The Lords of Darkness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 2

A Mundane Guide to. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Tales From Beyond the Grave . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Skeletons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Ghouls and Ghasts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5Wights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2Shadows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 9Mummies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 4Vampires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 2Ghosts .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51Spectres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59Lich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

The Night Gallery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Table of Contents

THE LORDS OF DARKNESS

Cartography: Dave LaForce ISBN 0-88038-622-3

Typography: Kim Janke $8.95 US

Keylining: Stephanie Tabat 9240 9240XXX1501

Authors: Ed Greenwood (Introduction, Lich, Mundane Guide,Lords of Darkness), Deborah Christian (Skeletons, Shadows,Spectre), Michael Stackpole (Zombies), Paul Jaquays (Ghoulsand Ghasts, Mummies), Steve Perrin (Wights), Vince Garcia(Vampires, Ghosts), Jean Rabe (Vampires).

Editing: Scott Martin Bowles

Project Coordinators: Bruce A. Heard, Karen S. Boomgarden

Cover Art: Jeff Easley

Interior Art: Karl Wailer

Credits:

ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, AD&D, FORGOTTEN REALMS,DRAGON, PRODUCTS OF YOUR IMAGINATION, and the TSR logo are trademarksowned by TSR, Inc.

Distributed to the book trade in the United States by Random House, Inc., and inCanada by Random House of Canada, Ltd. Distributed to the toy and hobby trade byregional distributors. Distributed in the United Kingdom by TSR Ltd.

This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Anyreproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork presented herein inprohibited without the express written permission of TSR, Inc.

© 1988 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in U.S.A.

TSR, Inc.POB 756Lake Geneva,WI 53147

TSR Ltd.120 Church End, Cherry Hinton

Cambridge CB1 3LBEngland

INTRODUCTION AND DMING UNDEADWith a final sharp, splintering sound,the door gave way. The warriors forcedit aside and peered into the dimnessbeyond, blades drawn.

They beheld a dark, littered chamber,silent and dead. Dust lay thick every-where. Though there were no traces ofanyone having come there, an old mansat in its midst, sucking a pipe and hum-ming into h is beard as he regardedthem levelly.

A n d w h o a r e y o u , g r a y b e a r d ? demanded the foremost man-at-arms,approaching warily. In reply, the oldman spoke a word of power that smotetheir ears with a clap of thunder Hischallenger staggered back as if dazed,dropping blade and shield with a clang-o r .

My name, despoilers of tombs, hesaid in a deep, rolling voice, is Elmin-ster. I sit in this crypt to be with myfriends. You will leave them, and youwill leave meNOW. And he rose, eyesflashing. The men turned and, with oneaccord, fled.

The old man chuckled, sighed, andsat down again. You were saying? heprompted the darkness. And the dark-ness answered. . .

Undead are among the most vividlychilling monsters in AD&D® game cam-paigns, from awesome vampires tosilent, purposeful skeletons. Manyadventurers have battled wraiths andcut their way through zombies; DMswanting to give players more suchexcitement will find adventures aplentyhere. Everyone has fears and gruesomeimages of the undead; may you findmore in these pages.

This sourcebook begins with intro-ductory notes on the nature and han-dling of undead. Tales From Beyondthe Grave then presents 10 completeadventures. Each highlights a classicundead type, with the challenges risingas one proceeds to the later scenarios.DMs should modify these as necessaryto better integrate them into campaignplay.

Creature Notes accompany eachadventure. These studies of the fea-tured undead are particularly useful to

DMs devising their own undead adven-tures.

The Night Gallery details the maincharacter or creature of each adven-ture and is useful in planning a series ofencounters.

It is followed by A Mundane Guide toWards vs. Undead, Spirits, and OtherEntities, which explores the magic andlore of dealing with undead. Some lorewill be common knowledge (readableto players), and more can be revealedby consulting veteran adventurers,sages, or crumbling tomes. Muchshould be learned only by trial anderror, during combat.

The Lords of Darkness sectionpresents new spells for necromancers(those mages who specialize in workingwith undead). They are fully compati-ble with the spells in other AD&D®

game rulebooks, and are recommendedas rare and mysterious magics, notspells widely known and available. Cler-ical equivalents may be devised inaccordance with the deities of individ-ual campaigns.

Undead in theForgotten RealmsAlthough this sourcebook is set in theFORGOTTEN REALMS fantasy world,DMs need not have other Realmslore(such as the campaign set) if they wishto set these adventures in different fan-tasy campaign settings. For thosewhose campaigns are set in the Realms,a few notes will help in planning fur-ther undead adventures.

Many types of undead are known inthe Realms, including sorts not in theofficial AD&D game rules; boars,horses, wolverines, and even owlbearshave been reported. There are alsoundead animated by mages, such ascrawling claws and dracoliches (seeDRAGON® Magazine issue Nos. 32 and110), little known in other worlds.Undead are a recognized fact of exist-ence in the Realms, much feared and lit-tle understood. Many gory tavern talesabout liches and vampires and armies

of shuffling zombies chill farmers andmerchants alike late at night arounddying hearth fires.

Some undead are clearly evil,directed or created by or allied to darkpowers. Others are just as clearly neu-tral, and the intelligent undead haveproven time and again that they arecapable of all the emotions and align-ments of their living counterparts:treachery, suspicion, friendship, honor,and even kindness. There are benignundead who warn or aid travelers aswell as those who kill the living. What-ever causes undead to come into exist-ence (spell, natural process, divinedeed, or unknowable mystery) arestrong in the Realms; there are a LOT ofundead.

DMing UndeadMost DMs use undead for their memo-rable, fearsome nature and theirunique powers, which can sorely testlow-level player characters. Howundead are handled in battle is of para-mount importance; while the mindlessnature of lesser undead allows a DM torescue foolish PCs from battlefield folly,too often, more powerful undead arehandled in as mindless a manner.

Consider a lich, for example: a mageor cleric so thirsty for immortality as totry to cheat death, and already power-ful at magic. All too often a lich is playedby the DM as a being who suddenlythrows a paramount instinct for surviv-al beyond death away, to stand andtrade spells with a band of adventurers.Liches should be cunning and elusivewhy be destroyed when one can slipaway to strike again another night?Whats the hurry, whats time, to a lich?

The DM should always have a clearidea of what encountered undead aretrying to accomplish, from skeletons orzombies mindlessly seeking to slay, to avampire or lich defending a trap-filledlair. Why defend such a lair?

The lichs lair presented in this bookhas a purpose: Alokkair is trying tostrip greedy adventurers of all the mag-ic (and valuables which can buy more

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magic) he can. A vampire or spectremay try to separate individuals from aparty with pit traps and the like, so as todrain them at leisure, and gain undeadfollowers.

All intelligent undead will have aims(even if they are insane ones, or whim-sies to entertain them). The naturalcreation of greater undead seemsrelated to strength of purpose andcharacter, so thinking undead withoutsomething to do (beyond exulting in kill-ing and mayhem) should be rare.

A vampire or lich that clashes withplayer characters many times tobecome a behind-the-scenes personalfoe is far more memorable, frightening,and satisfying to defeat than an undeadmenace seen for only an instant beforePCs let fly with all their firepower. Alltoo often, undead are defeated withboring ease, when a wily vampirewould become gaseous and escape,only to ambush PCs later when asleep,separated, or battling another monster.If DMs play undead as energetically asPCs, players will soon have their ownchilling tales of undead and hard battlesin the dark.

result in a loss of character experience.l Temporary paralysis with no sav-

ing throw, either complete or partial,thereby preventing spell-casting, climb-ing, picking locks, and giving a -2 pen-alty to AC and attacks, for 1d12 + 10rounds; curable.l Loss of all experience gained back

to the minimum required for the char-acters current level.l Immediate loss of consciousness,

loss of 2d6 hit points, plus a permanentloss of 1 hit point per drain attack, pluspossible loss of currently memorizedspells.l Loss of ability points at random;

character must save vs. poison to see ifeach loss is permanent.l Permanent withering of touched

limb (limited wish or wish notwith-standing), or bestowal of a disease ofsevere, chronic nature.l Bestowal of minor permanent

curse (see Curses!, DRAGON® Maga-zine, issue No. 77).

silent, non-attacking grim reminders oflong-ago battle valor, or guard familycrypts and the resting places of heroes.

Other undead are of the sortsdescribed in the AD&D® game rules:dangerous monsters that must befought. There are vampires in theRealms who command small armies ofundead, and liches who rule entire cit-ies or underground realms.

But vampires have helped travelersand battlefield survivors. Liches havetrained, advised, or chatted amiablywith adventurers. Skeletons havemarched out of crypts in besieged citiesto s n a t c h u p children-theirdescendants-and bear them to safety.

The next day, after the paladins bladehad slain many an orc, the full light ofday revealed that Ralgoraxs flesh waswithered. He bore old death wounds,and the horse beneath him was also car-rion. He smiled sadly at their revulsion,saluted, and rode away-into thehorde.

The great paladin Ralgorax, theSword of Tyr, in the dead of nightroused the sleeping northern villagewhere he had been born, riding hischarger down its streets and banginghis great sword against his shield. Hewarned of an oncoming orc hordeand slew its boldest scouts as the vil-lagers scrambled to gather theirbelongings and flee.

DMs should keep players on theirtoes by occasionally using monstersthat vary from their official versions:intelligent, unturnable skeletons arefrequent undead examples. Why nothelpful undead? Or neutral undeadwho do not even know they have died,such as merchants caught encampedand asleep by a long-ago blizzard?Undead need not always have maliciouspersonalities.

Alternatives toEnergy DrainingMany DMs are reluctant to use undeadas much as the vivid descriptions ofthese monsters tempt them to; it seemsunfair to DMs and players alike to lose10 years of life (in a campaign wheretime is largely ignored, the loss is mean-ingless; in a roleplaying campaign, theloss seems horribly steep) at the meresight of a ghost, or have a single undeadattack drain one or even two levels ofhard-won experience, robbing a playerof the game benefits of what might beliterally years of AD&D® game play.

