Act Three: The Revelation
Scene One: Palanthas
Upon arriving in Palanthas, the group
must pass an inspection to enter the city
through the port or by road.
Overview
Once inside the city, the heroes can investigate, but learn very little beyond some
disturbing rumors about wagonloads of
prisoners vanishing into the desert and
residents of Palanthas disappearing after
arrests for trivial violations of local law.
Getting Started
The section describing the realm of Khellendros in Chapter Two of Dusk or Dawn
offers some details on the city of Palanthas.
First Impressions
Palanthas is the former capital of Solamnia,
now under control of the Blue Dragon and
his human agents - including a cadre of
Dark Knights. Though it has seen better
days, it remains a thriving trade center.
You've heard that Palanthas was once the
greatest city on Ansalon, and one of the
most beautiful. Today, it still seems worthy of both titles, at least from a distance.
The city's immaculate buildings and lofty
towers seem as majestic and serene as
Solace's vallenwoods.
If the heroes arrive by ship, a harbor
master's boat meets them when they enter
port in the Bay of Branchala. The procedure resembles the opening of Act Two,
Scene One, with less polite officials. In
fact, the harbor authorities ignore the
heroes - they're only interested in the
ship. However, as soon as the heroes go
ashore. Dark Knight sentries on the docks
question and search them (see below). Rig
and Shaon stay aboard the ship, if they
have joined the group, as does Groller.
Once the party leaves the ship, or if the
heroes approach the city openly by land,
they can observe a few more details - until
a squad of Dark Knights stops them for an
inspection and questioning:
The city shows little sign that one of the most fearsome dragons on Krynn is its overlord, but hints are there nevertheless. People and vehicles crowd the approaches to the city, but something seems absent: The atmosphere lacks any sense of joy or energy. Locals plod along as a measured pace, pausing now and then to cast furtive glances over their shoulders. Ahead, a squad of Knights in blackened armor stops everyone who passes. They dismiss most people with curt nods, but they seem to question and search others, particularly travelers such as yourselves.
Should the party try to sneak into the
city, they appear to succeed. Chances are
that the Knights do notice them, but do
not approach immediately - they prefer
to watch the heroes to see what they do.
The Story Continues
The Knights ask the heroes their names
and their business in Palanthas, then
search their belongings. Even if they find
something they consider suspicious, they
do nothing overt. They prefer to have the
heroes followed, to see whether they have
allies in the city. The characters from the
Prologue don't know anyone in Palanthas,
but other heroes might: If they're not
careful, they could endanger their friends.
During this search, the Knights aren't
really looking for anything in particular.
They're here mainly to remind everyone
that Palanthas is an occupied city. However, if the heroes purchased any "bottled
dragon breath" in Scene Six of the last act,
the Knights confiscate it. Should the
heroes object, the Knights offer them a
receipt for the bottles, assuring them they
can pick up the items on their departure.
Assuming the heroes don't start a
fight, they can enter the city. Even Knights of Solamnia wearing full armor can get in
(though certainly they'll be followed).
Once inside Palanthas, the heroes can
go pretty much where they please. All the
city's temples are closed, and only a shiny
round patch of inky blackness remains in
the heart of the Shoikan Grove, where the
Tower of High Sorcery once stood. There
seems to be activity around the Great
Library of the Ages, as Aesthetics continue working to replenish the historical
collection that mysteriously disappeared
at the dawn of the Fifth Age.
Most Palanthians would rather not be
seen talking to strangers, but heroes with
gentle tongues or open purses can discover the following local sentiments:
- "Life in Palanthas is good, even if the taxes are too high."
- "The Blue Dragon is a taskmaster and a skinflint, but he leaves us alone."
- "We haven't heard about Evil walking
the land - you'd best worry about the
brute press gangs. Teams of them have
been grabbing people off the street
and marching them away somewhere
out east for work detail. You know
they've got to be under orders from
the Knights."
- "Always watch out for the Knights.
They've never been exactly sympathetic when it come to rules and such.
And now, if they catch you at something, they give you to the brutes."
The general population of Palanthas
knows no more than what has been
related above. If the group decides to
ambush a squad of Dark Knights and
question them (a very dangerous maneuver), all they can learn is that Khellendros
wants slaves: a lot of them, and right now.
