TEXT: Robert J. Schwalb
  A Shadow of the Demon Lord Supplement
  The Queen of Gold 
  Tales of the Pirate Isles
  
  The Queen 
  of Gold
  Tales of the Pirate Isles
  Writing and Design:  
  Robert Adducci, Jason Bulmahn, Eric Cagle, Andrew Follett, 
  Miranda Horner, Steve Kenson, Greg Marks, Stephen 
  Radney-MacFarland, Robert J. Schwalb, and Nat Webb
  Development: Robert J. Schwalb
  Editing: Tom Cadorette
  Art Direction: Kara Hamilton and Robert J. Schwalb
  Proofreading: Jay Spight
  Graphic Design and Layout: Kara Hamilton
  Cover: Mirco Paganessi
  Interior Illustrations: Andre Meister, Mirco Paganessi,  
  Julio Cesar Oliveira Rocha, Bob Schwalb, and Kim Van Deun
  Cartography: Cecil Howe
  Playtesters: Dustin Bowen, Andrew Follett, Dan Heinrich,  
  Jay Spight, Jason Streger, Troy Yost
  The Queen of Gold: Tales of the Pirate Isles is © 2017 Schwalb Entertainment, LLC. All rights reserved.
  Shadow of the Demon Lord, Queen of Gold: Tales of the Pirate Isles, Schwalb Entertainment, 
  and their associated logos are trademarks of Schwalb Entertainment, LLC.
  Schwalb EntErtainmEnt, llc
  PO Box #12548
  Murfreesboro, TN 37129
  info@schwalbentertainment.com         www.schwalbentertainment.com
  
  2
  Introduction
  The die has been cast and the Demon Lord 
  approaches Urth. As this monstrous entity nears, its 
  shadow causes mayhem and wreaks havoc. Empires 
  fall, cults rise, beastmen rampage, and plagues rage—
  all bringing civilization to its knees. 
  	 People	offer	prayers	to	gods	who	do	not	answer	
  them, or look to their leaders for guidance only to 
  find	them	inept	and	craven	in	the	face	of	the	terrors	
  to come. Many turn against each other, abandon 
  their communities, or seek refuge from the coming 
  storm	wherever	they	can	find	it.	Some	even	leave	the	
  continent altogether, believing they can put the horror 
  behind them and start new lives in distant lands. 
   But there is no hope, salvation, or refuge anywhere 
  on Urth—only pain, misery, violence, and death. 
  Insatiably	hungry	and	filled	with	hate,	the	Demon	
  Lord seeks to devour all of existence.
   The Queen of Gold presents a complete campaign 
  set in the world of Shadow of the Demon Lord, taking 
  characters from meager origins to the heights of 
  power as they struggle with evils coming from 
  beyond the world’s edge, a malevolence from 
  which there is no safe place or escape. Like other 
  adventures designed for Shadow, this campaign has 
  no expectations for survival or even success, and it’s 
  entirely possible for the group to be the catalyst that 
  brings about the end of all things. But that’s how it 
  goes when you’re standing before the maw of the 
  endless Void that is about to consume the world—and 
  everyone’s looking to you to stop it. 
  What You Need
  You will need a copy of Shadow of the Demon Lord 
  and Demon Lord’s Companion to use this product. 
  The	Death	and	Spiritualism	traditions	are	detailed	
  in the Companion, along with a few creatures used 
  in	these	adventures.	You	might	also	find	the	Shadow 
  of the Demon Lord Freeport Companion useful, which 
  includes a slew of rules for voyages and ship combat, 
  along with paths and spells designed for maritime 
  adventures. And Beyond the World’s Edge provides 
  detailed descriptions of several locations mentioned 
  in this adventure, though the salient bits are included 
  here. 
  Campaign
  The Queen of Gold presents a series of eleven 
  connected adventures that form a complete campaign. 
  You can run the adventures in the order they are 
  presented in this book, or pick out the adventures 
  you like most. However you decide to run them, you 
  should take a few minutes to read this introductory 
  material to learn about the setting and how to weave 
  everything together.
  Table of Contents
  Introduction .............................. 2
  Campaign ....................................... 2
  Night of Terrors .....................6
  Blood for a Child ......................8
  Flying Colors ...........................10
  the Cursed Snuffbox ............12
  The Eelwives’ Lament ............ 14
  The Lurid Lighthouse ............16
  The Queen in Exile ..................18
  Showdown at  
  Float Town ........................... 22
  She Who Eats the Sky .........24
  Nightmares of  
  the Sleeper ............................26
  The Necromancer’s  
  Mountain .................................28
  Appendix: Characters  
  and Creatures ......................32
  
  33
  Background
  The troubles began with Anne the Red, the notorious 
  captain of the pirate ship Orphanmaker. Fleeing from 
  privateers charged with sinking her, the Orphanmaker 
  sailed into the swirling chaos of a tremendous storm 
  to	shake	off	the	pursuers,	and	found	itself	blown	off	
  course untold leagues into uncharted waters. Weeks 
  later,	the	battered	galleon	dropped	anchor	off	the	
  shores of the lost continent of Eremeä, a land once 
  ruled thousands of years ago by the Edene, now 
  overrun by savage tribes, bizarre monsters, and, in 
  one forsaken place, legions of the undead under the 
  command of the thoroughly corrupted necromancer 
  Rudebendius Mal.
  	 Anne	went	ashore	with	a	band	of	her	best	fighters,	
  leaving the rest of the crew to make repairs on the 
  ship. While in Eremeä, the pirate captain had many 
  adventures, but her greatest was slipping into the 
  Mountain	of	the	Necromancer	and	making	off	with	
  some	of	Mal’s	finest	treasures,	the	most	prized	of	
  which happened to be his bride, the Queen of Gold. 
  With relentless hordes of undead pursuing them, 
  Anne and her fellow pirates managed to escape 
  Eremeä and began the long voyage back to Rûl.
   Rudebendius Mal might have let the thieves go, if 
  not for the abduction of his bride. Enraged, he risked 
  his very soul by performing an ancient ritual of the 
  darkest magic such that none had ever dared before. 
  The ritual enabled Mal to reach deep into the Void 
  and summon forth Viscallux, a demon of incalculable 
  power, intending to send it to hunt down and destroy 
  the pirates and bring back what was his. 
   Instead, already on the brink of madness when 
  he began the ritual, Mal’s sanity was completely 
  shattered by the manifestation of the supremely 
  powerful demon before him, enabling it to invade and 
  possess the necromancer. Viscallux wants nothing 
  more than to unleash its master, the Demon Lord, 
  upon the world, and is using Mal to achieve that 
  purpose. From time to time, however, the demon will 
  relinquish	control,	bemusedly	watching	Mal’s	efforts	
  to regain his Queen and exact revenge upon the 
  pirates responsible for her abduction.
   A terrible storm is bearing down on the Pirate 
  Isles,	a	demonic	tempest	whose	winds	fill	the	rotting,	
  tattered sails of bone ships setting sail from Eremeä. 
  Crewed	by	the	dead,	this	fleet	has	been	dispatched	by	
  the necromancer to both rescue his bride and destroy 
  everyone and everything in their path. With this 
  menace looming on the horizon, the characters have 
  the chance to gain fame and fortune by taking a stand 
  against the coming onslaught and driving its threat 
  from the world.
  Shadow of the Demon Lord
  This campaign uses “Infectious Madness” (see 
  Shadow, page 198 and Hunger, page 15) as the Shadow 
  of	the	Demon	Lord	effect,	though	you	can	choose	a	
  different	one	if	you	like.	As	the	campaign	unfolds,	
  the	shadow’s	influence	intensifies	as	shown	in	the	
  following list.
  Starting Characters: All creatures have disturbing 
  dreams that leave them shaken upon waking.
  Novice Characters: Each time a creature completes 
  a rest, it must get a success on a Will challenge roll or 
  gain 1 Insanity.
  Expert Characters: All creatures make challenge 
  rolls to avoid gaining Insanity with 3 banes. As well, 
  creatures gain 1 extra Insanity whenever they gain 
  Insanity.
  Master Characters: Whenever a creature goes mad, 
  apply the following result instead of rolling on the 
  Madness table:
  Demonic Apotheosis Your soul is destroyed, and your body 
  transforms into a demon of your Size. The demon can take 
  the next available turn.
  The Pirate Isles
  The adventures presented in this book focus on the 
  lands east of Rûl, those islands and larger land masses 
  scattered	across	the	vast	Auroral	Ocean.	Specifically,	
  many of the adventures focus on the Pirate Isles, a 
  collection of islands settled by pirates long ago. Over 
  the years, these pirates have used the isles as a haven 
  when they are not busy raiding the shipping lanes 
  and the coastal settlements of the Kingdom of Sails, 
  the Freehold of Nar, and the various coastal city-states 
  of the Confederacy of Nine Cities. In recent years, the 
  ruling body known as the Captains’ Circle, an elected 
  group composed of the most powerful and well-to-do 
  pirate captains, has been seeking to move the region 
  away from piracy as its primary economic venture in 
  order to enter the world stage as a legitimate nation.
   Basic information about this nation can be found 
  in the main rulebook. The Shadow of the Demon Lord 
  Freeport Companion introduces Freeport to the world 
  of Urth, so you can use it, as well as Green Ronin 
  Publishing’s The Pirate’s Guide to Freeport, to more fully 
  flesh	out	the	setting	if	you	like,	though	neither	book	is	
  necessary to run these adventures. Finally, this book 
  adds further details to some of the locations described 
  in Beyond the World’s Edge. 
  Characters
  Each player should have at least one starting 
  character. Inform the players that their characters will 
  start aboard a ship bound for the Pirate Isles. Since 
  they’re starting characters, it’s not necessary for them 
  to know each other, though it certainly couldn’t hurt.
  
  4
   Players can choose from any of the ancestries 
  described in Shadow of the Demon Lord, Demon Lord’s 
  Companion, or Shadow of the Demon Lord Freeport 
  Companion. You can also let players choose ancestries 
  from other supplements, such as elves (Terrible 
  Beauty) or salamanders (Tombs of the Desolation). 
  While the adventures in this book can accommodate 
  most ancestry choices, some ancestries might have a 
  harder time than others—like centaurs (from Riders 
  of the Wind) or vampires (Tombs of the Desolation)—
  and you might need to adjust certain adventures to 
  accommodate these choices.
  Background Elements
  In addition to the background elements all starting 
  characters possess, each character should have a 
  background element that relates to this campaign. 
  Have	each	player	roll	a	d20	and	find	the	result	on	the	
  following table. Reroll duplicate results. 
  Campaign Background Elements
  d20
  Background Element
  1
  A vile pirate named Anne the Red sacked your 
  village and killed your loved ones. You have vowed 
  to get revenge.
  2
  You keep having recurring dreams of a beautiful 
  woman made of gold.
  3
  You have family relations in the Pirate Isles.
  4
  One of your ancestors sailed east, beyond the 
  world’s edge, and never returned.
  5
  You are wanted for a crime you didn’t commit.  
  You are headed east to start a new life.
  6
  You are a spy for Kem, the Golden City, making the 
  journey east to learn more about the Pirate Isles’ 
  economic situation.
  7
  You hunt for someone who wronged you. You 
  picked up a lead that this person is hiding out in  
  the Pirate Isles. 
  8
  Orcs burned your community to the ground during 
  their rebellion. You have left the continent to escape 
  the growing violence.
  9
  You belonged to a strange cult that was uncovered 
  and destroyed by witch hunters. You escaped, but 
  fear the hunters are still on your trail.
  10
  You found a treasure map you believe points to a 
  small island near the Pirate Isles.
  11
  You are a sailor (add the profession to your list of 
  professions) and you hired on as part of the crew.
  12
  You hope to find fame and fortune on the Pirate Isles, 
  having heard the capital is a “city of adventure.”
  13
  You made a powerful enemy on the continent and 
  had no choice but to leave behind your old life. You 
  have assumed a new identity to throw your pursuers 
  off your trail.
  14
  You heard the Pirate Isles are a great source of illicit 
  substances and hope to broker a deal that will make 
  you rich selling the drugs in the Free Cities.
  15
  You want to travel and see the world. 
  
  55
  16
  You were invited to the Pirate Isles by a powerful 
  merchant family for a business opportunity.
  17
  You were born in the Pirate Isles and now you’re 
  returning home after a long absence.
  18
  You were shipwrecked on a small island until the 
  crew of this vessel rescued you.
  19
  You owe large sums to a powerful criminal that you 
  cannot pay back. You are on the run for your life.
  20
  You are searching for a family member, friend, or 
  lover who disappeared in the Pirate Isles.
  Starting Equipment
  In the starting adventure, “Night of Terrors,” the 
  characters become shipwrecked on a small island 
  near the Pirate Isles. Although they escaped with 
  their lives, they have done so with little in the way 
  of equipment. Instead of using the normal rules for 
  determining starting equipment, have each player 
  roll on the following table to determine his or her 
  character’s starting equipment. Characters still start 
  with one interesting thing. 
  Starting Equipment
  d6
  Starting Equipment
  1
  Soiled rags
  2
  Soiled basic clothing and a club or dagger
  3
  Basic clothing and a club or dagger
  4
  Basic clothing, a club or dagger, and 1d6 cp of gear
  5
  Basic clothing, a club or dagger, and 2d6 cp of gear
  6 
  Basic clothing, a club or dagger, and 1d6 ss of gear
  Adventures
  The adventures making up The Queen of Gold 
  campaign are intentionally short. They provide you 
  with the essential elements needed to run them and 
  little else. Sparse on detail and free of extraneous 
  information, you have plenty of room to develop these 
  adventures further to bring them to life. You can add 
  your own side plots, intrigues, additional secondary 
  characters, monstrous threats, or whatever else you 
  desire to enrich the play experience and add depth to 
  the campaign for your group. In short, consider the 
  adventures as starting points and inspiration for you 
  to create your own awesome campaign!
  Hooks
  After the starting adventure, the remaining 
  adventures in this book leave it to you to come up 
  with ways to weave the characters into the story. You 
  can always use classic hooks— patrons who hire the 
  characters or assign them missions, or you can drop 
  the group into a tough situation related to the plot. 
  It’s best, however, if the hooks directly connect or 
  are relevant to one or more of the characters, either 
  drawing from their background elements or from 
  events that have unfolded in the campaign so far.  
  A personal stake in the plot gives the players strong 
  motivation to see the adventures to their conclusions.
  Group Size
  The adventures in this book expect groups to consist 
  of	three	to	five	characters.	Smaller	groups	will	find	the	
  challenges	difficult,	while	larger	groups	might	breeze	
  through the scenarios. If you have a smaller group, 
  consider allowing the characters to bring along a few 
  hirelings (see Shadow, page 108). Alternatively, you 
  can scale back the opposition, reducing the damage 
  a creature deals by half, or by halving the creature’s 
  Health score. 
   If you have a larger group, you should make the 
  challenges	more	difficult.	You	can	increase	the	Health	
  of	creatures	they	fight	by	20	to	50	percent,	or	just	
  add additional creatures as needed to bring the total 
  Difficulty	up	by	half.	For	example,	if	a	fight	normally	
  involves 5 shrieking eels,	the	total	Difficulty	is	50.	 
  You	can	add	2	to	3	more	eels	to	bring	the	Difficulty	 
  up to 70 or 80.
  Creature References
  Most adventures draw creatures from Shadow of the 
  Demon Lord and call out these creatures by bolding 
  their numbers and names. If you see 4 hoods, you can 
  find	statistics	boxes	for	a	hood	in	chapter	10	of	the	main	
  rulebook. Creatures drawn from other sources have their 
  full statistics included in the Appendix of this book. 
  Rewards
  Characters need to accumulate treasure during the 
  adventures so they can purchase better weapons 
  and armor, as well as acquire the potions and 
  incantations they will likely need to face later 
  challenges.	Some	adventures	offer	less	than	the	
  standard	amounts,	while	others	offer	a	bit	more.	 
  If	you	find	the	characters	lagging	behind,	give	them	
  the opportunity to earn more treasure in between 
  adventures	to	make	up	the	difference.
  Between Adventures
  Adventures are the highlights and most important 
  experiences in the characters’ lives. While some 
  adventures in this book can be run right after each 
  other, many allow time to pass between them. What 
  happens during this time can also be important for 
  developing the characters’ stories. They might work 
  in their professions, engage in research, go on minor 
  expeditions, or spend their time crafting items, 
  inscribing incantations, or brewing potions. When the 
  characters have downtime, be sure to ask the players 
  what they do during this time. Alternatively, if you 
  have Forbidden Rules, you can use the “Downtime” 
  tables in that book to determine what happened. 
  
