TEXT: Umberto Pignatelli
  Garden 
  of Death
  Garden 
  of Death
  
  Editing: Andy Slack, Piotr Korys
  Playtesters: Daniele Bonetto, Luca Coero Borga, Maner Samuel, Paolo Boie-
  ro, Pierpaolo Ferrari, Glauco Guerrieri, Marco Beltramino.
  Cover: Ania Jarmołowska
  Art: Ania Jarmołowska, Luigi Castellani, Miguel Santos, Earl Geier,
  Joyce Maureira, Jacob E. Blackmon, Christian Hollnbuchner, Maciej
  Zagorski, some images copyright Erisian Entertainment, used with
  permission, some artwork © 2015 Dean Spencer, used with permission.
  All rights reserved.
  Garden of Death
  &
  Barbarians
  Barbarians
  A Sword and Sorcery Savage Worlds setting
  By Umberto Pignatelli
  There is a place, among the dreaded mountains of the fallen Realm of Keron, where those dead before their time wake 
  up, alive, to enjoy a new life.
  It is a place of forbidden marvels, exotic beauties and obscure terrors. A place which is difficult to enter, and almost 
  impossible to leave. 
   The mysteries of old Keron await the heroes in the seventh installment of the Beasts & Barbarians adventure series!  
  Dare you enter the Garden of Death?
  Bonus Content. This scenario includes an extensive Book of Lore dedicated to the Fallen Realm of Keron, its many 
  dangers and forbidden secrets.
  This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group at www.peginc.
  com. Savage Worlds and all associated logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle Entertainment Group. Used 
  with permission. Pinnacle makes no representation or warranty as to the quality, viability, or suitability for purpose of 
  this product.
  A Sword and Sorcery Savage Worlds adventure for a party 
  of four Veteran characters
  
  3
  Table of Contents
  Introduction  .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   5
  Part 1: 
  The Fruit of Victory  .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   8
  Part 2: 
  The Garden of Death  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  16
  Part 3: 
  Black Seeds in the Wind .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .  40
   Part 4: 
  The Fate of Zura   .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  60
  The End  .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .  73
  Creatures and NPCs  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  73
  Appendix  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  81
  Book of Lore – The Fallen Kingdom of Keron  .  .  .  .  84
  
  4
  A Note oN AbbreviAtioNs
  To save space, several abbreviations are 
  used in this book to refer to other books 
  of the Beasts & Barbarians line. They are 
  listed below:
  GE: Beasts & Barbarians Golden Edition
  BOD: Beasts of the Dominions
  JCT: Jalizar, City of Thieves
  TB: Tattered Banners
  TLD: Tricarnia, Land of Princes and 
  Demons
  Characters and enemies are defined in the 
  text as follows.
  (E): Extra
  (H): Henchman
  (RH): Right Hand
  (WC): Wild Card
  
  5
  Introduction
  Welcome to the Garden of Death, the 
  seventh adventure of the Beasts & 
  Barbarians Savage Words setting!
  To play this scenario you need a copy of 
  the Savage Worlds core rules and GE. TB 
  is not essential, but you’ll find it useful, 
  because there are several mass battles 
  in this story. If you don’t own it, simply 
  use the Battle Value rule (see box at page 
  6) and ignore the Edges, Hindrances 
  and other advanced stats of the various 
  fighting forces.
  This scenario is for a party of four Veteran 
  heroes, with some experience (50-55 
  Experience Points is the optimal level), 
  but it can easily be modified, following the 
  Golden Edition instructions, for parties of 
  different size and experience.
  You can play it with characters of your 
  own, or download for free a party of pre-
  generated heroes from the same store 
  where you found this product, or you can 
  customize the archetypes found in the 
  Archetypes of the Dominions and Jalizar free 
  supplement.
  If you don’t have gaming terrain at 
  disposal, you may also find handy to use 
  gaming stones and several copies of Burst 
  Templates to represent specific terrain 
  features in fights.
  Parts in italics are intended to be read 
  aloud or paraphrased by the Game Master 
  to the players.
  Now, if you intend to play this scenario, 
  stop here: the following sections are 
  reserved for the Game Master.
  Otherwise, if you plan to run this 
  adventure, go on, and prepare to venture 
  into the Dominions!
  Characters 
  Requirements
  This scenario presents very different 
  situations: the heroes will have to lead 
  men in battle, cross dangerous lands, 
  investigate ancient mysteries and then 
  organize and lead a whole rebellion all on 
  their own!
  For this reason, characters with the 
  Knowledge (Mass Battle) skill will have a 
  real chance to shine. A good number of 
  the scenes are on horseback, so having a 
  decent level of Riding will be very useful, 
  as will the presence of a specialist in 
  Survival and Stealth.
  A skilled magician isn’t necessary to 
  successfully complete this adventure, but 
  having one present will certainly make 
  things easier for the party.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  6
  Although all these skills are useful, none of 
  them is essential to successfully complete 
  the scenario.
  Background for the 
  Game Master
  It is commonly believed that Tricarnians, 
  and even more so their Keronian ancestors, 
  are cold-blooded, emotionless beings, 
  incapable of normal human feelings. 
  But this is not true, as the tale of Prince 
  Ashak reveals: Ashak, lord of Nal Ashaka, 
  a powerful city of ancient Keron, had a 
  wife, Shakara, who he loved dearly. But 
  she was frail of health, and the cold hand 
  of death took her in her prime despite the 
  efforts of the best healers of the kingdom.  
  And not even the powers of a Priest Prince 
  of Keron can undo the work of death.
  But if death cannot be defeated, she can 
  be courted: one night, when the moon was 
  red as blood, Prince Ashak walked down 
  into the small garden of the palace, which 
  Shakara loved so dearly, and chanted old 
  forbidden spells. 
  When the last echo of his words faded, 
  something in the garden was subtly 
  changed; the shadows were longer, 
  somewhat darker and the light of the stars 
  was dimmed and slightly different. But, 
  more important, Shakara was standing in 
  the garden again.
  “My 
  beloved,” 
  Ashak 
  asked, 
  with 
  trembling voice, “Are you alive?”  
  “Nay, my love,” Shakara answered “I am 
  not. Neither I am dead. We are in the 
  Garden of Death, where life and un-life 
  have no meaning.”
  Ashak hugged her and said: “If you cannot 
  be the Princess of Nal Ashaka in life, then 
  you shall be so in death!”
  From that day the Priest Prince daily 
  visited Shakara in the ensorcelled garden, 
  enjoying every moment together as time 
  robbed from death itself. If Ashak noticed 
  how dark the Garden had become, he 
  Battle Value?
  This scenario uses this new rule extensively.
  The Battle Value is a new stat introduced in TB, to handle the absolute 
  strength of armies in an abstract way, summarized below.
  During mass battles you calculate the number of Battle Tokens of two 
  armies using Battle Values in this way:
  1) The army with the higher Battle Value receives 10 Battle Tokens
  2) The army with the lower Battle Value receives a number of Tokens 
  equal to (10xLowest Battle Value)/Highest Battle Value. The result is 
  rounded down.
  3) Losses influence Battle Value in the same way. If for example an 
  army lost one Battle Token out of six, its Battle Value is reduced by 1/6.
  
  Garden of Death
  7
  decided to ignore it, full as he was of love 
  for his wife. 
  Nobody, except Ashak, dared entered 
  the enchanted garden, due the strange 
  atmosphere emanating from it. 
  Then, suddenly, the Dread Star fell, 
  bringing the end of Keron in a single 
  night. 
  Nal Ashaka, being in the Keronian Range, 
  survived, but was totally depopulated. 
  Decimated by climate change, illness and 
  famine, the few survivors escaped from 
  its crumbling walls, but they brought 
  with them the memory of the Garden 
  which, despite the dust and darkness 
  after the cataclysm, continued to prosper, 
  untouched, as if protected by death itself.
  Over the centuries the legend of the 
  Garden of Death grew; if you pay heed to 
  the rumors, people meeting a premature, 
  unfair death sometimes don’t really die, 
  but are reborn in the Garden, where they 
  join the court of the Princess of Death, 
  the ruler of this place, serving her forever.
  Over the centuries, people have tried to 
  find the Garden, but of the few madmen 
  who did, nobody is still around to tell the 
  story.
  The Sad King 
  King Varias of Zura, the Verdant, is the 
  ruler of a prosperous Independant City 
  south-west of Hillias. An enlightened 
  man, he has made his kingdom a place 
  of riches and prosperity, irrigating large 
  areas of the desert, becoming very popular 
  among his people, but hated and despised 
  by the Red Desert Nomads, who were 
  dispossessed of their grazing lands.
  But the gods don’t love the lucky; ten years 
  ago, Varias’s son, Kithaso, died of a sudden 
  fever, and Varias, previously a merry man, 
  become sad and gloomy. Deprived of his 
  beloved child, he dedicated himself to 
  his kingdom, but the memory of his son 
  never abandoned him; it is a black shadow 
  always in his eyes.
  Adventure Hook: At 
  the King’s Service
  Zura’s war against the Desert Nomads 
  is stalling. The nomads have found a 
  charismatic leader, a mysterious masked 
  warrior called Hutani Gar, the Desert 
  Jackal, and they are razing and pillaging 
  the kingdom with hit-and-run tactics, 
  retreating into the desert before the 
  Zuran army can engage and crush them. 
  The chief of the Zuran army, General 
  Talasco, a former imperial officer, wasn’t 
  getting any real success, so the King hired 
  a group of foreigner mercenaries to defeat 
  the nomads: the heroes.
  The adventurers were quickly noticed for 
  their skills and they climbed the command 
  ladder, till one of them (select a suitable 
  hero, who from this moment on is called 
  the Commandant), become an important 
  officer, second only to General Talasco 
  himself. 
  In few months the Commandant and his 
  friends took the rabble of the army, green 
  troops, bandits and so on, and forged 
  them into a strong fighting unit, called 
  the Black Hawks due to the emblem 
  they wear. The Commandant also found a 
  reliable man, the young but reliable Tark, 
  to act as his second in command.
  Till today the Black Hawks haven’t yet 
  been tested in a real battle and they are 
  eager to taste their first blood…
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  8
  Part 1: The Fruit of Victory
  the Commandant
  The character chosen for this role should 
  be a warrior-type, if possible with the 
  Knowledge (Battle) skill. If he doesn’t 
  have the proper skill, he permanently 
  gains it at d4, for free, but begins the 
  game with one Bennie less. In addition, 
  the Commandant is considered to have 
  the Noble Edge, while he is in Zura. 
  As a payment, the Commandant gains 
  the Vow (fidelity to the Black Hawks) 
  Hindrance till the end of the scenario.
  When Hawks  
  and Jackals Meet
  The adventure begins in media res, without 
  explaining too much to the players. Split 
  the party in two: the Commandant and 
  half of the party are in the caravan (see 
  below), while the others will appear soon. 
  The text below is for the Commandant 
  and his companions.
  The caravan snakes, slowly, across the sun-
  scorched desert: the heavy carts, dragged 
  by horses and camels, aren’t the best way to 
  cross this land, but only they can carry all the 
  precious cargo from Hillias to Zura and then 
  to far Caldeia in the south. 
  The people of the caravan are nervous: 
  everybody knows that the region is troubled 
  by the attacks of the Desert Nomads and 
  nobody is more jumpy than the caravan 
  master, the long-nosed Jalaaro of Jalizar.  
  The caravan is very rich, and despite the 
  number of guards, an alluring prey for 
  the dreaded Desert Jackal, the bandit lord 
  ruling over the greatest tribe of marauders.
  “Better the gods had cut my nose off than 
  I accepted your offer!” he curses to you (the 
  Commandant), the man in charge of the 
  caravan guards.
  “We are approaching the Zirakan Hills, and 
  I feel the eyes of the Desert Jackal on my 
  neck!” he adds, his long nose shivering. 
  Jalaaro is right: this place is the most 
  dangerous of all the journey. South there are 
  the dunes of the Red Desert, south-east the 
  rocky Zirakan Hills, and north the Badlands 
  of Hillias, full of ravines and sinkholes. If 
  the caravan is attacked now, it will be on an 
  open plain with no way to escape…
  Jalaaro grew up in Jalizar, the City of 
  Thieves, and has a knack for spotting danger, 
  or maybe he is only a very unlucky merchant, 
  because at that very moment you spot the 
  first nomad on the top of the dunes. The light 
  of the sun shimmers on his blade and his 
  weirdly shaped helm; you recognize him, he 
  is the Desert Jackal, the nomads’ chief! He 
  drops the blade and, from behind the dunes, 
  a horde of nomad warriors swarms out, 
  charging the caravan!
  This is the moment you have been waiting 
  for the last few months. This is your chance!
  Tark, the freckled lad acting as second in 
  command, watches you from under his 
  caravan driver disguise, ready to pass the 
  order to the men.
  
  Garden of Death
  9
  This is the moment to reveal something 
  more to the players: they aren’t simply 
  caravan guards, but soldiers in the service 
  of the King of Zura. The whole caravan 
  is bait, made to lure in and destroy the 
  Nomads forever!
  In 
  the 
  carriages, 
  concealed 
  under 
  the tarpaulin, there are no wares, but 
  the archers of the Black Hawks, the 
  military unit trained and leaded by the 
  Commandant, ready to taste their first 
  blood! 
  Shoot! This first part of the battle uses 
  the Mass Battle rules, playing a single 
  round. The focal point is deciding when 
  to uncover the archers in the wagons: too 
  early and the marauders will turn back, too 
  late and the caravan will be slaughtered. 
  Describe the scene intensely, adding detail 
  while the enemy advance. Depending on 
  the moment they choose, the heroes’ side 
  will have a modifier to the battle roll, as 
  shown in the table below. Note that the 
  Black Hawks are also considered to be in 
  Prepared Positions and Cannot Retreat 
  (so they gain +4 to Morale rolls).
  Moment
  Battle Roll 
  Modifier (Plan)
  “First only a mass of men is 
  seen…
  +1
  …then their blades are 
  visible… 
  +2
  …then the whites of their 
  eyes…
  +4
  …and now it is too late!”
  -2
  Brace for Impact! After the volleys of 
  arrows the Black Hawks must draw their 
  swords and fight in melee. They are still 
  outnumbered, but this is part of the plan. 
  Hidden in the Zirakan Hills is the rest of 
  Zura’s army (and the other PCs), under 
  the orders of General Talasco, with the 
  heavy cavalry ready! When the nomads 
  are fully locked in melee with the Hawks, 
  the Commandant (or another PC with 
  him) must tell Tark, the second in charge 
  of the Black Hawks, to sound the horn, 
  this is the order for General Talasco to 
  start the second part of the plan. 
  blAck HAwks
  Battle Value:  400
  Commander: The Commandant hero
  Band Edges: Battle Hardened
  Band Hindrances: None
  red desert NomAds
  Battle Value:  800
  Commander: Houtani Gar, the Desert 
  Jackal (Knowledge (Battle) d6, Spirit d8)
  Band Edges: Mobility, Skirmishers
  Band Hindrances: None
  In the Meantime...…
  Read this to the other part of the party, 
  the ones who aren’t with the caravan.
  Hidden among the rocky hills, under the 
  merciless sun, you hear the sounds you are 
  waiting for: the clash of blades, curses, and 
  cries of the wounded. You are at the head of 
  the Zuran cavalry, dozens of heavily-armed 
  warriors on big horses, side by side with 
  General Talasco, the commander of the army. 
  Finally Tark’s bronze horn blows, this is the 
  moment you are waiting for! General Talasco 
  will give the order to charge soon, but…
  “Wait,” Talasco says, stroking his grayish 
  beard. “We must be sure all the nomads are 
  engaged, or they’ll escape again.”
  Zarimo, the pale blonde man acting as his 
  lieutenant, nods.
  In truth, Talasco’s motivations aren’t clear. 
  As any character can understand with a 
  Smarts roll, Talasco feels overshadowed by 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  10
  the Commandant’s quick advancement in 
  the army and wants to have this victory 
  for himself. He waits till he is pretty sure 
  that he will save the day (and hopefully 
  the Commandant will be killed by a 
  raging nomad).
  The heroes must convince (Persuasion) or 
  threaten (Intimidation) him. Otherwise 
  one of them can snatch a trumpet from a 
  trumpeter and sound the charge himself. 
  For 
  each 
  moment 
  of 
  waiting, 
  the 
  Commandant must fight another mass battle 
  round, without the modifier for the surprise.
  After three rounds, Talasco declares the 
  attack, but by this point the situation will 
  be very ugly for the Black Hawks (and the 
  heroes with them).
  From this moment on, it isn’t necessary to 
  continue the Mass Battle, and you can go 
  on with the tabletop rules.  
  The Desert Jackal
  Now all the party is on 
  the battlefield, even if in 
  different positions.
  You are in a nightmare of dust, whinnying 
  horses, crying wounded and entrails. Your 
  arm raises and lowers mechanically as you 
  try to survive the madness of the battle. 
  You hear someone shouting your name, and 
  finally rejoin your comrades. The battle’s 
  outcome is still very uncertain, the Nomads 
  are fighting as cornered wolves, but suddenly 
  you see in front of you the Desert Jackal, their 
  chief, surrounded by his personal guard! If 
  you manage to kill him, victory will be yours!
  The battlefield is 12” by 12”. The heroes, 
  all on horseback, are positioned on the 
  southern edge, while the Desert Jackal and 
  his guards are on the opposite one. The 
  problem is that to reach him, the heroes 
  must wade through a mass of soldiers and 
  nomads, locked in melee (see below)! The 
  Desert Jackal and his guard fight to the 
  last man, but when the marauder lord 
  is defeated, ignore the real result of the 
  damage roll and read the text below.
  Remember that the battle, unless the 
  heroes dismount, is on horseback.
  Your blow strikes the Desert Jackal on the 
  helm, and he falls from his horse. At this 
  sight, the other nomads, scared, break and 
  try to escape, but your troops give them no 
  quarter, and many of them are killed. The 
  battle is won!
  
  Garden of Death
  11
  You dismount, and crouch to see the face of 
  the man who caused this war: the Desert 
  Jackal. Your blow, luckily, broke the helm in 
  two, only stunning the person inside. By the 
  gods, he isn’t a man, she is a girl! And a fair 
  one!
  (E) Red Desert Warrior (1 per hero+2): 
  They are the Desert Jackal’s personal 
  bodyguard. Raise Fighting by one die 
  step. They use the Fanatics Setting Rules, 
  but only to protect the Desert Jackal. See 
  page 77.
  (WC) Desert Jackal (1): Use Darketa’s 
  stats. See page 73.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • In the Battlefield: The entire battlefield 
  is considered Difficult Ground, due the 
  mass of persons on it. In addition every 
  round a character is dealt a black card, he 
  must make a Riding (-2), if on horseback, 
  or Agility (-2) roll to avoid falling down 
  or being hit by someone, suffering 2d6 
  damage. Ranged attacks are possible, but 
  at -4.
  aBout Zura
  The heroes are allowed a Common Knowledge (-2) or Knowledge (Red Desert Area) roll 
  to check what they know about Zura.
  Every entry below includes the previous information. So a character who scores a raise 
  also receives the information in the success entry, and so on.
  Failure. Zura is a small Independent City south west of Hillias, not far from the 
  Keronian Range, which owes its name to the fertile river Zur crossing the land. Ruled 
  by King Varias, a former Kyrosian noble, it has enjoyed a great expansion in the 
  last fifteen years, because Varias ordered extensive irrigation works around the Zur, 
  transforming large barren areas into luscious farmlands. By doing so, Varias became 
  vastly popular among the farmers, but was hated by the Red Desert Nomads, who were 
  dispossessed of their ancestral grazing lands.  
  Success. King Varias actually retired from leading the army some years ago, and gave a 
  lot of power to General Talasco, a former Iron Phalanx officer. But General Talasco isn’t 
  getting any real success against the nomads.
  Raise. King Varias’ semi-retirement dates from when his beloved son, Kithaso, died of a 
  fever. From that day, he was a different man.
  Two Raises or more. Lord Noramon, the King’s counselor is the person really keeping 
  the kingdom working. He is absolutely loyal to Varias, but the same cannot be said of 
  Talasco, who is said to have connections with Hillias…
  
  12
  A Kingly Gift
  Your entrance into the city of Zura is 
  magnificent. You ride at the head of the 
  Black Hawks, surrounded by two wings of 
  cheering people. The citizens throw flowers 
  at your feet and sing songs in your honor.
  Next in the column, in chains, are the 
  Nomads captured after the battle, the few 
  survivors.
  Then, the regular army follows, leaded by an 
  impassive General Talasco and his best man, 
  Zarimo.
  The column ends with a closed carriage, 
  heavily guarded. It contains the girl, the 
  Desert Jackal.
  Darketa is her name, and she is more a cat 
  than a Jackal; last night you tried to talk with 
  her, but she hissed and scratched, calling you 
  unrepeatable epithets. You only discovered 
  that she is the daughter of a famous nomad 
  chief, Tavarok. Capturing her is even better 
  than having her killed, because she will be a 
  very useful hostage… 
  Your meditations end when you reach the 
  royal palace: King Varias himself welcomes 
  you, with his best advisor, Lord Noramon, 
  at his side. Lord Noramon is smiling, and 
  even the normally grim-looking King seems 
  to have a hint of happiness in his eyes. 
  You bow in front of your lord, who makes 
  you stand up and says (addressed to the 
  Commandant).
  “You did a great thing for Zura. I appoint 
  you second general of Zura. May the gods 
  bless you!”
  The whole court cheers and claps, while you 
  are led inside, to your personal quarters. 
  Tonight a great banquet will be held in your 
  honor.
  If someone is explicitly looking towards 
  General Talasco when the Commandant 
  