Atmosphere
When speaking for a Knight of Takhisis,
the Narrator should make a big show of
greeting any Knights of Solamnia in the
group. "Welcome to your former capital,"
he should say mockingly. "We're taking
very good care of it for you."
In the city, locals remain constantly
wary: They're living in a police state. The
movie 1984 portrays the exact atmosphere
Narrators should try to convey here.
Actions
Heroes wishing to conceal something
during the Knights' search must make an
average Dexterity (Perception) action. If
the action fails, the Knights find the
object despite the hero's efforts. A mishap
means the Knights catch the hero
attempting to conceal the item and confiscate it, no matter what it is.
Getting a commoner to talk to the
group requires an average Presence or
wealth action. In the event of a mishap,
the citizen flees from the group in terror,
and a squad of Dark Knights appears in
visual range down the street (or near missile range, if the group sneaked into the
city or aroused suspicion during the entry
inspection). The heroes can avoid the
Knights if they successfully open the distance between them beyond visual range.
If the dark paladins catch up with the
group, they attack to subdue.
Characters
The Knights usually travel in squads of
ten. If a fight breaks out, another group of
ten arrives within five minutes:
Dark Knights: Human adults, various demeanors, Adventurers. Co 7, Ph 8, In 5, Es 6, Dmg +8 (two-handed sword), Def -5 (plate).
Palanthians: Humans of varied age and demeanor, Unknown and Rabble. Co 5, Ph 5, In 5, Es 5, Dmg 0 (unarmed), Def 0 (common clothing).
Outcome
The adventure can take two different routes from here.
- When the heroes leave the city on their
own, the story moves to Scene Two.
- If they fought the Knights and lost, they
are given over to a brute press gang. The
Narrator can turn to Scene Four.
Scene Two: Brutes
This scene comes into play after the
heroes have left Palanthas for the surrounding countryside or as they approach
the city by road from the south. It can
occur more than once, depending on how
the group decides to travel.
Overview
Khellendros has dispatched teams of
brutes to scour his land for the human
captives he needs to create a new type of
nefarious monster - the dragonspawn.
The brutes are most active in the area
immediately east of Palanthas, but a few
groups have worked their way as far south
as Solamnia (hence the rumor about
brute raids in Act Two, Scene Four).
Whenever the heroes travel overland
through the Blue Dragon's territory, they
encounter teams of brutes.
Getting Started
Chapter Six in the Book of the Fifth Age
offers more information on the creatures
in this scene and their special abilities.
First Impressions
The text below sets the stage for this scene,
which begins after the heroes have journeyed at least a day within Skie's realm:
You're well into the Blue Wastes now. Less
than fifty years ago, the arid barrens
around you were some of the most productive cropland in Ansalon. Khellendros
must be powerful indeed to work such a
profound change over an area this large.
The Story Continues
If the heroes have not yet encountered
the brutes, they next pass through a
small village. Someone has coaxed a crop
out of the dry fields, but there are no
people in sight. A few oxen grazing in an
otherwise empty field seem to be the
only creatures present.
A quick look through the village
reveals signs of recent habitation, weedless gardens withering in the heat, domestic animals wandering around, and cold
hearths with fresh ashes. Alert heroes can
spot deep ruts from a heavy, wheeled
vehicle leading off to the east.
This village has been raided by
brutes, ordered by Khellendros to take as
many human captives as they can as
quickly as they can. They move about
the countryside in massive wagons
hauled by elephants. When they reach a
suitable hunting ground, they stop the
wagon and fan out, grabbing any
humans they find.
Once the heroes leave the village, they
spot a brute team (or part of one) on a
hilltop. The brutes immediately try to
close range and attack (see "Actions").
A full team contains a wagon, one elephant, and four brutes. Three brutes usually go hunting, leaving one behind to
guard the wagon. The Narrator is free to
decide whether the heroes encounter a
wagon or just the hunters. To randomly
determine how many brutes the heroes
might meet. Narrators can draw one card
from the Fate Deck; the number of brutes
depends on the card's suit:
- Dragons: The heroes meet four brutes
with a wagon containing a number of
captives equal to the value of the card.