  6
  Night of Terrors
  By Robert J. Schwalb
  After a harrowing day-long storm, 
  their ship apparently lost beneath 
  the	waves,	the	player	characters	find	
  themselves washed up on the shore of a small island 
  just as night falls. With only their meager possessions 
  and their wits, the characters must work together to 
  find	a	way	to	survive	until	help	comes.	The	characters	
  complete	the	adventure	when	they	find	a	way	off	the	
  island. If they manage to deal with the dread mother 
  and the pirates (see Events), rescue comes for them  
  1d3 days later.
  The Island
  The adventure takes place on a small island, about 
  5 miles in diameter, some 40 miles southeast of the 
  Pirate Isles. From the narrow strand encircling the 
  island, the ground rises until it reaches the top of an 
  ancient volcano. Thick jungle covers the island with 
  no more than a few game trails. It takes about three 
  hours to cross from one side of the island to the other, 
  or	five	hours	to	walk	all	the	way	around	the	island.
  	 The	characters	can	find	some	or	all	of	the	following	
  characters or locations while exploring the island, 
  though	they	should	not	find	more	than	one	per	hour.	
  Place these locations anywhere you like on the island.
   Anselm the Missionary: Anselm (acolyte of the 
  New God) lives in this small daub-and-wattle hut. A 
  carved wooden altar stands nearby, with a few half-
  melted candles on top, its front showing the symbol of 
  the New God. The hut has a single entrance covered 
  by a leather tarp. Inside the smoky interior, one can 
  find	a	reed	sleeping	mat,	a	wooden	bowl,	a	couple	of	
  burlap bags holding clothing and worthless personal 
  effects,	and	a	few	gnawed	bones.	There	is	also	a	scroll	
  containing an incantation of the produce water spell 
  from the Water tradition, 2 healing potions, and an axe.
   Anselm is an old man with a halo of frizzy white 
  hair on his head and torn, tattered black robes 
  hanging from his skeletal body. He has lived on the 
  island for many years, trying to convert the people 
  living here to his faith until the “monster” killed them 
  all	off.	He	wants	to	leave	the	island,	but	he	doesn’t	
  have a way to do so, as his boat rotted away long ago. 
   If asked about the monster, he tells the characters 
  it is a ghastly winged thing with a swollen belly that 
  strikes at night without warning. Anselm does not 
  tell the characters that the monster (a dread mother) 
  attacked him the night before the characters meet him 
  and	filled	his	belly	with	3	eggs	(see	“Hatching,”	below).	
   Buried Treasure: Anne the Red buried a chest of 
  coins on the island a year ago in the center of a small 
  clearing somewhere in the jungle. She marked the 
  place with four skulls mounted on poles. Each skull 
  bears	the	device	flown	on	her	flag—a	red,	horned	
  skull. Digging in the clearing for 6 hours turns up the 
  chest, which holds 200 ss and 500 cp.
   Ghost Village: In the jungle lays the remains of 
  a	tiny	village	consisting	of	five	tiny	huts	made	from	
  branches	and	mud.	The	huts	surround	a	fire	pit,	
  which hasn’t been used in at least a week or more. A 
  large idol of a winged, pregnant woman carved from 
  volcanic rock sits in the pit’s center. 
   A search of the hut turns up a few sleeping mats, 
  wooden bowls, bits of leather clothing, and other 
  minor miscellaneous items of your choice. Of 
  the villagers, only a few bloated corpses remain. 
  Inspecting the corpses reveals something burst out 
  from their abdomens. 
   Lair of the Dread Mother: The dread mother 
  makes its lair in the hollow of an enormous tree 
  growing on the upper slopes of the dormant volcano. 
  Thick, viscous slime covers the wall of the space, and 
  the	floor	is	buried	under	a	thick	layer	of	guano.	The	
  dread mother sleeps here during the day and leaves it 
  to hunt at night. 
  Survivors
  In order to survive their present predicament, the 
  characters can undertake certain activities, which are 
  described below.
   Hunting and Foraging: The characters quickly 
  discover signs of wild pigs. A character can hunt the 
  pigs, or forage for edible roots and berries. For each 
  hour spent hunting or foraging, the character must 
  make a Perception challenge roll. Characters with 
  professions related to hunting or foraging get an 
  automatic	success.	A	character	finds	enough	food	for	
  1d3 meals with a success on the roll. 
   If the characters hunt or forage for 3 hours or more, 
  Anselm	finds	them	and	invites	them	to	his	hut.	He	has	
  food and water enough for everyone.
   Find or Build Shelter: Heavy rains continue for 
  several days after the shipwreck. If the characters 
  don’t	make	or	find	shelter,	they	might	be	subject	to	
  the	effects	of	exposure.	It	takes	1d3	+	3	hours	of	work	
  to build a reasonable shelter for the group. Each 
  character helping reduces the time by one hour 
  (minimum 1 hour). Alternatively, the characters might 
  head	inland	in	hopes	of	finding	shelter,	in	which	
  case they might happen upon one of the locations 
  described above.
   Signal Fire: The	characters	might	try	to	build	a	fire	to	
  signal	passing	ships.	It	takes	1d3	hours	to	find	enough	
  dry	wood	to	build	the	fire,	though	the	heavy	rains	make	
  lighting	the	fire	impossible	unless	the	characters	build	
  or	find	shelter.	Building	a	signal	fire	attracts	the	pirates	
  (see below), who show up 1 hour later. 
  
  77
   Scavenge: Debris from the ship the characters 
  escaped washes up to shore. Each hour a character 
  spends searching through the wreckage on the shore, 
  roll a d6 – 1 (minimum 0). The total of the roll is the 
  value	in	ss	of	the	equipment	the	characters	find.	If	you	
  roll	a	6	on	the	die,	the	character	also	finds	1d3	vicious	
  crabs (tiny animals) that attack.
  	 Make	Stuff: A character with the appropriate 
  profession can attempt to make items with the right 
  materials (see Demon Lord’s Companion, page 25).  
  Any character can fashion a club or a spear from  
  the debris. 
   The characters might also attempt to build a raft  
  by lashing together logs with rope, though they 
  need an axe to have any chance of success. Anselm, 
  however,	has	an	axe	and	offers	it	to	the	group	if	they	
  agree to take him with them. With the right tools, it 
  takes	1d6	+	3	hours	to	construct	a	raft	to	hold	everyone	
  in the group.
   Explore: The characters might explore the island. 
  In addition to the locations and characters above, the 
  characters might run into dangerous creatures. Each 
  hour the characters spend exploring, roll a d6 and 
  consult the following table. 
  Island Encounters
  d6
  Encounter
  1
  1d3 warthogs (small animals) charge out to 
  protect their young
  2
  A hungry zombie of a dead villager stumbles  
  into view
  3
  1d6 juvenile dread mothers (tiny monsters)  
  slither forth to feed
  4
  A large spider attacks a straggler
  5–6
  Nothing
  Events
  While the characters grapple with the hazards of their 
  predicament, the following events occur to complicate 
  their situation.
   The Hatching: If the characters met Anselm, the 
  eggs he carries in his gut hatch at a time of your 
  choosing.	Anselm	screams	and	flails	from	the	pain	
  of the three larvae chewing their way out of his belly 
  as he falls to the ground and dies. The larvae are Size 
  1/8 noncombatants with Defense 5 and Health 1. Any 
  creature that sees their “birth” must get a success on a 
  Will challenge roll or gain 1 Insanity.
   The Dread Mother: The dread mother emerges 
  from its lair an hour after the adventure begins 
  and	finds	the	characters	at	a	time	of	your	choosing,	
  preferably after the eggs hatch in Anselm. The dread 
  mother prefers to attack characters who are alone or 
  just with one other person. It attacks to lay its eggs 
  and	then	departs.	It	also	flees	if	injured.
   The Pirates: Captain Anne has sent a landing party 
  of 6 pirates (see Appendix) on a launch to retrieve the 
  treasure she buried on the island. The pirates drag 
  their	launch	onto	the	beach,	with	five	going	inland	
  to retrieve the treasure and one remaining behind 
  to guard the boat. The pirates are hostile and not 
  interested in rescuing anyone; they will immediately 
  attack anyone they encounter. 
  	 If	the	characters	discovered	the	buried	treasure	first,	
  the pirates scour the island for them. If the characters 
  attempt to take the launch, they can easily overpower 
  the pirate and steal it, but will make an enemy of the 
  pirate captain when she has to send another launch to 
  retrieve her stranded crew.
   If the player characters have not yet dealt with the 
  dread mother, it might, at your discretion, prey on the 
  pirates,	picking	them	off	one	at	a	time,	filling	their	
  bellies with eggs. The characters might lure it into 
  attacking the pirates or it might attack them on its own.
  
  8
  Blood for a Child
  By Robert J. Schwalb
  A	demon	has	come	to	the	fishing	
  village of Chum. Unearthed by a 
  lonely	fisherman,	lamenting	the	
  sudden death of his son, the demon 
  has twisted the man’s mind and enslaved him, driving 
  him to murder in the dead boy’s name. The characters 
  complete the adventure when they unmask the killer 
  and rid the village of the evil spirit.
  Chum
  Found on the south side of one of the small islands 
  neighboring	the	Pirate	Isles,	Chum	is	a	fishing	village	
  home to a few dozen humans. A community of twenty 
  buildings spreads along the rocky southern shore 
  overlooking a modest, sheltered bay. Nearly everyone 
  living	here	depends	on	fishing	for	their	livelihood	and	
  sustenance. 
   Fisher’s Shacks: Sixteen of the buildings are 
  shabby gray shacks that house the people of Chum 
  and feature nets, shells, and detritus dragged up 
  from the depths as decoration. Each one features 
  1d3	+	1	rooms,	consisting	of	a	kitchen	or	common	
  area and the rest made up of bedrooms. A shack has 
  a 5-in-20 chance of having valuables worth 1d3 ss 
  and 1d6 cp, and a 1-in-20 chance of having a random 
  enchanted object.
   The Captain’s Widow: Chum’s only tavern, 
  The Captain’s Widow stands nearest to the docks, 
  serving	the	fishers	and	the	rare	traveler.	Anileda	Gud	
  (commoner) tends the bar and keeps the locals from 
  harassing her two daughters who work the tables. A 
  large mute man works as the cook in the kitchen at 
  the back of the tavern.
   Temple of Oceanus: The small temple dedicated 
  to the sea god sits on a rocky outcropping on Chum’s 
  eastern edge. Built from piled driftwood, it features 
  an enormous wooden idol of Oceanus draped in 
  fish	guts	and	seaweed.	Father	Yenniker	(commoner) 
  tends the place and lives in a tiny hut a few yards 
  away from the temple.
   Witch’s Hut: Grisla, Chum’s witch (apprentice 
  witch), lives in a crooked but sturdy hut on the 
  village’s westernmost edge, having inherited the place 
  from the crone who taught her the art. Grisla tends 
  to	the	locals’	ailments,	delivers	children,	and	offers	
  wisdom to those who seek it. She is a young, plain 
  woman, intelligent and sharp-tongued, with no time 
  or patience for nonsense.
  Stranger Tides
  The adventure starts in the late afternoon, when 
  fishers	row	back	to	shore,	their	boats	riding	low	on	the	
  water from the weight of their catch. Most of the boats 
  reach the docks, but one is out in the water, some 20 
  yards away, when 5 shrieking eels attack the boat and 
  the	two	fishermen	on	board.
  	 Award	Fortune	to	the	first	character	to	attempt	to	
  help	the	fishermen.	If	the	characters	manage	to	rescue	
  at least one, the characters make attack rolls with 1 
  boon	in	any	social	conflicts	or	interactions	involving	
  the locals. Finally, such characters can eat and drink 
  at The Captain’s Widow free until the adventure ends. 
  In the boat, if rescued, is a weird idol pulled up from 
  the waters and worth 5 ss.
   Within an hour after the attack, more shrieking eels 
  enter the bay’s waters, screaming when they break 
  the water’s surface. They appear in such numbers the 
  locals fear to go back out onto the waters. Anyone can 
  tell the characters the eels are sometimes spotted in 
  these waters, but never in such numbers. Locals can 
  tell the characters that Grisla (Witch’s Hut) or Father 
  Yenniker (Temple of Oceanus) might know more 
  about what’s going on.
   Grisla: The young witch doesn’t know why the 
  shrieking eels have descended on Chum, but she’s 
  not surprised. Over the last few nights, she’s been 
  experiencing strange dreams of a faceless man 
  suspended on strings like a marionette, made to walk 
  through the village, repeatedly crying out “my child, 
  my son!” Grisla believes danger is coming and that it 
  is somehow connected with the man in her dreams.
  
  99
   If the characters ask after anyone who has recently 
  lost a child, Grisla mentions two names: Micca and 
  Soren. Micca’s son drowned three months ago, while 
  Soren’s son died under mysterious circumstances. 
  Both	men	work	as	fishers.
   Father Yenniker: The	characters	find	Father	
  Yenniker drunk in the temple, seated on the ground 
  at the base of the idol, stinking of rum and puke. He’s 
  been drinking all day, and dried vomit covers the front 
  of his robes. Although he slurs his words, he can tell 
  the characters the following information:
  • It’s unnatural for so many eels to show up. 
  • The old witch (confusing the long-dead crone 
  with Grisla) might have something to do with it. 
  Everyone knows she ruts with devils.
  • Maybe	one	of	the	fishermen	disturbed	something	
  they shouldn’t have. Those men pull all sorts of 
  weird things up from the sea. 
   Sunken Treasure: The	fishers	at	The	Captain’s	
  Widow or on the docks watching the eels admit they 
  have pulled all sorts of unusual things out of the sea, 
  perhaps coughed up by the ruined city reputed to lie 
  on	the	bottom	just	offshore.	Most	throw	these	finds	
  back, believing them to be cursed. If the characters 
  ask if anyone pulled up anything recently, a few 
  fishermen	look	around	at	each	other	awkwardly	until	
  one	finally	says	that	Micca	found	a	medallion	just	last	
  week. Micca is not at the tavern nor the docks, but the 
  fishers	can	point	out	to	the	characters	where	he	lives.
   Soren: The	characters	can	find	Soren	(hired killer) 
  in The Captain’s Widow. He’s pounding down ale, one 
  after the other, becoming surlier as he goes. If asked 
  about his son, he says the boy died of sickness. If 
  pressed, he becomes violent. If intimidated or injured, 
  he breaks down in heaving sobs, confessing that he 
  killed his boy in a drunken rage.
  	 If	the	characters	search	Soren’s	shack,	they	find	he	
  lives alone in one of the drab buildings fronting the bay. 
  There’s nothing of value or suspicion in his house.
   Micca: Characters	searching	for	Micca	don’t	find	
  him—yet. Anyone can direct the group to the man’s 
  house, which is a small shack with three rooms, one of 
  which is the room once occupied by a boy, left exactly 
  the	way	it	was	when	he	died.	The	characters	don’t	find	
  much searching the place, but they do note that there 
  are no knives of any kind in the shack and that there’s 
  a strange stink of burned meat everywhere inside.
  The Fog Rolls In
  An hour after sunset, thick fog rolls in and heavily 
  obscures the village. The eels continue to shriek and 
  splash in the waters as the demon goads Micca to 
  begin killing, so his victims can add their screams to 
  the unholy din.
   Phantoms: Several phantoms walk through the fog, 
  crying out “the son has returned.” The spirits, formerly 
  the souls of drowned sailors, might attack characters 
  they encounter, but no more than two at a time.
  Bloody Butchery
  Micca (hired killer) moves from shack to shack, 
  murdering	any	occupants	he	finds,	believing	that	
  doing so will bring his dead son back to life. It takes 
  him 3d6 minutes to kill all the occupants before he 
  moves on to the next location. Each time he kills, 
  his Corruption score increases by 1. Characters 
  happening upon a crime scene discover the victims 
  with their throats slit and sexual organs removed.
   Covered in blood, his chest burned from the 
  medallion	hanging	around	his	neck,	eyes	flashing	
  with madness, Micca attacks the characters when they 
  confront him. Micca’s statistics change based on his 
  Corruption score, as shown below.
  Micca’s Corruption and Talents
  Corruption
  Talent
  3 or less
  Micca gains a +4 bonus to Defense and a +10 
  bonus to Health.
  4–5
  Micca makes attack rolls with 1 boon and 
  deals 1d6 extra damage.
  6–7
  Twin Strike Micca attacks twice with his long 
  knife, making each attack roll with 1 bane.
  8 or more
  Micca gains the Horrifying trait.
  Conclusion
  The adventure ends when the characters kill or 
  subdue Micca. In either case, the demon hides in the 
  medallion. If taken, the character possessing it risks 
  being corrupted by it. If the medallion is destroyed, 
  a small demon appears in an open space within 5 
  yards of the broken device and attacks until injured, at 
  which	point	it	flees.	
  	 Defeating	or	driving	off	the	demon	clears	the	bay	of	
  the shrieking eels. The locals somehow scrounge up a 
  reward of 50 ss for the characters.
  The Face in Bronze
  A	fist-sized	bronze	amulet	wrought	to	look	like	a	
  leering old man’s face hangs on a heavy chain. The 
  metal feels warm to the touch and its shadow seems to 
  flicker	and	dance	regardless	of	the	lighting	conditions.
  Demon Possessed A small demon hides within the medallion 
  and cannot leave it until the medallion is destroyed. The 
  demon can communicate telepathically with any creature 
  wearing it and can create illusions only the wearer can see 
  that otherwise function as the glamer Illusion spell.
  Sense Demons The medallion grows warm when within 
  20 yards of a demon or an ongoing effect created by a 
  Demonology spell. The medallion grows hot when within 
  5 yards of such things, hot enough to cook the flesh it 
  touches, though without dealing damage to the wearer. 
  
