Setting: Third Age, on the eastern borders of Karthis, high in the impassable Helviti

Mountains, beyond which lie the debased people of Ithmyrr and Zhou:
Raafi, Vuul thief, seduces and absconds with a princess of a Karthis tribe, Binhildis, with the
intention of selling her off to a neighbouring, rival clan which prizes her genealogy and wyrd.
In pursuit is Koram, a Kharthan barbarian of Binhildis clan leading a posse of clansmen, and
accompanied by Styrlakkr, a mercenary warrior from decadent Karthazor.
Raafi is betrayed by his co-conspirators, and is beaten and bound, when the pursuers
intervene. A furious, desperate battle erupts between the rival Karthan warriors. In the
confusion, Raafi manages to loose his bonds and escape into some nearby squat, crumbling
ruins. Binhildis is manhandled and whisked away. Koram gives chase, but is intercepted.
Styrlakkr is temporarily dazed, surrounded by fallen enemies. A passerby, Wolf-brother, a
foreign Domha savage, begrudgingly renders assistance, and the remaining foes are driven
off as dark clouds close in and the group is forced to take shelter from the icy winds and
pelting rain.

The Ruins

The characters are forced to band together against the elements and a monstrous Demonslug. The foray into the ruins is characterised by the following notable
events:

retreat into an unblemished building of alien construction and

form at the centre of a large complex of administrative and
residential ruins and wide, flag-stone paved avenues in various
states of disrepair;
discovery of the mummified remains of tall, black-skinned
warriors adorned in strange, exotic arms and armour;
rescue of an impossibly ancient prisoner (an Ithmyrran wizard)
apparently bereft of both memory and sanity;
stumbling into a chamber of mummified guardians watching
over a squamous, gibbous tentacledthing; the fall of the
Domha savage Wolf-brother and the sudden disappearance of
the Ithmyrran in a sulphurous puff;
a sudden earthquake which almost destroys the hillside.

PCs escape, Raafi retrieves some trinkets, a squat idol and wicked blade among them, and
artefacts. Koram carries out Wolf-brother, and the party evades the Demon-slug once more.
Raafi finds himself studying the idol intently Interestingly, Wolf-brothers wounds seem to

be covered by some strange sap-like excreted resin, and he incoherently babbles a strange
word: Tsemobog
With only a few hours until dawn, the party rests and recovers as best it can. Koram plans to
take Wolf-brothers unconscious form to the nearest friendly Karthan village while Styrlakkr
and Raafi (reluctantly) decide to head off in pursuit of Binhildis and her abductors. The path
they took before the party was forced to seek shelter in the ruins has been washed away by
the tremors and inundation, leaving no possibility of pursuit by that means.
In the distance, Raafi spies a pair of flickering motes of red light, high up in the foothills.
With no other obvious leads, Styrlakkr and Raafi head off in that direction. Occasional
flashes of lightning illuminate the pre-dawn sky.
After an hour or so, they come across a level plateau where cattle graze, apparently
unattended. It appears they have been abandoned by their owners, and left to their own
devices, ripe for the rustling by other tribes. Neglected, overgrown and uncultivated terraces
rise step-like towards the east, no doubt under the care of the local mountain tribe. As the
heroes follow the overgrown footpaths up the terraces, they discover the mutilated corpse
of a cow, apparently constricted and dropped from a great height before being eviscerated
by a wicked maw. A large vague amorphous shape flits among the low clouds overhead.
The Village
A low vine-covered stone wall, tended by a dozen or so villagers is spotted at the uppermost
terrace, ringed by mountains. A low dirge-like drone can be heard. Approaching cautiously,
Styrlakkr calls out in greeting. Turning slowly, the gardeners shamble forth, as thick vines
and runners reach out to grab the heroes, knocking them prone. Raafi cuts himself free,
while Styrlakkr hurriedly lights a torch, driving the vines back for now. Dodging and evading
vines Raafi harries the spore zombies, while Styrlakkr fights his way towards the wall,
shoving foes aside and sundering their ranks, where several vine-covered clansmen, some of
the very same who betrayed Raafi and abducted Binhildis) moan feebly, their vitality feeding
the unnatural ambush vine. After a bloody melee and near death, Styrlakkr with the aid of
Raafi, manages to free the only surviving captive.