- Crowns: The group encounters a
parked wagon with one brute guard.
The wagon contains a number of captives equal to the value of the card.
- Swords: Three brutes appear, with a
number of captives equal to one-third
the value of the card, rounded up.
- Orbs: The heroes encounter no brutes at all and can proceed to Scene Three.
- Other suits: The group runs across
three brutes with no captives.
Heroes who have played this scene
before do not need to enter another village.
Instead, they see one in the distance but
before they get there a group of brutes (as
determined above) confronts them.
The Battle
The parties begin this encounter at
artillery range if the prison wagon is
present, or at near missile range if the
brutes are hunting alone. In either case, the Blue's minions immediately attempt
to close to melee range, to take advantage of their strength in counterattacks
against the heroes. Teams with a wagon
leave one brute behind to guard the
human captives.
These agents of Skie neither retreat
nor surrender - they have no desire to
face their dragon overlord with news of
failure. Should the heroes defeat the
brutes, any guard left with the wagon tries
to drive off and escape with the prisoners.
Atmosphere
The dusty "Blue Wastes" are not blue, of
course; the area carries the name of the
Blue Dragon, who created it. To simulate
the hot, dry conditions. Narrators could
turn up the lights and the heat - even
bring in a space heater to make the players
sweat a little.
The abandoned village the heroes visit
seems desolate and tragic; they might
hear a door or shutter creaking and banging in the wind.
Actions
Locating the wagon tracks leading out of
the village requires an average Perception
action. An action score of 20 points or
higher also allows a hero to notice the elephant and brute tracks. Otherwise, he can
tell only that the vehicle was very large
and heavy.
Perhaps the group doesn't realize the
village is recently abandoned. If the leader
of the party succeeds at an average Reason
action, he figures that the people could not
have been missing from here for more
than a day or two.
Casting a successful divination spell
in the village, using sensitivity, or speaking with the stray animals with animism
reveals that some hulking creatures came
and hauled the villagers away. (The animals say the creatures had a big
"wheeled barn" drawn by a huge, longnosed beast.)
Heroes who capture a brute can use
an average Presence (Presence) action to
force him to reveal where he and his fellows take captives (see Scene Four).
Characters
When hitched to a prison wagon, the elephant suffers a -1 penalty to its Agility
(or Coordination) score.
Brutes: Hostile nonhumans. Co 6, Ph 11, In 6, Es 8, Dmg +8, Def -5, also missile weapons (great bow).
Prisoners: Humans of varied age and demeanor, Unknown and Rabble. Co 6, Ph 5, In 5, Es 5, Dmg 0 (unarmed), Def 0 (common clothing).
Elephant: Animal. Co 8, Ph 33, In 2, Es 2, Dmg +8, Def -4, also trample.
Outcome
The story can take many different paths
from this scene.
- If the group follows the tracks left by
the brutes' wagon, the adventure continues with Scene Three. (If the
group has already played that scene,
the Narrator can turn to Scene Four
instead.)
- Heroes deciding to go to Palanthas
should return to Scene One.
- If the group came to Palanthas by
ship and left Rig, Shaon, and Groller
behind, they return to discover that
brutes raided the ship and hauled
those characters away. Play continues
with Scene Three if the heroes leave
Palanthas to look for their comrades
(or with Scene Four if the group has
already played Scene Three).
- Should the brutes defeat the heroes,
the Narrator should go to Scene Four.
Scene Three: Spawn
Heroes have a chance to encounter the
horrific dragonspawn themselves, either
before or after the group visits Palanthas.
Overview
Khellendros has dispatched some of his
dragonspawn to help the brutes locate
victims. As the heroes explore the area
around Palanthas, a trio of spawn disguised as farmers tries to capture them.
Should the heroes capture the spawn
instead, they could find themselves in dire
circumstances later in the adventure.
Getting Started
Dragonspawn are fully described in the
sidebar in this scene.
First Impressions
This scene begins in the late afternoon
during the heroes' travels. An unusual
creature soaring overhead might catch
the heroes' interest (see "Actions"), but it
quickly flies away if spotted.