  Garden of Death
  13
  is appointed general, he’ll see a very 
  hateful expression, but only for a moment. 
  The heroes have now time to rest and to 
  be checked by the palace’s physician, so 
  they recover all the Wounds and Fatigue 
  suffered before.
  The Banquet
  In all the months you have been in the 
  service of King Varias, you have never 
  seen such a lavish banquet.  The tables 
  are groaning from the weight of food and 
  beverages, the royal singers are at their best, 
  and the dancers very pretty. For the occasion, 
  all of you sit at the royal table, with Lord 
  Noramon, General Talasco and various 
  notables, including Jalaaro, the caravan 
  master, who entertains the tables with witty 
  stories of his Jalizaran homeland. Chained 
  at the bottom of the table, like a rabid dog, 
  there is also Darketa, who vehemently 
  refuses to behave in a civilized way, trying 
  to bite the king's hand, who tried to feed her.
   The players have some time to role-play 
  with the courtiers and the other diners. In 
  the Banquet Chat Table are listed some 
  personalities, with their role and a typical 
  phrase they might say, to be freely expanded 
  in a full conversation. In particular the 
  GM should role play Melanconio (who 
  is a supporter of General Talasco and will 
  betray Noramon in Part Four). After all 
  the players have had time to chat a bit, go 
  on with the next scene.
  BANQUET CHAT TABLE
  Character
  Attitude/Description
  Phrase
  King Varias
  A polite, but quite 
  distant, man, with a long, 
  trimmed beard.
  “Your work is much appreciated, (name of the 
  character).” He pensively strokes his beard.
  Lord Noramon, Royal 
  Couselor
  An old, but still vigorous 
  man, the most important 
  counselor of the King.
  “Now we have Darketa, the daughter of Tavarok, 
  in our hands, we finally have some leverage on the 
  Nomads. If the gods help us, this war will end soon 
  and civilization will finally shine in the desert.”
  General Talasco
  A strongly built, athletic 
  soldier, of Faberterran 
  origin. He smiles, but 
  never with his eyes.
  “I am a man that rarely admits my errors, but I was 
  wrong in the battle today. I should have attacked 
  earlier. I am very happy you saved the day. Count me 
  as your friend.” (He lies)
  Vador the Banker
  An enormously fat man, 
  who gorges himself with 
  food.
  “Have you tasted this pork? It is delicious.”
  Countess Jimarra
  A not-so-young, but yet 
  attractive noblewoman 
  “King Varias, poor fellow. Always so grim. He should 
  marry again. I well… I know the right person for 
  him.” (She blushes and waves her fan)
  Melanconio the Poet
  A weirdly dressed, grim 
  looking poet
  “King Varias is sad today, and we all know the 
  reason: he lost his only son, Kithaso, this very day, 
  many years ago. He isn’t a good king, but luckily we 
  have General Talasco, he saved the kingdom many 
  times.” He caresses his harp.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  14
  The banquet goes on till Jalaaro, the caravan 
  master, stands up to speak.
  “My king” he says. “A man of my caravan 
  would like to offer you a gift, as sign of 
  eternal gratitude for saving us from the 
  marauders.”
  The king briefly rouses from his melancholy. 
  “Of course.” He smiles.
  Then an old man, is introduced in the room. 
  He walks with some difficulty, and holds 
  something in the hands. It is a strange fruit, 
  the like of which you have never seen.
   It looks like a pomegranate, but it is slightly 
  bigger, very smooth, as if covered in molten 
  copper.
  The man bows deeply in front of the king and 
  says:  “Please Majesty, accept this humble 
  gift from Old Dulak, for saving my life and 
  that of my daughter Jagara. This fruit, whose 
  name I know not, comes from far away. It 
  never withers and it is destined for the table 
  of a King, not of a mere commoner like me.”
  All the court looks with interest at the 
  strange gift, and the King takes a knife to 
  cut it, but Lord Noramon stops him.
  “Nay, my King, it could be poisoned. Let the 
  royal taster cut, and taste it.”
  The royal taster is called. He is a bald, 
  common-looking man, and all the court 
  watches as the strange fruit is cut. The peel is 
  very thick, but when the blade cuts it a cloud 
  of smoke, or maybe spores, come out from it, 
  engulfing the whole room!
  Ask the players for a Vigor roll. It has no 
  importance, but keeps the tension high.
  The smoke is cold and odorless. Incredibly, 
  there is something, a sort of vision, in it: a 
  garden, with tall, shady trees, among which 
  a solitary figure, a boy dressed in gray, 
  wanders. For a moment the boy seems to 
  stare directly into the king’s eyes, then the 
  smoke fades and the vision ends.
  “Kithaso!” the King shouts, standing up.
  The boy in the vision was the deceased 
  King’s son. The old man, Dulak, is 
  immediately questioned and, trembling, 
  reveals what he knows; he had the fruit 
  from a desert hunter, who assured him that 
  it came from the Garden of Nal Ashaka, 
  but it is a name that means nothing to 
  Dulak.
  “The Garden of Nal Ashaka!” whispers 
  someone in the court. “The Garden of Death!”
  “There is a legend, in the Red Desert, 
  which speaks of a Garden, owned by Death 
  himself, where people dead before their time 
  wake up, safe. But it is only a legend. This 
  place doesn’t exist and nobody knows where 
  Nal Ashaka is.”
  At this point, a voice is heard.
  “I know.” 
   It is Darketa.
  Pacts and Promises
  “Nal Ashaka lays in the depths of the Fallen 
  Realm of Keron. The road to reach it is long 
  and dangerous,” the former Desert Jackal 
  says. 
  “My grandmother, who was a healer and a 
  witch, took me there once to gather special 
  healing herbs near the city. But we never 
  entered the city, it is a cursed place.”
  
  Garden of Death
  15
  In no way will Darketa reveal the location 
  of the fabled city, and cannot be forced to 
  do this: she prefers to die.
  “I make you a proposal, woman,” King 
  Varias says “Lead my men to that city and 
  I’ll grant freedom to you and your men lying 
  now in the dungeons.”
  A Jackalish snarl briefly crosses the face of 
  the girl, who answers: “I don’t trust your 
  words, stealer of land, but I have no choice. 
  I accept.”  
  Obviously Lord Noramon and General 
  Talasco argue strongly against this; with 
  Darketa free, the Nomads will rise up 
  again.
  But the King is adamant: he will do 
  anything to get his son back. 
  His only thought, now, is finding the right 
  people for this mission, and the heroes are 
  the best choice. 
  He speaks directly to the Commandant. 
  “[Name of the hero], in front of the whole 
  court, I entrust you with this mission: go to 
  cursed Nal Ashaka and bring back my son 
  Kithaso from there. Do this, and you will be 
  made commander of all the armies of Zura.”
  The court is astonished by this order, and 
  nobody is more astonished than General 
  Talasco, even if he manages to hide his 
  emotions well.
  Suspicions. Lord Noramon speaks with 
  the party in private, before they set off for 
  the mission. 
  “Many people in the court, myself included, 
  aren’t happy with his Majesty's decision. But 
  I am particularly worried about General 
  Talasco. I want your men, the Black Hawks, 
  to guard the King’s person. Is Tark, your 
  second in command, a trustworthy man?” 
  As the Commandant knows, Tark is very 
  faithful; he won’t be happy to leave his 
  commander to go on this mission alone, 
  but he will obey orders. 
  Preparations. Darketa is obviously close-
  mouthed about the details of the trip. She 
  asks for good horses and provisions for 
  two weeks. She only tells the heroes they 
  “will ride westward” but she doesn’t tell 
  more. She also asks to be freed and armed 
  and swears to not escape (a promise the 
  party can trust: Darketa’s men are still in 
  the dungeons). 
  The party leaves Zura at dawn, headed 
  toward the cursed land of Keron. But they 
  aren’t alone; a few hours later, a number of 
  cloaked men leave the city gates: General 
  Talasco and a band of his most dangerous 
  men.
  
  16
  Part 2:–The Garden of Death
  Stones and Sand
  The trip to Keron is divided into two 
  parts: the first consists of reaching the 
  borders of that cursed land, and the 
  second will be crossing the place itself. 
  Below are described some encounters that 
  will happen. The GM is free to add others 
  to make the trip more challenging.
  Tales Around the Fire
  The first three days of travel are quick and 
  without any problem. Your horses are the 
  best the king’s stables have and you ride very 
  lightly. Darketa rides at the head, near to 
  you, cloaked in grim silence, and you cannot 
  avoid looking with admiration at her black-
  haired profile. After three days of riding, at 
  dusk, you arrive at the village of Valzu, on 
  the border of the farmed lands. Beyond this 
  point, you know, the desert and the lands of 
  the nomads begin.
  Valzu is a small village on the road, 
  surrounded by a white adobe wall. It isn’t 
  particularly rich, but it is good enough to 
  restock food and water. If the party stops 
  in the sole inn of the village, Etu’s Bell, 
  they can hear some news and gossip (with 
  a Streetwise or Persuasion (-2) roll. The 
  nomads, it seems, are in total disorder now 
  that their warlord, the Desert Jackal, has 
  died, and won’t be a problem for a while. 
  Darketa clenches her teeth but she says 
  nothing.
  
  Garden of Death
  17
  The morning after, the trip continues, 
  into the desert. The sun beats down on 
  your head, and there is absolutely nothing 
  around you, except the howl of the wind in 
  the sand. Darketa stops to cut some dried 
  bushes. “Take as much as you can,” the desert 
  woman says. “Nights are cold in the desert, 
  especially under the shadow of Keron.” She 
  points eastward, where the mountains of 
  the Keronian range, black as a bad dream, 
  stand. You feel a sense of uneasiness when 
  you look in that direction.
  At evening the party stops. They build a 
  fire and huddle around it, in an unnaturally 
  cold night. 
  “This night evil spirits roam the land,” 
  Darketa says, smelling something you didn’t 
  perceive in the desert air. “They are hunting 
  for the souls of men. We must keep them 
  away from our fire.”  
   If the heroes ask how, she looks at them 
  as if they were fools and answers.
  “By telling stories, of course.”
  This is the right moment for an Interlude. 
  Every player must tell one story, so that 
  the night passes. Darketa is the last one, 
  and she will tell the Story of Bar-Ishim 
  (see sidebar). 
  the Story of Bar-IShIm
  Bar-Ishim was a man who made a bet 
  with the One-Eyed Djinn, betting his 
  soul against the life of his daughter, 
  who was on her deathbed. Bar-Ishim 
  bet that he and his horse, Joorva, could 
  outrun the sunrise and from his tent in 
  the desert, reach the Oasis of Mar Sal 
  before the first sunrays could touch his 
  daughter’s bed. He came close, very close, 
  but nobody could outrun the sun. Bar-
  Ishim was transformed into the fresh 
  wind of the desert, which blows in the 
  hours immediately before sunset, and 
  his daughter became a palm tree, which 
  gives shade to travelers. Nobody knows 
  what happened to his horse, Joorva, but 
  sometimes, at night, the echoes of his 
  hooves can be heard among the dunes…
  
  18
  The Stonebridge
  Your long ride eastward seems to be endless, 
  but finally you reach the dreaded Mountains 
  of Keron. A mass of black basalt, towering 
  over you with malevolence. But there is a 
  problem; the path is blocked by a vast chasm, 
  several hundred yards wide, separating you 
  from the mountains.
  Characters with a learned background 
  understand that such a fissure was one of 
  the effects of the Dread Star fall, millennia 
  ago.
  “This chasm is called Narikh Mar, the Black 
  Vein,” Darketa says. “It can be avoided but 
  this will require a long detour. But we’ll take 
  a different road. Look there, at that big arch 
  crossing the chasm. It is the Stonebridge. We 
  will pass over it.”
  The party can see the arch Darketa is 
  talking about: a thin passage of black 
  stone, probably of natural origin, which 
  allows passing over the chasm. It isn’t far 
  away…
  But while you are pondering what to do, 
  suddenly you hear the sounds of hooves, 
  and, from behind a dune, a band of crimson 
  dressed warriors fall on you!
  “Ukar’s blade!” Darketa curses. “They are 
  Red Nomads, not of my clan!”
  The Red Nomads are the most dangerous 
  and xenophobic of the desert dwellers; in 
  addition they consider the land of Keron 
  holy, and for this reason they guard the 
  Stonebridge. The party must fight for 
  their lives. The battleground is 24” by 24”.  
  The western side is the Black Vein (see 
  below), while the eastern 12” by 24” area is 
  filled with rough hills.
  Place the heroes roughly in the middle 
  of the battlefield, but 6” away from the 
  eastern frontier, while the Red Nomads 
  are placed, in a sparse formation, in the 
  
  Garden of Death
  19
  hills. They must be at least 10” from the 
  adventurers.
  Both the heroes and their assailants are on 
  horseback and the adventurers must roll 
  for surprise.
  The Nomads’ tactics consist of shooting 
  arrows while charging the heroes, and 
  then engaging them in melee. They fight 
  to the last breath.
  But the fight’s end only means greater 
  troubles are coming!
  (E) Red Nomads (2 per hero): Use Red 
  Desert Warrior stats, adding the Berserk 
  Edge. See page 77.
  (WC) Darketa (1): See page 73.
  Terrains, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Rolling Hills: The hills slope downwards, 
  so if you are running from west to east (as 
  the Red Nomads do), you increase the 
  running die by one die step (horses usually 
  roll a d8, so it becomes a d10), but if a 1 
  is rolled on the running die, it means the 
  horse trips, and Riding (-4) roll is required 
  to avoid being thrown out of the saddle. 
  For characters going the other way, it is 
  considered Difficult Ground.
  • The Black Vein: Characters Shaken or 
  Wounded within 2” of the edge of the 
  Black Vein must roll on Agility, otherwise 
  they fall in the chasm! Extras automatically 
  die, screaming while they plummet to the 
  black waters, hundreds of feet below. Wild 
  Cards instead can cling onto the edge and 
  try to regain solid ground, with a Strength 
  (-2) roll, which can be cooperative. In the 
  case of failure, they fall down, screaming. 
  The hero is apparently lost, but the GM 
  is free to make him appear again, alive, in 
  the Garden of Death. From this moment 
  on, you can have that player use Darketa.
  Run for It!
  The first nomad hasn’t yet fallen to the 
  ground, when from behind the hill, a larger 
  war party comes out. There are at least three 
  dozen of them, red blurs riding toward you 
  with shining blades in hand, eager to taste 
  your blood.
  “We cannot fight!” Darketa shout “We must 
  head for the bridge!”
  The warrior woman is right. The nomads 
  are too numerous to be fought, at least in 
  open battle. If the group manages to reach 
  the Stonebridge, they could have more 
  chance of a successful defense.
  The scene is a Standard length Chase, 
  based on Riding. Ignore the normal 
  complication rules, instead every round 
  a scripted event happens, as described 
  below.
  The nomads are divided into three groups 
  of twelve. When there is the chance of 
  attacks, only 2d6 of them can shoot (the 
  others are in a poor position). 
  (E) Red Nomads (2 per hero): Use Red 
  Desert Warrior stats, adding the Berserk 
  Edge. See page 77.
   cHAse eveNts tAble
  Round 1 – Go for It! The ground in front 
  of the party is flat as the belly of a dancer 
  in a Jalizaran tavern! Ask the players how 
  much they want to spur their horses (0, 
  +2 or +4). They obtain the same bonus on 
  the Riding roll, but, if they roll 1 on the 
  Riding dice (if they chose +2), or 1-2 (if 
  they chose +4) the horse trips and they are 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  20
  unhorsed! Ignore this effect for the Red 
  Nomads.
  Round 2 – Crumbling Ground. The 
  heroes are riding very close to the Black 
  Vein’s edge, and there the ground is friable! 
  Each character acting on a Clubs card 
  feels the ground shatter under the hooves 
  of his horse; he must immediately roll on 
  Riding (-2) or fall into the Black Vein (see 
  The Black Vein above). For Red Nomads, 
  simply consider that 1d6 of them fall in 
  the chasm, screaming.
  Round 3 – Dust! The horses raise a lot of 
  dust, and nobody can see anymore! This 
  round, use Notice as the Chase skill, instead 
  of Riding. No ranged attack is possible, but 
  melee attacks are possible at -2, with any 
  card equal to or greater than 8.
  Round 4 – On the Bridge! The heroes 
  finally reach the Stonebridge! Darketa 
  incites the party to cross it, but it is very 
  narrow, and the horses buck and rear! 
  This round, the heroes (only) use Spirit as 
  their Chase skill, with +4 if they have the 
  Beast Bond or Beast Master Edge. Due 
  to the narrowness of the bridge, halve the 
  number of Nomads that can attack in 
  melee during this round.
  Round 5 – The Other Side. The 
  adventurers are climbing over the highest 
  part of the bridge! Behind them, the 
  Red Nomads have stopped. They don’t 
  dare pass into Keron, 
  but shoot all the 
  arrows they 
  have! During 
  this round, 
  use Agility 
  as the 
  Chase Skill. 
  Only ranged 
  attacks are 
  possible, but 
  the Nomads receive +2 to their Shooting 
  rolls.
  You did it! You passed the Stonebridge! You 
  hear the Red Nomads scream and curse on 
  the other side, but they don’t move a step to 
  follow you.
  “They won’t come,” Darketa says. She shows 
  you a narrow path going in the deep, black 
  mountains.
  “There begins the Arsha Karun, which 
  means Forbidden Path in the desert tongue.”
  “We are in Keron, now.” She watches you 
  with worried eyes, then turns her horse and 
  takes the path.
  The Arsha Karun
  The party is in the Fallen Realm of Keron 
  now. It is a desolate place, made of black 
  stone, cut by deep canyons and ravines. 
  The mountains are relatively young, being 
  created by the Dread Star’s fall, and it 
  seems that life hasn’t managed to colonize 
  them in a mere two thousand years.
  Darketa leads the heroes along the snaky 
  path with caution and frequent pauses; 
  after all, the last time she went there with 
  her grandmother was ten years ago, and 
  she doesn’t remember the route very well.
  
  Garden of Death
  21
  Below are several encounters the heroes 
  have during this leg of the trip.
  Grumbles and Fangs
  You are crossing a deep ravine, when suddenly 
  the ground shakes! It is an earthquake! You 
  may be scared, but the horses are terrified! 
  They whine, buck and go wild!
  Earthquakes are very common in Keron; 
  the land is still moving after all this time. 
  Every hero must make a Riding roll to 
  avoid being unhorsed. But that’s not the 
  real problem.
  The last horse of the group, the one you packed 
  with all the provisions, devoid of any rider, 
  breaks its reins and runs wildly off down a 
  side passage, at full gallop! Stupid beast!
  If the characters want to eat something in 
  the next few days, they must track down 
  and recover the lost horse.
  The animal, scared, is running at full 
  gallop, so it quickly disappears. The 
  adventurers must rely on a Tracking roll 
  (which can be cooperative) to find where 
  it went in the labyrinth of ravines, with 
  Darketa cursing their misfortune.
  With a failure, when they find the horse 
  it is too late and it is already dead, with 
  a couple of Snappers feeding on it (see 
  below).
  With a success, the 
  horse is found alive (see 
  below).
  With a raise not only is the horse found 
  alive, but the adventurers also find strange 
  lizard-like footprints, which Darketa 
  identifies as Snappers; they don’t have 
  to check for surprise in the following 
  encounter.
  You finally find the stupid beast, frothing 
  from the long run, in a dead end: a small 
  ravine, full of rocks. The beast whinnies 
  quietly, waiting for you to recover it. You 
  approach, and suddenly the horse starts 
  whinnying again. You understand the 
  reason: slowly advancing among the rocks, 
  there are a number of bipedal lizard-like 
  creatures, which attack you with lightning-
  fast ferocity.
  “Snappers!” Darketa says, unsheathing her 
  blade.
  The fight is staged in a vaguely round area, 
  8” in radius. The party arrived from south, 
  while the other three “sides” are delineated 
  by the walls of the ravine. The whole area 
  is scattered with boulders (see below).
  Place the horse 3” from the northern wall. 
  The beast is petrified with fear and won’t 
  move unless a character takes the reins 
  and leads it away. Place the heroes within 
  3” from the center of the battlefield, in a 
  loose formation, while the Snappers are 
  scattered around them, at least at 3” from 
  any hero and behind the Cover granted by 
  a boulder.
  Unless the adventurers discovered the 
  tracks earlier, they must check for Surprise.
  The beasts attack viciously, moved by 
  hunger; their first target is the horse, but 
  a tasty adventurer is also a good option. 
  This place being a dead end, they fight to 
  the death.
  Empty Bellies. If the heroes flee, leaving 
  the horse behind, they are without 
  provisions from now on, and must rely on 
  the Survival skill to find food and water, 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  22
  with -4 to rolls due to the desert-like 
  environment.
  (E) Snapper (2 per hero): See page 77.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Boulders: The area is strewn with 
  massive boulders. Each of them is 1” by 
  1” on the battlefield and grants Medium 
  Cover. Place at least sixteen of them in 
  the battlefield.
  Hot Death
  Nights in Keron are cold as a miser’s 
  grave, as you’ve soon learned. But today 
  the temperature is becoming hotter and 
  hotter while you advance, and soon you are 
  sweating copiously. You are at the bottom of 
  a wide, flat valley, filled with bad-smelling 
  vapors.
  “Careful,” Darketa says. “I remember this 
  place. My grandmother called it the Plain 
  of Death.”
  As if in answer to her words, a geyser of 
  hot water springs from the ground, not far 
  away from you.
  “You understand the reason?” the warrior 
  woman says.
  Passing through the Plain of Death isn’t 
  easy, but there isn’t another option; the 
  Arsha Karun crosses there.
  Darketa knows a way. She tears a piece of 
  her dress to make a bandage, and puts it 
  over her eyes. 
  “We must protect our sight from the hot 
  water,” she explains “And in this place we 
  must trust our ears, not our eyes.” At this 
  point she dismounts from horseback and 
  cautiously leads you across the plain.
  The scenario supposes the heroes cross 
  the plain following Darketa’s instructions. 
  The geysers’ origin cannot be seen, but a 
  distinctive sound is heard before a spray, 
  allowing the adventurers to cross the 
  valley.
  Mechanically, this is handled as follows: 
  draw five cards from the Action Deck, 
  keep them covered and line them up on 
  the table. Each round, reveal a card and 
  check the table below. Each geyser has a 
  Spot Value, which indicates the number 
  of successes (and or raises) in Notice 
  (-2) rolls the party collectively needs to 
  recognize the right moment to pass over 
  it. Characters with the Deaf Hindrance 
  cannot roll.
  All the heroes can roll (clockwise around 
  the table); when the Spot Value is reached, 
  tell the current player his character spot 
  the geyser. At this point he can declare 
  “Go!” and every character (including 
  himself) crossing the geyser is safe. If the 
  total isn’t reached or if a player decides 
  not to go, he suffers the damage 
  indicated in the Damage Column.
  