The horror and might of undeadmust be preserved: to merely turn alevel-draining ability into so many diceof physical damage seems a poor solu-tion. DMs may well devise their ownsolutions, but here are some alterna-tives to an attack that would normally

l Character stricken with insanity(refer to DMG for types), or, if the char-acter is a spell-caster, the PC perma-nently loses knowledge of how to cast acertain spell at random or perform atype of a magic.l Alignment shift of character, one

step per attack, toward that of theattacking undead. Note that this couldcause back-and-forth alignment shiftsas a character with a long careerencounters undead of different align-ments.l Immediate feeblemindedness plus

a permanent loss of 1 ability point tran-dom choice, save vs. poison to avoid).

Non-Evil UndeadThe arts of creating and controllingundead are Evil-and, as many havelearned to their detriment, very dan-gerous.

But undead themselves are notalways evil. In the Realms, and manyother real and fictional lands, there aretales of apparitions that warn the livingof hazards such as washed-out bridgesand impending disaster. Others provide

That is how easy it is to create non-evil undead. Such variety in an AD&D®

game campaign will give its participantsglowing memories of exciting, vividplay . . . and isnt that what gaming isfor?

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Monster: Skeletons (12)Terrain: VillageParty Levels: 6 (Average 1st)Gold X.P.: 800Treasure X.P.: 1,000

SKELETONS

Monster X.P.:Kill: 744 Defeat: 558Retreat: 186

Setupl Several churchyards in local villag-

es have been desecrated. Grave robbersare suspected of unearthing the tombsand strewing bones about the ceme-tery. Only one cemetery in the arearemains untouched. PCs are asked bythe local temple to guard the church-yard and prevent this sacrilege.

l The village temples sexton runsscreaming to the tavern about the deadrising from their tombs in the vaultsbeneath the temple. Villagers who dareinvestigate are attacked by molderingskeletons. The PCs are rousted fromtheir sleep at the inn and pressed intoservice against this menace.

DM BackgroundVillage cemeteries in the area are beingdisturbed, not by grave robbers, butrather by the odd magical powers ofKendra, a madwoman with the abilityto animate the skeletal dead (see TheNight Gallery). Recently, she has wan-dered into the village of Daufin. A fewdays before, a caretaker chased thefilthy vagabond woman away from thetemple grounds. Now, at the dark of themoon, Kendra visits the cemetery,raises the dead at midnight, and turnstheir wrath against the temple staffwho live in nearby outbuildings. Joinedby the dead of the mausoleum vaultswithin the temple, the skeletons willslay the living and desecrate the templeunless heroic actions prevent themfrom doing so.

If PCs have agreed to guard the ceme-tery from what is thought to be graverobbers, they are in on all the action ofthis adventure. If they are roused from

sleep to aid the villagers, they come intothe scenario when novices arebesieged, under the heading TheSiege, below.

The AdventureDaufin Temple andCemetery

The temple in Daufin is small but well-supported by farmers and villagers.The curate is Hannes, a third-level cler-ic. His assistant is the first-level clericJilla, and they have accepted three vil-lage youths into service as acolytes.

Hannes (first-level cleric): AC 8;MV 9; hp 14; # AT 1; Dmg 1d8(mace); AL CG.

Spells: Chant, hold person, bless,cure light wounds.

Hannes is fat and jovial, thoroughlycontent to be a rural cleric. He lives in afine house at the edge of town. He doesnot think clearly in an emergency and israther cowardly. Hannes is the one whosuggests that the PCs help if PCs are notalready on the scene. He stays in thebackground of any action.

Jilla (first-level cleric): AC 10;MV 12; hp 6; #AT 1; Dmg 1d6 (quar-terstaff); AL CG.

Spells: Cure light wounds.

The night Kendra raises the skele-tons, Jilla has been carousing late intothe night at the local tavern. She may ormay not aid the characters, as the DMsees fit. If the PCs acquit themselveswell, she asks to join them when theydepart.

Acolytes (3 zero-level clerics):AC 10; MV 12; hp 3 each; #AT 1;Dmg 1d2 (fists); AL CG.

Petrus, Davic, and Lauren are obedi-ent and hard-working teen-agers, easilyawed by things and people beyond nor-mal village experience. They believeHannes is a very wise man, and follow

his orders without question.The temple is a tall and spacious

building of whitewashed stone with ared-tiled roof. Although the exterior issimple, the interior is decorated withgold leaf, frescoes, and richly carvedwoodwork. Below ground, in the foun-dation walls, are crypts, the final rest-ing place of leading clerics and somedistinguished villagers. Each crypt isplugged with a slab of marble carvedwith the name, dates, and accomplish-ments of the deceased concealedbehind it. The temple mausoleum isalmost completely filled, and is all butignored under Hannes administration.

Along the hill behind the temple are afew outbuildings, including the aco-lytes quarters. The cemetery occupiesthe sunny hillside below and behind thetemple. Surrounded by shady trees andplanted with flowers, the place is rest-fully beautiful by day. Folk often paytheir respects to the graves of thedeparted; there is little local history ofactive undead, and the cemetery is notconsidered to be a fearful place.

A Graveyard VigilThe cemetery is located in an areaapproximately 200 long by 100 wide.Trees grow on every side of the grave-yard. The temple and outbuildings arevisible 300 away near the top of thehill.

Once the PCs have posted themselvesaround this area for guard purposes, aquiet and boring vigil begins. Thiscloudy and overcast night is also thenight of the new moon. It is completelydark in the cemetery and the surround-ing woods. The only light that can beseen comes from a lamp over the dis-tant temple door, which burns all night.The village is out of sight beyond thehill, and any light from there fails to illu-minate the graveyard.

Night birds sing for a time after sun-set, then settle down for the evening.Near midnight, a breeze springs upwhich rustles the tree leaves andobscures small noises -such as Ken-dras approach through the woods, and

4

her quiet muttering as she draws near.The madwomans 30-infravision helpsher in the darkness, and she is almostanimal-like in her ability to movethrough undergrowth and slip betweennearly unseen trees.

Kendra: AC 10 (7 if enraged); MV12; hp 5 (stays conscious to -5 hp);#AT 1; Dmg 1d2 (teeth and claws,attempts to bite victims throat); ALCE; XP 1,000; ST 10 (18 if enraged);IN 16; WI 5; DX 9; CO 12; CH 7.

Spells: animate dead. Wears a ringof invisibility Infravision, 30; 30%immune to sleep, charm.

To see if PCs or Kendra encountereach other before she can do her magic,roll ld6. On a result of 1, 2, or 6, go toRunning Into Kendra below.

Otherwise, Kendra strolls out into themiddle of the graveyard, constantlyhumming and muttering under herbreath. Her sounds are hidden by thewind in the trees, unless a character isusing magic or has exceptionally acutehearing. As the madwoman walksaround this open expanse, there is a25% chance that she may pass withinthe range of sight of characters withinfravision. PCs may respond howeverthey wish when they discover her inthe cemetery-at any rate, her magichas already done its work, and the skel-

etons will soon be rising from theirgraves. Go to Enough to Raise theDead!

Running Into KendraOn a die roll of 1, Kendra passes closeenough to a PC that the player charac-ter becomes aware of her presence. Ifthe PC wins an initiative roll, he is closeenough to make a leap or grab for her.

If the PC is successful in this, Kendrafights and shrieks, calling skeletons toher aid. ld4 rounds later, ld4 skeletonsrise out of the closest graves and cometo her assistance, attacking her assail-ant or captors. If the undead free her,she flees into the woods and comesback the next night to try this all again.Otherwise, go to Rewards.

If the PC fails to catch Kendra rightaway, she runs into the cemetery anddashes in frantic circles, singing andcalling out to her grave-bound friends.Regardless of PC actions, the entireskeleton crew of the graveyard is aboutto rise up and assist Kendra. Go toEnough to Raise the Dead and alterevents as necessary to reflect the mad-womans circumstances.

On a die roll of 2, a PC with infravis-ion glimpses a human-shaped figuremoving through the edge of the trees,but is not close enough to tackle itimmediately. Oblivious to this attention,Kendra continues on into the cemetery.

On a die roll of 6, Kendra becomesaware of the PCs before they notice her.She changes her course and then headsfor the temple mausoleum. Slippinginside, she raises the skeletons from themausoleum crypts. The sexton, alertedby the thudding of marble slabs ontothe floor, investigates -and sees theblood-chilling sight of walking bonesand grinning skulls. He screams in ter-ror and flees to the village to give thealarm.

If Kendra is diverted in this way,there is only a 2% chance for PCsguarding the cemetery to notice herslipping into the temple. At their dis-tance from the temple, they notice onlya furtively moving figure. However, the

If the PC fails to catch Kendra rightaway, and she is alerted to danger, sheflees and runs around the cemetery,calling skeletons to her aid. In this case,continue with Enough to Raise theDead.

If the PC grapples with Kendra in thecourse of that round, she calls out andsummons 1d4 skeletons which come toher aid in the next ld4 rounds. If theundead free her, she flees into thewoods and returns the next night to trythis all again. Otherwise, go toRewards.

If she is free to walk around there for atleast one round, her magic takes effect,and play continues with Enough toRaise the Dead.

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sextons screaming exit some minuteslater should draw their undividedattention. If PCs investigate, theirencounter is described under TheMausoleum.

Enough to Raise the Dead

Once Kendra has summoned the grave-yard skeletons, they begin to rise fromthe grave two rounds later. It takes oneround for a skeleton to become ani-mated, and one additional round for itto claw its way out of the ground (seeEcology of the Skeleton, elsewhere inthis book). In the next four minutes, allundead that are going to will haveresponded to her summons. If PCs arepresent, the skeletons attack charactersimmediately after emerging from theground.