The next morning, the Narrator
should read players the paragraphs below:
Your group reaches the crest of a hilltop.
The gentle downward slope before you
contains a tilled field with a small wood
of stunted trees growing at the base. The
scent of wet earth tickles your nostrils.
Three figures wrapped in cowls and
flowing robes are coming up the hill carrying buckets. When they see you, they
drop their buckets and scurry back into
the wood like frightened jackrabbits.
You've never seen men move so fast. The
layers of robes they're wearing don't seem
to slow them down much.
Beyond the wood rises the thatched
roof of'a farmhouse and a barn.
The Story Continues
The figures the heroes spied are not the
farmers they appear, but three blue dragonspawn - creatures the likes of which the
heroes have never seen. To disguise themselves, the spawn have wrapped up in loose robes that resemble desert garb. (Brutes
carried away the real farmers days ago.)
One of these spawn spotted the
heroes yesterday afternoon as it flew over
the desert. That evening, it got together
with two comrades and decided they had
the best chance of taking the heroes alive
by employing some kind of ruse, rather
than simply diving out of the sky and cutting loose with their lightning breath.
If the heroes pursue the disguised
spawn through the trees, they see the three
figures scurry into the house and slam the
door behind them. A split second later, all
the shutters in the house slam shut, too.
The spawn maintain their nervous
farmer act as long as they can. No matter
what the heroes do or say, the spawn reply,
"Go away and leave us alone, you nasty
brutes!" They hope to frustrate the heroes
enough to catch them off guard.
The Battle
If the heroes break into the house, the
spawn ambush them. On the other hand, if
the group starts to leave, the spawn burst
out and attempt a surprise counterattack
(they won't come out except to assail the
group from behind). In this case, the
heroes need not attempt to avoid surprise
as long as they keep an eye on the house.
The heroes cannot surprise these spawn.
Once a fight begins, the spawn won't
surrender or retreat. Should one die, one
continues fighting while the other tries to
open the range. If successful, it uses its
lightning breath on the heroes. They can
capture a spawn by attacking to subdue
or using Blister's net, if she is with them.
The farmhouse's yard contains a
chicken coop and a barn. The brutes killed
and ate all the chickens, leaving bloody
feathers scattered about. The farm's animals broke out of the barn days ago to
wander off in search of food and water.
Atmosphere
If the heroes try to reason with these
"farmers," the spawn pretend to be suspicious but open-minded, with comments
like, "All right, then prove you're not an
brute!" followed by, "Yeah, that's just what a brute would say!" The Narrator should
adopt a deep, rasping voice for the spawn.
When the heroes finally get a good
look at the spawn, the Narrator should do
his best to convey the horror of gazing
upon the terrifying fusion of human and
dragon features. Did these figures used to
be people? What inhuman force would
create such monstrous hybrids?
If a spawn is slain, the Narrator should
play up the effects of its death, described
in the sidebar - blue sparks erupt from
the creature's dissolving body, and every
hero feels his hair stand on end.
Actions
The afternoon the scene opens, the scout
can make a challenging Perception action
to notice the spawn overhead. If he sees it,
he can tell only that it is a flying creature
about the size of a man.
Breaking down the farmhouse door
requires an average Strength action. After a
successful average Perception action, a hero
inspecting the yard finds old tracks made
by large humanoids. An action score of 20
or higher identifies them as brute tracks
and also locates a few fresh tracks made by
clawed feet. A similar search of the hillside
uncovers wagon tracks (if the group was
not already following them).
Characters
The dragonspawn in this scene were created by the Blue Dragon, Skie.
Three blue spawns: Hostile nonhumans.
Co 8, Ph 12, In 5 (25), Es 8, Dmg +10,
Def -5, also dragon breath, sorcery
(electromancy), dissolves into an electrically charged cloud at its death.
Outcome
This scene ends with a variety of choices:
- The heroes can follow (or keep following) the wagon tracks to Scene Four.
- Should the spawn defeat the heroes,
the Narrator also turns to Scene Four.
- Going to Palanthas from here takes the
adventure back to Scene One. If the
heroes left Rig, Shaon, and Groller there,
they discover that brutes raided the ship
and hauled these three away. The story
continues with Scene Four if the heroes
leave Palanthas again to find them.