  Garden of Death
  23
  GEYSER TABLE
  Card 
  Drawn
  Spot 
  Value (*)
  Damage
  Agility 
  Roll
  2
  1
  3d10
  0
  3-6
  2
  3d8
  0
  7-10
  3
  3d6
  -1
  J
  4
  2d10
  -1
  Q
  5
  2d8
  -2
  K
  6
  2d6
  -2
  A
  7
  3d4
  -4
  Joker
  No Geyser!
  (*) Spot Value: This number is for a 
  party of four players. Add or reduce by 
  1 (minimum 1) for parties of greater/
  smaller size.
  Trusting Darketa: During the third 
  round, something happens. Darketa (who 
  doesn’t roll) suddenly shouts “Go!” at what 
  is clearly the wrong moment (too early). 
  Following her or not is a matter of trust. 
  She is right, and every hero following her 
  order will be safe, while the others suffer 
  damage as if the Spot Value was missed. 
  The first player declaring he is going 
  should also be rewarded with a Bennie (at 
  the end of the scene).
  The Brooch
  You’ve marched enough for today. Both the 
  horses and you are tired and the sun is fading 
  behind the mountains. It is time to rest. 
  “We aren’t far away,” Darketa says.
  You find a good spot to camp: a cluster of old 
  ruins, probably an ancient Keronian palace. 
  It is a location strangely beautiful and 
  repulsive at the same time; the few columns 
  still standing are elegant and slender as the 
  legs of a savannah woman, but some of the 
  engravings on them are so alien that they 
  make you shiver.
  “Mind what you do around these stones,” 
  Darketa grumbles. Then she drops her 
  backpack and falls asleep immediately.
  This place was a fortress in the past, 
  destroyed in one of the petty wars 
  between Nal Ashaka and her neighbors. 
  No bodies or skeletons can be found, 
  but if the heroes set up guard shifts, pick 
  one of them at random. The lucky fellow 
  finds something in a fissure in the floor. 
  It is a silver brooch, representing a scarab. 
  It is quite precious and has a story (see 
  sidebar).
  the KeronIan BrooCh
  This ancient item of Keronian 
  workmanship has survived almost three 
  millennia, untouched by time. This is 
  strange, and in fact the item is magical; 
  usually made in pairs, it is a Seal Bond, 
  an amulet that Keronians used to 
  exchange between family members. The 
  owner of a Seal Bond immediately feels 
  if the person wearing the other is well. 
  This one belonged to Thaal, a soldier 
  who left his brother Nargal in Nal 
  Ashaka, millennia ago. When Nargal 
  felt the death of his brother, he 
  poisoned himself, but didn't really die: 
  now he is entrapped in the Garden of 
  Death and the heroes will have the 
  chance to meet him later.
  The Keronian Brooch grants some 
  “insights” to the wearer, bestowing the 
  Danger Sense Edge. If the character 
  already has it, he gains +2 to the roll.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  During the morning of the fourth day, the 
  party finally reaches Nal Ashaka.
  In the City of Night
  Nal Ashaka was a big city, heavily walled, on a 
  plateau. But millennia of earthquakes and changes 
  in the mountains sank it in a very deep, dark 
  valley, which is almost in perpetual darkness.
  “The Red Nomads call it the City of Night,” 
  Darketa says, and you wonder how a garden 
  of any type can survive in such perpetual dusk.
  A snaking path goes down the vale, and 
  it is the only one the heroes can take to 
  reach the city.
  While you approach, you notice, from your 
  elevated position, that despite sinking 
  the city, the earthquakes left it strangely 
  intact, as if protected by some supernatural 
  power… Going down into the vale, the air 
  becomes moister, and when you reach the 
  eastern walls of the town you notice herbs 
  and mosses growing upon it.
  “These are the herbs my grandma and I came 
  to gather,” Darketa says. “I never ventured 
  farther than there, and we always departed 
  before nighttime.”
  The herbs on the wall are certainly of 
  interest to a Lotusmaster (see below), but 
  sooner or later the party will try to enter.
  The only access you find to Nal Ashaka 
  is a massive gate. The two enormous 
  doors, ajar, are made of bronze darkened 
  by age, engraved with ancient, almost 
  unrecognizable scenes: sorcerers, slaves and 
  inhuman creatures.
  You wonder how these doors can be moved, 
  because there are no visible mechanisms.
  BlaCK lotuS of the heart
  This very rare Lotus grows only in darkness, and in proximity of 
  ancient Keronian ruins. It is a large, heart-shaped flower, black as 
  night, with an intense, overripe smell. Voices say it can be used to 
  heal any sort of illness, but at the cost of part of the soul of the user. 
  In game terms, if a dose of it is used for the healing Power, it has the 
  same effects as the greater healing Power, with the drawback that the 
  imbiber loses a die step in Spirit. After each moon, the user can roll 
  on Spirit (-2) to recover this. If dried and eaten in massive doses (at 
  least three) the Black Lotus of the Heart can also be used to destroy the 
  barriers between present and future: the eater can use the divination 
  Power, rolling on Spirit (+4), but, after each use, he is so shocked that 
  he loses a Spirit die step (which can be recovered as above).
  Alternatively the Black Lotus of the Heart can be used by a 
  Lotusmaster who knows the slumber or stun Power, to create a 
  concoction called the Lotus of False Death, which makes the imbiber 
  fall into a state of false death for a whole day. This could be very useful 
  later in the scenario (see page xxx).
  Recovering the Lotus requires a roll using the lower of Climbing and 
  Lotusmastery (because the flowers grow on the walls); for each success 
  and raise, the character finds one dose (up to three). Lotus doses can be 
  sold to warlocks and Lotusmasters for the princely sum of 1000 Moons 
  per dose.
  
  Garden of Death
  25
  The city is similar in design to a Tricarnian 
  citadel, if the heroes have ever visited one 
  (even if the analogy should be reversed: 
  Tricarnian citadels resemble Keronian 
  cities). It is a maze of connected halls, courts 
  and corridors, rather than clearly separated 
  buildings. It is also quite difficult to navigate 
  without knowing the proper directions.
  The heroes can simply wander, hoping to 
  find the garden, or, if they want, they can 
  head toward a tower in the center of the 
  city, which is tall enough to give a clear 
  vision of the whole complex.
  Below are described several encounters 
  and locations the party can stumble into.
  Gallery of Statues
  You are in a domed corridor, the ceiling is 
  made of broken, reddish glass. Your steps 
  echo as you cautiously advance. There are 
  niches on both sides, from which tall, severe 
  statues, watch you: they are princes and 
  princesses, priests, lords and even gods.
  Suddenly you hear a low muttering, and 
  you freeze on the spot. Toward the end of 
  the corridor, you see a peculiar scene; there 
  is a figure, you cannot tell if it is a man or a 
  woman given that it is swathed in rags, which 
  stands still, contemplating a statue. You briefly 
  a glance at it. It represents a couple; a tall 
  man, with a scepter and a jeweled crown, in 
  the company of a bald, but nevertheless very 
  beautiful woman. Unlike the other statues 
  you’ve seen in this place, the expression of the 
  man is strangely caring toward the woman.
  The huddled figure seems totally lost in 
  watching the statue.
  The heroes have stumbled on one of the 
  few dwellers in this cursed place. The last 
  statue represents Ashak, Prince of Nal 
  Ashaka in company of his wife, Shakara, 
  the Lady of the Garden, who the party 
  will meet later.
  Approaching the figure is easy; he is 
  so lost in contemplation that a simple 
  Stealth (+2) roll is enough. But unless the 
  adventurers grab him (as the text below 
  supposes), he will escape.
  You put your hand on the arm of the figure, 
  who turns, startled. He is a man, dirty 
  and with a long, whitish and unkempt 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  26
  beard. He is old, very old, but his violet 
  eyes shimmer with vitality. Or maybe is it 
  madness?
  “You!” The man whispers, trying to break 
  free from your hold. “Who are you? You 
  escaped from her, too? Yes, I did!” He chuckles.
  “I love her no more and I fooled her! The 
  suns! Remember! The suns in the mirror!”
  The man seems really crazy and the heroes 
  cannot obtain much more from him. Do 
  some roleplaying, before the madman 
  suddenly stops in place, eyes wide with 
  fear, and says.
  “Silence! They found me! They are here!”
  Suddenly, from the gate at the end of the 
  corridor several shrouded figures emerge. 
  They are dressed in dirty, red garments, 
  and move in a crouch, with the dangerous 
  elegance of beasts of prey. Their heads are 
  concealed by deep hoods, but you hear them 
  whisper in a sibilant, unknown language. 
  They hold curved daggers in hand and 
  strange, small blowguns.
  “Etu’s teeth!” Darketa curses, unsheathing 
  her blade. “They are the city’s guardians!”  
  Let the heroes check for surprise (unless 
  one or more characters explicitly said they 
  were on guard).
  Then the fight begins! The combat area is 
  a rectangle 6” by 18” with the long side on 
  the east-west axis.
  On the eastern side there is the gate (4” 
  wide), from whence the Guardians came. 
  Place them within 3” of the entrance.
  On both the long sides of the corridor 
  there are several niches with statues (see 
  below). Place the heroes within 6” and 9” 
  of the east gate, too. Place the madman 
  near them.
  The Death of a King. The Guardians 
  armed with daggers charge into melee, the 
  first of them concentrated on the madman 
  (Parry 4); they want to kill him, and will 
  do so. Then they attack the party.
  The Guardians armed with blowguns use 
  them until they exhaust their ammo, then 
  charge into melee. They fight to the death. 
  (E) Guardian of Nal Ashak (2 per 
  hero+2): One third of them are armed 
  with blowguns. See page 74.
  (E) Ashak of Nal Ashaka a.k.a. the 
  Madman: He has Parry: 4 and Toughness: 
  4, all Attributes are d6 and he won’t 
  survive the fight.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Statues: The corridor hosts eight statues 
  (four per side), each of them occupying a 
  niche in the wall the size of Small Burst 
  Template. Each statue is 5” tall on the 
  battlefield, has Toughness 9 and grants 
  Heavy Cover. A mighty hero can try to 
  pull one down, with a Strength (-4) roll, 
  which can be cooperative. In the case of 
  success, any character in the path of the 
  falling statue must make an Agility (-2) 
  roll or suffer 3d6 damage.
  Last Whispers
  The last Guardian falls to the ground, 
  moaning, and you run to help the old man. The 
  wound is deep, in the chest, and he has lost a 
  lot of blood. You have seen your share of battles, 
  and know that he won’t survive. Pale as it is 
  you notice something you missed earlier; his 
  
  Garden of Death
  27
  features, under the dirt and the beard, are the 
  very similar, no, they are the very same as the 
  man of the statue! But how could this man be 
  the same King who lived millennia ago?
  This man is indeed Prince Ashak of 
  Nal Ashak. The lifespan of Keronians is 
  extremely long, and Ashak belonged to 
  one of the purest bloodlines. After the 
  destruction of the city, he found shelter, 
  for a while, in the Garden of Death, but 
  after several millennia his wife, Shakara, 
  changed, and he fled, starting a life of a 
  hermit in his own city. His mind is almost 
  shattered, but he has still something to say.
  “Hear me! She is not human anymore! It is that 
  place! Don’t enter, but if you do, remember that 
  I fooled her: the suns! The suns are the door!
  This info will be very useful later, as the 
  party will discover. In the meantime the 
  danger isn’t over yet.
  One of the foul men you killed isn’t really 
  dead. With his last strength he brings 
  something to his mouth, a sort of crude 
  whistle, and blows it with a shrieking sound.
  “Son of a dog!” Darketa swears, kicking him 
  in the face and granting him a quick death.
  But the damage is already done. On the 
  opposite side of the corridor, the one you 
  came from, you see several hunched shapes 
  approaching. There are other Guardians, 
  a number of them, and they are led by a 
  hulking brute armed with a crude battle axe.
  The leader raises his weapon, and the others charge!
  There are a very large number of 
  Guardians, eager to drink the blood of the 
  heroes, so the best thing to do in this case 
  is run away! If the heroes don’t propose 
  this, Darketa does.
  The Chase is of Standard length (5 rounds) 
  and based on Agility. Unlike normal 
  Chases, ignore Complications. Instead, 
  every round a scripted event happens, as 
  described below.
  The enemies are divided into three 
  groups; the first of them is led by the 
  High Guardian. Until round 3, Darketa 
  is considered “attached” to a randomly 
  selected hero.
  (E) Guardian of Nal Ashak (4 per hero): 
  See page 74.
  (WC) High Guardian (1): Use the 
  Guardian of Nal Ashak stats, raising 
  Strength, Vigor and Fighting to d10. He 
  also has the Command and Sweep Edges. 
  See page xxx.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  28
  Chase Events Table
  Round 1 – T-Junction! The corridor the 
  party is running into suddenly divides in 
  two: the left passage seems more used, the 
  right one is full of webs. Each character 
  must pick one, very quickly (count down 
  from five to zero). Characters who took 
  the left corridor use Agility as their 
  maneuvering Trait, those who took 
  the right one roll on Spirit (due to the 
  instinctive uneasiness caused by webs). 
  The corridors rejoin later in a large room 
  with a dried-up fountain.
  Round 2 – Steep Stairs! The heroes are 
  running up a very steep, monumental stair. 
  It is very tiring: this round Vigor is the 
  maneuvering Trait.
  Round 3 – Corridor of Darkness! The 
  Chase leads the heroes into a pitch 
  black corridor! During this round, the 
  maneuvering Trait is Notice, with a 
  -4 penalty if the party has no source of 
  light available (the same penalty applies 
  to attack rolls). There are several side 
  corridors and passages.
  Round 4 – Darketa! The characters are 
  almost out of the dark corridor! Run the 
  Chase round as normal, but, when it is the 
  turn of the last player character, read the 
  text below.
  You are almost out of the tunnel, when you 
  hear a cry at your back. It is Darketa, who 
  was last! 
  Give the player exactly ten seconds 
  (counting from ten to zero) to decide what 
  to do. If the player decides to go away, 
  he hears Darketa crying again, and then 
  nothing. The character loses a Bennie for 
  un-heroic behavior (two if he is Heroic). If 
  he runs to help her, give him a Bennie, and 
  then let him fight for two combat rounds 
  against the Guardians, in Darkness (-2). 
  After the fight Darketa cannot be found! 
  Maybe she is lying dead somewhere or 
  she took a side passage? Whatever the 
  explanation, another group of Guardians 
  arrives, so the hero should leave now.
  Is the bold warrior woman dead? The 
  heroes will discover this later…
  Round 5 – On the Bridge! The party is now 
  on a sort of catwalk, where they run as fast 
  as they can. But it hides a danger: after many 
  centuries it is slowly crumbling and will 
  shatter under the feet of the heroes! Run the 
  Chase as normal, but if the hero is acting on 
  a Club (or a Joker) a section of the bridge 
  shatters under his feet and he must jump 
  over it (with a Strength roll)! In the case of 
  failure he does not fall, but grabs the edge on 
  the other side, and can be helped to safety 
  by his friends. Extras, instead, automatically 
  fall and die screaming. With a Joker the 
  same happens, but the hero doesn’t need 
  to roll, as the bridge shatters behind him. 
  If other characters find themselves behind 
  the collapsing section (because they drew a 
  lower card), they must roll on Strength (-2) 
  to jump over it, otherwise they must stop to 
  face the pursuers. 
  The Guardians will not jump over the 
  bridge (even if they draw a card before the 
  bridge shatters, consider them behind, not 
  at the head of the Chase), giving the party 
  a chance to shake the pursuers off.
  Tower of Sages
  You catch your breath after this narrow 
  escape, leaning over a wall. May the gods 
  curse this damned place!
  The players, at this point, will probably try 
  to go back, looking for Darketa. Explain 
  to them that this is very difficult; first, they 
  must find another way to the collapsed 
  
  Garden of Death
  29
  bridge (which after a while totally falls 
  down). Second, they ran without paying 
  attention to the direction they took, so 
  they haven’t the faintest idea where to go. 
  If a hero is very vocal in his desire to go 
  back and save Darketa give him a Bennie.
  At this point go on with the following text.
  While you are talking, you suddenly see, not 
  far away, the tall tower you spotted before. 
  It is on the opposite size of the small plaza 
  where you are now.
  The Tower of Sages, as it is called, is the 
  tallest building remaining in the city. 
  Elegant and slender, it resembles a coiled 
  reptilian and gives the players a sense of 
  uneasiness. The entrance is closed by a 
  black, metal door, which can be pried 
  open with a Lockpicking (-2) roll or 
  bashed down (Toughness: 9).
  Inside, the tower is almost untouched 
  by time. There are three floors worthy of 
  being explored, not counting the ground 
  floor, which is empty.
  First Floor – The Map Floor. This large 
  room is totally empty, because, on the floor, 
  there is a large mosaic showing the world 
  as it was before the Dread Star’s Fall. The 
  GM should describe it as he sees fit. The 
  first player understanding what he is seeing 
  should be rewarded with a Bennie.
  Second Floor – Ancient Library. This little 
  floor is literally crammed with bookshelves 
  full of scrolls, earthenware tablets and other, 
  even weirder, reading implements. In a small 
  niche, there is also a stone coffer, decorated 
  with a particularly elaborate lock.
  Ransacking the Books. The library is a 
  paradise for any scholar, with lots of books, 
  all written in Keronian (a character must 
  be fluent in Tricarnian to read them). 
  Characters interested in ransacking the 
  library can do this, if they can read the 
  books and have plenty of time to spend. 
  For each hour spent rummaging among 
  the books, make an Investigation roll. 
  For each success and raise, gain a Library 
  Token (up to 5) and check the table below. 
  Each Library Token weighs 15 pounds and 
  can be sold, to the proper persons, for up to 
  1000 Moons. Note that if the Investigation 
  die is 1, regardless of the Wild Die, it means 
  the character is convinced he has exhausted 
  the resources of the library and stops. If a 
  critical failure is rolled, the situation is 
  worse: skimming the books he triggers one 
  of the many intellectual traps put in them 
  (in this case an unnerving revelation on 
  the nature of the universe), and the reader 
  must make an immediate Fear Check (-4). 
  Whether he fails or not, the incautious 
  reader must stop.
  LIBRARY RESEARCH TABLE
  Library 
  Tokens
  Effect (*)
  1-2
  Broken Pieces of Knowledge. The 
  character gains +2 to a single 
  Knowledge (Arcana) or Knowledge 
  (Legends and Lore) roll.
  3
  Fragments of Knowledge. The character 
  permanently gains one die step in 
  Knowledge (Arcana) or Knowledge 
  (Legends and Lore).
  4
  Mysterious Knowledge. The character 
  gains a Wild Die (or raises it by one 
  die step) in Knowledge (Arcana) or 
  Knowledge (Legends and Lore).
  5
  Forbidden Lore. As above, and if the 
  character has Arcane Background 
  (Sorcery) he permanently gains 3 
  Power Points.
  (*): The character, to receive the effects 
  below, must study the books during the 
  After the Adventure phase, and must 
  make a Smarts (-2) roll. If he fails he can 
  do it again after the next scenario.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  30
  The Stone Coffer. The coffer seems (and 
  is) very sturdy (Toughness: 11). It has a 
  golden lock on it, very elaborate, which 
  resembles a snake. There is a small 
  inscription on the snake’s body (a Notice 
  roll is required to spot it and it is written 
  in ancient Keronian): “The Snake That 
  Crawls Under the Skin”. Any sorcerer 
  character can recognize this as a demon’s 
  title. The “lock” is in truth a sorcerous 
  trap (no key is required) and the coffer is 
  clearly magical to the detect arcana Power. 
  Whoever touches the coffer without 
  saying aloud the true name of the Snake 
  That Crawls Under the Skin (see below), 
  suffers from its effect. A small, finger-
  sized, supernatural snake, crawls under 
  the skin of the victim’s hand, “swimming” 
  to the heart! When it reaches it, the 
  character dies! Once the process starts, 
  there are only three rounds of time to 
  stop the snake, stabbing it with a dagger 
  or something similar: the first round the 
  victim suffers 2d6 damage, the second 
  round 2d8, and the third round 2d10. This 
  damage cannot be soaked. At the fourth 
  round, the poor sod automatically dies 
  (but this isn’t a big problem, see sidebar).
  The true name of the Snake That Crawls 
  Under the Skin is Tyvor-Vayas, and only a 
  Tricarnian sorcerer might know it (with a 
  Knowledge (Arcana) (-4)) roll. The name 
  can also be found in the library, with one 
  hour of time and an Investigation roll.
  Inside the coffer, in a leather satchel, there 
  is a very precious treasure: the Tirain 
  Cubes (see sidebar). 
  Third Floor – Personal Study. This small 
  room, on the top of the tower, has four 
  windows, which allow seeing in all directions 
  across the city. This was a personal study of 
  some sort, probably of King Ashak himself. 
  On a small table, there is a large book, a sort 
  of chronicle of the city. 
  It is written on a strangely soft vellum (it 
  is human skin, as any character who played 
  the Skinner of Syranthia Heroic Tale can 
  automatically understand). Unluckily it is 
  damaged by time and moisture; only two 
  pages are still readable. It is in Keronian, but 
  a character fluent in Tricarnian can read it.
  One of them, in the middle of the book, 
  tells the history of the Garden of Death 
  (see Handout 1 – The Diary). The last one, 
  instead, was scribbled by another hand, a 
  trembling one, probably with blood.  It is 
  only a small note, saying:
  “There is no place like the Garden. It obeys its 
  own laws and has its own master. I must pay 
  attention: the new life inside it has a price…”
  Through the windows the heroes can see 
  what they are looking for: the Garden. 
  There is a small, enclosed courtyard, not 
  far away from there. It is very dark now, 
  and the eye cannot pierce the thick mass of 
  foliage covering it. For some reason, you feel 
  a shiver on the back of your neck. 
  