Skeletons (7): AC 7; MV 12; hp 7each; #AT 1 Dmg 1d6 (claws); AL CE.

One skeleton will appear in the sec-ond round, four more in the third, andthe last two in the fourth.

If there were no PCs guarding thegraveyard, Kendra proceeds to the tem-ple mausoleum, followed by her skele-tons. There she frees more of herfriends, and the sexton escapes througha side door to warn the village. Play con-tinues with The Siege, below.

If Kendra has encountered PCs and iscaptive or slain, the skeletons attack theplayer characters. If PCs are victorious,play concludes with Rewards. Other-wise, Kendra runs to the temple mauso-leum to free more of her friendswhile the cemetery skeletons engagethe PCs.

The MausoleumKendra may have noticed PCs guardingthe graveyard, and detoured instead tothe temple mausoleum. Alternately, shemay have escaped to the temple from themelee in the graveyard. If Kendra knowsshe is pursued by characters, she barsthe front door of the temple to slow pur-

suit and is drawn unerringly to the mau-soleum by her affinity for the dead.

In either case, she summons the skel-etons from their crypts in the mausole-um. If adventurers arrive within oneturn to investigate the disturbance,they are confronted inside the templeby skeletons.

Skeletons (2): AC5; MV 12; hp 10;#AT 1; Dmg 1d8 + 1; AL CE.

One wears a ring of feather falling.Skeletons (3): AC 7; MV 12; hp

6; #AT 1; Dmg 1d6 (claws); AL CE.

These undead fight without reserva-tion, and can only be stopped bydestroying or turning them. They donot pursue fleeing characters far fromKendra. The first two skeletons are theremains of adventuring clerics. Theywere buried in their armor and carry+1 maces, hence are the most power-

ful fighters among these undead. Oneof the other skeletons was buried witha bag of 300 gp in the crypt at his feet; itis clearly visible to anyone lookingdirectly into that tomb.

The SiegeWhen Kendra has marshaled her forceof skeletons-unless prevented byPCs- she leads them directly to the aco-lytes quarters, the largest outbuilding.She has mistaken it for the caretakersresidence, and singled it out for herrevenge.

Awakened by the sextons screams,the acolytes see the undead marchingtoward their quarters. They bar thedoor and stand inside, grasping chairlegs as improvised weapons. Kendrastays concealed at a distance, watchingwhat the undead do. When the skele-tons assault the building, they tear shut-ters off the two windows and enter.The acolytes can hold out for one turnbefore they are overwhelmed by theundead and slaughtered. If skeletonsare attacked from the rear (by PCs),two-thirds of their number turns to thenew threat, and the others persist intheir siege of the house.

RewardsIf the PCs successfully guarded thecemetery and/or saved the acolytes,they are thanked by Hannes andrewarded with 500 gp. If the acolytesperish, the PCs receive only 100 gp fortheir efforts. If Kendra is captured,Hannes wants to keep her in hopes ofcuring her insanity. The cleric doesntexpect PCs to loot the dead, but unscru-pulous characters may acquire the ringof feather falling, two +1 maces, andthe 300 gp in the crypt.

Ecology of theSkeletonHubert was blustering his way throughhis third pitcher of ale at the The EmptyTankard tavern. His audience wasmostly reduced to younger adventur-ers who welcomed the blowhards taleswhile Callis, the innkeep, readied theevening meal.

Last month Rado and I stumbledacross the tomb of Tynik the RobberKing, in the Gray Hills, the big mansaid. Youve all heard of it . . . he pausedwhile heads nodded on cue in the lamp-light, . . . but they dont tell you aboutthe carnivorous skeletons that guard it.We fought them as long as we could,but we were outnumbered. They cravehuman blood, and when we ran, theygave chase . . .

After the past hour of similar yarns,one listener wasnt having any of it.Thats enough misinformation rightthere, you ignoramus! blurted a roughvoice.

Hubert blinked in surprise at theunexpected interruption. A femaledwarf moved into the lamplight, andput her empty mug down on Hubertstable with a definitive thunk.

Im Tarif Zag, the dwarf introducedherself, and I fought skeletons beforeyou were born. Learned a lot aboutthem in the field. Then I retired, andbecame a cleric, she said, fingering amedallion around her neck in the formof a silver hammer, and learned a lotmore. Any adventurer deserves to

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know the truth about those creatures,and not a lot of hogwash.

Now, lets get some of this straight,declared Zag, surveying the audienceshe had so deftly stolen from Hubert.Skeletons are both more dangerousand less fearsome than youve been ledto believe. Anyone who makes them outto be worse than zombies or ghouls hasnever fought zombies or ghouls. Shetook a long pull from her mug, and shota sideways glance at Hubert. And any-one who says theyre nothing but a pileof bones, easy to beat, has never had aclose call with em.

But Ive seen the ones that want humanblood, rejoined Hubert, not so easilyquelled. They chased us, and brought myfriend down like a pack of dogs . . .

Sure, Tarif cut him off. Thats whatit looked like. But let me tell you a thingor two about skeletons.

When a skeleton is animated, theenchantment accomplishes two things.First, it knits the bones together magi-cally, binding them with force drawnfrom the Negative Energy Plane. Almostall the bones have to be there-withoutmostly complete remains, the spell isalmost impossible to hold together.

Second, the spell binds energy calledthe animus into the skeleton to animateit. Thats not the same as the spirit orsoul of the deceased. It is only a frag-ment of soul energy, the portion thathelped keep the soul in the living body.

In death, the animus lingers around the

have no emotions and no desiresmuch less cravings for blood. The

remains until they turn to dust. This istrue no matter what the race of the

dwarf snorted and refilled her mug

creature whose bones are animated.

from Huberts pitcher.

Tarif drained her mug and looked

Hubert peered unhappily into hisnear-empty pitcher, and drained whatwas left with one swallow. Then howdo you explain those skeletons that

squarely at Hubert. Since skeletons

killed Rado? The fighter belched, thencontinued. Once they caught sight of

have no brain and no soul, they likewise

us, they chased us forever. They werebloodthirsty enough to do that!

Tarif shook her head. Theres only onething that motivates a skeleton: theorders of the spell-caster that created it.Once the animus is housed in the bones,the spell-caster tells it, in a few words,exactly what he wants it to do. Skeletonsfollow those orders exactly-no more, noless. They behave rather brainlessly, actu-ally, taking those orders at their literalface value. More than one necromancerhas been undone by wording skeletonorders sloppily.

A studious young man in robes put afull pitcher on the table near the dwarf-ish cleric, then asked a question as herefilled her mug. So you mean if aspell-caster tells a skeleton to guard an

No, an order like that wouldnt begood enough, she said. What does

area, that might not be good enough?Tarif studied him for a moment.

guard mean? Stand

Have thoughts of animating the dead

at attention with a

yourself, do you? His blush was ade-quate response. Hmph. Her disgustwas apparent, but she sampled the aleanyway and mused out loud.

halberd at port arms? Kill anyone insight? If the orders arent specificenough, the skeleton either standsthere undecided, or takes a randomaction that seems to fulfill the order.

The best orders are simple and exact:Stop anyone from leaving this room, kill-ing them if necessary, or, Kill anyone whoenters this hallway. Zag inclined herhead to Hubert. I suspect thats the kindof order your skeletons had. As younoticed, you can only stop them from car-rying out their orders by destroyingthemor by evading them completely.

Hubert returned her gaze. Are skele-tons always used as guards, or do theyhave other purposes too? he asked,helping himself to the new pitcher.

Zag shrugged. Thats their most com-mon use, Id say-either guarding a per-son, or a place like Tyniks tomb. Theyretoo brainless to do much else. But theymake tenacious and ever-alert guards.Besides obeying their orders to the letter,they are the easiest type of undead toraise, and are relatively simple to create.

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4. The important ingredients for apotion of skeleton control are groundbone (from the type of skeleton thepotion is to control); graveyard dirt;mandrake root; hair from a cleric of10th-level or greater; and a dash of holyor unholy water (depending on align-ment of user). This is the most palatableof any potion of undead control.

Of course, you only find them employedby unscrupulous sorts who dont minddisturbing the remains of the dead. Thenagain, they dont even exist among peoplethat practice cremation!

The robed fellow spoke up again.Can a skeleton be raised if its buried?Or does it have to be uncovered first?

Tarif frowned as she replied. No,skeletons can be raised right up out ofthe ground. When the magic knits theirbones together, theyre charged withNegative Plane energy. This unnaturalforce has an unbinding effect on PrimeMaterial Plane matter, allowing theskeleton to push and scramble its wayout of the ground like a worm throughsand. Or push the stone plug out of acrypt. And so on. But that burst ofenergy fades after a minute or so, andthen the skeleton is no more powerfulthan a healthy man or dwarf!

The room fell quiet as listeners envi-sioned skeletons rising from theirgraves. A few shuddered.

Is there no protection against a sacri-lege like that? grumbled Hubert, voic-ing the thought of many.

Well, in fact, there is: said the cleric.Not many bother to have it done, butthe clerical ceremony, eternal rest,drives the animus from ones remainsand makes it impossible for thedeceased to be raised as any sort ofundead creature. Its a rather costlyceremony, and one not too many con-sider essential. But it can be done.

Hubert nodded thoughtfully as ayouth in a ring-mail vest spoke up.

How hard is it to fight and destroyskeletons? Ive heard theyre prettyeasy to kill-if thats the word for it.

They have a few quirks that areimportant to know about: replied Tarif.Holy water or fire are especially usefulagainst them. Holy water hurts skele-tons because it undoes the NegativePlane energy that binds them together.Fire burns them like it does a person,and you dont have to worry about youraim too much when you use it.

Swords, axes, spearsall bladedweapons, in fact, do only about half thedamage youd expect them to. Slashing

8

Ive heard there are potions that turnundead as well. It was the robed managain.

