Official Game Adventure

Introduction . .Plot Synopsis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

The Hordes

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4BATTLESYSTEM Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

The Allies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6BATTLESYSTEM Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

The Town of Daggerford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Places of Interest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

The Army of Daggerford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0Council of War . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2Battle at the Way Inn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 4

BATTLESYSTEM game map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Into the Misty Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 6

HORDES OF DRAGONSPEARAn Adventure for Characters of Levels 10-12

Table of Contents

1 8The Roaring Deep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0The Druids Council . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Under the Castle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2Labyrinth Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Return to the Inn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 4Against the Hordes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 6

BATTLESYSTEM game map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 7Aftermath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 8Appendix: Monstrous Compendium . . . . . . 2 9

Baatezu, General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Baatezu, GreaterCornugon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Baatezu, GreaterPit Fiend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31Baatezu, LesserBarbazu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Credits

Design: William W. ConnorsEditing: C. Terry PhillipsCover Art: Doug ChaffeeInterior Art: Arnie Swekel

Cartography: Steve BeckTypography: Gaye OKeefeProduction: Paul Hanchette

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ISBN 1-56076-333-79369XXX1501

Introduction

M a r k m y w o r d s , t h e r e i s s o m e t h i n g d a r kt h e r e . S o m e e v i l f o r c e g r o w s a t t h e h e a r tof that ruin. For now, it is content to dwellin the darkness for it fears the light of day.S o o n , h o w e v e r , i t w i l l g r o w s o p o w e r f u lthat not even the shadows can conta in i t .

D a u r a v y n R e d b e a r dKeeper o f The Way Inn

All who l ive within severa l hundredmiles have heard the name of Dragon-spear Castle and know its import. Oncehome to the proud and brave, the castle isnow a ruin cloaked behind a history ofmurder and diabolic plots. Few go there,f o r t h e o n l y r e w a r d t o b e g a r n e r e d i sdeath.

Actual ly the problem is not Dragon-spear itself. The old ruined castle, thoughrumored to have a portal to the sinisterplanes, is only a symbol for the evils thatsurge out of the wastes of the High Moor.Once , not too many years ago, the orcsand trolls of the High Moor ruled fromthat broken keep, rampaging throughoutt h e a r e a , c u t t i n g t h e T r a d e W a y , a n dthreatening the good people from Dagger-ford to Boarskyr Bridge.

The armies of Waterdeep and BaldursGate ended the reign of terror when theylaid siege to the moldering fortress. By thetime Piergeiron Paladinsons soldiers andKhelben Blackstaffs magic had shatteredthe castle gate and annihilated the occu-pants, the might of Dragonspear was bro-ken. A temple was es tabl ished to wardagainst further evil rising from the castlescellars, where the gate to the planes wasrumored to exist.

So things went for many years. By theTime of Troubles, the temple and its cler-gy had long since disappeared. Perhapsthe priests had grown lax in their task orperhaps something darker happened- i tseems of no consequence to this day forno further reports of evil have come fromDragonspear.

Still, one never knows.

Plot SynopsisThis adventure begins with the heroes

a t D a g g e r f o r d w h e n w o r d c o m e s o f agreat force of goblins and kobolds movingout of the Misty Forest. The local militia isset t ing out at once to counter this newthreat to the Trade Way. When the militiasleader is injured, the PCs are called on totake charge of these green troops.

With the heroes in charge, the Army ofD a g g e r f o r d h e a d s s o u t h . T h e y c o m eacross the humanoids a t the Way Inn.Here , they jo in with a group of merce-naries, battle the Marauders, and, with alittle luck, defeat them. Much to their hor-ror, they discover a cornugon (Vrag) at thehead of the horde.

Leaving the massed forces behind in thecare of their new leader, the PCs enter theMisty Forest . Here , they come across awild elf living like a beast in the wilder-ness. He is quite insane. The heroes curehim and learn several things. First, theylearn that his tribe was destroyed by an ar-my of humanoids that came down fromthe High Moors. (He was the leader of histribe and was taken prisoner. In chains, hewas brought to Dragonspear Castle.) Sec-ond, they learn that the leader of the en-tire horde is a pit fiend who has based histroops in that same cast le . Last ly , theylearn that the dragon who serves th isfiend is doing so under duress; one of thecornugons that heads the enemy has amagical hold over the reptile. If that holdwere broken, the dragon would certainlyabandon the cause that he currently fightsfor or even turn upon his master.

With the aid of a druid who lives nearby,the heroes learn that the dragon mustobey the cornugon Vesar ius because ofthe enchanted spear that the latter craftedfrom the formers horn. The druid in-forms the heroes that the destruction ofthe spear wi l l f ree the dragon from i tsmental servi tude. The spear can be de-stroyed only by the acidic spittle of the

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dragon itself. The spear is hidden at theheart of Dragonspear Castle, however, sorecovering it will not be easy.

The elf points out that the route he usedto escape the castle might allow the he-roes access to it. He refuses to return therehimself, but offers to start the PCs on theirway and then go and spread word of themenace that looms. He will have all of theallies await word of the heroes fate at theW a y I n n . H e w a r n s t h e m t o b e q u i c k ,though, for men have not the patience ofe l v e s a n d w i l l l o n g t o m o v e q u i c k l yagainst the enemy.

The elf leads the PCs to a narrow cavernthat goes down into darkness. The PCs en-ter and find that it provides access to anunderground river. This river flows south-ward but turns east briefly and passes di-rectly under the castle. The elf is certainthat the hordes dont know of its existenceor his escape would not have been possi-ble.

The PCs head down the river and soonreach the castle. They make their way intothe catacombs beneath the main tower ,f i g h t s o m e b a d g u y s , a n d r e c o v e r t h espear. They escape via the river and re-turn to the Way Inn.

Here they find that the dragon has at-tacked and destroyed the Inn. The armyhas moved south, hoping to strike a fatalblow to the enemy before the dragon re-t u r n s t o f i n i s h t h e m . T h e h e r o e s m u s thurry if they are to rejoin the allied armya n d s a v e i t f r o m d e s t r u c t i o n b y t h eHordes of Dragonspear.

The heroes arrive as the big battle is inprogress. The dragon is clearly a foe toopowerful to be countered by the massedforces opposing the hordes. Things lookdark indeed. The heroes jo in the bat t leand bring the spear into a position wherethe dragon can see i t . With a roar , thebeast dives at the weapon and lets loose as t r e a m o f a c i d a t i t . T h e s p e a r i s d e -stroyed, and the dragon is freed of its in-f luence.

The dragon, now able to do as it will,turns on its former master. The day is wonand the heroes are . . . well, heroes.

Dungeon Masters NotesHordes of Dragonspear is a high-level

adventure. It assumes that the heroes aregenerally of 10th- to 12th-level and five orsix in number. If this is not the case, theDM will want to alter some of the encount-ers in this book to make it more appropri-ate.

At several points in this adventure, thestage is set for a grand battle. For readerswho play the BATTLESYSTEM minia-tures rules, complete game information isp r o v i d e d o n t h e o p p o s i n g f o r c e s . F o rthose without the time or interest to re-solve the battles in this manner, informa-tion is provided that allows the battles tobe resolved with the mass combat systempresented in DMGR2: The Castle Guide.Lastly, for people who dont want to re-solve the battles at all, a brief synopsis ofthe probable outcome of the battle is pro-vided.

The next few pages of this text detail thearmies that have been gathered aroundD r a g o n s p e a r C a s t l e . F i r s t t h e h o r d e sthemselves are presented, and then thevarious forces allied against them.

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The HOrdeS

Despite their chaotic name, the Hordesof Dragonspear have a fairly stable mili-tary structure. This is the direct result oft h e p i t f i e n d B a a z k a w h o c o m m a n d sthem. While the humanoids that he hasbrought together would, on their own,dissolve into a quarreling, bickering mass,the fear that they have of Baazka and histhree cornugon lieutenants is enough tokeep the Hordes in line.

This humanoid horde is composed ofthree dis t inct armies , each of which iscommanded by a cornugon. Among theselieutenants there is a great deal of politicalrivalry and competition. As a rule, Baazkasends each of the units out on its own toaccomplish a specific mission. Thus, theent i re horde i s se ldom encountered atonce.

The MaraudersDespite their ominous sounding name,

the Marauders are the least of Baazkasunits. It is commanded by Vrag, a cornu-gon who is far from happy with this as-signment. He recognizes that his force islooked down upon by all the others. In aneffort to prove himself to Baazka, Vrag of-ten commits the Marauders to dangerousand glorious assaults. So far, he has beenl u c k y . T h e M a r a u d e r s h a v e a c t u a l l yproven themselves to be a competent mili-tary unit. How much of this is skill, talent,or savagery and how much is fear of theirleader is open to speculation.

T h e M a r a u d e r s a r e c o m p o s e d o f t w oforces. The first is an assembly of some500 kobolds. Fighting under the banner ofa p a r t i c u l a r l y c r u e l a n d e v i l c h i e f t a i nnamed Wolg, these troops are the lowestin the hordes hierarchy. If there is a sui-cidal or distasteful assignment to be tak-en, its almost sure to fall to the kobolds.

The other element of the Marauders is aband of 500 goblins under the commando f P r u j . A c h i e f t a i n o f g r e a t r e n o w namong the goblin folk, Pruj is unusually

brave for a member of this cowardly race.It is quite possible that he is mentally un-stable and subject to delusions of gran-deur.

The Blood GuardThe next unit in Baazkas army is the

d a n g e r o u s B l o o d G u a r d . T h i s f o r c e i scomposed of 300 orcs and 200 hobgob-lins. Although they are not nearly as nu-m e r o u s a s t h e M a r a u d e r s , t h e B l o o dGuard is the main force of the horde.Whenever there is an assault to be madeor a village to be raided, its a good bet thatthe Blood Guard will get the assignment.The commander of this force, the cornu-gon Vooka, is perhaps the most intelligentof Baazkas lieutenants. While he desiresto impress Baazka as much as either of theother cornugons, he is determined to do itthrough his cunning and intelligence. Heis a master of military strategy and hasBaazkas ear on all matters of the cam-paign.