  Gm tIp: dyInG In the CIty of nIGht
  Usually the death of player character has a 
  bad effect on the party (and on the players). 
  This adventure is particularly unforgiving 
  in some places, and it is very likely that one of 
  the heroes won’t survive.
  But this isn’t a great problem; due to the 
  uniqueness of the hero and the proximity 
  of the Garden of Death, is very likely that 
  the character will return to life in this 
  ensorcelled place (see later).
  This narrative expedient can create a great 
  climax to the adventure, but you should 
  be careful not to leave the dead character’s 
  player idle for too long; ideally, if he dies 
  in mid-session, he should “recover” his 
  character by the end of it… 
  the lawS of the Garden
  One may wonder: if the gate of the Garden 
  is open, why can people not simply leave? 
  It isn’t that simple. 
  There are laws in the Garden, and the 
  main one is that if you are reborn there, 
  you cannot leave it, unless someone coming 
  from outside leads you off.
  The second law is that if you belong to the 
  Garden, sooner or later, the Garden will reach 
  out to you and make you return home.
  The third law is that time in the Garden 
  flows differently than outside. In some 
  cases it is slower, in others much faster, as 
  the heroes will discover later...
  tIraIn CuBeS
  A set of nine black marble cubes, engraved 
  with arcane, almost hypnotic patterns. Each 
  cube has six patterns (one per face) and by 
  putting them side by side, to form a three 
  by three square, countless greater patterns 
  can be created. Many of these patterns make 
  no sense at all, but some of them hide secret 
  sorcerous mysteries, if you have the patience 
  and skill to unravel and learn them. The 
  legend says it was the Demon Lord Tirain 
  (see TLD, page 45), Master of Doors and 
  Cages, who gave it to the royal line of Nal 
  Ashak, in exchange for some unknown 
  favor.
  A warlock character can learn a lot by 
  studying the cubes, and investing in them 
  some of his powers, but this is very risky.  
  At the end of each adventure, a character 
  with the Arcane Background (Sorcery) 
  can study them, making a Smarts (-4) roll 
  and spending 1 Power Point, which is 
  permanently lost.
  Check the table below:
  TIRAIN CUBES MYSTERIES TABLE
  Result
  Effect
  -3 or 
  less
  “Trapped!” The hero is sucked 
  away into one of Tirain’s pocket 
  dimensions! He misses the next 
  scenario (or maybe the whole party 
  is sucked with him, leading to a new, 
  interesting scenario).
  From 
  -2 to 
  -1 
  “I have seen things…” The hero, 
  thanks to the Tirain Cubes, has 
  spied other worlds. He permanently 
  gains a Phobia or Quirk of some 
  sort, decided by the GM.
  From 0 
  to 1
  “The sign of fear!” The hero has had 
  a glimpse of another world, he must 
  immediately make a Fear check (-4).
  Success
  “I see things others don’t see”. The 
  character learns the detect/conceal 
  arcana Power.
  Raise
  “The Mark of Tirain is in my mind!” 
  The hero permanently gains a die 
  step in Sorcery, but he loses one 
  point of Charisma, because he 
  perpetually sees, with his mind’s eye, 
  the Mark of Tirain.
  Two 
  Raises
  “Things… things move in the 
  interstices.”  The hero permanently 
  gains the burrow (moves through 
  shadows) Power.
  Three 
  Raises
  “Futures… futures unravel in front 
  of me!”  The hero permanently gains 
  the divination (vision of possible 
  futures) Power.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  32
  Forbidden Fruit
  Reaching the Garden is not difficult, once 
  you have located it from the top of the 
  Tower of Sages, it is quite near..
  The garden isn’t very large; little more than 
  a grove, but it is surrounded by tall walls, 
  and the sole access seems to be an elegant gate 
  of metal bars, open like a gaping mouth. The 
  city around you is dark, but a faint, yellowish 
  light comes out from the garden.
  If the heroes check the garden from 
  the outside, they determine it is round-
  shaped, more or less fifty yards in radius, 
  and with a single entrance. If they decide 
  to climb the wall instead of using the gate, 
  they can do this with a Climbing (+2) roll. 
  This is possible only while the gate isn’t 
  sealed (see next scene). The text below 
  supposes the party enters the Garden 
  from the main entrance.
  When you pass through the gate and enter 
  the garden you are immersed in a sort of 
  thick jungle, full of ancient trees, the better 
  part of them unknown. This place hasn’t 
  been tended in a while, and the millenary 
  plants are overgrown with vines and other 
  parasitic plants. A subtle but persistent 
  smell of overripe vegetation lingers in your 
  nostrils.
  Almost concealed among the vines, there is 
  a small path, like the ones used by animals, 
  which goes deeper into the garden.
  The scenario supposes the heroes follow 
  the path; if they do otherwise, be prepared 
  to rework some of the encounters detailed 
  below.
  Tree of Bronze Fruits
  You walk for a while, following the path, 
  and suddenly realize something; judging by 
  how long you’ve been walking, you should 
  have reached the opposite side of this place 
  a while ago, but instead you are still in the 
  thick of it.
  The Garden of Death, from inside, is 
  much bigger than from outside, because it 
  is in effect a pocket dimension. Even the 
  sky, if a character looks at it, is completely 
  different when seen from the inside. Let 
  the players puzzle a little bit about this 
  discovery, before going on.
  The path sides a small crumbling wall, and 
  on the opposite side of it, you see a strange 
  thing. A big tree, from whose black bark 
  and blood-red foliage hang strange fruits, 
  similar to bronze pomegranates, like the one 
  brought to the court of King Varias!
  The fruits seem riper than the one brought 
  to the King, and emit a slight lemon smell. 
  If the heroes want they can pick one or 
  more of them. They look savory...
  If a character cuts one, it happens what 
  follows.
  If it is cut in the Garden. The fruit has a 
  pulp similar to an apple, but it is crossed 
  by a network of bluish “veins”. If eaten, 
  it is quite good, even if the taste cannot 
  be defined. The problem is that it belongs 
  to the Garden of Death, and eating it 
  has some effects on the hero: from this 
  moment on, the character receives -2 to 
  all opposed rolls to resist the powers of 
  the Lady of Death (see below) and any 
  magical effects connected to the garden’s 
  magic. On the positive side, Death is now 
  acquainted with the hero’s soul and he 
  permanently gains +1 to all Incapacitation 
  rolls. 
  If it is cut outside the Garden. The fruit’s 
  peel is very thick, and as happened at the 
  King’s court, it releases a cloud of spores, 
  
  Garden of Death
  33
  in which a vision of the GM’s choice 
  appears, usually connected to dead people. 
  This fruit can be sold to very particular 
  customers for up to 1000 Moons. Keeping 
  it too long brings misfortune: a hero 
  conserving it for more than one adventure 
  suffers from the Bad Luck Hindrance.
  The Lost Prince
  The path goes on, deep into the foliage. 
  The more you advance, the more you feel a 
  sense of strange urgency; this place, for some 
  reason, unnerves you, and you feel watched 
  by a malevolent eye. You are pondering on 
  this when suddenly you hear a human voice, 
  coming from nearby!
  If no hero died during the adventure, there 
  is only one voice, singing a sad song. If one 
  of the player characters died, there are two 
  voices, talking together. The text below 
  supposes the first situation happens.
  You cautiously advance along the path, 
  discovering a small clearing. There, sitting 
  on a fallen column covered in moss, there is 
  a young boy, around fourteen years old. He is 
  dressed in a simple gray tunic, and he is the 
  mysterious singer. You recognize him: he is 
  Kithaso, the King’s son!
  If a hero died, the scene is slightly 
  different: Kithaso is busy talking with 
  the dead hero, who recently awoke in 
  this place and stumbled across him! The 
  revived hero has no memories after the 
  moment of his death.
  “Who… who are you?” the boy asks, 
  hesitantly.
  The boy looks fine, although a bit absent-
  minded, and a little pale. He remembers 
  he has been in the garden for a while, 
  but he doesn’t know how long. He can be 
  easily convinced to follow the party, but 
  this troubles him.
  “Going away, you say? She… she won’t be 
  happy…”
  If asked who is “she” he answers “the 
  Lady”, but he doesn’t say anything else on 
  the topic.
  The best thing to do at this point is leave 
  the garden.
  You are leaving the garden, almost dragging 
  Kithaso, when you hear a sound from deep 
  in the wood. It is a horn blowing, followed 
  by several growls.
  “The Lady’s Hounds!” Kithaso pales.
  The heroes aren’t far from the gate, so the 
  best thing to do is run as fast as they can.
  Trapped!
  You finally reach the garden’s gate, puffing, 
  while the growls behind you grow closer 
  every moment. You are almost through the 
  gate, when some people emerge from the 
  shadows, blocking it.
  “Stop!” a harsh voice barks. A well-known 
  one. It is General Talasco, in the company 
  of a good number of grim-faced cutthroats, 
  his personal bodyguards, and by his side, 
  his omnipresent lapdog Zarimo. They have 
  swords unsheathed and bows raised, with 
  arrows pointed at your hearts.
  “My lord,” Talasco says, in a soothing voice, 
  addressing Kithaso. “I have passed through 
  great perils to save you. You remember me. 
  We played together when you were young, do 
  you remember? Don’t trust these men, they 
  are traitors!”
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  34
  Give the players the chance to speak and 
  retort, but not to act.
  The boy stands still, undecided, when 
  suddenly the foliage behind you explodes, as 
  a mass of black, furry creatures jump out, 
  charging you!
  “Come on, my lord!” Talasco says.
  And the boy, finally convinced, runs toward 
  him, while you must fight for your life!
  The heroes’ prize is going to be stolen from 
  them, and they must fight for their lives 
  too! The battleground is a square 12” by 
  12” in front of the Garden’s gate. Consider 
  the northern side as being the border of 
  the plants, while the southern one is the 
  Garden’s wall, with a 4” wide gate in the 
  center of it.
  Place the heroes in the rough center of 
  battleground, but within 6” of the gate.
   The Garden Hounds, in truth a sort of 
  horned ape hybrid, have a free turn, the 
  characters being automatically surprised. 
  They charge into melee, and fight with 
  reckless abandon.
  Robbed and Trapped! Talasco and his 
  men are outside the battlefield. The boy 
  reaches him immediately after the Garden 
  Hounds turn up and Talasco’s men close 
  the gate behind them! Then the General 
  evilly waves at the heroes, and leaves with 
  the boy.
  The battle goes on for four rounds, or until 
  all the Hounds are killed.
  (E) Garden Hounds (2 per hero + 2): See 
  page 74.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Climbing the Wall: Crafty heroes 
  wanting to escape this damned place will 
  try to climb the wall. It is very smooth, 
  so a Climbing (-2) roll is required, but, 
  once on the top of it they can see only a 
  terrible darkness beyond. Jumping into 
  the darkness means an eternal wandering 
  a thousand times worse than any death…
  • Ensorcelled Gate: Once closed from 
  outside, the Garden’s gate cannot be 
  opened in any manner. The two doors 
  simply melt into a single metal grate.
  • Ruins: Near the gate, there are three 1” 
  by 1” blocks of stone, covered by vines (the 
  remnants of an old statue), which can be 
  used to gain some tactical advantage (+1 
  to Parry and Fighting rolls, due to the 
  elevation).
  The Master of the Hunt
  If the fight hasn’t ended by the beginning 
  of the fifth round, the horn sounds again 
  and the attackers stop (see below). Read 
  what follows.
  It looks like your troubles aren’t over yet: you 
  hear the horn blowing again, very near this 
  time.
  And then, from the path you came from, 
  comes the sound of hooves, mixed with 
  growls, and a man on horseback emerges. 
  He is tall, brown-cloaked and hooded, and 
  holds a great hunting horn in his hands. His 
  mount, a stallion black as night, stares at you 
  with malevolent eyes. He isn’t alone; a dozen 
  more ape-beasts, like the ones who attacked 
  you, are with him.
  
  Garden of Death
  35
  The creatures quickly surround you, with 
  drooling mouths and a deep hunger in their 
  eyes, but they don’t attack.
  The man removes his hood, showing a bald, 
  beardless face. Small ornamental metal 
  rings hang from the right side of his face, 
  shimmering in the twilight.
  “Strangers,” the man says in an almost 
  casual tone. “You have two options now. 
  Lower your weapons and follow me. Or face 
  them…”
  You see the ape-beasts getting tense…
  The characters have two choices: surrender 
  (this being the most logical thing to do 
  and the scenario assumes this) or fight 
  against Tasir the Kennelmaster and his 
  minions.
  In the case of battle, use the same 
  battlefield as above, adding the following 
  opponents.
  (E) Garden Hounds (3 per hero): See 
  page 74.
  (WC) Tasir the Kennelmaster: See page 
  78.
  The Garden’s Lady
  The heroes are allowed to keep their 
  weapons and gear, but they are surrounded 
  by a pack of Hounds, which watch them 
  closely. Led by Tasir, the strange fellowship 
  goes back into the thick of the Garden.
  If they try to talk with the Kennelsmaster, 
  he will be very close-mouthed. They only 
  thing the characters can pry from his lips 
  is “The Garden’s Lady wants to meet you.”
  The trip is quite long, several hours. The 
  party returns to the clearing where they 
  found Kithaso and goes further, deep into 
  this enchanted place, following small, 
  almost invisible paths. The night slowly 
  turns into a pale twilight, which is what 
  passes for day in the Garden of Death.
  During the trip, they can experience one 
  or two Strange Vistas (see box on page 
  39).
  After delivering the characters to their 
  destination, the Hounds quickly disappear 
  into the woods, but they aren’t far away; in 
  case of need, they’ll arrive on the scene in 
  1d4+2 rounds. Tasir dismounts, gives the 
  horse to a sergeant and bows deeply to his 
  queen.
  In the end you reach a vast clearing, where 
  there is a ruined palace, partially overgrown 
  by plants, which break the decorated tiles of 
  the flooring with their roots. Among the 
  plants and the ruins there are several people: 
  very tall or very short, some of them almost 
  deformed. They are all quite pale, dressed in 
  diaphanous if rich garments, and look at you 
  with open amazement.
  Any character who has visited Tricarnia 
  recognizes the robes of these people as 
  belonging to that distant land, while a true 
  Tricarnian understands they are Keronian. 
  He also notices some resemblances to 
  certain slave castes of the Land of Princes, 
  but cannot exactly place these people in 
  any of them.
  The place is lit by an eerie light, probably 
  a luminescence of the moss, and the light 
  is focused on an elegant stone throne, upon 
  which is sitting a woman pale as the moon. 
  She is totally bald, but this makes her even 
  more beautiful. Behind her there is a large 
  stone window, in which a large fragment 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  36
  of glass, black as the night, makes a strange 
  contrast.
  “You robbed me of one of my guests. Nobody 
  has left the Garden in a long, long time,” the 
  woman says, and you understand you are 
  talking with the Garden’s Lady. “But I see 
  you brought me another one.” 
  Pick the hero with the highest Charisma, 
  he is referred to in this scene as the Slave. 
  “He/she stinks of sand and horses. And I 
  don’t like those smells,” the pale lady says, 
  with a frown.
  A couple of pale servants take the Slave 
  away, to be cleaned and properly dressed. 
  If the heroes, or the Slave himself, try to 
  react, Shakara uses her powers to stop 
  them. 
  The Garden’s lady, in her kingdom, can 
  control the dead and the living. In game 
  terms she can use the puppet Power at will 
  (without spending any Power Points) with 
  arcane skill d12. If the heroes are hostile 
  she uses it, plus her other powers, and she 
  summons the Hounds (see above).
  If the heroes are courteous, Shakara is 
  chatty, and, apparently, very civilized; she 
  asks of the world outside, makes polite 
  questions about the heroes’ identities and 
  deeds, but she doesn’t have a real interest 
  in them. 
  Actually, she is only a cat playing with a 
  mouse. 
  When the Slave returns, he is dressed 
  in pale Keronian silks (with a rather 
  ridiculous effect if he is male), but Shakara 
  seems pleased at what she sees. They Lady 
  asks him (or forces him with the puppet 
  Power) to sit at her feet, like a slave, while 
  the rest of the court quickly brings tables 
  and dishes to serve a grandiose meal. 
  The Slave’s gear lies, discarded and 
  forgotten, near the Lady’s throne, if the 
  need arises to recover it.
  When all is ready for the banquet, the 
  heroes are offered seats, while Tasir stands 
  still on the side of his lady, motionless like 
  a stone statue.
  The Window Reddens. When the 
  banquet starts, there is a subtle change 
  in the area: the dark window behind the 
  Lady’s throne becomes gradually less 
  dark, and touched by red at the corner, 
  as if the sun might rise behind it. This is 
  a very important fact, and the GM must 
  remember to tell the players, even if in a 
  casual way.
  The Cursed Brooch. During the banquet, 
  if one of the heroes has previously found 
  the Cursed Brooch, read the text below.
  A small, pale man with sad eyes approaches 
  you. “Forgive my lack of manners, stranger, 
  but I feel you have something that belongs to 
  me. May I ask where you found it?”
  The man is called Nargal and he is the 
  brother of the soldier who had the Cursed 
  Brooch. Nargal killed himself after his 
  brother’s death, but he hasn’t found peace, 
  because he was reborn there. He doesn’t 
  want the brooch back, he only wants to 
  know where the adventurers found it. 
  Deep in his heart, he hoped that his 
  brother was still alive (he doesn’t know 
  several millennia have passed). If the 
  characters tell him an honest story, Nargal 
  sobs, thanks them and, before leaving, 
  whispers:
  “You are in grave danger in this place. You 
  must get away as soon as possible.”
  
  Garden of Death
  37
  If asked for more information on this 
  topic, he says.
  “Only one person has managed to leave this 
  place. He was Prince Ashak. Look for the 
  door which isn’t a door.”
  And then he goes away, because he cannot 
  say anything more.
  The Game of Pain. The banquet starts 
  and the heroes are served food, wine, and 
  other refreshments. The Lady is the only 
  one making conversation (the rest of the 
  court remains in deep silence), and she 
  is rather jovial. She frequently pats and 
  ruffles the hair of the Slave, and answers 
  every question courteously. The only topic 
  which angers her is asking about Prince 
  Ashak and how he left the Garden. She 
  doesn’t answer, but her black eyes turn 
  to agates and the offending player is 
  automatically chosen as the Sufferer (see 
  below).
  During the banquet, the window behind 
  the throne becomes even redder: at the 
  upper right and lower left corners appear 
  two round shapes, similar to suns, which 
  seem to be destined to meet slowly in the 
  center of the window.
   At the end of the banquet, pick the hero 
  with the highest Vigor. He is called the 
  Sufferer from now on.
  “I enjoyed your company so much, my 
  friends,” Shakara purrs. “But I think you 
  could entertain me and the rest of my court 
  even more.”
  She moves a hand, and you, (pick the 
  Sufferer) are forced against your will to 
  stand up and move to the center of the 
  clearing, in front of the throne. 
  “You look strong,” Shakara says. “But are 
  you strong enough to pass the Trial of Four 
  Pains? You’ll entertain all of us!” 
  She claps hands and four tall and lanky 
  servants approach, holding long silver whips 
  in their hands, encircling you (the Sufferer). 
  Without any warning, two of them lash at 
  your arms with unerring precision, while 
  the other two hit your legs! In few heartbeats 
  you are bound!  And then they start pulling, 
  in four different directions! They are strong, 
  stronger than any man, and you feel they can 
  literally tear you apart!
  You (the other characters) try to move, 
  but suddenly realize you cannot! All your 
  muscles are frozen, as if commanded by a 
  superior will!
  And now Shakara laughs. A cold, emotionless 
  laughter, while she watches you die! Behind 
  her head, the two suns on the glass behind 
  her are almost perfectly joined, creating a 
  sort of crown around the bald queen’s head.
  Shakara’s will is doing two things in 
  the same moment; with part of it she is 
  forcing her servants to slowly tear the 
  Sufferer to pieces, while also keeping the 
  rest of the party paralyzed, forcing them 
  to watch the death of their comrade! For 
  this reason her grip is weaker and can be 
  broken…
  This scene isn’t properly a combat, but can 
  be clearer if played on the battlefield. The 
  whole area is a square 15” by 15”. Place the 
  throne, with Shakara, in the center, but 5” 
  away from the northern border. Standing 
  near her are Tasir and the Slave.
  The Sufferer is placed 5” south of the 
  throne, 
  with 
  his 
  four 
  executioners 
  disposed in a rough square, 2” away from 
  him. The rest of the party is placed, seated 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  38
  and paralyzed, 5” south of the Suffering 
  One.
  Behind the throne is the window. It is 6” 
  wide, and placed on the northern border.  
  Breaking Free. The heroes (including the 
  Slave) can try to escape from Shakara’s 
  paralysis with a Spirit (-2) roll. They 
  must gather at least two successes (a raise 
  counting as an extra success) to become 
  capable of moving again.
  Resisting Pain. The Sufferer is in a very 
  bad position. Every round, he must make 
  a Strength (-4) roll (+1 per defeated slave, 
  see below). If he fails, he suffers a Wound, 
  two if he rolls 1 or less. The slaves tearing 
  him apart are almost mindless and won’t 
  attack in any manner, but continue pulling 
  the whips until killed. The hero can try 
  to break free by winning an opposed 
  Strength (-2) roll against the Slaves, 
  which make a cooperative roll. 
  Breaking the Spell. There is a way 
  to break both the restraining spell on 
  the heroes and the mental command 
  controlling the slaves with the whips at 
  the same time, and it is attacking the Lady 
  of Death. Remember that in her kingdom 
  (see her stats), she cannot be wounded 
  but can be Shaken. When 
  this happens all her spells 
  automatically 
  fizzle 
  out.
  Escape! Once the heroes are free, they 
  have a few heartbeats to decide what to 
  do. Shakara will quickly recover, the court 
  servants surround them, and the Guardian 
  Hounds will arrive soon. But right behind 
  the throne something is happening.
  The glass window is red as blood now, and 
  the two suns reflecting in it are almost 
  overlapping. You see a faint vibration in 
  them. Wait a moment, there aren’t two suns 
  anymore, just a round hole!
  This is the escape route Ashak told them 
  about with his last breath! The heroes 
  must jump into it to escape this place. 
  This is the last chance they have…  
  (E) Garden Hounds (up to 3 per hero): 
  See page 74.
  (WC) Queen of Death: See page 76.
  (WC) Tasir the Kennelmaster: See page 
  78.
  (E) Whip Slave (4): See page 79.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • The Kennelmaster: Tasir defends the 
  Lady with all his might. He uses the 
  Fanatics setting rule. The first action he 
  takes is blowing his horn to summon 
  the Hounds, which will arrive in 1d4+2 
  rounds. 
  