  10
  Flying Colors
  By Nat Webb
  The ghost ship Islander	floats	on	the	
  Auroral Ocean, a trail of blood in its 
  wake. Three days ago, Anne the Red 
  and the crew of the Orphanmaker 
  boarded her, searching for a famous treasure rumored 
  to be carried by the Islander’s captain, Edmund 
  Doughty.	The	pirates	failed	to	find	the	treasure,	but	
  the hapless crew of the Islander will never awaken 
  from the nightmare of violence into which they were 
  plunged. The group completes this adventure when 
  they learn who attacked the Islander and obtain 
  Doughty’s treasure.
  The Ghost Ship
  The Islander is a small sloop from the Pirate Isles, 
  carrying ten guns and a crew of about thirty. Under 
  Captain Edmund Doughty, she ran packets and light 
  shipping for the Captains’ Circle, preferring to take 
  honest work rather than engage in actual piracy.
   The Islander was boarded by the Orphanmaker’s 
  crew three days ago; the pirates were searching for a 
  magical pocket watch that was said to be in Captain 
  Doughty’s	possession.	They	failed	to	find	the	watch,	
  and in a rage, Anne ordered the crew of the Islander 
  slaughtered.
   The Islander	can	appear	anywhere	you	wish,	floating	
  adrift out of a fog or appearing after a storm. She has 
  all sails set and drifts at random unless her anchor is 
  dropped, leaving a massive red smear of blood in the 
  water wherever she goes.
  The Pocket Watch
  Captain Doughty did indeed possess the magical 
  pocket watch sought by the pirate captain. He was 
  bringing it back from Lij, the City of Wonders, as a 
  gift for one of the Captains’ Circle when the Islander 
  was taken. Anne learned of the watch’s existence from 
  Nathanial Hawkins, a spy for the pirate captain who 
  was posing as a sailor on the Islander.
   The watch appears to be normal. When found, it 
  has wound down and is not ticking. It can be wound 
  anywhere from one to twelve turns and then run for 
  an equal number of hours.
   The watch does nothing abnormal during the day, 
  but if it is running between dusk and dawn, a large 
  demon immediately springs from the watch and 
  begins attacking all those around it other than the 
  watch’s bearer. It begins with damage equal to ten for 
  every hour less than twelve the watch was wound, 
  so if the watch has seven hours remaining, 
  the demon begins with 50 damage. It gains 10 
  damage every hour. The demon disappears 
  instantly if the watch winds down or when 
  dawn breaks.
  Aboard the Islander
  How the Islander appears depends on whether 
  the group boards her during the day or night. 
  Specific	differences	are	given	below,	but	the	
  most obvious is that at night, the restless ghosts 
  of	the	Islander’s	crew	relive	their	final	moments	
  in the brutal battle that claimed their lives.
  Main Deck
  The main deck of the Islander boasts four guns 
  on each side, with two chase guns set at the bow 
  and stern, and a single great mast with full sail 
  set from her attempt to outrun the Orphanmaker. 
  The main deck is red with blood and covered 
  in a shattered mess of splinters and rope. There 
  are no bodies. The billowing of the sails and the 
  creaking ropes are the only sounds one can hear 
  other than a single errant cannonball that rolls 
  around the deck as the ship pitches.
   Night: Most of the Islander’s crew is on 
  deck serving the ship’s guns. These spirits 
  are too distracted to notice the party unless 
  interrupted,	in	which	case	they	fight	as	
  phantoms.
  
  1111
  	 There	are	four	riflemen	(manes, but dealing  
  3d6	damage	with	their	rifles)	seated	on	two	high	
  crossbars of the mast, who believe the characters to be 
  boarders.	They	fire	on	opposite	turns,	so	two	shots	per	
  turn. The crossbars are 5 and 10 yards up and hold two 
  spirits each. If the characters cuts down their crossbars 
  during the day, these spirits do not return at night.
  Poop Deck
  The ship’s wheel spins freely; clearly the line to the 
  rudder has been cut. The ship’s bell hangs nearby. 
  The binnacle (a standing compartment by the wheel) 
  holds an hourglass, sextant, and compass. Peering 
  through the sextant shows every living creature 
  viewed as a ghastly version of itself; the viewer gains 
  1	Insanity.	The	first	two	can	be	removed	but	the	
  compass is bolted down, and can only be read if the 
  small oil lamp in the binnacle is lit. The compass 
  spins wildly and does not stop. None of these items 
  have	any	effect	off	the	Islander.
   Night: The sextant shows any spirits in their 
  original, corporeal forms.
   Starting the hourglass at night causes the bloody 
  half-hour of the attack to play out in phantom form 
  around the ship. The group sees a ghostly version 
  of the Orphanmaker come alongside, and all hell 
  breaking loose as the pirates board the Islander. The 
  name of the Orphanmaker is clearly visible on her side 
  and	stern,	as	is	her	pirate	flag.	The	characters	can	
  move about the ship in the chaos, but come under 
  attack by 1d3 sailors or pirates (manes) each time they 
  move from one area to another. After the sand runs 
  out, the melee disappears and the ship reverts to its 
  usual static scene of phantom battle.
   Ringing the bell eight times at night causes the 
  ship’s crew to go through a change of watch, as the 
  sailors and marines from the orlop deck replace those 
  on the main deck. If they move quickly, the group can 
  slip into the captain’s cabin during this changeover.
  Captain’s Cabin
  Captain Doughty’s small private cabin contains a bed, 
  writing desk and chair, the stern chase cannon, and a 
  locked sea chest holding the captain’s clothing and 50 
  cp in paper rolls of ten each. Two unlit lanterns hang 
  by the glass windows at the rear of the room.
   Sitting on the writing desk are two books: Forester’s 
  Manual of Seamanship and the ship’s log. The Manual 
  is open to a page detailing the proper ringing of the 
  ship’s bell: one ring for every half an hour in a watch, 
  culminating in eight rings to signal change of watch. 
  Tucked into this page is a note from the Captains’ 
  Circle commanding Captain Doughty to begin using 
  this method of timekeeping.
   The ship’s log is mostly dull, but details the 
  Islander’s arrival and departure from Lij eight days 
  earlier.	Its	final	entry	is	noteworthy:	Under attack by 
  Anne the Red, damn her eyes! Hawkins must have tipped 
  him off, may that bastard burn in Hell forever! I must not 
  let the watch fall into her hands. I shall wind it and then 
  we shall see. God forgive me, but I shall wind it.
   There is a false panel built into the left-hand wall  
  of the cabin. Behind it is a small locked chest that 
  holds the pocket watch, 14 ss in a silk handkerchief, 
  and a love letter from a woman named Rosie.
   Night: At night the door to the captain’s cabin 
  is guarded by two phantom marines (phantoms, 
  with the Hero role applied, wielding ghostly 
  sabers).	The	first	time	the	group	approaches,	they	
  see these marines brutally cut down two pirates, 
  which dissipate into smoke. The group can slip into 
  the cabin during a change of watch or during the 
  phantom boarding action (see Poop Deck above),  
  but will be attacked by one phantom marine and  
  1d3 manes in the latter case.
   Within the cabin, the ghost of Captain Doughty 
  is desperately clawing at the false panel, glancing 
  behind him in terror every few seconds. If disturbed 
  he	fights	as	a	phantom.
   If either of the lanterns is lit, the grinning face of 
  Anne	the	Red	can	be	seen	in	the	reflected	glow	on	the	
  stern windows.
  Orlop
  Dozens of hammocks are slung from the beams 
  of the lower deck. Blood is everywhere, as well as 
  the scattered remains of sailors’ belongings, but no 
  bodies.	In	the	bloody	muck	on	the	floor	are	3d20	bits	
  and	1d20	cp.	Hidden	under	the	filth	is	a	locked	hatch	
  that leads down to the hold.
   Night: The ghostly corpses of sailors, their throats 
  slit,	fill	the	hammocks.	Phantom	boys	run	powder	
  cartridges from the magazine to the stairs.
  Magazine
  This small room holds the ship’s black powder stores, 
  which	are	extremely	flammable,	evident	to	anyone	who	
  gets a success on a Perception challenge roll. Anyone 
  carelessly entering this room with metal armor or 
  weapons	will,	on	a	roll	of	1	on	1d20,	spark	a	flame	that	
  will explode and sink the ship in 1d3 minutes. Bringing 
  an	unprotected	flame	into	this	room	accomplishes	the	
  same	effect	without	having	to	roll.
  Hold
  The hold contains the corpses of the Islander’s entire 
  crew, where the pirates stowed them before cutting 
  the ship loose. The hold stinks of death, with an 
  unnaturally large pool of blood in its center, which is 
  leaking profusely into the ocean.
  
  12
  The Cursed 
  Snuffbox
  By Robert Adducci
  Wrecker’s Roost, a small town 
  on one of the Pirate Isles, has 
  a problem—its people are 
  disappearing at an alarming rate. 
  When Lord Halidale Insmeister’s son went missing, 
  he	offered	a	reward	to	anyone	who	can	find	and	
  return his son. The characters complete the adventure 
  when they unmask the villain responsible for the 
  disappearances, and destroy the cursed relic that  
  gives him his power.
  Klinz and the  
  Cursed Snuffbox
  Balic Klinz, a cultist of the Unspeakable One, recently 
  came into the possession of a cursed relic, purchasing 
  the item from a member of the Orphanmaker’s crew 
  when the pirate vessel last came into port. The relic 
  turns people into vile seaborne beastmen, and Klinz 
  has been using it on townspeople he’s kidnapped.
  	 The	Snuffbox:	When	a	creature	inhales	snuff	
  from this small silver container, it must get a success 
  on a Will challenge roll with 3 banes or gain 1d3 
  Corruption, 1d3 Insanity, and become cursed (as if by 
  a rank 5 spell). While cursed in this way, a creature 
  becomes	addicted	to	the	snuff	and	is	subject	to	the	
  effects	of	deprivation	as	if	the	snuff	were	food.	If	the	
  creature’s Corruption total reaches 9, the creature 
  transforms into a seaborne beastman, retaining none 
  of its original statistics, and is no longer addicted to 
  the	snuff.
   Seaborne Beastmen: Beastmen created by the 
  curse gain physical qualities of aquatic creatures 
  instead of goats, wolves, or bulls. Seaborne fomors 
  have seal heads, seaborne wargs have barracuda 
  heads, while seaborne minotaurs have walrus heads. 
  As well, many have scaly skin, chitinous armor, 
  maws of shark teeth, narwhal-like horns, tentacles, 
  spines,	fins,	webbed	hands,	walrus-like	tusks,	or	
  pincer-like claws instead of hands. All seaborne 
  beastmen have the swimmer trait. 
  Nightly Events
  Each night, Klinz and his beastmen kidnap locals. 
   First Night: The seaborne beastmen terrorize the 
  coastal villages. The next morning word reaches the 
  town	that	a	small	fishing	village	north	of	the	town	was	
  decimated, all its occupants gone. If explored, tracks 
  lead into the sea.
   If the characters explore the coast, 1d3 wargs, 1d6 
  mutant crabs (large animal with swimmer trait), and 
  1d6	+	1 fomor emerge from the water and attack. The 
  beastmen take prisoners and bring them to Klinz’s 
  shrine.
   Second Night: Klinz searches for more victims. 
  If the characters have spoken with him, he might 
  approach	one	character	and	offer	pinches	of	snuff	
  from	his	snuffbox.
   Third Night: A dockworker goes missing sometime 
  during his shift. If the characters are on the docks 
  2d3 wargs and 1d3 mutant crabs (large animals with 
  swimmer trait) attack them. The beastmen take any 
  prisoners to Klinz’s shrine.
   Fourth Night: The beastmen raid a homestead on 
  the edge of town. All of the inhabitants are either 
  missing or dead. Tracks lead into the sea, most of 
  them human—one set, however, is particularly large 
  and	flipper-like.	The	townsfolk	are	visibly	afraid.	The	
  sheriff	offers	50	gc,	which	he	gained	from	the	noble,	to	
  find	who	is	behind	the	raids.
   Fifth Night: A search party that went north to the 
  Devil’s Fingers fails to return before dark.
  
  1313
  Rumors and 
  Investigation
  The following rumors spread in response to the 
  disappearances and the unsettling sightings.
  • The sea swallows people who spend too much 
  time by it at night.
  • The disappeared were transformed into sea 
  wolves, skinchangers of the sea.
  • People leave all the time; most likely, these people 
  had business out of town.
  • Friends and family of several missing people 
  claim to have seen their loved ones on the shore 
  just north of town.
  • A	small	fishing	vessel	with	a	half	dozen	crew	was	due	
  yesterday,	but	hasn’t	been	seen.	Their	favorite	fishing	
  spot was north of town near the Devil’s Fingers.
  • Tisvale Insmeister has recently been consorting 
  with a rough crowd. A mate of his recalls that he 
  met with some of the crew of the pirate vessel 
  Orphanmaker. The Orphanmaker is no longer in 
  port, but the man who introduced Tisvale to the 
  pirates is. The man’s name is Klinz.
  People and Places
  Characters investigating the disappearances are 
  bound to run across the following people and places.
   Balic Klinz: The villain responsible for all the 
  disappearances, Balic Klinz devoted himself to the 
  Unspeakable One following the drownings of his wife 
  and children at sea. Driven mad by grief and alcohol, 
  he yearns to see the whole world drown. He believes 
  the	snuffbox	came	to	him	by	the	will	of	his	dark	
  master and sees it as his “sacred” duty to transform 
  everyone he can. 
   Klize wears a worn-out long brown coat and a dirty 
  tricorn hat. He speaks quickly, occasionally stopping 
  as if lost in thought for a moment, before resuming 
  what	he	was	saying.	If	questioned,	he	offers	the	
  following information:
  • He arranged a meeting between Tisvale Insmeister 
  and the pirate crew of the Orphanmaker.
  • Klinz reveals he met the crew when he purchased 
  the	ornate	snuffbox	from	them.
  • He lies about not knowing what happened after 
  the	meeting	(he	gave	Tisvale	cursed	snuff	and	took	
  him to the shrine of the Unspeakable One).
  • When the characters push for more information 
  Klinz tells them that Tisvale was involved with 
  some questionable folk who kept a small pirate 
  camp north of town along the coast, giving them 
  specific	directions	to	the	camp.
  • If captured and interrogated, Klinz reveals the 
  location of the shrine and from whom he got  
  the	snuffbox.
  	 If	threatened	or	attacked,	Klinz	pulls	the	snuffbox	
  from his pocket and blows in the box, causing a  
  cloud	of	snuff	to	erupt	from	it.	All	creatures	within	 
  3 yards are exposed to the powder, including Klinz,  
  as described above. 
   Pirate Camp: A ruined pirate camp sits north  
  of town along the coast in a small cove. If Klinz 
  pointed the group to the camp, he sends 2d3 wargs 
  and 1d3 mutant crabs (large animal with swimmer 
  trait) to capture them. Defeated characters are taken 
  to Klinz’s shrine. Captured beastmen can reveal the 
  location of the shrine.
   Devil’s Fingers: Near	a	cliff	face	north	of	town,	
  several pillars of rock jut up from the sea. Locals call 
  the place Devil’s Fingers for their crooked appearance. 
  Klinz found a submerged entrance to a cave system 
  there and uses the caves as his shrine. At night, Klinz 
  might be spotted swimming down to the entrance 
  with his latest victim in tow. At the tunnel entrance,  
  4 mutant crabs (large animal with swimmer trait) 
  stand	guard.	The	tunnel	leads	to	an	air-filled	cavern	
  system with three separate caves linked by short 
  passages. 
   Inside the cave is a shrine to the Unspeakable One, 
  assembled from driftwood and decorated with bits  
  of rubbish pulled from the sea. At any time, there are 
  1d6 fomor and 1d3 wargs here performing profane 
  rites and rutting. 
   In an adjoining cavern an additional 1d6 fomor and 
  1d3 wargs watch over 5 prisoners, each of which have 
  almost transformed into fomor. The prisoners are 
  what	remains	of	Tisvale	Insmeister	and	the	fishing	
  crew. Klinz is here watching over the transformation 
  of his newest servants. Once combat breaks out, Klinz 
  calls for the minotaur, who rushes into the room 
  during the next round.
  	 The	third	cavern	is	Klinz’s	private	chambers,	filled	
  with treasure from the sea, some of which is valuable, 
  totaling 200 gc. Klinz’s possessions are guarded over 
  by	an	ogre	that	the	cursed	snuffbox	corrupted	into	a	
  seaborn minotaur with long walrus-like tusks jutting 
  out from its face. 
  Conclusion
  Killing	Klinz	or	taking	the	snuffbox	temporarily	ends	
  the curse. There is no way to reverse the curse for 
  those already turned into beastmen, but the ones who 
  have	yet	to	succumb	see	the	curse’s	effects	fade	over	
  time provided they perform no other vile acts that 
  corrupt them further.
  
