exile to guardthe hammer of Kharas. Evenstar, us-ing hidden knowledge, wrenched thetomb from the earth and set it in thesky. He then f i l led the tomb wi thmagical perils. Yet his magic was notall danger, for Evenstar loves beautyand light and adorned the castle withthese things too.

Derkin’s Tomb is 400 feet abovethe ground. It is built in several levelsin the rock on which it floats. Sheercliffs separate the levels. Consult theDerkin’s Tomb map as the players ex-plore the tomb.

The tomb has a feeling of age andwonderfu l craf tsmanship about i t .Each room is more exquisite thanthe last. Even the halls and shafts aredecorated with brill iant murals. Atany moment it seems the beauty willcome to l i f e . ( I t f requen t l y doesthrough the magic of Evenstar’s ringof telekinesis.)

Every s ix turns, a muted gongsounds throughout the tomb.

How to Run this Adventure

The tomb has only one occupant:Evenstar. He uses his spells and abili-ties to challenge the heroes. To playthis section, first review the rulesabou t d ragons i n t he Mons t rousCompendium, read the description ofEvenstar in NPC Capsules, and studythe map of Derk in ’s Tomb. Sug-gested uses for Evenstar’s spells arenoted in the encounters.

Evenstar casts guards and wardsas soon as the heroes enter the tomb.This has the following effects:

* All doors are wizard locked.* Corridors fill with a misty violet va-por that reduces sight to ten feet.* Inner stairwells, the Spiral Way, and

the elevator shaft fill with webs.* Eight doors (pick at random) areh idden beh ind i l l us ionary wa l l s .They can be found only by touch.* Every time the heroes choose a di-rection, they may (50%) move oppo-s i te the way they th ink they a removing.* Everything radiates magic.

Evenstar is basical ly a peaceful ,though world-weary dragon, amusedat the heroes’ struggle. It enjoys con-fus ing people by changing shapewhen not observed. It does not revealthat it is a gold dragon until noted inthe text, it reveals only that it is theguardian of the tomb. It does not useits powers to cause death.

If a hero falls down the shaft or offthe tomb, he gets to roll a Dexteritycheck (with a -4 penalty to Dexter-ity) to catch himself; if he fails, hesuf fers 1d6 points of damage foreach level fallen. At the bottom ofthe shaft there is a net that break thefall, but at the cost of 2d6 additionalpoints of damage. If a character fallsoff the tomb and does not catch him-self, he falls to the lake below, result-i ng i n a t o ta l o f 20d6 po in t s o fdamage.

261. Reception Tower

A duplicate of the teleport arch fromarea 260b is here. As the last hero ex-its from the teleport, there is a flashof light and the arch vanishes behindhim. There is a trap door in the roofhere but no ladder.

262. Lower Gallery & Stairs

This wooden walk is weakened insevera l p laces . There i s a 10%chance i t breaks. Each charactermus t ro l l a success fu l Dex te r i t ycheck or fall ten feet.

Evenstar can cast grease on thestairs, causing the PC on that part ofthe stairs to topple back into the oth-ers. This causes all affected heroes toreceive 1d6 points of damage.

263. Hall of Enemies

The booty of victory—the weapons,a r m o r , a n d s h i e l d s o f D e r k i n ’ s

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defeated enemies, is stored here.Evenstar may use his ring of telekine-sis to make things appear to move.

264. Upper Galleries

This is a stone walkway. At the top ofthe stairs a voice (magic mouth) criesout in Hylar, “Defilers, begone! Dis-turb not the sleep of the ageless.”The passage slopes upward to thenorth past several archways.

Evenstar may decide to cast trans-mute rock to mud and dancing lightshere.

265. Votive Cells

These are bare, stone cells.

266. Overlook

From this overlook, the PCs can seethe ruins to the east. In the distanceto the west is another exit from thevalley. South are the nests of giantvultures in caves. To the north, thesnow-shrouded peaks of the moun-tains are covered by a huge armycrawling down into the valley. Theenemy is coming. (This sight can beseen f rom every over look in thetomb.)

267. Fountain of TimeIn the center of this room is a moss-covered fountain. Lying against thefountain is a white-bearded, sleepingdwarf. He meets the general descrip-tion of Kharas. This is Evenstar. If theheroes awaken h im, he appearsdazed. He has trouble understandingthat time has passed and he wants toknow where his hammer has gone.He had stopped for a drink after bury-ing Derkin and that’s all he remem-bers. (If any heroes drink from thefountain, roll dice as if checking foran effect, then look relieved and saythat they made it.) “Kharas” agreesto go with the heroes. After encoun-ter 273 he slips away or changesform.

268. AntechamberThese wal ls are marbled and mir-rored, making the room seem larger.

269. Banquet HallLong tables are lined with fine foods.Fruits and sweets are spread in thecenters of the tables. The room isfilled with the aroma of good cook-ing.

Upon closer examination, the foodis found to be made of prec iousmetal, gems, and jewels, worth thou-sands of stl. Making the best choices,each person might be able to take2 ,000 s t l wo r th . “Kha ras ” wa rnsagainst theft here.

In the center of the room is a tallchair, a reading table, and a book. Ly-ing on the book is a pair of ruby-colored spectacles. The book is ahistory of Derkin, written in an ob-scure tongue.

The spectacles have the propertieso f i n f r a v i s i o n , c o m p r e h e n d l a n -guages, and read magic. They alsoact as a gem of seeing. They can beworn for up to four hours a day with-out il l effects. If worn longer, theygive the wearer a splitting headache(-4 penalty to THAC0).

270. Grand Overlook

See encounter 266 for what can beseen here. The floor here is rotted;there is a 10% chance per 50 poundsthat a character falls through. Fallingcharacters get a Dexterity check tocatch themselves; failure results in a20-foot drop to the support beamsbelow for 2d6 points of damage.

271. Grand PromenadeThis corridor is lined with shallowniches holding granite statues of no-ble dwarves. The pits drop the leadPCs 20 feet.

Evenstar can cast stinking cloud inthis area.

272. Tipping PathSee the diagram on the map. Thisbridge is lined with crossbars sup-ported by a central metal beam.When the party crosses the bridge, itflips to vertical once more than halfthe total party weight crosses themidpoint. Characters may catch holdof a crossbar by rolling a successfulDexterity check; if they fail, they fall

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down the shaft to the ground 500 feetbelow (receiving the maximum 20d6points of damage).

273. Elevator ShaftThis is a square shaft f i l led withwebs. Ice chips fall from the shaft andevaporate as they strike the floor.

274. Ruby Tower of SingingLightThe room at the tower’s base holdscrystals and colored bits of glass.From above comes the sound ofheavenly chimes. The tower itself isflooded with a rainbow of light danc-ing on the walls and crystal chimesringing in the wind.

275. Shrine of Reorx theForge

On the altar are three items and atapestry that reads, “Take if in need.”Any who enter the shrine are filledwith a feeling of anticipated battle.The three items are a potion of extrahealing, a scroll with a remove curseand a prayer spell, and a necklacewith three prayer beads—bless, cure,and karma. Evenstar can identify thebeads.

276-278. Histories ofDerk inThese three chambers tell the storyof Derkin’s life, creations, and battlesth rough d io ramas and t roph ies .They include his triumph over Bone-crusher the Ogre and his final battlefought atop Mount Skull. Evenstarmay use his r ing of telekinesis tomake things come to life or use danc-ing lights to lure party members tothe elevator shaft.

279. Unseen DangerThis room is filled with red light fromthe level above. A hammer pendu-lum swings 30 feet overhead. Thisroom has a red glass partial floor thatis invisible in the light of the tower. Itappears that the room opens ontothe shaft. The real floor is a networkwith gaps. Invisible, overhead swing-ing logs strike (THAC0 15) at any-

thing above three feet tall. Any PCwho is struck by a log suffers 2d4points of damage and has a 15%chance of being knocked into a holein the floor (he must then roll a suc-cessful Dexterity check or fall 550feet to the ground). PCs who walkacross the glass floor without check-ing the floor in front of their feet havea 50% chance of stumbling upon ahole (successful Dexterity check or along fall, as above). On the far side ofthe room is a brass ladder leading up.

280. CourtyardFrom this flagstone courtyard, theheroes can see sights as described inencounter 266. The cap of the largeruby tower bears a sharp spike. In thecenter of the courtyard, beside ahole, lies a 16-foot-long flagpole witha lance tip. This a crude model of adragonlance. An inscription on thewall of the Pilgrim’s Hostel (area 281)reads:

Lances did great Huma seekTo forge upon the dragon’s peakWith silver arm and silver pool

And Hammer did he forge wyrm’sdoom.

281. Pilgrim’s Hostel

This is a refuge for visiting pilgrims.A ramp circles a fountain, providingtwo tiers of stone cells. Here is thegear and plate mail +1 of Kharas.

282. Lonely VigilThis tower is dark. A set of stairs spi-ral up around a water-filled cistern toa balcony. The stairs are covered withwebs and broken in several places. Acareless hero may fall 10-30 feet.

Evenstar may use a phantasmalforce spell to make the cistern appearto release a flood of water for 3d4points of damage.

At the top of the tower is a woodencylinder containing a magical scrollwi th f lame arrow, f i re shie ld, andhaste spells.

283. DilemmaIn this tower is a gushing fountain. Aramp leads downward. The room is

30 feet high, and the fountain spoutsnearly to the ceiling. If a player de-cides to look closely, have him roll anIntelligence check. If he is success-ful, he sees a small wooden platformbobbing at the top of the fountain.This platform has a permanent levi-tate spell on it, but it can only sup-port 20 pounds. On the platform is apotion of superheroism and a wand offrost with only three charges left. Thecommand word (“O.G.“) is written inrunes on the wand.

284. VestibuleThis room is filled with an obscuringsmoke that slowly dissipates oncethe door is opened. A broken phiallies on the floor.

On the floor before the second setof doors is the corpse of a dwarf. Hewears the signet ring of Kharas. Thisis the true Kharas. If Evenstar is mas-querading as Kharas, it admits that itis just the guardian of the tomb andhas been testing them. It does notchange into a dragon.

Beneath Kharas’s heel are the re-mains of a small scorpion; he was ig-nobly stung to death. A stone phialattached to his belt contains a fluidthat forms an obscur ing c loud ofsmoke, 40 feet by 40 feet by 20 feet,when poured on the ground.

285. Ruby Chamber of theHammer

This room is hot, lit with a sanguinel i gh t s t reaming th rough c r imsonw indows . On ly a na r row ba l conythrusts over the shaft that opens tothe distant lake below.

Hanging from a slender thread, amighty bronze hammer swings backand forth. Every hour it strikes one ofthe gongs thrust ing out f rom thewalls.

As the PCs reach this room, Even-star casts an invisible cylindrical wallof force over the swinging hammer.The hammer may now be retrievedonly by finding some way to severthe cord and catch it, climbing up toit from below, or by waiting for theend of the spell.

Using a crystal and mirror or theruby glasses to focus the red-tintedsunlight burns the cord through and

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the hammer fa l l s to the inv is ib lefloor of area 279.

Once the heroes obtain the ham-mer, see the “Raging Ember” sectionat the end of this chapter.

286. Watch TowerThis three-story tower contains twobal l is tae and ammunit ion. Bunks,kegs of oil, and a gong are above. Awooden ladder leads up to the stee-ple.

287. Test of DeterminationW ind f i l ls th is room, moaning upfrom the shaft. Swaying in the windacross this pit is the remnant of arope bridge. Now only a single strandremains with several boards still at-tached. A hand-over-hand crossingrequires three successful Dexteritychecks. To tightrope walk, roll twosuccessful Dexterity checks (with a- 4 p e n a l t y t o D e x t e r i t y ) o r o n eclimb walls check (for rogues only)with a -20% penalty.

288. Robbers’ Trap

A fountain of flame is in the center ofthis room. Set in the wall is a doorwith a lever beside it.

This room is trapped to dispose ofrobbers. The trap is act ivated bymoving the lever or opening the door(it only opens outward). When acti-vated, a block of stone drops acrossthe doub le -doo r en t rance to t heroom, and the room’s ceiling beginsto drop, causing the flame to spreadout. It drops to head height in oneround and then descends one footper round. By the time the ceiling isfour feet from the floor, the flamefills the room. The ceiling stops twofeet above the floor and then risesone foot per round until it is at itsoriginal height of ten feet.

The flame causes 1d4 points ofdamage per round. Everyone in theroom suffers this damage while theceiling is four feet high or lower (a to-tal of four rounds).

The door with the lever is only afalse door. The exit from this room isa concealed stone panel.

289. Derkin’s Final Peace

In the center of this room is a bierholding the coffin of Derkin. The lidis carved to resemble Derkin. In thisroom are statues of servants and ag o l d e n a n v i l t h a t w e i g h s 8 0 0pounds. Several sealed chests holdresplendent garments and furs worth5,000 st l . On a stand is Derk in ’sgo lden p la te ma i l +3 , he lm, andshield with the avenging flame em-blem. The armor is cursed for anywho steal it—it becomes AC 10 at acritical moment in battle. Also hereis a two-handed bronze war axe +2and a ring of protection +2.

Raging EmberThis encounter occurs when the he-roes enter area 280 with the Hammerof Kharas (if the heroes avoid thisarea after obtaining the hammer, thisbattle occurs at any overlook theyenter or when they reach the ground.Adjust the circumstances of the fightaccordingly). If Evenstar is not withthe heroes, he is waiting for them asKharas. A shadow crosses his faceand he looks skyward. There on thetower’s cap perches Ember, the reddragon. Verminaard is not astr ideEmber. Evenstar shakes his head atthose who draw weapons.

