The Lands of Garlin

Gullwinq Hitfs

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Introduction

OFFICIAL GAMEADVENTURE

by Troy ChristensenIntroduction 1I. Adventure Background 2

Starting the Player Character 3DM's Information 3

II. Personalities 4III. Places of Interest 10

Hylock 11Whytelock 16

IV. Plot Points 19Meeting with the "Moll" 19Hideout of the Gullwing Bandit 28

CreditsDesign: Troy ChristensenEditing: C. Terry Phillips

Cover Illustration: Jeff EasleyInterior Illustration: Gary Williams

Cartographer: John KnechtTypography: Tracey Zamagne

ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS and AD&D are registeredtrademarks owned by TSR, Inc. DUNGEON MASTER, DM, and theTSR logo are trademarks owned by TSR, Inc.All TSR characters, character names, and the distinct likenesses thereofare trademarks owned by TSR, Inc.Copyright ® 1993 TSR, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.Random House and its affiliate companies have worldwide distributionrights in the book trade for English language products. Distributed to thebook and hobby trade in the United Kingdom by TSR Ltd. Distributed tothe toy and hobby trade by regional distributors.This product is protected under the copyright laws of the United Statesof America. Any reproduction or other unauthorized use of the materialor artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express writtenpermission of TSR, Inc.

TSR, Inc. TSR Ltd.POB 756 120 Church End, Cherry HintonLake Geneva Cambridge CBl 3LBWI 53147 U.S.A. United Kingdom

9420 ISBN 1-56076-562-3

Thief's Challenge is an adventure designed for aDUNGEON MASTER™ (DM™) and a single playercharacter: a thief. It's perfect for the thief who'dlike additional experience points or a chance to usehis special talents without having those trouble-some fighters and spellcasters about to steal theshow.

The scenario is suited to a thief of levels 2 to 4,and is ideal for a character of 3rd level. With minoradjustments by the DM, Thief's Challenge may al-so test the skills of a thief as inexperienced as 1stlevel or as skilled as 6th level. A multi-class thiefmay also be used in this adventure, though the sce-nario will emphasize his thieving background rath-er than spellcasting or fighting.

Thief's Challenge is primarily a mystery, a storythick with finger-pointing and double-crosses. Theplot depends greatly on the player character'sactions. But the choices that the PC makes will de-pend largely on how you, as the DM, portray eachnonplayer character and how you present eachclue. Do not be too tough on the character, for asingle mistake can prove disastrous in a solo sce-nario.

Combat and the acquisition of magical odditiesare rare in this adventure. To compensate for thelack of experience points, the DM is encouraged toaward experience for other activities. Suggestionsare made throughout the adventure. Also consultthe optional rule titled "Individual ExperienceAwards" in Chapter 8 of the DUNGEON MAS-TER™ Guide.

Here's a summary of the pages to come. Chapter1, "Adventure Background," describes the settingand its history, and offers the DM tips for gettingstarted. Chapter 2, "Personalities," describes im-portant NPCs. Chapter 3, "Places of Interest," de-scribes the adventure's setting: the towns ofHylock and Whytelock, and the surroundinglands. Chapter 4, "Plot Points," outlines the sce-nario, detailing the various plots and subplots ofthe mystery. The DM must read the adventure inits entirety before play.

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Chapter I: Adventure Background

Years ago, trade along the river Thadysh wasa dangerous and difficult affair. Neither mannor monster was the enemy; it was geography.The Thadysh snaked from the Grey Pinnaclesin the west, across the swampy lowlands, tofinally flow into the warm sea at Turtlebay.Along the way it was knotted with rock-strewn rapids, and the lands bordering theraging river lay in a stagnant quagmire.

High among the Grey Pinnacles, the townof Zadaraq mined lustrous ores of silver, gold,and iron. The minerals were smelted andforged into bars bearing the stamp of the dukeof the land, Lord Zadaraq, a cruel and ruth-less ruler.

The men and dwarves of Zadaraq led a gru-eling life. Little profit was garnered from thegloomy mines, since much was lost in trans-port to Turtlebay and what was left was takenby the duke. The people of Zadaraq had butone pleasure: partaking in the sweet harvestsof the lowlands.

Far down the Thadysh River dwelt the menand elves of Turtlebay, who harvested grapes,barley, and hops along the windswept coast.They produced the fragrant wines, headybeers, and spicy ales sought by the miners ofZadaraq. The lowlands, however, lacked themineral deposits of the Grey Pinnacles, mak-ing trade with Zadaraq ideal.

For many generations trade fluttered upand down the river, but countless flotillas ofheavily laden barges broke upon the rocks.Caravans left by foot as well, but the danger-ous quagmire made more widows than richmerchants.

The reign of the evil Lord Zadaraq came toan end when the people revolted, throwing offZadaraq's loathsome yoke. Duke Garlin—aPaladin of some repute—then claimed thelands. A wise and noble warrior, he listened tothe people's needs and quickly appreciated thewealth to be gained from a stable trade routebetween the two settlements. He commis-sioned a study to help remedy the trade routesituation.