T h e o r c s a r e u n d e r t h e c o m m a n d o fDahrgash. There is a great deal of infight-ing and bickering among the orcs, morethan in any other unit. Still, Dahrgash isbrutal and fierce enough to keep the orcsin line.

The hobgoblins have taken to the mili-tary life quite quickly. They are by far themost professional of Baazkas force. Therei s a n u n u s u a l a m o u n t o f c o o p e r a t i o nwithin the hobgoblin ranks, due primarilyto the loyalty which Skarr, their chieftain,commands.

The StormThe final element of Baazkas army is

the most dangerous. Known as the Storm,it is composed of 100 ogres, 100 bugbears,and the dreaded Maeles tor Rex-an an-c i e n t b l a c k d r a g o n . T h e S t o r m s c o m -mander, Vesarius, is a brutal, militaristicbeast. He demands strict obedience from

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those in his command and is a harsh task-master . He looks upon both Vooka andVrag as worthless inferiors. His contemptblinds him to the formers keen mind andthe latters shrewd courage.

The Storms ogres are commanded byOorok. Whi le he i s not the smartest orbravest of the ogres, he is the biggest andthe meanest. In ogre society, that makeshim the boss. He is brutal and cruel, some-thing Vesarius finds admirable.

The bugbears are under the hand of theparticularly cunning and evil Ghorashk.He attained his present position of powerby the assassination of the two bugbearsabove him when the army was formed.Ghorashk makes no secret of the fact thath e i s m o r e t h a n w i l l i n g t o u s e u n d e r -handed tactics in both mass combat andindividual melees.

The last element of the Storm is by farthe most terrible. Maelestor Rex, a 1,250year-old black dragon, acts under the di-rect orders of Vesarius. He is contemptu-ous of all the other elements of the hordeand serves in it only under duress.

Centuries ago, Maelestor Rex struck abargain with the fiendish Vesarius. In ex-change for one of his horns, Vesarius gavethe dragon knowledge of several uniquemagical spells. Vesarius took the horn andfashioned it into a great, barbed spear. Bymeans of a powerful incantation that hewove while creating the weapon, Vesariushas forced the dragon to obey him. If thespear were destroyed or lost, it is certainthat Maelestor Rex would turn in venge-ance upon the Hordes of Dragonspear andits diabolical commanders.

Unit # A D A R Hits ML M V R a n g e R e m a r k sWolgs Kobolds 5 0 0 4 8 ½ 9 6 n a a bPrujs Goblins 5 0 0 6 8 1 11 6 n a a b c dDahrgashs Orcs 300 6 8 1 11 9 n a a c d eSkarrs Hobgoblins 2 0 0 8/6 7 1 11 9 7/14/21 e fGhorashks Bugbears 100 8 7 2 12 9 n a h iOoroks Ogres 100 10 7 2 12 9 n a d e g h

a. -1 bonus to enemy AR in daylightb. Hate gnomesc. -1 penalty to Morale in daylightd. Hate dwarvese. Hate elves

f. Equipped with bowsg. Hate halflingsh. Irregular onlyi. Chaotic

IndividualsWolgPrujDahrgashSkarrGhorashkOorokVragVookaVesariusBaazkaMaelstor Rex

AD A R Hits CD MV4 8 1 9 66 8 1 11 66 8 1 11 9

8/6 7 1 11 98 7 2 12 9

10 7 2 12 9See Inside Back CoverSee Inside Back CoverSee Inside Back CoverSee Inside Back CoverSee Inside Back Cover

R a n g e R e m a r k sn a Nonen a Nonen a None

7/14/21 Nonen a Nonen a None

5

The Allies of Daggerford

All ied against the Hordes of Dragon-spear is a rough confederation of troops,some of them more capable than others. Itmay be that some of the units listed belowwill be unavailable to the player charac-ters , depending upon the course of therole-playing portions of this adventure.

3rd Company, HighGuards of Waterdeep

The Army of DaggerfordWhile the dedicat ion and devot ion of

these troops are not to be doubted, theirvalue as anything other than fodder i ss u b j e c t t o d e b a t e . T h e a r m y h a s b e e nf o r m e d f r o m t h e m i l i t i a , w a t c h , a n dfarmers of Daggerford and its environs.While they are not well-trained or well-equipped, they are fighting in defense oftheir homes and are highly motivated.

The majority of this force is a unit of 300peasants. For the most part, these are sim-p l e f o l k w h o h a v e b a n d e d t o g e t h e r t ofight the enemy with whatever weaponsthey might have at hand.

The second of the armys three elementsis composed of 200 former members ofvarious armed forces. Because the peoplein this unit have all had some actual mili-tary exper ience , i t seems probable thatthey will fare better than the larger forceof peasant rabble. Still, few of these indi-viduals have seen actual combat.

The final element of the army is a groupof 100 young men and women who havenot only received military training, but ac-tually served in combat. While their com-bined experience might not be great, it isenough to qualify them as light infantry.

Unless the player characters come for-ward to command the Army of Dagger-ford, they will be led by the capable, butn o t o u t s t a n d i n g , D a u r a v y n R e d b e a r d .This former adventurer and current keep-er of the Way Inn will be primarily con-cerned with keeping these s imple fo lkfrom being slaughtered in battle.

This is a unit of 100 regular military men(medium infantry) who happened to bepatrolling the regions south of Waterdeepwhen the call for aid went forth. They area solid unit, with combat experience andd e c e n t e q u i p m e n t . T h e 3 r d C o m p a n yought to be able to hold its own in any bat-tle with the Hordes of Dragonspear.

T h e c o m m a n d e r o f t h i s u n i t i s F r e ySilverblade. While she is a clever and cun-ning warrior, she will follow the lead of aplayer character who seems more experi-enced in the art of war.

Uhmbricks RangerThis band of 50 mounted mercenaries is

swept up into the conflict when they areattacked at the Way Inn. Although theywill attempt to find someone to pay themfor f ight ing the Hordes , theyre deter -mined to have revenge for the men theylost at the Way Inn and will carry on with-out pay. The rangers are classed as medi-um cavalry .

Uhmbricks troops are loyal to him, butwill also follow another with his blessing.I f a sui table player character i s in thegroup of heroes, Uhmbrick can be killedor wounded and the PC can take his place.

Knights of IlmaterThese 50 men are paladins who ride to-

gether under the grey and red banner ofthe god Ilmater. The Knights are a trulydeadly force, being classed as ultra-heavycavalry. The Knights believe that it is theirplace to travel from battle to battle, surviv-ing without the comforts of home or thesecurity of a steady base of operations.They are always on the watch for a wor-thy cause to adopt.

The leader of these brave warriors is al-m o s t m a n i a c a l - K o r r o f I l m a t e r . H e i sbrave, reckless, and (some say) suicidal.

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Misty Forest Elves Dwarves of IllefarnW h e n w o r d o f t h e p e r i l r e a c h e d t h e

elves of the Misty Forest and LaughingHollow, they decided that their race mustplay some part in the coming clash. Thus,100 of their number have left their seclud-ed homelands to join the alliance againstDragonspear. This force is grouped intotwo units, each made up of 50 elves. Thefirst group is simply elven infantry, verycapable but not greatly noteworthy. Thesecond element, however, is a team of 50elvish longbowmen.

The leader of the elves is SylyndyrrylMoonspinner a lovely young woman whois so slender that she looks almost frail ;she is far from it. She might allow a PCcommand of one element of her troops,but only if that hero were an elf.

When the race of dwarves recently beganto reclaim the ruins of Illefarn, they vowednever to be driven from those halls again.Thus, when the danger of Dragonspear pre-sented itself, they were quick to take uparms and join the allied forces. Like theelves, the dwarvish forces are composed oftwo units of 50 troops each. One group is aband of stern dwarven infantry, a force notto be taken lightly. The other is a team of 50dwarven crossbowmen, a valuable additionto the allied forces.

The dwarves are led by Cyrag Hammer-bone, a tough and determined veteranw h o h a s f a c e d t h e b e a s t s o f t h e H i g hMoors before and seems more than will-ing to battle them again. Like Moonspin-n e r , h e m i g h t t r u s t a P C w i t h t h ecommand of one unit, but only if that he-ro were a dwarf.

Unit # AD AR Hits ML MV R a n g e R e m a r k sMisty Forest Elves 50 8 7 1 13 12 n a f gElvish Longbowmen 5 0 6/8 7 1 13 12 7/14/21 f gDwarves of Illefarn 5 0 6 7 1 12 6 n a a b c d eDwarvish Crossbowmen 5 0 6 8 1 13 6 6/12/18 a b c d eDaggerford Peasants 3 0 0 4 9 1 7 12 n a hDaggerford Militia 2 0 0 6 9 1 10 12 n a hDaggerford Infantry 100 6 8 1 11 12 n a3rd Company 100 6 7 1 11 12 n aUhmbricks Rangers 5 0 8 7 2 12 18 n aKnights of Ilmater 5 0 12/8 5 4 15 12 n a

a. Favor rough or rocky ground e. -2 AR vs. giants, ogres, & trollsb. Hate goblins f. Favor woodsc. Hate orcs g. Chaoticd. Hate hobgoblins h. Irregular only

Individuals AD A R Hits CD M V R e m a r k sDauravyn Redbeard 10 4 2 8 9Sylyndyrryl Moonspinner 8/8 5 2 16 12Cyrag Hammerbone 10/6 5 2 12 9Frey Silverblade 8 6 2 8 9Uhmbrick of Cormyr 8/8 5 4 16 12Korr of I lmater 12 3 8 16 12

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The Town of Daggerford

The town of Daggerford is located onthe northern banks of the Delimbiyr (orshining river). It is connected with Water-deep some 80 miles to the north by meansof the High Road. South of the village, onthe opposite bank of the river, the TradeWay runs south past the famous Way Innand the dreaded Dragonspear Castle, con-necting at last with the cities of BaldursGate, Elturel, and Scornubel on the banksof the river Chionthar.