Dragonspawn
The newest horror to afflict Krynn in
these troubled times is the dragonspawn,
or simply "spawn." These magically created creatures are larger than humans.
They stand a few inches shy of seven feet
tall and weigh about three hundred
pounds. They have humanoid bodies
with wings, toothy snouts, and clawed
appendages. These creatures differ from
draconians in that they used to be
human, and it shows - behind its reptilian features linger faint vestiges of the
creature's lost humanity.
The Spawning Ceremony
A spawn is formed by infusing a seed
from the spirit of a draconian into
the body of a human captive during a painful
ceremony. The invading essence
eventually corrupts and ejects the victim's own spirit. However, the exact
details of the spawning process remain
unknown. Witnesses report that it must
be conducted by a Great Dragon and
requires the presence of the draconian
donating the spirit seed as well as a
human captive. Only humans make suitable hosts for the draconian spirit.
The Great Dragon begins the ceremony with a long incantation to draw
out a portion of the draconian's essence
and implant it in the victim. The shock
can kill the donor draconian, but
most survive. (The Narrator must
make a successful average Endurance
action on a random draw for the draconian to live through the process.)
In addition, the dragon has to give
something of itself to quicken the
spirit seed. The Blue Dragon, Khellendros, purportedly sheds a few
tears while performing the magic
required. Each color of Great Dragon
would create a unique subrace of spawn
based on this catalyst.
During the week following the ceremony, the victim slowly becomes corrupted inside and out. His body
transforms into that of a winged, reptilian monster whose scaly coloration
matches that of the Great Dragon
involved in the rite. While this physical
metamorphosis is inevitable, an individual can hold the inner transformation at
bay: A successful average Spirit action
allows the victim's true essence to hang
on, fighting to eject the invading spirit
(see "Afflicted Heroes" on page 43).
However, even strong-willed or good-hearted humans often die in the spawning process, while Evil men more readily
embrace it. Failing the action means that
the Evil essence grown from the draconian spirit seed ejects the victim's tortured spirit from its body after a week
and takes its place. No one knows what
happens to this tragically displaced
human spirit.
Spawn Abilities
All spawn can fly like dragons. In addition, their scales match the color of the
dragon that created them, and they have
a special breath ability identical to
dragon breath, except they can use it
only at near missile range (see the section on "Dragons" in Chapter Six of the
Book of the Fifth Age for details on
dragon breath). Though immune to
dragonawe, spawn cannot inspire it. Like
draconians, spawn all manifest an
unusual effect related to their draconic
nature at their death.
When Khellendros the Blue created
the first spawn as a side-effect of experiments he was conducting, he realized
the creatures had great value as minions.
The dragon who creates a spawn can see,
hear, feel, touch, and taste whatever the creature
experiences. The dragon cannot actually
read the spawn's mind, however, and
cannot automatically tell if it still holds a shred of the victim's original personality.
(He might surmise that something is
amiss if the spawn fails to obey an order
or undertakes other suspicious activity.)
Receiving sensory impressions from
these creatures takes all of a dragon's
concentration, however, so he cannot
spend all his time monitoring them.
When concentrating, a Great Dragon can simultaneously receive and process
sensory input from a number of spawn
equal to its Reason (or Intellect) score.
The dragon can always pinpoint the
spawn that generated a particular impression.
Skie found draconians quite willing
to cooperate with his spawning ceremony, as they viewed the ritual as a
chance to procreate. Because the spawn
has the personality and memories of the
draconian who donated the spirit seed,
the creature could be considered the
donor's offspring. With so few draconian females in existence, the draconians
fear their race might die without the
evolution of the spawn.
Like their human predecessors, spawn
can reproduce. However, only magically
created spawn have a mental link with
their dragon creators; second-generation
spawn lack that connection, even if they
remain in the dragon's service. A spawn's
immunity to dragonawe and other powers make it a valuable servant in any case.
Afflicted Heroes
If the human essence refuses to give in
to the invading spirit, it has to fight to
keep control of its body. Heroes who
succeed in a challenging Spirit action
retain control for the day and can act
normally. For that day, he has the
spawn's Physical abilities but keeps his
own Mental abilities, including sorcery,
mysticism, and race/role advantages and
disadvantages. A hero must attempt a
new action daily.
