"The Flameheart's Heir" (a Legend scenario for Dragon Warriors)

This scenario for Dragon Warriors adapts The Fortress of Assassins (Knightmare book 3) into a quest to discover the fate of King Rigar Quor-de-Flamme’s lost heir. The adventure combines investigation, travel, infiltration, and a tragic twist that may reshape everything the player-characters thought they knew about their mission.

Spoilers from here on, so if you want to read the book do it now.

Central mystery: Where is King Rigar’s lost heir, and are the characters out to slay the heir or bring the heir back to restore strong rule to Albion?

Key revelation: The heir they seek is actually the deadly ‘Queen Hel’, whom they may end up fighting before learning her true identity.

Recommended character rank: This scenario is designed for experienced adventurers of 4th-6th rank, capable of handling both physical and magical threats.

Episode 1: The knight's tale

The remote monastery of St Séverin lies deep in the forest of Freneville in central Chaubrette, built around a miraculous healing spring discovered centuries ago by a mute peasant who regained his speech after drinking from its waters. The abbey's high stone walls protect a complex of buildings including the magnificent chapel with blazing stained glass windows, comfortable guest quarters for pilgrims, a well-stocked refectory, and the simple infirmary where the dying Knight Protector awaits.

Abbot Gregory (52 years old) is a large, florid man who clearly enjoys both the spiritual and material benefits of his position. Despite his appetite for good food and wine, he's no fool—his jovial manner conceals a sharp political mind and deep knowledge of recent Crusade history.

Brother Francis (early 30s), the ginger-haired guest-master, greets all visitors with genuine warmth and knows every pilgrim route and forest danger for miles around.

Brother Claude (27) is the angular, sharp-faced infirmarian. He has a knowledge of healing herbs, which he grows in the abbey garden, and knows the location of sacred springs throughout the forest.

Arrival at the abbey

As evening mist creeps between the forest trees, the PCs arrive at the abbey gates seeking shelter. Brother Francis welcomes them enthusiastically. Visitors are rare at this time of year, and pious knights are doubly welcome.

Over dinner in the refectory, Abbot Gregory seems distracted and is frequently brought messages by junior brothers that leave him fretful. The characters might ask what’s bothering him, and the Abbot has no reason to keep it secret: ‘A few days ago, an elderly member of the Order of Knights of the Sanctuary came here seeking succour from the healing waters of the spring. He is Sir Hubert of Lindfield. He was badly wounded in battle against the Ta’ashim twenty years ago and has lived as a hermit in the desert of Outremer ever since, but he chose to come home to die. The waters of the holy spring help to ease his suffering, but he’ll be in heaven before the winter is on us.’

The characters could just ask to see Sir Hubert. The abbot has no good reason to refuse, but he should put up some resistance. Make the characters persuade him. He has heard Sir Hubert’s claims that a vision told him that at the abbey he would meet people who would take up his quest, but the abbot is sceptic enough not to believe every so-called holy vision. He has given the dying knight water from the spring, shriven his sins, and made him comfortable. The characters need to give him good reason to disturb Sir Hubert in his last hours.

Alternatively the characters might use subterfuge to get to Sir Hubert’s bedside, or they might question Brother Claude. As they can only be crowbarred into the adventure (for which, apologies, and see the closing notes) if they get given the quest, you’ll need to ensure they hear Sir Hubert’s story somehow, even if only at second hand.

The dying knight's revelation

The infirmary stands in a small courtyard at the back of the abbey grounds, with the cemetery and outer wall just beyond. Sir Hubert’s cell is stark white, lit only by a single candle that casts harsh shadows on his gaunt face. Twenty years in the desert have reduced him to skin and bone, but his eyes burn with fierce intelligence.

When the characters enter, Sir Hubert (early 60s) raises himself painfully from the pillow. ‘I know why you have come,’ he says in a weak voice. ‘The same vision that brought me from my hermitage has drawn you here. The Flameheart came to me in a dream.’

The revelation unfolds slowly as Sir Hubert unburdens himself of his long-held secret. You can refer to the sequence from the novella for details, but the key points are:

• King Rigar of Albion had a son with Princess Ilse of Algandy during a crusade twenty years ago.
• The child was red-haired and fine of feature, clearly Rigar’s heir.
• When Ilse died of plague and Rigar faced threats from rival kings in Chaubrette and Kurland, he gave the child into the safekeeping of Sultan Saleh al-Dau (‘Salador’) of Opalar, his erstwhile enemy but one whom he knew to be a man of honour.
• King Rigar died soon after that during a siege. In Albion, he was briefly succeeded by his brother Pall and later by his nephew Hadric.
• Sir Hubert believed the child dead for twenty years until his prophetic dream.
• The heir lives, somewhere in the lands once controlled by Salador.