Tarif shook her head. Not to turnundead, really, but to control them, as ifthey were charmed! The dwarf made aface. If theres ever a disgusting thingto drink, a potion of undead control isit. The more powerful creature itsmade to control, the more nauseatingthe taste. Bleah. She shuddered. Iveknown some people who couldnt keepone down, its that bad. At least a potionof skeleton control isnt as awful as therest. Its a gruesome brew to make, buteffective, if you can stand to swallow it.

On that appetizing note, the innkeepannounced that the roast was done. Asthirsty customers ordered their meals,their attention turned away fromHubert and the dwarfish cleric. Tarifturned to the adventurer, looking sadlyat his once-again empty pitcher.

Dont worry, she said under herbreath. At least the bones of yourfriend Rado will never be animated asundead. I suppose those were hisremains I blessed with eternal rest.”

What? Hubert looked at Tarif,uncomprehending.

And here, said the cleric, placing agold coin on the table in front ofHubert. Have dinner, on me. If youhadnt reduced the number of skele-tons guarding that tomb, I might nothave made it in and out again. Thanks.

The coin was stamped with the mark

I wasnt a cleric then! Zag laughed.Its hard to turn undead if youre not.But, just as skeletons are the easiestundead to create, theyre also the easi-est to turn. So you have a good chance ifyou have a cleric along when you meeta skeleton!

a bone does a lot less damage than slash-ing flesh would. Arrows and other mis-siles are next to useless, since theyglance off bones and fly right throughthe skeleton. Maces and blunt weaponsdo wonders, though, smashing bonesinto bits. Theyre the best hand weaponto use against skeletons.

Why didnt you just turn the skele-ton instead? asked Hubert.

of Tynik, the Robber King. Zag wasgone before Hubert could think of aresponse.

Creature Notes1. Orders are given to a skeleton at

the time the skeleton is animated. Oncegiven, they cannot be revised unless theanimation spell is terminated and theundead raised a second time.

2. A spell-casters orders cannot exceed24 words in length. The shorter andmore precise the orders are, the betterchance there is for the skeleton to carrythem out without error. If there is ambi-guity in a skeletons order when it is con-fronted with a particular situation(Guard this room), there is a 50%chance that it will stand inactive and con-fused. The remainder of the time, thecreature may interpret its order in anyway the DM may conceive as being inaccordance with the original wording.

3. After the appropriate spell is cast,it takes one round for a skeletons ani-mation to become complete. At theDMs discretion, certain spell variationsmay allow the skeleton to be raisedfrom its grave. In such a case, one addi-tional round is required for it to freeitself if buried in the ground or sealedin a crypt. At the DMs discretion, thismay take longer due to unusual circum-stances. In certain situations, theundead cannot free itself at all (if, forinstance, it is sealed behind a brick wallor buried beneath a landslide).

5. Skeletons are immune to theeffects of charm, sleep, cold-based mag-ic, and all spells which affect willpower.Holy water inflicts 2d4 points of dam-age on a skeleton, while sharp or bladedweapons do only ½ normal damage(round down).

ZOMBIESMonster: ZombiesTerrain: Moor and castleParty Levels: 6 (Average 1st)Gold X.P.: 5,000 per memberTreasure XP.: 500Monster X.P.:

Kill: 1920 Defeat: 1440Retreat: 480

DM Note: This adventure is set up tostress roleplaying and storytelling.Theres combat and the like herein,enough for anyone, but the focus is onhelping the players define their charac-ters and build a link into the ForgottenRealms world.

Setupl Hard luck means hard choices. In

your case, your financial insolvencymeans accepting positions as guards fora caravan passing through the LonelyMoor. You know there are safer routes,but the merchant has been told that theshipment (to avoid official scrutiny)must pass through the Lonely Moor.The only good things about this missionare the pay and the fact that Zhentarimraids in that area have been cut wayback. Of course, it is not reassuring todwell on the reasons why the raidshave been cut back, because therumors are dark and horrid. But, then,theyre only rumors, right?l Though seen as a clear sign that he

has gone utterly mad, a scholar con-fides in you that he believes the con-junction of the stars and planets pointsto a revival of the Netherese sorcerersand their power. As Aumvor the Undy-ing (commonly believed to be a lich andsecreted away in a northern cave) isperhaps the best known and roundlyinfamous of the Netherese magickers,this revival is not looked upon withfavor by anyone. The scholar, BookmanThomas, believes much could belearned from the Netherese and com-missions the group to survey the LonelyMoor for signs of Nethereses return topower. (Hes hired a low-level partybecause more experienced adventurershave turned him down.)

l Food has become scarce, andmoney even more so. In return for thepromise of a nights lodging and a cou-ple of meals, your crew agrees to dig awell for the owner of the farmhouseyouve discovered in your travels. Asyou take up the picks and shovels heoffers you, one person quips, Whenadventuring, we get to keep whateverwe find when digging.

The farmer nods pleasantly. What-ever you find you may keep. The onlything I want out of that hole is water.

You all laugh and, as the day wearson, you dice for the rights to the oddgold coin recovered from the hole. Asthe sun begins to set, you hear a yelpfrom the person down in the well. Hetugs frantically on the rope, and youhaul him to the surface.

In his hands you see a glittering silversword that practically radiates magic.Your companion looks at you, his handswrapped tightly around the pommel.Dont ask me how I know this, he saysin a mournful voice, But the swordsname is Cleaveheart and its master,who is in the middle of the Lonely Moor,needs it badly. He swallows hard. If wedont get the sword there in time, I willdie!

These openers can bridge into thefirst, second, and third parts of this sce-nario. The lead setup ties into the sce-nario from the start. The second andthird openers tie best into the secondsection. Setup No. 4 goes best into thethird section of the scenario. Even so,no matter what opener you wish to use,the scenario can be played straight outwith very little modification.

Part I: Night CampAs deserts go, the Lonely Moor has agreat advantage over Anaurochit hasenough scrub brush to fuel a fire whennight falls. It falls fast, and with it goesthe heat of the day. Jackels and hyenasgreet the night with enthusiastic yowls.All too quickly, it seems to those gath-ered at your camp, the howling beastsseem to have focused their serenade on

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your fire.The campsite is on a low expanse of

alkali flat in a narrow but long streambed. While it does not have the strategicadvantage of high ground, it does shieldthe group from the chilly desert nightwinds and will channel attackers to thenorth or south approaches. The sanddunes that form the valley walls are toosoft for horses to run through. Thereare signs (most notably a fire ring) tosuggest others have found a haven hereand, by digging down about 5, the par-ty can create a seep well for water.

Zhentarim raiders will hit the party/caravan in the wee hours of the morn-ing. Approaching from the south, theywill ride through the camp in twowaves. The first wave will have war-riors who are meant to occupy the cara-vans guards while the second wavepauses long enough to gather up lootand, most importantly, destroy or carryoff all freshwater supplies they can see.

Raiders (25 in each wave): AC 8;MV 24; HD 2 (mount), 4 (men); hp10 (mount), 24 (men); # AT 2 (mount),1 (men); Dmg 1-411-4 (mount), 2-8 or2-7 (broad sword), 1-6 or 1-8 (lance);AL CE; XP 354 per each raider andmount.

The raiders will hit fast and try to getaway as quickly as possible. Certainlylet the players know, through the Zhen-tarim leaders cursing, that their com-bat abilities (no matter how meager)have forced him away sooner thanpleases him. The raiders will leave thesite to the north and, if the players dontthink of this themselves, the merchantwill urge them to head out after theraiders.

Carnage KnowledgeAs quick as they might be, the adven-turers do not catch the raiders. Insteadthey come upon a scene that is some-thing more than horrible. In anothersandy valley, they find the raiders dead,or almost so. It looks, clearly, as thoughthe raiders were ambushed, but who-

ever attacked them did it with theirbare hands.

By easing the pain of one victim orthrough Intelligence Ability rolls, thefollowing picture emerges. Theambushers lay hidden beneath the val-leys sandy walls, then attacked whenthe raiders paused to split up the lootand make it easier to carry off. From acarcass or two with split spines, it isobvious the attackers were zombies,but the efficacy of their attack surpris-es the players. Zombies, because oftheir stupidity, could not normally coor-dinate such an attack. Something con-trolled them.

Their tracks lead off to the westwhere, as it appears from the highestpoint the adventurers can reach, ahand has reached up from the LonelyMoor to clutch at the moon.

Part II: House ofNightmares.The black basalt castle sits in a valleyinto which sand has drifted and seem-ingly choked off all life. In reality, about10 beneath the sand, the ground is cov-ered with the remnants of the moun-tain from which the castle has beencarved. Its five spires stab toward thesky like fingers, and the castles gate isshaped like the muzzle and head of ahyena skull. The whole structure hasan antiquity of design and warped qual-ity to it that would send a shiver downthe spine of even the most jaded adven-turer.

Created by Aumvor (now known asAumvor the Undying) the castles own-ership has fal len to his great-grandneice, Morasha. The manner andattitude of the party will determinehow she greets their appearance at herhome. Having had a pack of hyenasshadowing the partys approach (con-trolled by a living zombie hyena), shewill know if they are coming in a war-like mood, or if they merely happenedupon her castle by accident in a searchfor water or the Zhentarim captives.

If the party is hostile in its approach,

Morasha will use the hyenas to harrythe party while she summons up thezombie defenders of her castle tomount the walls. If the players over-come the hyenas and zombies, they canproceed directly to Part III: NurisElfward Walks Again. If not, truncatethe next section (eliminating dinner)and have the players languish inMorashas clutches.

Hyenas (8): AC 7; MV 12; HD 3; hp10; # AT 1; Dmg 2-8; AL NE; XP 65each.

Pelts are worth a 5 gp bounty.Zombies (1d10 + 10)): AC 8; MV 6;

HD 2; hp 6; # AT 1; Dmg 1-8; AL NE;XP 32 each.