Failing at the Spirit action means the
hero loses control of his body to the draconian spirit for the day; the foreign
spirit uses all the spawn's ability scores.
If the hero suffers a mishap, the invading
essence not only takes control of his
body for a day but can use his knowledge and powers freely as well. The spawn retains its own Physical abilities
and uses either its own Mental abilities
or the hero's. If the hero uses sorcery,
the spawn has two pools of
sorcery points: its own and the hero's.
In any case, the hero
must struggle continuously
to maintain control.
Every time he suffers any
stress - attacking, defending, incurring injury,
using magic - he must
make another challenging
Spirit action to retain control. (He never
has to attempt more than one such
action in any given minute, though.)
An afflicted hero can fly and use the
spawn's special breath ability. However,
doing so is like inviting the spawn to
take control of his body. For each use of
the spawn's breath ability and at the
beginning of each hour of flight, the
hero makes an additional challenging
Spirit action at a -2 action penalty to
maintain control.
Heroes who rescue a partially transformed companion are well advised to
keep an eye on their friend and to be
wary of sudden attacks or more devious
betrayals, due to the hero's unwitting
contact with the spawn's Great Dragon
creator. A hero who regains control over
his body after any temporary loss to the
invading essence has no knowledge of
what happened while the spawn was in
control. Likewise, the foreign spirit is
aware of only those events it witnessed
itself (unless the hero suffered a
mishap).
A mystic can banish a spawn's spirit
from a human host using powerful
mentalism or spiritualism. Once the
spirit has left his body, the hero collapses, remaining only semiconscious
for a day. During the next twenty-four
hours, the former victim remains helpless as his body slowly reverts to its original form.
Scene Four: The Camp
The heroes have come to this scene either
as captives of the brutes or by tracking the
prison wagon's trail here. Narrators may
have to alter some description, depending
on whether the heroes are freely reconnoitering the camp or imprisoned here.
Overview
The brutes take their captives to a ruined
village. When they have collected enough
prisoners, Khellendros himself flies in
and conducts the spawning ritual.
Getting Started
The Narrator can refer back to the sidebar
in the previous scene for details on spawn.
First Impressions
If the heroes have been captured, they see
the scene described below from the vantage point of a prison wagon pulling into
camp. The brutes stripped them of their
armor, weapons, and equipment hours
ago, before shoving them into the wagon.
Otherwise, heroes make the observations described below from the cover of a
large outcropping of rock:
You've reached the remains of a village.
The six surviving buildings are made of
stone, now scorched by fire. Five of them
are cottages with sagging thatch roofs,
and the last is a small temple with a
mostly intact slate root.
A tree-shaded pool fed by a sluggish
stream beckons from one end of the village - the smell ot fresh water and green
grass seems as sweet as any perfume after
your trip across the desert. The crumbled
ruin of a tower stands at the other end ot
the settlement. A narrow, unpaved road that
runs past the pool and up to the ruins separates the clump of cottages from the temple.
A prison wagon - essentially a massive
steel cage on wheels-waits on the road
before the temple. An occasional shout
comes from within the vehicle. An elephant stands chained to a tree near the pool, and a tall humanoid with a brutish face and blue-painted skin watches them. Another brute stands near the ruin, and two Knights in dark armor walk a slow circuit around the temple.
While free heroes watch, a second
wagon rolls into camp and halts beside
the first. Captured heroes are inside that
wagon. Everyone can see the following:
The brute near the pool helps the driver
unhitch the elephant from the wagon and
chain it to a tree beside the other beast.
He returns to his post while the driver
hands some keys and a bundle of equipment to an approaching Knight. The dark
paladin inspects it briefly, then gestures
abruptly toward one of the images. The
brute silently takes the bundle into the
indicated building, then vanishes into
another cottage. Hooking the keys onto
his belt, the Knight resumes his patrol.
The brutes leave captured heroes locked
up in their wagon: The Knights want to
keep them where they can see them,
rather than risk them stirring up the prisoners held in the temple. They refuse to
respond to any questions.