With those final words, Sir Hubert falls back onto his bolster and passes into whatever reward awaits faithful servants. The abbot administers the last rites.

This is not intended as an investigative scenario, but players being what they are you may have to let them spend some time noodling about. They could find a crude map in Sir Hubert’s backpack that shows Alaflak marked to the east of the Isis river in Opalar. Travel times scrawled along each leg of the journey from Amsa’im make this more useful than most maps, but it’s not a given that the infirmarian will hand over Sir Hubert’s belongings to them and, even if so, any items like the map should really be returned to his family.

The abbot is knowledgeable about the history and politics of Outremer, Opalar and Albion, so can fill in some background details if he has been favourably impressed with the characters – or he may jut direct them to the abbey library, in which case they may need to make Intelligence rolls to find what they want.

Episode 2: Crossing the Iuga Mountains

To reach the Coradian coast the characters’ most direct route is through the Pass of Ashes, which is not yet clogged by deep snow-drifts as it will be in a few weeks’ time. The crossing of the Iuga Mountains in winter represents one of the most treacherous journeys in the known world. The narrow mountain paths wind between peaks shrouded in snow-laden clouds, past precipices that drop into misty chasms. Ancient markers tell of the passage of Annibas the Swift, the general who in ancient times brought his army from Karkedon (modern Kiri Umoor) through Algandy and across the Iugas to challenge the western borders of the Selentine Republic. Even in autumn, the air off the peaks is icy cold.

There could be survival challenges – exposure to the elements, the difficult terrain, the need to scout ahead and find the correct path – but that’s not really the point of this sequence. In the novella, the scene is partly to show the curdling of pious ideals which begin with the aim of imposing beliefs on others and inevitably turn that violence cynically back upon the would-be crusaders. Additionally it was there to add Elshander the dwarf as a party member; you may not feel your game needs that degree of Bombadilisation.

The Children's Crusade

Scattered along the mountain approaches are the stragglers of the thousands-strong bands of children who answered the call to retake the Holy Lands through faith alone. They were led in the spring by two charismatic charlatans who picked up children from the towns of Chaubrette and Kurland, brought them like the Pied Piper to the Coradian coast, and there sold them to slavers. The fortunate ones turned back when hunger and hardship got too much. Latecomers to the crusade found themselves still high in the mountains as the autumn brought cold. Driven out by villagers to south and north, these wandering survivors haunt the high passes and must resort of begging, thievery or violence to survive. The characters encounter them in various states of desperation. First, gaunt figures in rags who come from the side of the road with hands held out for any scraps the characters can offer. Then a boy of twelve or so who approaches reciting beatitudes in a voice cracked by thirst. Then dead bodies, frozen where they lay huddled under shelves of rock. And finally desperate gangs hurling rocks.

The ambush

As the PCs struggle through the worst of the mountain weather, rocks begin raining down from the slopes above. The attackers are clearly children—survivors of the crusade driven beyond reason by starvation and cold.

Starving children (8-12 children)

• Attack: 8, Defence: 4, Magical Defence: 2
• Health Points: 6 each
• Evasion: 6, Stealth: 15, Perception: 8
• Weapons: Stones (d3,2) and makeshift clubs (d3, 3)
• Armor Factor: 0 (ragged clothing)
• Morale: Fight desperately until reduced to 2 HP, then flee

Their leader is a girl of perhaps fourteen who shouts prayers and curses: ‘The Lord will provide! He has promised to feed His faithful servants. Give us your bread, or He will strike you down.’

Clearly they aren’t much of a threat to the characters. The question is what the characters do about these innocents corrupted by circumstance. Sharing food with them may resolve the encounter peacefully – but the children can’t afford to be content with scraps; if the characters have pack animals they’ll try to break its legs, forcing the characters either to abandon the supplies and gear on it or stop and fight.

