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Chaosium Digest Volume 12 Number 05
Chaosium Digest Volume 12, Number 5
Date: Monday, December 4, 1995
Number: 2 of 2
Contents:
The Restless Dead, Part Two (Shannon Appel) ELRIC!
--------------------
From: Shannon Appel <appel@erzo.org>
Subject: The Restless Dead, Part Two
System: Elric!
[continued from V12.4]
Searching the Inn
The PCs may decide to search various areas of the inn. This should be
a very risky undertaking. Hide or Move Quietly rolls will almost
definitely be needed. Even if they are successful, there is still
between a 5% and 25% chance that one of the NPCs will return at an
inopportune time (depending on when exactly the PCs do their
investigations).
KLAREN and NEVA share the main bedroom. Klaren owns nothing of
particular interest, other than 12 small bits of Dark Root, each
naturally grown into the approximate form of a person. They are
displayed along the sill of the room's single window. Neva has a set
of love letters from a full score of admirerers hidden in the bottom
of her jewelry case. In addition one of her perfume bottles actually
contains Strychnine (POT 20 poison). Depending on where exactly the
PCs say they are looking, Search rolls will reveal any of the above.
If the PCs are actually going through Neva's perfume, a Potions roll
will reveal the poison for what it is.
FRAGO lives in one of the inn's private rooms. It is all around quite
messy. The only thing of interest is Frago's grimoire which contains
full information on all the spells and runes he knows (in a tiny Pan
Tangian script). The grimoire is stashed under Frago's bed, and has a
Rune of Invisibility (TBG pg. 12-13) inscribed onto the cover. A
critical Search roll is needed to actually find the book.
THE CELLAR is the heart of the mystery. Concealed quite well behind
one of the barrels is a secret door leading to Frago's private
laboratory (Critical search needed to find it, unless the PCs manage
to spy someone else actually enter). The door has carved upon it a
Rune of Alarm (TBG pg. 10). If anyone but Frago touches the door, it
will get set off, and Frago will immediatelly come running, leading to
the Finale (below).
The laboratory is quite spacious, easily the size of the outer cellar
itself. It is likely that it was carved from the Earth at the same
time the rest of the inn was built. Klaren does not know about it,
and Frago only found it by accident, when he was playing in the cellar
one day as a child.
In Frago's laboratory are the results of his experiments: 2 ghouls, 5
skeletons and 4 zombies. Various pieces of bodies lie about as well,
including eyes, fingers, etc. None of these are large enough to
animate. A good amount of vivisecting equipment lies in the room as
well.
Note that there is a 28% chance that Frago will be in his laboratory
shortly after everyone has gone to bed, on any night.
THE INN'S REAR YARD is also of note, for that's where the Dark Root
Tree is. 13 men are buried below it. 12 of them are the victim of
Klaren's True Brew spell. The 13th is Narl, who was buried here by
Frago when his experiments were complete. If PCs dig up the yard, they
have a 25% chance of digging up a body for every hour spent digging.
Note that there is a 20% chance that Klaren visits the Tree any night.
Searching the Town
There are two main places that the PCs may investigate in the town.
THE CEMETARY is a fairly small place. There are only a few hundred
graves. If the players Search the graveyard, they will find that there
are nearly a half-dozen graves that have been recently dug up. If the
PCs dig up those grave themselves, they will find them to be entirely
empty.
Note that there is a 5% chance that Frago visits the cemetary any
night.
ARTLE BRIGHTSPEAR'S HOUSE might be investigated because of the fact
that Neva occasionally visits it. If confronted, Artle will admit that
he's Neva's lover, but he definitely won't let the PCs in to search
his house without a fight. If they do search it, they will find
nothing of note other than a few love letters from Neva, included one
which alludes to them "being free after Klaren's passing".
Finale
During the adventure, the PCs may find the dark secrets of either Neva
or Klaren, confront them, and bring them to justice. Although these
should be played out with full enthusiasm, neither of these events
will free them from the ghost. For that to happen, an inevitable
confrontation with Frago Lackwit must occur. This can occur in one of
two ways: (1) the PCs find Frago's secret lair, accidently set off the
Alarm and bring him running -or- (2) the PCs harry Frago enough that
he finally breaks down, shouting "You have found me Out! I slew the
damned beggar, and he taught me much as he died! But, you will tell no
one of this, for you are dead men!", before running down to his
laboratory on his own.