  14
  The Eelwives’ 
  Lament
  By Jason Bulmahn
  Not everything that the pirate 
  captain Anne the Red and her men 
  stole from Rudebendius Mal was of 
  obvious value. Some of the objects 
  were grotesque and bizarre, most particularly the 
  Phallus of the Eelwives, a pickled eel with its tail cut 
  off	that	twitches	and	undulates	inside	an	iron-banded	
  jar. When Arctan Holbrin, a wealthy merchant lord, 
  saw the foul thing and its accompanying ritual book, 
  he bought it without a second thought.
   Arctan has never been too popular with the fairer sex, 
  usually	leaving	his	partners	frustrated	and	unsatisfied;	
  he is often the butt of mean-spirited jokes questioning 
  his prowess told behind his back. The Phallus, however, 
  offered	to	change	all	that	by	giving	him	the	ability	to	
  please anyone with a taste for such things, male or 
  female, if only he grafts it onto himself.
   This adventure begins on the night of Arctan’s 
  terrible ritual, which also summons the Eelwives 
  to emerge from the briny depths to demand their 
  pleasure. The group completes the adventure when 
  they destroy the Phallus.
  Setting the Adventure
  This adventure takes place in a small port town 
  of your choice before the player characters track 
  down the pirates selling off stolen goods. The 
  precise location of the included scenes is left 
  vague so that you can place them around the 
  characters as they deal with the rising tide of 
  eelwives.
   The nightmare begins an hour after sundown, as 
  Arctan begins the ritual to replace his own sexual 
  organ with the Phallus. Start with “Raining Eels,” 
  following up with any scenes that are appropriate 
  to the characters’ situation. Make sure to include 
  “Eelwives Rise” sometime around 11 p.m. The 
  events of the evening conclude at around 1 a.m. with 
  “Eelwives’ Pleasure,” unless ended earlier by the 
  group’s actions.
  Scenes
  The following scenes start at approximately 9pm with 
  “Raining Eels.” In addition to this introduction to the 
  terror of the evening, only the “Eelwives Rise” scene 
  is required, which marks the transition into the late-
  night scenes. Note that scenes marked “late night” can 
  only occur after “Eelwives Rise.”
   Raining Eels: Arctan’s initiation of the ritual 
  causes a sudden storm to materialize over the town. 
  This takes place in just under 30 minutes, and any 
  character outdoors must get a success on an Intellect 
  challenge roll with 1 boon to determine that the storm 
  is not a natural occurrence, and that it seems to be 
  centered on the town, forming over Arctan’s house, 
  which	is	in	the	most	affluent	neighborhood.
  	 At	first,	thick	clouds	form	over	the	town,	and	then	
  after several incredibly loud thunderclaps, a heavy 
  downpour—a mix of slimy rain and thousands of 
  small biting eels—begins to fall. Characters outdoors 
  must make an Agility challenge roll with 1 bane; any 
  who fail are knocked prone and take 1d3 damage from 
  the biting eels.
   After 30 minutes, the storm turns to simple driving 
  rain, with the majority of the eels slithering away 
  or	rolling	off	into	deep	puddles,	ponds,	and	gutters,	
  making them somewhat treacherous to fall into.
   Wounded Sailor: A drunken sailor comes bursting 
  into the nearest tavern, screaming for a doctor and 
  holding the crotch of his trousers. It is clear he has 
  been terribly wounded and blood pours down his 
  legs. He takes a swing at anyone who tries to restrain 
  him without saying that they can help him (impaired 
  commoner).
   Characters examining the man see that his pants are 
  ripped	and	his	genitals	have	been	bitten	off.	Getting	a	
  success on an Intellect challenge roll with 1 bane can stop 
  
  1515
  the bleeding, as well as identify that whatever caused the 
  wound had rows and rows of razor-sharp teeth. 
   If questioned, the sailor says that a beautiful 
  maiden, entirely naked, approached him down by 
  the docks and lustily embraced him. Not a moment 
  later	his	manhood	was	bitten	off,	but	he	swears	that	
  her mouth was locked on his and nowhere near his 
  crotch. The only other thing he remembers is that she 
  was “cold… oh so cold.”
   Guarded Panic: Four guards of the town militia 
  (patrollers) are hurriedly making their way back to 
  the guard station. They could be encountered on 
  the street, discussing the terrible rumors in hushed 
  tones, or at the local tavern where they stopped for a 
  pint to calm their nerves. In either case, they will not 
  speak freely if they believe anyone is attempting to 
  eavesdrop.  
   The guards have been getting strange reports from 
  all over town ever since the storm began, some related 
  to the eelwives, others not. Feel free to add your own 
  rumors or red herrings as appropriate.
  • A young girl was found face down in a puddle 
  filled	with	eels.	She	was	dead,	her	face	having	
  been	entirely	eaten	off.
  • The harbormaster reported seeing strange shapes 
  walking atop the waves and screams coming from 
  one of the small ships moored in the harbor. The 
  entire crew has gone missing.
  • Screams were heard coming from a house in the 
  merchant quarter just as the storm set in, but 
  nobody is sure from where.
  • Odd chanting was heard coming from inside a 
  burnt-out shrine just after the rainstorm began. 
  The guard reported hearing calls to a long-
  forgotten storm god.
   Eelwives Rise: A few hours after the storm begins, a 
  few dozen eelwives walk into the harbor, totally naked 
  but for the seaweed draped upon them, striding across 
  the water as if it were dry land. These waterlogged 
  corpses were once women who drowned themselves 
  while lamenting a lost love. Sinking into the depths, 
  they became hosts to a foul colony of corrupted eels, 
  all	of	whom	were	also	female,	desperate	to	find	the	
  last male of their species. The male eel was caught 
  years ago by Rudebendius Mal and transformed into 
  the cursed phallus. Drawn to it, the eelwives followed 
  the pirate ship and have now come ashore, hoping to 
  find	their	mate	and	consummate	their	desire.	
   When the eelwives emerge, they immediately 
  begin terrorizing the town. They brutally slaughter 
  any woman they meet, and attempt to seduce any 
  man and devour his genitals. The eelwives should 
  be treated as zombies. They can move across liquid 
  surfaces, i.e., walk on water. Creatures who gain 
  Insanity from seeing the eelwives also become 
  charmed for as long as they remain frightened from 
  gaining Insanity in this way. Finally, if an eelwife grabs 
  a male character with its grasping hands, its next 
  attack is made with the eels (treat as the teeth attack, 
  but with 1 extra boon).
   The eelwives begin at the harbor, methodically 
  working their way toward the merchant’s home, 
  where their mate awaits. The characters can learn 
  about	this	from	fleeing	townsfolk,	terrified	guards,	
  horribly wounded men, or the general chaos and 
  screaming in the streets.
   A Feast (Late Night): By now, the characters are 
  probably searching for the source of the mayhem. 
  In the market square a group of eelwives (one 
  per character) is attempting to devour a group of 
  guardsmen. Most of the men have strange looks of 
  ecstasy on their face, even though eels protruding out 
  of the women are gnawing away at their genitals. If 
  the characters have not yet encountered the eelwives, 
  they must make a Will challenge roll against the 
  Horrifying trait with 1 extra bane.
   Last Stand (Late Night): A group of commoners 
  have barricaded themselves in an alley behind a pair 
  of overturned wagons. They are being beset by the 
  eelwives and as the characters arrive, the men in the 
  group are planning on making a run for it to lure 
  them	away.	If	the	characters	can	fight	them	off,	the	
  alley might be made defensible.
   Eelwives’ Pleasure (Late Night): Eventually the 
  eelwives make it to Arctan’s abode, intent upon taking 
  him back to the sea, where they will use him to sate 
  their long-deferred desires.
   Arctan has spent the evening in agony. Driven 
  mad by carnal urges, but unable to control his new 
  body part, he instead locked himself in his study, 
  and	is	fighting	to	gain	control	of	the	Phallus.	All	of	
  his	servants	have	fled	except	for	his	old	butler,	who	
  stands at the front door, desperately calling out for 
  help. He does not know what Arctan did, but his duty 
  to his master has kept him here, despite the agonizing 
  screams	and	bloody	mess.	If	the	eelwives	arrive	first,	
  they tear the butler apart.
   It should not be hard for the characters to follow 
  the eelwives here. They can attempt to force their way 
  inside,	only	to	find	Arctan	fighting	with	himself	in	his	
  blood-splattered study. If they kill Arctan, the Phallus 
  detaches and tries to attach itself to the nearest male 
  character.	They	can	instead	try	to	cut	it	off.	In	either	
  case, treat the phallus as a shrieking eel. Any attacks 
  made against it while it is still attached to Arctan, who 
  fights	to	protect	it,	are	made	with	1	bane.	They	might	
  also simply stand aside and let the eelwives claim the 
  man, causing the characters to make a Will challenge 
  roll or gain 1d3 Insanity and 1 Corruption.
   The eelwives peacefully return to the waters once 
  they have the Phallus. If it’s destroyed, all of the 
  eelwives’ bodies instantly fall apart, with rotting eels 
  and slime pouring out of their slimy remains.
  
  16
  The Lurid 
  Lighthouse
  By Greg Marks
  After their big score, not all of the 
  Orphanmaker’s crew were content 
  to continue to follow their captain. 
  One particular troublemaker, “Restless” Braxton Rave, 
  was the pirate ship’s sea artist, or navigator. Under 
  Restless’s sway, a few pirates stole more than their 
  allotted shares and set out on their own. They are 
  hiding from the wrath of Anne the Red in the ruins 
  of a lighthouse on a small islet across from whatever 
  seaside	village	or	town	the	characters	currently	find	
  themselves.	Selling	off	pieces	of	their	ill-gotten	gains,	
  the renegade crew are unknowingly spreading cursed 
  items about as they themselves are slowly mutating 
  into	horrific	monstrosities.	
   Either from previous adventures, or through 
  scuttlebutt heard while in town, the characters have 
  determined the ruined lighthouse to be the hideout 
  of unsavory persons responsible for selling or trading 
  away many of the cursed items they’ve encountered  
  or heard about so far.
  The Islet
  The islet is no more than a ten-minute walk across 
  rocky terrain, covered in scrub and a few trees. While 
  the pirates once mounted a more thorough watch 
  of	their	home,	the	treasure’s	corrupting	effect	has	
  made them apathetic and inattentive, allowing the 
  characters to land unnoticed. 
   Bloody Sally and Jon Stringer still make patrols 
  of the island during the day. After dark, “Restless” 
  Braxton Rave, or more accurately the thing he has 
  become, swims out of the undersea caves with its 
  young, in search of food. 
  The Beach
  A	small	bay	offers	a	sandy	landing	and	protection	
  from the sight of passing ships. A launch, with the 
  name Orphanmaker painted on the side, is hidden in 
  the	bushes.	A	cold	campfire	not	more	than	a	few	days	
  old	contains	the	remnants	of	fish	bones.	
   Characters searching the area who get a success on 
  a Perception challenge roll with 1 bane locate a cache 
  buried in the sand under the boat that includes 2d6 ss 
  worth of goods taken from the ship and a pouch with 
  1d6 ss and 1 gc. The coins are strange and foreign to 
  the characters, having been minted in Eremeä.
   If the characters search the beach, or spend 
  significant	time	here,	they	attract	the	attention	of	
  Bloody Sally and Jon Stringer.
  The Lighthouse
  The ruined lighthouse is visible atop a low hill. Only a 
  story and a half remain, the rest having collapsed into 
  the sea long ago. There are no windows on the ground 
  floor.	A	stench	comes	from	a	nearby	shallow	pit	the	
  pirates haphazardly dug to use as a latrine.
   Ground Floor: The door to the lighthouse is barred 
  unless Sally and Jon are on patrol, but can be battered 
  down if a character gets a success on a Strength 
  challenge roll with 1 bane. The room has ten bedrolls, 
  though all but two of them do not appear to have been 
  used	in	some	time.	Stone	stairs	go	up	to	the	next	floor	
  and down to the basement. 
   Next to a small hearth is a trunk locked with a  
  good lock that imposes 2 banes on attempts to  
  pick it. Bloody Sally has the key. In the trunk are  
  7d6 cp, 5d6 ss, and a gem worth 10 gc that glows 
  with a sickly purple light when held against warm 
  skin. Any character with the gem in their possession 
  who completes a rest must get a success on a Will 
  challenge roll with 1 bane or gain 1 Insanity from 
  horrific	dreams	about	the	sea.
   Bloody Sally and Jon Stringer (pirates, see 
  Appendix) make this place their home for now. Sally 
  has developed weeping sores all over her body, and 
  Jon has horrible dreams about wanting to drown. The 
  pair has grown fearful of what’s been happening to 
  the	others	and	plan	to	run	off	the	next	time	they	take	
  the launch for supplies. They are looking for a way 
  out, so any attempts to convince the pair to turn on 
  their fellows are possible and made with 1 boon if they 
  are allowed to take their treasure with them. If bribed, 
  they are willing to describe the horrors that have 
  befallen	them	since	finding	the	Queen	of	Gold	and	
  leaving the Orphanmaker. They don’t know where the 
  Queen of Gold is, but believe Hawkfaced Jake might.
   Second Floor: The stinking, tarp-covered ruin of the 
  second	floor	has	become	the	domain	of	Hawkfaced	
  Jake (veteran). The walls are covered in drawings 
  of people from the village, inked from Jake’s blood, 
  semen, and feces. Jake spends his days with a tripod-
  mounted spyglass, watching the people of the village 
  and taking notes. While his journal originally detailed 
  potential threats and scores, it becomes increasingly 
  incoherent over time. The later pages focus entirely on 
  lovingly detailed descriptions of the village’s children 
  and their routines. If studied in detail, there are 
  enough clues throughout to construct a map to hunt 
  for the Queen of Gold; doing so, however, will take a 
  week of study and threatens the sanity of the reader. 
  The character must get a success on a Will challenge 
  roll with 2 banes or gain 1d3 Insanity.
   If bothered, Jake becomes irate, unleashing the 
  full horror of his corruption. His genitals have 
  mutated into a two-headed eel creature (treat as an 
  amphisbaena with a speed of 0). 
  
  1717
   Basement: The	basement	is	filled	with	a	dozen	or	
  so empty trunks and lockers. Behind the stack, there 
  is what appears to be pile of bloody clothing. Closer 
  inspection requires the character succeed on a Will 
  challenge roll with 2 banes or gain 1d3 Insanity when 
  they realize that it is not just a pile of cloth, but also 
  several sets of moldering human skin ripped skull  
  to groin.
   The walls are covered in deep gouges and in one 
  spot the wall has been broken through to a natural 
  tunnel that winds its way down to the undersea caves. 
  A success on an Intellect challenge roll notes that 
  many of the bricks are missing. The tunnel has been 
  rigged with a crude falling bricks trap. 
  Falling Bricks Trap
  A net filled with bricks has been fastened to the 
  ceiling and disguised with wet mud. The bricks 
  are rigged to collapse when a creature steps 
  on a tripwire. When sprung, the bricks fall from 
  the ceiling and any creature under it takes 4d6 
  damage. A creature takes half the damage with a 
  success on an Agility challenge roll. A success on 
  Perception challenge roll finds the tripwire and a 
  success on an Intellect challenge roll disarms it.
  Undersea Caves
  The hole in the basement proceeds through a natural 
  tunnel into the center of the islet where the gestation 
  cave can be found. The entire place is wet and smells 
  of rot. The thrumming sound of pounding surf echoes 
  throughout. 
   Gestation Cave: The tunnel ends in a room 
  half	filled	with	water.	Submerged	in	the	water	are	
  hundreds	of	fleshy	eggs	that	glow	with	a	sickly	
  phosphorescence. Inside each gestates a tiny horror: 
  a humanoid infant with distinctly piscine features. 
  Smashing an egg kills the fetus inside. The eggs are 
  surrounded by 3d6 Í 100 cp and 2d6 pieces of jewelry 
  worth 20 ss each; the coins and jewelry are all from 
  Eremeä. In the center of the room, rising out of the 
  water,	is	a	staff	made	of	coral-studded	driftwood.	A	
  success on an Intellect challenge roll suggests that 
  the	staff	is	somehow	helping	the	creatures	to	gestate.	
  If	taken,	the	staff	can	be	used	once	per	day	to	cast	the	
  wellspring of life spell from the Water tradition. Roll 
  a d6 when doing so: on a result of 1, the user gains 1 
  Insanity and becomes obsessed with the sea. 
   The fetuses are tended by six of the crew, now fully 
  transformed by their corruption into deep ones (see 
  Shadow of the Demon Lord Freeport Companion or use 
  wargs with the aquatic descriptor instead), the largest of 
  which is clearly the source of the eggs. Creatures in the 
  water	without	the	aquatic	descriptor	suffer	1	bane	when	
  making attacks and Agility challenge rolls. A tunnel 
  leads from this room to the feeding chamber. 
   Feeding Chamber: Like the gestation cave, this 
  room	is	half-filled	with	water.	Mounds	of	rotting	fish	
  and corpses rise above the water. The Thing (see 
  Appendix)	that	was	“Restless”	Braxton	Rave	staves	off	
  its endless hunger here and nurtures its spawn: 3 tiny 
  demons who take the form of piscine toddlers. Their 
  need to feed is overwhelming. 
   Exit Tunnel: This entirely submerged tunnel 
  exits from the feeding chamber out to the sea on the 
  opposite side of the island from the beach. The Thing 
  and the other corrupted pirates exit through here to 
  hunt when the sun goes down. 
  Ending the Curse
  In order to end the curse, all of the treasure must 
  be	destroyed,	such	as	being	cleansed	with	fire,	or	
  simply	cast	into	the	sea.	The	staff	and	purple	gem	
  are utterly evil and a sense magic spell reveals them to 
  be tainted with Demonology. The coins and jewelry 
  radiate magic as well, but can be safely melted down, 
  purified,	and	half	their	value	recovered	by	characters	
  determined	enough	to	make	the	effort.
  
  18
  The Queen  
  in Exile
  By Steve Kenson
  Having learned of the fabled  Queen 
  of Gold from current or former 
  crewmembers of the pirate ship 
  Orphanmaker, the characters set out 
  to	find	the	small	island	where	the	fantastic	treasure	is	
  hidden. What they do not know is that the Queen of 
  Gold is worth far more than a king’s ransom in precious 
  metal; she is also enlivened with a sorcerous spirit, one 
  that constantly exudes a corrupting magical energy.
   The Queen’s presence has warped the local wildlife 
  of the island, transforming them into tribes of savage 
  beastmen, all of which worship and covet their 
  “golden goddess” and supernatural “mother.” The 
  largest and most powerful of the beastmen tribes 
  has seized the Queen of Gold and built what they 
  consider a suitable shrine for her. They are now 
  preparing to launch a holy war in her name against  
  all the other creatures of the island.
   Meanwhile, the Queen of Gold is enraged about 
  her abduction, and fervently desires to return home 
  to her “husband” Rudebendius Mal, a powerful 
  necromancer. The problem is that she knows 
  absolutely nothing about the mundane world, or even 
  where “home” is in relation to her current location. 
  She needs someone to bear her back to Eremeä, 
  which is where the characters come in.
  The Island
  Left for safekeeping by Anne the Red until she can 
  return for it, the Queen of Gold is hidden on a small 
  island: a nondescript, nameless place chosen precisely 
  because it is uncharted, remote, and uninteresting. It 
  lacks any natural harbor or lagoon in which to drop 
  anchor, making it even less appealing or worth going 
  ashore to most seafarers.
   The island is a volcanic promontory a few miles 
  across, with a tall, conical peak rising high above 
  the sea, surrounded by a band of thick jungle, then 
  a stretch of black sand beach to the sea. One side of 
  the island has a number of small sea caves, with a 
  bank of broken and jumbled rocks before them being 
  constantly pounded by the surf.
  