  39
  Gm’S tIp: StranGe VIStaS
  The Garden of Death is a weird place. The heroes won’t 
  have the chance to explore it fully (unless something 
  goes terribly wrong), but you can communicate to the 
  players some of the uniqueness and weirdness of this 
  place simply by describing to them some vistas they pass 
  during their trip to the Lady’s court. Simply roll a d6 
  and check the table below.
  STRANGE VISTAS TABLE
  D6
  Vista
  1
  Scavengers in the Ruins. “There are some old ruins nearby, and you can see, among 
  them, the silhouettes of several people scavenging among them. At your passage, one 
  of them raises his head, and you clearly see a pair of long horns on the head, and a 
  glimpse of a long tail.”
  2
  The Three Legged Ibis. “In a small marsh, you see a big ibis watching you with human-like 
  intelligence. Then he puts down a third leg in the water, opens a third eye in his forefront and 
  flies away.” 
  3
  Emerging Statue. “You are passing near a gigantic statue, or at least, near its head, 
  emerging from the ground. Even under the moss, you recognize it: it is almost identical to the 
  Guardian of Askerios. How did it come to be here?”
  4
  Singing Flowers. “You pass near a meadow full of lavender-colored flowers. A gentle gust of 
  wind sweeps them and you hear a strange melody, as if hanted by a chorus of far-away voices. 
  You suddenly understand the flowers are singing!”
  5
  Ghastly Bats. “You are crossing a very dense wood, silent and shrouded in deep shadows. 
  But the silence and the darkness are broken by a flurry of wings. A swarm of white, 
  translucent bats fly through the wood. They approach you, and you instinctively raise your 
  hands to protect your face, but they pass through your body. Are they ghosts?”
  6
  Moon of Memories. “A great, pale moon, raises in the sky. It is somewhat different from 
  the customary one, and you are puzzled to see strange reflections on its face: you see a great 
  city, a fiery mountain of doom falling from the sky, and then death and destruction. Are you 
  witnessing the fall of the Dread Star? Or are you living the dream of a mad god?”
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  40
  Part 3:  
  Black Seeds in the Wind
  The Drought
  The passage is immediate and disorienting: 
  one moment you are in the Garden, the next 
  you are leaning against a rocky hill. It is hot 
  and dry, but you inhale that familiar air like 
  a thirsty man drinks water.
  You don’t know where you are, but you are in 
  the Dominions again. 
  Where Are We? 
  The 
  heroes 
  are 
  somewhere in the Red Desert, but they 
  haven’t the faintest idea of their position. 
  They are safe from the Lady of Death, 
  but there are more immediate problems; 
  they have no horses, and very little (if any) 
  water and food. 
  The rocky hill where they appeared is 
  non-descript, but with a Notice roll the 
  characters see some old engravings on it 
  (it was an old Keronian ruin).
  The party must leave, but first they must 
  choose a direction. With a Survival roll, 
  they understand that the best direction 
  is north. If they fail, consider they walk 
  for some time in another direction, 
  before deciding on moving north (add an 
  additional day to those below).
  The march is hard and the sun, high over 
  your heads, is hot as the burning iron of a 
  smith. But you know you must go on or you 
  are doomed to die.
  Desert March. The heroes must walk in 
  the desert for one day. As per the Heat 
  rules of Savage Worlds, they must make 
  Vigor rolls each four hours or suffer a level 
  of Fatigue, which can lead to Exhaustion 
  and even death. If they have less than half 
  a dose of water per day (see below), they 
  roll at -2, or -4 if they have no water at all.
  Finding water in the desert requires a 
  Survival (-2) roll, which can be cooperative. 
  A success finds water for a single person, 
  a raise or better provides water for up to 
  five people.
  The further north you go, the less you like 
  the place where you are: there is something 
  bad in the air, a sort of foul smell you cannot 
  identify, like carrion hidden somewhere to 
  rot. The land is rocky, but dotted with clumps 
  of hard, spiky, vines. You are thirsty, very 
  thirsty… but, wait a moment, isn’t that the 
  sound of gurgling water? 
  Poisoned Spring. The heroes are right: in a 
  slight depression in the ground they find a 
  small spring. The water stinks, and there is 
  a dead goat nearby. Characters drinking the 
  water immediately recover all the Fatigue 
  they suffered from thirst. A character who 
  suffered two levels of Fatigue from thirst 
  must roll Spirit (-2) to avoid drinking the 
  water, even against his will.
  The water is obviously poisoned, and 
  after an hour, everyone who drank it must 
  make a Vigor (-4) roll or become very ill, 
  suffering a level of Fatigue (two if the roll 
  was 1 or less), which can lead to death. 
  This Fatigue lasts for two days.
  Despite the water being bad, the heroes 
  can rest safely in this place. They can also 
  ask questions about this poisoned spring; 
  usually Desert Nomads mark such places 
  in some way, but there is no sign of that 
  
  Garden of Death
  41
  here. The reason is simple, this spring 
  was good till one year ago, when all this 
  started, as they’ll soon discover.
  Finally, the day ends, but during the night, 
  you can see something strange; the clouds, 
  yellow as the smoke of a funeral pyre, run 
  fast across the sky, and you smell again the 
  strange odor, like death and corruption.
  The Abandoned Village. At dawn the 
  heroes start moving again.
  You spot something northward! Patches of 
  green! You must be near farmed fields or 
  something similar! You are safe!
  The heroes are close to farmed land, but 
  when they approach they have a bad 
  surprise.
  The fields around you are clearly abandoned: 
  the plants are dying and the land is gray as 
  ash. Definitely these aren’t the rich fields you 
  saw in Zura only a few days ago. If King 
  Varias knew of it…
  You musings are interrupted, as you see a 
  group of houses not far away. It is a village, 
  and looks strangely familiar. You recognize 
  the place: it is Valzu, the village you passed 
  some days ago, headed to Keron. You’ll surely 
  find food, shelter and information there.
  Reaching Valzu is simple: nobody stops 
  the party. In fact the heroes don’t meet 
  anyone. The fields surrounding the village 
  are deserted, and there are no puffs of 
  smoke or sounds coming from the village. 
  In fact the place is deserted. When they 
  heroes enter, they find an abandoned 
  place; the houses are empty, abandoned 
  long ago, the road overgrown with desert 
  herbs, and the only sound is the inn’s sign, 
  shaken by the desert wind.
  There are no people in the village, but 
  there is still a well in the small plaza in the 
  center of it, and luckily this isn’t dry.
  You catch the smell of fresh water even before 
  seeing it. You throw the bucket in the well 
  and draw it up full of water. You drink 
  enough to fill your belly and feel well for the 
  first time in many days.
  The heroes recover all their Fatigue (apart 
  from those caused by poisoned water) and 
  can relax a bit. But it is only a short respite.
  Suddenly you hear a sound of hooves. You 
  turn, to see the small plaza invaded by a 
  band of Desert Nomads! Seeing you, they 
  unsheathe their swords, and charge!
  There are half a dozen Nomads, their 
  faces covered by the desert hoods. Ask the 
  players what they want to do, but don’t 
  hand out Action Cards yet.
  The first nomad is in front of you, sword 
  raised to kill, when he suddenly reins the 
  horse and stops. She removes the hood and 
  watches at you with open surprise. She is 
  Darketa.
  “You!” She hisses.
  “Shall we kill them, Houtani Gar?” one of 
  the other nomads asks.
  You’ll never know the answer because in 
  that moment, from the road behind, a second 
  group of riders arrives. They are soldiers, 
  wearing the blue and black of Zura, and 
  they charge the nomads wildly!
  The heroes find themselves in the middle 
  of a battle! The battlefield is a round 
  plaza, 12” in radius, with the well (see 
  below) in the middle. There are two ways 
  into the plaza: two roads, 3” wide, one on 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  42
  the northern edge and the other on the 
  southern one.
    Place the heroes within 1” of the well, 
  and the desert nomads, on horseback, 
  within 3” of them. The Zuran soldiers, also 
  on horseback, enter the battlefield from 
  the northern road (they are running) and 
  charge directly into the plaza.
  The Zuran soldiers attack everyone, 
  nomads and characters alike, while the 
  nomads attack the heroes only if directly 
  attacked. 
  The scene supposes that the party sides 
  with the nomads, and ends when all the 
  Zuran soldiers are dead.
  (WC) Darketa: See page 42.
  (E) Desert Nomad (5): Use the Red 
  Desert Warrior stats. See page 77.
  (RH) Zuran Officer (1): Use the Zuran 
  Soldier stats. He is a cavalryman, so raise 
  Riding by one die step. See page 80.
  (E) Zuran Soldier (12): They 
  are 
  cavalrymen, so raise Riding by one die 
  step. See page 80.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Among the Horses! The heroes are on 
  foot in this fight, surrounded by trampling 
  horses. It is not a nice situation. First, the 
  air around them is filled with dust, raised 
  by the beasts (count this as Dim light). 
  Second, every attack from horseback 
  against an opponent on foot is made at 
  +1. Third, if a person on foot draws a Club 
  card as his first Action Card, he must 
  make an Agility (-2) roll at the beginning 
  of his turn, or be hit by a random horse 
  kick for d10+d4 damage. 
  • Into the Saddle! Smart heroes will 
  use the fight to dismount (or kill) an 
  opponent, and leap into the saddle! Given 
  that the beasts are wild from the fight, this 
  can be done with a Riding or Agility (-2) 
  roll. The first hero getting into the saddle 
  should be rewarded with a Bennie.
  • The Well. The well can be represented with 
  a Small Burst Template. It has Toughness 9 
  and grants Medium Cover. A hero climbing 
  on the well is considered at the same height 
  as an enemy on horseback, but if he suffers 
  damage in this awkward position, he must 
  roll Agility (-4) to avoid falling in the well 
  (suffering 2d6 damage). The water bucket 
  has a length of chain and can be used as an 
  Improvised Weapon (Str+d4, Reach 6) or 
  for entangling-based Tricks at +2.
  A Shocking Revelation
  The dust of the battle dies down and you see 
  Darketa, eyes burning with anger, searching 
  for you. You don’t know what she is going to 
  do or to say, because at that moment other 
  Zuran soldiers arrive.
  You understand the group you fought was 
  only a vanguard.
  “Let’s go!” the warrior-woman says. “We’ll 
  talk later!”
  You grab a horse and ride behind her, while 
  arrows start flying over your heads!
  Leaving Vulzu won’t be easy, with the 
  Zuran soldiers on their heels. This is a 
  short Chase sequence (5 rounds long), 
  based on Riding. You can run it with the 
  normal rules, but remember that the first 
  
  Garden of Death
  43
  three rounds of the chase are in the village, 
  while the last two are in the desert.
  The opponents are divided into three groups.
  (E) Zuran Soldier (3 groups of 6): See page 80.
  When the Chase ends, go on with the 
  following text.
  When in the desert, Darketa spurs her white 
  mare, and you do the same. The stronger, 
  heavier horses of the Zuran soldiers are no 
  match for yours, and you finally shake them 
  off. When you are sure you are safe, Darketa 
  orders a stop, to rest the horses.
  The heroes, if they want, have some time 
  to ask Darketa what is happening. Tell 
  them that the woman seems slightly older 
  than the day before: there is some white 
  hair among her dark curls, and a couple of 
  sorrowful wrinkles around her eyes.
  Darketa answers the heroes’ questions 
  evasively, but there is an important phrase 
  that she should say.
  “How did all of this happen in a day, you 
  ask? Are you mad? A whole year has passed 
  since I left you in Nal Ashak, and many dark 
  things have happened during that time!”   
  And so the players discover another of the 
  unknown laws of the Garden of Death.
  The heroes will be probably shocked by 
  this information, and will ask further 
  questions, but Darketa cuts them off.
  “The Zuran soldiers are everywhere, 
  hunting for us. Come with me, and tonight 
  we’ll talk.” She turns her horse and goes 
  deeper into the desert.
  A Useful Piece of Info: The Commandant 
  and any other character who actively served 
  in the Zuran army is also allowed a Common 
  Knowledge roll (-2). With a success, now they 
  are calm, understand an important thing: the 
  soldiers they fought, despite wearing Zura’s 
  colors, weren’t Zuran (neither were they 
  part of the Black Hawks). With a raise they 
  recognize their armor and accent as coming 
  from Hillias, the powerful Independent City 
  east of Zura. But what does it mean? The 
  heroes will discover this later… 
  Gm’S tIp: a year after… 
  This scenario brings a great twist into 
  your campaign: during a single night 
  for the heroes, a whole year has passed 
  in the Dominions!
  This can be a very interesting thing 
  to do in your game: characters have 
  friends, enemies, long-term goals.
  What will happen to them? A wife 
  or loved one might mourn a hero as 
  dead? Maybe she found another love? 
  An enemy can think that his hated 
  nemesis is finally defeated: he could 
  lower his guard (or worse, he can 
  further his evil agenda).
  The possibilities are countless…
  Remember that “one year” is the 
  best-suited time for this scenario. Feel 
  free to alter it to suit your campaign 
  needs (but we suggest no less than two 
  months and no more than five years).  
  The Hidden Oasis
  You ride at a good pace all day, stopping only 
  to let your mounts rest. At dusk, you are in 
  the middle of nowhere, surrounded by sandy 
  dunes, where nothing grows.
  If a characters ask what to do now, read 
  the following text, or reword it.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  44
  Darketa laughs and answers: “In the desert, 
  don’t trust your eyes, but your nose!” 
  The girl is right. There is a smell of water 
  in the air. You walk past a dune and see a 
  magnificent oasis, green as an emerald in the 
  crown of a savannah king.
  “Behold!” Darketa says, in a rather proud 
  tone “This is Talaskavaka, which means 
  ‘Secret Home’ in our tongue.”
  “And it is the last oasis my people has.” She 
  adds with a frown.
  You enter the oasis through a path among the 
  trees. Despite there being no walls around 
  it, it is heavily guarded by armed nomads 
  and densely populated. Almost every space, 
  including the central area where a small 
  pool of fresh water stands, is crammed with 
  beasts, tents and people.
  Faces are grim and children thin. One of 
  them, a little girl, approaches Darketa and 
  asks “Did you find a scrap of food, great 
  Lady?” The woman saddens, and shakes her 
  head.
  If a hero has some food, and gives it to the 
  girl, he should be rewarded with a Bennie.
  In the meantime, the heroes’ presence is 
  noticed, and they are not very welcome. 
  Several kullah are unsheathed, and more 
  than one man asks for their blood. In 
  particular one of them, a somber man 
  with a long black moustache, advances 
  toward a randomly selected hero.
  Let the group role play the situation, 
  before going on.
  “Put your blade away, Ragaro,” Darketa 
  says. “I am as thirsty for their blood as you 
  are, but their death or life will be decided 
  by your chief, Tavarok, my father. Till then, 
  any man touching them will answer to me.”
   Her menace has the desired effect, and 
  the party is left untouched, even if many 
  deadly stares are thrown at them. They are 
  confined, unarmed, in a tent, under strict 
  surveillance till evening, when they’ll 
  meet the chief.
  Escaping. Leaving the tent is isn’t easy; 
  there are always a couple of guards in 
  front of it, plus, in the oasis there are 
  around two hundred warriors, and almost 
  twice as many other Nomads.
  Fire Omens
  When the sun goes down a couple of grim-
  faced warriors pick you up from the tent 
  and bring you to the great fire, where all the 
  tribe is gathered. Tavarok, the tribe’s chief 
  arrives after the heroes. He is an old man, 
  with something wrong with his legs, because 
  two men help him walk to a seat. Darketa 
  stands on his right, facing all the tribe, while 
  a heavily garbed and hooded man is at his 
  left.
  Characters who have spent a lot of time 
  in the Red Desert are allowed a Common 
  Knowledge roll now (desert nomad 
  characters pass it automatically). With 
  a success they remember that crippled 
  persons, among the nomads, are left to die 
  in the desert, so as not to be a burden for 
  the rest of the clan. If he is tended and 
  helped, he must be an exceptional person.  
  “Father,” Darketa says “I bring you the men 
  who caused the doom impending over us! 
  They defeated us in battle with guile, then 
  they brought back from death those who 
  must remain dead!”
  At these words all nomads make a sign 
  against bad luck.
  
  Garden of Death
  45
  The heroes are allowed to speak, and 
  they’ll probably ask what is happening.
  “Almost a year has passed since General 
  Talasco brought back Kithaso from the 
  realm of death to his father’s palace. The 
  King, full of joy, named Talasco commander 
  of all the armies of the kingdom. But this 
  wasn’t enough for the general, who quickly 
  overruled the King, naming himself regent 
  the city, and locking him and his son in the 
  royal palace.  And he revealed himself to be 
  a tyrant ten times worse than the king. But 
  this is only the least of our problems: a vile 
  drought struck the land, killing our herds 
  and the crops of the farmers alike.” 
  “Even the skies and the waters are tainted. 
  And there is only one reason: what is dead 
  must remain dead.”
  Darketa ends her speech: “Father mine, I 
  say: Let’s sacrifice these men to the Sun God 
  so that let's will be appeased and will help us 
  in the dark night that is to come!”
  The other warriors cheer, but a voice 
  thunders.
  He is the hooded man at the chief ’s side. 
  “Stop! No man can speak on behalf of the 
  Sun God!”
  Silence falls immediately, as the man 
  removes his hood, revealing a deeply 
  scarred man, with blue eyes burning with 
  fanaticism.
  If the heroes played B&B #1 – Death of 
  a Tyrant, they recognize him: he is Tul, 
  the Desert Prophet, who they met before 
  their battle with Ulasha! 
  “I ask pardon, holy Tul,” Darketa says, 
  bowing her head.
  “Let’s hear the voice of the god!” Tul 
  continues, ignoring the warrior woman. 
  He approaches the bone fire in the middle of 
  the area and throws a pinch of powder in it. 
  At this, the flames roar and grow, tall as a 
  house, and engulf you!
  All the characters must make a Spirit (-2) 
  roll: whoever fails suffers 2d6 damage, 
  and if he rolls 1 or less, in addition to the 
  damage, the fire is particularly vicious, and 
  leaves him a permanent scar, which causes 
  -1 to Charisma, -2 versus the nomads, 
  who recognize in this the displeasure of 
  the Sun God.
  Read them the following.
  The flames lick you like the tongue of an 
  enormous dragon. It is hot, burning hot, and 
  you feel an intense pain, but not as terrible 
  and biting as it should be. There is something, 
  in the fire, a sort of scene.
  You are in the throne room of Zura, sword 
  in hand, in front of King Varias and his 
  son, Kithaso. The King is speaking but you 
  cannot understand what he says and you 
  raise your sword…
  Quick as it started, the vision fades, as the 
  fire dims to burning ashes. From the startled 
  expression of the nomads, you understand all 
  the people saw it.
  Tul speaks again: “The Sun God spoke! 
  Nobody will touch these men: the same hand 
  which brought doom upon us, will relieve 
  it!”
  The nomads grumble, but all accept Tul’s 
  word, including Darketa, who seems quite 
  pissed off, but a character with a Notice 
  (-4) roll understand she is secretly relieved 
  she doesn’t have to kill the heroes. Maybe 
  that under that gruff face is she interested 
  in one of the heroes? 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  46
  This could be the start of a romance 
  subplot.
  This is the good moment for a player 
  to propose a sort of alliance: maybe the 
  vision means they must help the Nomads 
  overthrown General Talasco’s regime? Or 
  that they must simply reach the throne 
  room of Zura and kill someone (but 
  whom)? And how to do it? 
  The city is protected by the Zuran’s army, 
  which is strong. Talasco uses it to extort 
  heavy tolls from the citizens and farmers 
  alike. The population is so upset that it 
  could rise up against the new ruler, but 
  the traitorous general reinforced the army 
  with foreign soldiers, so nobody dares to 
  rebel. 
  In particular, a large army is deployed in 
  Zura, to “protect” the King and his son 
  from external influences, because Talasco 
  is in truth a pawn of Hillias, which wants 
  to make Zura a satellite state.  
  A battle plan must made to enter the city...
  War Drums 
  in the Desert
  The following part of the scenario is rather 
  free-form. 
  The players must reach the king, and 
  free him from the prison he is kept in 
  by General Talasco. But this means they 
  must organize the Desert Nomads, and 
  find other allies. What they do depends 
  entirely on them, but below are several 
  Actions they can try. Each action has a 
  Hook you can use to introduce it to the 
  players
  Between one Action and another, an 
  Event happens: this is independent of 
  the players’ deeds, caused by the evil 
  forces unleashed by Kithaso’s escape from 
  the Garden of Death. By default, each 
  action requires one week for preparation, 
  scouting, and getting in place.
  Nomad Forces. Tarevok’s tribe, initially, 
  is quite weak, and the goal of the heroes, 
  in this part of the scenario, is to increase 
  their strength, so they can attack Zura and 
  do what they must to save the kingdom. 
  Many scenes include an increase in the 
  tribe’s power as a reward.
  Recovering. If you have access to TB, 
  use those rules to handle recruiting and 
  replacing casualties week after week. If 
  you haven’t, simply consider that the 
  nomads’ forces increase by 25% after each 
  week (this simulates fresh warriors from 
  other clans joining the cause, wounded 
  ones recovering and so on).
  Command: At least at the beginning, 
  Darketa is in charge, during the battles, 
  but she is open to the heroes’ suggestions, 
  and, if one of the heroes is better suited 
  than her to lead the men in battle (i.e. has 
  better skills), she steps back and acts as 
  second in command, without resentment.
  tArevok’s tribe
  Battle Value:  300 (100 nomad warriors)
  Commander: Darketa, the Desert Jackal 
  (Knowledge (Battle) d6, Spirit d8)
  Band Edges: Mobility, Skirmishers
  Band Hindrances: None
  