As soon as he reaches his laboratory, Frago will shout out for his
creations to destroy the PCs. If able, he will stay back from the
conflict himself. When things seem bad, Frago will cast his Army of
the Dead spell, waking all 13 corpses which lie beneath the Dark Root
Tree. A final orgy of destruction should occur before Frago is finally
slain, and all the undead put down.
When all has become quiet, the air will lightly shimmer, and Narl's
ghost will appear, a dim smile upon wrecked face. Pointed down towards
Frago's body, he will say "He is the one that did this to me, as part
of his wretched experiments", and pointing towards his own body, one
of the creatures that rampaged through the inn, he will say "and that
is what remains of me. Bury it well, and I will go on." And he will.
APPENDIX 1: THE NPCS
Klaren Brewmaster
Age 48, Owner of the Dark Root Inn
Klaren is a man that is looking into the face of his own mortality.
Fat and balding, drained of life by long years of practicing the dark
arts of Chaos, Klaren realizes that it will not be long before he goes
to join his shadowy patrons. However, Klaren does not totally regret
his choices, for his oaths to Chaos have brought reknown to his inn
and to his family, and he is sure that that reknown will outlive him.
Though Klaren occasionally exchanges wry comments with his best known
patrons, for the most part, he is dour and grim. Most people don't
really seem to mind though. After all, they come to the Dark Root for
the ale, not for the company.
If anyone brings accusations against Klaren, he will do anything to
see those accusations quieted. He'll try and work within the law
intially, asking the local guards to cart off anyone causing him
trouble. For most cases, this should prove sufficient, for Klaren is a
well-respected member of the community. If it is not, however, Klaren
will resort to threats, bribery and even murder to protect his
family's name, for that is all he has left.
Klaren's Secret: Every Mid-Winter's night, Klaren encants the True
Brew spell over a fresh corpse, and buries it under his Dark Root
tree. This is what causes his ale to be so great.
Chaos 41, Balance 7, Law 13
STR 10 CON 5 SIZ 12 INT 13 POW 17
DEX 9 APP 9 HP 9
Damage Bonus: none
Weapons:
Brawl 71%, damage 1d3
Club 59%, damage 1d6 or 1d8
Wrestle 88%, damage sp.
Armor: none
Spells: Guile of Cran Liret (1-4) [TBG pg. 34], True Brew (2) [see
below], Ward (3) [Elric! pg. 83]
Skills: Art (Tell Story) 58%, Bargain 84%, Craft (Brewer) 118%, Craft
(Cook) 47%, Fast Talk 97%, Listen 81%, Scent/Taste 65%
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| NEW SPELL: True Brew (2) |
| |
| When this spell is cast upon a corpse (which must be no more than 8 |
| days old), it enchants the corpse with certain alchemical |
| properties. When the corpse is buried thereafter, the essence of the |
| deceased's soul will slowly seep out into the soil. Any nearby |
| trees will suck up this essence, through their roots, imbuing them |
| with some of the essence of the deceased themselves. After a |
| sufficient period (usually about a year), bits of these roots may be |
| used to make a superb ale, definitely the best in the land. The |
| effects of this spell last until the shortest day of the year, at |
| which time the spell must be cast again, with a fresh corpse. |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------+
Neva Raveneye
Age 36, Klaren's Wife, Cook at the Dark Root
When she was young, Neva had great dreams of the power and wealth that
would in time come to one possessing her guile and beauty. But, as she
approached maturity, those dreams were shattered. She was married off
to a innkeeper. Though he was already well-off, and his reknown
spreading, still she was forced to descend into a drudgery of cooking,
cleaning and child-rearing.
As Chaos has drained Klaren's vitality, Neva has begun to look upon
him with contempt. For years, she has taken other lovers, and waited
for him to pass into other realms. Now, her impatience has grown,
causing her to plot Klaren's death with her current lover, Artle
Brightspear, a local soldier. When the time is right, Neva will poison
Klaren, freeing herself.