In a voice that is a hissing roar, Em-ber speaks, “So Old One, you con-sort wi th my enemies! More, youhide behind their puny forms! Stepaside, they are mine! Nothing holdsback my claw now!”

Evenstar smiles, “Begone, child!Do not tempt my anger. Do you de-sire death so?”

Ember’s lips curl in a cruel snarl.“No, Old One! It is you who temptfate! 1 know the Oath; by the power ofyour word you are bound! Not eventhe terror of the dragonlance couldbind one so well. Come, Evenstar,show these puny mortals what com-pany they keep, or has the Councilstripped you of your pride too?”

The dwarf’s face clouds with an-ger; h is form swel ls, taking on agolden hue, stretching and growinguntil there stands a golden dragon.Ember laughs in derision. Evenstarturns to the heroes and tells themEmber is right, it may not interfere.

Ember bellows, “Prepare to die!”and takes flight. If needed, review thedragon rules in the Monstrous Com-pendium and Ember’s NPC Capsulein the Appendix. Ember does not at-tack Evenstar intentionally. It circlesand breathes, then claws and bites asit glides the next two rounds. Then itc l i m b s , b a n k s , a n d s w o o p s t obreathe again. Finally, it dives fordouble claw damage and then landsto fight and cast spells.

Evenstar does not help unless Em-ber causes Evens ta r damage o rharms any part of the tomb. If thishappens, Evenstar flies into a rageand attacks.

The hammer does not use its spe-cial abilities. If thrown off the tower,Evenstar has it after the fight.

If the heroes use the flagpole as aheavy lance (dmg 3d6) to set againstEmber’s dive, it causes double dam-age. Ember can avoid the lance if it isseen in time.

Evenstar suggests that the lancebe used if the heroes do not think ofit.

When Ember is reduced to 5 orfewer hit points, it screams in a finaldeath cry, takes to the air, tries to flyaway, falters, and tumbles backwardonto the spike on the tower cap.

War horns sound from the valleybelow. The army approaches. Even-s t a r c o l l a p s e s a n d c h a n g e s t oKharas. He is aging and the tombtrembles. He speaks, “1 have com-pleted at last my fateful mission, andnow the end is upon me. Take thehammer—let it not fall into the ene-my’s hands! Flee to the Thanes andfail not.”

He encourages Arman to guardthe hammer and fulfill his destiny. Hegives the heroes six horse statuettes.T h e y a r e t o t h r o w t h e s e t o t h eground and cry “Branchala GuideMe!” The statuettes become livinghorses for three turns (move 24), andcan be used three times.

As the heroes mount to flee, a rau-cous screeching is heard. Six youngdragons, Ember’s brood, are headingfor the tomb. If the horses have beenactivated, they rear and then leap offthe side of the tomb. Any riders mustroll Dexterity checks; failure meansthat the hero is hanging from the sad-

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dle. At the last moment, the horsesfeather fall gently to the ground.

Behind, the fledglings circle thetower in confusion. The tomb shud-de rs , c rumb l ing , un t i l t he sp i kebreaks, tossing Ember’s broken formearthward. Then the tomb s lowlysinks.

The army starts a mile away fromthe party, but it moves a mile a turn.The heroes must flee or be captured.

As the heroes near the GuardianHall out of the Valley of the Thanes,shadows glide past as a party of eightKapak dragonmen drop f rom thecliff top. From the mouth of the tun-nel rides a Bozak astride a subterra-nean lizard.

EventsEvent #5: EscapeThis event takes place immediatelyafter the heroes leave Derkin’s Tomb.

As the great tomb crumbles, yousee the mass of the approachingDragonarmy giv ing chase. Yourhorses gallop away, but your pur-suers grow ever closer!

There is a 10% chance per turn that ascouting patrol of eight Baaz dracon-ians comes within 1d6 x 10 yards ofthe heroes and charges to the attack.

Remember that the magical steedslast for only three turns, and thatthey can be regenerated only twice.Then the heroes must proceed onfoot. The Dragonarmy has occupiedmost of the Valley of the Thanes. Dra-conians swarm over the northwest-e rn par ts o f the va l ley ; the on lyescape route for the heroes is in thedirection of the Guardian Hall lead-ing to the Ninth Road of Thanes.

The Gateway block leading intothe Great Hall block to this road iscracked and broken. Regardless of

scouts encountered, the main bodyof the Dragonarmy is ten rounds be-hind the heroes. If not delayed, thearmy pursues the heroes onto theNinth Road of the Thanes. This in-creases the f requency of randomencounters in these tunnels to onecheck every two rounds.

In describing the Great Hall, notethat the roof is supported by pillarsthat are cracked and fragile. Pullingdown a pillar takes one round of tug-ging by a combined Strength of 45. Ifthree pi l lars are pul led down, theceiling collapses. It takes the Drag-onarmy six turns to dig through andresume pursuit.

Event #6: The Hunt

Th is reg ion i s con t ro l l ed by theDaergar k ingdom, current ly a l l iedwith the Theiwar and wi th Vermi-naard. In addition to normal randomencounters, check three times (need-ing a 1 on 1d6) to see if the partyencounters a Daergar patrol, consist-ing of 12 Daergar. The patrol alwaysbegins 1d6 x 10 yards behind the he-roes. If encountered, the patrol giveschase.

If a Daergar patrol attacks, eachturn there is a 10% chance that anidentical patrol joins the hunt.

EncountersT h e S o u t h H a l l o f J u s t i c e o n c eserved a role similar to that of theNorth Hall, but it is now controlled bythe Daergar. It is also occupied byVerminaard and his forces. Once theheroes have entered the Ninth Roadof Thanes from the Guardian Hall,the only route leads to the SouthHall. This is a very critical part of theadventure, and it must be carefullyrun.

The enemy forces should be in hotpursuit of the adventurers. Empha-size the urgent nature of their flightfrom the Theiwar and the Dragon-army. If the heroes are cornered atany point , the enemy wi l l cal l forthem to surrender. If the heroes sur-render , t hey a re esco r ted underheavy guard to the Temple of Stars(encounter 299). Their weapons aretaken from them, but they are notbound.

If the heroes are not captured, theyshould end up in the Prison (encoun-

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ter 290), where they meet Eben andBerem. From there, Eben shouldurge them to go north to leave thiscomplex. They must enter the Tem-ple of Stars to escape, and there thefinal scene takes place.

290. Prisoners of theDaergar

As soon as the heroes cross the draw-bridge in the King’s Wall, they hearterrible cries coming from the nextblock. The next block is a dwarvenprison guarded by 20 Daergar, whoare outside the cell area. Once theDaergar are defeated, entering thecell complex is easy.

There are 100 prisoners held here,but only 20 Hylar, ten men, and fivekender are in shape to fight. Therea re enough Dae rga r weapons toequip all fighters.

Eben is found in one of the cells,along with an old man. Eben is veryglad to see the party; he says that af-ter the heroes left on the quest, therewas a raid on the Hylar city and hewas kidnapped by Daergar. Eben’sclothes are torn and he has bruises,but he is not actually hurt. The otherp r i s o n e r s c o n f i r m t h a t h e w a sbrought into the prison by Theiwarguards, beaten, and thrown into thecell. In fact, Eben is here only to leadthe party to Verminaard so that theDragon Highlord can recover thehammer of Kharas. Verminaard ar-r a n g e d E b e n ’ s p l a c e m e n t h e r ethrough his puppet, Realgar.

Eben says he saw the Daergarcommander ’s maps and th inks hecan find the way out of the kingdom.If permitted to guide the party, heleads them to the final encounter in aroundabout fashion.

The old man in Eben’s cell hasforgotten how to talk and is slow tounderstand. He has evidently beenhere for a very long time; his beardand hair are waist- length and hisclothes are in tatters. His long beardconceals a strange gem implanted inhis chest. This is Berem Everman(see the NPC Capsules). He followsthe party until the next fight. At thattime, regardless of dice rolls, he suf-fers an evidently mortal wound andfalls to the ground. When the party

moves on, one of the heroes looksback and sees Berem stand, lookconfused, and run off in another di-rection.

After the prisoners are freed, noenemies appear for ten rounds. Theheroes can follow Eben, who claimsto know the way out, f ind anotherway out, or stand and fight. Vermi-naard has ordered his forces to cap-ture the heroes alive. If captured, theheroes are brought to the Temple ofthe Stars (encounter 299). If the he-roes retreat or follow Eben, the en-emy forces them in the direction ofencounter 299.

291. Invasion of the Daergar

Enemy t roops have en te red theSouth Hall of Justice through theSeventeenth Road of Thanes. Wher-ever this encounter occurs, a party of25 Theiwar, 25 Baaz draconians, anda Kapak draconian riding a subterra-nean lizard attacks the party. Theirobjective is to capture the PCs or toforce them into the prison cell block(encounter 290).

Special EncountersThe following special encounters cantake place anywhere in the SouthHall complex. You may use some,none, or all of these to help guide theadventure. Normal random encoun-ters can be used in addition to or instead of these encounters.

292. Warning

Impaled on a staff is a grotesque,tusked skull. There is a 50% chancethat there is a spiked spring trap hid-den here (2d6 points of damage).

Each turn after the heroes pass,there is a 10% chance of a magicmouth shouting, “Intruders!”

293. Bonemaster

This rogue dwarf has a few assistantsgnawing bones clean. He designsweapons, armor, and tools from thebones. He is able to animate bones;the re a re 20 The iwar ske le tonsnearby. He uses the skeletons and hishelpers to cover his escape.

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294. Cricketherds

Here, a group of six Daergar tendtheir herd—20 giant cave cricketsgrazing on fungi and garbage. Theirsudden chirping has a 2 in 6 chanceof drawing a random encounter.

295. Curtained Alcove

As the party passes through th isblock, they see a curtained alcove offto one side. Inside is a pretty lady,dressed in rags, chained to the wall.(She is really a lamia noble. Oops.)

296. Survival of the Fittest

The heroes can slip by if they movequietly. If there is a commotion, themonsters turn on the party.

297. Petrified Remains

Here are the petrified remains of amastodon. I f t h e b o n e m a s t e r(encounter 293) has fo l lowed thepar ty , he an imates the ske le ton ,which cannot be turned whi le thebonemaster is alive. (HD 13, hp 52,AC 4, THAC0 8, AT 2d8(x2)/2d6(x2))

The Final BattleThis is the climax of the first book ofthe DRAGONLANCE® saga. Readthe following section carefully. Al-though this s i tuat ion is extremelydangerous, it can be survived, if theheroes think and act intel l igent ly.There is a lot of role-playing here; tryto understand the needs and objec-tives of all the NPCs before begin-ning play.

298. Doorway to Despair

If none of the PCs experienced thefull dream of event #2 and #3, elimi-nate the deja vu aspects of the follow-ing description, but try to give theplayers a feeling of dread nonethe-less.

No matter which way the heroescome upon the final encounter, theyf i nd themse lves head ing down astrangely familiar corridor. . . .

The way ahead of you dims, as ifthe light of your torches and lan-

terns is being sucked up by thegr im dwarven ha l l s . Your su r -roundings take on the feeling of adream, as if you are sleepwalking.An awful feeling of deja vu creepsup into your soul . . . for you werehere once before, in a dream.

Memories of your nightmare inthe Mind of Evil flood back, for thecorridor stretching into the nextdwarven block is the corridor inyour dream!

If characters try to go in another di-rect ion, they encounter part ies ofDaergar and draconians that fight toeither capture them or force theminto the final encounter.

299. The Final Battle

This encounter takes place in theTemple of Stars (City Block 12). Re-view the map block carefully to placeall the participants in it. In locations2 and 4, the ceiling has caved in,b locking the passage so that theparty must enter the main templearea (center of block).

If the party was captured previ-ously, they are brought into this cen-tral area. Their weapons are pilednearby. If the party did not releaseEben from the prison, he is broughtin to stand by Verminaard, appar-ently a prisoner too.

The great hall north is barred by alocked golden gate. Suddenly, theface of Verminaard, ten feet tall,appears in mid-air , and a tele-pathic voice booms in your heads.“Finally! You are mine!” The doorsfling open and nearly 200 Daergarrush in, weapons at the ready.

Verminaard laughs. “So nowyou know what l ies beyond thedoorway of dreams. Nothing cansave you now!”

A horn sounds from behind thegolden gates and the image fades.The Daergar cower as a light mag-ically shines on the gates. Sud-denly, the gates are flung open. Aparty of four warriors, four dracon-ians, two ogres, and an ettin, allwearing the uniforms of officers in

the army of the Dragon Highlordenter. They part, and from behindthem strides Verminaard, clothedin black armor. He steps up onto abalcony over the central pit, andlaughs with sinister joy. “Welcometo despair!” he shouts.

In addition to all items and spells inVerminaard’s NPC Capsule, he wearsa ring of protection +3, a ring of pro-tection vs. normal missiles, and abrooch of shielding. He has cast resistfire on himself. If the heroes attemptto a t t ack , he sh rugs i t o f f . TheDaergar fire a flight of darts to warnthe heroes.

If the heroes entered the Mind ofEvil in events #2 and #3, have themreview their dream cards and remindthem of the details of shifting andchanging to become more and morelike the dream. Sturm and Lauranafee l tha t th i s i s no t where the i rdreams took place.