  Garden of Death
  47
  Gm’S tIp: a war drumS In the deSert CampaIGn
  This part of the scenario is designed to allow some sandboxing without losing the tension 
  of a strong plot, so you’ll basically find six long scenes to play. 
  If you want, you can expand it to the level of a whole campaign, even a Conquest 
  Point Campaign as described in TB. The fight against Talasco the Usurper can become 
  months long, with several missions/side adventures. Below you’ll find several ideas to be 
  fleshed out, but we recommend keeping a close eye on your players: if they start being too 
  distracted by secondary plots, it is time to advance to the end…
  war of drumS addItIonal IdeaS
  +Hillias may be the enemy, but other friends and allies can be found: other nomad tribes, 
  the Kyrosians…
  +Terrible monsters are appearing in the desert, are they all fruit of the corruption caused 
  by Kithaso’s escape from the Garden of Death?
  +The heroes get lost in the desert and find a strange tomb, where, protected by ancient 
  traps, is the Blade of the Sun, a powerful artifact of the past.
  +The Zuran farmers and the Desert Nomads have always been enemies: but today they 
  have a common enemy, Talasco the Usurper. Could the party find a way to end this hate?
  +There is spy among the nomads to be found and rooted out
  +Darketa is kidnapped and must be rescued.
  a CaSt of npCS
  Unlike other Beasts & Barbarians adventures, this scenario has a broader scope, and the 
  heroes will meet a large cast of NPCs. The GM and the players must decide what each of 
  them brings to the various parts of the adventure. To save space, these additional NPCs 
  aren’t listed for each combat, but are instead detailed in the NPCs and Creatures section. 
  They are: Darketa, Lord Noramon, Tark, Tul the Prophet and Jalaaro.
  These characters can also be good replacement characters if a hero dies in the course of the 
  adventure.
  Event: Tul’s Warning
  While the heroes and the nomads plan 
  what to do, the Sun God prophet takes 
  the heroes, Darketa and Tarevok aside.
  “I didn’t want to say this in front of the 
  warriors,” he whispers. “But I didn’t leave 
  my self-imposed exile from the desert just 
  to come here. I had a vision, where I saw 
  something terrible will happen during the 
  next full moon.”
  If the heroes ask what he saw, the prophet 
  answers as follows.
   “I saw a shroud of darkness falling upon 
  this land, something so thick that even the 
  sun cannot disperse it. And I heard souls 
  screaming for all eternity.”
  Characters must make a Spirit roll, at -2 
  if they have the Fear of Magic Hindrance 
  or are very superstitious. If theyfail, they 
  immediately lose a Bennie.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  48
  “It will be full moon in three weeks,” 
  Darketa says.
  “And it will be exactly a year since Prince 
  Kithaso came out from the Garden,” Tul 
  adds.
  Action: The Caravan
  Hook
  The nomads are starving, because their 
  grazing lands and many of the water 
  springs in the desert were destroyed by 
  the drought or poisoned by the strange 
  sickness spreading through the land. They 
  are reduced to pillaging what they can, but 
  it isn’t enough.
  While the heroes are at the Hidden Oasis, 
  Valdejo, a nomad scout, arrives, his horse 
  foaming, saying that he saw a large caravan, 
  coming from Hillias headed for Zura. It is 
  probably filled with grain and other food, 
  because the drought is taking a heavy toll 
  on the farmers too, causing a famine in the 
  city. If the nomads could take the caravan, 
  they could have enough food to sustain 
  themselves and have a great impact on the 
  morale of their enemies…
  tHe cArAvAN’s PAtH
  By a twist of fate, the caravan is following 
  a similar route to the one used by the bait 
  caravan led by the party at the beginning 
  of the adventure, but this time the sides 
  are reversed.
  Darketa quickly draws on the sand a 
  rough sketch of the path, identifying a 
  place where they can ambush the caravan 
  (North of the Zirakan Hills). The heroes 
  can make a Knowledge (Battle) (-2) roll, 
  with a success they find another suitable 
  place, two with a raise. 
  These are described below.
  North of the Zirakan Hills. This is the same 
  place where the previous caravan was 
  attacked. It doesn’t offer any particular 
  advantages to an attack, but the enemy 
  cannot retreat.
  The Pillars of Jatu. These tall rocks mark 
  the border of the Zirakan Hills. There is a 
  narrow valley, almost invisible, near them. 
  Hiding there, the nomad cavalry could 
  take the caravan by surprise and in the 
  flank, with a potentially lethal attack. The 
  drawback is that if they survive the first 
  assault, they could easily escape, because 
  the road is very good and with a slight 
  decline there.
  The Pox Plain. This area is a large plain, 
  dotted by craters, which resemble exploded 
  pustules on the skin of a sick person. There 
  is a legend about them, based on the death 
  of the old Stone God, but the  important 
  fact is that you can easily conceal dozens 
  of men in these holes, very close to the 
  caravan’s path. The drawback is that they 
  must be on foot, because using horses 
  effectively in this place is impossible.
  The heroes should choose the best place to 
  attack (with the aid of Darketa).
  cArAvAN comPositioN
  The caravan is composed of ten wagons 
  and twenty camels loaded with wares. 
  Valdejo reports there are around six dozen 
  people in it, and he is quite accurate. 
  The caravan is composed of thirty 
  Caravan Members and forty soldiers, 
  veteran Hillias cavalrymen, led by an old 
  acquaintance of the party: Zarimo, the 
  lieutenant of General Talasco.
  (E) Caravan Member (30): See page 73.
  
  Garden of Death
  49
  (E) Hillias Veteran Cavalryman (40): 
  Use the Zuran Soldier stats, raising 
  Fighting and Riding by one die step and 
  adding the Combat Reflexes Edge. See 
  page 80.
  (WC) Zarimo (1): See page 80.
  An Old Friend. The caravan master is 
  Jalaaro, an old friend of the party. He isn’t at 
  all fond of Zarimo, Talasco and all the stuff 
  going on in Zura (as will be clear below). 
  If the heroes manage to contact him before 
  the battle, or during the battle (this happens 
  when a hero is dealt a Joker as Action Card), 
  he can be persuaded to keep his men out of 
  the fight, or, if the party is very convincing, 
  to side with the nomads!
  AssAult! 
  The exact outcome of this scene greatly 
  depends on how the players planned 
  the battle. There is no real “better” place 
  to choose, but the trick is exploiting the 
  advantage of the chosen assault spot. 
  The scene can be played in two different 
  ways, with the Mass Battle Rules or with 
  the normal tabletop ones (skipping the 
  battle). In both cases, the heroes should 
  play out on the tabletop the final fight, 
  with Zarimo.
  Mass Battle Version. Run the battle as usual, 
  but when the Caravan Guards are reduced 
  to 2 or less Tokens, play The Lapdog scene 
  below. According to the place the heroes 
  chose to make the attack, they may receive 
  a bonus (see below).
  maSS Battle modIfIerS taBle
  Attack Location
  Modifier
  Zirakan Hills
  The caravan cannot retreat (because there is nowhere to escape to).
  Pillars of Jatu
  The first Nomads’ attack, if a cavalry charge, receives +2 to the 
  Battle roll, and the Caravan suffers an extra Token lost. From the 
  third round of battle, Zarimo can try to disengage his troops with a 
  Knowledge (Battle) roll (-2).
  Pox Plain
  Make a group Stealth roll for the heroes’ army. If successful they 
  receive +2 Battle modifier for battle plans (+4 if they scored a raise). 
  The bonus drops by one every round.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  50
  ZArimo’s cArAvAN GuArds
  Battle Value:  200/150*
  Commander: 
  Zarimo 
  (Knowledge 
  (Battle) d4, Spirit d6)
  Band Edges: Battle Hardened
  Band Hindrances: None
  (*) 50 BV points are the Caravan Members
  Tabletop Version. The heroes must face 
  three fights, briefly sketched below. If they 
  devised a proper plan for the location they 
  chose, you can skip (and simply narrate as 
  very successful) the third fight.
  First Combat – First Clash. The two 
  sides start 18” apart. Both sides are on 
  horseback (unless the heroes are on Pox 
  Plain).
  (E) Caravan Member (1 per hero): See 
  page 73.
  (E) Hillias Veteran Cavalryman (1 per 
  hero): Use the Zuran Soldier stats, raising 
  Fighting and Riding by one die step and 
  adding the Combat Reflexes Edge. See 
  page 80.
  Second Combat – in the Thick of Battle. 
  Every round, two randomly selected 
  heroes are targeted by archers (Shooting 
  d8, medium range, 2d6 damages) from off 
  the battlefield. The fighters start 6” from 
  each other and the fight is on foot (unless 
  the heroes are at the Pillars of Jatu, in 
  which case it is on horseback).
  (E/RH) Hillias Veteran Cavalryman 
  (1 per hero): Use the Zuran Soldier stats, 
  raising Fighting and Riding by one die 
  step and adding the Combat Reflexes 
  Edge. Half of them are Right Hands. See 
  page 80.
  Third Combat – Resistance Group. One 
  group of enemies has regrouped around 
  a strong-willed sergeant. They must be 
  defeated as soon as possible. The two 
  sides are at 10” of distance, the enemies 
  are positioned in a square formation, with 
  the sergeant in the middle (in Near Total 
  Cover), and with shields raised. At the 
  end of every round while the sergeant is 
  alive, draw a card from the Action Deck; if 
  it is a Heart, 2 more Cavalrymen enter the 
  battle. The fight is won when the sergeant 
  is dead (the other soldiers break). This 
  fight is on foot.
  (E) Hillias Veteran Cavalryman (1 per 
  hero+2): Use the Zuran Soldier stats, 
  raising Fighting and Riding by one die 
  step and adding the Combat Reflexes 
  Edge. See page 80.
  (H) Hillias Sergeant (1): Use the Zuran 
  Soldier stats, raising Fighting and 
  Riding by one die step and adding the 
  Combat Reflexes Edge. He is an officer 
  (a Henchman, not a simple Right Hand). 
  See page 80.  
  tHe lAPdoG
  When the battle is almost won, randomly 
  choose two heroes. They can make a Notice 
  (-2) roll to see Zarimo, the commander of 
  the caravan guards, escaping with a couple 
  of soldiers! To reach them, the adventurers 
  must win an opposed Riding roll, and can 
  then engage in a fight. Zarimo isn’t very 
  bold, and when he suffers two or more 
  Wounds, he surrenders.
  Once captured, Zarimo can be executed 
  (when the news spreads, +50 BV of new 
  men join the cause), questioned and 
  kept prisoner (he can give useful info on 
  Talasco’s plans and forces at the GM’s 
  discretion), or, a very sword and sorcerish 
  thing, sent back to his master to report the 
  
  Garden of Death
  51
  heroes are back! In this case the adventurer 
  sending the lapdog away gains a special 
  additional Bennie at the beginning of 
  every session, called the Revenge Bennie, 
  till the end of the scenario!
  (E) Hillias Veteran Cavalryman (2): Use 
  the Zuran Soldier stats, raising Fighting 
  and Riding by one die step and adding the 
  Combat Reflexes Edge. See page 80.
  (WC) Zarimo (1): See page 80.
  AftermAtH: sPoils of wAr
  “You again!” Jalaaro says with a big smile. “I 
  would haven’t bet a Jalizaran coin on your 
  life! The caravan is yours, take whatever you 
  want. All this stuff belongs to that bastard 
  sitting now on the throne of Zura!”
  The caravan contains enough food to 
  sustain Tarevok’s people for at least three 
  months, if used sparingly. In addition, 
  when the word of the deed spreads, other 
  desert warriors join the ranks, and the 
  tribe gains +200 BV.
  In addition, from this point on, Jalaaro 
  will remain with the tribe (he hasn’t got 
  a caravan any more and cannot go back 
  to Talasco). He knows a lot of things, 
  in particular about the fate of the Black 
  Hawks and of Lord Noramon, King 
  Varias’ most trusted counselor, which 
  leads to the two next Actions. See the 
  Jalaaro Speaks Event.
  Event: Jalaaro Speaks
  It is a night for feasting at the Hidden Oasis: 
  the battle was won, and, for the first time in 
  many months, a flicker of hope is shimmering 
  on the horizon.
  You are dining and drinking with Jalaaro, 
  in Tarevok’s tent, in company of Darketa 
  and the stone-faced Tul. The Jalizaran 
  merchant is at ease among the nomads, as 
  he was at King Varias’s banquet, months 
  ago, and speaks freely, while gorging himself 
  with food. 
  “After the return of General Talasco and 
  your disappearance Tark, your second in 
  command, spoke out in front of the king, 
  accusing him. But by then it was too late: 
  the day after, Talasco crowned himself 
  regent. Luckily Tark, who was no fool, led 
  his men out of the city the same night. From 
  that moment on they have been actively 
  fighting Talasco with guerrilla tactics in the 
  northern lands, but I heard that they were 
  recently trapped at Rak’s Mouth, a valley 
  in the north. They have been besieged there 
  for three weeks. They haven’t much food and 
  water, so they probably won’t last long.”
  After a long gulp of wine, Jalaaro goes on.
  “Tark wasn’t the only one rebelling against 
  Talasco. Do you remember Lord Noramon, 
  the old counselor? Well, he was accused of 
  high treason one month ago, while he tried 
  to reach Teyerana, with a letter from the 
  king. Talasco’s spies caught him and now 
  he lies in prison at Guthra, a fortified town 
  in the east. He will be beheaded there in ten 
  days. I have heard that Talasco wanted to 
  have him killed in Zura, but he is still very 
  popular among the citizens, and his presence 
  could create an uprising.”
  At this point the heroes have several 
  options: free the Hawks, rescue Lord 
  Noramon or both?
  The Hawks’ Nest
  Hook
  Jalaaro told the heroes that Tark and the 
  Black Hawks rebelled against the usurper 
  and now are besieged in a valley in the 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  52
  north, where they’ll die of hunger and 
  thirst.
  A bAd situAtioN
  The party needs two days of riding to 
  reach Rak’s Mouth. The text below 
  supposes that they stop and go scouting 
  the situation from distance.
  Rak’s Mouth is a dead end vale in the 
  northern part of the Zirakan Hills. 
  Barren as a crone’s loins, this place is an 
  unconquerable fortress, but a deathtrap at 
  the same time. The hills there are almost 
  mountains, very tall, steep ones, and the 
  valley has a single access, a twenty yard gap, 
  where the Black Hawks built a barricade of 
  stones and debris. From there, the ground 
  slowly descends to a plain, where the Zuran 
  army is camped, with tents and wagons. The 
  assailants must attack from lower ground 
  too, making their task even more difficult.
  “Probably they tried,” Jalaaro says. “Look at 
  the corpses in front of the barricade.”
  “And they failed,” Darketa adds.
  “Aye,” the Jalizaran merchant nods. “But 
  they soon stopped. All they have to do is 
  sit in front of the barricade and watch the 
  Hawks die of hunger. There isn’t much to eat 
  in that valley; it is emptier than the heart of 
  a priest.”
     The Zuran army camped in front of the 
  vale is a rather big one (see below). Even 
  if the heroes brought their entire fighting 
  force with them, it will be an uncertain 
  battle at best, even with surprise.
  Two factors can change this state of things: 
  creating a diversion and coordinating their 
  attack with the Hawks’ sortie. Only at this 
  point could an attack be successful. Both 
  are described below.
  Split the Party. This part of the scenario 
  supposes that the characters will split: 
  some will create the diversion, others 
  will alert the Hawks and still others will 
  stay with the nomads to lead the attack.  
  To keep the game fast-paced and avoid 
  downtime, we suggest keeping these 
  scenes short and quick, but if possible, 
  play them in another room, to add some 
  uncertainty: after all the heroes with the 
  nomads don’t know what happened to 
  their friends sneaking behind enemy 
  lines…
  
  Garden of Death
  53
  A dANGerous trick 
  Starting from the Commandant’s player, 
  and going clockwise around the table, ask 
  the players to roll on one of the following 
  (their choice): Knowledge (Battle), Notice 
  (-2), Survival (-2).
  The first character scoring a success sees 
  something interesting. On the steep hills 
  on the right of the valley’s mouth, at the 
  top, there is a big cluster of rocks. With 
  some strength and skill, someone could 
  create an avalanche, which will slide down 
  the slope in front of Rak’s Mouth and into 
  the Zuran camp, creating mayhem.
  The problem is that reaching the rocks is 
  a job for a spider: the hillside is very steep, 
  only a skilled climber can do it, and, as an 
  added complication, the climb must be 
  done at night, without any source of light.
  Preparation. Three persons are needed to 
  start the avalanche, of which at least one 
  should be a player character. The other two 
  can be nomad warriors with Climbing d8. 
  As they must be very stealthy and must 
  bring with them long bars to start the 
  avalanche, they are limited to a single 
  rope, which each climber can use, once 
  during the climb, to gain +2 to a roll (the 
  bonus can be used after seeing the roll).  
  The Climb. The actual climb is divided into 
  three stages, described below. The rolls 
  must be made in the order shown. If you 
  have access to JCT, we suggest using the 
  Cliffhanger Falling Rules on page 144.
  The Beginning is quite easy; it only 
  requires a Climbing roll. In the case of 
  failure the climber only suffers from 
  Bumps and Bruises, unless he scores a 
  critical failure, in this case he also suffers 
  2d6 damage.
  The Middle is treacherous, because it 
  contains a hidden danger: a steep passage 
  made of very brittle stone, which will 
  likely shatter! The climbers are allowed, 
  in their climbing order, a Notice (-4) or 
  Survival (-2) roll. If the roll is a success, 
  the character spots the danger in time 
  and can take an alternative path. He only 
  needs a Climbing (-2) roll (in the case of 
  failure he falls, suffering 3d6 damage). 
  If nobody spots the danger, things can turn 
  ugly. Every climber must pick a card from 
  the Action Deck before rolling; if a black 
  card is drawn, the wall shatters under him! 
  He suffers 2d6 damage and must make an 
  Agility roll (-4) to avoid falling (as above). 
  In addition, every climber under him must 
  make a Spirit (-2) check to avoid being hit 
  by the deadly rain of splinters and their 
  falling friend and suffer the same effects.
  Once the wall shatters, the climbers must 
  take the alternative path described above.
  The End is the most dangerous part: an 
  inverted wall, where the climber must go 
  up upside down.
  It requires a Spirit, a Strength and a 
  Climbing roll: the characters must succeed 
  on at least two of them. If they succeed at 
  only one they are frightened, take a level 
  of Fatigue and can retry after five minutes, 
  while if they miss all of them, they fall 
  down for 4d6 damage.
  Once the climbers are on the top, they can 
  create the avalanche (see Camp Attack! 
  below). They will need ten minutes to 
  prepare, but only one to start it. Getting 
  down is easier, but the climbers will only 
  reach the battlefield on the third round of 
  the mass battle.
  The heroes completing this daunting task 
  should be rewarded with a Bennie.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  54
  beHiNd eNemy liNes 
  The heroes could decide that alerting Tark 
  of their presence could be vital to making 
  a combined attack against the Zuran. 
  This means sneaking very close to the 
  enemy camp, crossing the no man’s land 
  full of unburied corpses and reaching the 
  barricade, hopefully without being shot by 
  the Black Hawks.
  This is a task for a single person, probably 
  the most silent of the group, and must be 
  done by night.
  The whole scene is handled with a slight 
  variation on Dramatic Tasks, and it is 
  based on Stealth.
  The scene is divided into two parts. 
  Near the Camp. During the first three 
  rounds the character must pass dangerously 
  near the Zuran soldiers. The infiltrator 
  must score at least three successes in three 
  rounds, otherwise the camp’s sentinels see 
  him and a patrol is sent! In this case run 
  the last two rounds as a chase, while the 
  now-spotted character runs toward the 
  barricades of the Black Hawks.
  (E) Zuran Soldier (6): See page 80.
  If the hero is captured by the guards he will 
  be retrieved, battered and bruised (with 
  two Wounds) from a tent after the battle 
  (in this case also ask the player to make 
  a Spirit (-2) roll, if he fails the tortures 
  he suffered made him spill the beans, 
  eliminating any bonus the attacking army 
  could have).  
  No Man’s Land. The fourth and the fifth 
  round, the hero must sneak among the 
  corpses of the fallen to reach the mouth of 
  the valley, without being shot by the Black 
  Hawks, who cannot distinguish friend 
  from foe in the darkness!  The character 
  must make two more Stealth rolls. The 
  first time he fails, he is spotted by a 
  Black Hawk sentinel, armed with a bow, 
  who shoots him (Shooting d8, Damage: 
  2d6; he Aims, negating the Darkness 
  penalty). At this point the hero can try 
  to be recognized (with a Persuasion roll), 
  otherwise the next round d4 archers try 
  to hit him!
  If the hero manages to sneak to the 
  barricade without being noticed, he can 
  show himself (startling the sentinels!), 
  and will be admitted inside and brought 
  to Tark.
  The lieutenant isn’t the freckled lad of a 
  year ago anymore, but a man hardened by 
  the war, and is more than happy to order a 
  sortie to crush the assailants.
  The character who managed to pass 
  behind enemy lines should be rewarded 
  with a Bennie.
  cAmP AttAck!
  When some (or all) the preparations 
  above are complete, the nomads, led by 
  the heroes, can attack the Zuran troops, 
  hopefully breaking the Black Hawks’ 
  siege.
  This is a mass battle, run with the standard 
  rules, with the following modifications.
  Surprise! If the heroes’ side attacks by 
  night, they gain +2 to their Battle Plan 
  modifier during the first round of battle.
  The Avalanche! If the heroes caused an 
  avalanche, before the battle starts roll 
  4d4x10 (the dice can ace). This is the BV 
  lost by the Zuran Besieging Army from 
  the rain of stones. In addition, extend the 
  surprise bonus above to the second round.
  