Players arriving without evil intentwill be greeted by Morasha as theyenter the castles courtyard. Morashawill be standing at the top of the stair-way leading into the castles keep andwill openly welcome the strangers. Herattitude toward them will depend upontheir responses to her greeting -themore gracious and educated they seem,the more likely she is to play it straightwith them.

Morasha will lead them into a hugebanquet hall that has exquisite stonecarving beautiful enough to drive anydwarves almost mad. The pillars arch-ing up toward the ceiling are carved torepresent the arched spines of skele-tons. Up toward the ceiling, the skele-tons arms and hands spread out toform the ribs upholding the vaultedceiling. Other details of the workappear to be modeled after bones ofvarious creatures and, despite themacabre source of inspiration, the hallis a masterwork of the stonemasonsart.

Complaining she is not often calledupon to entertain travelers from afar,she invites the players to seat them-selves at her long ebony table. Onceseated, five different servants come outbearing platters of meat, dried fruits,wine and other foods. The meat is prob-ably horse, but is so well spiced that its

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real flavor (or that of anything else) isvirtually impossible to detect.

The servants do not appear unusualexcept that they react to Morashasunspoken commands. She is courteousenough to thank them for some taskperformed, but she never vocalizes anorder. In addition, they appear some-what drawn and gray. Aside fromavoiding collisions with each other, theservants appear to notice no one butMorasha. Lastly, all the servants look toyou to be Zhentarim.

Small TalkRoleplaying will be very important dur-ing the dinner section of this scenariobecause Morasha will use it to solidifyher opinion of the characters. Becausenecromancy (like surgery and gamedesign) makes for lousy dinner conver-sation, Morasha will, through askingquestions about the party members,eventually bring the discussion aroundto love. She will not be looking toseduce any of the characters and willbe put off if any passes are made at her.Her point is to determine how the play-ers react to the statement, Well, then,would you say that any action taken inthe name of love is justified by its end?

The answer to this question, whetherits positive or not as well as the depth ofsincerity of the response, will deter-mine how the scenario plays itself out.If the players roundly come downagainst that attitude, Morasha will seethem as a threat. She will offer themaccommodations for the night and pro-vide each with a pillow scented withnarcotic flowers. The flowers smellvery pleasant and will ensure the play-ers sleep deeply-deeply enough to bedragged into Part III of this adven-ture.

If the players are sincere in answer-ing the question positively, Morashawill trust them. Depending upon howthe DM wishes to play her in terms ofmental balance, her actions will beskewed. If the DM plays her as utterlyand irredeemably crazy, Morasha willlook upon the players as a source of

parts for Nuris body (You have suchsoft hands for a big man. I need yourhands . . .) Morasha will immediatelyorder her living zombies to capture theplayers and carry them down to thevaults below.

Living zombies (7): AC 6; MV 9;HD 3+ 12; hp 45; # AT 1; Dmg 3-12;AL N; XP 240 each.

If the DM wishes to play Morasha assomewhat more sane than evil, she willinvite the players to the vaults to viewher masterwork. This will usher theminto Part III, but only after she gets avision from one of her living zombiejackals that some Zhentarim raiders (averitable army of them) are coming todestroy her home. She asks the playersto help defend her castle as she takesthe last step in her experiment. She willrequest one adventurer, the one whohas evidenced the most pure and braveheart among the group, to accompanyher.

Possessing the sword Cleaveheartwill affect this outcome somewhat. IfMorasha is crackers, the sword willurge the individual carrying it to searchout the vaults. Morasha and the livingzombies will oppose this move. IfMorasha is not nuts, the person pos-sessing the sword will be asked to joinher in the vaults. The sword will be

While the pillars above were vertebrae,these pillars have the form of warpedthigh bones. From the doorway, theround rooms floor is down a set of 20concentric circles of steps. The mainfloor is 40 in diameter and lies 20below the level of the doorway.

Rusting cages with skeletons in mold-ering clothes hang from the ceiling andring the upper level. Below, on the mainfloor, two tables contain alembics andjars of ingredients commonly found in amagicians lab. The nearest tableincludes a fat tome, bound in blackleather, with gold script worked on the

The Vaults

Part III: NurisElfward Walks AgainPlaying out this final segment willdepend upon the personality the DMhas chosen for Morasha. The descrip-tions below will largely remain thesame no matter what the case, butshould be made more sinister andcreepy if Morasha is played as mad. Agood technique for this is to include lotsof slime, spiders, snakes, and othercrawly things in the descriptions if oneor more of your players does not likethem in real life.

pointed out as a powerful artifact thatcan help her attain her goal.

cover. The lettering spells, DeathsBook, and seems to shift and crawlacross the cover like fog creeping upfrom the ocean. Its worth 50,000 gp,provided a buyer can be found for it. Ina small pile, off to the left, you see awhole host of weapons well suited to aman of war.

Above the center of the floor, sus-pended halfway between the floor andceiling, is the body of a man. Tall andincredibly muscular, he would seem tobe sleeping except for the grayish pal-lor of his flesh. Black basalt tendrilsspread from the center of the ceilingslotus design and appear to be holdinghim up, but they seem far too slenderfor the job. In addition, he is not restingupon them, but it appears they are sunkinto his flesh at the neck, chest, shoul-ders, waist, thighs, and calves. Thebody appears perfectly formed, unlessMorasha is mad, in which case the bodyis a patchwork of flesh with morestitching than a quilt to hold it together.His golden blond hair will be a mangycollection of scalps if Morasha is notplaying with a full deck, and his normal-ly symmetrical muscles will look mis-matched and lumpy.

If the characters are prisoners, theywill look on from the cages whileMorasha eyeballs them for a leg muscleor a patch of flesh. She will become dis-tracted by the Zhentarim raid andleave. In this case, the players will have

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find. (If the players kill Morasha, the liv-ing zombies will have their mindsreturned to them, and her corpse willturn to dust right there in front ofthem.)

to escape and destroy Nuris body. Thatwill break Morashas mind, leaving heropen to death, or unable to control herzombies, which will allow the party toescape with whatever loot they can

The Zhentarim RaidThis raid should pose a threat to theplayers only in the number of foes theywill face. For all intents and purposes,the castle will be overrun by Zhentarimsick and tired of their people being kid-napped and turned into zombies. Com-bat should be spiced with descriptionsof zombies attacking Zhentarim thatwould have killed a player, or usingtheir own bodies to shield players whenstuff gets very nasty. This fight shouldhave killing enough for all, but it shouldseem as though, in the end, the playerswill be overwhelmed.

The Hero AwakensMorasha wants to bring Nuris Elfwardto life. She would have infused the lifeforce from one of her zombies into him,but none of the Zhentarim had thecourage and purity of heart the Nuris oflegend possessed. She wants to drawenough life force from the player char-acter to start Nuris up and recall hisspirit from wherever it is.

If the player accepts the challenge,Morasha will ask him/her to strip off allclothing, rings, or other stuff that couldinterfere with the process. More stonetendrils will grow from the ceiling ather command and attach themselves tothe characters neck, chest, shoulders,waist, thighs, and calves. The stone willfeel cold, then those areas will go numbas the tendrils retract and raise thecharacter into the air. (If the player hadCleaveheart, the blade will be placed onNuris chest.)

Two tendrils will grow from the ceil-ing and touch both character and Nuris

in the forehead. Morasha will be chant-ing out her spell, sending a tingling overthe characters body, as she powers upthe transference. (This can be madeespecially dramatic if the other playersare being backed through the castletoward the vaults by the incredibleZhentarim raider group. Alternatingbetween the two venues of play willheighten the tension with the transfer-ence (and the attendant display of pyro-technics) finally taking place when theplayer characters are backed into thevaults themselves.)

As the transference ritual proceeds,the player character will see Nuris lifeflash before his eyes. The scenes will allbe heroic and most often feature Nurisand his moon elf companion, AranthorEliaoim, battling some evil or another.While most of it goes by too fast to becaptured, and the views of the worldare easily 2,500 years old, enough infor-mation could be slipped in to directplayers toward a future scenario. Hav-ing Nuris flashbacks can provideinteresting color or data as the cam-paign progresses (and can explain awaysome amazing dice rolls later).

Muscles rippling and blue eyes flash-ing with a keen light, Nuris drops to theground and lands on the balls of hisfeet. With Cleaveheart in hand, or an axpicked up from the pile on the floor, thehero moves to help the players driveback the Zhentarim horde.

Part IV: What Do WeDo Now?If the players have killed Morasha, herliving zombies will be released and willhelp the adventurers get out of theLonely Moor. As they are Zhentarim,acquaintance with them will have littlevalue, unless the players are forced, atsome point, onto the outlaw trail.

In gratitude for the players help insaving her castle and bringing Nurisback, Morasha is more than willing torelease some of the zombies fromthralldom. If the players insist, she willrelease all her living zombies, though

she will protest that they are just Zhen-tarim and will only get themselveskilled in some less productive way.

Morasha will bestow upon the personof good heart who endured the trans-ference a magical shield +2 that willdispell possessions. She will also givethat individual and the others in theparty 5,000 gp for the risks they tookduring the fight.

The implications of Nuris returnupon your campaign can be great orsmall. If you wish him to have no influ-ence whatsoever, have him head out forEvereska to live with the elves untilagain called from the earth. You couldalso have him return Morashas love,leaving the both of them in the middleof the Lonely Moor. This latter solutionwould make Nuris more accessible indire times, but would keep him out ofthe way.

If you desire a more important rolefor Nuris, he could report a desire tosee the world. Nuris remembers aworld 2,500 years gone. The playerswould have to teach him about the newworld. Seeking out ruins long hidden,but fresh in Nuris mind can also be thesource of adventure.

Creature NotesI pressed my fingertips into the bootprint and felt the triangular lump thatmatched the place Aranthor Eliaoimhad notched his heel, I looked down atthe track, availing myself of the silverymoonlight the clouds let pass to lightmy way. Time had not much eroded thecrisp edges of the track, but I did notdelude myself. Im days behind him.Black Bess must be laughing mightily atme.