Verminaard speaks again. “Wordhas reached me that Ember hasbeen slain! For that you will paydearly! You thought to best me bygaining the hammer of Kharas, butI was in control all along. I permit-ted you to retrieve what I couldnot. Now I have you and the ham-mer, and with it I shall commandthe dwarven kingdoms. To showyou how fu t i l e has been you rstruggle, one of your own wi l lbring the hammer to me.”

His gaze sweeps over the party mem-bers. Ask each player in turn if he willvoluntarily take the hammer to Ver-m i n a a r d . I f a l l r e f u s e ( a s t h e yshould), Eben Shatterstone revealshimself as the traitor. Take Eben’scharacter card back from the playerwho has been running him and haveEben tell the party that, indeed, heworks for Verminaard. If Eben is notwith the party, Verminaard can at-tempt to telepathically control any-one with a Wisdom of 10 or less. Theperson he attempts to control gets asaving throw vs. spell to resist. If allresist, Verminaard has his personalguard retrieve the hammer.

At this point, remember the spe-cial powers of the hammer of Kharas(see Magical Items in the Appendix).It can possess its wielder and person-ally act to make events come out toits satisfaction. Give the players achance to save themselves, but ifthey fail, the hammer can take an ac-tive role.

Verminaard laughs as the hammerof Kharas is taken from you. Thehammer-wielder says to you, “Youare fools to resist my master! Hewill reward me richly; you will seeyour folly when 1 am made gover-nor of this land!”

“Ho ld you r tongue , l ackey , ”snarls Verminaard. “You are sim-ply a pawn, and you will serve yourbetters! Bring me the hammer!”

The traitor is outraged and protests,but Verminaard exerts his will andthe unwilling lackey moves closer toVerminaard. But as he reaches theDragon Highlord, the hammer sud-denly begins to glow. The Daergarare awed and fall to their knees. Thetraitor passes from the influence ofVerminaard to the influence of thehammer.

Verminaard is livid at the disobedi-ence, and he demands again that thetraitor bring him the weapon. But thetraitor is fully under the hammer’scontrol, and says, “With this ham-mer, 1 control the dwarven realms,not you!” He throws the hammer atVerminaard, automatical ly hi t t ingfor maximum damage. The hammerrebounds and lands at the edge of thepit. The Daergar begin to chant thename of the traitor as he bends topick up the hammer.

But at that moment, Verminaardcasts spiritual hammer, hitting thetrai tor automatical ly for maximumdamage, and keeps him from retriev-ing the hammer. Each round there-after, Verminaard strikes again formaximum damage, slowly crushingthe hapless traitor.

Battle RoyaleNow the heroes have a chance tobreak free. There is one Theiwar foreach hero in the party; they must be

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yet over!” he cries. But when he liftsthe hammer, he cries out in pain andsuffers 15 points of damage. He can-not hold the hammer and fl ings itaway. Verminaard continues to fight,but when he is down to his last few hitpoints, he says, “You shall not havethe satisfaction of taking me alive,”wraps his cloak around himself, andsteps into the pit, falling to his deathwithout a sound.

Once Verm inaard i s dead , theDaergar flee and Verminaard’s guardsuffers -1 penalties to their attackr o l l s , d a m a g e r o l l s , a n d s a v i n gthrows.

Death of a Hero

Regardless of actual battle events,Arman Kharas receives a fatal woundin this fight. As the final enemies fleeor die, a faint whisper is heard fromthe crumpled form of Arman. Thereis no saving him; he seems to havebeen poisoned.

If the heroes attempt to aid him, heshakes his head and says, “No, I amundone. No aid will save me. Takethe hammer to my father; he will un-i f y t he k ingdom. Te l l h im no t t omourn, I have served the Wheel well.I know I am not Kharas, but I havedriven the darkness back.”

And with his final words, he dies.

overcome before the heroes can re-cover their weapons, i f they werecaptured earlier.

The Daergar soldiers are only con-cerned with who possesses the ham-mer. Its influence keeps them frombeing active in the battle. If the he-roes liberated the prisoners earlier,the prisoners fight an equal numberof Daergar. The heroes must defeatVerminaard’s guard and the DragonHighlord himself to win.

Once the traitor is dead, Vermi-naard tears a dragon-headed neck-l a c e f r o m a r o u n d h i s n e c k a n dthrows it into the pit, crying, “Come,oh mighty Queen! Send me your ser-v a n t s o t h a t y o u r c h i l d m a y b eavenged!” Silence follows, and thenf r o m t h e p i t a r i s e s a h o r r o r — afireshadow! The fireshadow resem-bles a wraith-like dragon outlined bypale green fire.

The fireshadow first attacks one ofthe prisoners with its ray of oblivion,disintegrating him. Next, it strikes aDaergar, converting him into darkflame. The heroes must defeat thef i r e s h a d o w a n d t h e d a r k f l a m eDaergar, in addition to their otherfoes.

If the heroes do not think to re-trieve the hammer and use it againstthe fireshadow, it glows and ringsout. The hammer allows only Eben,Arman, Tasslehoff, Flint, or Cara-mon to pick it up. The fireshadow au-t o m a t i c a l l y a t t a c k s a n y p e r s o nholding the hammer. The hammercan dispel the fireshadow if it hits thecreature. The hammer arcs throughthe monster and it fades away, butthen the hammer fa l l s a t Vermi -naard’s feet.

If the heroes entered the Mind ofEvil in their dreams, suddenly theysense the mind of El is tan amongthem. Hope floods into their souls,and they gain a +2 bonus to their at-tack and damage rolls and a -2 bo-nus to their ACs for the remainder ofth i s ba t t l e . Verminaard s taggersback under the mind of Elistan; hesuffers a -2 penalty to attack anddamage rolls and a +2 penalty to hisAC.

Verminaard , ree l i ng , s toops topick up the hammer. “You may thinkyou have won, but this battle is not

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EndgameIf the heroes fail to defeat Vermi-naard in the final battle, then theforces of darkness triumph. The he-roes almost certainly are captured.The hammer of Kharas falls into thehands of evil, and the Theiwar Thanetakes the throne of Thorbardin. Theforces of evil prevail. This concludesthe adventure in despair—thoughthe heroes may yet escape to fightagain.

If the heroes defeat Verminaardand recover the hammer of Kharas, aparty of Hylar dwarves led by Hornfelarrives shortly after Arman Kharas’sdeath. He asks the heroes to give himthe hammer.

If the heroes give Hornfel the ham-mer of Kharas, he hails them as thesaviors of Thorbardin, and he grantsthem and all their companions safepassage through the kingdom. Eachcharacter who survived is made anhonorary War Leader (equivalent to aknighthood) and a cit izen of Thor-bardin.

If the heroes refuse Hornfel’s re-quest, the hammer uses its powers totake over its wielder, who is forced tohand it to Hornfel. Hornfel treats theheroes the same as if they gave himthe hammer voluntarily.

It is vital that the hammer end upin the hands of Hornfel, for this is theonly device that can forgedragonlances. The players, of course,shou ld no t l ea rn th i s un t i l muchlater.

P o s s e s s i o n o f t h e h a m m e r o fKharas al lows Hornfel to declarehimself King of Thorbardin. As King,he can asser t au thor i t y over theTheiwar and Daergar, and once againo p e n T h o r b a r d i n t o t h e o u t s i d eworld.

Rescue of the RefugeesAt this point, determine how mucht ime remains before the Dragon-army reaches the refugee camp. Askthe players whether they want totravel quickly or slowly back to thecamp. Quick travel takes one dayf rom the Sou th Ha l l ; s low t rave ltakes two days. Do not tell the play-ers how much time is left!

If the Heroes Return TooLate

A vision out of nightmares greetsyou as you approach the refugeecamp. For where there were once800 living souls, now there is onlyd e a t h a n d d e s t r u c t i o n . M e n ,women, and children are strewnabout like rag dolls. The wagonsare smashed; the fragile lean-tosare burned. Mixed with the refu-gees are the r e m a i n s o fdraconians—the defenders of thecamp fought bravely to the enda n d t o o k m a n y e n e m i e s w i t hthem.

You have returned too late. TheDragonarmy has won yet anothervictory. Your quest to find safetyfo r t hese peop le has come tonaught . . . but the battle for Krynnis not yet over!

While in Dragonarmy-occupied terri-tory, the characters have an encoun-ter with eight Baaz draconians onceevery four game turns, in addition tonormal random encounters.

Twenty refugees led by Lauranamanaged to escape, carry ing thebody of Elistan. They make their wayto Northgate and are found there. El-istan revived shortly after the heroesdefeated Verminaard. He has told thestory of the final battle to the survi-vors.

Con t inue w i th the f i na l scenebelow—but the final feast is dimmedwith sorrow, and the ending of thissaga is not a happy one. Instead of re-maining at Southgate, the few surviv-ing refugees elect to accompany theheroes south to Tarsis.

Because the players failed in theirmission, they lose 50% of the experi-ence points they earned in this ad-venture.

If the Heroes Return in Time

As you app roach the re fugeecamp, a mighty cheer goes up.The survivors of Pax Tharkas arehappier than they have been inmany a day. Men, women, andchildren rush to greet you . . . and

a t the i r head i s E l i s tan , r i senagain.

Elistan lifts his hand, and thepeople fall silent. “Welcome!” hecr ies, and another great cheererupts from the crowd.

“We must leave quickly, ere theDragonarmy reaches our camp.But now that you are here, weknow that safety and freedom arenot far away.”

As the refugees quickly pack theirfew belongings, Elistan takes the he-roes aside. If the heroes entered theMind of Evil in events #2 and #3 inchapter 14, Elistan says, “Thank youfor bringing hope into the Mind ofEvil. Thanks to you, I was able tostave off the dark forces and attackVerminaard at the critical moment. Iw i tnessed your f i na l ba t t l e , thenawoke at the death of Verminaard tobring news of your victory to the peo-ple. We have awaited your coming,and now know that freedom is in ourgrasp.”

If the heroes did not enter the Mindof Evi l , El istan says, “ I was con-sumed by the darkness of Vermi-naard. My strength and faith werebarely enough to keep me free. ButVerminaard’s death freed me, and Iawoke to bring news of your victoryto our people. We have awaited yourcoming, and now know that freedomis at last in our grasp.”

Passage ThroughThorbardinThe survivors of the 800 refugees fol-low the characters into Northgateand through the long hal ls of thedwarven kingdom to Southgate, itssouthern exi t . (For mapping pur-poses , Sou thga te i s i den t i ca l t oNorthgate except for the compass di-rection.)

Hornfel, now wearing the crown ofthe High King, comes to Southgateto welcome the refugees. “We greetyou, the first humans to pass throughour kingdom in many centuries. Forthe courage of your leaders, and fortheir contribution to at last reunitingthe dwarves of Thorbardin, we arepleased to grant you the land outside

110

the Southgate as a refuge until dark-ness lifts from Krynn.”

The land is able to support the sur-viving refugees, and it will be a longt ime be fo re the Dragonarmy re -unites under another leader. For thetime being, the refugees are safe.The Council of Freedom elects to re-main here, while the heroes, accom-panied by Elistan, go south to theseaport of Tarsis to arrange passagefor the refugees to lands free of them e n a c e — i f , i n d e e d , s u c h l a n d sexist.

The characters should remain withthe refugees for a few weeks, to re-cover from their trials and receivethe level advancements they haveearned by t ra in ing w i th dwarvenmasters and rescued veterans.

If the characters saved the refu-gees, they each receive a bonus of1,000 experience points in additionto any other points earned in the ad-venture.

The heroes have several meetingswith Hornfel, and they attend the fu-neral of Arman Kharas. The dwarvesgladly furnish the heroes with what-ever suppl ies and equipment (nomagical items) they need for theirquest southward.

During this period, Riverwind andGoldmoon decide to marry. This isthe occasion for a great feast—the fi-nal event of this story.

The Wedding ofGoldmoon and Riverwind

Autumn warmth fills the glade oftrees. Behind you, the shadow ofthe great mountain looms. The

huge dwarven gate is open, a signof safety and refuge.

Everywhere there is peace andrejo ic ing. Chi ldren and parentsal ike dance in the glade’s sof tgrasses. Music fil ls the air. Thesunset is impossibly rich and bril-liant.

It is a time of peace and rejoic-ing, for th is is the marr iage ofGoldmoon and Riverwind. Cele-bration is in the air. And, as thesun sets, a line of dwarves, carry-ing torches, winds its way downf rom Sou thga te t o a t t end thefeast. Elistan calls the people to-gether.

The Wedding Song (in the Appendix)was written for the feast of this mar-riage. You can perform it or read italoud. Elistan conducts the weddingservice, and when the two are joined,shouts of jubilation are everywhere.The feast lasts long into the night.And late, around the campfire, theCant ic le of the Dragon may onceagain be recited.

The Story Ends. . .

Late at night, you join your com-panions on a ridge, looking south.The plains of Tarsis stretch to thef lat hor izon. Somewhere to thesouth the shining city of Tarsiss tands , somewhere i t s towersgleam in the sunshine, and i tsships set sail for lands free of tyr-anny.

Verminaard is dead, but soonanother Dragon Highlord will arise

to take his place. The first battlehas been won, but the war con-tinues.

Perhaps in Tarsis answers canbe found. Why have dragons re-t u rned t o K rynn? Wha t i s t hepower of the Dragon Highlords?How can they be defeated?

And somewhere in the world isthe key to the dragonlance—for ifthe hammer of Kharas was nomyth, then the dragonlance mayalso exist. If they can be found,perhaps the tide can be turned,and you can take back the stolennorthlands.

Here ends the f i r s t book o f t heDRAGONLANCE® saga. Knowledgeof the true gods has returned to trou-bled Krynn, and wi th knowledge,hope.