The combat triggers an avalanche. Initially almost glacially slow, the avalanche picks up speed as it goes and is an awesome sight as an entire mountainside seems to give way in a cascade of millions of tons of ice, snow and rock. If the characters back away they will need to leave their pack animals behind, and will then find the pass blocked. But an Intelligence roll spots the narrow cave opening in the rock face nearby, and those who notice it can lead their companions to safety.

Dwarven halls

The cave proves to be more than simple shelter. On the walls are crudely executed pictures of soldiers in exotic battle-harness, some mounted on monstrous animals with threatening fangs and long, hooked noses. Well-travelled characters may recognize these as olyphaunts (elephants) and those with education will surely connect the daubed images with the army of Annibas the Swift.

The route back is now blocked by the avalanche. The route ahead looks more promising but there is a thick stalactite of grey ice that must be melted or chipped away before they can proceed. Inside the ice (not visible at first) is Elshander (5001 years old).

“A squat figure stood by the fire. He was not even four feet tall, but there was the impression of great strength in his small frame — particularly in his upper body, which might have been moulded out of rock. His appearance was gnarled and gnome-like, with a fierce leonine face and large pointed ears that wagged as he muttered to himself.”

Elshander – whether dwarf, goblin, or some other creature of the elder world – drew Annibas’s ire when he stole and ate one of his olyphaunts. Annibas froze him inside a block of ice (because of course a mythically famous general of a millennium and a half ago was able to command supernatural agencies) and thus he has slept through the rise and fall of empires until the player-characters thawed him out.

Elshander the Dwarf

·         Rank: Ancient creature (6th rank equivalent)

·         Attack: 19, Defence: 13, Magical Defence: 12

·         Weapons: Ancient dwarven battleaxe (d8+1, 7)

·         Health Points: 18

·         Armour Factor: 3

·         Evasion: 6, Stealth: 20 (with cloak), Perception: 12

·         Special Abilities:

o    Cloak of Invisibility: As described in the Dragon Warriors rulebook

o    Underground Navigation: Never lost in caves/tunnels

o    Ancient Knowledge: Knows forgotten lore and secret ways

o    Consume Lava: Immune to heat/fire damage, can drink molten rock

o    Insatiable Appetite: Obsessed with finding exotic foods; especially partial to olyphaunt meat which, having tasted it once, he longs to savour again.

·         Treasures:

o    Cloak of Invisibility: As described in the Dragon Warriors rulebook

o    Book of Secrets: For any subject researched this book will provide two remarkable facts – one true, the other false, and with no simple way to tell which is which.

If encountered, Elshander is initially hostile (possibly attempting to cook the characters or their animals), but can be negotiated with. His knowledge of underground passages proves invaluable, though his morality is decidedly not that of a mortal and he remains obstreperous.

The underground journey

Following Elshander through the mountain's heart, the characters traverse passages carved by nonhuman skill. The route passes through a cavern lit by lava where the heat is so intense that armour becomes burning hot and must be removed. Characters must roll Strength or less on d20 every minute or temporarily lose 1 Strength to heat exhaustion; a character at 0 Strength is too weak to go on and must be carried. Elshander's casual consumption of lava streams could provide both aid and comic relief.

The journey culminates in the party emerging onto an hillside where olive groves bask in Coradian sunshine, providing stark contrast to the frozen mountain peaks above.

Episode 3: Sauvesse

The maritime port city of Sauvesse sprawls along the coast, its narrow streets climbing steeply from the bustling harbour. The contrast between wealth and poverty is stark. Magnificent churches stand within sight of squalid tenements where the poor struggle to survive.

Finding passage

The characters’ first challenge lies in securing passage to the south. The great merchant houses demand payment in advance and substantial guarantees, but an even greater impediment is that they have no space aboard ships for the next month or more. After several rejections, they're directed to Tindaro Juré (mid-30s) in the Via Lachrymosae.

Tindaro receives the characters with courtesy despite his reduced circumstances. His threadbare robes and sparse furnishings tell the story of a man whose creditors are pressing for payment he cannot make. When they explain their need, he apologizes: ‘In better times it would have been my pleasure to arrange such a journey. My ships once carried goods from beyond the Deeps of Rasakna. But I have fallen on hard times.’