Daggerford is a walled city with threemajor geographical divisions. The first ar-ea is the town itself, which fills the west-ern half of the walls. The second region issomewhat h igher than the town and isknown as The Commons. This is a largepasture intended primarily for the graz-ing of animals during t imes of t rouble .The third area , located at the center ofThe Commons, is the castle of the Duke ofDaggerford. Much of the castle has beenrecently rebuilt by a family of dwarves,making i t somewhat more majes t ic ands p l e n d i d t h a n m i g h t b e e x p e c t e d o f atown the size of Daggerford.

The People ofDaggerford

The population of Daggerford itself isjust over 300 persons. However, a numberof scattered hamlets in the surroundingcountryside fall under the rule of Dagger-fords government . The true populat ionof the city is approximately 1,000 people,the vast major i ty be ing human; a smal lpercentage are a lso hal f l ing . Dwarves ,elves, and other demihuman races makeup only a minute fraction of this total.

When a crisis is at hand, the town hastwo e lements for defending i tse l f . Thefirst is the local militia. Because of the oc-casional menace from the Lizard Marshesto the west and the High Moors to the east,this militia is fairly large and reasonablywell-trained. Still , this group is only thesecond l ine of defense . The main force

that can be directed at an enemy is the 3rdCompany, High Guards of Waterdeep.This band of 100 skilled warriors is sta-tioned in Daggerford, but spends most ofits time abroad, patrolling the country-side. The 3rd Company is theoretically un-d e r t h e c o m m a n d o f t h e D u k e o fDaggerford, but owes fealty to the Lordsof Waterdeep itself (a fact known by all).

The town of Daggerford is ruled by aCounci l of Gui lds , much as the City ofWaterdeep is. This council holds a charterf r o m t h e D u k e o f D a g g e r f o r d ( P w y l lGreatshout) and is fairly free to do as itpleases, although the duke has a fair bit ofinfluence over their actions and decisions.

People & Places ofInterest

There are several areas that might beimportant to the adventurers during theirtime in Daggerford. This listing is an ab-breviated version of the one presented inadventure N5: Under I l l e farn. The com-panion map to this key is printed on theinside of the front cover.

1. Barracks: This large structure housesthe militia (and the 3rd company whenthey are in town). It overlooks a large drillfield.

2. Caravan Gate: This is the largest of thec i ty s three gates . I t i s n o r m a l l y k e p tclosed, except when a merchant caravanor company of entertainers is parked out-side.

3. Caravan Quarter: This place serves as astation for travelling merchants and trad-ers who want to set up shop for a time inDaggerford.

4. Temple of Chauntea: This shrine to theGreat Mother is of great importance to allthe farmers and ranchers of the Dagger-ford area . The keeper of the temple i s

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Maerovyna, an 8th- level pr ies t (a lso apriest in BATTLESYSTEM game terms).

5. Delfens Tower: Delfen is a wizard whocame to Daggerford several years ago. Inexchange for a promise to aid the city intimes of crisis (and a large donation tothe treasury), he was given this tower as ahome. Delfen is an 8th-level wizard (a mi-n o r w i z a r d i n B A T T L E S Y S T E M g a m eterms) who has grown to love his adoptedcity and will join the militia in its defense.

6. The Castle : This i s the home of theDuke of Daggerford and his family. It is off ine construct ion and qui te splendid tolook upon.

Duke Greatshout, a 5th-level warrior, isa r e t i r e d a d v e n t u r e r , a s i s h i s s i s t e rBronwyn, a 5 th- level wizard. The dukequalifies as a knight hero inB A T T L E S Y S T E M g a m e t e r m s a n dBronwyn is a minor wizard. Both will actto defend the city if it falls under attack,but feel compelled to remain behind andprotect it when the militia and 3rd compa-ny ride forth. Another hero, Lord Llewel-lyn Long-Hand, serves as the head of themilitary and will march with it when itleaves town. Llewellyn is an 8th-level war-r i o r ( k n i g h t h e r o ) w h o i s i n t e r e s t e d i nproving himsel f as he has eyes on theDukes charter himself.

7. Farmers Gate: This is the most com-monly used of the citys three gates. It isle f t open, unless there i s some menaceabout .

8. Farmers Quarter : This region of thecity is inhabited by the farmers who workthe fields north of town. It is a crowdedplace, full of people and animals.

9. Guildmasters Hall: This large buildingis the center of the towns governmentand houses the headquarters of each ofthe citys numerous guilds.

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10 . Temple of Lathlander : This i s thelargest religious center in the town and isdirectly supported by the Duke and hisfamily. The head of the temple is LiamSunmist , a 9 th- level pr iest (a priest inBATTLESYSTEM game terms).

11. The Marketplace: This is an open airmarket that is filled with small shops of allkinds.

1 2 . T h e M o n e y Q u a r t e r : T h i s i s t h eweal thy part of Daggerford. Al l of thehomes here are of excellent quality andwell-maintained.

13. The River Gate: This is the 3rd of thecitys three gates and provides access tothe Delimbiyr and waterfront district. It isnormally open during the day and closedat night.

1 4 . R i v e r m e n s Q u a r t e r : T h i s a r e a o ftown is dominated by those people whomake their l iv ing f rom the Del imbiyr-fisherman, dock workers, rivermen, andthe like.

15. Stables: This is the livery area for thetown. The civilian populace, militia, and3rd Company all stable their horses here.

16. Shrine of Tempus: This is a small tem-ple dedicated to the worship of the Lordo f B a t t l e s . I t i s t e n d e d t o b y B a e r g o nBluesword, a 5th-level fighter-priest. InB A T T L E S Y S T E M g a m e t e r m s , h e i s apriest.

17. Shrine of Tymora: Located just off ofthe drill field, this is a minor temple dedi-cated to the worship of Lady Luck. Thekeeper of the shrine is a 6th-level halflingpriest named Bando the Lame. Because hedepends upon a crutch to get along, hehas no place in a the battle against Dra-gonspear.

The Army of Daggerford

This adventure begins with the heroesarriving in Daggerford. The DM will needto arrange some reason for the party totravel near this town. The mission must besuch that the players are able to cast itaside, either permanently or temporarily,to come to the aid of the people of Dagger-ford. Also, because this adventure revolvesa r o u n d a g r o w i n g m e n a c e i n t h e a r e aaround Dragonspear Castle, the PCs routeof travel should not be such that it bringsthem through these contested regions.

No One Home Entering DaggerfordAs the player characters draw close to

the town of Daggerford, they will begin top a s s t h r o u g h f a r m c o u n t r y . H e r e a n dthere, they will come across small farmhomes which have been abandoned andlocked up. There are no signs of violenceand no evidence as to why the farms mayhave been deserted.

In truth, these are the homes of able-bodied folk who have answered the call toarms and made their way to Daggerford.F e a r i n g t h a t t h e r e m a y b e d a r k t i m e sahead, they have taken their families withthem to the protection of the walled city.There is no foul play afoot here, but theDM may want to present these encounterswith an air of mystery to them.

Nearing DaggerfordThings become more hectic as the party

approaches Daggerford. They wi l l meetmore refuges trying to escape from the re-g i o n b e f o r e t h e s t o r m o f w a r e r u p t sacross the countrys ide . The fo lks theypass will gladly talk to heroes who claimto be headed south to join in the defenseo f D a g g e r f o r d a n d i t s e n v i r o n s . F r o mthese travellers, the PCs can learn some-thing of what has been going on.

Recently, they will discover, goblins andkobolds have begun to mass a long theTrade Way south of The Way Inn. All tradesouth of the city has been disrupted and

many caravans raided and destroyed. Inresponse, Duke Greatshout, ruler of Dag-gerford, has i ssued a ca l l for a l l able-bodied men and women to join with themilitia and drive off these foul creaturesbefore they pose a threat to Daggerford it-self. The militia of Daggerford has alreadybeen reinforced by a company of infantryt h a t p a t r o l s t h e a r e a o n b e h a l f o f t h eLords of Waterdeep, but anyone who canswing a sword or cast a spell is needed indefense of the region.

When the heroes arrive at Daggerford,t h e y w i l l f i n d t h a t t h e o n l y w a y i n i sthrough the Farmers Gate. A short line ofpeople is moving slowly through the gate,identifying themselves to the guards asthey enter the town. The heroes can jointhe line and make their way into the city,but they are asked to give their names asthey pass through the gate . I f they askwhy, theyll be told that the village is offi-cially under a state of siege and that theDuke and Council want a complete rosterof everyone in town.

E v e n a b r i e f c o n v e r s a t i o n w i t h t h eguards will reveal to the PCs that their aidis needed desperately. The Army of Dag-gerford is short of trained troops, and he-roes of their ca l iber wi l l cer ta inly be agreat boon to the city. While the guardsare not in a position to offer any terms tothe PCs, they can refer them to Lord Lle-wellyn Long-Hand, the head of the Armyof Daggerford.

If the PCs are not interested in pursuinga conversat ion, the guards wi l l reporttheir entrance into the city and Long-handwill send for them. In any event the PCswill soon find themselves meeting withLlewellyn.

Lord Llewellyn Long-bandThe PCs will meet with Long-hand at his

o f f i c e i n t h e D u k e s c a s t l e . T h e l o r d s

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chambers are austere, kept very tidy andwith the air of a military man. Various dec-orative weapons hang on the walls, alongwith banners and heraldry from Llewel-lyns family.

Their host begins by offering refresh-ments. As these are provided by a servinggirl, he starts his recruitment speech. Hebegins with flowery praise, compliment-ing the heroes on their obviously greatskills in combat, magic, and so forth. Afterseveral minutes of this and the exchangeof great stories, he gets to the point.