The second book of theDRAGONLANCE epic tells of the he-roes’ role in the Great War, and of thediscovery of the dragonlances. Manyold mysteries are solved, but newones arise.

In the third book of the saga, it isshown how the will of one man canchange the fate of the wor ld—forgood or ill— and reveals the finalmysteries and fate of the dragons ofKrynn.

111

Dream Card—SturmFierce draconian warriors attack, and you are consumed withbattle-lust! You draw your sword and strike about you, cuttingdown your enemies.

Great elation fills your heart as you see Kitiara, the great loveof your life, fighting at your side! You know that you are unbeat-able, and that victory is in your grasp.

You realize suddenly that if you strike the golden lock withyour sword, Elistan will be freed and Verminaard forever de-stroyed. But you must act now, for Verminaard is moving to takeElistan with him into the darkness!

As you lunge forward, you hear Kitiara cry for help. You turnand see her sorely beset by draconians. Without your help, it isobvious she will die. You hesitate, torn between your duty andyour love.

At that moment, a draconian drives a spear deep into yourchest. Your last, blood-dimmed sight is of Kitiara dying at thehands of the draconians.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Resewed.

Dream Card—GoldmoonOut of the darkness come fierce warriors-members of yourown Que-Shu tribe, murdered by draconians! You see their ex-pressionless faces, and you realize that they are lost to evil.

You fight because you must, but tears run down your cheeksas you cut down people you loved dearly. Despair, guilt, and hor-ror oppress your soul. Yet you fight on. Around you, your com-rades die, one by one. You feel that the True Gods haveabandoned you.

Suddenly you know what you must do. You step forward, andwith a mighty blow shatter the glass case. Elistan steps out,looks at you and then at Verminaard. His eyes become cold, ex-pressionless. You scream, and reach your hand out to him, ig-noring the blows that fall upon you. Elistan reaches down toyou, grabs the amulet around your neck, and tears it from you.

You collapse, weak and bleeding from the sword-thrusts inyour body. As you die, you see Elistan’s white robes turn to scar-let as he disappears into the void with Verminaard.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Resewed.

Dream Card—RiverwindOut of the darkness come fierce warriors-members of yourown Que-Shu tribe, murdered by draconians! You see their ex-pressionless faces, and you realize that they are lost to evil.

You fight because you must, but tears run down your cheeksas you cut down people you loved dearly. Despair, guilt, and hor-ror oppress your soul. Yet you fight on. Around you, your com-rades die, one by one.

You see Goldmoon before you, fighting to reach Elistan asyour own tribesmen stab her. You are bleeding from your manywounds, yet you shrug off the pain and fight your way towardGoldmoon.

Your legs and arms grow strangely heavy, and you can’t seemto get closer to Goldmoon, no matter how hard you try. Despairand anguish stab into your heart as you see her fall, mortallywounded by her own tribesmen.©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Dream Card—SturmFierce draconian warriors attack, and you are consumed withbattle-lust! You draw your sword and strike about you, cuttingdown your enemies.

Great elation fills your heart as you cut down the draconianssurrounding you. You look around to see where you are needed.Magically, a wall rises before you, and you hear guards cryingthat the draconians are preparing to breach the wall. A hugeblue dragon appears in mid-air, demoralizing all who face it. Youknow that you are the only one who can defeat the dragon. Youstart toward the wall as trumpets sound the retreat.

But you cannot go forward. Fear such as you have neverknown stabs into your heart. You know that if you confront thismonster you will die.

You turn away, shaking and ashamed. Behind you, the wall isbreached and the draconian hordes pour through. The dragonlands.

You do not resist as you are trampled by hordes of draconianspouring through the battlements. Bitterly despairing, you die acoward.©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Dream Card—LauranaFierce draconian warriors attack, and you are consumed withbattle-lust! You draw your sword and strike about you, cuttingdown your enemies.

But the draconian hordes are endless, and around you there isdeath. Sturm falls beside you, draconians hacking at his body.You look around and see the horror. You falter.

Voices shout at you, asking you what to do. Another voicecries for you to take command. Everyone’s eyes are on you; ev-eryone is yelling your name, calling for help.

But you don’t want to help. You want to be told what to do. Youwant to be helped. Finally, you can’t stand it any more. Youthrow down your weapons and run out of the room into the dark-ness. You run farther, only to find that the darkness grows . . .and you cannot stop running.©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Resewed.

Dream Card—Tika, Gilthanas, and other Warriors

Fierce draconian warriors attack, and you are consumed withbattle-lust! You draw your sword and strike about you, cuttingdown your enemies.

You are determined to prove yourself in this battle, yet thingsstart to go wrong. You stumble and accidentally trip Sturm, whofalls under the flashing blades of the draconians. You jostleRaistlin just as he is about to unleash a spell. Your friends areyelling at you to get out of the way, to leave them alone.

Panicked, you look around. Enemies you thought you killedare standing up and attacking. Soon you are fighting throughtears of frustration.

You fight on, stubbornly, but your mistakes get worse andworse. Suddenly, you see a huge, armored back—a draconian!You stab deeply, and your aim is true. You wipe tears from youreyes, and, too late, realize that you have stabbed Caramon!

You drop your sword and do not resist as the draconians stabyou. You die, falling across Caramon’s body.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

112

Dream Card—Tasslehoff and other RoguesSuddenly, battle rages all about you as draconian hordes attack!Your companions can take care of these monsters—only youcan free Elistan! Carefully, you make your way to the crystalcage, and inspect the small golden lock. What luck! The lock ischildishly simple.

You pull out a lockpick and go to work. But the lock doesn’tyield. You try again, but you find that this simple lock resistsyour best techniques. You hear the sounds of combat behindyou, and see your friends begin to die under the onslaught of thedraconians.

You know that you can stop the slaughter if you can just openthis simple, simple lock! Your hands begin to bleed from tearingat the lock in bitter frustration.

Finally, ignoring your better judgment, you try to force thelock open, but you trigger a very simple trap you knew was thereall along. As the small, poisoned needle enters your hand, yourealize that your quest is doomed. As the poison coursesthrough your body, you know that this is the end.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Resewed.

Dream Card—Raistlin and other WizardsA horde of draconians attack, but you know that your spells willprotect you. The magic has never been more strong within you,and you know that today you are capable of feats far beyondwhat you thought possible. Victory is at hand!

Suddenly, you have a vision of yourself dressed in blackrobes, feared and respected, rich and powerful. Before you,opened, is the Book of the Magius, in which all the knowledge ofmages throughout time is contained. All you have to do is walkthrough a door in front of you. You look at your companions,and then at the book. How pitiful they look; how doomed!

Without another glance, you stride through the door, noticingas you do so that your red robes turn black.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Dream Card—CaramonFierce draconian warriors attack, and you are consumed withbattle-lust! You draw your sword and strike about you, cuttingdown your enemies.

You stand together with your brother Raistlin. His magic pro-tects you as you slay enemies all around you.

You are fearless in your attack, but see your friends, one byone, overwhelmed by the draconian hordes. Yet you stand, andyou and Raistlin are able to move toward the caged Elistan.

But suddenly the magical spell protecting you dissipates! Youturn to see Raistlin, now dressed in black robes, leaving you forVerminaard. Your beloved brother has abandoned you, and youare bereft. You call his name, but a fierce pain in your back re-minds you of the battle.

You have been stabbed in the back, and you cannot see yourkiller. You pitch forward, dying: your last thoughts are of yourbrother, forever lost to evil.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Resewed.

Dream Card—FlintVerminaard signals, and a horde of mountain dwarves—yoursworn enemies—rushes to the attack. The battle-lust sings inyour heart as you realize that your revenge is at hand!

But there seems to be an infinite supply of the foul creatures,and you and your fellows are slowly overwhelmed. “I led theminto this fate,” you think. “I am the oldest and thus responsible.”Despair and guilt enter your heart as you see your dearestfriends perish at the hands of your enemies. There Tasslehoffdies, trying to rescue Elistan; there Tanis dies: there Caramondies.

All is hopeless. You keep fighting, now much weaker, as themountain dwarves continue their assault. You hardly feel theaxes cutting into your body. The loss of blood makes youweaker, and finally you fall. Your last thoughts are of yourfriends.©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Dream Card—Priests except GoldmoonA horde of draconians attacks at Verminaard’s signal. You callon the True Gods for support, then lay about you, hoping to de-stroy as many of the vermin as possible.

The draconians continue to attack, no matter how many arekilled. Despair enters your heart as you realize that you and yourcompanions cannot survive.

Suddenly you know what you must do. You step forward, andwith a mighty blow shatter the glass case. Elistan steps out,looks at you and then at Verminaard. His eyes become cold, ex-pressionless. You scream, and you reach your hand out to him,ignoring the blows that fall upon you. Elistan reaches down toyou, grabs the amulet around your neck, and tears it from you.

You collapse, weak and bleeding from the sword-thrusts inyour body. As you die, you see Elistan’s white robes turn to scar-let as he disappears into the void with Verminaard.©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

113

DRAGONLANCE® logo

Supplemental Character Cards

tika Waylan 5th-Level Human Fighter gilthanas 5th-Level Elf Fighter/4th-Level Mage

(3rd-Level Thief)STR 12 D E X 16 CON 12 T H A C 0 16

I N T 14 WIS 10 C H R 13 AL CG HP 26

AC 2 (Chain mail, shield, Dex bonus)

Weapons Long sword +1

Long bow, 20 arrows

Equipment Selected by player

Languages Qualinesti Elf, Silvanesti Elf,

Common

Spell Use 3 1st-Level and

2 2nd-Level per day

See the back of this card for more information.

Laurana�NPC 4th-Level E l f F ighter Eben Shatterstone�NPC 5th-LevelHuman Fighter

STR 14 D E X 13 CON 8 T H A C 0 16

I N T 15 W I S 7 C H R 15 AL CN HP 28

AC 4 (Chain mail and shield)

Weapons Long sword

Dagger

Equipment Selected by player

Languages Common

See the back of this card for more information.

CUT OUT CARDS

STR 14 D E X 16 CON 13 T H A C 0 16

INT 9 W I S 12 C H R 14 AL NG HP 30

AC 8 (Leather armor)

Weapons Short sword

Dagger

Frying pan (1d8)

Equipment Selected by player

Languages Common, Plainsman

See the back of this card for more information.

STR 13 DEX 17 CON 14 THAC0 17

INT 15 WIS 12 CHR 16 AL CG HP 28

AC 0 (Chain mail +1, shield, Dex bonus)

Weapon Short sword

Equipment Selected by player

Languages Common, Qualinesti Elf,

Silvanesti Elf

See the back of this card for more information.

Elistan�NPC 7th-Level Human Pr ies t

STR 13 D E X 12 CON 12 T H A C 0 16

INT 14 W I S 17 C H R 16 AL LG HP 40

AC 5 (Chain mail)

Weapon W ar hammer

Equipment Selected by player

Languages Common, Seeker, Qualinesti

E l f

Spell Use None until Medallion of Faith

gained

See the back of this card for more information.

Gilthanas appears young, but his eyes reveal his true matu-rity. He moves nimbly and quietly.

He is the brother of Laurana and Porthios, and he is theson of the Speaker of Suns. He is unsure of the wisdom ofTanis and Laurana’s relationship.

Gilthanas served as a messenger and spy in the occu-pied lands. While in Solace, he was captured by dracon-ians, along with the other heroes. After their rescue byelves, Gilthanas elected to accompany the heroes in theirdesperate mission to free the captives from Pax Tharkas.

Eben Shatterstone was born to wealth and comfort. Hisfather, a minor noble, sent Eben to the finest teachers.Eben grew to be a handsome, charming, and proud man.

But the family wealth was lost through poor manage-ment, excessive taxes, and bad luck. Eben was forced tobecome a wandering adventurer. He is proud of his pastand ashamed of his current condition. He longs for wealthand the chance to rebuild his family’s fortune.

Eben is charming and friendly, but he tends to dominateconversations. He is a capable fighter, but he does not hesi-tate to run if the odds aren’t in his favor.

Tika is the daughter of a thief. She grew up fast and tough,but inside she remains vulnerable. At the age of 15, shetried to rob Otik Sandath, owner of the Inn of the LastHome, but she was caught in the act. Otik felt sorry for herand offered her a job, which she eagerly accepted. Shegrew to love Otik as a father.

Tika looks older and seems more worldly than she trulyis. Her father left her a ring, which she wears on a necklace;it doesn’t seem to be magical, she just keeps it for senti-mental reasons. She hates the Dragonarmy and the loath-some draconians. She is fond of Caramon and fascinatedby magic.

Laurana is the daughter of the Speaker of Suns and sisterto Gilthanas and Porthios. She has been spoiled all her life,both for her royal lineage and her beauty. Her heart isgood, though. She is used to getting her own way, but shecan be diplomatic when she has to.

In childhood, she and Tanis were “pledged,” though shetook this more seriously than he.

Although Laurana is immature, she possesses great in-ner strength. It remains to be seen whether trials and dan-ger will destroy her or forge her into a person to bereckoned with.

Elistan was once a Seeker priest and worshiped false gods.When the Dragonarmy took Haven, he was captured andbrought to Pax Tharkas. There he met Goldmoon, a fellowprisoner. When she used magic that had not been seen forcenturies, Elistan realized that her gods were the trueones.

He refused to join Verminaard’s cause, and he sufferedgreatly for it. Then he was rescued along with the refugeesof Pax Tharkas. Goldmoon shared with him the knowledgeof the True Gods and he became a cleric of Paladine, thehighest god of good.