The madman's tale

Their conversation is interrupted by Giacommo of Vigliosa (40s), whose white hair hangs in limp strands over a face marked by madness and terror. ‘He is my guest,’ says Tindaro under his breath. ‘The poor man – his mind was shattered by a terrible experience in the desert. The local authorities suspect the involvement of the Marijah assassins but poor Giacommo claims it was just one lone attacker, and a woman at that. She must’ve been a veritable Amazon, because their guards were veteran Crusaders and she slew half a dozen of them, and apparently decapitated his brother right in front of Giacommo’s eyes. Giacommo managed to escape by the skin of his teeth, although sometimes I think it might have been kinder if he’d died there also. For what kind of a life is this living hell of madness that grips him now?’

Giacommo's ravings initially seem incoherent, but if the characters are patient they will be able to piece together his story. He speaks of a ‘blue-eyed demon’ who appeared from a sandstorm and slaughtered his brother's guards with inhuman skill. This warrior wielded a sword of extraordinary beauty, a blade with a flame-decorated pommel.

• The sword matches descriptions of King Rigar’s personal weapon, ‘the sword of Malek Ric,’ as their attacker called it; inlaid golden flame on the pommel surrounded by rubies and yellow diamonds.
• The attack occurred near a specific oasis that Tindaro recognizes
• The mysterious warrior is called Queen Hel, or so Giacommo claims
• She was seeking to reclaim the sword, which Giacommo’s brother had bought from someone who told him it came from the fortress of Alaflak.

The mob

Armed with this information, the characters can work out an arrangement with Tindaro. His knowledge and contacts make him invaluable, while their quest offers him the chance to restore his fortunes. Theodore of Ainoua, a ship’s captain known to Tindaro, agrees to transport them to Ibrahim in Outremer.

The arrangement is disrupted when Giacommo's public ravings about ‘demons and devils’ attract unwelcome attention. Religious hysteria combines with economic resentment against Tindaro’s and Giacommo's foreign origins. The crowd's mood turns ugly when they begin demanding to see the ‘demons’ supposedly hiding in Tindaro’s house.

An angry mob soon grows to around fifty people, shouting and throwing stones at first but rapidly becoming more deranged as religious fervour and xenophobia combine in their traditional potent mix. Soon they will be setting fires and bringing rope to lynch anyone they see as an outsider. The characters could perhaps defuse the situation if they have an ordained priest among them. Fighting back is more or less as useful as throwing gasoline on a bonfire, but they might temporarily drive the mob back with spectacular sorcery or daunting violence.

Tindaro had the foresight to prepare escape route from his cellar through the old Selentine sewers. This allows the party to reach Theodore's ship while the mob burns his house. The fire spreads rapidly, creating chaos that covers their departure but destroying the last remnants of Tindaro’s former life.

If Elshander is present, his invisible antics during the mob scene provide both light relief and additional chaos, eg wet footprints appearing on the gangplank as something unseen boards the ship.

Episode 4: The false priest

“The port of Ibrahim lay ahead, its whitewashed houses and swaying palm trees bathed in the heat of the fierce sun. Dhows thronged the harbour quayside, off-loading sacks of colourful fruit and bales of silk. The offshore breeze brought with it the dry dusty smell of the desert which stretched away inland from the town.”

After crossing the Deorsk Ocean and the Sea of Lament, the party disembark at Ibrahim and the trade route winding through increasingly desolate country toward the Crusader fortress of Karak du Saintuaire on the border with Zhenir. Ochre hills roll away toward distant mountains, the landscape dotted with abandoned farms and burned villages that speak of recent raids.

The preacher

The characters spot a lone figure by the roadside—a man in brown robes apparently resting in whatever shade can be found. Philip the Presbyter wears his hood deep despite the sweltering heat, concealing his face as he greets the approaching travellers.

"Philip the Presbyter" (actually Rashid al-Athir)

·         Rank: 7th rank Assassin

·         Attack: 22, Defence: 14, Magical Defence: 11

·         Health Points: 21

·         Evasion: 7, Stealth: 17, Perception: 9

·         Special Abilities:

o    Disguise: Masterful acting and disguise skills

o    Combat techniques: Shock Attack, throwing spikes, and other Marijah abilities

o    Infiltration expert: Extensive knowledge of Coradian customs and True Faith theology for cover

o    Languages: Fluent in Ta’ashim, Bacchile, and local dialects

o    Superb horsemanship

·         Equipment: Hidden curved dagger (d4+2, 4), throwing spikes, priest's robes (disguise)

·         True Mission: Spy for the Old Man of the Mountain

‘Philip’ claims to be a leper who ministers to heathen communities, explaining his hooded appearance as desire to spare others the sight of his scarred features. His story emerges gradually as they travel together. He speaks of dangerous work preaching to remote Ta’ashim communities and offers to bless the characters’ weapons. His purpose in doing so is to apply a corrosive unguent that makes sword blades more brittle, breaking on an attack roll of 20. But he will not press that if the characters seem at all suspicious, preferring to approach individual characters who seem especially devout, as his primary goal is to accompany them into the Karak du Saintuaire and find out whatever he can.