My left hand dropped to the hilt ofCleaveheart, the weapon Id favoredsince Aranthor and I pried it from thedead Pirate Kings own hands. Forgedfrom the metal of a rock hurled fromthe sky by that new god, Tyr Grimjaws,it was a weapon of which much wouldbe sung. Its heaviness pulling at mysword belt reassured me, for only itsunearthly magic would win my way

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through Aumvors zombie legions. Illfree you, Aranthor, and Ill pay Aumvora most horrible ransom.

Barely a league further through thedarkened Netherese countryside, Icame to Aumvors castle. Ringed by hill-sides and mountains that still grewthick with green beauty, the keep fes-tered like an obscene wound in its val-ley. Strewn around it, mocking theforests, the stone chaff blighted theground. Twisted dolmens stood likelimbless trees, while smaller rockshards smothered all plant life.

His zombies are but fingers on hishand, and now his castle reaches fromthe earth to the sky Is he so bold as todare to claim divinity? I smiled grimly tomyself. Guide my hand, Tymora, and Iwill give him his release.

The castles gate gaped open for, withhis command of zombies, Aumvor hadnothing to fear. The gate had been fash-ioned after the skull of a hyena. As Istrode into its mouth, I waited for theportcullis to crash down, but nothinghappened. If Aumvor anticipated myvisit, he knew I would not turn away, nomatter what he chose to do to me.

Once through the beasts stonethroat, I slipped into the shadows toskirt the courtyard. I quickly mounteda set of steps hacked into the westernwall. Half hidden in blackness, I froze asmurmured voices issued from a pas-sageway that opened beneath thestairs.

The stench of decay confirmed whatmy eyes told me about one of them.Human, or what had once been human,it shambled forward mindlessly. Fleshhung limply from its gaunt frame, andthe filthy rags wound round its middleseemed there more to hold it togetherthan out of any sense of modesty.

The other creature sniffed the air,then spun with an agility only aNetherese living zombie could muster.The ogre-thing pointed a taloned fingerat me, its eyes blazing with an unholyintelligence. Take him, take him! Thewords, croaked through a throat notshaped for higher speech, turned thezombie and drove it at me.

Cleaveheart slid from the scabbard ina circular draw that flashed moonlightfrom its razored edge. I wrapped bothmy battle-scarred hands around itswarm hilt, then leaped down into thecourtyard. I rolled to absorb the shockof impact, then gained my feet andengaged my foes.

The human zombie still focused uponwhere I had been. Taking a half step for-ward, I swept Cleaveheart around in acrosscut that cut through the zombiesback and out its chest. The once-manstaggered, its bony hands clutching atits split chest, then crashed to theground.

Believing it finished, I turned to facethe ogre-thing, for I knew it to be thegreater danger. The human zombielunged at me, dragging its lifeless legsbehind it. Its fleshless fingers rakedthrough my leather breeches andtraced bloody furrows on my shin. Painflashed like lightning up to my hip. Istumbled back yet managed to swipeCleaveheart through the creaturesneck, severing its spine for the secondand final time.

The ogres backhanded blow explod-ed stars before my eyes and sent mesailing a dozen feet across the court-yard. I landed hard, the jerkin beneathmy mail absorbing a bit of damage, androlled to a stop. Cleaveheart sprangfrom my nerveless right hand when myelbow slammed into the ground. Disori-ented, I stood before Id located thegray-skinned monster or my blade.

I heard something behind me and piv-oted just in time for the ogre-thing tosink its fingers into my chest. Rings ofmail snapped in the creatures grip andagonies Id not known since my battlewith the Blue Sword of Archendaleburned through my ribs. With laughterlittle more than guttural grunts, theogre pulled me close to its face andturned me so the moon could illuminatemy features.

Recognition flashed in those blood-shot eyes, but I knew the intelligencetherein was not native to the ogre.Nuris Elfward! I am blessed!

I spat in the monsters face. Tell that

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14

to Old Lord Skull! I dropped my lefthand on the ogres jaw and sank the fin-gers of my right through its greasyblack hair. Screaming as it sought tocrush my chest, I wrenched hard to theleft and heard a loud snap, though Icould not tell if the ogres neck or myribs had produced the sound.

The ogre-thing collapsed, droppingme to the ground. My left leg gave way,its urgent aching demanding attentionnow that my ribs no longer found them-selves in a vise. I massaged my leg untilit stopped hurting so much and then,after wiping my bloody hands againstmy thighs, found Cleaveheart andhomed the blade.

I levered myself up on my left kneeand bent toward the ogre. I pressed thefingers of my right hand to its neck andfelt, right below the point of the break,a small lump over the spine. Shakingthe dagger Wasp from the sheath on myright forearm, I slit the lump and pulledfree a translucent white crescent.

It looked exactly like what it was: afingernail paring. Through an exactingritual, a necromancer like Aumvorcould insert the nail paring over thecreatures spine and gain control overit. It would still be alive, at least until itslife force had all been fed back into thenecromancer along this magical con-nection between them, and would beunder the necromancers complete con-trol. As long as they are fed and healedof disease, they will live out a normallife span as the necromancers slaves.

I narrowed my eyes. Another fingeron his hand. The number of zombies anecromancer could control woulddepend upon his abilities, but a halfdozen zombies in thrall to one man wasas many as Id ever heard of. That is, ofthe living zombies, because they stillhave some will and require active con-trol. Almost anyone can commandlegions of the other kind.

Zombies that are actually dead often,at least in the Netherese tradition, comefrom once living zombies. As the bodysspirit dies, rebellion goes with it. Bysubstituting the nail paring from thenecromancer for one from another

creature (including a living zombie),undead zombies can be given to andcontrolled by others. Of course, the factthat they are dead and putrifying doesmake them less than ideal servants.

My fingers felt the break in the ogresneck. The pillar of life. Thats what mysword master had called the spine.Remember, Nuris, cut the spine andyoull win the fight. Works on men,beasts and them what should have diedlong ago. Fires not bad either, or moltensilver, but the latter arent always avail-able.

The sound of clapping echoed fromthe shadowy walls to fill the courtyard.I turned, and my heart leaped to mythroat. Aumvor, short and stocky, withmoonlight glinting from his sweat-slickpate, stood atop the wide staircase lead-ing into the keep. Resting his fat handson the paunch supported by his blackrobes sash, the necromancer smiledalmost graciously.

Below him, trying to hold his headtall, stood Aranthor Eliaoim. On themoon elfs face I saw the struggle forcontrol of his body being waged withAumvor. Go, Nuris, flee. My folly ofasking Aumvor to return my belovedMarissa to life has trapped me. Let notyour friendship doom you as well. Hisvoice strangled hoarsely to silence, butthe look in his eyes still begged me toleave.

I looked up at Aumvor. Release himand I will let you live.

Aumvor shook his head, then raisedhis hands like a puppeteer. With a fewdeft motions he forced Aranthor todraw his blade, Bloodquick, anddescend to the courtyard floor. Saveyourself, Nuris Elfward.

A furious moan keening from histhroat, Aranthor charged me. By reflexI drew Cleaveheart and barely man-aged to turn my friends head cut. Itwisted my blade free of the parry andalmost slid into a riposte, but heldmyself back.

No! screeched Aranthor, You mustend this! Aranthor abandoned himselfto Aumvors control and Bloodquickblurred into a silver circle. I parried the

Once clear of Aumvors demesne, Ilay Aranthor down and cleansed thewound on the back of his neck with thebrandy in my wineskin. The sting of itshocked some life back into him. Ismiled down at him. You were almostdone for, back there, you know?

My elven companion nodded weakly.Once you ripped the nail out, I wasfree of him. It probably relieved himnot to be fighting me so hard.

I nodded. Couldnt have recoveredyou had the wound fully healed over. Iglanced back toward the keep. Some-day, my friend, were going to have togo back there and kill him.

I smiled and helped Aranthor to hisfeet. Suddenly the landscape shifted inmy sight. Sand covered everything Icould see and incredible heat bled upthrough the ground into my boots.Gone was all the greenery and life, onlyjackals and other carrion beasts livedwithin the land I saw. Glancing up intothe sky I saw that even the stars hadchanged their positions.

In a second, everything shifted backto what I knew of the world. Aranthorstudied me with concern in his greeneyes, but I shook my head. I trust yourjudgment, my friend. Let us return tothe land of the living.

Wasp flew from my hand and piercedthe necromancers breast. He clutchedat it with pudgy fingers, then stumbledbackward into his keep. For a half sec-ond I thought to follow and finish hisevil for all time, but a more importantmission stopped me. I slid Cleaveheartinto its scabbard, then homed the elfsblade, knelt and lifted Aranthor into myarms.

Aumvor smiled. There, I forced thegreat Nuris Elfward to break his vowand kill one of the elder race. Wait untilthe court at Evermeet hears . . . Ack!

attack, then bound Aranthors bladeagainst mine. Reaching up with my lefthand, I clawed at the back of his neck,then drove my right knee into his stom-ach. Aranthor caved in and fell at myfeet.

GHOULS AND GHASTSMonster: Ghouls, ghastsTerrain: ruins, underground warrenParty Levels: 18 (Average 2)Gold X.P.:Treasure X.P.:Monster X.P.:

Kill: 1373 Defeat: 1030Retreat: 343

Setupl Prior Utrecht Bronagan, who tends

the villages Lathander shrine, hasalways suspected that ghouls dwelledin the village graveyard, yet so long asthe eaters of the dead did not disturbthe living, there was little cause foralarm. Now, a brash young villager hasentered the graveyard and notreturned.l The villagers have recently begun

to cremate their dead, rather than burythem, Now, several villagers have disap-peared in the night, and the corpse of arecently deceased man was stolendirectly from its bier during a wake, infront of aghast family members andfriends.l The local lord wants the mystery of

his missing tax money solved. His taxcollector died in a remote village with-out revealing the whereabouts of thecollected taxes.