It was decided that two locks would be con-structed along the Thadysh. The first, calledHylock, would be the trading port for miner-als coming out of the Grey Pinnacles. It wouldgently lower the barges 20 feet to the level ofthe middle Thadysh, now made smoother bythe second lock, called Whytelock, which laywithin a three-day march of the port city ofTurtlebay. This lock acted primarily as a damfor the rough and rapid stretch of river be-tween Hylock and Whytelock, ensuring aplacid stretch of open water. At Whytelock,river traffic was lowered another 10 feet to thebecalmed reaches of the lower Thadysh.

Construction of the locks proved to be aboon for the two cities, which over the yearsgrew rich and powerful. Wealth from all overthe world flowed through Turtlebay up theThadysh to the castles and towers of Zadaraq.New mines cracked open huge deposits ofgold, silver, and platinum, and veins of ironand mithril were discovered that stretched formiles underground.

Wealth of this caliber also brought thievesand rogues from the farthest corners of theland. Soon a cadre was formed amongst thepowerful thieves. Then a guild formed to reg-ulate and manage the illegal activities in thearea. This thieves' guild controlled the gam-bling, thieving, and rackets along the river.They established their guild in the quiet vil-lage of Whytelock.

Every barge leaving the locks paid the guildprotection money, which guaranteed a safe,uneventful trip up and down the river. Aftergenerations of hazardous travel along thechurning waterway, river merchants were eas-ily convinced that a such protection was wellworth a few pouches of gold. The guild grewrich as it "served" the merchants, protectingtheir barges from pirates and other hazards.

Over the years, factions within the thieves'guild broke from the main body to form a sec-ond, closely aligned guild. The second guildformed its headquarters in the northern townof Hylock. From the two locations, the guilds

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Chapter I: Adventure Background

oversaw all river trade operations.Everyone seemed content. Duke Garlin

grew rich on his taxes, the people were pleasedwith their luxuries, the merchants enjoyedtheir profits, and the guild got a cut from al-most everyone involved.

For years, this has been the way of the landsof Garlin—until the recent arrival of theGullwing Bandit. The masked rogue, from hissecret hideout, has stopped and pillaged everybarge coming and going on the river for thelast three months. No one knows who thebandit is or from whence he came. Fingers ofblame are pointing in all directions. Somethink the "bandit" is really a new faction of thethieves' guilds. Others whisper that theGullwing Bandit is protected by the duke andis out to destroy the thieves. Still others mum-ble that the guilds themselves are in a powerstruggle. Needless to say, the thieves' guilds ofHylock and Whytelock are offering a hand-some reward for the unmasking of the pirate;any man or woman in their ranks who canperform this task is promised great favor infuture advancement.

Starting the Player CharacterThe ideal situation for launching this ad-

venture is to have a PC who is a native ofWhytelock—or, barring that, to have a PCwho is located somewhere near the lands ofGarlin.

If the character does not hail from Whyte-lock, the DM can invent a few short, impro-vised acts of thievery to get the PC acquaintedwith the town and lands around Garlin. ThePC will not have access to the local thieves'guild, however, nor will he know the identityof the guild master.

If it is impossible for the PC to start in Why-telock, the DM can launch the adventure withthis setup: The PC approaches the localthieves' guild bearing papers of transfer fromhis own guild—a guild which may be largerand more affluent. The papers are addressed

to the guild master of Whytelock (see "Mis-tress Mary Reisyk" in the "Personalities"chapter). The transfer is being made at the re-quest of a master thief (20th level or higher).The larger guild may have some stake in whatis occurring in the lands of Garlin or may evenbe positioning the player character for possi-ble future subterfuge. In any event, the PCwon't know the identity of the master of theWhytelock thieves' guild until after the sce-nario has begun.

Tips for the DM™It is imperative that the DM convey the

sense of corruption and mystery cloaking theevents of Thief's Challenge. Ideally, the PCshould be kept guessing at all times, suspect-ing that at any moment he may be double-crossed or stabbed in the back.

Study the next chapter carefully to learnwho's who and to understand the NPCs' moti-vations. There is no ultimate "bad guy,"though the Gullwing Bandit may be labeled assuch. Every notable NPC is scheming to getsomething—often risking everything in theprocess. As DM, you must play each NPCsrole using the motivations described. Try tomaintain the mystery of the scenario; don'tgive away too much. Allow the player tomake any assumptions he desires about thesituation, no matter how far off base those as-sumptions may be.

Many of the events in this adventure arebrought about by the PC's decisions. Set upeach plot, and then allow the PC to movethrough it at his own speed. Don't lead theplayer by the nose, but allow the PC to dis-cover clues and to react according to his ownmotivations. Pacing is important, but gener-ally it's best to let the PC (and the player) takeas much time as needed to figure things out.

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Chapter II: Personalities

This chapter describes Garlin's most interest-ing characters and their motivations for theadventure. Equipment lists include commonlypossessed items. The DM may elaborate ordevelop further background as he sees fit.