Observant PCs might notice inconsistencies in his story:

• His movements lack the stiffness expected from someone ravaged by disease (though he does claim to have been purged of the disease through his faith).
• An ordained priest who engages him in lengthy debate may be able to catch him out (Intelligence check after at least an hour’s discussion).
• His pronunciation of Ta’ashim terms such as place names is remarkably good (Intelligence check by any character who speaks Nascerine or who has been on crusade and who says they are suspicious).

But note that Rashid has not invented this persona. There is – or was – a real Philip the Presbyter, known in the region and who does indeed go veiled because of his scarred face. The real Philip died a few days ago some distance from here, so word has not yet circulated of his death. If the characters fail to see through ‘Philip’s’ story, he will accompany them into the fortress and then abscond in the night, carrying news of their mission to his master.

Episode 5: Karak du Saintuaire

“The fortress headquarters of the Knights Protector stood before them half a mile away, its mighty reddish-white walls glowing in the crimson sunset. It was larger than any castle that they had seen in the northern lands, with a mighty curtain wall and a massive inner bailey. The castle was said to be home to five thousand knights and twice that many mounts. An aqueduct, carried on a series of graceful arches, disappeared into the side of the curtain wall and supplied the castle with water in times of siege.”

The legendary fortress dominates the landscape like a stone mountain thrust up from the earth itself. Massive walls rise in concentric rings, each higher than the last, culminating in the great keep. The contrast with northern castles is immediately apparent—this fortress was built to withstand the full might of Ta’ashim armies.

The reception

The characters’ welcome depends on their credentials and reputation. The Protectors maintain traditions of hospitality, but they are also politically astute. Grand Master Reginald of Carillon (early 50s) proves to be a formidable figure combining deep religious conviction with shrewd intelligence and extensive military experience.

If properly introduced, the characters dine in the great hall among senior knights. The conversation provides valuable insights into the current political situation in Outremer (fraught, tensions rising), recent Marijah activities (several suspected assassinations of leading community figures who have been urging peace), and information about the lay of the land east of here.

Gathering intelligence

The fortress archives contain extensive documentation of decades of conflict. Brother Thomas (35), the librarian, maintains detailed records of enemy capabilities and intelligence. In particular he can tell the characters about the fortress of Alaflak:

• Nearly impregnable position atop a peak in the Harogarn Mountains
• Single approach via stone steps leaving attackers treacherously exposed
• Previous assaults have failed catastrophically
• Marijah warriors feel no pain and fight with preternatural coordination
• Mysterious garden where warriors receive visions of Paradise
• Protected by fiendish traps
• Recent reports of a female assassin with unprecedented skill: ‘Queen Hel’.

Negotiating aid from the Knights Protector requires careful diplomacy. The Order officially maintains neutrality in dynastic disputes, so will not openly give support to an unknown heir brought up among heathens against the legitimate king of Albion, but Reginald personally respects Rigar’s memory and is well aware that Hadric’s weakness means gathering risk of civil war in Albion. There is an array of potential complications. Most knights view attempts to overthrow anointed monarchs as heretical, never mind the political ramifications if word were to reach King Hadric. There’s also the risk of Chaubrettian lords exploiting the information to foment trouble in Albion, where they might attempt to claim land. And more locally there is a very delicate balance of alliances, truces and accommodations that if disrupted could lead to war.

After careful deliberation, Reginald might be convinced to give the characters limited support, possibly one or more of the following:

• Horses bred for desert travel
• Supplies of food, water, tents, and other specialized desert equipment
• Detailed geographical knowledge including water sources and hostile territories
• A briefing on what little is known of Alaflak’s defences
• If sufficiently impressed, Reginald may lend them a guide who knows the terrain

However, for any aid he will impose conditions. If the heir exists they must be brought to the Karak, and the characters must swear oaths not to compromise Protector neutrality.