Elistan now devotes his life to the service of Paladineand the welfare of his people. Although a man of peace, hefights to defend his people.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Resewed.

VerminaardDragon Highlord8th-Level Lawful Evil Cleric

Strength 14 Intelligence 12Dexterity 10 Wisdom 16Constitution 15 Charisma 18THAC0 16 Hit Points 50AC 1 Movement 12

Spells:

1 st Level: cause fear, cause light, wounds(x2), command (x2)2nd Level: hold person (x2), resist fire, si-lence 15 ft. radius, spiritual hammer3rd Level: cause blindness, dispel magic,prayer4th Level: cause serious wounds (x2)

Wears plate mail +2.Carries Nightbringer, a mace +2. On asuccessful hit, the victim must roll a suc-cessful saving throw vs. spell or beblinded for 2d6 turns (+4 penalty to AC,lose shield and Dexterity bonuses to AC).If a character of good alignment tries tohold Nightbringer, he must roll a success-ful saving throw vs. spell, with a -2 pen-alty, or be permanently blinded.

Verminaard’s face is concealed be-hind the grotesque mask of a DragonHighlord—a vicious, almost machine-like visor that has a pair of wickedhorns curving from the forehead. Hewears shiny blue plate mail and a bil-lowing blue cape. Standing well oversix feet tall, Verminaard presents animposing image of evil.

Verminaard is dedicated to the ruth-less destruction of good in all itsforms. No shred of conscience dis-turbs him in his quest for power.

He now controls all of the lands onthe Abanasinian peninsula from theSeeker kingdoms to the Plains of De-rgoth, and he works continually to ex-tend his power.

Ember (Pyros)Ancient, Huge Red DragonChaotic Evil Hit Points 88AC -7 Movement 9, Fl 30

(C)#AT 3 Damage 1d10+8/

1d10+8/3d10+8HD 17 THAC0 5Fire Breath Spell Use

Spells:

1st Level: sleep, detect magic2nd Level: web, mirror image3rd Level: haste

Fewmaster ToedeHobgoblin Subcommander4th-Level Lawful Evil Fighter

Strength 16Dexterity 10Constitution 16THAC0 17AC 8

intelligence 8Wisdom 11Charisma 6Hit Points 25Movement 12

Carries a short sword, dagger, and ashield. Wears leather armor.

Toede’s wispy, white hair tops a veryugly face. His speckled gray skin, dou-ble chins, and pot belly all resemblethose of a vicious little toad.

Toede is a bully. He snivels andwhines around superiors, but he is fullof bluster and threats when he has theupper hand. Like all bullies, he is cow-ardly, but he possesses a certain crudecunning which helps him to stay aliveand prosper.

Evenstar (T’holoth)Ancient, Huge Gold DragonLawful Good Hit Points 96AC -8 Movement 12, Fl 42

(C)#AT 3 Damage 1d10+8/

1d10+8/6d6+8HD 20 THAC0 5Fire & Gas Breath Spell Use

Spells:

Magical: 1st Level: dancing lights, grease2nd Level: pyrotechnics, stinking cloud3rd Level: phantasmal force, delude4th Level: fire charm, illusionary wall

Priest: 1st Level: cure light wounds

T’holoth was exiled by his people forspeaking out against an oath sworn byall good dragons after the Cataclysm.His punishment was to serve as theguardian of the hammer of Kharas un-til an ancient prophecy was fulfilled:

“When the power of the gods re-turns, then shall the hammer go forth toforge once again the freedom ofKrynn.”

He was forced to swear to the oathhe despised, then banished to the Ka-lil S’rith (Valley of the Thanes) toguard the tomb of Derkin, whereKharas and the hammer were buriedafter the Dwarfgate Wars.

T’holoth took the name of Evenstarin his exile, since his light wasdimmed by banishment from his fel-lows.

Evenstar arrived to find the tombdefenseless. Using the knowledge ofhis kind, he wrested the tomb moundfrom the earth and set it in the sky. Hethen crafted defenses—some magicaland some mundane—and filled thetomb with peril.

In his loneliness, Evenstar used hismagic to create life, beauty, and laugh-ter to share the tomb with him. In hislonging, he adorned the castle withthose things which brought him joy.

Evenstar has the special ability topolymorph at will, and he changesshape frequently for pleasure. He of-ten changes into the form of Kharas,and he always does so whenever any-one enters the tomb searching for thehammer. Other forms he chooses in-clude a beautiful elven maiden namedSerinda, a galeb duhr, an eagle, apony-sized dog, an Aghar, and a pini-cus. If attacked by tomb robbers, heassumes the form of a wemic, but re-tains his gold dragon characteristics.

Evenstar, however, is not a fighter,but a poet and dreamer. He dischargeshis duty faithfully, testing all who seekthe hammer until he finds those withbravery and knowledge of the TrueGods. Then shall he be released, to re-turn to his own people.

Fizban the FabulousEccentric Mage, LevelUnknown

Fizban is a mage of indeterminatelevel. He appears to be senile, but wasobviously once a wizard of greatpower. He seems to lead a charmedlife. Although he always appears be-fuddled and absent-minded, thethings Fizban does always turn out forthe best—but never in the way ex-pected.

Play Fizban for comic relief—evento his apparent death, which happensin this adventure. His true nature andpurpose will be revealed in futureDRAGONLANCE® adventures.

116

Berem EvermanThe Hunter5th-Level Neutral Good Ranger

Strength 12 intelligence 15Dexterity 12 Wisdom 11Constitution 13 Charisma 13THAC0 16 Hit Points 37AC 10 Movement 12

Immune to all fire, acid, poison, magic,disease, and petrification. Automaticallyregenerates any form of damage at a rateof 1 hit point per round.

Berem has a long, white beard andlong, dirty hair. But beneath the con-cealing whiskers is the face of amiddle-aged man.

Imbedded in Berem’s chest, hiddenby his beard, is a dull gray stone thesize of a fist. It is this mysterious stonethat gives him his great recuperativepowers and makes him immortal.

Berem is nearly 400 years old, buthe has been imprisoned away fromthe world for so long that he hasforgotten how to speak. Only slowlydoes his speech return.

Berem serves a larger purpose inthe great scheme of things. For now,he should remain a mystery.

Arman Kharas7th-Level Lawful Neutral Dwarf Fighter

Strength 16 Intelligence 11Dexterity 10 Wisdom 6Constitution 17 Charisma 9THAC0 14 Hit Points 69AC 2 Movement 6

Wears chain mail +2. Carries smallshield and footman’s mace. Also carriesa miner’s pack with 100 feet of rope,hammer and chisels, sand, 12 spikes, adiamond (10 stl), a water skin, and ironrations.

A coarse black beard falls to the mid-dle of Arman’s muscular chest. Abraid marking noble blood hangsfrom beneath a leather skullcap to theright of his troubled face. His featuresare worn, but the fire in his dark eyesshines brightly. His left hand is cal-loused and bruised and his thumb isscarred. Over his armor he wears aleather jerkin tied at his knees.

Arman Kharas is the son of Hornfel,

patriarch of the Kytil clan, Thane andprelate to the Hylar council. Fiercelyloyal to his people, Arman is a dwarfwith a vision and looks forward to theday when his people can return to thelight.

Even though his name means “sec-ond” or “lesser” Kharas, he believeshe is the true reincarnation of Kharas,greatest hero of the Hylar. He searchesfor a way he can prove his legacy andbecome the first King of Thorbardinin hundreds of years.

Thanes of ThorbardinOnce, a mighty king reigned over thenine dwarfrealms—now, the Council ofThanes rules Thorbardin. Six Thanes siton the Council: Hornfel of the Hylar,Realgar of the Theiwar, Rance of theDaergar, Gneiss of the Dawear, Tufa ofthe Klar, and Bluph of the Aghar. Threethrones have been taken from the Coun-cil Hall: the throne of the Neidar (7thKingdom), vacant since the DwarfgateWars; the throne of the Kingdom of theDead (8th Kingdom), which is consideredto be a kingdom though without repre-sentation; and the throne of the HighKing, vacant since the time of Derkin.

All the dwarfrealms agree that a strongking is needed, but none can agree onwhom it should be. The Hylar and theirallies seek a peaceful solution, but theTheiwar and their allies seek victory bywhatever means they can.

T h e p o l i t i c a l d i v i s i o n o f t h edwarfrealms is as follows: the Hylar arethe oldest, the leaders. The Daewar andAghar support them, and the Klar tend tofollow their lead. Against the Hylar arethe Theiwar and Daergar, both of the de-rro race. Recently, the Theiwar were con-tacted by agents of Verminaard, and anunholy alliance has sprung up betweenthe de r ro races and the DragonHighlords. Each side plans to double-cross the other at the first opportunity,but Realgar is unaware that Verminaardcan control him.

Hornfel, Thane and prelate of the Hy-lar, is the father of Arman Kharas, and isloved by his people. He is a cautiousleader and a veteran of wars. He is con-vinced that the days of dwarven isolationmust end, and that Thorbardin mustopen its doors to the outside.

Realgar, a derro savant, believes him-self destined to become King of Thor-bardin, and he pursues his goal with allavailable means. His alliance with Vermi-naard is only the latest vehicle for his am-bition. He wants the dwarves to become a

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power to be feared.Realgar has nine spells: affect normal

fires, blink, charm person, ESP invisibil-ity, paralyzation, repulsion, shadowmagic, and wall of fog. He also has a cloakof protection and a rod of beguiling.

Rance, War Chieftain and Thane of theDaergar, is an angry and vicious fighterwho plays dirty at every opportunity. Heis a dangerous dwarf, but his temper andlack of control keep him from being theleader he thinks he is. He has a fearsomewar club, encrusted with teeth, thatcauses double damage. His strength is18 (75).

Gneiss, leader of the Daewar, is a warchieftain who administers his realm witha professional hand. He is calm andsteady, but not an inspiring leader. Hispeople admire and respect him, but donot love him.

Tufa, Thane of the Klar, is a modest,though respected man. He rules the Klar,a tribe of hill dwarves inside Thorbardin.Since the war with the Neidar, the Klarare at the bottom of the dwarven castesystem, considered fit only for the mostmenial of work. He works to improve thelot of the Klar. He is allied with Hornfel,but does not wish the Klar to be puppetsof anyone.

Bluph, Thane and Highbluph of theAghar of Thorbardin, has great dignityand feels himself destined to be the firstAghar King of Thorbardin. Although ac-tually no less stupid than the averageAghar, Bluph is considered to be a ge-nius by his people. He is much-belovedand a great hero to the Aghar.

Blue Crystal Staff(The Crystal of Mishakal)

This staf f is carved from a singlepiece of blue crystal. It is about fivef e e t l o n g a n d h a s a t w o - i n c h -diameter shaft . The ornamental lybladed head of the staff bears a gemin its center.

Although Riverwind does not re-member, a manifestation of the god-dess Mishakal gave him the staff. It isan intelligent artifact of Lawful Goodalignment with an Ego of 10. It canbe used only by those of its align-ment; others who try to wield it suffer4d6 points of e lectr ical damage.(Though a Lawful Good person maythen wield the staff to heal the dam-age it caused.) The staff has the fol-lowing powers:

Strikes as a staff of striking (1d3charges per use)

Casts any of the following priestspells (two charges per level of spellcast):

1st Level: command, cure fightwounds, remove fear3rd Level: continual light, cureblindness, cure disease, removecurse5th Level: cure critical wounds,raise dead7th Level: restoration, resurrec-tion

Teleports (at its own discretion, us-ing 15 charges)

Deflects dragon breath in a 10’ ra-dius (10 charges per use)

The staff holds up to 20 charges at atime. It regains one charge per dayf rom the comb ined i n f l uences o fKrynn’s three moons, but it can be re-c h a r g e d i m m e d i a t e l y a n d c o m -pletely at the statue of Mishakal (area46b). Once the PCs complete thequest for the disks of Mishakal, thestaf f becomes part of the statueagain.

The Disks of MishakalThese are platinum disks 18 inchesin diameter. Each disk is 1/16 inchthick. There are 160 of these platesin all. A bolt passes through one sideof the plates, allowing each to swivelout and be viewed while keeping the

stack together. Each of the plates isengraved on both sides.

Anyone of Lawful or Neutral Goodalignment may examine the disks.Others suffer 4d6 points of damageeach time they try to touch or readthe disks.

Priests who read this book gainknowledge of the True Gods of good:Paladine (rulership), Majere (medita-tion and control), Kiri-Jolith (war andbattle), Mishakal (healing), Habba-kuk (seas and animals), and Bran-chala (elves, forests, and music).

Any pr iest who worships thesegods may receive spells as per stand-ard AD&D® game rules. The booktells how to worship these gods andgain true priest abilities.

The Hammer of KharasThe hammer of Kharas is a mighty ar-tifact. It is the only hammer that canforge a dragonlance, and it is impor-tant to the ultimate success of the he-roes. It is vital that this artifact notremain in the hands of the heroes! Itmust end up in the hands of Hornfel,Thane of the Hylar and father of Ar-man Kharas.

The hammer appears to be a warhammer +2, but twice normal size. Itcauses 2d4+2 points of damage on asuccessful hit. It cannot be lifted by aperson with a Strength of less than12, and anyone with a Strength ofless than 18/50 has a -2 penalty tohis attack roll.

The hammer acts as a mace of dis-

ruption against undead and creaturesfrom the netherworld. It turns un-dead as a 12th-level priest.

This artifact is intelligent (Int 11,Ego 11), and can control anyone whotouches it if their Intelligence andWisdom scores total less than 22.