  Garden of Death
  55
  The Black Hawks. If the party managed 
  to alert them, they’ll attack in coordination 
  with the nomads from the first round 
  (simply add their battle value to the heroes’ 
  side). If they aren’t alerted, after each 
  battle round, draw a card from the Action 
  Deck. The first time they’ll join the battle 
  with a Club card, the second one, with any 
  black card, the third time with any except 
  apart Hearts, and the fourth round they’ll 
  join the fight automatically.
  ZurAN besieGiNG Army
  Battle Value:  500
  Commander: General Greso (Knowledge 
  (Battle) d6, Spirit d6)
  Band Edges: -
  Band Hindrances: None
  blAck HAwks
  Battle Value:  350
  Commander: The Commandant hero or 
  Tark (Knowledge (Battle) d6, Spirit d6)
  Band Edges: Battle Hardened
  Band Hindrances: None
  AftermAtH: A few Good 
  meN…
  The fire spreads through the tents, while the 
  few survivors escape across the plain. The 
  Black Hawks, stupefied, look at you (the 
  Commandant) as if you had come back from 
  the grave. They also throw sidelong glances 
  at the nomads, who respond in the same 
  way. They might have fought together today, 
  but they haven’t forgotten that only a year 
  ago, one murdered the other with.
  Despite this, once rescued, the Black 
  Hawks will follow the Commandant to 
  hell and back.
  Add the Black Hawks’ BV (and the Battle 
  Hardened Edge) to the nomad forces.
  If you are playing with TB, consider Tark 
  as a Lieutenant Personality (TB, page 24). 
  General Greso. If the GM decides 
  (or if the players explicitly look for the 
  enemy commander during the battle), 
  they can capture General Greso. He is a 
  middle-aged nobleman with a long, black 
  moustache. A year ago he was the third 
  in the line (after the Commandant and 
  General Talasco), but he was promoted. 
  He is quite faithful to Talasco, but can 
  be convinced to reveal the number of 
  troops actually defending Zura and other 
  military details decided by the GM.
  Event: Winds of Sickness
  While the Nomads are returning with 
  their new allies to the Hidden Oasis, they 
  camp for the night in a grazeland.
  You are outside the tent, savoring the warm 
  air of the desert before the biting cold of the 
  night starts. Suddenly you feel a tepid wind 
  coming from the west, from Keron. It brings 
  a small, dark powder, like very fine sand, 
  which makes you cough.
  If there is a Lotusmaster character in the 
  party, he is allowed a Lotusmastery roll. If 
  he is successful, he recognizes what this 
  powder is: the Seeds of Death, whose 
  terrifying effects the party will see below.
  In few hours, under your incredulous stare, 
  the seeds blossom into weeds two feet tall, 
  with pale flowers, a sea of them.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  56
  At dawn, at the first touch of the sun, they wither 
  and crumble to dust, leaving a barren, dead land.
  Darketa and the other nomads curse, 
  saying “This is what happened to our best 
  grazelands and the farmers’ fields, when the 
  dead Prince came back from his grave.”
  aBout Guthra
  The heroes are allowed a Common 
  Knowledge (-2) or Knowledge (Red 
  Desert Area) roll to check what they 
  know about Guthra.
  Every entry below includes the previous 
  information. So a character who scores a 
  raise also receives the information in the 
  success entry, and so on.
  Failure. Guthra is a medium-sized 
  town, subject to Zura, on the border of 
  the desert.
  Success. Guthra holds an important 
  market, once a week, which is vital to 
  the local economy. Executions are usually 
  made during this.
  Raise. Jagro, Guthra’s Governor, is Talasco’s 
  brother-in-law, and a former soldier 
  himself. He is known to be a very strong-
  willed and capable man. Guthra is far from 
  Zura, but very faithful to the Usurper.
  Action: Free Noramon
  Noramon is held prisoner in Guthra, a 
  fortified town east of Zura. The garrison 
  is numerous and wary. With the forces of 
  the heroes a frontal assault is possible, but 
  it will cost a lot of lives, with a very real 
  chance that Noramon will be killed before 
  being freed. The best way to achieve the 
  result, this time, is using stealth and guile. 
  descriPtioN of GutHrA
  Governor’s Palace (and Prison). A squat 
  military building, with thick walls, heavily 
  patrolled. Guthra was born as a military 
  outpost, and the “palace” is in truth a fort. 
  There is a single gate, always guarded by four 
  guards, and the windows on the outside are all 
  too narrow to let a man pass. During daytime, 
  the Palace is accessible, and someone with an 
  official matter to discuss with the Governor or 
  one of his counselors can be admitted inside 
  (with a Persuasion roll). Noramon is kept in 
  the dungeon, which is heavily guarded by 
  two strong sentinels (raise Fighting, Vigor 
  and Strength by one die step). The palace 
  permanently hosts twenty veterans, Governor 
  Jagro’s personal guard.
  (E) Governor’s Guard (20): Use Zuran 
  Soldier stats, raising Fighting by one die 
  
  Garden of Death
  57
  step and adding the Combat Reflexes 
  Edge. See page 80.
  Madiya’s Luck. The local inn and tavern, 
  it owes its name to the former owner of 
  the place, a widow, who got married to a 
  wandering minstrel, and left “looking for a 
  better place”. The name stuck even if now 
  it is run by a surly fellow called Magaro and 
  his two daughters Lynia and Vanya (pretty 
  girls who aren’t shy about entertaining the 
  customers). The place also has half a dozen 
  rooms, usually occupied by merchants or 
  other rich fellows, while farmers and other 
  poor people sleep on benches in the common 
  hall. The night before the execution (see 
  below), Zakharo the Executioner and his 
  two hirelings are lodged there.
  (WC) Zakharo the Executioner: See 
  page 80.
  (RH and H) Executioner’s Assistants 
  (2): One of them is a Right Hand, the 
  other one is a Henchman. See page 74.
  Market Place. A quite large plaza, where, 
  once a week, a market is held, with merchants 
  coming even from far away villages. It is also 
  the usual place for executions and other 
  similar forms of “entertainment”. On the 
  tabletop, it is a square 24” by 24”, with two 
  access roads, one going northward to the 
  Governor’s Palace and another one going 
  south to the town gate. Both roads are 4” 
  wide. There are also other four 1” wide alleys 
  (two on the east side and two on the west).
  Walls and Gate. Guthra is surrounded 
  by a stone and wood wall, and there is a 
  single access point, a wooden gate, large 
  enough to let a cart pass inside. Usually 
  the gate guard is two sentinels, and it’s 
  doubled when expecting trouble (for 
  example, the day of the execution and the 
  two days before). On the walls, and in 
  the town, there are several patrols, usually 
  organized in groups of four guards. If 
  there are problems in the town, guards 
  will arrive in 1d6+2 rounds.
  In total the city guard (which is also the local 
  militia) consists of 40 soldiers and 4 officers.
  (E) Guthra Guard (40): Use Zuran 
  Soldier stats. See page 80.
  Water Tower. Situated near the marketplace, 
  this tall wooden structure (15” tall on the 
  tabletop) has a large water tank on the top, 
  which collects the rare rain of this area. The 
  tower isn’t usually guarded (to check, draw 
  a card from the Action Deck, if it is a club 
  there are two Guthra Guards stationed near 
  the Tower for 2d6x5 minutes). The tower 
  can be climbed by means of a ladder, which 
  can be easily removed; in that case three 
  Climbing rolls are required.
   On the top of the tower, there is a clear 
  view over the marketplace. An archer 
  placed there is in an advantaged position; 
  consider the range of his weapon doubled. 
  “we Need A PlAN”
  The scenario supposes that the party 
  infiltrates the town to locate and free 
  Noramon before he is killed. It is a very 
  open part of the adventure, but some firm 
  points are described below.
  Getting Inside. There are basically two 
  ways for the party to enter Guthra. 
  The first one is through the main gate. 
  Going openly about the town causes 
  automatic recognition (attack by the 
  guards and a general alert of all the town). 
  If the heroes disguise themselves a bit, 
  there is a chance they are stopped and 
  questioned. Draw a card from the Action 
  Deck, only characters drawing a club are 
  stopped by the guards.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  58
  The guards’ questions are quite general, 
  and the entire scene can be handled with 
  some role-play or a single Persuasion 
  roll. Failing the roll means being refused 
  access for some reason (unless a bribe of 5 
  Moons is offered), while a critical failure 
  means being recognized!
  The second way consists of waiting for the 
  night, and climbing the walls. It requires 
  at least one Stealth (-1) roll and one 
  Climbing (-1) roll. In addition, draw a 
  card from the Action Deck, if it is a club, a 
  patrol of guards is passing on the walls at 
  that moment (this danger can be avoided 
  if the party spends some time, hidden 
  nearby the walls, studying the guards’ 
  routine).
  Investigation. Once inside, the heroes 
  must discover several things, the main 
  ones being where Lord Noramon is held, 
  and when the execution is happening. 
  The written scenario cannot foresee to 
  whom, exactly, the characters will speak, 
  so the information is divided into three 
  groups: Common Talk (the talk of the 
  town, which doesn’t require any rolls and 
  incurs no risk), Specific Info (requiring a 
  Streetwise, Persuasion or another similar 
  roll, which may trigger suspicion with 
  a critical failure), and Reserved Info (as 
  Specific, but the roll is made at -2, and 
  triggers suspicion with any failure).
  Common Talk
  1.	
  “The execution will be tomorrow (on 
  market day).”
  2.	
  “The prisoner is held in the dungeons 
  of the Governor’s palace.”
  3.	
  “Usually the convict is brought from 
  the Palace to the executioner’s stage, 
  in the marketplace, on a cart, escorted 
  by guards.”
  Specific Info
  1.	
  “The security of the Governor’s Palace 
  is very high…”
  2.	
  “… but you can enter if you want to 
  buy a merchant stall licence or have 
  other official business.”
  3.	
  “I have heard they called the Royal 
  Executioner from Zura to behead 
  him.”
  Reserved Info
  1. “Zakharo the Executioner has arrived 
  in town, with his two assistants. He 
  wears a hood during executions and 
  tries not to be recognized, but I am 
  sure it was him, big as an ox and with 
  a sour face…”
  2. “… he stays with his assistants at the 
  inn, in the best room.”
  What Will Happen. If the players don’t 
  intervene, this is what will happen. The day 
  before the execution, the Royal Executioner 
  Zakharo, with his two assistants, Jimango 
  and Haro, arrives in town, incognito. He 
  goes to the Governor’s palace and briefly 
  speaks with him. Then he lodges at the 
  inn with his two hirelings, eats supper and 
  retires to his room. Jimango does the same, 
  while Haro stays in the common room for a 
  while, flirting with Lynia, one of the tavern 
  girls (the two then retire to Lynia’s room, 
  till morning). The next morning Jimango 
  and the assistants prepare, donning their 
  ceremonial red robes and hoods, and go 
  to the marketplace, where, in front of the 
  crowd, the Governor and several guards, 
  Noramon is brought, on a cart pulled by 
  horses. Zakharo takes the prisoner, who 
  tries to speak against the Usurper but he 
  is beaten, and then he is beheaded. This 
  assumes nobody intervenes…
  (E) Guthra Guard (20): Use Zuran 
  Soldier stats. See page 80.
  
  59
  (WC) Zakharo the Executioner: See 
  page 80.
  (RH and H) Executioner’s Assistants 
  (2): One of them is a Right Hand, the 
  other one is a Henchman. See page 73.
  A Plan. There are many ways to free 
  Noramon. Below are two of them, but 
  smart players can find others.
  Impersonating the Executioners. Extracting 
  Noramon from the prison of Guthra is very 
  dangerous, but there is another way for the 
  party to get their hands on him before he 
  is killed: the three executioners are masked, 
  so if the party eliminates them before the 
  execution and takes their clothes, they can 
  go to the execution, disable the two guards 
  near the executioner’s stage, jump into the 
  guards’ cart, and drive to the town gate. This 
  is handled like a standard length Chase, 
  based on Riding.
  If the party placed a good archer on the 
  top of the water tower, or finds another 
  way to create a distraction, they can stir the 
  crowd and add more ruckus. Once outside 
  of the town, they can rejoin the nomads. 
  At that point no soldier will dare chase 
  them anymore. If you want to make the 
  scene even more cinematic, you can use 
  the “Different Points of View” Narrative 
  Tecnique (see sidebar on page 60).
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • The Crowd: If the heroes manage to 
  create panic in the marketplace, people go 
  wild. If you are playing on the tabletop, 
  place 2d4 Crowds on the battlefield. They 
  are LBT, which move 1d6” in a random 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  60
  direction every round. Characters stuck 
  in one are considered in Difficult ground, 
  and must make an Agility (-2) roll every 
  round to avoid being trampled, suffering 
  2d6 damage. Crowds can freely overlap. 
  Big characters and scenic elements (like 
  a horse-drawn cart) ignore the Difficult 
  ground penalty, but suffer -2 to Riding 
  rolls when passing through them.  
  A Fake Death. Another way to free 
  Noramon is making him die before the 
  execution. Not actually, obviously. If the 
  heroes are capable of concocting a potion 
  of Lotus of False Death (see page 24), 
  they can try to corrupt a servant to poison 
  Noramon’s food with the drug. It is quite 
  difficult (a Streetwise (-2)) roll must be 
  made), and costly (500 Moons), but if 
  successful, Noramon will “die” during the 
  night. Because the Governor cannot avoid 
  a public execution, someone else (an old 
  drunkard with a passing resemblance to 
  Noramon) is beheaded the next day, while 
  the real Noramon is thrown in a common 
  pit outside the town, where he’ll wake up 
  2d6 hours later, ready to be picked up by 
  the characters.
  AftermAtH: tHe Good 
  couNselor…
  You hardly recognize in this beaten old man 
  the well-groomed counselor of King Varias, 
  but when Noramon speaks you understand 
  that, although his body is weak, his spirit is 
  as strong as it was a year ago. 
  “You?” he says in a puzzled voice. Then he 
  smiles. “I was sure you weren’t dead!”
  With the help of Noramon the characters 
  can recruit up to 300 BV of troops among 
  the commoners still faithful to the King. In 
  addition Noramon will be a key element 
  to stirring up a rebellion in Zura, as will be 
  clear in the fourth part of the scenario.
  Event: Dark Clouds
  While the heroes take Lord Noramon 
  away, the sky over Keron, far to the east, 
  darkens, but nothing happens. 
  Tul, the desert prophet, mutters something: 
  “It is getting close.”
  But he refuses to say anything more.
  narratIVe teCnIque: dIfferent poInt of VIew
  Planning the extraction mission of Noramon could be very time-consuming. 
  In addition certain groups are bad at this type of thing. If you want to avoid 
  both these problems, you can opt for a “Different Point of View” narrative 
  technique. 
  To use this approach, you should end the previous session with the decision of 
  the heroes to reach Guthra to free Noramon.
  At this point begin the new session describing the execution’s scene (as if 
  witnessed by a local farmer). Try to build up the tension, till the moment 
  when Noramon is on the executioner’s stump. At this point reveal that the 
  executioner is one of the heroes, disguised, and let the player choose two other 
  characters as his assistants. The other characters aren’t in the scene, but they 
  can enter at any moment, by paying a Bennie.
  Now you can let the scene explode…
  
  Garden of Death
  61
  Part 4: The Fate of Zura
  War Council
  All you can do, you have done: you have the 
  Black Hawks on your side and you freed 
  Noramon, former counselor of the King. The 
  men under are eager to ride into battle under 
  your command and you know that you must 
  act quickly, because keeping such a diverse 
  army together is very difficult.
  What the party must do now is clear: 
  march on Zura, free the King, and kill the 
  usurper. And they must decide what to do 
  with Prince Kithaso, once they find him.
  There are two different points of view 
  on the topic: Tul, the Desert Prophet, is 
  adamant that he must be taken back to 
  the Garden of Death, and the nomads 
  support his idea.
  On the other side, Lord Noramon doesn’t 
  want to follow this line: the Prince is 
  perfectly fine, and the old counselor 
  doesn’t want to believe he is the cause of 
  the drought scourging the land.
  You can use this conflict to create 
  interesting roleplayong situations, but 
  without pushing it too far: the important 
  thing, for now, is defeating the Usurper 
  and freeing the King.
  And this won’t be easy.
  “Zura is under the control of the Ebon 
  Legion,” Tark says “A mercenary army from 
  Hillias. They are extremely well-armed and 
  trained, and won’t leave the protection of the 
  city’s walls.”
  A frontal assault, even with the bulk of the 
  nomad’s forces, doesn’t have much chance 
  of success.
  But there is another option.
  “The people of Zura have no love for the 
  Usurper,” Lord Noramon says, stroking his 
  beard. “If they rebel from the inside on the 
  day of the battle, we’ll have some chance. 
  I still have friends inside Zura, who can 
  help us by starting a riot, but they must be 
  contacted.”
  Noramon asks for scrolls and ink and 
  writes three letters to influential persons 
  in the town: Vador the Banker, Countess 
  Jimarra and Melanconio the Poet (see 
  Part 1).
  But who will sneak into Zura to deliver 
  them? The heroes can discuss this a bit 
  with the other members of the war council, 
  but the most logical choice is Jalaaro, the 
  caravan master.
  The man isn’t enthusiastic; after all, if 
  captured, he’ll risk his neck, but in the end 
  he agrees.
  “I’ll go,” he grumbles “But remember, if I get 
  caught, seven lovers in the Dominions will 
  weep for their loss, and countless sons will be 
  orphans.”
  Jalaaro takes with him a pigeon too, to be 
  used to send back an answer if necessary.
  Decision Before 
  the Battle
  Four days pass.
   During this time you stealthily move the 
  army, in small groups so as to not be detected 
  by Zuran patrols, to the hills near the capital. 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  62
  It isn’t very difficult, because the greater part 
  of the villages around the city are deserted, 
  the crop fields blighted, and you find almost 
  no patrols.
  From this advantage position, you can see 
  Zura. It has very tall walls, and they are 
  heavily guarded.
  “The Jalizaran set off three days ago and we 
  haven’t heard anything from him,” Darketa 
  says, troubled. “And can we be sure he wasn’t 
  caught, or, even worse, he didn’t betray us?”
  Let the players discuss the topic, trying 
  to seed uncertainty, and, if possible, doubt 
  and mistrust.
  Your discussion is interrupted by something 
  weird. Distant thunder. You look westward 
  and you see, far away, a sky black as the 
  heart of a priest, crossed by lighting. 
  “A storm in the desert?” Darketa says “What 
  kind of a portent is it?”
  “A very bad one,” A raspy voice whispers. 
  You turn. Tul, the desert prophet, arrived 
  at your back so silently you didn’t hear him. 
  “Time is running out. Tomorrow it will be 
  a year since Kithaso’s return. We must attack 
  tonight.”
  When the heroes return to the camp, there 
  is news. Jalaaro’s pigeon has returned, 
  with a message. Tark has opened it and is 
  cursing. 
  Give the players Handout 2 – Jalaaro’s 
  Letter.
  The meaning of the letter is clear: the 
  three conspirators want to meet Lord 
  Noramon in person before starting a riot.
  At this point the war council starts 
  bickering: Darketa says it is a trap, Tark 
  on the opposite side, says the letter must 
  be trusted.
  The reality is that, without a riot inside, 
  taking Zura is impossible. And Lord 
  Noramon is very conscious of this.
  “Trap or no trap, I must go,” the old counselor 
  says. “We need a diversion inside the city.”
  The problem is sneaking into Zura. 
  Security is very high now.
  “I know a way, maybe,” the Counselor says. 
  “It is a passage in the old sewers of the city. 
  King Varias’ father showed it to me, many 
  years ago. But that was a long time ago, and 
  I know it is dangerous.” 
  The situation is getting complex now: 
  Lord Noramon cannot navigate the sewers 
  alone, not counting the dangers that will 
  entail. On the other hand, the heroes are 
  needed to lead the troops outside.
  There are various ways to handle this 
  situation.
  The first one is splitting the party: some 
  of the heroes will stay outside, while 
  the others sneak into Zura and start the 
  rebellion. In this case, the best thing to do 
  is physically divide the players, and run 
  the The Night of the Rebellion Scene in 
  another gaming session, to avoid having 
  part of the group idle.
  If the players decide not to go with 
  Noramon, the chances of success of this 
  part of the plan are decided by luck (see 
  sidebar). 
  The adventure at this point splits into 
  two different scenes: The Night of the 
  Rebellion and The Battle of Zura. Then 
  