He explains that the Army of Dagger-ford has been assembled and is a unit tobe proud of. Although the troops may beof inferior quality, their morale is highand their loyalty absolute. Despite this,the enemy is likely to be fierce. It couldwell be that the nerve of his troops willb r e a k i n c o m b a t , f o r t h e y h a v e n e v e rfaced the horrors of a goblin charge be-

fore. What he needs are heroes to lead themilitia into battle. Men and women whowill inspire the troops to greatness.

In exchange for their help, he will see toit that each of them is given a share inwhatever spoi ls the army might c la imfrom the enemy. As he obviously has noclear idea of what these might be, he willmake no definite promise of a set reward.Even if the battle goes poorly, the heroesare sure to be remembered and rewardedby the Duke of Daggerford, who is himselfa former adventurer.

The DM should make it quite clear to theplayers that , without the help of theircharacters, the army has a good chance ofbeing routed (at best) or crushed. If thisisn t enough to persuade them to help(and it ought to be, theyre supposed to beheroes), the DM is free to resort to what-ever means he must in order to recrui tthem into the service of Daggerford.

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Council of War

When the heroes have accepted the of-fer of employment, Lord Long-hand willreview the troops with them. He will intro-duce them to each of the important NPCsmentioned in the description of Dagger-ford (pages 8 & 9).

AmbushAs they tour the town, the group is at-

tacked. Their first indication that some-thing i s amiss comes when Long-handc l u t c h e s a t h i s c h e s t a n d t o p p l e s o v e rdead. When he hits the ground, the causeof death becomes cleara black-shaftedspear now protrudes from his back.

W h i r l i n g , t h e h e r o e s w i l l c a t c h aglimpse of a dark figure on top of a build-ing they have just passed, Because the sunis almost directly behind the assassin, theywill see only the silhouette of a twistedand horr ible humanoid. With a b lood-chilling howl, the beast, and two just likeit, spring down from the building and at-tack the PCs directly.

As soon as the creatures draw near, thePCs may recognize them as barbazu (oneof the lesser baatezu that serve as the sol-diers for the f iends that rule the NineHells). These barbazu have been sent toDaggerford by the cornugon Vrag (leaderof the Marauders) to scout out the townand assassinate the leader of its military.The sight of Long-hands blood, however,has driven them into a berserk battle fren-zy, and they have no purpose now but tokill.

Barbazu (3): AC 3, MV 15, HD 6 + 6, hp 40,37, 32; # AT 3 or 1; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-8 or 2-12;SA Glaive, disease, battle frenzy, spells; SD+1 or better to hit; ML 12; AL LE; THAC015; (refer to MC8).

The barbazu wi l l f ight unt i l they areslain. They will show no mercy and neverneed to check morale. They are filled witha wild bloodlust that nothing can break.

The Duke RespondsOnce the battle with the barbazu is done,

the heroes will have time to turn their at-tentions to the fallen Long-hand. Unfortu-nately, there is little that can be done forhim. The weapon that struck him downwas a specially prepared one. Arcane en-chantments were woven upon it by Vrag tom a k e i t s o m e t h i n g o f a b a n e w e a p o n .When it struck down the Lord, it did greatharm to his life force as well as his body.W h i l e L l e w e l l y n c a n b e s a v e d , w i t hprompt clerical attention, he will be coma-tose for some time. In short, he is out ofaction for the duration of this adventure.

Word of this tragedy will quickly reachthe Duke. Recognizing the peril of this sit-uation, he will send for the heroes. Theyw i l l b e c o n t a c t e d b y a m e s s e n g e r a n dasked to travel to the Dukes castle at once.One assumes that they will not turn downthis invitation. If they are foolish enoughto do so, a more forceful method will beemployed to bring them before the Duke.

They will meet with Greatshout in theDukes pr ivate chambers . He begins bythanking them for their efforts on behalfof the town. Although he regrets that theywere unable to prevent the attack that sogr ievously i n j u r e d L l e w e l l y n , h e i spleased that they dealt with the fiends be-fore they could wreak greater havoc.

Putting aside these preliminary matters,Greatshout will move on to the business athand. His army is now leaderless. His du-t ies and obl igat ions prevent h im fromleading the force himself, and he is reluc-tant to send his sister in his place. He of-f e r s t h e h e r o e s a c o m m i s s i o n a n d achance to command the Army of Dagger-ford. He will offer almost anything to en-t i c e t h e h e r o e s t o a i d h i m , f o r h erecognizes the danger that h is sub jectsnow face . St i l l , the DM should keep inmind that this is not a very wealthy townand that it has spent a good deal of cash ingetting ready for the upcoming battles.

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Reviewing the TroopsOnce the deal is done, Greatshout will

turn the preparat ions for bat t le over tothe heroes. At this point, they have com-m a n d o f t h e 3 0 0 D a g g e r f o r d p e a s a n t swho have volunteered for service, the 200 members of the Daggerford militia, andthe 100 citizens with past military experi-ence who make up the Daggerford infan-try. In addition, the 100 members of the3rd Company of Guards will travel withthem and obey their orders. (The statisticsfor all these units can be found on page 7.)

If the players wish to, they may assignone of the characters to act as the leaderfor each unit. A new commander can beassigned to the 3rd Company, although itsc u r r e n t c o m m a n d e r , F r e y S i l v e r b l a d e ,will remain as an assistant.

S h o r t l y a f t e r t h e p l a y e r s h a v e m a d ethese decisions and become familiar withtheir units, the Duke calls for them again.

Call to ArmsThe heroes will meet with the Duke in

his private quarters. A winded and tat-tered looking messenger s tands in theDukes company. He is introduced as Geof-fry, an apprentice to the keeper of the WayInn to the south. The Duke bids him tellhis story to the PCs.

T h e y o u n g m a n s s t o r y i s s h o r t a n dalarming. Al though he i s qui te shaken,having ridden at his fastest pace to reachtown, he speaks fairly calmly and withoutw a n d e r i n g f r o m t h e p o i n t . E a r l y t h i smorning, word came to his master that anarmy of goblins was moving north. Withina day, they would reach the Way Inn. Hewas dispatched immediately to seek help.

As soon as Geoffry finishes his tale, theD u k e t u r n s t o h i s n e w c o m m a n d e r s .There is nothing else to say, he says,youll head south at once. Redbeard is agood friend . Dont fail him or this warmay be over before it has begun."

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Battle at the Way Inn

Travelling to the Way Inn is hard work.Even though the Trade Way is a wel l -maintained road, the pace that the heroesmust set for their troops is very demand-ing. Short ly before sunrise , they reachtheir destination. There is barely enoughtime to set up watches and give the troopsa break before the alarm is sounded. Theenemy has been sighted.

Into CombatAt this point in the adventure , those

Dungeon Masters who plan to use theBATTLESYSTEM game rules to resolvel a r g e s c a l e c o m b a t s s h o u l d s e t u p t h eunits for this fight. On the next page thereis a map that shows the deployment areasfor the t roops of both Daggerford andDragonspear.

The Army of DaggerfordThe Army of Daggerford sets up first.

All of the figures representing the forcesof good must be set up in the marked arean e a r t h e W a y I n n . The players shouldhave a little while to discuss defensivestrategies before they deploy their units.

The HoRdeS Of DragonspearThe DM, who is assumed to be running

the Hordes of Dragonspear, places the Ma-rauders on the area shown in the diagramon page 15. The Marauders are being ledby Vrag, who makes the most of his horri-ble presence to instill fear and terror inthe hearts of the Daggerford troops andheroes .

The Way InnThe Way Inn is assumed to have an out-

er wall composed of stone that is 5 feethigh. The courtyard measures 180 feetwide and 120 feet deep. Within that regionis a courtyard and, at the northern mostend, the inn itself. The actual building isassumed to be a two-story stone structurethat is some 30 feet high. The gate in the

outer wall is heavy and can take 20 pointsof damage. The door to the inn itself is farless stable; it will take only 10 points ofdamage before collapsing.

VictoryFor the Army of Daggerford, this is an

all or nothing fight. The enemy will showno quarter, for the cruel general Vrag willaccept no surrender. He will be satisfiedonly with the complete and absolute de-struction of the defenders.

Of course, this is a role-playing adven-ture and not a simple miniatures game.The heroes are meant to win this fight,perhaps even killing Vrag in the process.There are a number of steps that can betaken by the DM to ensure that the playersemerge triumphant without appearing tothrow the fight.

First, the players know that Redbeardhas sent out calls for help. If the battle isgoing poorly, they can be informed thatthey hear horns sounding in the distance,no doubt indicating the arrival of goblinand kobold reinforcements. Imagine theirsurprise when, a f ter a round or two tobuild tension, the DM places a unit of hu-man infantry ( the mercenar ies ) on themap. These mercenar ies have benef i tedfrom Redbeards advice and hospitalitymany times in the past, making them onlytoo happy to come to his aid now.

A second method by which the playerscan win, even if the battle is going againstthem, is by slaying Vrag. If the fiend is de-stroyed, the DM is free to rule that all mo-r a l e b r e a k s i n t h e g o b l i n a n d k o b o l dranks, causing the whole of The Maraud-ers to scatter in panicked retreat.

Alternate ResolutionsI f t h e D M d o e s n o t w i s h t o u s e t h e

BATTLESYSTEM game rules to resolve thisbat t le , the quick resolut ion system de-scribed in DMGR2: The Castle Guide caneasily take its place.

When this system is used, the attacking

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and defending sides are reduced to pointpools. The value of the Army of Dagger-ford is 300 points for the peasants, 600points for the militia, and 400 points forthe infantry . The 3rd Company is com-p o s e d o f m e d i u m i n f a n t r y w o r t h 5 0 0points, bringing the Armys point total to1,800. If they are reinforced by the rang-ers (50 medium cavalry), they gain an ex-t r a 2 , 0 0 0 p o i n t s . T h e M a r a u d e r s a r eworth 1 ,000 points for the kobolds and1,500 points for the goblins, making themtruly dangerous foes with a total strengthof 2,500 points.