Episode 6: The desert

The desert stretches endlessly eastward—a landscape of rolling sand dunes, rocky outcroppings, and scattered oases that has swallowed countless armies. Navigation requires both skill and luck, while the extreme conditions test even experienced travellers. The heat requires characters to make daily Strength checks or lose 1 Health Point to dehydration. If they lack a guide they will need Intelligence checks to avoid detours that lengthen the journey. And there is hostile wildlife in the form of scorpions and snakes which naturally lurk in places where water might be found.

This section assumes the characters are striking out around the northern fringes of the Kaikuhuran Desert, a journey that will take them a month. There are other ways to get where they’re going, Sailing around the coast to Amsa’im might be quicker, though potentially even more dangerous as they’d be in Ta’ashim controlled waters and would need a cover story. Merchants are tolerated; armed adventurers are not.

The chase

If Rashid got safely away from the Karak, the PCs discover his tracks heading eastward. Catching up to him is their last chance to prevent Alaflak from being warned of their coming, but it will not be easy. The trail shows signs of uncanny speed, covering distances all but impossible for natural mounts. (Rashid has doped his horse to get this extra burst of speed, at the eventual cost of the animal’s life.)

Knights, barbarians and assassins can attempt Tracking rolls to keep to Rashid’s route, in which case there’s no need for Intelligence checks to stay on course as he’s heading straight for Alaflak.

The oasis

One of the most dangerous encounters involves a seemingly perfect oasis whose crystal-clear pools conceal deadly secrets. The surrounding vegetation shows subtle signs of sickness requiring Perception checks to notice. The water is contaminated with a weak but potentially deadly poison: Strength or less on 2d6 to resist, 1d3 damage regardless, failure to resist with debilitating tremors (like a Weaken spell) for the next 1-3 months.

Tindaro's travel experience proves invaluable, assuming he is here, as he recognizes signs of poisoned water. Local Badawin nomads are aware the oasis is poisoned but do not know why. If the characters can find out the cause (a monstrous serpent having made the place its lair, perhaps; or a water leaper or mere-gaunt) and remove it, they could earn the gratitude of the Badawin.

Badawin encounters

The desert's human inhabitants could prove just as dangerous as its natural hazards. Nomadic tribes control access to reliable water sources and view armed strangers with suspicion. One such encounter is with Sheik Khalil, who is escorting a band of merchants from Opalar:

Sheikh Khalil

·         Rank: 4th rank Barbarian

·         Attack: 18, Defence: 10, Magical Defence: 6

·         Health Points: 16

·         Equipment: Scimitar (d8, 4), desert robes (AF 1)

6 Guards

·         Rank: 2nd rank Barbarians

·         Attack: 16, Defence: 8, Magical Defence: 4

·         Health Points: 12 each

·         Equipment: Scimitars (d8, 4), javelins (d6, 3), desert robes (AF 1)

12 Merchants

·         Rank: Unranked

·         Attack: 10, Defence: 5, Magical Defence: 3

·         Health Points: 11 each

·         Equipment: Daggers (d4, 3), trade goods, superior water containers

Negotiation with the Badawin is possible but requires cultural sensitivity and careful diplomacy. Tindaro’s language skills and trading experience could provide crucial advantages (+3 to negotiation rolls) if he is with the party. Success can yield:

• Detailed knowledge of local conditions
• Information about the attack on Giacommo’s party
• Safe passage through tribal territories
• Assistance in catching Rashid

Failure could trigger combat that the PCs might win but would certainly regret, given their need for local allies and information.

Signs of Alaflak’s influence

As the party crosses the Harogarn mountains into Marijah territory, evidence of the Old Man of the Mountain's power increases. Merchant caravans travel only in large, well-armed groups and local tribes speak fearfully of the ‘Eagle's Nest’. The characters may catch sight of Marijah scouts watching from the hills. Even if they don’t, the landscape itself seems to observe their approach.

Episode 7: The Fortress of Death

The legendary fortress finally comes into view as the PCs crest a ridge. Alaflak appears to grow from the living rock of the mountain, its walls so perfectly integrated with natural stone that distinguishing between natural and artificial construction is all but impossible.

The single approach involves a stone stairway carved directly into the cliff face, rising three hundred feet in switchbacks that leave climbers completely exposed. At the base lies the rotting carcass of a horse – Rashid's.