  1919
  Important Locations
  Only two places on the island really matter to the 
  characters: the sea cave where they believe the 
  Queen of Gold and other pirate treasure has been 
  hidden, and the volcanic shrine where the golden 
  statue has been moved by the victorious Goretusk 
  and his jungle beastmen.
  The Sea Caves
  The combination of vulcanism and tides have 
  created a number of small sea caves in the black rock 
  encrusting the western side of the island. The largest 
  of these caves is where the crew of the Orphanmaker 
  concealed some of their treasure, including the Queen 
  of Gold. The cave is large enough for a small launch  
  to sail into it, which is what the pirates did.
   Bipedal, nonhuman footprints in the wet sand 
  within the cave are clear evidence someone other 
  than the pirates has been here, entering and leaving 
  through a narrow cleft in the rock leading up and 
  out into the jungle. Once beyond the cleft, it takes a 
  success on a Perception challenge roll with 1 bane to 
  follow the tracks to the slopes of the volcano (see  
  “The Volcano Shrine”).
   There is also a shallow pit dug in the sand, with 
  a partially buried wooden chest at the bottom. The 
  chest is locked and it takes one minute and a success 
  on an Intellect challenge roll with one bane to pick 
  the lock.
   Within a minute of the characters entering the sea 
  cave, 1d3 sharkmen (see Appendix) follow them in. 
  If	there	is	only	one	sharkman,	it	surfaces	briefly	to	
  assess the presence of the strangers, and then swims 
  off	to	gather	reinforcements,	returning	after	5	minutes	
  with 1d3 additional sharkmen. Any character getting 
  a success on a Perception challenge roll spots the 
  sharkman just before it submerges, allowing them a 
  brief chance to stop it before it swims away. If two or 
  more sharkmen appear, they attack immediately.
   The chest contains a leather sack holding 212 ss, a 
  strand	of	fine	pearls	with	a	gold	clasp	worth	12	gc,	a	
  small jade carving of a nymph worth 5 gc, an engraved 
  silver	snuff	box	worth	1	gc,	and	a	gold	filigree	broach	
  set with a small emerald worth 10 gc.
  The Volcano Shrine
  Nearly three-quarters of the way up the slope of 
  the volcano, a broad cleft leads into a small cavern 
  overlooking a deep magma pocket, casting the cavern 
  in	a	fiery	orange	light.	Any	creature	who	falls	or	is	
  thrown from the precipice into the magma pocket dies 
  instantly	unless	it	is	immune	to	fire	damage.
   A warg and two fomor of the Jungle Tribe guard 
  the shrine at all times. The magma makes the air 
  shimmer	with	heat,	and	the	cavern	is	filled	with	the	
  sounds of the molten rock constantly hissing and 
  popping.	This	environment	makes	it	difficult	for	the	
  beastmen to notice anyone approach, requiring them 
  to make any Perception challenge rolls with 1 bane.
   The Queen of Gold is nestled into a depression in 
  the cave wall, standing on a crude pedestal of piled 
  rocks and surrounded by a rotting pile of fruits, 
  vegetables,	flowers,	and	choice	pieces	of	dead	animals	
  placed	there	as	offerings.	See	“Conclusion”	for	details	
  about this relic.
  Threats
  To reach their goal and escape the island, the 
  characters have to deal with two main threats: the 
  various beastmen on land, sea, and even in the skies; 
  and the volcano at the heart of the island.
  Random Encounters
  Each hour the characters are on the island, roll for 
  a random encounter. If any Jungle Tribe beastmen 
  manage to capture any character(s), they take them 
  straight to Goretusk.
  Island Encounters
  d6
  Encounter
  1
  Nothing
  2
  A pair of vulturemen (see Appendix) swoop down 
  and attack
  3
  A minor tremor shakes the ground, with the 
  effects of the tremor spell from the Earth tradition
  4
  A patrol of 1d6 + 3 fomor led by a warg spots the 
  characters 
  5
  A major tremor shakes the island, like the effects 
  of an earthquake spell from the Earth tradition, 
  with a duration of 1d6 rounds
  6
  A patrol of 1d6 + 3 wargs spots the characters
  The Beast Tribes
  The corrupting power of the Queen of Gold’s magical 
  energy has warped the local wildlife, turning them 
  into savage humanoid beastmen. This includes the 
  nearby	sea-life	and	even	the	birds	flying	over	the	
  volcanic peak and jungle. The new beastmen have 
  grouped themselves into three loose “tribes” based 
  on their environment: the sea, the sky, and the jungle, 
  with the jungle tribe being the most numerous.
  The Sea Tribe
  The Sea Tribe consists of a gang of a dozen sharkmen, 
  made	up	of	several	different	species,	including	
  great whites, hammerheads, and tiger sharks. The 
  sharkmen	were	the	first	beastmen	to	arise	from	the	
  Queen’s	influence	and	therefore	consider	themselves	
  her “chosen” people (see Appendix for the sharkmen’s 
  statistics).
  
  20
  The Sky Tribe
  The Sky Tribe is made up of two dozen vulturemen, 
  vaguely humanoid vultures with shriveled, blackened 
  heads	and	three-fingered	hands	at	the	apex	joints	
  of their wings. (see Appendix for the vulturemen’s 
  statistics).
  The Jungle Tribe
  The Jungle Tribe is the most numerous, made up of 
  two dozen fomor and a dozen wargs, all warped from 
  various jungle beasts, led by the boar-man Goretusk 
  (see Appendix for Goretusk’s statistics).
  The Volcano
  The Queen of Gold’s presence has done more than 
  just warp the life of the island: when the jungle 
  beastmen set the Queen in the shrine they built in the 
  volcanic	cavern,	her	influence	began	to	awaken	the	
  volcano as well, and it is slowly building towards an 
  eruption.
   The superstitious beastmen believe the tremors 
  and the increasing plumes of dark smoke from the 
  peak are signs that their Goddess-Queen is angry. In 
  order to appease her, they believe, they must utterly 
  annihilate their enemies, the other two tribes. They 
  also	believe	that	living	sacrifices	to	her	might	help	
  quell her anger, should they happen to capture any of 
  the characters.
   Tremor Count: As the characters explore the island 
  and deal with its threats, keep track of the instances 
  of minor and major tremors that occur on the Island 
  Encounters table. Each minor tremor counts for 1, 
  and each major tremor counts as 2. When the total 
  tremor count reaches 10, the volcano erupts! Castings 
  of the tremor and earthquake spells from the Earth 
  tradition anywhere on the volcano add 1 or 2 to the 
  tremor count, respectively. An eruption also occurs 
  once the Queen of Gold is moved away from the 
  slopes of the volcano, regardless of the current tremor 
  count.
   Eruption: The	entire	island	is	affected	as	if	by	the	
  earthquake spell from the Earth tradition, lasting 
  1d6	+	10	minutes,	after	which	the	volcano	explodes	
  with enough force to obliterate all life on the island. 
  During	the	eruption,	lava	flows	down	the	slopes	of	
  the	volcano,	setting	the	jungle	aflame,	and	filling	the	
  air with ash, smoke, and terrible heat. You can call for 
  a Strength or Agility challenge roll each minute for 
  the characters to avoid 3d6 damage from the various 
  hazards.
   If she is still in the shrine during the eruption, the 
  Queen of Gold slides down the slopes upon one of the 
  lava	flows,	totally	unharmed.	If	the	characters	are	able	
  to	somehow	pull	the	statue	from	the	lava	flow,	they	
  find	it	is	not	even	hot	to	the	touch.
  Approaches
  The characters can approach retrieving the Queen of 
  Gold	and	getting	off	the	island	in	a	number	of	ways.	
  Allow the players the opportunity to come up with 
  their own approach, using the guidelines presented 
  here to assess their chance of success.
  Assault
  The simplest approach is a full-on frontal assault: 
  the characters hack and slash their way through the 
  jungle and any beastmen standing between them and 
  the Queen of Gold. A capable group of ruthless expert 
  adventurers can wade through the blood of dozens 
  of beastmen to reach their goal, provided they’re not 
  too	badly	damaged	or	depleted	in	any	one	fight.	In	
  the	characters’	favor	is	the	fact	that	the	different	tribes	
  of beastmen will not cooperate with each other, and 
  might even attack each other instead of the characters, 
  given the opportunity.
  Stealth
  Some groups might prefer the stealthy approach, 
  doing their best to slip in, take the Queen, and then 
  leave the island as quietly as they came. This is 
  difficult,	but	possible.	The	beastmen	of	the	island	
  have never seen outsiders before, and will initially 
  attribute any deaths or attacks to the enemy tribes. 
  Adventurers who make a point of dispatching their 
  enemies quickly and quietly, and preventing any 
  of them from escaping and warning the others, 
  can whittle down the numbers of the beastmen 
  considerably before they are discovered.
  Deception
  The characters can try outright deception to convince 
  the beastmen they themselves are gods or powerful 
  spirits, perhaps the chosen ones of the “golden 
  goddess” come to reclaim her. While the beastmen are 
  stupid	and	gullible,	they	are	also	selfish,	greedy,	and	
  vicious. They will demand proof of the newcomers’ 
  “divine power,” and will not give up the Queen of 
  Gold	without	a	fight.	Even	if	the	characters	cow	the	
  beastmen with a show of force or magic, it will not last 
  long, especially once it becomes clear the characters 
  mean to take their goddess away from the island.
  Alliance
  Characters might try and strike up an alliance with 
  one or more of the beastmen tribes in order to use 
  them against the others. The beastmen are easy to 
  deceive, but they’re also unpredictably vicious and 
  violent, and cooperating with creatures unlike them is 
  an alien concept. The strangers might need to knock 
  some heads or spill some blood before the beastmen 
  
  21
  21
  respect them enough to parley. Even then, the corrupt, 
  treacherous creatures will turn on their new allies 
  once they have destroyed their various enemies.
  Conclusion
  Once the characters have found and taken the Queen 
  of	Gold,	they	need	to	get	off	the	island.	The	beastmen	
  are supernaturally drawn to the statue, and they 
  go berserk looking for it as soon as it is  discovered 
  missing. Of course, once the party takes the Queen 
  away from the volcano, it erupts and then everyone 
  has bigger things to worry about.
   The end of the adventure ideally features the 
  characters making a mad dash through the jungle 
  towards the beach or the sea caves carrying the Queen 
  of Gold while the ground quakes, the jungle begins to 
  catch	fire,	and	crazed	beastmen	give	chase	and	attack.	
   Even once they reach the water, the characters are 
  not necessarily safe, as the sharkmen and vulturemen 
  can easily follow them. At that point the volcano 
  explodes, taking most of the island with 
  it, which either puts a quick end to any 
  remaining threats, or gives the characters 
  one	final	challenge	before	they	reach	
  safety.
   Once they have escaped from the 
  island, or possibly before that, the Queen 
  communicates with her “rescuers”—read 
  or paraphrase the following:
   “Know that I am the bride of the dread 
  and all-powerful necromancer Rudebendius 
  Mal. My beloved husband shall avenge my 
  abduction by visiting upon you a storm of 
  devastation such as your world has never 
  known. Your only hope of survival is to return 
  me home. If you do so, I shall intercede on your 
  behalf and attempt to calm his terrible wrath.”
   Unfortunately, the Queen of Gold does 
  not exactly know where her home is—the 
  geography of this part of the world so far 
  from Eremeä is completely unknown to 
  her. To learn that, the characters are going 
  to need to track down the pirates who 
  originally stole her from the necromancer.
  The Queen of Gold
  The relic known as the Queen of Gold 
  is a three-foot tall statue of a beautiful, 
  regal human woman with a cold, distant 
  expression some describe as both 
  “mysterious” and “alluring,” with eyes that 
  appear to follow the viewer wherever they 
  move.
  Although the statue appears to be cast 
  in solid gold, it is indestructible, and none 
  of the “gold” can be removed from it. 
  Strangely enough, the statue weighs only 35 pounds, 
  although it can vary from being feather-light to heavy 
  enough that it’s a strain to lift it.
  The Queen of Gold contains a corrupt and 
  malevolent spirit of mysterious origin within it, able 
  to communicate psychically with any creature within 
  20 yards of her. She wants nothing more than to be 
  reunited with her husband, the dread necromancer 
  who summoned her.
  Corrupt Presence The Queen of Gold exudes a powerful 
  corrupting magical energy that tends to warp the forces 
  of life and death in the surrounding area, unless her power 
  is magically contained. The GM can use this effect to 
  introduce strange mutations, weird magic, or similar effects 
  from Chapter 9 of Shadow of the Demon Lord in the area.
  Forbidden Secrets The Queen of Gold can teach any 
  Curse, Forbidden, Necromancy, or Primal spell a student 
  is capable of casting. This takes an hour of psychic 
  “communing” with the Queen and a Will challenge roll with 
  1 bane. On a success, the student learns the spell and gains 
  1 Corruption. On a failure, the student gains 1d6 Insanity 
  and 1d3 Corruption, but can try again.
  
  22
  Showdown at 
  Float Town
  By Eric Cagle
  After learning of the terrible storm 
  of destruction bound for the Pirate 
  Isles, the characters must locate the 
  pirates of the Orphanmaker to learn any information 
  that would help lead them to the homeland of the 
  Queen of Gold. The characters must follow several 
  leads	to	find	the	location	of	the	ship	and	its	captain,	
  the dread pirate Anne the Red.
   In time, the leads point them to the galleon’s 
  location: docked at a makeshift pirate haven known 
  as	Float	Town.	The	characters	must	find	and	fight	the	
  pirate captain to secure a map that shows the way to 
  the lost continent of Eremeä. The characters complete 
  this adventure when they defeat Anne and take the 
  map she carries.
  Hunt for the 
  Orphanmaker
  Depending on where the characters begin, they’ll 
  need	to	start	asking	questions	at	different	villages,	
  ports of call, or from passing ships. Investigation 
  should take several days as the group moves from 
  location to location, gaining a little information at 
  each stop. Eventually the characters should learn that 
  the Orphanmaker, low on supplies and in dire need of 
  repairs, set sail two to three weeks ago for Float Town, 
  described below.
  Clues
  You can use the following clues to feed the group 
  information that will lead them to Float Town. The 
  group should get at least one clue per place they visit. 
  Clues
  Informant
  Clue
  Fisherman
  I heard from another crew that the 
  Orphanmaker’s been making erratic 
  courses. Maybe they’re trying to throw 
  someone off their scent?
  Innkeeper
  The Orphanmaker definitely went south, 
  away from the Pirate Isles! (The innkeeper 
  is in deep with Anne’s crew. When the 
  characters leave the inn, five of his men—
  pirates, see Appendix—ambush them in 
  an alleyway. If defeated, either they or 
  the innkeeper will fess up that the ship is 
  headed to Float Town.
  Barmaid
  She stopped here for supplies not two 
  nights ago. But we were fresh out of 
  everything! She was so angry, I thought 
  she would kill us. I did hear her first mate 
  say something to her about Float Town 
  and Cromby.
  Ship Captain
  Aye, we caught sight of her coming at us 
  from the east. She seemed to be listing 
  oddly, but we turned tail and got out of 
  there—I wasn’t going to risk facing that 
  ship!
  Prostitute 1
  Most of us won’t take coin from that 
  crew—too dangerous. But back when I 
  worked on Float Town... well, they’ll be 
  happy to welcome any crew there, no 
  matter who they are.
  Prostitute 2
  Oh, the bosun of that crew is a favorite of 
  mine. He was acting real strange though.  
  I think they’re carrying something special.
  Harbormaster
  The Orphanmaker’s almost invincible, 
  but she’s a ship like any other and needs 
  repairs. Only a few places will take her in, 
  though: Cromby and Float Town up north.
  Longshoreman
  Only an idiot captain would take a ship 
  to Cromby or Float Town, but if you’re 
  looking for the Orphanmaker, you’d be  
  an idiot not to stop by Float Town.
  Events
  Each	time	the	characters	finish	talking	to	an	
  informant, roll a d6 and add to the roll the number of 
  characters with whom the group has talked. Find the 
  total on the following table.
  Events
  Total
  Result
  2
  When finished talking, the informant sprints away, 
  vanishing into the crowd.
  3
  A nearby seadog screams that Anne the Red is 
  going to kill them all (he’s totally insane and says 
  that to everyone).
  4
  The informant turns out to be a tear thief who, 
  obsessed with one of the character’s eyes, tries to 
  lure him away for “more information,” and attacks.
  5
  Three longshoremen who work as Anne’s spies 
  (hired killer) catch wind of the investigation and 
  strike before the characters can re-board their ship. 
  They know the ship is headed to Float Town.
  6
  The informant was driven mad by one of the cursed 
  relics gained from Anne the Red and tries to trap the 
  characters and burn the place down along with them.
  7
  When traveling to the next location, the character’s 
  ship is set upon by a flock of 5 harpies.
  8+
  Another pirate crew looking to settle a score with 
  Anne the Red attempts to board the character’s 
  vessel—they want information, not an alliance. 
  The boarding party consists of 1 veteran and 8 
  mercenaries.
  The Storm
  As the group goes from place to place to hunt down 
  Anne the Red, the storm loosed from Eremeä draws 
  closer.	A	fleet	of	ships,	crewed	by	the	dead,	sails	
  westward, intent on murder and destruction. The 
  ships of the dead are cogs, each crewed by 20 grave 
  thralls led by a barrow wight captain. In addition, 
  
  23
  23
  the ship has another 20 boneguards who serve 
  as	marines.	The	ships	fly	tattered	sails,	their	hulls	
  decorated with skulls and rotting body parts. Each 
  ship	flies	the	same	colors:	a	golden	woman	with	
  reaching	arms	on	a	black	field.
   These ships were sent by Rudebendius Mal to 
  find	the	Queen	of	Gold	and	lay	waste	to	the	Pirate	
  Isles. They sail in groups of 1d3 ships, spreading out 
  to attack coastal villages and sink any ships they 
  encounter. The characters should encounter at least 
  one of these vessels during the adventure, as well as 
  hear rumors of the sailing dead or witness signs of 
  their recent attacks.
  Float Town
  Armed with the information that the Orphanmaker 
  is low or out of supplies, apparently damaged, and 
  headed to Float Town, the characters can make their 
  way to that notorious place. It is so named for its 
  construction:	an	artificial	island,	cobbled	and	lashed	
  together	from	a	dozen	or	so	wrecks,	and	moored	off	
  the coast of a small, verdant atoll. 
   On the periphery of the Pirate Isles, Float Town 
  serves as the only deep-water port for many leagues 
  around. Absent any real authority governing it, 
  anyone can dock there for repairs, resupply, or trade. 
  It is a vile, despicable place full of buggers, rotters, 
  and scum—going there is almost always a last resort, 
  and few would do it by choice.
  A Floating Nightmare
  Float Town might be a nightmarish warren inhabited 
  by some of the worst people in the known world, 
  but there are only so many places one can hide here. 
  Characters searching the community are bound to 
  come across Anne the Red, but whether they get the 
  drop on her, or she on them, depends on how the 
  characters conduct themselves.
   The Orphanmaker: As the characters draw close to 
  the island, they spot the Orphanmaker, anchor dropped, 
  a bit away from Float Town. On board the galleon 
  are 40 pirates	(see	Appendix)	led	by	the	first	mate	
  (veteran). Whether the characters sneak on board or 
  make a direct assault, any prisoners taken can reveal 
  that Anne went into Float Town for supplies.
   Finding Anne: The captain went into Float 
  Town with the ship sorcerer (apprentice wizard), 
  the quartermaster (veteran), and 10 pirates (see 
  Appendix).	Anne	makes	no	effort	to	conceal	her	
  movements, knowing the locals fear her and will not 
  willingly betray her whereabouts, which requires 
  a success on a Will attack roll with 2 banes against 
  a local’s Will, which is typically 9. However, if the 
  characters search around enough, they should 
  eventually	find	her,	haggling	over	prices	as	the	town	
  bobs and rolls beneath their feet.
  The Confrontation
  Anne is not about to hand over the map to Eremeä to 
  the characters, nor is she interested in helping them. 
  If the characters have the Queen of Gold with them, 
  Anne urges them to hand it over—she intends to 
  carry the accursed object back to the continent to put 
  right the chaos she began.
   If the characters attack, she and her crew (see 
  above)	fight	to	the	death.	Fighting	on	Float	Town	is	
  fraught with hazards, such as ropes, canvas shelters, 
  jerry-rigged planks, loosely tied barrels, and the like. 
  You	can	make	the	fight	more	exciting	by	introducing	
  slippery patches or shifting decks, which impose 1 
  or more banes to attack rolls. A tipped lantern might 
  start	a	fire,	while	makeshift	cranes	loaded	with	cargo	
  swaying in the breeze might suddenly fall. 
   If the group fails to outright defeat her, Anne 
  escapes to the Orphanmaker	and	fights	them	from	
  there, although her ship is not yet seaworthy. She 
  surrenders only if knocked unconscious.
   If the characters manage to make a truce, Anne 
  the Red will help them reach the lost continent, but 
  she will invariably betray the characters before the 
  campaign ends.
  