The plant-men are relentless however, and close in on the pair and the clansman. As all
seems lost, Wolf-brother makes a timely appearance, intoning some blasphemous spell, and
repelling the abominations. Go now, he commands the heroes, before collapsing to the
ground, his strength sapped.
PCs must make Will saves, DC 13 or raise Lore vs. Creatures by +1D
Styrlakkr fails his Will save; +1D on Lore: Creatures (to 1d12)
Without a moments hesitation, Raafi and Styrlakkr take advantage of the timely arrival of
the strange shaman and, gathering up the semi-conscious Karthan clansman, head for the
ringing foothills, following a recent hastily-made trail which leads away from the village.
After some time, they arrive at a small mountain meadow and stop to rest, a welcome
respite after the horror of the Husk community.
PCs may reroll their remaining Hit Dice, taking the new result if it is higher than the current
total. Raafi is down to three HD (1d6; HP 8 + 6,6,2), Styrlakkr is down to one HD (1d12; HP 1).
Raafi rolls 6,5,4 (+8 STA bonus). Styrlakkr rolls 11.
By midday an incessant drone disrupts the serenity of
the valley. Investigating, Raafi spies several dog-sized
creatures buzzing around what appears to be a horribly
mutilated corpse of a clansman, one of Binhildis
abductors, judging by whats left of its items. The flydemons engage in a sickening feast, forcing Raafi to turn
away in revulsion at the horrible desecration.

Raafi may make a Lore: Creatures check if he wishes to find out more about these creatures.
He decides against delving too deeply into the realms of cryptozoology
Meanwhile, Styrlakkr finds a vantage point and surveys the surrounding hills. He spies an
interesting rock formation on a distant (about a four hour trek) cliff-face

The Karthan, now bound, his wounds stabilised, sleeps fitfully and babbles incoherently.
Arrachtach he says, wracked by painful convulsions, his eyes wide with terror. It
comes, it comes! he screams. Styrlakkr races to silence the man. Raafi ducks for cover as
the fly-demons disgusting meal is interrupted and they move to investigate the disturbance.
Clasping the Karthans mouth shut, Styrlakkr feels as if root-like tendrils bore into his very
brain, imparting a foreboding, barely-discernible image:

Styrlakkr recoils from the disturbing image (-1 PER damage) just in time to face the swooping
Fly-Demon. Standing over the delirious, Karthan, he bats away the unholy terror while
shaking off the soporific effect of its incessant drone.
Raafi sees a second Fly-Demon drag itself away from its feasting. Hurling his dagger with
uncanny accuracy, Raafi sorely wounds and dazes the creature, knocking it to the ground

and following up with a hail of sword blows. Meanwhile Styrlakkr lops off his opponents
wing and hurls it away. Rushing in, he impales the dazed fly-demon through its translucent
wing, but fails to follow-up with a killing stroke. It pulls itself free and lashes out, striking
Raafi with its proboscis (2 HP damage and Sleeping Sickness), before Styrlakkr dispatches the
creature.
Sleeping Sickness
This parasitic affliction is spread by flying insects injecting tiny parasites into the
victim's bloodstream and inducing fever, headache, joint pain, swelling of glands in
the back and neck, and most notably fatigue. The disease gradually infects the brain,
causing confusion, reduced coordination, difficulty keeping track of time, and
insomnia. The best cure for this disease is dosing the patient with the
poison arsenic if the patient survives, there's a cumulative 30% chance that
the disease is immediately cured.
Type disease (parasite), injury; Save Fortitude DC 14
Onset 1d2 days; Frequency 1/day
Effect 1d4 PER damage and the target is considered fatigued; Cure 2 consecutive
saves or arsenic (DC 13 Fort save, treat as Type II ingestible poison, AS&SH p227)
Raafi has failed the first save. The PER damage (-2 PER) will take effect in one day, at
which time Raafi will also be fatigued.*
* A fatigued character can neither run nor charge and takes a 2 penalty to STR and
AGT checks. Doing anything that would normally cause fatigue causes the fatigued
character to become exhausted. After 8 hours of complete rest, fatigued characters
are no longer fatigued.
The party moves to find some shelter, away from the gore-spattered meadow, and rests up.
In time, the bound Karthan wakes. Suspicious at first, he eventually acknowledges the debt he
owes to his rescuers, drops his guard and answers Styrlakkrs questions. His name is Dagaric, of
Clan Cromlech. His chief, Theudebald, has allied the clan with a faction of Ithmyrran nobles, who
wish to acquire a princess of barbarian stock for some undisclosed purpose. When pressed,
Dagaric confesses that he heard some vague reference to a Night of Blessing, although the
phrase means nothing to him.
Styrlakkr is well-travelled and has heard (natural 20) of the shocking Atevan practice:
In Ithmyrr, life revolves around the whims of the ruling class and the Atevan feast days, none of
which are geared towards the lower-class citizens of the Empire and beyond. Each season holds
a sometimes weeklong celebration in which the nobility spends most of its days eating and
drinking to excess, and then sharing their fortunes with the less fortunate. While this does