If Rig, Shaon, and Groller were taken
from the heroes' ship, they are held in the
first locked wagon.
The Story Continues
The small temple mentioned earlier
houses the prisoners in this village, while
the six Dark Knights in charge of the
camp live in the biggest cottage. Three
Baaz draconians reside in a second cottage, and four brutes occupy two more.
The fifth one serves as a storehouse.
Prisoners receive food and water twice
a day - just enough to keep them alive.
They are not allowed any exercise.
Four Knights and two brutes remain on
guard at all times. The Knights keep watch
over the temple and patrol the village's
perimeter, while the brutes stand sentry on
the road, one at each end of town.
This scene remains unchanged until
the heroes do something. They begin the encounter at far missile range from the
guards. Watching a while before acting
allows them to see two more Knights
patrolling the outskirts of the village. All
the guards seem bored - they won't notice
the heroes until they take overt action.
The Battle
Heroes may attempt to break out of their
wagon or attack - or both. The two sleeping brutes emerge from their quarters and
join the fray after five minutes, and the
two off-duty Knights appear in seven.
Once the heroes attack, there's little
they can do except fight, using standard
combat actions. At least two heroes wielding fire or making a lot of noise can panic
the elephants and force them to bolt
through the town, knocking over the wagons and trampling anyone on the road.
The Aftermath
During the battle, the Baaz lie low, but the
heroes might find them if they defeat all
the other guards, then search the village.
The draconians know the prisoners were
set to be transformed into spawn and can
be intimidated into talking.
The brutes, on the other hand, know
nothing about their mission and fail to
understand the significance of Skie's visits:
He just flies in some nights, does something,
then departs, leaving the camp empty.
The Knights know only that they are
here to guard prisoners. Skie dismisses
them whenever he's ready to perform a
ritual and hires new guards as the village
fills up again. The Knights assume the
prisoners are food for the dragon.
The prisoners in the temple and wagons can find their own ways home if freed.
Atmosphere
The village looks like any typical enemy
encampment from a war movie. The
Knights make their rounds in lock step,
and the brutes look bored. If the players
seem hesitant to act. Narrators should
indicate to them that this scene is not
going to change: The Knights' booted feet
will continue their monotonous tramp
until one of the heroes does something.
Actions
The heroes have the normal chance to
surprise the guards in the camp. If they
track the movements of the pair walking
the perimeter, they can set up an ambush.
Captured heroes could use a mystic
charm spell to prompt the guard with the
keys to unlock the wagon (Dark Knights'
susceptibility to mysticism makes any card
played automatic trump). While the heroes
cannot persuade him to open the wagon,
they might trick him into opening it with
the old "my friend is sick" routine - an
average Presence (Perception) action.
Prying apart the bars on a wagon
requires a desperate Strength action and
instantly gets the guards' attention. Picking the lock is a challenging Agility action.
It takes a challenging Presence (Spirit)
action to make the elephants break their
chains and bolt. (Only one hero can make
the attempt before the alarm is sounded.)
The heroes can't break the beasts' chains,
but could pick the locks on them.
Characters
The camp holds the following characters:
Three Baaz: Draconians, sensible demeanor, Adventurers. Co 8, Ph 6, In 6, Es 7, Dmg +4, Def -3, also glides, turns to stone at its death.
Four brutes: Hostile nonhumans. Co 6, Ph 11, In 6, Es 8, Dmg +8, Def -5, also thrown weapons (hand axe).
Eighteen prisoners: Humans of varied age and demeanor, Unknown and Rabble. Co 6, Ph 5, In 5, Es 5, Dmg 0 (unarmed), Def 0 (common clothing).
Six Dark Knights: Human adults, various demeanors, Adventurers. Co 7, Ph 8, In 5, Es 6, Dmg +8 (two-handed sword), Def -5 (plate), also missile weapons (crossbow/+5).
Elephant: Animal. Co 8, Ph 33, In 2, Es 2, Dmg +8, Def -4, also trample.
Outcome
When the heroes leave the camp, the Narrator should turn to:
- Scene Three, if it has not been played; or
- The Epilogue, if Scene Three has been
played (or if the heroes are captured).