Mistress Mary Reisyk, the "Moll" (T8): Hu-man; AC 5; MV 12; hp 32; #AT 1; Dmg byweapon; Str 10, Dex 16, Con 11, Int 12,Wis 16, Cha 15; AL CG; THACO 16.

Special Abilities: Pick Pockets 15%, OpenLocks 25%, Find/Remove Traps 95%,Move Silently 30%, Hide in Shadows 30%,Detect Noise 15%, Climb Walls 60%, ReadLanguages 55%.

Weapon Proficiencies: dagger, short sword,sling.

Nonweapon Proficiencies: swimming 10, dis-guise 14, appraising 12, jumping 10, read-ing lips 10.

Equipment: studded leather +1, daggers (x3),short sword (only outside the guild), pouchwith 25 silver and 2 gold.

Mistress Reisyk, or the "Moll," as she isknown to the thieves of Whytelock, is easily 6feet tall with a lithe, hard frame. When work-ing as a thief, she wears a studded leather jer-kin, which is dyed red, and knee-high blackboots. Otherwise, she dresses like the towns-folk.

Mistress Reisyk is the master thief of theWhytelock guild, but she is also proprietressand operator of Whytelock's general store,market, and warehouse.

Motivations: The "Moll" is a tough, strong-willed woman who has worked long and hardto reach her current station, and she com-mands the loyalty of the Whytelock thieves.Recent events have vexed her greatly, though,and she has decided to use the PC as bait touncover the Gullwing Bandit. She cares noth-

ing for the PC's well-being, but will seeminglytake him into her confidence. In truth, she issetting the PC up to be "snuffed out" by theBandit, thereby hoping to catch the rogue andend the mystery of his bothersome existence.

Kyma the Axe (T3): Human; AC 8; MV 12; hp18, #AT 1; Dmg by weapon; Str 12, Dex 13,Con 15, Int 8, Wis 11, Cha 9; AL CN;THACO 19.

Special Abilities: Pick Pockets 45%, OpenLocks 15%, Find/Remove Traps 10%,Move Silently 15%, Hide in Shadows 15%,Detect Noise 20%, Climb Walls 60%, ReadLanguages 0%.

Weapon Proficiencies: hand axe, sling.

Nonweapon Proficiencies: juggling 12, tight-rope walking 13, cooking 8.

Equipment: leather armor, hand axe (x2),short sword, pouch with 5 silver and 2 elec-trum pieces.

Kyma the Axe is a swarthy young womanwith flowing black hair and heavy eye-brows. She has a light build and standsroughly 5 feet 6 inches tall. Her movement isfluid and her touch is dextrous. She appliesboth traits to a pastime that fascinates her:juggling hand axes.

Kyma is Mistress Reisyk's chief lieutenant.Publicly, she serves as the cook at theGullwing Tavern.

Motivations: Kyma, like most thieves, is self-centered and power hungry, but she is intenselyloyal to the "Moll." She will make it known thatshe dislikes any other thief who tries to "get in"with Mistress Reisyk, particularly the PC. Inseveral of the plots, Kyma will work closelywith the player character. It should be evidentthat she dislikes and distrusts the PC, however.The DM may find it interesting and easy to im-plicate Kyma as the Bandit. (She isn't.)

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Chapter II: Personalities

Miri Softouch (T2): Halfling; AC 7; MV 6; hp10, #AT 1; Dmg by weapon; Str 8, Dex 17,Con 12, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 16; AL NE;THACO 20.

Special Abilities: Pick Pockets 45%, OpenLocks 10%, Find /Remove Traps 5%, MoveSilently 10%, Hide in Shadows 35%, De-tect Noise 15%, Climb Walls 60%, ReadLanguages 0%.

Weapon Proficiencies: dagger, staff.

Nonweapon Proficiencies: disguise 15, animalhandling 9, local history 16, gaming 16.

Equipment: brocaded dress with small en-crusted gems (worth 6 gp), silver belt, goldearrings, pouch with 14 ep and 2 sp.

Miri is a slender and attractive halfling withrosy cheeks and curly brown hair. Her eyessparkle with mischief but can be alluring to

the point of enchantment.Miri is the lieutenant to Hap Farfoot, mas-

ter of the Hylock thieves' guild. She is also anexpert gambler, capable of nearly impercept-able cheating when it suits her.

Motivations: As a child, Miri was a contentshepherdess. After her family was killed bymerciless human ranchers, she was forced intoa life of thievery. Her lovely, sweet appear-ance is a mask hiding an evil countenance. Shewants nothing more in life than to hurt otherpeople, especially humans.

Hap Farfoot (T6): Halfling; AC 8; MV 6; hp25, #AT 1; Dmg by weapon; Str 13, Dex 15,Con 17, Int 15, Wis 9, Cha 15 AL NE;THACO 18.

Special Abilities: Pick Pockets 45%, OpenLocks 15%, Find/Remove Traps 10%,Move Silently 80 %, Hide in Shadows 25 %,Detect Noise 45%, Climb Walls 85%, ReadLanguages 25 %.

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