  24
  She Who  
  Eats the Sky
  By Andrew Follett and Robert J. Schwalb
  The Maztacan people of Eremeä 
  believe their sleeping goddess, 
  Chutliatl (koo-TLEE-atl), will awaken 
  one day to devour the heavens and plunge the world 
  into darkness. When the Orphanmaker limped to their 
  shore, the Maztacans, who had never seen anything 
  like a sailing ship, believed its appearance heralded 
  the coming of the prophesied apocalypse. When the 
  strange people born of the sea beast came to their 
  village seeking a guide, the Maztacans worried the end 
  times were nigh. 
   Tihuican (tee-HOO-i-kahn), the village shaman, led 
  Anne the Red and her pirates up the secret path to 
  Chutliatl’s mount—the pirates having threatened to 
  murder the villagers if he didn’t. He both worried and 
  half-hoped that the pirates might awaken the goddess, 
  who would destroy them for their outrage.
   What Tihuican did not know was the mountain was 
  not the resting place of his goddess, but in fact the 
  lair of Rudebendius Mal, a vile necromancer. After 
  the	pirates	plundered	Mal’s	lair	and	made	off	with	
  stolen treasures, they sailed away. Thereafter, the dead 
  began to come down from the mountain, harrying 
  the Maztacans, and their attacks are growing more 
  frequent and dangerous.  
   In this adventure, the characters come to the 
  village	of	Maztaca	to	find	a	guide	to	lead	them	to	
  the Mountain of the Necromancer. The only way 
  the characters can recruit help will be to make 
  a monstrous choice, one that will either plunge 
  the world into darkness or save it. The characters 
  complete the adventure when they deal with the 
  horror Tihuican unleashes. 
  A New World
  The characters have either acquired a map to chart 
  their course to Eremeä, or somehow obtained the 
  information from the pirate captain Anne the Red or 
  her lackeys. In any event, having spent weeks at sea, 
  they	finally	reach	a	sandy	shore	bordering	a	dense	
  jungle, which climbs up a mist-covered range of 
  foreboding mountains.
  A Guide?
  When the characters land on the beach, the one with 
  the highest Perception score notices a young woman 
  standing a few hundred yards away, naked but for 
  the	flowers	in	her	hair,	the	paint	on	her	body,	and	the	
  spear in her hand. When spotted, she quickly darts 
  into the jungle, obviously frightened. 
  	 The	young	woman	flees	through	the	jungle	until	
  she stumbles upon a great cat. Unless rescued, the 
  animal	kills	her,	and	drags	her	off	to	devour	her.	If	
  rescued, the girl remains very frightened, but can be 
  calmed enough so that she gabbles at the group in 
  her native tongue, which has elements of Old Edene 
  and the Common Tongue enough for characters 
  who know these languages to pick out a few words. 
  Between that and lots of gesturing, the characters 
  learn her name is Xochitl (sho-KEE-tl) and that she 
  was gathering healing herbs when she spotted them. 
  Assuming the characters treat her well, she leads 
  them back to her village.
   If the characters do not give chase or if she gets away, 
  she is killed and never seen again. Allow the group 
  to wander through the jungle for a few hours, during 
  which time they occasionally see ruins of gargantuan 
  structures and strange stone carvings of monstrous 
  figures.	When	night	falls,	8 vampire bats drop through 
  the canopy and attack them. The next day, they 
  encounter warriors from the village (as commoners 
  with	spears),	who	offer	to	escort	them	to	the	village.
  Maztaca
  Located a couple miles inland, Maztaca consists of 
  nineteen thatched-roof family huts. The huts are 
  huddled	on	the	banks	of	a	wide	river	flowing	from	
  the distant mountains that twists and turns through 
  the jungle until it reaches the sea. The village stands 
  atop the ancient remnants of a ruined city. Exposed 
  patches of a bedrock road dot the clearing and small 
  rock walls jut from the earth, the skeletal remains of 
  age-old buildings. 
   Of particular interest is an enormous stone disk. 
  Across its surface are concentric circles made from 
  dots, dashes, and other geometric shapes. Carved 
  within the circles are the depictions of humanoids 
  performing daily activities such as gardening, 
  building, worshipping, and tending to the young.
   Not far from the disk looms a 12-foot tall statue, 
  carved from rock, of a monstrous being with scores 
  of sagging breasts and a yawning mouth. It is an idol 
  representing a malevolent earth goddess named 
  Chutliatl. The Maztacans have a prophecy in which 
  it is said she will one day rise from her slumber in 
  the depths to devour the sky and plunge the world 
  into darkness, an event which will be triggered by 
  the appearance of a sea beast (a ship) who gives birth 
  to a new people (sailors). After the arrival of the 
  Orphanmaker, the villagers are worried the apocalypse 
  is imminent, especially with the undead spilling out 
  from the mountains.
   If the characters rescued Xochitl, she leads them 
  into the village; the rescue grants them 1 boon on any 
  rolls	made	in	social	conflicts	or	interactions	with	the	
  Maztacans. Otherwise, the villagers are mistrustful 
  and scared of the outsiders, and the characters have 1 
  bane on such rolls instead.
  
  25
  25
  The Maztacans
  A small tribe of people live in the village, being 
  the last descendants of an ancient and powerful 
  civilization that arose after the fall of Edene only 
  to be shattered by war, plague, and several natural 
  catastrophes. The people now live simply by hunting 
  and gathering. They wear little clothing, and what 
  they do wear incorporates feathers, bones, and semi-
  precious stones. All adults have elaborate tattoos, 
  especially on their faces. Maztacans are commoners 
  armed with clubs and spears.
   In addition to Xochitl, the group might meet and 
  interact with any of the following important people.
   Coatl (KO-atl): The Maztaca chieftain distrusts 
  all outsiders, worried that they will bring about the 
  apocalypse. He does listen to Xiatl, though, and 
  tolerates the characters’ presence for now. If the 
  characters get on his good side, he explains that dark 
  times have fallen upon the world and that his people 
  have	been	fighting	the	dead	who	come	down	from	
  the mountains. He also blames the undead on people 
  who, like the characters, were birthed from a great sea 
  beast and came to shore several months ago (Anne the 
  Red and the landing party from the Orphanmaker). He 
  tells them the shaman Tihuican led these outsiders 
  into the mountains and nothing but evil has come 
  from it since.
  Xiatl (SHEE-atl): A kind, venerable medicine 
  man, the whole tribe looks to him for guidance, 
  healing, and wisdom. He can tend to any injuries the 
  characters might have sustained, allowing creatures 
  he treats to heal damage equal to their healing rate, 
  but no more than once per day. If friendly, Xiatl warns 
  the characters there has been talk of making a human 
  sacrifice	to	appease	the	goddess,	who	will	eat	the	sun	
  any day now unless she is fed.
  The Shaman
  At some point in the evening, the shaman Tihuican 
  (apprentice witch) returns from consulting with the 
  spirits and who have told him the goddess demands 
  a	sacrifice.	He	does	not	want	to	sacrifice	any	of	the	
  people,	and	instead	looks	to	the	characters	to	offer	
  up one of their own. After all, it was their kind who 
  brought this mess to their doors. If the characters did 
  not learn that Tihuican is the only one who knows 
  the way, he reveals this to them after he consults with 
  the other villagers, claiming he will lead them into the 
  mountains,	but	only	after	a	sacrifice	is	made.	
  	 Tihuican	intends	to	make	the	sacrifice	the	next	day,	
  when the goddess gives him a sign. If the characters 
  refuse	to	offer	up	one	of	their	own,	he	demands	the	
  group leave on pain of death. If the characters resist, a 
  fight	breaks	out	involving	sixty	commoners armed with 
  clubs	and	spears.	The	villagers	fight	until	half	their	
  numbers	have	fallen	and	the	rest	flee	for	the	jungle.
  	 If	the	characters	agree	to	offer	up	one	of	their	
  prisoners	or	hirelings	to	be	sacrificed,	the	villagers	
  lead the intended victim to a hut, which remains 
  guarded until the appointed time.  
  Monstrous Raiders
  After the confrontation with the shaman, a band of 
  8 boggarts emerge from the jungle to devour the 
  villagers. If the characters left, they hear the sound 
  of	fighting	echoing	through	the	jungle.	Unless	the	
  characters help the Maztacans, the boggarts kill 
  twenty	people	and	drag	off	a	dozen	or	more,	never	to	
  be seen again. The victims should include Coatl, Xiatl, 
  and any other villagers the characters befriended. 
  Swallow the Sun
  The next day, at around noon, Tarterus passes 
  between Urth and the sun, causing a total eclipse. 
  Shadows spread across the jungle as everything goes 
  quiet and still. What happens next depends on what 
  has transpired so far.
  A Sacrifice
  If Tihuican still lives, he drags the captive—either 
  someone	the	characters	offered	up	or	someone	from	
  the village—to the stone disk and, after shouting 
  at the sky in Dark Speech, he plunges an obsidian 
  blade into the victim’s heart, killing the creature 
  at once. Rather than end the eclipse, however, the 
  reverse occurs: from the shadow, Chutliatl tears free, 
  a hideous huge demon with	the	flier	trait,	lightning	
  crackling all around it. In addition, 4 shadows step 
  out of the gloom in the village and begin to slaughter 
  everyone there.
  No Sacrifice
  If	no	sacrifice	is	made,	the	eclipse	occurs	and	passes	
  a few minutes later. When it does, the massive idol 
  at the village center animates, the spirit of Chutliatl 
  inside becoming enraged. The idol (living idol if 
  you have Beyond the World’s Edge or golem) goes on a 
  rampage, destroying the village and the villagers.
  Conclusion
  The adventure ends when either the characters defeat 
  the demon and the shadows or defeat the living idol. 
  In either case, the threat to the surviving Maztacans 
  has	passed.	If	Tihuican	survives,	he	offers	to	lead	
  the characters into the mountains. If he died, the 
  characters	will	either	have	to	find	their	own	way	or	
  another guide; this could perhaps be Xochitl, or even 
  someone	else	they	might	find	in	another	adventure	of	
  your own making. 
  
  26
  Nightmares  
  of the Sleeper
  By Miranda Horner
  Led by Tihuican, someone else 
  from the village, or having divined 
  the path ahead by some other 
  fashion, the characters ascend into 
  the Mountains of Fear and Flame. A great, jagged 
  mountain range cutting across the entire continent, 
  the characters wend their way through it in search of 
  the Mountain of the Necromancer, in order to return 
  the Queen of Gold.
   As the characters travel up the steep slopes, 
  following trails and making harrowing ascents, 
  they catch the attention of a foul spirit who hungers 
  for the life force it needs to restore itself to life. 
  The characters complete the adventure when they 
  overcome the spirit and destroy its receptacle of souls. 
  Identifying the Fear
  Because the Sleeper traps creatures inside 
  their worst nightmares, you need to determine 
  the current strongest fear each character has 
  before going into this scenario. Depending on 
  your group, you could either ask them, or you 
  could think back to the thing that most recently 
  frightened the characters so that your “reveals” 
  are not as telegraphed. Use that information to 
  inform the scenes that play out as the characters 
  proceed through the landscape of Nightmare 
  thrust upon them by the Sleep.
  The Sleeper
  The Sleeper (see Appendix), formerly known as 
  Dahlia, the Keeper of Death’s Door, was a skilled 
  necromancer until her apprentice, Rudebendius Mal, 
  murdered her. Although her physical body is dead, 
  her soul remains on Urth. Long before Mal killed her, 
  she called upon her extensive knowledge of the dark 
  arts to develop a means for her to escape death. She 
  imbued a massive quartz crystal with the power to 
  anchor her soul in spirit form on Urth in the event of 
  her death. The crystal also enables her to project her 
  spirit into the dreams of others in order to steal their 
  life energy and store it within the crystal. Once she 
  has accumulated enough life energy, then she will be 
  able to return, albeit as a death lord. 
   The crystal is hidden in a cave in the side of the 
  mountain, and the Sleeper has almost enough life 
  energy to begin the formation of her body when the 
  characters arrive.
  The Mountain Path
  It takes several days for the characters to ascend the 
  path up the mountainside that leads to Mal’s lair. 
  Along the way, they might have to contend with the 
  following dangers. 
  Mountain Path Encounters
  d6
  Encounter
  1
  A withered corpse of a humanlies on the path. 
  Examining the eyes reveals they have been replaced 
  by quartz crystals.
  2
  On patrol, 1d6 +2 boneguards secure the path by 
  killing anything they encounter. One has a random 
  enchanted object.
  3
  Dark clouds gather above the mountains and release 
  heavy snow for 2d6 hours.
  4
  At night, a killing mist swirls around the characters.
  5
  The characters spot a few pieces of purple quartz 
  crystal scattered on the snow.
  6
  At night, 2d6 vampire bats drop from the sky to feed 
  upon the characters. 
  Night Terrors
  About halfway up the mountain, as the characters 
  make camp for the night, the Sleeper senses their 
  presence and projects herself into their dreams to feed 
  on their life energy. She does so by playing a subtle 
  game with her prey. She eases them into a nightmare by 
  making it start out simply enough: the characters think 
  they’ve woken up and are about to do their normal 
  things. For anyone who is on watch, the Sleeper uses 
  Nightmare Binding (see Appendix) to start the process.
   Use the following sample scenes in whatever order 
  you choose to emulate situations where the Sleeper 
  can drain the characters. Allow each player to play 
  their character in the scene, but secretly choose one 
  