It has the following special abili-ties, at 20th-level of magic use:

Detects evil as a paladin.Gives wielder immunity to fear,

both normal and magical.Cannot be affected by 1st- to 4th-

level magic.It can cast prayer once per day.It provides protection from normal

missiles once per day.It can act as a potion of fire giant

strength once per day.It can cure serious wounds once

per day.It can inspire magical awe in all

dwarves and derro.The hammer chooses when to acti-

vate any of its abilities.

Helm of Griffon ManeDiscovered by Tasslehoff in the ruinsof Xak Tsaroth, the helm was givento Flint. It is of dwarven make and fitsonly dwarves. It is decorated with ahorse’s mane. Since Flint has alwaysclaimed that he is allergic to horses,he insists that the mane is from a grif-fon.

The helm of griffon mane subtracts1 f rom the AC of any dwarf whowears it.

Medallion of FaithWhen this relic is first found, it isknown to have only one power: Tocreate another medal l ion when agood priest enters the worship of theTrue Gods.

It has other powers that are un-known to the PCs at first, but the DMmay revea l each when the needarises. A power may be revealedthrough divine guidance, a dream,an omen, or any other method theDM can think of.

Bless — Once per day.Protection, 10’ radius—Once per

day, lasts as long as the priest con-centrates.

Slow Poison — As long as the me-

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dallion is worn, it will sustain a poisonvictim in a semi-comatose state forup to one day.

Detect Evil — The medallion glowsa p a l e b l u e a n d c h i m e s w h e ntouched to an evil object or person.

Staff of MagiusThis item is useable only by mages.The first set of abilities is known tothe user automatically. The secondset may be discovered when castingcertain spells.

The staff functions as a ring of pro-tection +3. It can strike as a +2 mag-i c a l w e a p o n a n d c a u s e s 1 d 8 + 2points of damage. Once per day itcan invoke a feather fall and a contin-ual light spell.

In the hands of a mage of 6th levelor higher, the staff of Magius can en-hance spells cast by the mage. It dou-bles the duration of spells involvinglight, air, or mind influence. It main-tains spells that require concentra-tion for one round afterconcentration ends. It also adds +2points of damage per die to any spellcast.

Tika’s Ring

To Tika, this ring (worn on a neck-lace) is but a memento of her father.She has not yet discovered its trueuses. In times of stress, she slips onthe ring, asking her father for guid-ance. Unbeknownst to Tika, this acti-vates the ring.

This is both a ring ofprotection +2and a ring of fire resistance.

Wyrmslayer

This two-handed sword +1 causesdouble normal damage when usedagainst a dragon or draconian. It isimmune to the impr isoning ef fectthat occurs when a Baaz turns tostone. Whoever holds Wyrmslayer bythe hilt gains a +3 bonus to all sav-ing throws vs. breath weapons andagainst any spells cast by dragons ordraconians.

Wyrmslayer has a drawback, inthat it emits a loud buzzing noisewhen within 30 feet of a dragon (not ad racon ian ) . Th is buzz ing a lwayswakes a sleeping dragon.

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In addition to the set encounters andevents in this adventure, the follow-ing random encounters can occur atthe DM’s discretion. You can alter thefrequency i f you choose, or omitthem altogether if the party is seri-ously weakened. Properly run, ran-dom encounters can add flavor andexcitement to the game.

Use the following sets of tables toset up random encounters. Each setof tables is to be used with a certainpart of the adventure (listed accord-ing to chapter numbers). Within eachset of tables, Table 1 contains a list ofall the areas that might be exploredduring that part of the adventure.Next to each area is a column labeled“Check.” This shows how often youshould check to see i f a randomencounter occurs in that area. Forexample, “1/3 Hours” means thatyou should roll a random encountercheck once every three game hourswhen in that area. Roll 1d10; if the re-sult is a 1, a random encounter takesplace.

Next look under the column la-beled “Range.” Roll the die listed andadd the modifier (if any) beside it.Then look on Table 2 to find the ran-dom encounter that corresponds tothat number. The statistics for eachcreature are listed on the CombinedMonster Statistics Chart on the in-side cover of this adventure.

Chapter 1 - Chapter 4Table 1: Encounter Checks

Chapter 5 - Chapter 10

Area Check Range

Table 1: Encounter Checks

Town 1/3 Turns 1d6 Area Check RangePlains 1/6 Hours 1d12+2 Town 1/3 Turns 1d4Forest 1/4 Hours 1d12+3 Ruins 1/3 Turns 1 d 8 + 2Hil Is/Mtns 1/6 Hours 1d12+6 Plains 1/6 Hours 1 d 8 + 6Marsh 1/3 Hours 1d12 + 12 Mountains 1/4 Hours 1d8 + 8Ruins 1/3 Turns 1d12+10 Sla-Mori 1/3 Turns 1 d 4 + 1 5Darken PaxWood 1/3 Turns 2 d 4 + 2 3 Tharkas 1/3 Turns 1 d 6 + 1 9

Table 2: Creatures

1. 3d10 Townsmen2. 3d4 Baaz3. 1d10 Plainsmen4. 1d4 Elves5. 2d10 Townsmen6. 1d6 Holy Guardians7. The White Stag8. 2d4 Giant Eagles9. 1d4 Giant Boars

10. 4d4 Wild Dogs11. 1d10 Baaz12. 1d8 Bozaks13. 1d12 Huge Spiders14. 2d6 Ogres15. 2d6 Wraiths16. 2d4 Trolls17. 1d3 Will o’wisps18. 1d6 Poisonous Snakes19. Khisanth20. 1d10 Bozaks21. 1 Catoblepas22. 1d10 Black Dragon Hatchlings23. 1d6 Poisonous Snakes24. 2d6 Wraiths25. 1d12 Griffons26. 1d6 Treants27. 2d4 Satyrs28. 1d12 Centaurs29. 1 Brownie30. 10d10 Sprites31. 1 Sylph

Table 2: Creatures

1. 2d6 Townsmen2. 2d4 Baaz3. 1d4 Wild Dogs4. 2d6 Kapaks5. 3d6 Goblins6. 2d12 Giant Centipedes7. 266 Baaz8. 3d6 Hobgoblins9. 1 Wyvern

10. 1d3 Trolls11. 3d10 Elk12. 1d6 Wights13. 2d4 Dire Wolves14. 1d3 Griffons15. 1d6 Giant Rams16. 2d10 Zombies17. 2d4 Carrion Crawlers18. 1 Wraith19. 2d6 Soldier Bees20. 2d6 Baaz21. 2d4 Kapaks22. 3d4 Hobgoblins23. 3d8 Goblins24. 2d4 War Dogs25. 1d4 Aghar Dwarves

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Chapter 11 - Chapter 13

Table 1: Encounter ChecksArea Check RangeMounta ins 1/3 Hours 1d10HopefulVale 1/3 Hours 1d10+1DergothPlains 1 / 4 H o u r s 1 d 1 0 + 7Skullcap 1/3 Turns 1 d 1 0 + 1 4SteamTunnels 1/4 Turns 1d10+21

Chapter 14 - Chapter 18Table 1: Encounter Checks

Area Check RangeDergothPlains 1/4 Hours 1d8HylarK i n g d o m 2 / H o u r 1 d 6 + 6

EmptyHalls 1/4 Hours 1 d 6 + 8Warrens 1/2 Hours 1d10+11DarkRealms 1 / 3 H o u r s 1 d 1 0 + 1 8Valley ofthe Thanes 1/2 Hours 1 d 6 + 2 6

Table 2: Creatures1. The White Stag2. 2d4 Bozaks3. 2d6 Kapaks4. 2d4 Hunters (Men)5. 3d4 Ogres6. 2d8 Wolves7. 2d6 Warthogs8. 3d10 Hylar Dwarves9. 3d6 Hylar Dwarves

10. 1d10 Aghar Dwarves11. 1d3 Giant Badgers

12. 1 Galeb Duhr13. 2d4 Giant Spiders14. 4d6 Theiwar Dwarves 15. 1d4 Vi-

olet Fungi16. 2d4 Ropers17. 1d4 Deadly Puddings (Dun)18. 1d4 Giant Slugs19. 2d10 Cave Crickets20. 2d4 Klar Dwarves21. 1 Cave Cricket22. 1 Kender (Lost)23. 1 Lamia Noble24. 3d4 Ogres25. 1 Ettin26. 2d4 Wild Dogs27. 5d6 Skeletons28. 1 Subterranean Lizard29. 3d4 Giant Vultures30. 1d8 Ghasts31. 1d3 Mummies32. 1 Spectre

Table 2: Creatures1. 1d12 Neidar Dwarves2. 1d20 Giant Eagles3. 1d4 Elk4. 1d3 Cave Bears5. 1d6 Dire Wolves6. The White Stag7. 1d12 Neidar Dwarves8. 1d12 Neidar Dwarves9. 2d20 Bandits (Men)

10. 1d3 Snow Leopards11. 2d4 Winter Wolves12. 2d10 Baaz13. 2d10 Ogres14. 3d6 Wolves15. 1 Ghost16. 1 Ghast17. 2d10 Shadows18. 1 Spectre19. 2d4 War Dogs20. 1d4 Wraiths21. 2d10 Aghar Dwarves22. 1d4 Violet Fungi23. 2d10 Kender Prisoners24. 1d3 Green Slime25. 4d10 Giant Rats26. 3d6 Piercers27. 2d4 Shriekers28. 1 Giant Slug29. 2d10 Aghar Dwarves30. 2d10 Aghar Dwarves31. 2d10 Aghar Dwarves

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DraconiansDraconians, or dragonmen, are thes p e c i a l t r o o p s o f t h e D r a g o nHighlords. they are more predictablethan humans and more apt to followorders than the ogres and goblinsthat make up the bulk of the army.D r a c o n i a n s a r e n o t a f f e c t e d b ydragon awe, indeed they seem toseek out evil dragons.

Draconians move either by walk-i n g u p r i g h t , g l i d i n g d o w n f r o mheights ( for a distance four t imesgreater than the launching height),or running on all fours while flappingtheir wings. This latter form of move-ment is their fastest, and it kicks upan int imidat ing dust c loud on thebattle field.

While units of draconians are oftenfound in evil human armies, they re-main aloof from other races. Theyanswer d i rec t l y to Takh is i s , theQueen of Darkness, regardless of thecommand structure of the army theyare in.

The statistics for the three types ofdraconians encountered thus far arein the Combined Monster StatisticsChart on the inside cover of this ad-venture.

BozaksBozaks are magic wielders, able tocast spells as 4th-level mages. Theyare cruel and cunning warriors, spar-ing a life only if it directly benefitsthem. Their favorite spells are burn-ing hands, enlarge, magic missile,shocking grasp, invisibility, levitate,stinking cloud, and web.

When a Bozak reaches 0 hit points,its scaly flesh shrivels and crumblesfrom its bones in a cloud of dust.Then the bones explode, causing 1d6points of damage to all within tenfeet (no saving throw).

Baaz

Baaz are the smallest and most plen-tiful of all draconians. They are theDragon Highlords’ common groundtroops. At the bottom of the dracon-ian social order, Baaz often tend tochaot ic in nature and sel f -servingwhen they can get away with it.

Baaz are often encountered in dis-guise. They conceal their wings un-der robes and, wearing large hoodsand masks, pass though c iv i l izedlands as spies.

When a Baaz reaches 0 hit points,it turns into a stone statue. the per-son who struck the death blow mustrol l a successful Dexter i ty check(with a -3 penalty) or his weapon isstuck in the statue. The statue crum-bles to dust in 1d4 rounds, freeingthe weapon. The Baaz’s weapon canbe picked up.

Kapaks

Kapaks are dist inguished by theirvenomous sal iva. They of ten l icktheir weapons before attacking.

Kapaks are larger than Baaz, andthey o f ten bu l l y and abuse the i rsmaller cousins. Because of the Kap-aks’ venomous nature, the DragonHighlords employ them as assassinsas well as combat troops. Kapaks aresly and conniving, seeking to lureprey into traps and tripping foes togain an advantage.

The paralysis induced by a Kap-ak’s poison lasts for 2d6 turns if thevictim fails his saving throw vs. poi-son. Weapons licked with poison re-main poisoned for only three rounds.

W h e n a K a p a k r e a c h e s 0 h i tpoints, its body instantly dissolvesinto a ten-foot-wide pool of acid. Allwithin this area suffer 1d8 points ofdamage each round they remain inthe pool. The acid evaporates in 1d6rounds. All items the Kapak was car-rying are useless.

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The Dwarves ofThorbardinThere a re seven ma jo r races o fdwarves in the lands of Krynn: theHylar, the Theiwar, the Daewar, theDaergar, the Neidar, the Klar, and theAghar.

The Hylar

The Hylar are mountain dwarves, theoldest and most noble of the dwar-ven races of Thorbardin. Most of thegreat dwarven kings have been Hylar,including both Derkin and Kharas.Even in the dark days since the Cata-clysm, the Hylar retain great influ-ence. Most Hylar live in the famousLife-Tree, an incredible feat of dwar-ven engineering. The Hylar inventedmany of the mechanical devices forwhich the dwarves are justly famous.

The Theiwar

The Theiwar are derro, a strange, de-generate dwarven race. They hatelight and suffer from nausea in sun-light. Nevertheless, their dreams areof world conquest and domination.Of the dwarven races, they are themos t conce rned w i th spe l l s andmagic—most of their leaders are sa-vants with spellcasting powers.

The Theiwar consider themselvesthe highest of the dwarven k ing-doms, and they seek to wrest leader-ship of Thorbardin away f rom theHylar. They look forward to winningby whatever means are closest tohand.