When the PCs interact with Neva, they will find that her mature beauty
masks a dark soul. She is petty, spiteful and cruel. If the PCs try
and make small talk with Neva, she will at first be abrupt, and later
plain rude. In the face of unwelcome advances, she has been known to
get one of her suitors (and there are many) to beat the harasser to
within an inch of his life. If the players begin to investigate Neva,
she will do whatever she can to make sure that her plans are not made
public knowledge, be it by betrayal, seduction or murder.
Neva's Secret: Neva has a secret lover, whom she meets with every few
nights. In addition, she plots to murder her husband.
Chaos 17, Balance 2, Law 1
STR 11 CON 12 SIZ 11 INT 17 POW 13
DEX 11 APP 18 HP 12
Damage Bonus: none
Weapons:
Dagger 88%, damage 1d4+2
Armor: none
Spells: Ignorance From Sloratar (1-3) [TBG pg. 34], Visage of Arioch
(1-3) [Elric! pg. 83]
Skills: Conceal Object 51%, Craft (Cook) 97%, Craft (Courtesan) 74%,
Fast Talk 81%, Insight 60%, Listen 89%, Scent/Taste 88%, Young
Kingdoms 21%
Frago Lackwit
Age 20, Son of Klaren and Neva, Necromancer
Frago would probably have grown up to be a perfectly sane and healthy
young man if it were not for his father's dark predilictions. One
mid-winter's night, when Frago was still a boy, Klaren took him out to
Dark Root tree, and introduced him to the dark arts of necromancy that
were at the heart of the family business. Frago was impressed, but he
wanted more. As time passed, he began to consider his father's use of
the arts of necromancy sophmoric, and he became determined to use the
necromantic arts to their fullest potential.
His opportunity came when a Pan Tangian necromancer stopped at the Inn
one night. Frago's first act of murder left him with a tome full of
mysteries. Although he still considers himself a student, Frago has
learned the dark arts well.
Many people consider Frago stupid. He is actually quite intelligent,
able to understand the most intricate of incantations, but he has all
the common sense of a Vilmirian fruit fly. Thus, his reputation. Frago
is also often a bit slow to answer questions or become aware of
things. This is primarily because he is constantly deep in thought,
examining beautiful equations of magic in his mind.
Frago has a tendency to panic. When the PCs get too close to his
secrets, he'll do so, exposing himself for all to see, when he calls
up hordes of undead to slay his oppressors. This will likely be the
finale of the adventure.
Frago's Secret: He's a necromancer. In addition, he has a secret
necromantic laboratory under the Inn. Recently, he had one of his
zombies kidnap Narl (a local beggar), and used him in his experiments.
When Narl finally expired, Frago buried him beneath the Dark Root
tree.
Chaos 52, Balance 5, Law 7
STR 11 CON 9 SIZ 11 INT 18 POW 18
DEX 7 APP 8 HP 10
Damage Bonus: none
Weapons:
Dagger 37%, 1d4+2
Armor: none
Items: Brazier of Power (18 mp)*
Runes: Rune of Alarm (3) [TBG pg. 10], Rune of Invisibility (varies)
[TBG pg. 12-13]
Spells: Animate Limb (2) [TBG pg. 20], Animate Skeleton (varies + 1
POW) [TBG pg. 20], Army of the Dead (variable) [TBG pg. 20], Brazier
of Power* (4) [Elric! pg. 77], Necrology (4) [TBG pg. 21-22], Raise
Zombie (varies + 1 POW) [TBG pg. 22], Speak with the Dead (2) [TBG pg.
22], Spirit Bind (8) [TBG pg. 22], Summon Ghoul (varies + 1 POW) [TBG
pg. 22], True Brew [see above]
* Although this spell notes that the Magic Points are available "when
summoning", Frago can actually call upon them at any time, and
usually will do so when casting "variable" spells.
Skills: Art (Torture) 21%, Conceal Object 52%, Craft (Bone) 38%, Craft
(Skin) 41%, Hide 76%, Listen 43%, Scribe 43%, Unknown Kingdoms 10%,
Young Kingdoms 21%
Followers: Frago currently has these undead followers: 2 embodied
ghouls [TBG pg 27-28], 5 skeletons [TBG pg 29] and 4 zombies [TBG pg
29]. See TBG for rules regarding these creatures. Specific stats are
below.