  27
  27
  focus character for each. That character is the current 
  target of the life drain and should have a chance (or 
  two) to wake up before they are killed outright.
   You have two options for handling damage dealt 
  to the other characters in the scene, though. You can 
  either ignore any damage dealt, which makes this 
  adventure less deadly, or you can take that damage 
  into account when it is that character’s turn to escape 
  the nightmare. Remember: the Sleeper has all of 
  them in her nightmare landscape initially. After they 
  escape, they are not subject to her attacks until she 
  pulls them back into the nightmare.
  Nightmarish Scenes 
  In each scene, use the information you determined 
  earlier	to	tailor	the	scene	to	a	specific	character.	You	
  can either use the text as written or adjust it to suit 
  your needs. In each case, the Sleeper manifests in the 
  characters’ dreams. Any damage the Sleeper takes while 
  in the dream disappears when the next dream begins. 
  The Bloody Mists
  Around you, a cloying mist rises, filling the air within 
  seconds. It swirls around you, a reddish-brown haze, 
  threatening to conceal even the person closest to you. It 
  smells like you’re in a charnel house, and your eyes sting. 
  A slow, deep throbbing sound begins, soft at first, but 
  grows louder. Is that your heartbeat, or someone—or 
  something—else’s?
  The Sinkhole
  The ground seemed firm enough a moment ago, but now 
  you’ve stepped into something squishy. A loud sucking 
  sound is your only warning before a gush of creamy liquid 
  erupts out of a newly formed dark hole in front of you. 
  You’re covered with the slick, viscous goo. The hole in front 
  of you widens, and you begin to slide toward it.
  The Empty Village
  Nothing moves in the slovenly village before you, yet you 
  sense eyes upon you. Suddenly, all of the hovels rise up 
  on wooden legs, and begin to walk away. As they do, you 
  hear wet ripping sounds, and dark shapes drop out of them, 
  making plopping noises as they hit the ground. The shapes 
  are then dragged, gibbering and screaming, each attached 
  to a walking hovel by a veiny cord.
  The Mirror Trader
  The odd fellow in front of you spits a bloody gobbet of 
  phlegm to the side, causing each of the mirrors dangling 
  from his hefty pack to shake. Wordlessly, he snags one of 
  the mirrors and holds it up in front of you. You don’t see 
  yourself in it. Instead, what’s within the mirror reaches 
  through it as if to touch you. 
   This could be the Sleeper; if so, she leaves the mirror 
  and attacks in whatever form you’ve chosen for her.
  The Vanishing Waters
  The water stops moving entirely, becoming eerily and 
  unnaturally calm. Then it vanishes, but everything in it 
  remains suspended where it had been—for a moment. 
  A thrumming sound vibrates within you, and all the 
  creatures that had been living in the water explode 
  outward in a cascade of blood. The gore and guts coat 
  you and everything around you, then starts expanding, 
  forming into a nauseating, pudding-like ooze.
  Cave of the  
  Quartz Crystal
  If the characters manage to survive the nightmares and 
  continue on their journey, they will discover the mouth of 
  a cave a day from their destination. The mouth opens onto 
  a long, twisting passage that descends into the mountain’s 
  heart.	Small	quartz	crystals	dot	the	walls	and	reflect	the	
  characters’ light, if any. After 100 yards in, the passage 
  opens up into a huge chamber dominated by a pillar of 
  purple quartz crystal that pulses with strange violet light. 
   The Sleeper is in this chamber, invisible, along with 
  5 phantoms bound to her will. She cannot manifest 
  physically anywhere else except in this chamber, due 
  to the power of the crystal. If any characters make a 
  move toward the crystal, the Sleeper appears, and she 
  and her minions attack.
   If combat breaks out in this room, the life energy 
  inside the crystal becomes agitated. At the end of each 
  round until the combat ends, or the crystal is destroyed, 
  each creature in the cave must get a success on a Will 
  challenge roll with 1 bane or gain 1d6 Insanity.
   The crystal is a Size 4 object with Defense 5 and Health 
  80. If reduced to Health 0, the crystal shatters, throwing 
  shards out in a 10-yard radius that deal 4d6 damage to 
  everything in the area. A creature can make an Agility 
  challenge roll and take half the damage on a success. 
  Breaking the crystal also dispels the phantoms, sending 
  them wailing and shrieking into the Underworld.
   If the characters manage to defeat the Sleeper and 
  search	the	chamber,	they	find	50	gc	worth	of	assorted	
  coins, 20 quartz shards, each worth 5 ss, and three 
  random enchanted objects. At your discretion, you 
  might also place a relic of your choice in the cave, 
  especially if you feel the characters will need help to 
  get	through	the	final	adventure.
  Conclusion
  If the Sleeper manages to kill some or all the 
  characters, it uses the life energy to form a new body, a 
  process that takes 1d6 days. She returns as a death lord 
  (see Tombs of the Desolation).
   Otherwise, the Sleeper will disperse if defeated, 
  only to return and seek her vengeance at some point 
  within the next 24 hours. Destroying the crystal 
  destroys her entirely.
  
  28
  The Necromancer’s 
  Mountain
  By Stephen Radney-MacFarland
  Within the deep jungle, far from 
  where any sane creature would 
  stray, stands Skull Peak. It was from 
  this mountain fastness that Anne the Red stole the 
  Queen of Gold from Rudebendius Mal, an ancient 
  and powerful necromancer. In doing so, the pirate 
  captain and the crew of the Orphanmaker set the 
  necromancer’s mind and might solely upon revenge 
  against the Pirate Isles and retrieval of his bride.
  	 The	characters	might	come	here	in	the	effort	to	
  return the Queen of Gold or with a mind to put the 
  nightmare Mal has created to an end with brute 
  finality.	No	matter	their	goal,	they’ll	find	more	than	
  they bargained for upon entering Skull Peak. 
  The Queen of Gold
  During “The Queen in Exile,” the characters might 
  have retrieved Mal’s “bride,” a sentient relic called 
  the Queen of Gold. The relic is a three-foot tall statue 
  of a beautiful, regal woman with eyes that appear to 
  follow the viewer wherever they stand. It contains 
  a malevolent spirit who exudes strong corrupting 
  magical energy. She has likely been pressing and 
  berating the characters to reunite her with her 
  “husband” as quickly as possible. 
   Strangely, the Queen of Gold grows quiet as the 
  characters approach the mountain. Within sight of 
  her home, she gives away no secrets to the dangers 
  within the necromancer’s sanctuary. She knows it is a 
  dangerous place and prefers the characters fall to her 
  husband’s servants or traps. She only speaks again 
  when they approach Mal, when she learns of his 
  current possessed state.
  Demonic Possession
  Unbeknownst to the Queen of Gold, to regain his 
  bride and wreak vengeance on the pirates who stole 
  her, Mal cast a terrible spell that summoned the 
  demon Viscallux, in order to aid him toward those 
  ends. Instead, the demon was more powerful than 
  Mal could handle, and its appearance shattered the 
  last shred of sanity he had left, enabling the demon to 
  possess its summoner. 
   Viscallux is using Mal’s body to prepare for the 
  coming of its terrible master, the Demon Lord. When 
  it is not doing so, however, it is entertained by Mal’s 
  thirst for vengeance and his twisted love for his 
  “bride.” Whenever it suits the demon, Viscallux allows 
  the necromancer to pursue his schemes, retaking full 
  control of Mal anytime its plans are in jeopardy.
  The Peak
  The peak juts from the jungle below, veined by sinewy 
  crawler vines of a sickly dark green hue. The craggy 
  mountain has been carved in the shape of a stylized 
  skull, nearly 300 feet tall. Water trickles from its eyes, 
  running down the sides like tears into a giant pool at 
  the base of the peak. 
  1. Into the Maw
  The path around the pool at Skull Peak’s base winds 
  toward the Skull’s bottom jaw. Massive, chiseled 
  boulders	stand	20	feet	over	the	cavern	floor,	arranged	
  as the skull’s bottom row of misshapen teeth. The 
  water trickling down from the skull’s eyes collects into 
  muddy puddles that drain into the main pool. Sickly 
  brambles	flourish	amid	the	cave’s	shade.	Skeletal	and	
  rotting	fleshy	remains	of	people	and	beasts	intertwine	
  with the jagged leaves and thorns of the shade 
  brambles. 
   Not all of the remains fertilizing the brambles are 
  restful. Four grave thralls rise to stop any intruders 
  from entry into their master’s sanctum.
  2. Brutal Portals
  Inside the maw is a massive chamber, its walls are 
  carved with innumerable skulls and skeletons, all in 
  the strange style of the peak itself. A pair of intricately 
  decorated double doors, both towering, stands at the 
  chamber’s	far	end.	Constructed	chiefly	of	wood,	the	
  doors are carved and inlaid with semi-precious stones 
  and seashells. Each has maybe a hundred square 
  panels, each depicting gory scenes of horrible death 
  and murder. A smaller door, its only adornment a 
  large water stain, seems out of place in the grisly, 
  garish chamber. 
   A pair of boneguards waits here, one in each 
  easternmost corner of the chamber. The one in the 
  northeastern corner has a large brass key hanging like 
  a	medallion	around	its	neck.	The	green	flames	of	the	
  guards’ eyes follow any intruders, but the undead will 
  simply watch unless attacked, or the characters move 
  to open the smaller door or the southernmost double 
  door, at which point they attack. If the characters set 
  off	the	false	treasure	trap	(area 3), and the boneguards 
  still wait, they move to bar passage from any trying to 
  escape that trap’s foul energies.
  3. False Treasure
  The massive double door is sturdy and has a 
  complicated lock that imposes 3 banes on challenge 
  rolls made to unlock it. One of the boneguards wears 
  the key. Beyond is a chamber carved in the same style 
  as the entry chamber reaching into the darkness, 
  though any amount of light will cause something to 
  glimmer in the distance. At the end of the hall sitting 
  
  29
  29
  on a pedestal is a large clear gem, glittering with a 
  thousand	facets,	as	large	as	a	meaty	fist.	
   The gem is a convincing but rather cheap bauble 
  (worth maybe 1 gc to the right buyer). When a creature 
  approaches within a yard of it, a necrotic gas sprays 
  into the room from the eyes and mouths of the various 
  leering skulls carved into the walls. The clever nature 
  of the trap imposes 4 banes on challenge rolls made to 
  find	the	trap	or	disarm	it.
  	 A	cloud	of	the	gas	fills	the	room	and	lasts	for	10	
  minutes before dissipating. Living creatures within 
  the cloud must get a success on a Strength challenge 
  roll each round with 1 bane or take 2d6 damage and 
  become dazed for 1 minute. While dazed in this way, 
  the creature also becomes poisoned; if it’s already 
  poisoned, it instead takes 1d6 extra damage. An 
  undead creature standing in the gas heals 1d6 damage 
  at the end of each round it spends in the gas.
  4. Just Enough Rope
  The double doors leading to this chamber are not 
  locked, opening into what appears to be a rather 
  plain room. A small door made of rust-covered iron 
  is set within the east wall, and a passage opening into 
  darkness is on the south wall. In front of the iron door 
  is a length of thick, black-stained rope weighed down 
  by a metal ball, rusty like the door. The rope leads up 
  to a hole in the ceiling.
  	 A	character	pulling	the	black	rope	finds	it	gives,	but	
  it sounds no alarm, nor does it seem to do anything 
  observable. It does magically mark those who pull it, 
  and any with them, for a nasty surprise if they open 
  the iron door and explore area 5. 
  5. Boiling Death 
  The iron door leading to this chamber is not locked, 
  but	is	heavy	and	difficult	to	open,	requiring	a	success	
  on a Strength challenge roll with 2 banes. The room 
  beyond is an octagonal shaft, the top and bottom 
  leading into darkness. A metal grate, sturdy enough 
  to	stand	on	serves	as	the	floor	of	the	chamber	and	
  another as the ceiling, creating a kind of cage amid 
  the shaft. 
   On the eastern wall carved glyphs move and 
  morph on the stonework in a seemingly random 
  swirling pattern—the closer one gets to the strange 
  occurrence, the less the glyphs seem to move and 
  morph.
   The glyphs only settle when a character who pulled 
  the black rope in area 4 approaches within a foot 
  of the wall, spelling out in whatever language the 
  character can read: “You end here.” At that point, the 
  
  30
  iron door slams shut and a deep rumbling can be 
  heard, coming from the bottom of the shaft. After two 
  rounds have passed, a jet of steaming, volcanically 
  heated water explodes upward out of the shaft, 
  flooding	the	room	and	dealing	6d6	damage	to	any	
  creature within, before the geyser subsides.
  6. Waiting Warriors
  Its	floor,	walls,	and	ceiling	adorned	with	a	massive	
  mosaic of scintillating color and strange maddening 
  patterns, this long hallway reaches west toward 
  skeletal	figures	patiently	standing	guard.	At	the	
  eastern edge of the room, are two niches, each 
  holding an obscene ivory fetish in the shape of a 
  massive and diseased phallus being devoured by 
  maggots. The magic of these strange objects makes 
  the maggots appear to squirm and writhe across 
  their respective shafts. Merely staring at the things 
  requires a character to make a Will challenge roll with 
  1 boon, gaining 1 Insanity on a failure. Touching either 
  of them requires a character to make another Will 
  challenge roll and gain 1 Insanity on a failure for each 
  round the creature holds or carries it. The character 
  begins to feel that the maggots are somehow gnawing 
  their way into his or her body, the sensation starting 
  within their own genitals. 
  	 The	skeletal	figures	to	the	west	are	4 boneguards, 
  standing as pairs on the north and south walls of 
  the room’s western half. They wait until a character 
  who is not carrying one of the phalluses attempts to 
  pass them, then they attack. They will not attack any 
  character who carries a phallus.
  7. Experimentation Chambers
  This strange zigzag of chambers constitutes the 
  necromancer’s main experimentation chambers. 
  The place is cluttered with a jumble of strange 
  devices, obscene diagrams, and the remains of 
  dozens,	possibly	scores,	of	victims	sacrificed	in	Mal’s	
  quest for forbidden knowledge. The place reeks of a 
  charnel house. Skins have been tacked to the walls, 
  with obscene secrets written upon them with blood 
  and	bile.	There	are	numerous	vats	filled	with	viscera	
  and congealed blood scattered about the place. Here 
  and there bones are stacked in swirling, morbidly 
  artistic patterns. Within moments of entering it, the 
  characters realize the full measure of the obscene 
  place and must make a Will challenge roll with 2 
  banes, gaining 1d3 Insanity on a failure.
   These disgusting chambers are also home to 
  4 ghouls, who typically dwell within the center 
  chamber, feeding from the large vats of leftover blood 
  and organs, enjoying how the decomposition plays 
  upon	their	tongues,	or	how	the	abundance	of	different	
  types of creatures’ remains in the vat makes their 
  forms shift in a delightfully disgusting way. They have 
  become true gourmands. 
   Once the ghouls realize that intruders are in their 
  midst, they each grab a viscera extractor: a large 
  brass syringe-like device magically infused to suck 
  the life juices from any living creature into which 
  they are stuck. The ghouls rush forth to extract the 
  fresh	vital	fluids	and	tear	out	the	organs	from	the	
  intruders with manic glee. The extractors grant 
  each ghoul the following attack in addition to their 
  normal attack options:
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Viscera Extractor (melee) +3 with 1 boon (2d6 + 3 plus 
  horrific extraction on attack roll of 20+)
  Horrific Extraction If the target is a living creature of flesh 
  and blood, it takes 2d6 extra damage and becomes 
  fatigued. While fatigued in this way, the target is also 
  slowed. If it was already fatigued, it instead takes 
  another 2d6 extra damage. All characters that watch this 
  extraction must get a success on a Will challenge roll 
  with 1 bane or gain 1 Insanity. Once a horrific extraction 
  occurs, the viscera extractor cannot be used again until it 
  is emptied, which takes 1 minute.
  8. Rear Guards
  Each of these rather open chambers has 2 boneguards 
  who try to stop anyone who attempts to enter the 
  master’s chamber. Once the characters do battle with 
  Mal, and when the necromancer calls down the grave 
  thralls from the walls, any boneguards from either of 
  these rooms who haven’t already been destroyed will 
  come to their master’s aid.
  
  3131
  9. The Master’s Chamber
  An	eerie	flickering	of	greenish	flame	emanates	from	
  this large chamber, as does a cackling and gurgling sort 
  of babbling, accompanied by a strange rattling sound. 
  Diabolic diagrams and formulas in some spidery script 
  cover the rough-hewn walls. Their eldritch markings 
  are made even weirder by the drifting of pungent 
  smoke	wafting	up	from	the	green	flame	that	burns	in	a	
  fire	pit	on	the	lower	tier	of	this	vast	chamber.	
   The chamber’s upper reaches feature an unadorned 
  tile	floor,	but	the	lower	tier	is	a	mass	of	loose	dirt—
  like grave dirt—scattered with bits of bones and 
  debris. Rough stone stairs connect the two parts. 
   Four corpses of pirates who once served Anne the 
  Red hang impaled on spikes in the upper tier, two on 
  the north wall and two on the south. Two more hang 
  on the walls of the lower level, one each to the north 
  and the south.
   A single man, gaunt and corpse-like, with ashy 
  gray	skin	paces	about	in	front	of	the	fire,	mumbling	
  to himself, stopping ever so often to scratch strange 
  diagrams in the dirt with a sickle made of obsidian. 
  He wears a shirt of bone and leather that clanks 
  and jingles as he moves about, the bones tied in his 
  matted, greasy hair adding to the clinking rhythm. 
   This is Rudebendius Mal, the necromancer lord 
  of Skull Peak (see Appendix). He stays lost in his 
  strange reverie and movements until the characters 
  make themselves known, or the Queen of Gold 
  comes within 20 yards of him, where she can 
  attempt to make telepathic contact with her husband 
  (although Viscallux has the power to block their 
  communications).
   If the characters tell him they have returned her to 
  him,	he	seems	extremely	pleased	at	first,	overly	so	in	
  fact. His face splits into a yellowed and gap-toothed 
  smile, truly happy that his love has returned. He lauds 
  the	characters	with	effusive	praise,	becoming	quite	
  amiable as he extolls their virtues. 
   Then, something goes wrong. His body suddenly 
  lurches, and his demented happiness immediately 
  turns to rage as Viscallux resumes control. Seeing the 
  characters as potential threats to its plans, the demon 
  attacks the characters with all the powers Mal has at 
  his disposal. 
   The demon-possessed necromancer starts by calling 
  allies to his aid. Each of the six corpses impaled on 
  the wall have been turned into a grave thrall. As the 
  characters approach, Mal can call to any number 
  of	grave	thralls	to	attack	the	intruders.	The	first	of	
  such calls will also bring any remaining boneguards 
  from either area 8. He will then cast army of the dead 
  to enhance his defenses further, falling back on 
  invisibility and his other spells to whittle down and 
  destroy the intruders.
  	 Once	the	Queen	of	Gold	figures	out	her	husband	is	
  possessed,	she	implores	the	characters	to	find	a	way	
  to drive the demon out of the necromancer. If they 
  refuse or say they cannot, she threatens them; if that 
  doesn’t work, she begs and cajoles, promising treasure 
  and power. But she lies: even if the characters are 
  successful, the treacherous queen will deliver none 
  of it. She would rather they end up as subjects of her 
  husband’s	necromantic	experiments	than	fulfill	any	
  bargain made to rescue her love from possession. 
   Once the characters defeat Mal, unless they have 
  found some way to end the possession and send 
  him back to the Void, they must then deal with 
  Viscallux, who issues forth from the necromancer’s 
  corpse as a black, oily smoke that then forms into 
  his ugly, misshapen form. The large demon has the 
  Foment	Discord	demonic	talent	and	fights	viciously	
  to keep his hold on the world, possessing one of the 
  characters if possible.
  Conclusion
  Even if the characters can drive Viscallux out of Mal, 
  the Queen of Gold tells her husband to betray the 
  characters	at	the	first	possible	opportunity.	But	while	
  Mal is not sane, he is also not stupid. He only does so 
  if he feels victory is a sure thing. This is likely the only 
  way that the characters can succeed and Mal still lives. 
   In most cases, the adventure concludes—and quite 
  probably the campaign—with the characters dead 
  and the demon free to use the necromancer as his 
  puppet for the coming of the Demon Lord. If both 
  Mal and Viscallux are vanquished, the characters 
  will need to determine what to do with the Queen of 
  Gold. They might drop her in some deep hole in the 
  ground, or even into the depths of the sea, and hope 
  she is never found again. Then again, she might have 
  uses. A potent user of magic could, in time, forge a 
  bond with her and become formidable in their own 
  right—and, of course, corrupted and thoroughly 
  insane.
   If the characters have managed to rid Urth of 
  Rudebendius Mal and drive Viscallux back into the 
  Void, the shadow of the Demon Lord recedes from the 
  world for now, its planet-shattering screams of rage 
  filling	the	vast	emptiness,	its	burning	hatred	stoked	
  beyond comprehension against the mortals who 
  thwarted it. 
   It is only a matter of time, and the Demon Lord has 
  plenty of that in abundance. It will never give up on 
  trying to destroy Urth, and all of existence itself. In 
  some obscure place, cultists or some other corrupt 
  peoples will tamper with things no mortal should 
  even know about, causing the barrier between the 
  Void and Urth to become dangerously thin, and the 
  darkness of the Demon Lord’s shadow will begin to 
  ooze through once more.
  