Reconnaissance and planning

From their concealed position, the characters can observe Alaflak for hours without detecting signs of normal activity. No sentries walk the walls, no smoke rises from cooking fires, and no movement is visible. The silence suggests watchful patience rather than abandonment.

If Elshander or another creature with underground experience accompanies the party, they might detect air movement suggesting hidden openings in the mountain's base.

The cave

Investigation of the mountain's base reveals a narrow fissure barely wide enough for a man to squeeze through. Perception checks detect air movement suggesting connection to larger chambers within the mountain.

Side passages branch in all directions, so that Track rolls may be needed. In places the roof of the cave is unstable and the footing is uneven and treacherous. The tunnels contain their own denizens, strange echoes and occasional glimpses of eyes reflecting torchlight hint at creatures adapted to perpetual darkness.

The Garden of Paradise

The cave route eventually emerges into Alaflak’s underground chamber where Marijah warriors spend their time in drug-induced visions. This represents the Old Man of the Mountains’ most effective tool for creating fanatically loyal soldiers; served delicacies by compliant girls, they have their notion of an eternal reward reinforced to the point that death holds no terrors.

Above is a golden dome decorated with intricate celestial mosaics. Hanging gardens and daylight filtered by mirrors create an impression of natural beauty despite the subterranean location. At night, hundreds of coloured glass lanterns provide soft, dreamlike illumination to which musical fountains add an hypnotic quality.

There are dozens of assassins reclining on divans and thick rugs. Beside each is a scimitar. Serving girls pass among them with bubble pipes that leave a sweet aroma in the air. One of the girls plays a lyre, the notes rippling like a breeze through the garden.

The characters’ presence remains undetected only while they avoid disturbing the carefully maintained atmosphere. A single misplaced step, clatter of metal against stone, or wrong word can trigger the alarm. If that happens, every warrior rises as one, moving with perfect coordination despite having been insensible moments before.

Drugged Assassin Warriors (50+ individuals)

·  Rank: 3rd rank Assassins

·  Attack: 15, Defence: 7, Magical Defence: 6

·  Health Points: 11

·  Evasion: 5, Stealth: 19, Perception: 9

·  Weapons: Scimitar (d8, 4)

·  Armor Factor: 2 (black robes with hidden reinforcement)

·  Combat Techniques: Likely Armour Piercing and Shock Attack

These warriors represent the ultimate expression of fanatical dedication. They fight with no regard for personal safety. Weight of numbers alone would make this a deadly encounter, so the characters should hope to avoid alerting them. If there is a battle, the characters will need to use the tunnel entrance to keep themselves from getting surrounded and overwhelmed.

If they get away from the garden, Alaflak’s interior proves as challenging as its exterior defences. Passages follow no logical pattern, with corridors that seem to lead toward important areas suddenly ending in blank walls or opening onto chambers serving no obvious purpose. The maze-like layout calls for Intelligence checks to avoid getting hopelessly turned around.

There could also be hidden traps: pressure plates and crushing mechanisms designed by master craftsmen. For example:

• Crusher: Perception check to detect, Evasion against Speed 9 to avoid 2d6 damage
• False floor: Combined weight of three characters (or two in heavy armour) triggers collapse into spike-filled pit (3d6 damage)

The architectural confusion serves multiple purposes beyond defence—important areas are deliberately difficult to locate, requiring knowledge of secret passages and hidden routes that only trusted inhabitants possess.

The party's flight from the Garden of Paradise leads deeper into the fortress, eventually reaching a vast hall.

Episode 8: Queen Hel's Challenge

The Chamber of Judgment

The deepest hall of Alaflak serves as both throne room and trial ground, where the Old Man of the Mountain renders final judgment on matters of supreme importance. High vaulted ceilings supported by marble pillars create an impression of grandeur, while polished stone floors reflect the flickering light of hundreds of torches.

When the PCs enter, they find Queen Hel waiting for them, her imposing figure outlined against the torch-lit pillars. She holds King Rigar’s sword with casual expertise, its flame-headed pommel gleaming in the flickering light. Tall and imposing with flame-gold hair and piercing blue eyes that give her an almost daunting beauty. Her distinctive appearance makes her deadly reputation seem impossible until she moves with the fluid grace of a master warrior.

At the chamber's centre lies a concealed trap: a cage that falls to surround 2-6 members of the party, who must Evade against a Speed of 13 or be trapped. Breaking free requires a roll of 3 on 3d6; each trapped character can roll each round.