This battle should be resolved with thesiege rules, with the Army of Daggerfordb e i n g t r e a t e d a s t h e d e f e n d e r s . T h u s ,while the point totals for the defendersare far lower than the point totals for theattackers, their better position gives thema good chance of coming through this bat-tle alive and triumphant.

If the DM and players do not wish to re-solve the battle using either of the abovemethods, they should feel free to role-play

the crucia l e lements of the conf l ic t . Infact, those who use the Castle Guide rulesought to consider doing this as well be-cause of the added flavor it will give thebattle.

As the battle rages on around the WayInn, Vrag will recognize the nature of hisenemies. He sees that the heroes are lead-ing these pathetic villagers to a victorythat they should not achieve . Thus , hev o w s t o d e s t r o y t h e m p e r s o n a l l y . B ymeans of magic, he appears before one ortwo of the heroes and, after an appropri-ate Im so evil you dont have a chancespeech, he attacks. The resolution of thismelee will set the mood for the battle ingeneral.

The DM should feel free to allow Vrag togate in some additional forces if thingsseem to be too easy for the heroes. Re-member, Vrag is supposed to lose, but itsnot supposed to be an easy victory for theArmy of Daggerford. By the same token, ift h e h e r o e s a r e u n u s u a l l y p o w e r f u l o rlucky, the DM may want to reinforce theMarauders.

15

Into the Misty Forest

Once the battle has been fought, the he-r o e s w i l l h a v e t i m e t o d i s c u s s r e c e n tevents with the locals in and around theWay Inn. At this point, they will have achance to meet Redbeard and get to knowhim better. His amiable personality andstore of both pract ica l and enterta iningknowledge makes him a fine companion.

At this time, Uhmbricks Rangers will ar-rive, if they have not done so already. Itwill be clear by their attitudes that theyare a mercenary uni t , but that they arewilling to join this battle out of indebted-n e s s t o t h e i r o l d f r i e n d R e d b e a r d .Uhmbrick is less likable than the keeperof the Way Inn, tending to be silent andwithdrawn. He is, however, a masterfuls t r a t e g i s t a n d w i l l o f f e r a d v i c e w h e nasked for it.

Redbeard will be quick to offer his ownopinion about the future. He feels certainthat this was but the first wave of evil tocome from. the High Moors. It wont belong, he is certain, before an even greaterand more dangerous army pours out ofthat vile swamp. Further, Redbeard willsay that he has no information about whatis going on in the High Moors, for it hasbeen months since anyone that he knowsof has gone to scout the area. Clearly hethinks that should be the next step. In or-der to best our enemy, he says, well haveto know who that enemy is. Uhmbrickagrees.

The Scouting PartyOf course, the PCs are the heroes of this

story and must, therefore, be the ones toundertake the explorat ion of the HighMoors. Since Uhmbricks men are cavalry,and not trained for this sort of thing, herefuses to send them. The 3rd Companyhas people who might be able to scout,but none as powerful as the heroes. In theend, the only logical choice is to send thePCs to undertake this investigation.

Something in the Mists

Redbeard will be glad to help, sketchingout a rough map of the paths through the

Misty Forest and up into the High Moorsbeyond. He advises the heroes to be cau-tious in the woods, for there are many sav-age beasts and wild elves living there. Theelves should prove no problem, as long astheir forest is respected and their peopleunmolested. The animals and monsters,on the other hand, may be another matteraltogether.

The TROllSThe heroes come upon the edges of the

Misty Forest fairly quickly after leavingthe Way Inn behind. At first, the woodseems friendly enough, but it quickly be-gins to grow thicker and more wild. If theDM wishes to introduce a wilderness en-counter with some wild beast, this is thetime to do it.

The path which the PCs are taking willlead them into an area inhabited by Dorig,a foul, two-headed troll. Dorig has a fewcommon trolls who follow him and recog-nize him as their leader. The exact num-ber of followers is up to the DM, beingbased upon the re lat ive s t rength of theparty.

Dorig (1): AC 4; MV 12; HD 10; hp 65; #AT4; Dmg 1d4 +4/1d4 +4/1d12/1d12; SA Nil;SD Regenerate; ML 16; AL CE; THAC0 11.

Trolls (?): AC 4; MV 12; HD 6 + 6; hp 40 ea;#AT 3; Dmg 1d4 + 4/1d6 + 6; SA Nil; SD Re-generate; ML 14; AL CE; THAC0 13.

After the trolls have been dealt with, theheroes can continue on their way. Beforelong, however, they will come to the dis-tinct conclusion that something is track-ing them. Every so of ten , they catch aglimpse of something in the mists of theforest around them. Here and there, theywill hear sounds that seem just a bit out ofplace.

When the PCs have been alerted to the

16

presence of their unexpected companion,they will no doubt take steps to discoverthe nature of this stranger and confront it.That shouldnt be too difficult to do, forthey are being tracked by a wild elf. Ordi-narily, it would be almost impossible todetect the presence of such a creature inthe woods where it makes its home, butthis one i s s ick , hungry, and terr i f ied .When the PCs attempt to encounter him,he will panic and howl in terror. If anysort of fight breaks out or he is forced toflee, his weakened condition will provetoo much for him and he will collapse.

If the PCs dont attempt to capture orconfront the e l f , they wi l l come acrosshim by accident. The poor fellow, almostl o s t t o m a d n e s s , i s m a k i n g h i s w a yt h r o u g h t h e t r e e t o p s a b o v e t h e p a r t ywhen a branch beneath him gives way. Hefa l l s heavi ly before them and then l iesstill, overcome by fatigue and the impact.

With a little effort (and some magic, nodoubt) the PCs are able to revive the elf.Once he i s fed, res ted, and his woundstended, he will be more himself. His nameis Florfindyn and he was born and raisedin these woods. Indeed, hell be more thanwilling to tell the heroes his story.

Florfindyns TaleSeveral months ago, a horde of goblins

and kobolds poured down into the forestfrom the High Moors. A great battle erupt-ed, but the elves and druids of the woodsdrove the horr ib le creatures back. Thisseemed to end the matter, for no sign ofthe beasts was seen for many weeks. Thenthings got worse.

This time, the goblins and kobolds re-turned in the company of a force of ogresand bugbears. Again, the elves and druidsmade ready to combat their hated foes.The battle was joined, and it seemed as ifthe inhabitants of the forest would win, al-though the battle might indeed be a longand costly one. Then, a great darkness fell

across the woods. In horror , the e lveslooked up and saw the terrible shape of adragon diving out of the sky at them. Inseconds , the ir ranks were broken. Thegreat beast spit jets of acid into the trees,annihilating the last bastions of elven re-sistance. Almost as soon as it had come,the dragon left, circling and heading awayto the south. In its wake it left a victoriousforce of humanoids to hunt down andslaughter the survivors.

Florfindyn was captured. He was aboutto be ki l led when a creature more foulthan any he had ever seen before steppedup. Although he did not know it at thetime, this was the vile Vesarius himself.Recognizing the elf as a prince among hisp e o p l e , t h e c o r n u g o n o r d e r e d h i mspared. Beaten and wounded, Florfindynwas bound and carried off by an immenseogre.

The next thing that he knew, Florfindynwas in the dungeons of a twisted and evilcastle. He knows now that this was CastleDragonspear to the south. Here, he wasbrought before the pit fiend Baazka andquestioned. He was tortured and beaten,but refused to betray the secrets of his kinin the Laughing Hollow, the dwarves of Il-lefarn, or the men of Daggerford. At last,the fiend ordered him destroyed.

Thinking him broken, the execut ionerlet his guard down for a moment. Florfin-dyn escaped, fleeing into the catacombsbeneath the castle. At long last, he came toan underground r iver . With a howlingpack of horrible creatures behind him, hedove into the water and swam. Althoughhis first instinct was to drift with the cur-rent, he knew that his enemies would ex-pect that. Thus, he swam against the flowof the river. Before long, he was able toleave the water and travel along its banks.

In time, he found his way back to thesurface and, indeed, a t the edge of theMisty Forest. Since then, he has lived like amindless beast in the wilds.

17

The Druids Council

When Florfindyn finishes his story, hewil l col lapse into unconsciousness . Theordeal that he has been through wouldhave killed a lesser man, and the fact thathe still draws breath is a tribute to his will-power and determination.

Just as this happens, when all attentionis focused on the fallen elf, a soft femalevoice speaks from behind the party. Per-haps I can be of service. Whirling about,t h e P C s w i l l f i n d t h e m s e l v e s f a c i n g adruid . L ike F lor f indyn, she makes herhome in these woods and has suf feredgreatly from the wrath of the dragon andh o r d e s o f h u m a n o i d s . S h e h a s b e e nwatching the party , but has not knownwhat to make of them until their encount-er with the elf prince. Now, she is con-vinced of their good intentions.

Reigns of Darkness

The Druids AccountT h e d r u i d i n t r o d u c e s h e r s e l f a s t h e

keeper of these woods. She claims noname for herself, having long ago givenup all ties to the artificial things of man-kind in favor of being one with the wilder-ness. All in all, she has very little interestin anything that has to do with the outsideworld. The violence of this attack uponher forest, however, has left her no choicebut to aid the PCs. As it stands now, herc a r e f u l n u r t u r i n g c a n r e s t o r e t h e p o i -s o n e d a n d b u r n e d r e g i o n s w h e r e t h edragon struck. Another such attack, how-ever, and she fears that the Misty Forestwill become a ruined waste unfit for anyliving creature.

When the dragon attacked, she attempt-ed to communicate with i t . She recog-nized the beast as Maelestor Rex, a greata n d h o r r i b l e w y r m t h a t , s o f a r a s s h eknew, never travelled away from its lair inthe center of the high moors. The keepersmagic revealed to her that the dragon wasnot attacking out of spite, greed, or anysimilar mot ivat ion (oddly enough) . In-deed, Maelestor Rex seemed to have no in-terest in the battle at all and was actingunder an outs ide inf luence . In fact , the

dragon seemed to hold a great animosityfor the creatures that it was forced to aid.