The Horror FactorThere are things that men were notmeant to see and seeing them tends tounhinge the mind, fray it a bit aroundthe edges. Generally, this does notoccur when a character sees a monsterfor the first time. Adventurers expectto see monsters. Horror engulfs thosewho see the effects a monster has hadon their fellows, or realize the awfultruth about something, then begin tofear what might happen to themselves.When an encounter requests that acharacter make a Horror Check, thecharacter must make a Wisdom AbilityCheck with a d20. If the d20 roll is lessthan or equal to the combined total ofthe characters Wisdom attribute andexperience level, the check succeeds,

and the character is able to either dealwith, or rationalize what has been expe-rienced.

If the check fails, the character ishorror-struck and suffers the followingeffects: -4 penalty to all die rolls, thecharacters Wisdom is temporarily low-ered by 1d6 points, he will have a pho-bia (unreasoning fear) toward thesource of his horror, and he has a 10%chance to develop a mild form of insani-ty (roll a d20 and match the resultagainst the Types of Insanity Table onpage 83 of the DUNGEON MASTERSGUIDE). If a character afflicted withmild insanity is unable to separate him-self from the source of horror, theinsanity becomes more severe.

Player characters may continueonward, but horrified NPCs (includinghirelings and henchmen) must make aMorale Check at a 35% penalty. NPCswho fail this check will attempt to fleein panic (as if struck by a reversedremove fear spell).

The effects of a failed Horror Checklinger until the afflicted character istreated with the clerical remove fearspell. Even so, the effects of the horrorare lingering. Any subsequent HorrorChecks are made at a -1 penalty. Suchpenalties are cumulative; that is, eachtime the character fails a Horror Check,the next check is more difficult.

The PlotRugen Phimister, a fat, evil man whowas the local dukes tax collector, diedand became a ghast with an insatiableappetite for flesh and gold. In order tofeed his hungers, the ghouls he leadshave kidnapped and imprisoned vic-tims in their fetid warren. Occasionally,a victim dies prematurely and joinstheir number.

Running the ScenarioIf the PCs avoid making loud noises,they may enter the lair undetectedthrough either the mausoleum (areaNo. 1) or the disturbed grave (area No.2). The ghouls do not form an organized

The ghoul warren is designed to leteach DM customize it. Only the num-bered encounter areas, enlarged tun-nels, and tunnel intersections need bemarked on the map the DM draws. Tocomplete the map, the DM must drawmost of the smaller crawl ways. Thesteepness and direction of the slope foreach passage must be marked (see mapsymbols in the key-the arrow markson the tunnel lines indicate the direc-tion of slope between tunnel intersec-tions). The number for each encounterarea indicates its relative depth. Thehigher the number, the deeper it islocated beneath the surface.

The DM should take care to vary theslopes of the passageways, realizingthat steeper passages make travel moredifficult, and the adventure a bit moredeadly.

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The ghoul lair is extensive. Dozens ofpassageways, most little more than nar-row crawl spaces, form a complex war-ren beneath the graveyard, and morerecently, the village itself. The passageslink graves, mausoleums and crypts,private family burial plots, and a num-ber of homes and businesses.

Mapping the Warren

The Lair

If Phimister the ghast is encountered,he may wish to bargain with the adven-turers, either for their continued safetyor his own (see NPC description in TheNight Gallery chapter).

defense until one of their number hasbeen encountered and escaped to warnRugen Phimister in area No. 7. Loneghouls who encounter more than twoadventurers will attempt to flee andjoin with the pack, otherwise theyattack. Ghoul tactics in the warren arehit and run-leap from hiding, fight oneround, then flee into the small tunnels.Ghouls also lead the chase away fromRugen Phimister and across pit trapswhenever possible, never springingtheir own traps.

Movement in the WarrenAll the numbered encounter areas aretall enough to allow a man to standupright. The small connecting tunnelsare different. Any character wearingmore than leather armor will bereduced to a movement rate of 4.Ghouls and ghasts move at their normalspeed through the tunnels.

Random Encounters

Check for random encounters onceevery three turns. A roll of 1 or 2 on1d8 indicates that an encounter takesplace. If an encounter is indicated, roll1d8 again and use the correspondingencounter number from the followingtable:

1. The hunting pack. A single ghastleads a pack of ghouls, yipping andyammering through the warren. If theghast is destroyed here, it cannot bemet in Rugen Phimisters lair.

Ghast (1): AC 4; MV 15; HD 4; hp20; # AT 3; Dmg 1d4/1d4/1d8; SAnausea, paralyzation; SD immune tosleep and charm; AL CE; XP 140.

Ghouls (1d4+2): AC 6; MV 9;HD 4; hp variable; # AT 3; Dmg 1d311d3/1d6; SA paralyzation; SDimmune to sleep and charm; AL CE;XP 109.

2-5. A ghoul.

Ghoul (1): AC 6; MV 9; HD 4; hp10; # AT 3; Dmg 1d3/1d3/1d6; SA par-alyzation; SD immune to sleep andcharm; AL CE; XP 125.

6 . A gr i s ly corpse , par t ia l lydevoured, falls out of a niche upon theparty member most likely to be fright-ened by it (lowest wisdom). That char-acter must make a Horror Check(though the DM may have other charac-ters make checks tool.

7. An ochre jelly.

Ochre jelly: AC 8; MV 3 ; HD 6; hp25; # AT 1; Dmg 1d10 +2; SD split bylightning bolts; AL N; XP 300.

8. Pit of spikes, hidden by offal andrefuse. A character falling in takes 1d6points of damage and has a 25% chanceto contract a disease.

Encounter Areas1. The MausoleumThe graveyard contains but a singlemausoleum, the final resting place of aprominent local family. The tomb dooris closed and has an excellent key lock,which is still fastened. The interior ofthe mausoleum is in shambles; bonesand stone coffins lie strewn about likegruesome, discarded toys. None of thebody pieces bears any finery. All hasbeen taken by the ghouls. The ghoulssecret entrance is in the corner. Belowthis hidden trapdoor is a narrow shaft,about 20 deep. It connects with a ghoultunnel. However, the base of the shaft is

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a pit trap with spikes, hidden by offaland refuse. Anyone who falls in takes1d6 points of damage and has a 25%chance to contract a disease.

2. A Disturbed GraveAt first, this new-made grave appearsunmolested. Yet upon closer examina-tion, the loose soil has settled in anunnatural way, as if its support had col-lapsed from below.

Any villager can lead the PCs to themost recent burial plot in the grave-yard. The mere concept of exhumingthe body, is abhorrent to the villagers. Ifthe grave is excavated, the lid of the cof-fin is intact, yet the coffin is empty. Thecoffin has been breached from below,and the corpse removed. In its place isthe rotted body of a dead ghoul, crawl-ing with maggots and giant white centi-pedes (which attack anyone openingthe coffin). None of this is evidentunless the coffin is opened. Have thecoffin opener and any villagers presentmake a Horror Check. Penalize thecheck by -2 if the body is exhumed atnight by torchlight.

3. At a Dead RunThis is a long, curving, high-ceilinged pas-sageway, large enough for adventurers towalk upright in double file. It endsabruptly at both ends. The many side pas-sages afford the ghouls ample opportuni-ty to ambush unwary PCs. The DMshould mark several passage intersec-tions as coming from directly above thepassage, or at high, steep angles.

4. The Bone YardEvery inch of the irregular floor of thislarge cavern is deeply covered withhuman bones. It is difficult, if notimpossible to cross this room withoutcrunching bones. Giant rats dwell here,feasting on the leavings of the ghouls. Ifthe rats outnumber the PCs, theyattack. Bats on the ceiling are disturbedby noises, and create a great enoughclamor to alert the ghouls.

Giant rats (11): AC 7; MV 12/6;HD ½; hp 2 2 1 2 4 1 4 1 2 3 4; # AT1; Dmg 1d3; SA disease; AL N; XP 9each.

5. The PitsThe ghouls keep their live victims hereas a sort of larder for use in hardtimes. A wide, snake-filled trench fillsthe passageway to the pits. The snakes

are difficult to spot in the rubbish fillingthe trench (a 2 in 6 chance if the PCsscan the pit for traps). The snakes arenormal sized, but deadly poisonous. Acharacter who enters the trench isattacked by 1d4 snakes each round. Ifbitten, a character must make a savingthrow vs. poison or take 3d6 damage.Characters who make their saves take½ damage.

Each of the four pits is 15 deep,carved into stone, and covered by flat,heavy stones that were obviously oncetombstones. One is empty, two containliving victims and the fourth contains astarving ghoul, a former victim who hasjust recently died. One victim is a localfarmers son, and the other is a travelerwho spent the night too near the grave-yard. Both are sick, and the traveler isgravely wounded.

The ghoul imitates the cries of thesick victims. When its pit is opened, itreaches out with surprise (3 in 6chance) and grabs the closest characterby the neck (up to four attack chances)and drags the character in. Anyonewho witnesses this must make a HorrorCheck.

Ghoul (1): AC 6; MV 9; HD 4; hp 6;# AT 3; Dmg 1d3/1d3/1d6; SA paraly-zation; SD immune to sleep andcharm; AL CE; XP 109.

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Giant centipedes (3): AC 9; MV15; HD ¼; hp 1, 2, 2; # AT 1; Dmg nil;SA poison; AL N; XP 32 each.

Victims (2): AC 10; MV 6; HD 0;hp 2, 3; # AT 1; Dmg 1d3; AL N; XP 7each.

Snakes (12): AC 6; MV 9; HD ½;hp variable; # AT 1; Dmg 1d3; SA poi-son; AL N; XP 8 each.