  32
  Appendix: 
  Characters  
  and Creatures
  Several adventures call out unique characters and 
  new	creatures.	You	can	find	their	statistics	boxes	here	
  in one place for easy reference. 
  Characters
  Here	you	will	find	the	most	important	characters	
  featured in The Queen of Gold campaign.
  Anne the Red
  The infamous captain of the Orphanmaker, Anne leads 
  a crew on a campaign of villainy and mayhem across 
  the Auroral Ocean and beyond.
   She speaks, reads, and writes the Common Tongue.
  ANNE THE RED 
  DIFFICULTY 100
  Size 1 human
  Perception 12 (+2)
  Defense 17 (plate and mail); Health 80; Insanity 5; 
  Corruption 6
  Strength 16 (+6), Agility 12 (+2), Intellect 12 (+2), Will 14 (+4)
  Speed 10
  Determined When Anne rolls a 1 on the die from a boon, 
  she can reroll the die and choose to use the new number.
  Leadership Other creatures within medium range of Anne 
  that are friendly to her and that can see her make attack 
  rolls with 1 boon.
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Sword (melee) +6 with 2 boons (3d6 + 2)
  Dagger (melee or short range) +6 with 2 boons (3d6)
  Pistol (3) (range) +2 with 2 boons (4d6)
  SPECIAL ACTIONS 
  Dire Threat Anne uses an action, or a triggered action on 
  her turn, to threaten one creature she can see within 
  short range. If the target can hear her, she makes a Will 
  attack roll with 1 boon against the target’s Will. On a 
  success, the target becomes frightened for a number of 
  rounds equal to 2 + its Insanity total.
  Goretusk
  A vile beastman of unusual build and nature, 
  Goretusk combines the features of an enormous 
  man with those of a wild boar. His piggish head has a 
  wide, wet snout, with large, curling tusks, and a wide 
  mouth. The rest of him appears generally human, 
  though larger and bulkier than most men, his tough 
  hide covered in thick, coarse hair. 
   Goretusk speaks the Common Tongue and Dark 
  Speech.
  GORETUSK 
  DIFFICULTY 100
  Size 2 beastman
  Perception 15 (+5); shadowsight
  Defense 16; Health 80; Insanity 5; Corruption 6
  Strength 16 (+6), Agility 10 (+0), Intellect 8 (–2), Will 13 (+3)
  Speed 10
  Ferocious When Goretusk would become incapacitated, 
  roll a d6. On a 5 or 6, Goretusk immediately heals  
  10 damage. 
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Great Club (melee) +6 with 2 boons (3d6 + 2)
  Tusks (melee) +6 with 2 boons (1d6 plus Stagger on attack 
  roll 20+)
  Stagger If the target is a creature, it becomes dazed for  
  1 round.
  SPECIAL ATTACKS 
  Bloody Charge Goretusk moves up to twice his Speed. 
  Once, at any point during this movement, he attacks  
  with his tusks. The attack deals 2d6 extra damage.
  SPECIAL ACTIONS 
  Vicious Rebuke When Goretusk takes damage, he can  
  use a triggered action to attack a random target he  
  can reach with his tusks.
  Pirates
  The brigands of the sea, pirates encompass a wide 
  range of characters, from ruthless murderers to 
  charming buccaneers. 
  PIRATE 
  DIFFICULTY 5
  Size 1 human
  Perception 9 (–1)
  Defense 12 (soft leather); Health 15; Insanity 1d3 – 1; 
  Corruption 1d3 –1
  Strength 10 (+0), Agility 11 (+1), Intellect 9 (–1), Will 10 (+0)
  Speed 10
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Cutlass (melee) +1 with 1 boon (1d6 + 1)
  Rudebendius Mal
  The insane, horribly corrupted necromancer 
  responsible for weakening the fabric of reality over 
  the theft of his beloved bride, Rudebendius Mal 
  has mastered the arts of necromancy and uses his 
  powers	with	great	effect.	Being	possessed	by	the	
  demon Viscallux, however, makes him an even more 
  terrifying threat.
   Mal speaks, reads, and writes the Common Tongue, 
  Dark Speech, and High Archaic.
  RUDEBENDIUS MAL 
  DIFFICULTY 250
  Size 1 frightening human
  Perception 15 (+5); shadowsight
  Defense 14; Health 60; Insanity —; Corruption 9
  Strength 10 (+0), Agility 12 (+2), Intellect 15 (+5), Will 16 (+6)
  Speed 10
  Immune damage from disease and poison; gaining Insanity; 
  diseased, frightened, poisoned
  
  33
  33
  Demonic Shadows While injured, darkness bleeds from 
  Mal’s wounds, turning light within 3 yards of him to 
  darkness. 
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Sickle (melee) +2 with 1 boon (1d6)
  SPECIAL ACTIONS 
  Counterspell When a creature Mal sees attacks him with 
  a spell, he can use a triggered action to counter it. The 
  triggering creature makes the attack roll with 1 bane and 
  Mal makes the challenge roll to resist it with 1 boon.
  Improved Spell Recovery Mal can use an action to heal 8 
  damage and regain two casting he has expended. Mal can 
  only use this ability once before he takes a complete rest.
  Swift Spell On his turn, Mal can use a triggered action to 
  cast a rank 3 or lower spell.
  MAGIC 
  Power 5
  Forbidden harm (6), hateful defecation (3), ravenous 
  maggots (2), part bone from flesh (2), soul exchange (1)
  Illusion disguise (6), vertigo (3), invisibility (2)
  Magician sense magic (6)
  Necromancer command undead (3)
  Necromancy spectral grasp (6), grave grasp (3), harvest 
  soul (3), cannibalize magic (2), seal the Underworld’s 
  gates (1), army of the dead (1)
  END OF THE ROUND 
  Soul-Rending Presence Each living creature that is not 
  a demon or possessed by a demon within short range 
  must get a success on a Will challenge roll with 2 banes 
  or take 1d6 damage and gain 1d3 Insanity.
  The Sleeper
  The former master of the Necromancer’s Mountain, 
  once known as Dahlia, Keeper of Death’s Door, was 
  murdered by her apprentice, Rudebendius Mal. 
  Through various necromantic machinations, her soul 
  remains anchored in this world instead of hurtling 
  straight to Hell. She is now known as the Sleeper, 
  a spectral-like creature who can enter the dreams 
  of others to inflict pain and agony, enabling her to 
  extract the life energy she needs to restore herself as a 
  death lord.
   The Sleeper speaks the Common Tongue, Dark 
  Speech, and High Archaic.
  THE SLEEPER 
  DIFFICULTY 250
  Size 1 frightening spirit
  Perception 14 (+4); darksight
  Defense 11; Health 66; Insanity —; Corruption 10
  Strength 10 (+0), Agility 11 (+1), Intellect 14 (+4), Will 12 (+2)
  Speed 10
  Immune damage from cold, disease, or poison; gaining 
  Insanity; asleep, charmed, dazed, diseased, fatigued, 
  frightened, poisoned, stunned
  Insubstantial The Sleeper takes half damage from 
  weapons, can move through solid objects and other 
  creatures, and ignores the effects of moving across 
  difficult terrain.
  Naturally Invisible The Sleeper is invisible to all creatures 
  other than those affected by Nightmare Binding. While 
  invisible, the Sleeper lacks the frightening trait and 
  cannot use her attack options. 
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Nightmare Blade (melee) +1 with 2 boons (2d6 + 2)
  Draining Touch (melee) +4 with 2 boons (2d6 plus Drain  
  on attack roll 20+) 
  Drain A living target gains 1 Corruption and takes a 6 
  penalty to Health until it completes a rest. While it is 
  subject to this penalty, the target makes Strength attack 
  rolls and challenge rolls with 1 bane. 
  If this penalty reduces the target’s Health to 0, the 
  target dies. 
  SPECIAL ATTACKS 
  Nightmare Binding The Sleeper makes a Will attack roll 
  with 1 boon against the Strength of one target creature 
  she can see within medium range. On success, the 
  target falls asleep for 1 minute. At the end of this time, 
  the Sleeper can use a triggered action if she is within 
  medium range of the target to make a Will attack 
  roll against the target’s Will. On a success, the target 
  remains asleep as long as the Sleeper wishes or until she 
  becomes incapacitated.
  SPECIAL ACTIONS 
  Change Shape The Sleeper uses an action or a triggered 
  action on its turn to transform into a creature that she 
  has identified as being terrifying to her victim. The 
  Sleeper remains in this form until she uses a triggered 
  action at any time to return to her normal form.
  Nightmare Eruption When the Sleeper takes damage 
  and she is not incapacitated, a nightmarish creature 
  tears out of her. Roll 1d6. On a result of 1–3, a medium 
  monster forms from her essence. On a result of 4–5, a 
  large monster roars into being. On a result of 6, a huge 
  monster erupts from the Sleeper. Each creature steps 
  out from the Sleeper’s space into an open space within 
  1 yard of her. After the Sleeper forms one huge monster, 
  she cannot use this Nightmare Eruption for 1 minute.
  Manifestation The Sleeper uses an action or a triggered 
  action on her turn to become visible. She remains visible 
  until she uses an action or triggered action to become 
  invisible once more.
  The Thing
  The Thing that was “Restless” Braxton Rave is a 
  horrid monstrosity standing taller than two men with 
  a massive fishlike head, a raggedly fanged maw, and 
  vicious claws. A fleshy glowing lure, like that of an 
  angler fish, emerges from its head, which it uses to 
  attract prey so it can feed. 
  THE THING 
  DIFFICULTY 100
  Size 2 frightening demon
  Perception 13 (+3); truesight
  Defense 13; Health 80; Insanity —; Corruption 7
  Strength 15 (+5), Agility 11 (+1), Intellect 8 (–2), Will 14 (+4)
  Speed 12; swimmer
  Immune damage from disease or poison; gaining Insanity; 
  dazed, diseased, fatigued, immobilized, impaired, 
  poisoned, slowed, stunned
  Vulnerable to Fire The Thing takes double damage from fire.
  Spell Defense The Thing takes half damage from spells. 
  When a creature attacks the Thing with a spell, the 
  Thing imposes 1 bane on the attack roll and makes the 
  challenge roll to resist the spell with 1 boon. 
  Demonic Shadows Lit areas out to 4 yards around the 
  thing become shadows. 
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Claws (melee) +5 with 2 boons (2d6)
  
  34
  SPECIAL ATTACKS 
  Frenzied Attack The Thing attacks two different targets 
  with its claws, making each attack roll with 1 bane. 
  SPECIAL ACTIONS 
  Rancor If the Thing takes damage, it can use a triggered 
  action to use its claws to attack a creature it can reach. 
  The thing makes the attack roll with 2 banes.
  Void Step The Thing uses an action, or a triggered action 
  on its turn, to teleport to an unoccupied space it can see 
  within medium range. Roll a d6. On a roll of 1, the Thing 
  cannot use Void Step again for 1 minute. 
  END OF THE ROUND 
  Epic Recovery The Thing removes one affliction from itself.
  Lantern of the Depths Each creature within medium range 
  of the Thing that can see it must either use a triggered 
  action to avert its eyes or make a Will challenge roll with 
  1 bane.
  For 1 round, creatures who averted their eyes make 
  attack rolls with 2 banes and grants 2 boons to creatures 
  making attack rolls against it.
  Any creature who gets a failure on a Will challenge 
  roll must move its Speed toward the Thing. If it moves 
  to a space within the Thing’s reach, the creature also 
  becomes dazed for 1 round.
  Creatures
  Here	you	will	find	altogether	new	creatures,	as	well	 
  as others drawn from sources other than Shadow of  
  the Demon Lord. 
  Sharkman
  The savage, brutal sharkmen surrendered their 
  civility to bloodlust long ago, roaming the waters in 
  search of prey to feed their insatiable appetites. Like 
  fomors and wargs, sharkmen inherited the curse that 
  let loose the beastmen into the world. Each one has 
  human features commingled with those of a shark. 
  Many strains of sharkmen exist, usually resembling 
  particular	types	of	sharks.	For	instance,	one	can	find	
  sharkmen who appear to be related to great white 
  sharks, tiger sharks, and even hammerheads. Despite 
  their	cosmetic	differences,	they	are	all	thoroughly	
  vicious and slaves to their never-ending hunger.
   Sharkmen might hunt alone or in small groups. 
  They communicate in Dark Speech and have little use 
  for anything other than food.
  SHARKMAN 
  DIFFICULTY 50
  Size 1 beastman
  Perception 10 (+0); shadowsight
  Defense 13; Health 49; Insanity 2; Corruption 3
  Strength 14 (+4), Agility 11 (+1), Intellect 8 (–2), Will 11 (+1)
  Speed 10; swimmer
  Amphibious A sharkman can breathe air and water.
  Blood Frenzy A sharkman makes attack rolls against 
  injured targets with 1 boon.
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Teeth (melee) +4 with 2 boons (5d6 plus Rend Flesh on 
  attack roll 20+)
  Rend Flesh A living creature of flesh and blood suffers a 
  bleeding wound that remains until it heals any damage. 
  At the end of each round when a creature suffers from a 
  bleeding wound, it takes 1d6 damage from blood loss.
  SPECIAL ATTACKS 
  Darting Attack The sharkman moves up to half its Speed 
  and attacks with its teeth. If the sharkman gets a failure 
  on the attack roll, it can move up to half its Speed 
  without triggering free attacks.
  Vultureman
  Vulturemen combine the traits of humans with 
  vultures. Their gray, wrinkled heads sport sharp 
  beaks,	perfect	for	tearing	flesh	and	are	smeared	 
  with	filth	from	previous	meals.	In	place	of	arms,	 
  they have large wings, capable of lifting them into 
  the air, while black features cover their torsos from 
  shoulders to groins. Their legs appear human, but 
  they end in talons instead of normal feet.
   Vulturemen speak Dark Speech.
  VULTUREMAN 
  DIFFICULTY 25
  Size 1 beastman
  Perception 12 (+2); shadowsight
  Defense 14; Health 20; Insanity 3; Corruption 5
  Strength 10 (+0), Agility 14 (+4), Intellect 9 (–1), Will 10 (+0)
  Speed 12; flier (swoop)
  ATTACK OPTIONS 
  Talons (melee) +4 with 2 boons (2d6 plus Rend on attack 
  roll 20+)
  Rend If the target is a creature, it takes 2d6 extra damage.
  SPECIAL ATTACKS 
  Snatch and Drop On a fast turn, the vultureman flies up to 
  half its Speed; on a slow turn, it flies up to its Speed. At 
  any point during its movement, it can use its claws to 
  attack one creature it can reach. On a success against a 
  Size 1 or smaller creature, the vultureman snatches the 
  target, lifts it up to 6 yards into the air, and then drops 
  it. A creature dropped in this way is subject to damage 
  from landing after a fall (Shadow, page 38).
  
  An Unearthly 
  Storm Gathers  
  on the Horizon!
  A new evil stirs in the east, in the unknown lands beyond the 
  Auroral Ocean, a horror that promises to plunge the entire world 
  into shadow! The Queen of Gold: Tales of the Pirate Isles presents a 
  complete campaign that takes a group of starting characters all the 
  way to the culmination of their master paths. 
  In the eleven adventures contained inside, the characters will have 
  to	contend	with	being	shipwrecked,	fight	horrors	loosed	from	the	
  seas, search for accursed relics, battle a dastardly pirate, and travel 
  to the ends of the Urth to confront the heart of darkness itself!  
  The Queen of Gold also captures the unique nightmarish visions  
  of a whole stable of designers that include: Robert J. Schwalb,  
  Nat Webb, Robert Adducci, Jason Bulmahn, Greg Marks,  
  Steve Kenson, Eric Cagle, Andrew Follett, Miranda Horner,  
  and Stephen Radney-MacFarland.
  So assemble your hearty companions and set sail for the  
  Pirate	Isles	to	find	the	fabled	Queen of Gold!
  To use this product, you will need 
  Shadow of the Demon Lord and the 
  Demon Lord’s Companion.
  The Queen of Gold: Tales of the Pirate Isles is © 2017 Schwalb Entertainment, LLC. All rights reserved.
  Shadow of the Demon Lord, Schwalb Entertainment, and their associated logos are trademarks of Schwalb Entertainment, LLC.
  SKU: SDL1725 
  $19.99
  GrEEn ronin PubliShinG, llc
  3815 S Othello St. Suite 100 #304 
  Seattle, WA 98118
  Schwalb EntErtainmEnt, llc
  PO Box #12548, Murfreesboro, TN 37129
  info@schwalbentertainment.com 
  www.schwalbentertainment.com
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Shadow of the Demon Lord/Adventures/Campaigns/SotDL - Tales of The Pirate Isles - Queen of Gold v2.pdf