S ince the at tack , she has devoted hertime and magic to healing the forest andhas had no time to delve further into themystery. Thus, she has no idea as to thenature of the controlling spell or the enti-ty that is exercising it.

At this point, most players will want toi n v e s t i g a t e t h e n a t u r e o f t h i s c o n t r o l .There are two means of doing so: travel-ling to the lair of the wyrm at the heart ofthe High Moors or using magic. Only thelat ter method is pract ica l a t th is t ime,however, for the time required to reachthe dragons lair and the danger involvedin the journey is prohibitive. Thus, magicis the only alternative.

This adventure assumes that the heroeswill have access to spells like contact otherplane and divination. Depending upon theway in which these spells are used, the ex-act information acquired may vary. In theend, however, they will be able to learnquite a few things. The Keeper will lendher magical talents to the effort, filling inany gaps or holes that the PCs might leaveunexplored.

Maelestor Rex is an ancient and power-ful b lack dragon. Indeed, he seems farmore intelligent than most of his breedand has a great interest in magical spellsand devices. Long ago, in an effort to learnmore powerful wizardry, he sought out ameans to contact the forces of the outerplanes. He did manage to communicatewith the cornugon Vesarius, who was im-pressed by the intelligence and resource-fulness of the dragon.

In exchange for the spells and knowl-edge that the dragon wanted, Vesarius de-manded one of the dragons great horns.The beast agreed and the deal was done.As the years rolled by, the dragon all butforgot his encounter with the fiend.

Recently, however, Vesarius reappearedto the dragon. He had crafted a long and

18

deadly magical spear from the horn of theblack dragon. Into this object, he wove nu-merous spells that allowed him (and himalone) to command the dragon. MaelestorRex must now obey Vesarius in every mat-ter and cannot turn against him. The drag-o n d e s i r e s n o t h i n g s o m u c h a s t o b ereleased from its servitude and exact re-venge upon the cornugon. Alas, the onlyway in which he can escape his curse isthrough the destruction of the spear.

Recognizing the fact that Maelestor Rexis crucial to the success of his armies inthe Forgotten Realms, Baazka has orderedVesarius to hide the weapon away in thedeepest catacombs beneath DragonspearCastle. Only by recovering the spear andseeing it destroyed can the allies hope todefeat the hordes of Dragonspear.

Florfindyns PlanAt this point, the players have been pre-

sented with enough information to decide

that their next logical course of action isan exploration of the castle itself. By all ac-counts, however, a direct approach to thecastle is certainly suicidal.

There is, however, a way in. If the play-ers dont think of this, Florfindyn willmention it. The underground river whichhe used to escape could a lso provide ameans of entry into the castle. AlthoughFlorfindyn will not willingly travel thisway, he will direct the heroes to the riversentrance. He marked the point at whichhe reached the river with a rune on thewall, so the heroes will be able to find it.

Once they are on their way, he will trav-el as quickly as he can to spread word ofthe enemy and its nature. If the heroesmake it back, they can all meet at the WayInn and make plans for the final assaulton Castle Dragonspear.

19

The Roaring Deep

After the PCs have made whatever prep-arat ions they l ike , F lor f indyn wi l l leadt h e m t o a n a r r o w c a v e i n t h e e a s t e r nreaches of the Misty Forest. The first hun-dred feet or so of the passage is tight andrequires some effort to pass through. Be-yond that point, however, it opens up intoa fa i r ly comfortable cavern that snakesdownward until it opens into a wide grot-to.

The chamber is a low, conical structurewithout a natural source of illumination.The lights of the party will glimmer ands h i n e o n t h e s m o o t h r o c k o f t h e c a v ewalls, making even a single torch moret h a n b r i g h t e n o u g h t o s e e t h e w h o l echamber. Half of the cavern is filled by aracing torrent of clear, but bone-chillingwater. The noise of this underground riv-er sends vibrations through the walls andf loor and makes conversat ion di f f icul t .The water pours into the room from anarrow fissure to the north and exits it bya somewhat larger opening to the south.

A small forest of giant mushrooms hastaken root here, growing well in the chilly,humid chamber. Their caps and stems arebrilliantly colored, some gleaming as ifcovered in a thin layer of liquid. There isno sign of animal life in the cave.

Thinking CapsNone of these mushrooms is animate or

dangerous. They are not toxic if eaten, buttaste like chlorine bleach. It would be al-most impossible for an adventurer to sus-tain himself by eating these foul things.They do, however, serve a useful role inthe adventure. If removed carefully, thecaps of these mushrooms can be used asrafts for the journey down the river. Cut-t i n g d o w n a m u s h r o o m a n d m a k i n g i tready for use in this manner takes abouttwo hours. During this time, the DM maywant to toss in an encounter with somem y c o n i d s o r s i m i l a r f u n g u s - l i k e c r e a -tures, but this is not required.

Down RiverI f the heroes make use of the mush-

room caps or some other form of boat, thetrip down river will not be hard. If, how-ever, they elect to try swimming, they willbe in deadly peril.

The primary danger involved in travel-l ing the underground r iver i s the cold .The water temperature is just above freez-ing, and swimming in it can quickly provefatal. Any character spending time in thewater without the use of some manner ofmagical protection (a resist cold spell orthe like) will lose 1d10 hit points per turn.In addition, a saving throw versus paraly-sis is required to avoid losing conscious-ness . Unconscious characters s tand anexcellent chance of drowning.

If boats are used to make the journey,the cold is not a problem. Similarly, magi-cal means can overcome this threat.

The JourneyAs the characters begin to move down

the river, they pass through an everchang-ing series of vistas. For the most part, thec a v e s a r o u n d t h e m a r e n a r r o w a n dsmooth, carved by the action of the riverover the course of several centuries. Eve-ry so often, however, the spaces aroundthe r iver open into wide chambers andgalleries. Some are quite spectacular glit-tering with crystal and mineral deposits,others are bland regions of sand stone.T h e p a c e o f t h e r i v e r c h a n g e s f r o m arapid torrent to a sluggish crawl.

After the party has passed through sev-eral such areas, they will find themselvesenter ing a darker and more dangerousdomain: the regions around DragonspearCast le . Here , the foul inf luences of thegate to the dreaded outer planes have re-leased a steady taint of evil magic. Overthe centuries, this dark contamination hasimbued the very stones with its sinisteremanations.

20

The HermitAt one point in the underground pas-

sage, the river takes a slow turn and thenbegins to descend at a slight angle. The in-cline is just sharp enough to set up a faircurrent, causing the boats of the PCs topick up a good deal of speed. This hap-pens gradually and will not be noticed un-less a player happens to be keeping an eyeon such things.

Suddenly, the partys boats fe tch upagainst a line that runs just below the sur-face of the water. A quick examination willshow that this line is the top part of a fishingnet that has been spread across the river.The speed of their travel makes this stop asudden one, so that all aboard the boatsmust make a Dexterity check or be stunnedfor one round. Characters who were stand-ing or were in some otherwise vulnerableposition will find themselves pitched into

the water if they fail their rolls.As suddenly as all this happens, the he-

roes will be attacked. This is the lair of Sal-lissi, an evil and very hungry morkoth.

Morkoth (1): AC 3, MV Sw18, HD 7, hp 45;# AT 1; Dmg 1-10; SA hypnosis; SD spell re-flection; ML 14; AL CE; THAC0 13.

If Sallissi is defeated, for he will make nopeace with his prey, the party may findsome treasure by searching his lair. Thetreasure, however, is found scattered onthe river bed and will require diving orsimilar actions to recover it. Obviously,such actions are difficult because of thechilling water and darkness of the cavern.Each successful dive will recover 5% ofthe beasts horde. The total treasure con-sists of 14,000 gold coins and 2,000 plati-num coins. Thus, each dive will allow ahero to recover 700 gp and 100 pp.

21

Under the Castle

After the heroes have deal t wi th themorkoth, they can complete their journeyin relative peace. Still, the looming evil ofDragonspear Castle hangs heavy in the airand the characters will find it harder andharder to throw off fee l ings of despairand lethargy.

Florfindyns MarkSeveral hours after the PCs leave behind

the lair of the morkoth, they will come in-to a wide gallery of gleaming stalactitesand arched ceilings. Dozens of holes markpossible exits from this area, one of whichis marked with the glyph that Florfindynleft behind him in his flight from Dragon-spear.

If the PCs attempt to explore any of theother tunnels, they will wander aimlessly,be attacked by horrible monsters of theDMs choice, and, if they survive, maketheir way back to this same chamber after2d6 hours have passed.

The LabyrinthFlorfindyns path through the twisting

tunnels beneath Dragonspear was a fortu-nate one. Not only did it bring him safelyout of the evil clutches of Baazka and hishordes, but it also revealed to him the hid-ing place of the Dragonspear itself. Unfor-tunately, this artifact was hidden at thecenter of a great twisting maze, designedby Vesarius to keep his treasure safe fromthe agents of Maelestor Rex.

The map on the facing page shows thepath which brought F lorf indyn throughthis subterranean maze. Because he wason the run from the minions of Baazka,the elf had no time to mark his path. Theheroes will have to explore the place ontheir own, facing its dangers and perilsanew.

As the heroes move through the maze,they will be forced to confront many terri-ble monsters. These creatures are all, forone reason or another, in the service ofBaazka. His dark power is such that they

cannot betray him and will fight to thedeath in service of their master. Ordinari-ly, the pit fiend would be instantly awareof the heroes presence in the labyrinth.However, his attention is now focused onhis armies and he is too distracted to sensethem.

The Heart of the MazeAt the center of the labyrinth is a great

cubical chamber some 75 feet across. Thisi m m e n s e r o o m h a s b e e n c u t f r o m t h erock by magical forces and polished untilits coal-black walls gleam brightly at thetouch of any light source.