benefit some with the gifting of food, clothing, and some financial gain; others find that this
blessing comes at a cost.
The nobility look upon those beneath them
as property and, in some cases, pets; there
are no laws to protect the servant class and
it is not uncommon to find rape, murder,
and ritual sacrifice as part of the festivities.
In the upcoming autumn festival known as
the Night of Blessing the Emperor gives
his blessing to the male nobility to run
through the streets in the nude and take
whichever woman he sees fit. This ritual
is in dedication to Istasha the Mother (one
of the Great Dragons [also translates as Old
Ones] who is worshipped as a fertility
goddess by the Atevans, and known by
some barbaric peoples as The Black Goat of
the Woods with a Thousand Young, the
Mother of Monsters, or Shuppnikkurat
among the peoples of Vuul), and not seen
as inappropriate by members of polite
society.
The Cromlech warriors appointed a disreputable scoundrel of the lowest order to lure the
barbarian princess Binhildis away from the safety of her tribe, Dagaric says, trying hard to avoid
Raafis murderous gaze (Raafi still chides himself for risking his hide to save the treacherous
Karthan). The princess was to be delivered to that ancient Atevan burial mound, he says,
indicating the cliff-face, but the abductors were overrun by the man-vines and those who
managed to escape scattered and fled. Dagaric is unaware of their fate.
Yawning uncontrollably (but not uncharacteristically), Raafi speaks: "Your accursed clan tricked
me into spiriting Binihildis away from her home with the promise of marriage and easy coin.
Instead you stole my beloved, refused to pay my fee, and strung me up to die! You and your
fellows deserve the fate that has befallen you. Rest now; you owe us much toil for your
treachery. I'll take first watch; if I dare rest my eyes you may have trouble waking me later.
Styrlakkr agrees that rest is needed, and continues to press Dagaric for details. The Karthan is
vaguely aware of talk of a power struggle for the throne of Ithmyrr between the Emperor
Drikhan, the third to bear that exalted name, and last of the Great Dragons, and his heir and
nephew Khandar. The Ithmyrran envoys claim that the Great Dragon wishes to awaken his
brethren and usher in the end of days before his death, and that the Karthan princess is needed
to thwart his plans.
The sun sets behind the forbidding Lothaal Peaks, and Raafi takes first watch as heavy cloud
cover closes in on the valley once more.

Raafi struggles to stay awake as an inexplicable fatigue starts to take hold. Only the occasional
distant flash of lightning keeps him from dozing off. He feels an irrational sense of dread, and
finds himself clutching the new-found idol for reassurance. The clouds part for an instant, and
there, illumined by a bloated bone-white moon, is a chilling other-worldly abomination:

Raafi realises he has to work quietly and efficiently. He carefully checks the bindings on Dagaric
and gags the fool. He moves the man out of hiding quietly and then after making sure Styrlakkr
is still asleep, ritually prepares the barbarian to invoke his Patron, the Elder Eye through its Idol.
He hopes his patron will be able to influence the abomination to take the Karthan and depart
the area leaving him and Styrlakkr unharmed.
Raafi watches in horror as Dagaric's bound body undergoes a grotesque transformation: tiny
mouths and tentacles erupt from his flesh. The mouths echo blasphemous invocations and the
tentacles strange gesticulations. Dagaric convulses in pain, his cries of anguish muffled by his
gag. Nevertheless, Styrlakkr awakens to find Dagaric writhing amid the wild grasses nearby, with
Raafi ducking for cover as a great purple-blue membranous-winged, slavering tentacled horror
reaches hungrily for the trussed-up Karthan.
Raafi drags Strylakkr away from the mass of tentacles and mouths. "We must flee lest the
monstrosity turn its attention to us. No more rescuing those foul barbarians, they are possessed
by demons. Luckily for us the flying beast was attracted to the unnatural thing inside the
barbarian. Like attracts like."
Raafi scampers off into the shadows and heads toward the cave.
To Raafis and Styrlakkrs surprise, the barbarian Koram arrives unexpectedly, and readies his
bow to bring down the abomination. Fearing such an attack would draw its attention, Styrlakkr
dissuades the Karthan, and the moon-calf retreats with its meal, satiated for now.
Koram explains that after tending to Wolf-brother, he was overcome by an inexplicable sense