The DaewarThe Daewar are mountain dwarves,like the Hylar. They are justly re-spected, and many important lead-ers have come from their midst. TheDaewar are great soldiers, and theywere a t t h e f o r e f r o n t i n theDwarfgate Wars. In peacetime, they

leave the leadership of Thorbardin tothe Hylar, but they take an active in-terest in publ ic safety and publ icworks projects.

The DaergarThe Daergar are derro who split offfrom the Theiwar many hundreds ofyears ago. Their culture has flour-ished, and now they are powerful inThorbardin. They are, i f possible,even more evil and dangerous thantheir Theiwar cousins, favoring mur-der, torture, and thievery to get theirway. Their leader is always the mostpowerful warrior of the Daergar king-dom, “elected” in a bloody combatagainst all rivals.

The Neidar

The Neidar are the hill dwarves wholived outside Thorbardin at the timeof the Cataclysm. Based on old trea-ties, they felt they had the right toseek refuge in the underground king-dom, but Thorbardin could not ab-sorb all the Neidar. Thus came aboutthe tragic Dwarfgate Wars, which pit-ted cousin against cousin. Hatred be-tween the Neidar and the dwarves ofThorbardin continues to this day.

The Klar

The Klar are hill dwarves who livedinside Thorbardin at the time if theDwarfgate Wars. Following the wars,the Klar were deprived of propertyand persecuted terribly for their sup-posed sympathy for the Neidar (infact, many Klar fought with braveryin the war ) . Now they se rve theweal thy dwarves of Thorbardin inmenial roles. After centuries of suf-fering, they long for someone to de-liver them from their plight.

The Aghar

T h e l u d i c r o u s A g h a r , o r g u l l ydwarves, are the lowest members ofthe dwarven caste system. Otherdwarves and humans find them com-ical for their stupidity (few can counthigher than two) and their incredibleegos. They work at d i r ty, menialtasks, but that is all they are qualifiedto do.

The Kingdom of the DeadThe dwarves venerate their dead,and they consider the kingdom ofthe dead to be the eighth kingdom ofThorbardin. This has little practicaleffect on politics, as you might ex-pect, but it says a lot about dwarventhinking on the af ter l i fe. Dwarvesuse a variety of divination methodsto speak with their ancestors—someare valid and work fairly well, butothers are merely superstitious non-sense.

The High King

The last dwarven kingdom is that ofthe High King of the Dwarves. Thehigh throne has been vacant sincethe days of Derkin. No one has yetmanaged to claim it, though many

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Fireshadow

The Combined Monster Stat is t icsChart, on the inside cover of this ad-venture, contains the statistics forthese dreaded creatures.

Fireshadows are creatures fromthe lower planes. They can be sum-moned by an evil priest of 8th level orhigher, with the permission of his de-ity.

Fi reshadows are made of dark,cold, green flame. they can assumeany shape specified by their sum-moners.

The dark flame works like greenslime: It converts flesh to dark flameon contact at the rate of 1d8 h i tpoints per round. The spread of darkflame on flesh can be stopped by acure spell or by holy water (cures 1d6+ 1 points per vial).

If a begin is completely convertedto dark flame, the fireshadow can ab-sorb i t or control i t as a smal lerf i reshadow with the stat ist ics thecreature had before conversion. Ab-so rp t i on res to res 1d20 po in t s o fdamage to the creature.

The fireshadow has a special at-tack called the ray of oblivion. Everyother round it can use this ray to in-flict 16 points of damage to all in thearea of effect. A successful savingthrow vs. breath weapon will cut thedamage in half. If this damage slays atarget, its body is disintegrated. Theray is five feet wide and 130 feetlong, and it comes from the crea-ture’s mouth.

A fireshadow cannot be turned,

but a mace of disruption affects it as avampire. The hammer of Kharas de-stroys a fireshadow on a successfulhit.

Fireshadows are immune to fire-b a s e d a t t a c k s . T h e d a r k f l a m ecauses 1d6 points of damage to allwithin ten feet (no saving throw, butfire-resistance effects apply).

The fireshadow’s most feared en-emy is the light of day, which will de-stroy it within 1d4 rounds.

Spectral Minions

The statistics for spectral minionsare given in the Combined MonsterStatistics Chart on the inside cover ofthis adventure.

Spectral minions are the spirits ofhumans or demihumans who diedbefore they could fu l f i l l powerfulvows or quests. Even in death, spec-tral minions are bound to the vows orquests placed upon them when theywere alive. Every day they must re-l i v e t h e e v e n t s l e a d i n g t o t h e i rdeaths, t ry ing to ful f i l l their mis-sions.

Outdoors, spectral minions muststay within 1,000 yards of where theydied. Indoors, they must stay in thecorridor or room in which they metdeath. On very rare occasions, whenthe quest was to perform an act overan area, they are free to roam withinthe area.

Spectral minions can inflict dam-age only if they died holding weap-ons. Such weapons become part of

them. The weapons and the spectralminions disappear i f the minions’vows or quests are fulfil led or if aspell is cast to remove their curse.

Spectral minions appear as theydid in life, but they are almost trans-parent. While spectral minions arehard to tell apart, they seem to fallinto distinct categories.

Guardians: These minions werequested to guard some area or ob-ject. Usually they require only a pass-word or signal to allow a person topass safely. Unfortunately, everyonewho knew the password is usuallylong since dead. Guardians are al-ways honest and good spirits endeav-o r ing to comp le te the i r ass ignedtask. Once the password is given,they are freed of their responsibility.

Philosophers: Philosophers lovelibraries and books. They can spenddecades studying the nuances of asingle book. They usually attack anintruder only if their honesty is ques-tioned. Philosophers can be of anyalignment. Often they are found ingroups of two or more, engaged inheated debates.

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Sing verses 1,2 and chorus then sing verses 3,4,5, and chorus

3). The grasslands are fading, 4). The grasslands are fragile, 5). The grasslands are faded,The summer wind dies, As yellow as flame, And autumn is here.

He comes back, the darkness The chieftain makes mockery The girl joins her lover,Of stones in his eyes, Of Riverwind�s claim, The stones whistle near,

He carries a blue staff He orders the people The staff flares in blue lightAs bright as a glacier: To stone the young warrior: And both of them vanish:

The grasslands are fading, the summer winds die. The grasslands are fragile, as yellow as flame. The grasslands have faded, and autumn is here.

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126

the Song of kharas

Three were the thoughts ofthose in ThorbardinIn the dark after Dergoth whenthe ogres danced.One was the lost light, thelimping darknessIn the caves of the kingdomwhere light crumbles.One the despair of theDwarfthane DerkinGone to the gloom of thetower of Glory.One the world, weary andwoundedDown to the deep of theDarkling’s waters.

Under the heart of thehighland,

Under the ceiling ofstone,

Under the wane of theworld's glory,

Home under home.

In the halls of the nation sawnooses and knives,

Then was Kharas among us,the Keeper of Kings,The Hand on the Hammer,Arm of the Hylar.At the gleaming grave site ofgold and garnetThree sons of the thane heburied thereunder.While Derkin saw dark upondark in the runnels,

Killers and kingmakers cameto KharasWith agate and amethyst,asking allegiance.

Under the heart of thehighland.

Under the ceiling ofstone,

Under the wane of theworld's glory,

Home under home.

But the stalwart in heart isstrong as a stone,And bold and unbending hismind to the better:The Hammer of Hylar was firmin the halls.Denying all discord, all doubtand division,He turned from intrigue, fromthe wild tunnels,Out to the open, one oathswearingThat time nor treachery shallever tarnishThe Hammers return in a timeof great troubles.

Under the heart of thehighland,

Under the ceiling ofstone,

Under the wane of theworld’s glory,

Home under home.

127

128

Character CardsCUT OUT CARDS

tanis 5TH-LEVEL HALF-ELF FIGHTER Goldmoon 5TH-LEVEL HUMAN CLERIC

S T R 12 D E X 14 C O N 12 T H A C 0 18

I N T 12 WIS 16 C H R 17 A L L G H P 25STR 16 D E X 1 6 C O N 1 2 T H A C 0 1 6

INT 12 W I S 1 3 C H R 1 5 A L N G H P 3 5

AC 4 (LEATHER ARMOR +2, DEX BONUS)

Weapons LONG SWORD +2

LONG BOW, 20 ARROWS

DAGGERS (2)

Equipment SELECTED BY PLAYER

Languages COMMON, QUALINESTI ELF,

HILL DWARF, PLAINSMAN

AC 8 (LEATHER ARMOR)

Weapon SLING +I, 20 BULLETS

Equipment BLUE CRYSTAL STAFF

Languages COMMON, PLAINSMAN, HILL DWARF,

QUALINESTI ELF

Spell Use 5 IST-LEVEL, 5 2ND-LEVEL, I 3RD-LEVEL

See the back of this card for more information.

Caramon 6TH-LEVEL HUMAN FIGHTER

See the back of this card for more information.

Riverwind 5TH-LEVEL HUMAN RANGER

STR 18/35 DEX 16 CON 15 THAC0 16

INT 13 W I S 1 4 C H R 1 3 A L L G H P 4 1

STR 18/63 DEX II C O N 1 7 T H A C 0 1 5

INT 12 W I S 1 0 C H R 1 5 A L L G H P 5 6

AC 6 (RING MAIL ARMOR AND SHIELD)

Weapons LONG SWORD

SPEAR

Equipment SELECTED BY PLAYER

AC 5 (LEATHER ARMOR, SHIELD, DEX BONUS)

Weapons LONG SWORD +2

SHORT BOW, 20 ARROWS

DAGGER

Equipment SELECTED BY PLAYER

Languages COMMON, PLAINSMAN,

QUALINESTI ELF, HILL DWARF

Languages COMMON, PLAINSMAN

See the back of this card for more information. See the back of this card for more information.

Flint Fireforge 4TH-LEVEL DWARF FIGHTERRastlin 3RD-LEVEL HUMAN MAGE

STR I0 D E X 1 6 C O N I 0 T H A C 0 2 0

I N T 1 7 W I S 1 4 C H R I 0 A L N H P 8

STR 16 D E X I 0 C O N 1 8 T H A C 0 1 7

I N T 7 W I S 1 2 C H R 1 3 A L N G H P 4 5

AC 5 (STAFF OF MAGIUS, DEX BONUS)

Weapon STAFF OF MAGIUS

Equipment STAFF OF MAGIUS;

AC 6 (STUDDED LEATHER ARMOR AND SHIELD)

Weapons 2 HAND AXES +I

Equipment SELECTED BY PLAYER

Languages COMMON, HILL DWARFREST AS SELECTED BY PLAYER

Languages COMMON, QUALINESTI ELF, MAGIUS

Spell Use 2 IST-LEVEL AND I 2ND-LEVEL PER DAY

See the back of this card for more information.See the back of this card for more information.

Sturm Brightblade 6TH-LEVEL HUMAN FIGHTER tasslehoff Burrfoot 4TH-LEVEL KENDER THIEF

STR 17 D E X 1 2 C O N 1 6 T H A C 0 1 5 STR 13 D E X 1 6 C O N 1 4 T H A C 0 1 9

I N T 9 W I S 1 2 C H R I I A L N H P 1 6

AC 6 (LEATHER ARMOR, DEX BONUS)

Weapons HOOPAK (COMBINATION BULLET SLING

AND +2 QUARTERSTAFF)

Equipment THIEVES� TOOLS, LEATHER MAP CASE;

REST SELECTED BY PLAYER

INT 14 W I S I I C H R 1 2 A L L G HP 49

AC 5 (CHAIN MAIL)

Weapon TWO-HANDED SWORD +3

Equipment SELECTED BY PLAYER

Languages COMMON, QUALINESTI ELF,

SOLAMNIC

Languages COMMON, KENDER

See the back of this card for more information. See the back of this card for more information.

I AM PRINCESS OF THE QUE-SHU TRIBE. RIVERWIND IS MY GUARDIAN

AND MY BETROTHED. WE SEEK TO DISCOVER THE NATURE AND USE OF

THIS STAFF THAT RIVERWIND FOUND.

SOME MONTHS AGO, RIVERWIND WENT TO MY FATHER AND ASKED

FOR MY HAND. FATHER HAD ANOTHER MARRIAGE IN MIND FOR ME, AND HE DEMANDED THAT RIVERWIND PROVE HIS WORTH BY BRINGING BACK

THE MAGIC OF THE FORSAKEN LANDS.

FOR MONTHS I RECEIVED NO WORD OF RIVERWIND. THEN HE RE-

TURNED, BEARING THIS STAFF. FATHER THOUGH HE HAD RID HIMSELF

OF RIVERWIND, AND IN HIS ANGER HE DECLARED THE STAFF WORTH-

LESS AND ORDERED THE VILLAGERS TO STONE RIVERWIND. AS THE

STONES FELL UPON HIM, I RAN TO HIS SIDE. AT THAT MOMENT THE

STAFF BLAZED WITH A BLUE LIGHT AND WE FOUNDS OURSELVES ON THE

PLAINS FAR WEST OF THE VILLAGE. WE DO SOT KNOW HOW TO WORK

THE STAFF; WE CANNOT RETURN TO OURVILLAGE UNTIL WE CAN CON-

TROL THE STAFF POWER. ©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I AM A WARRIOR OF THE QUE-SHU TRIBE. I HAVE LOVED GOLDMOON

FOR MANY TURNS OF THE SUN.