6. Ghoul GoodiesThe ghouls have collected a modesttreasure apart from Rugen Phimistershoard (area No. 7). They have buried itunder refuse in this chamber. However,except for a path around the roomsedge, the floor is loosely packed earthand trash, hiding sharp stakes. Anyonewho walks here will sink down and dothemselves 1d4 damage on the spikesand have a 25% chance to contract adisease.

The treasure includes: 3,000 cp, 1,100sp, 2,000 ep, two gems (50 gp each), andan enameled box containing two dartsof homing.

7. The Crypts Of the HolyFathersSilent skulls stare bleakly from wallniches where priests of long ago werelaid to rest. Torchlight glitters upon pol-ished gold and silver plates, candelabra,and statuary set out on a huge trestletable like a banquet for a king. Yet noking sits here, only a grostesque mock-ery of man, a grossly fat ghoul. Andwhat is set before him is a meal fit onlyfor madmen.

This is the ghast Rugen Phimisterslair. Here, he has collected his recenttreasures, taken from local graves, dis-tant tombs, and other worlds. Thefood on the table is corpse parts,many quite fresh. Rugen the ghast willbe eating with gusto while his twoghoul guards pounce upon his castoffs.Looking at the food and feastingrequires a Horror Check.

Rugens description and those of histwo ghoul and one ghast guards are tobe found in The Night Gallery section.If it looks like he can win a fight, Rugenwill fight, otherwise he will barter for

his life (or unlife).Rugens treasure is large and quite

cumbersome (very little of it is coin). Sixgolden candelabra at 500 gp each; threegolden place settings (dishes and flat-ware) at 100 gp each; 10 ornamentalreligious statues of gold, silver, andgems worth a total of 8,000 gp; a leathersatchel containing 100 harbor moons (aWaterdeep coin of platinum and elec-trum worth 25 gp in Waterdeep, butonly 10 gp anywhere else); two 500 gpgems; six pieces of jewelry 2 x 500 gp, 3x 1,000 gp, 1 x 2,500 gp, an elixir ofmadness, potion of speed, potion ofhealing, scroll of protection: undead,spell scroll: one third-level spell, spellscroll: one second-level spell (all spellsDMs choice); and a map. The mapreveals a location where Rugen storedhis ill-gotten tax money when alive. Hecan no longer remember where he hidit or decipher the map. The treasure ishidden in a cave near the village; sev-eral mechanical and deadfall trapsguard the treasure, as do the fiercegrizzly bears who make the cave theirlair. The treasure is worth 3,000 gp,mostly silver, copper, and jewelry.

8. Door into DarknessA pair of 20-tall, intricately carved pil-lars stand half buried in the chamberscenter. Magical runes (if read) revealthem as the plinths of a gate, a conduitto another plane. The ultimate destina-tion is up to the DM, but given RugenPhimisters background, the Abyss orTarterus are likely end terminals.

Ecology of Ghoulsand GhastsThe gnarled old priest stepped silentlythrough the high grass and tumbledstones, picking out a path he knew well,even in the near darkness. Edgingbehind him like frightened children, atrio of young novices gingerly steppedaround and over fallen grave markersand statuary.

Abruptly, the old priest stopped andthe first of the novices collided with his

teacher, apologetically stepping backonly to fall limbs askew into the coldarms of a smiling marble cherub.

Brother Felloman, why bring us tothis graveyard, and at this hour of thenight? the irritated novice whispered,disentangling himself from the statuesembrace. Surely there is nothing herethat we cannot know from the scrolls inthe temples scriptorium.

Felloman, gave the novice a sternglance and tugged at his own ear, thenturned his attention to pouring waterfrom a flask in circle around them.When the circle was complete, thewater glowed momentarily. Youngbrother Amelior knew the look and thegesture and remained quiet, though hehoped the darkness hid the flush in hischeeks.

Watch, Felloman mouthed silentlyand crouched down into the tall grass.Amelior and his two fellows, Vortigurand Grendul, hunkered down into thegrass with their teacher and waited.

Something was with them in thegraveyard. The rising hairs on the backof Ameliors neck bespoke the super-natural. As he peered across the moon-dappled graves, a figure clamberedsilently into sight, shaking off dirt andgrave mold like a dog sheds water, andclutching some prize to its chest. Thething (Amelior could not rightly call it aman) trotted a short distance from itshole and squatted. Red, feral eyes dart-ed about, seeking any who would takeits prize.

Grave robber, Vortigur gaspedunder his breath. Startled, the thingjumped up and looked wildly about.Dog-like, it sniffed the breeze, thenfroze. Red eyes focused directly onAmelior. He panicked, rose and tripped,falling outside the circle of protection.The thing was on him, smelling ofdeath. Its touch burned like ice and firetogether, and his limbs refused his callto flee. Amelior shrieked as filthy clawsshredded his robe and raked his chest,while snaggled teeth ripped away at hisshoulder. Old Felloman rose, shovingMystras encircled star before him, andjust as quickly, it was over. Amelior lay

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gasping and bleeding in the tombstonesand the thing writhed spasmodicallybeside him, still clutching its grislyprize . . . a rotting human arm, gnawednearly to the bone.

The moon was higher now. Theyretreated into an open mausoleumwhere brother Felloman called lightinto being.

I knew that man, Amelior said,scratching at new-healed flesh on hisshoulder. Well, I knew him when helived and was a man. He was Wexelar,the moneylender. My father said hecheated folk of their livelihood. I thinkmy father owed him a great deal ofmoney. Wexelar died suddenly of theplexy. I remember watching as theydumped his body in the earth. The oldtale must be true then, that ghouls wereonce evil humans who preyed uponothers in life and who died unblessed.

Indeed, said the old priest as he ban-daged Ameliors injured face. It islucky for you, young brother, that youdid not die also. Victims who are killedby ghouls become ghouls themselves ifthey are not blessed before being bur-ied.

Its not my place to pry, reverendbrother, Amelior said as he glancedtoward the mausoleum entrance, butshouldnt you renew your protectionspell? If ghouls beget other ghouls, Ifear Wexelar may not be alone here.

You will do it, young Amelior.Uh . . . uh . . . I, reverend one? Amelior

choked, wishing he had heard wrong.He had done it once before, but nowhoped that Mystra could fill in the gapsin the prayers he only half remem-bered. Hands shaking, he spilled theholy water in a rough circle aroundthem, making sure to include the door.Clutching his star he mouthed theprayer. With a smiling sigh he collapsedto the floor. No ghoul could cross thatmagical barricade.

Ameliors smile faded as glowing eyesgathered beyond the door. One, two,three pairs. He gagged, swallowingback sour bile. While two stayed back,one stepped casually into the light, acrooked smile cracking the scabs on its

face as it hopped excitedly from leg toleg.

Circle-bright hurt frenzzz it hissed,eyeing the damp stone. Maybe it notlassst forever? Maybe warm fleshbecome cold soon, you think. Maybe wefeast very soon?

Felloman stepped forward, present-ing Mystras holy star as before, but theghoul-thing only cringed momentarily,then smiled until its face seemed itmight crack under the strain. Stunnedby his failure, the old man staggeredbackward.

Maybe circle bright keep backfrenzzz, but not me, eh? What youthink? And with that, the ghaststepped through the ineffectual circleof protection.

Creature NotesThe ghoul is a human or demi-human

The energy of the Negative MaterialPlane imbues ghoul and ghast alike

who has risen from the grave to feed onhuman and other corpses. Some ghouls

with a chilling, paralyzing touch. The

are self-made. In life, they were humanpredators who fed off the ill fortune of

effect of this touch is to disrupt the vic-

their fellow men. Their lives ended, yettheir evil survived. Dying unblessed

tims nerve synapses. Occasionally the

and buried unsanctified, they arecursed to continue feeding as ghouls.

paralyzation affects only a limb,

Ghasts are ghouls who have wander-ed or been taken into the Abyss andgained superior powers due to expo-sure to the intense evil there. Ghasts areused as hunting dogs by demons, andare often called the Hounds of theAbyss. Occasionally, they are set freeand rejoin ghoul packs as leaders.

Still, most ghouls and ghasts are thevictims of other ghouls and ghasts, folkwho died of wounds inflicted by thoseundead monsters. If victims are notblessed, they rise again in three days asghouls, under the control of their slay-er. Furthermore, unblessed victimsmay neither be resurrected nor rein-carnated.

restricting movement, spell-casting,and combat. More often than not, theentire body is affected. Rather thansimple immobility, the victim suffers aterrible seizure and may thrash aboutfor minutes before the muscles no long-er respond and the victim is paralyzed.

The duration of the paralyzationdepends on the victims Constitution.Subtract the victims Constitution from20 and add 1d6 if the attacker is a ghouland 2d6 if the attacker is a ghast. Theresult is the number of rounds that theparalysis lasts. Once the paralysiswears off, the victims dexterity isreduced by 2d6 for an equal number ofturns (not rounds). DMs may wish tomake reduced dexterity a side effectthat continues until a special herbalelixir is imbibed, made of rare healingherbs.

Elves are immune to the ghoulstouch. The presumed reason stemsfrom the belief that elves are descen-

It is possible for a ghoul or ghast to be

dants of the god Corellon Larethian.

starved out of existence. It may go with-

Elven lore states that the purity of anelfs bloodline makes him heir to the

out food for seven days before it feels

gods gift of immunity, wrenched fromthe demons defeated in the time of

the effects of starvation. A starving

myths and legends. As legend goes, thegift once extended to an immunity to all

ghoul or ghast loses one hit point per

undead, but now only protects against

week, and ceases to exist when it has no

the lesser powers of the ghoul (ghasts,with their greater power, can paralyzeeven an elf who fails to make a savingthrow vs. paralyzation). Half-elves gainno protection against either ghoul orghast.

Ghouls and ghasts exist only to eat. Allelse is secondary to a hungry ghoul orghast. Ghouls and ghasts must havehuman flesh to survive. They attack theliving only when corpses are not to behad, or in self defense.