ofdormancy By the time he had recovered, Wolf-brother was no-where to be seen. Unwilling
to return home empty-handed, he followed the tracks left by Styrlakkr and Raaf, wisely avoided
the accursed village, and made good time, travelling day and night to catch up with the
mercenary Styrlakkr and the thief (or rather, prince of the Vuul, successor of the line of sorcererkings and noble scion of Dol-Minor) Raafi. Korams arrival is most welcome, given Raafis
growing sleeping sickness and Styrlakkrs impairment. Once Koram is brought up to date, the
trio marches through the night to the cliff-face, guided by the red points of light.
After what seemed to be an endless hike though the hills the trio finally reach their destination.
Like something out of a nightmare, a giant head chiselled into the side of a cliff wall looms
before them, its hollow eyes staring soullessly to the south. From the style of the headdress, the
facade appears to be that of an Ithmyrran officer; the Great Dragon insignia resting on the brow
and flowing locks framing the narrow face. The mouth of the cave was designed to l ook as if the
giant head was yelling or trying to swallow those who enter whole.
The two lifeless eyes of this monument appear to be hollow, but too far up the cliff face to be
sure. Raafi decides to scale the face to investigate the hollow eyes, and returns claiming to have
disabled a cunningly crafted magical trap, paving the way for the partys entry into the caves
dark maw.
(In truth, he finds two perfectly cut fist-sized rubies mounted midway into the opening and
metal sconces are set behind them. Two lit ceramic oil lamps of Atevan design, and likely lit in
the last day or two, provide the eerie reddish illumination which is amplified by the manyfaceted gemstones. Raafi estimates that they can easily bring in 3000 silver pieces each in the
marketplace, and promptly removes them...)

The Caverns on the Hillside

Entering the ancient, damp caverns, the following things are observed/encountered:

Damp, worked cavern complex dimly-lit by sparsely distributed phosphorescent lichens;

Giant cave crickets devouring the remains of what appears to be a Karthan warrior (area
2);
A curtain of web revealing the lair of a giant spider and her brood, feasting on the
webbed and desiccated remains of several Karthan warriors (area 3), with access to the
outside world;

A cunningly hidden scythe trap build into an impressive arch inscribed, in High Atvonic
with the following: Speak not the name of the banished (area 4);

A pool of stagnant, slimy, caustic animated ooze (area 15). A broken chest stands on the
opposite side of the pool, ancient square gold coins have spilled out of it;
A long, tortuous corridor/passage delving deeper into the hillside. There is evidence of
the passage of a large number of people, not all of them willing (area 14)

Meanwhile, Raafis fatigue grows

The trio descends into the bowels of the hill. The air becomes heavy with moisture and
oppressive heat, making exertion difficult. Eventually a chamber is entered (area 7), illumined by
diim, greenish light from the passages beyond (area 5). Several spore zombies tend to captured
warriors, entwined by thick, green vines like those in the accursed village (area 3). Some are
bound to the chambers walls, others hang limply and feebly from a tangle of roots and vines
attached to the ceiling.