At the center of this room, floating 35feet above the floor, is a sphere of abso-lute b lackness . Within this magical co-coon, the Dragonspear floats in timelesss u s p e n s i o n . T h i s b a r r i e r c a n o n l y b ep u n c t u r e d b y p o w e r f u l m a g i c o r r e -sourceful thinking.

The area of darkness is a minor fold inthe fabric of space. Any physical object,living or inanimate, that strikes the black-ness will simply appear on the other sideof i t without pass ing through i t . In es-sence , the universe i s wrapped aroundthe spear and it cannot be affected untilthe barrier is broken.

Dropping the shield requires some man-ner of space-folding spell similar to theone that created the darkness. Any man-ner of spell like dimension door or planeshift that causes the fabric of space to bealtered can be used. The chance that anygiven spell will succeed is 10% per spelll e v e l . T h u s , a 4 t h - l e v e l d i m e n s i o n d o o rused to disrupt the field has a 40% chanceof working. Numerous spells may have tobe used before the barrier falls. In addi-tion, psionic powers might prove effectivein reaching the Dragonspear. The chancethat an appropriate ps ionic power wi l lsucceed in disrupting the spell is 5% perlevel of the psionicist.

22

The GuardianBecause he expects Maelestor Rex to

send agents in to claim the spear, Vesariushas stationed a greater guardian daemonhere to protect his treasure. This creatureis contained within the sphere of black-ness and will attack the heroes as soon asthat spell is interrupted.

Greater Guardian Daemon (1) : AC -1 ,MV 9,Fl 9(D), HD 10, hp 70; # AT 3; Dmg 1-10/1-12/1-12; SA breath fire, suggestion;

Once the daemon has been defeated,the heroes can claim the Dragonspear. Ofcourse, this assumes that they have somemeans of reaching i t , as i t s t i l l hoverssome 35 feet off the floor.

With the weapon in hand, the heroeswill have to retrace their steps throughthe maze. The whole whi le , of course ,they will run the risk of fighting wander-ing monsters. If they use the Dragonspearin combat, they will find that it has all thepowers of a javelin of piercing, scroll ofp r o t e c t i o n f r o m a c i d , a n d s w o r d o f

SD +2 or better to hit, immune to charm,h o l d , s l e e p , p o l y m o r p h , a n d f e a r s p e l l s ,cannot be harmed by acid or electricity;MI 18 AL NE: THAC0 11

wounding.

23

Return to the Inn

Once the heroes return to the river andbegin to make their way upriver, they mayor may not be pursued by the minions ofDragonspear.

The GetawayIf the player characters have been badly

hurt by their battles in the labyrinth be-neath the castle, then the DM will proba-bly want to let them make the return tripfairly easily. In this case, it is a time forresting and recovery. In order to keep theescape from being too easy, however, theD M m i g h t d r o p i n a m i n o r h a z a r d something like a big cave-in or the ram-paging mate of the morkoth they foughtearlier.

If the heroes have managed to reach theriver in good shape and have not yet faceda truly challenging foe in the labyrinth,then they ought to be faced with a party ofbarbazu who have been sent to recoverthe Dragonspear and prevent the ir es -cape. The DM should base the number ofthese fiends on the strength of the party.

Barbazu (?): AC 3, MV 15, HD 6 + 6, hp 30ea.; # AT 3 or 1; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-8 or 2-12; SAGlaive, disease, battle frenzy, spells; SD +1or better to hit; ML 12; AL LE; THAC0 15.

In either case, the current of the river isfast enough (or the walk down its banksrough enough) to make it an extremely tir-i n g j o u r n e y . W h e n t h e h e r o e s h a v ereached the fissure that opens up in theMisty Forest, they will be in need of restbefore they can continue.

The Misty ForestWhen the heroes have recovered their

strength, theyll certainly want to makehaste . As they move through the MistyForest, it will become clear to them thats o m e t h i n g i s a m i s s . F r o m f a r a h e a d ,roughly in the direction of the Way Inn, is

a long plume of black smoke curling upinto the sky. They can find no trace of thedruid that they left behind in these woodsand no sign of Florfindyn (although that iscertainly to be expected).

Picking up the PiecesWhen the characters return to the Way

Inn, they will find that their army is gone.Indeed, so is the inn. The area is dottedwith pools of acid and the bodies of sev-eral dozen soldiers. Florfindyn is here,having been left behind to tell the heroeswhat happened.

His story is simple enough. He carriedtheir message to the armies gathered hereand saw to it that the nature of the threatwas fully understood. Hell mention thatthe army they left behind has been rein-forced by several other groups, includinghis kin from the Laughing Hollow and thedwarves of Illefarn.

W h e n t h e c o m m a n d e r s o f t h e a r m yheard his news, they recognized their per-i l i m m e d i a t e l y . T h e y h e a d e d s o u t h a tonce, determined to attack the enemy be-f o r e i t c o u l d b e f u r t h e r r e i n f o r c e d b ycreatures drawn from the Nine Hells. Flor-findyn and a company of men were leftbehind to escort the heroes to the frontwhen they returned.

Not long after the army left, the dragonarrived. He swept back and forth abovethe Inn, spitting acid and ripping apartmen with his teeth and talons. Florfindynwas himsel f in jured in one of the f i rs tpasses made by the beast, causing him tobe left for dead when the dragon returnedto its evil master in the south.

Of course, this leaves the heroes littlechoice but to race toward Dragonspear asfast as they can manage. With any luck,they wont be too late to join the battle andsave their allies from death and destruc-tion at the hands of Baazka and his min-ions.

2 4

2 5

Against the Hordes

The heroes reach Dragonspear Cast leshortly after battle has been joined. Onceagain, this situation is an opportunity forthe players to take charge of the combatand use the BATTLESYSTEM game rulesto resolve the fight.

The Battle at DragonspearOn the next page is a map that shows the

battleground. Dungeon Masters who willbe using the BATTLESYSTEM game rulesto resolve this fight should set up an areasimilar to that shown in the diagram. TheDragonspear figures are set up first, thenthe Allied forces.

The Allies

At this point, the Army of Daggerfordhas been reinforced so that all of the unitslisted on page 7 are available. The playercharacters are not present at the start ofthe battle.

The Hordes of Dragonspear

By the same token, the entire army ofBaazka is here. All of the units describedon page 5 are available. Any units lost inthe Battle at the Way Inn have been re-placed. Maelestor Rex begins with hismaster , but wi l l be f ree to move awayfrom him as soon as the battle begins.

Victory

This is a battle to the death. Based on thestr ic t force count , the good guys donthave a very good chance.

Turning the TideThe only way that the allies will win the

battle is to turn Maelestor Rex against hiscompanions. Since he cannot do this aslong as the Dragonspear exists, one possi-ble way to accomplish this feat is to de-stroy the spear. The only thing that candestroy this magical artifact is Maelestor

Rexs own acidic spittle. It might also bepossible to turn the tide of battle by killingVesarius. Without his influence, MaelestorRex is free to act as he will. In either case,hell instantly turn on the Hordes of Dra-gonspear. With the addition of the Dragonto their forces, the Allies ought to be ableto obliterate their enemies.

As with the first battle, the DM is remind-ed that this is all part of a role-playing ad-venture. Victory ought to be attainable forthe heroes, but not easily so. The DM shouldhold back the arrival of the PCs until thingslook hopeless. The longer he waits, themore dramatic their victory will be. Pacingis the key to this scene.

Alternate ResolutionsI f t h e D M d o e s n t w i s h t o u s e t h e

BATTLESYSTEM game rules , the short -hand method described in DMGR2: TheCastle Guide can be used. The armies atthe battle have the following point valueswhen this system is used:

The Hordes of Dragonspear

Wolgs Kobolds 1,000Prujs Goblins 1,500Dahrgashs Orcs 1,500Skarrs Hobgoblins 1,000Ghorashks Bugbears 1,300Ooroks Ogres 1,300Total 7 , 6 0 0

The Allies of Daggerford

Daggerford PeasantsDaggerford MilitiaDaggerford Infantry3rd CompanyUhmbricks RangersKnights of IlmaterMisty Forest ElvesElvish LongbowmenDwarves of IllefarnDwarvish CrossbowmenTotal

300600400500

1,0002 ,000

350650250500

6 , 5 5 0

2 6

Additional UnitsThe point values above reflect only the

armies themselves and not their leaders.For the purposes of simplicity, it is as-sumed that the leaders of the Allies andthe masters of the Horde roughly balanceout. If the DM wishes to add the Hordeunit commanders to the scenar io , theycan be considered as simply another fig-ure of the same type as the unit. Thus,Wolg would be as dangerous as 10 of hiskobold followers.

The exceptions to this are Maelestor Rexand the fiends from the Outer Planes. Asa n a n c i e n t d r a g o n , M a e l e s t o r R e x i sroughly the equivalent of a small nuclearweapon when unleashed on the bat t le -field. The fiends, Baazka and his lieuten-ants, are not to be discounted either. TheBATTLESYSTEM game s tats of these

back cover. In Castle Guide terms, Maeles-tor is worth 600 points, Baazka is worth400, and each of the cornugons is worth200. The DM will have to determine pointvalues for the player characters basedu p o n t h e e x a m p l e s p r e s e n t e d i n t h eBATTLESYSTEM game rules.

Heroes to the RescueWhen the heroes arrive with the Dra-

gonspear, they will need to present it toMaelestor Rex. Actually, this isnt too hardas they need only get it within 150 yards(15 inches) of the dragon. As soon as this isdone, Maelestor roars with delight anddives at the hero holding the weapon. Ont h e n e x t r o u n d h e w i l l u s e h i s b r e a t hweapon to destroy the spear. As soon asthe weapon or Vesarius is destroyed, thedragon will turn on the hordes and, quiteprobably, lead the allies on to victory.characters are printed on the inside of the

27

Aftermath

Of course , the heroes are assumed toemerge triumphant from the strife of thegreat battle. If things are going poorly forthem, the DM can introduce any numberof last minute rescues. The most probablewould be an elite group of cavalry fromWaterdeep that arrives just in the nick oftime. Similarly, the DM might just fudgea f e w m o r a l e r o l l s f o r t h e H o r d e s o rs trengthen the at tack of Maelestor Rexwhen he changes sides. Whatever the me-chanical fix is, the players ought to seetheir heroes taken to within an inch of ab-solute defeat and destruction before thelast-minute rally that saves the day.