I REMEMBER LITTLE OF WHAT HAPPENED TO ME AFTER I REACHED THE

FORSAKEN LANDS. EVERYTHING SEEMS AS IF A DARK DREAM: A BLACK

SWAMP, A WELL, A SHINING LADY, AND A LEATHE-WINGED CREATURE

OF PURE EVIL. HOW MUCH OF THIS IS REAL AND HOW MUCH IS MAD-

NESS, I CANNOT SAY.

MONTHS LATER I SOMEHOW RETURNED TO QUE-SHU, BLEEDING,

CRAZED WITH FEVER AND VISIONS. I PRESENTED THE STAFF, BUT THE

VILLAGE COUNCIL SCORNED IT. SOMEHOW THE STAFF SAVED US FROM

THE STONING, BUT WE KNOW NOT HOW.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I HAVE SEARCHED THESE FIVE YEARS FOR A HOLY MAN AND FOR AWAY

TO AVENGE THE WRONGS DONE TO MY PEOPLE. I FAILED AT BOTH PUR-

P O S E S .

YEARS A G O , T H E K I N G D O M O F T H O R B A R D I N H O U S E D A L L T H E

DWARVES. WE HILL DWARVES LIVED ABOVE GROUND AND FARMED

FOOD FOR THOSE BELOW. THE MOUNTAIN DWARVES GAVE US METAL-

WORK IN RETURN. BUT WHEN THE CATACLYSM CAME, THEY CLOSED

THE GATES OF THORBARDIN TO US, LEAVING US TO THE WRATH OF THE

G O D S .

I S E A R C H E D F O R T H E D O O R S T O T H O R B A R D I N , B U T A L L W A S

C H A N G E D . C U R S E S O N T H E M O U N T A I N D W A R V E S A N D T H E I R V I L E

GULLY DWARF COUSINS!

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I�VE ALMOST FORGOTTEN WHERE I'VE BEEN. I MEANT TO MAKE MAPS,

BUT THERE WAS SO MUCH TO SEE, I NEVER FOUND THE TIME. TO THE

NORTH AND WEST THE WORLD HAS CHANGED MORE THAN OURLANDS.

A SEA NOW LIES TO THE NORTH WHERE OLD MAPS SHOW PLAINS BE-

FORE THE CATACLYSM. WHERE THE EMPIRE OF ERGOTH ONCE STOOD,

NAUGHT IS LEFT BUT A COUPLE OF ISLANDS.

SO NOW I GET BACK TO SOLACE EXPECTING TO SLEEP FOR A FEW

WEEKS, AND IT'S A DUMP! SOME HOLY TYPES CALLED PEEKERS OR SEEK-

ERS OR SOMETHING ARE TRYING TO TAKE CONTROL OF EVERYTHING. I�MALL FOR PACKING UP AND HEADING OUT AGAIN!

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I HAVE WANDERED THROUGH FOREST AND WILDERNESS FOR FIVE LONG

YEARS. THROUGH QUALINESTI WEST OF THE KHAROLIS MOUNTAINS,

THROUGH THE FORESTS OF KITH-KANAN, ALL THE WAY TO THE DIS-

TANT SEA. FOUND NO TRACE OF MYSTICAL HEALERS�NOT EVEN TALES

OR RUMORS OF THEM�IN MY TRAVELS. STILL, I CERTAIN THE TRUE

G O D S M U S T E X I S T ; T H E S I G N S O F T H E I R H A N D I W O R K A R E E V E R Y -

WHERE. THE WHITE STAG LED ME TOWARD THE BEST PATHS, WHEEL-

I N G B I R D S F O R E T O L D W A R , A N D T H U N D E R C L O U D S W A R N E D M E O F

DANGER. THESE MUST BE THE WORK OF THE TRUE GODS! BUT STILL I

FOUND NO PRIEST TO THE WEST.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

MY BROTHER RAISTLIN AND I ALSO WANDERED OVER THE KHAROLIS

MOUNTAINS, BUT WE JOURNEYED TO THE SOUTHWEST, BEYOND THE

REALMS OF THE ELVES. WE SEARCHED FOR THE FABLED TOWERS OF

HIGH SORCERY. DEEP IN DARK, EERY MISTS THAT ALWAYS SEEM TO

COVERTHAT LAND, WE FOUND THESE MYSTERIOUS TOWERS. RAISTLIN

ENDURED GREAT HARDSHIP WITHIN, AND HE HAS CHANGED GREATLY

SINCE WE LAST GATHERED TOGETHER. HE SPEAKS LITTLE OF HIS EXPERI-

ENCES WITHIN THE TOWER.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

AT THE TOWERS OF HIGH SORCERY, I PASSED GREAT TESTS SET BY THE

SPIRITS OF LONG- DEAD SAGES AND WIZARDS. THE TESTS TRIED ME

GREATLY AND ALMOST BROKE ME. NOW I SEE THE WORLD THROUGH

HOURGLASS EYES THAT SHOW ME MANY THINGS THAT I CANNOT SPEAK

OF. MUCH OF MY HEALTH IS GONE, YET THE MAGICAL POWERS THAT IPOSSESS MAY PROVE TO BE MORE VALUABLE THAN GOOD HEALTH.

AS WE DEPARTED THE TOWERS, I HEARD THE VOICE OF AN ANCIENT

MAGE SAY TO ME ALONE: �USE WELL YOU POWERS, FOR THE TIME IS

NIGH WHEN YOUR STRENGTH IS NEEDED IS THE STRUGGLE TO REBAL-

ANCE THE WORLD."

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I VISITED THE NORTHERN LANDS WHEN I CROSSED THE SEA IN THE COM-

P A N Y O F O U R F R I E N D K I T I A R A . O N C E O V E R T H E S E A , W E P A R T E D

C O M P A N Y - S H E W E N T W E S T A N D I V E N T U R E D E A S T . T H O U G H I

SEARCHED FOR A HOLY MAN, I ALSO SOUGHT MY BIRTHRIGHT.

FOR YOU SEE, I KNOW ONLY THAT MY MOTHER FLED THE NORTH-

LANDS WHEN I WAS YOUNG. SHE CARRIED ALL MY DEAD FATHER HAD

LEFT HER: HIS SWORD AND HIS RING. FROM THESE I KNOW THAT HE

WAS ONCE A KNIGHT OF SOLAMNIA. SO I JOURNEYED TO TAKE MY FA-

THER'S PLACE IN THAT GOOD AND JUST ORDER. BUT I DISCOVERED

THAT THE SOLAMNIC KNIGHTS HAVE FALLEN INTO DISFAVOR WITH

THE PEOPLE OF THE NORTH, AND I COULD FIND NO MEMBERS; OF THE

ORDER. THUS MY PAST REMAINS A MYSTERY.

©1990 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Monster A C MV H D T H A C 0 # A T Damage SA SD A L

ApparitionBadger, GiantBear, CaveBee. Grant (Queen)Bee. Giant (Soldier)Bee, Giant (Worker)Beetle, BoringBoar, GiantBrownie

4 6, Br 3 3 17 3 1d3/1d3/1d6 Nil Nil N6 12 6 + 6 13 3 1d8/1d8/1d12 Hug Nil N

3 6 56 12 73 12 ½

5d4 Nil3d6 Nil1d2 Spells

Carrion CrawlerCatoblepasCave CricketCentaurCentipede, GiantNDemilichDog, WarDog, WildDraconian, Baaz

3/7 12 3 + 17 6 6 + 2

1 5 113 120 1

17 81 5 1

17 320 1

11 Sp.19 119 119 2 or 1

1 7 2 or 11 7 1

15 3

5 37 35 35 35 3

5 311 37

1931

19 2 or 119 113 119 110 117 117 319 117 115 11 7 111 2

7 3 or 11 1 317 1 to 411 217 311 120 17 119 0

1d2 Paralysis1d6 + stun Death gaze

NilNil

Save as 9th-lvlpriestNilNil

NN

LGNN

5(4)9

181 5

4

2 h p

1d6/ld6/weapon N i l NilNil Poison Nil

N (CG)Nil

- 6 Sp. 50 hp6 1 2 2 + 27 1 5 1+14 6/15, Gl 18 2

Sp. Nil Nil NE2d4 Nil Nil N1d4 Nil Nil N

1d4/1d4 or weapon Nil Nil LE

Draconian, BozakDraconian. KapakDragon, Black.HatchlingDragon, Black(Khisanth)Dragon, Brass (Blaize)Dragon. Gold (EvenstatDragon. Red, OldDragon. Red (Ember)Dragon, Red(Flamestrike)Dragon, ShadowDragon TurtleDry adDwarf, Aghar (Gully)

2 6/15. Gl 18 44 6/15, Gl 18 3

1d4/1d4 or weapon Spells + 2 to saves LE1d4 Poison Nil LE

4 12, Fl 30(C), SW 12 6 1d6/1d6/3d6 Acid Nil CE

- 3- 2- 8- -- -

- 7- 2097

12, Fl 30(C), SW 12 1612, Fl 30(C), Br 6 14

12, Fl 42(C) 209. Fl 30(C) 1 79. Fl 30(C) 1,

1d6+8/1d6+8/3d6+8 Acid Sp.1d6+6/1d6+6/4d4+6 Sleep gas Sp.

1d10+8/1d10+8/6d6+8 Spells Sp.1d10+8/1d10+8/3d10+8 Spells Sp.ld10+8/1d10+8/3d10+8 Spells Sp.

CE

CG (N)LGCECE

9, Fl 30(C)12, Fl 24(C)

3, SW91 2666666

3. Fl 48(D)121 21 21512

17101421111134

1 + 135310

13+31039410l - l142

1d10+8/1d10+8/3d6+81d6+8/1d6+814d4+8

2d6/2d6/4d81d4

1d4/1d4 or weapon1d81d81d81d81d8

1d6/1d6/2d61d10

1d8+21d42d6

1d10/2d6(2d8/3d6 w/club)

1d6/1d6/3d6 or 2d201d8/1d8/2d10

Sp.3d6/3d6

1d4/1d4/1d810-40 years

1d63d8Nil

Spells Sp. CESpells Sp. N ESteam Nil NCharm Sp. N

Sp. Sp. CN

Sp. Sp. LN

Sp. Sp. NG

Sp. Sp. NG

Sp. Sp. CESpells Sp. CEDive Sp. N

+ 1 to hit Sp. CG

Sp. Sp. CGSpells Sp. CG

Nil Nil NNil Sp. CE

Dwarf, Hylar (Mountain) 4Dwarf, Klar (Hill) 6Dwarf, Neidar (Hill) 6Dwarf. TheiwarDwarf, Theiwar Savant 5Eagle, Giant 7

Elf 5Elf, Fighter 4Elf, Mage 5Elk 7Ettin 3

Fireshadow 0Forestmaster Unicorn 2Fungi, Violet 7Galeb Duhr - 2Ghast 4Ghost 0 or 8Goblin 6Golem, Stone 5Green Slime 9

Abbreviations

62416157660

Sp. Sp. CECharge Sp. CG

Sp. Nil Nsp. Sp. N

Sp. Sp. CE

Sp. Sp. LENil Nil LE

Sp. Sp. N

Sp. Sp. N

AC = Armor Class, AL = Alignment, #AT = Number of attacks per round, CE = Chaotic Evil, CG = Chaotic Good, HD = Hit Dice. hp = hit points.LE = Lawful Evil, LG = Lawful Good, MV = Movement Rate, N = True Neutral, NE = Neutral Evil, NG = Neutral Good. SA = Special Attacks.SD = Special Defenses. Sp. = Special, THAC0 = Number needed To Hit AC 0

©1990 TSR, Inc Ail Rights Reserved

CLASSICS VOLUME IFour Official Game Adventures

C A L L I N G A L L D R A G O N L A N C E ® S A G A RED DRAGON EMBER. CAN YOU SURVIVE THE

HEROES! AT LONG LAST, THE FIRST FOUR DANGERS OF SKULLCAP, HOUNDED BY THE

DRAGONLANCE MODULES ARE BACK IN UNDEAD MINIONS OF THE WIZARD FISTAN-

ORINT. TOGETHER FOR THE FIRST D A N T I L U S ? Y O U R J O U R N E Y ,

TIME, PLAY THE ENTIRE ADVEN- SHOULD YOU SURVIVE THAT FAR,

TURE OF THE FIRST BOOK OF THE EVENTUALLY TAKES YOU TO THE

D R A G O N L A N C E S A G A ! S U B T E R R A N E A N W O N D E R S O F

STARTING FROM THE INN OF THORBARDIN, THE KINGDOM OF

T H E L A S T H O M E I N S O L A C E , THE DWARVES. WHAT WAITS FOR

J O U R N E Y T H R O U G H O U T T H E YOU THERE IS KNOWN ONLY TO

LANDS OF ANSALON AND DEFY THOSE WHO DWELL WITHIN!

THE EVIL THAT THREATENS TO THE IMMENSE, WORLD-SWEEP-

OVERWHELM AN ENTIRE CONTI- I N G D R A G O N L A N C E S A G A

NENT. EXPLORE THE LOST CITY AWAITS YOU. ANSWER THE CALL

OF XAK TSAROTH, DEFEAT THE TO SAVE THE WORLD OF KRYNN

MIGHTY BLACK DRAGON KHISANTH, AND RE- FROM THE THREAT OF ULTIMATE EVIL!

COVER THE CRYSTAL STAFF OF MISHAKAL.

PENETRATE THE FASTNESS OF PAX THARKAS AN EPIC ADVENTURE FOR 3RD- TO 8TH-LEVEL

AND FACE THE EVIL VERMINAARD AND THE CHARACTERS.