The heroes harry the mindless gardeners, and eventually rush through the chamber, chopping
and slashing their way, not time to free the captured, helpless warriors for now. Bursting into a
large cavern, a half-dozen desperate Karthans, the chieftains daughter Binhildis among them,
are trapped behind a makeshift cage of thick roots and brambles. Off to the side, the source of
the illumination, is a disturbing sight:

It is clear what fate awaits the captives. Meanwhile, the staggered husks slowly pursue the
heroes, while those tending the pods abandon their posts and shamble forth, threatening to
surround the party.
Raafi dives for the nearest, darkest corner and hastily dons a suitable
disguise (taking two rounds), in an effort to try to fool the Husks which
are slowly closing in on his companions.
(Action die: d16, DC 20. Rolled an 8 + 7 + Luck (2 points; +9)= 24).
Having bought some time (five rounds), he attempts to unravel the cage
of vines holding the captives (Pick Locks, DC 15. Rolled a 19, can free
the captives in another two rounds
NB: there is a 1 in d7 chance every round that any attack against an
engaged Husk by the PCs or the prisoners will instead target the
disguised Raafi, unless he drops his disguise altogether)
Fortune smiles on Raafi who manages to fool both the Husks and the
prisoners. Styrlakkr and Koram take up defensive positions and repel
the mindlessly advancing foes until the Karthan prisoners are freed
.from their stockade. Rather than stay and assist, the ingrates flee for
their lives: filled with wide-eyed avarice, they try to salvage something from the disastrous
venture with the Ithmyrrans, and try to plunder what they can from the upper vaults. Binhildis
has been left to the care of Raafi and Koram.

After a heroic effort (expend one coin or two Fate Points), the heroes have cleared a path
through the horrors and return to the upper cavers. Before he can withdraw completely,
however, Styrlakkr feels his mind caressed once more. Once again the horrible name Arrachtach
is heard, along with a more reassuring Xaroth the Butcher, before the telepathic voice is
replaced with screams of pain which end as abruptly as they started. (-1 PER damage).

The party escorts Binhildis to safety (for now). Raafi is too fatigued (-2 PER damage; -2 on STR
and AGT checks; further fatigue causes exhaustion) for further exertions as the sleeping sickness
takes hold, but rest is not an option as mannish screams can be heard ahead. A wry smile adorns
Raafis face for a moment, as he privately praises his own cunning. The smile gives way to slackjawed confusion when he realises one of the rubies has been lifted from his person, no doubt by
the grasping prisoners
Arriving at the stagnant pool, the party sees several desperate Karthans engulfed by the
primaeval ooze guardians of the chamber, the gold coins tantalisingly close.

While the treacherous Cromlech clansmen languish in the oozes acidic grip, pleading in vain for
assistance, Raafi spies the faintest of reddish glows in the acid-pool, the rapidly deteriorating
stolen gemstone. With Korams assistance, and at great personal risk, he plunges a gloved hand
into the belly of the ooze to retrieve it, suffering horribly disfiguring damage (all AGT-based
actions relying on fine manipulation are at -1 die shift [d16] until he gains a new hit die/level).
Binhildis is horrified at anguished cries from the Cromlech, and is escorted away by Styrlakkr,
only to confront the fresh corpses of two Cromlech escapees cloven in twain by the cunning trap
encountered earlier.
Styrlakkr notices engraved in High Atvonic on the lintel above the trap the words: lest the
banish-ed be set free.
Raafi implores Koram to leave him for a while he rests up, as the demon-flys curse of
soporiferousness takes hold, but Koram will have none of it: In all conscience, I cannot abandon
a companion to such risk rest friend, I will stay and guard you until you are recovered. The risk
is nothing compared to the loss of honour I would experience in leaving a companion while
scurrying myself to safety. Nay, do not beseech me or tell me your life is of little value or the
risk is slight. Forget not that you are noble born, not some base-born ruffian whose absence

would scarcely be noted by others.

The party decides its best to leave the caverns, and luring the monstrous cave crickets away
with a meal of slain clansmen, beats a hasty retreat, in time returning to the Binhildis Karthan
village to much joy and celebration. (Raafi wisely decides to take his leave; his crime against
Binhildis and the chief is not easily forgotten)
With news of the devastation of Clan Cromlech, the Laird wastes no time in raiding its cattle and
claiming its pastures, meadows, mills and pig-pens. Chief Theudebalds infant sons are taken
hostage, and young men and women are forced into servitude.
Meanwhile, the Godar has read the entrails, and has decreed that a great, inimical horror stirs
from its captivity, but the vehicle for its destruction is interred with it. The party is asked to
return to the accursed cave and deal with the threat, lest the Sidhe Lord interred within turn its
baleful gaze upon the fertile terraced hills of Karthis. The devastation wrought on the
degenerate nation of Dhoma is proof enough of its unholy intentions.