Queen Hel (Princess Rosamund)

·         Rank: 12th rank Knight/Assassin

·         Attack: 25, Defence: 19, Magical Defence: 14

·         Health Points: 22

·         Evasion: 8, Stealth: 18, Perception: 12

·         Weapons:

o    Sword (d8+3, 7)

o    Spiked Shield (d4+1, 4) when used offensively

·         Armor Factor: 4 (black mail beneath robes)

·         Special Abilities:

o    Master Combatant: Can attack with both sword and shield simultaneously

o    Assassin Training: All stealth and combat techniques up to 12th rank

o    Royal Heritage: Natural leadership and tactical brilliance

o    Tragic Conditioning: Believes those of the True Faith are murderous invaders

Queen Hel's true identity as Rigar’s lost daughter may be discovered through several means:

• Same imposing height as historical descriptions of King Rigar
• Distinctive red-gold hair colour
• Commanding presence that distinguishes her as of royal blood
• Fighting style displays recognizably Elleslandic techniques despite Marijah training
• Occasional lapses into Elleslandic oaths while fighting

Whether Queen Hel falls in combat or the truth emerges through other means, the revelation of her identity creates one of the adventure's most powerful emotional moments.

Hasan ibn Sabbah, the Old Man of the Mountain

• Rank: 15th rank Mystic
• Attack: 20, Defence: 14, Magical Defence: 20
• Health Points: 18
• Evasion: 8, Stealth: 22, Perception: 19
• Special Abilities:
• Ancient Wisdom: Vast knowledge of history, philosophy, and human nature
• Master Manipulator: Can read people's motivations and desires
• Mystic Powers: All Mystic abilities at maximum effectiveness

From his position in the gallery, Hasan provides the complete explanation with the detached tone of a philosopher examining an interesting problem. After assassins slew Salador, Princess Rosamund was brought to Alaflak as a frightened five-year-old who spoke broken Nascerine and cried for her father every night. The assassins gradually convinced her that Rigar had abandoned her, that Coradian knights were murderous invaders who deserved only death. Eventually she remembered nothing of her early life – not consciously, at any rate – and thought of herself as a Marijah.

‘She became my finest student,’ Hasan explains with genuine pride. ‘Fourteen different fighting styles mastered, warriors from seven nations defeated in personal combat. She could have ruled your lands better even than her father, but she would never have wanted such a burden.’

The characters have no real chance of defeating the entire force of assassins, but Hasan has no incentive to waste his men on a battle with nothing to gain. If Rosamund is slain, he will let the characters go, only pursuing them if they try to get her away – though she would not in any case go voluntarily, and will not believe any story they try to tell her about her origins.

The aftermath

Surviving characters must confront the full implications of their discovery. Rigar’s sword remains as evidence to back up what they've learned, but do they want to reveal it? They made oaths to Grand Master Reginald and they may not want to draw the attention of mighty earls and princes with their tale.

Queen Hel's story becomes a meditation on identity, loyalty, and righteous cause. Raised among enemies of her birthright, she became everything her father would have wanted in an heir – brave, skilled, dedicated to protecting the innocent – while simultaneously becoming everything he would have opposed. The irony serves as a reminder that good intentions and noble goals can lead to tragic outcomes when they collide with the complexities of human nature and historical circumstance.

POSTSCRIPT: Whenever I write a scenario for publication, I feel compelled to say again that following a script is not the way to roleplay. A planned set of story events is necessary for novels, gamebooks, movies, and so on, but roleplaying is a unique medium. It can do so much more than traditional narrative forms. The player-characters should have their own reason for arriving at the abbey. They may or may not take an interest in Sir Hubert’s story. In the novella the protagonists have a pressing motive; they desperately want to replace King John, and they think his spies may be onto them so they have a reason to hurry. Even if the PCs hear what Sir Hubert has to say, they might ignore it or chase it up in any one of a dozen ways – they wouldn’t necessary choose to go scooting off to the Holy Land. But needs must, and I know you’ll just take all the above as bunch of suggestions to be used, modified or abandoned as the individual needs of your player group dictate.

If you're looking for more inspiration for Dragon Warriors adventures, Red Ruin Publishing has a marvellous range of solo adventure gamebooks, scenarios, fiction, and of course the Casket of Fays fanzine, all designed to let you enjoy the game's 40th anniversary to the full.