Wrapping It UpWhen the battle is over, and all is said

and done, the player characters will cer-tainly be heroes. They will be able to re-quest almost anything that it is within thep o w e r o f D a g g e r f o r d a n d i t s a l l i e s t ogrant. They will also have earned the fa-vor the elves who live in Laughing Hollowand their kin who will be returning to theMisty Forest . L ikewise , they wi l l haveproven their worth to the dwarves of Ille-farn. They might also be able to earn thetrust and respect of Uhmbricks Rangersand the Knights of Ilmater, two very valu-able potential allies.

Of course , theyve a lso made a lot ofpowerful enemies . The f iends that theydefeated, or perhaps even destroyed, aresure to be avenged by their peers in theNine Hells. After all, letting mere mortalsshow up these powerful creatures is badfor business.

For his part, Maelestor Rex has no greatanimosity for nor sense of indebtednessto the heroes. As far as he is concerned,the fact the he did his part to crush theHordes of Dragonspear repays his debt tohumanity. He will return to his home inthe heart of the High Moors and, perhaps,assemble his own army of humanoids tosomeday chal lenge the men of Dagger-

ford. Whatever the case, he is not an im-mediate danger and cannot be counted onas an ally.

Sequel PossibilitiesOnce the last battle is fought, the heroes

may want to push on into DragonspearCastle and close the gate which still oper-ates at its heart. This is certainly a nobleventure and one that will have the sup-port of everyone in the area.

Such a quest will be fraught with almosti n c o m p r e h e n s i b l e d a n g e r s . T h e D Mshould be advised that the dungeons be-n e a t h D r a g o n s p e a r C a s t l e a r e h u g e ,sprawling affairs. The labyrinth present-ed in this adventure is but a tiny fragmentof the whole created by Vesarius to pro-tect the Dragonspear.

Dungeon Masters who wish to a l lowtheir players to explore these horrible re-cesses might consider using the maps ins u c h p r o d u c t s a s R u i n s o f U n d e r m o u n -tain or Castle Greyhawk as the basis of thecomplete catacomb structure.

28

Baatezu, GreaterAmnizu FRQ2CLIMATE/TERRAIN:FREQUENCY:ORGANIZATION:

The Nine HellsRareSolitary

ACTIVITY CYCLE:DIET:INTELLIGENCE:

AnyCarnivoreExceptional (15-16)

TREASURE:ALIGNMENT:

V, YLawful evil

NO. APPEARING: 1-2ARMOR CLASS:MOVEMENT: 6, Fl 15 (C)HIT DICE: 9THAC0: 11 (See below)NO. OF ATTACKS: 1DAMAGE/ATTACK:SPECIAL ATTACKS:SPECIAL DEFENSES:

2-8Energy channel, forget+2 or better weapons to hit

MAGIC RESISTANCE: 50%SIZE: M (4 tall)MORALE: Elite (13-14)XP VALUE: 32,500

The amnizu dwell primarily on Stygia, the fifth plane of the NineHells. They are often found on the upper layers of the Nine Hells,however, there to accomplish some unearthly mission.

The amnizu are rather gruesome and unseemly. They are short(about 4 feet in height) with elongated, bald heads. They havestubby legs and arms and large, leathery wings protruding fromtheir backs. Amnizu have pug noses and large eyes. Their snarl-ing mouths are filled with jagged, razor-sharp teeth.

Amnizu use telepathic communication.

Combat: The amnizu are greater baatezu and as such, prefer notto enter combat, but rather to leave that sort of thing to under-lings. But if pressed into battle, the amnizu will prove able foes.Their touch alone is enough to cause 2-8 points of damage to anycreature. Because this channeling of harmful energy precludes ar-mor, the amnizu need only attack versus armor class 10 to causedamage. Any magical pluses of armor, shield, or protective de-vice such as a ring of protection, will lower the adjusted armorclass of the defender. Other magical items which give a base ar-mor class are unaffected. For example, if an amnizu were attack-ing a foe wearing plate mail, it would only need to roll versusarmor class 10 to hit. However, if the amnizu were attackingsomeone with chain mail +1 and bracers of defense, AC 4, itwould need to attack versus armor class 3.

Because of the amnizus close ties to the river Styx, their at-tacks also will have the affect of an extremely powerful forgetspell, causing its opponent to forget one whole days memory un-less he saves vs. spells.

In addition to those available to all baatezu, an amnizu can usethe following spell-like abilities, one per round, at will:

fireball, 3 times per day imprisonment, 1 time per dayA holy word is required to drive an amnizu back to its own

plane.

Amnizu can attempt to gate in the following: 2-20 abishai(50% chance, once per day) or 1-8 erinyes (30% chance, once perday).

™ & ©1992 TSR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.Habitat/Society: The amnizu are greater baatezu, and as such en-joy a nobility of sorts. Although not of the same station as themighty pit fiends, the amnizu are part of the ruling class of theNine Hells.

Amnizu are extremely hateful of outsiders to the Nine Hellsand even of those creatures native to that plane. They will followorders not so much because of their nature, but because of theirdesire to advance and their fear of the pit fiends. It is a commonlyknown fact that the higher one advances in the Nine Hells, themore closely one is observed by the Dark Eight. Given the oppor-tunity, however, amnizu will order their minions to attack any-thing that enters the domain that is under the control of the DarkEight. It is possible that an amnizu would even attack a pit fiendgiven sufficient reason and if it thought it could do so withoutbeing suspected.

The amnizu serve many purposes. First and foremost, they arethe guardians of the river Styx. The mighty river enters the NineHells through Stygia as well as Avernus. This is rightly seen as aweak point of defense for the Nine Hells. The amnizu are entrust-ed with the important task of keeping foolish individuals out ofthe Nine Hells. Second, they are generals. A single amnizu willtypically command a great army of thousands of abishai and eri-nyes. To their own perverse ends as well as the protection of Sty-gia, the amnizu deploy their massive armies.

Ecology: The amnizu are given the important task of bringingnew souls to the Nine Hells, and thus they are given their powerof imprisonment. Mortal men and women traveling to the NineHells from the Prime Material plane for the purpose of combat-ing evil are generally fodder for the amnizu.

Baatezu, GreaterCornugon FRQ2CLIMATE/TERRAIN:FREQUENCY:ORGANIZATION:ACTIVITY CYCLE:DIET:INTELLIGENCE:

TREASURE:ALIGNMENT:

The Nine HellsVery rareSolitary

AnyCarnivoreExceptional (15-16)

D, SLawful evil

NO. APPEARING:ARMOR CLASS:MOVEMENT:HIT DICE:THAC0:NO. OF ATTACKS:

DAMAGE/ATTACK:

1-4- 29, Fl 18 (C)10114 or 1 + weapon1-4/1-4/2-5/1-3 or 1-3 + weapon +6(strength bonus)

SPECIAL ATTACKS: Fear, wounding, stunSPECIAL DEFENSES: Regeneration, +2 or better weapons

to hitMAGIC RESISTANCE: 50 %SIZE: L (9 tall)MORALE: Elite (13-14)XP VALUE: 36,500

Cornugons are very powerful amongst the greater baatezu. It istheir lot to find service in the elite defense forces of the NineHells. In appearance they are frightening enough to fulfill thatrole. Fully 9 feet tall, these creatures are a only vaguely human-oid, covered with grotesque scales. Their huge wings and snak-ing, prehensile tail add to their frightening demeanor. In combat,they favor a large barbed whip, but often carry other, more grue-some weapons.

Cornugons communicate telepathically.

Combat: Cornugons are fearless fighters, rarely retreating fromcombat even in the face of overwhelming odds. They have 18/00strength ( +6 damage adjustment). The cornugon will always at-tack with its tail, lashing out for 1-3 points of damage, creating awound that will continue to bleed for 1 hit point of damage perround until treated. In addition, they will either attack withclaws and bite or with a weapon. Their large, barbed whip dealsout 1-6 points of damage on a successful hit and the victim mustmake a saving throw vs. paralyzation, or be stunned for 1-4 me-lee rounds. Even unarmed, the beast is capable devastating at-tacks. It can attack with two claw attacks for 1-4 points ofdamage per hit and a bite for 2-5 points of damage per hit (plus itstail attack).

In addition to those available to all baatezu, cornugons can useany one of the following spell-like powers at will, once perround, at will:

detect magic ESP lightning bolt, 3 times per day produce flame pyrotechnics wall of fire, 1 time per day

They can also attempt to gate in the following: 2-12 barbazu(50% chance, once per day), 2-16 abishai (35% chance, once perday) or 1-3 additional cornugons (20% chance, once per day).

All cornugons radiate a fear aura in a 5 foot radius. Anyoneentering the fear radius must make a saving throw vs. rod, staff,

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or wand or flee in terror for 1-6 melee rounds. Cornugons alsoregenerate 2 hit points per melee round.

Habitat/Society: Cornugons are the elite fighting force in theNine Hells. They are often formed into terrifying armies up to2,000 strong! Only the mighty pit fiends may lead these hideousfighting forces into battle. The cornugons are prized personalguardians. As such, all pit fiends and gelugons try to obtain oneor more cornugons as personal retainers. The Dark Eight have106 cornugons as retinue.

The cornugon armies are usually formed only in the lower fewlayers of the Nine Hells. In the upper layers, individuals serve asgenerals to vast armies of lesser baatezu. This duty is the mostdesirable (and most subject to rapid advancement) second onlyto guardian duty among the Dark Eight.

Ecology: The cornugons are greater baatezu, and as such enjoy acertain amount of prestige across the Nine Hells. Of all the baate-zu, the cornugons have the most rapid advancement. With sev-eral successful