Strategy: When engaged in combat, Frago will try and have his
constructs do all the work. He might help out by animating hacked off
limbs, but is pretty worthless beyond that. When at wit's end, Frago
will cast Army of the Dead. This will cause the 13 bodies which lay
below the Dark Root Tree to rise, raising hell all about the inn.
Embodied Ghouls
#1 #2
STR 10 10
CON 11 9
SIZ 13 13
INT 7 8
POW 16 23
DEX 16 5
HP 12 11
Damage Bonus: +0
Armor: none, but immune to major wounds, functional until at 0 HP
Weapons:
Bite 40%, damage 1d8
Wrestle 30%, damage special
CON drain 1D3/round, automatic with touch
Skills: Appear Hungry 70%, Drool 30%, Search 50%
Skeletons
#1 #2 #3 #4 #5
STR 15 14 15 16 20
SIZ 16 17 15 19 17
DEX 10 14 14 7 10
HP 16 17 15 19 17
Damage Bonus: +1d4
Armor: None, but weapons do not impale or do critical damage
Weapons:
Broadsword 40%, damage 1d8+1+db
Skills: Leer 50%
Zombies
#1 #2 #3 #4
STR 22 18 23 26
CON 21 21 16 27
SIZ 10 12 6 9
DEX 8 9 6 6
HP 16 17 11 18
Damage Bonus: +1d4
Armor: none, but impaling weapons do only one point of damage, and
other do half rolled damage + spell damage
Weapons:
Large Club 20%, damage 1d8+db
Skills: Lurch 99%
Army of the Dead
(13 raised corpses)
HP 1d8 each
Armor: none, but impaling weapons do only one point of damage, and
other do half rolled damage + spell damage
Weapons:
(roll randomly)
1: Brawl 25%, damage 1d3
2: Butcher Knife 25%, damage 1d6
3: Claw 25%, damage 1d4+1
4: Fire Iron 25%, damage 1d8+1
5: Kindling Axe 15%, damage 1d6+1
6: Small Club 25%, damage 1d6
Narl's Ghost
Narl was a beggar who Frago stole away, and then experimented on,
until he died. His ghost has remained, but is not entirely sane.
Narl's ghost will not be able to leave the Young Kingdoms until Frago
is slain, and Narl's body is given an appropriate burial, but Narl
doesn't have it together enough to know this. He simply has a sense of
being always drawn in the direction that the Dark Root Inn lies, and
also a sense that he lost something there (his body, as it happens),
and that he must find it.
When Narl appears at the end of the adventure, he will be a horrible
sight. All of the marks of Frago's cruel vivisecting tools will lie
upon him, even in death.
INT 4 POW 14
Town Guards
#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 #8
STR 12 12 10 13 15 16 12 13
CON 15 9 14 17 12 9 16 12
SIZ 10 17 10 14 18 17 16 13
INT 15 12 10 8 11 13 10 14
POW 15 3 8 10 13 5 12 6
DEX 11 12 12 12 11 11 13 7
APP 18 10 5 8 16 8 13 13
HP 13 13 12 16 15 13 16 13
(#1 is Artle Brightspear, Neva's lover)
Damage Bonus: +1d4
Armor: Leather & Rings (1d6+1)
Weapons:
Long Spear 55%, damage 1d10+1+db
Dirk 50%, damage 1d4+2+db
Skills: Drink 70%, Gamble 60%
APPENDIX 2: FUTURE ADVENTURES
Below are a few ideas for future adventures spawning from this one.
* Narl was actually Nadsokorian plant, who reported directly back to
the Beggar-King. When the King hears of Narl's disappearance, and
the strange things that happened afterwards, he may decide that he
wants to talk with the PCs.
* The Pan Tangians are very jealous of the knowledge. If the PCs end
up with Frago's book, they mind find that Pan Tangians are trying to
hunt it down. Alternatively, they may accidentally show it to the
wrong people, and thus draw down the wrath of the Pan Tangians in
that way.
* If Neva or Klaren survived, either of them might plot against the
people that slew their son.
--------------------
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