  Garden of Death
  63
  they rejoin in The Doom Comes from 
  Keron.
  Before the characters (or Noramon) leaves 
  for the sewers, Tul says.
  “Remember, we must attack tonight, 
  tomorrow will be too late. May the Sun God 
  be with us.”
  noramon alone… 
  If the players leave Noramon enter the 
  Sewers alone, the success of the city’s 
  rebellion is in the hands of fate. Draw a 
  card from the Action Card and check the 
  table below. Note than if a club is drawn, 
  one of the NPCs involved is killed…
  RIOT TABLE
  Noramon is…
  Riot Starts With…
  …alone.
  A King or better
  …with Darketa or 
  Tark.
  A Jack or better
  … with Darketa and 
  Tark.
  A nine or better.
  The Night  
  of the Rebellion
  This section details the events if the 
  players lead Noramon through the sewers 
  to the gathering at Wylila’s Tavern.
  tHe sewers
   The first task the heroes must accomplish 
  is actually finding the sewer access. 
  Noramon knows it is at the base of the 
  eastern city wall. With a quick inspection 
  they find a small, filthy rivulet coming out 
  from the base of the walls, surrounded by 
  bushes and other vegetation. The problem 
  is that, being directly under the walls, it 
  is exposed to the eyes of the sentinels 
  on the battlements. Reaching it without 
  being noticed requires a group Stealth 
  (+1) roll. In the case of failure the guards 
  raise the alarm, and shoot a volley of 2d4 
  arrows (Shooting d8, Medium Range, 
  2d6 damage) at the trespassers. Once the 
  players reach the base of the walls, there 
  is a narrow passage, knee-deep in filthy 
  water, which is abruptly blocked after a 
  dozen steps by a metal grate. Luckily the 
  grate is old and corroded (Toughness 7): 
  it can be bashed or broken by brute force 
  (Strength (-2) roll).
  The sewers are a labyrinth of corridors 
  and passages, but Noramon seems to know 
  unerringly what passage to take. You tread 
  behind him, weapons ready and torches 
  high. There is something about this place you 
  don’t like… 
  Below are described three encounters the 
  characters can have in the Sewers. If you 
  need to make this part shorter (because 
  you are playing with a split group) you can 
  easily drop one or two of them, or you can 
  add another couple to make this part of 
  the adventure more challenging.
  Desiccated Corpse. While the heroes are 
  advancing along a corridor, pick one of 
  them at random and ask him for a Notice 
  (-2) roll. If successful the adventurer, 
  while passing near the entrance of a side 
  corridor, has a brief glimpse of something 
  lying at the foot of the corridor wall. On 
  closer inspection, he is a man, apparently 
  sitting with his back to the wall. 
  The man is dead, but for how long is 
  impossible to determinate: the corpse looks 
  desiccated, as if something or someone has 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  64
  drained all his body fluids. An unnerving 
  detail, his desiccated face is still twisted into 
  an expression which is a mix of stupor and 
  terror.
  A more detailed examination (and a 
  Healing roll) reveals a single wound, an 
  oval hole in the chest, the size of a thumb, 
  which pierced the sternum. The characters 
  have no idea of what could have inflicted 
  such a wound, but they’ll meet it soon 
  (see below). The man seems to have been 
  a smuggler or thief of some sort, using the 
  sewers for some illegal business. He has 
  a set of lockpicks, a dagger, a rope and, 
  nearby, a lantern, broken during the fight 
  with the mysterious assailant. 
  “Something Dwells There”. The adventurers 
  enter a large square room, where they find 
  something unsettling.
  In a corner of the room you see a large mass 
  of strange oval shaped things, big as barrels. 
  They are covered by a thin layer of gummy 
  substance, as it is the flooring.
  “This is definitely strange,” Noramon says. 
  “The last time I was here, those things 
  weren’t there.”
  If the adventurers investigate more, they 
  easily understand what the mass is: eggs! 
  With a Survival (-2) roll they can even 
  recognize the type: spiders!
  But before they adventurers can decide 
  what to do, they hear a low hiss from 
  behind them, and from a side passage, a 
  hideous creature comes out. 
  It is a spider, a big, hairy one, the size of a 
  pony, and it stares at you with red, devilish 
  eyes! While the creature runs toward you, 
  you hear a cracking sound behind your back. 
  Oh no, the eggs are hatching right now!
  The heroes must pass a Fear Check (-2), 
  with +1 if they found the desiccated 
  corpse before and understood how it 
  was killed. Another +1 is granted if they 
  discovered they are going to fight a spider. 
  The battleground is a room 9” by 9” with 
  four 1” openings, one at the center of each 
  side. The heroes start in the middle of the 
  room, while the Impaler Spider enters 
  from the eastern passage. Its hatchlings 
  begin the combat within 5” of the 
  northwestern corner.
  These creatures fight to the death, 
  defending their territory.
  (WC) Impaler Spider: See page 75.
  (E) Impaler Spider Hatchling (1 per 
  hero): Use the Impaler Spider stats, 
  reducing Size by two and decrease the 
  impaling damage to Str+d6. See page 75.
  Slippery Passage. Noramon stops the 
  heroes.
  “There is a dangerous passage in front of 
  us,” the counselor says. “An abyss so deep that 
  nobody knows where it ends. There is only 
  one way to cross it, a narrow, very slippery 
  catwalk. Don’t look down.” 
  The passage is even worse than Noramon 
  said: a large, bottomless abyss, 30” deep 
  on the tabletop, crossed by a 1” wide 
  slippery catwalk. The heroes must make 
  three rolls to cross it: the first one is an 
  Agility roll, the second one is a Spirit (-2) 
  roll to avoid looking down, and the third 
  is another Agility roll (-2) because this 
  part is very slippery. If an adventurer fails 
  one of the rolls he trips, and falls! Extras 
  automatically die, screaming, while Wild 
  Cards grab the edge of the catwalk, and 
  can regain solid ground with a Strength 
  (-4) roll, which can be cooperative.
  
  Garden of Death
  65
  Once they have crossed over this slippery 
  passage the heroes finally find a ladder, 
  leading to the streets of Zura.
  The first part of the plan is accomplished!
  tHe coNsPirAtors
  You cautiously spy outside the manhole. It is 
  night, and there is nobody around.
  The manhole leads into a back alley, so 
  the party doesn’t run any immediate risks. 
  There is a curfew in the city, so there is 
  nobody around, except for some guard 
  patrols, but luckily the adventurers meet 
  nobody in their short walk to Wylila’s 
  Tavern.
  You have never been in this tavern, but you 
  have heard of it: Wylila’s isn’t a very refined 
  place, even by your standards, but tonight 
  the place is really dead. There are no lights 
  from the windows, the door is closed and the 
  place is quieter than a Tricarnian funeral.
  The reason for this is simple: there is 
  a curfew and all the shops must shut 
  very early, taverns included. When the 
  heroes knock, some time passes, than the 
  door opens and a hooded figure looks 
  suspiciously at the heroes. He is Jalaaro!
  The Jalizaran sees you with open relief and 
  lets a thin smile pass across his face.
  “Ranikos’ balls! You finally arrived! Come 
  in, get in before someone sees you!”
  Jaalaro brings you into the tavern, which 
  now is closed and dark. Near a table three 
  people wait for you, shrouded in long capes. 
  You recognize them from the banquet at the 
  king’s place, a year ago. The enormously fat 
  man is Vador, the banker. The woman dressed 
  in elegant clothes who hastily turns to you is 
  Countess Jimarra. You considered her only a 
  fickle courtesan, but if she is here, there must 
  be some iron in her. Finally, sprawled on a 
  seat, caressing his harp, is Melanconio the 
  poet, wearing his customary sad expression.
  The three notables are very relieved to 
  see the heroes, and in particular they are 
  reassured by Noramon’s presence. Of the 
  three Vador is the one with the most 
  doubts, and must be persuaded to start the 
  riot. Jimarra is already convinced (she has 
  a crush on the king and would do anything 
  to save him), while Melanconio stays idle, 
  watching the scene. Let the players do 
  some role-playing to persuade Vador. 
  When you think the situation is settled 
  and the conspirators are fully convinced, 
  something happens.
  “So, what do we have there?” an amused 
  voice says.
  You raise the eyes and see, on the balcony of 
  the mezzanine, a man.
  The text below considers that Zarimo, 
  General Talasco’s right hand, is still alive 
  and free. If he isn’t substitute him with 
  another officer of the Usurper (you can 
  use Zarimo’s stats or create a new profile 
  on your own).
  You recognize him:  he is Zarimo, Talasco’s 
  lapdog! And he isn’t alone! On the 
  mezzanine there are a number of archers, 
  bows aimed at you.
  At that moment the front door of the tavern 
  bangs open, and more soldiers storm inside.
  “We were betrayed!” Noramon says.
  Noramon is correct. There is a traitor, 
  and he is one of the conspirers. If the 
  heroes surrender now, they are doomed 
  and they’ll end their days in a dungeon in 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  66
  Zura. The odds are against them, but this 
  is a fight they must win.
  The battleground is the tavern main room 
  and the mezzanine. The tavern room is 
  12” by 12”, with a door leading to the road 
  in the middle of the southern side and 
  another door leading to the kitchens in 
  the middle of the eastern wall (from the 
  kitchens reaching a back alley is easy).
  The 12” by 2” area on the northern side is 
  occupied by a mezzanine with three doors 
  leading to several rooms. It is accessible 
  through a stair 3” by 2” on the east side. 
  The heroes and the conspirators are placed 
  in the middle of the room, while Zarimo 
  and half his men armed with bows are 
  placed on the mezzanine, and the other 
  soldiers storm in from the two doors.
  During the battle, the identity of the 
  traitor is revealed: when the characters 
  start winning Melanconio draws a dagger 
  and tries to stab Lord Noramon in the 
  back! He fights with reckless abandon and 
  cannot be stopped except by killing him.
  When defeated he falls to the ground, and 
  whispers his last words.
  “King Varias is a fool. Hillias is destined to 
  dominate and Talasco will save us…”
  In truth the Poet is only a madman with 
  a distorted sense of idealism. Zarimo, 
  however, isn’t mad at all: if things go badly 
  he quickly leaves the battlefield, entering 
  one of the rooms on the mezzanine, 
  blocking the door behind him, and 
  escaping across the rooftops.
  Vador and Jimarra do nothing in the 
  combat, apart from screaming and hiding 
  in a corner.
  (E) Zarimo’s Soldiers (2 per hero +2): 
  Use the Zuran Soldier stats. Archers have 
  Shooting raised by one die step, while the 
  others have Fighting d8. See page 80.
  (E) Lord Noramon (1): See page 76.
  (RH) Melanconio the Poet (1): See page 
  76.
  (WC) Zarimo (1): See page 80.
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Assorted Furniture: The inn is full 
  of furniture and assorted props which 
  can be used in the fight to make it more 
  interesting: chairs (Large Improvised 
  Weapons), tables (2” by 2”, Toughness 
  6, grant Medium Cover), and finally the 
  chandelier can be reached with a jump (an 
  Agility roll) and then used for an Agility 
  Trick (+4) or to jump to any part of the 
  battlefield (mezzanine included).
  • The Hand of Fate: Lord Noramon, for 
  this scene only, is considered an Extra 
  (ignore this rule if he is actually run by a 
  player).
  tHe rebellioN stArts!
  When finally the situation is settled, go 
  on with the following. The text below 
  supposes that Noramon survived. If he 
  didn’t, change the text accordingly.
  Noramon breathes heavily. You understand 
  that the past months, and tonight in 
  particular, have been hard for him; he is, 
  after all, only an old man.
  But the King’s counselor steels himself and 
  talks to the two remaining conspirers: “My 
  
  Garden of Death
  67
  friends, the night is young and we have 
  work to do. Put your men to work.”
  At these words both Vador and Jimarra 
  leave the inn. A few minutes later, you hear 
  voices in the roads.
  “So it begins,” Noramon sighs.
  The riot will explode in the city in few 
  hours. In game terms the heroes’ army 
  receives a bonus of +300 BV, doubled 
  if Noramon is still alive. The characters 
  should also be rewarded with a Bennie.
  The Battle of Zura 
  Sooner or later the heroes will attack 
  Zura! The scene is detailed below.
  The time of planning and waiting has ended. 
  Now, the blades will talk. You jump into the 
  saddle, and take the long flaming pole that 
  Tul passes you.
  “We’ll fight by night. A bad omen. This will 
  help you see,” he explains.
  And there is no need to say that this will 
  bring the blessing of the Sun God upon you.
  You stand in the stirrups, and shout an order. 
  The men behind you raise their flaming poles 
  too, and you see an enormous wave of fire in 
  the night.
  It is enough. You spur the horse and gallop 
  toward your destiny, victory or death. 
  This scene is too complex to be played 
  on the tabletop, so it must be run with 
  the Mass Battle Rules and it is partially 
  scripted. Below are detailed the forces 
  involved and the outcome of the battle. 
  If the Commandant remained with the 
  army, he will lead the troops in battle, 
  otherwise the task will fall to Darketa 
  or Tark. Only in dire need will Tarevok, 
  Darketa’s father, lead the troops. He has 
  Knowledge (Battle) d8 and Spirit d8, but 
  as he is very weak, at the end of every 
  battle round he must make a Spirit roll, if 
  he fails he is killed in action and the army 
  must make an immediate morale roll.
  The heroes’ side has the best commander 
  available and all remaining BV.
  The Rebellion: If the rebellion was 
  successfully started, add BV depending 
  on the outcome (see previous scene). 
  In addition, the enemy won’t have the 
  fortifications bonus.
  ZurA defeNdiNG Army
  Battle Value:  1000 (Ebon Legion plus 
  city guard)
  Commander: Commander Valgon the 
  Black (Knowledge (Battle) d8, Spirit d8)
  Band Edges: -
  Band Hindrances: None
  The battle is run as normal. Unless the 
  players countered this in some way, the 
  defenders are behind fortifications (+2 
  to morale, -2 terrain modifier to the 
  attackers’ roll).
  The battle concentrates on the city walls 
  and near the city gate. Even if the heroes 
  are split (some fighting outside the city 
  with the Nomads and the other ones 
  inside with the rebelling citizens) both of 
  them can join in the battle, if they want 
  (use the standard Characters in Mass 
  Battle Rules).
  The party will meet up in Horas Plaza in 
  the next scene.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  68
  When the defenders are reduced to four 
  Battle Tokens or less, read the following 
  part.
  You hear a crash. The gates! The city gates 
  have fallen, and your troops redouble 
  their efforts, trying to swarm inside. The 
  defenders try desperately to stop them, but 
  they cannot! You have almost won!
  But at this point Tul suddenly shouts, and 
  his voice is heard on all the battlefield.
  “Behold! To the west!”
  Go on with the next scene.
  The Doom Comes from 
  Keron
  Outside the city, on the plain behind the 
  attackers, a black fog appears. The 
  fighters, on both sides, stop for a 
  moment, to behold the strange 
  apparition.
  And then, from the 
  fog, twisted shapes 
  emerge: they are 
  bulky, crouched beasts, big 
  as horses. You recognize 
  them, 
  they 
  are 
  the 
  Guardians of the Gardens. 
  And behind them, you see a 
  single war chariot, pulled by 
  four enormous guardians, upon 
  which stands the Lady of the 
  Garden!
  At her side a man stands 
  on a horse. He sounds 
  the massive horn and, 
  at this command, the 
  horde of raging beasts 
  charge.
  Tul, near you, says: “The doom is finally 
  upon us! The Lady of the Garden has come to 
  retake what is hers!”
  Ask the heroes outside the city what they 
  want to do: if they choose to fight, have 
  them make a single Mass Battle Roll (as 
  per the Characters in Mass Battles rules) 
  at -3. If they don’t, they can make the 
  Notice roll below.
  The assault of the beasts breaks the 
  formations of both sides and the battle turns 
  into a senseless chaos. You raise and lower 
  your weapon mechanically, killing to avoid 
  being killed, but you understand that there 
  will be no winners or losers today, only a pile 
  of unburied bodies, dismembered by alien 
  fangs.
  After the fight, ask the characters outside 
  the city for a Notice roll. If they fail, Tul 
  spots what follows, otherwise the heroes 
  see it.
  Instinctively, 
  during 
  the 
  battle, you raise your eyes 
  to the battlements: Talasco, 
  the Usurper, is there, 
  surrounded by his 
  guards, pale 
  as a ghost in 
  the night. As 
  if he has seen 
  you, he quickly 
  turns and flees.
  The time for the final 
  confrontation 
  has 
  arrived! 
  Talasco 
  is 
  going to the royal 
  palace, where the 
  King and his son 
  are held.
  
  Garden of Death
  69
  The heroes should follow him, entering 
  the city. 
  In the plaza near the gate, Horas Plaza, 
  where a vicious battle is raging, the 
  characters of both groups (the ones 
  outside the city and the ones inside) can 
  roll Notice. If at least one of them makes 
  the roll, they spot each other and can 
  finally join up again.
  The battle in front of the gate is turning into 
  a massacre: the huge beasts of Keron give no 
  quarter, smashing nomads, Black Hawks 
  and Zuran soldiers alike. In a few minutes 
  they’ll storm the gate and swarm into the 
  city.
  “There is nothing that we can do there,” Tul 
  tells you. 
  The Last Stand. The desert prophet is 
  right, but if a hero wants to stay there with 
  his men he can; this means almost certain 
  death. Give him a Bennie, and ask him to 
  make a Battle roll every five minutes of 
  real-time, representing him and his men 
  standing their ground. 
  After three rolls he really understands 
  he is doomed: he can decide to make the 
  survivor retire, or continue to fight.
  If the chooses to retire, ask him for a 
  Smarts (or Knowledge (Battle)) roll. 
  For each success and raise four soldiers 
  or nomads (any combination of the 
  two) follow him, but half of them are 
  considered Walking Wounded.
  If he still decides to stay, well, continue the 
  Battle rolls every five minutes, but from 
  this moment on at -4, and he’ll probably 
  meet a glorious death.
  The King  
  and the Prince 
  The scenario supposes that the heroes 
  follow Talasco to the royal palace. At the 
  GM’s discretion, in this final scene of the 
  adventure they can be alone, or with Tul, 
  Noramon or Darketa.
  You run through the city, where now fights 
  erupt in every corner, to the royal palace. The 
  doors are unguarded and left ajar, probably 
  the sentinels are either on the battlements, 
  fighting to save the city, or they have fled.
  You enter the large corridor that leads to 
  the throne room. There you find Talasco, 
  surrounded by his men. King Varias sits on 
  the throne, with an exhausted face. He looks 
  twenty years older than the last time you 
  saw him.
  The Usurper, seeing you enter, turns. Prince 
  Kithaso, the young boy who caused all of this, 
  stands still near him. 
  “Stay back!” Talasco screams, placing a 
  dagger on the neck of the boy. “Stop all of 
  this, or the bloodline of Zura will die here!” 
  The heroes are in a serious standoff now: 
  Talasco’s guards surround the former 
  general, the King, and his son. There is 
  no way they can get to the Prince before 
  being gutted. Let the players do a little 
  role-playing before going on with the 
  following part.
  At this point a soft, feminine voice is heard 
  from behind you. “How can one die who is 
  already dead?” 
  You turn and see entering the royal hall the 
  Lady of the Garden, accompanied by her 
  stone-faced Kennelmaster and surrounded 
  by a several Guardians, their fangs and 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  70
  horns still splattered with the blood of the 
  battle.
  “You… you there…” Talasco sputters, 
  and steps back, releasing Prince Kithaso 
  for a moment. This is what you have been 
  waiting for!
  The heroes finally have the chance to 
  defeat their hated nemesis and save the 
  King and the Prince! The battlefield is the 
  throne room, an area 18” by 18”. In the 
  center on the southern wall, there is the 
  4” wide main door from where the heroes 
  (and the Lady of the Garden) came. It is 
  currently blocked by the Lady and her 
  retinue (see next scene). On the north 
  wall, there is a 6” by 4” dais, upon which 
  there is the throne, where King Varias is 
  sitting.
  In the northeastern corner of the room, 
  behind a curtain, there is a 1” wide door, 
  which Talasco will try to use to escape 
  when the situation turns ugly.
  Talasco is placed within 2” of the dais, 
  while Prince Kithaso is 3” from him. 
  Talasco’s bodyguards are placed in a rough 
  half ring around the Usurper, 6” from him. 
  The heroes are roughly in the center of the 
  room.
  Talasco’s men fight bravely and with 
  good discipline: the two archers, which 
  are placed at the farthest extremity of the 
  ring, move onto the dais and shoot at the 
  party from this elevated position, while 
  the rest of them engage the adventurers 
  in melee.
  Talasco fights till two thirds of his men 
  are down, then, if not already killed, tries 
  to escape (see below).
  During the combat the Lady of the 
  Garden and her retinue don’t interfere, 
  unless someone tries to escape through 
  the main door, in which case the 
  Garden Guardians attack them.
  When Talasco dies, his men surrender, 
  but the adventure isn’t over yet.
  (E/RH) Talasco’s Bodyguards (2 
  per hero +2): Two of them are armed 
  with bows. They have Shooting d10, 
  the Marksman Edge and are Right 
  Hands. See page 78.
  (WC) General Talasco (1): See page 77.
  (WC) Zarimo (1): See page 80.
  
  Garden of Death
  71
  Terrain, Props and 
  Special Rules
  • Columns: There are eight very big 
  columns on the two sides of the room, 
  four per side. They can be represented 
  with SBT and grant Heavy Cover (-4). 
  They are really sturdy (Toughness: 12, 
  Heavy Armor) and cannot be moved in 
  any way,
  • The Way of the Coward: Talasco is a 
  coward at heart. If things go badly, he 
  tries to escape through the small door in 
  the northeastern corner of the room. The 
  characters should follow him. A real chase 
  isn’t necessary: Talasco takes a wrong turn 
  and ends up in a turret. He goes up, to the 
  top floor, then he has to fight for his life! 
  The tower is represented by a MBT, but 
  only the 1” on the perimeter can be walked, 
  the rest is occupied by the tower roof. 
  There is a 1” stair leading to the top floor. 
  Fighting on the tower is dangerous: if a 
  character rolls 1 on any die roll connected 
  to Agility (for example Fighting) it means 
  he slips! He must make an Agility (-2) roll 
  to avoid falling off! A hero automatically 
  grabs onto the edge (and can regain solid 
  ground with a Strength (-4)) roll, while, if 
  this fate befalls Talasco he falls, screaming, 
  and dies impaled on the spire of a lower 
  tower. Should a hero fall down, he’ll suffer 
  4d6 damage.
  The Bittersweet Fruit 
  of the Garden 
  The Usurper is finally dead, by your hand!
  “It seems I must thank you another time, my 
  general,” King Varias says, in a tired voice, 
  while Counselor Noramon quickly checks 
  him.
  But it isn’t over yet. The fights in the roads 
  continue. You know that, when the word 
  of the Usurper’s death spreads the foreign 
  mercenaries will flee, but what about the 
  monsters of the Lady of the Garden?
  The ancient princess look at the scene with 
  cold, emotionless eyes.
  Then her stare falls on the boy.
  “Prince Kithaso,” she says. “Now you must 
  go back with me.”
  Lord Noramon and King Varis vehemently 
  protest, while Tul stays silent, his face a grim 
  stone mask.
  “Your place is no longer among the living,” 
  the Lady continues. Then she stares at Tul. 
  “Even the land and the sky suffer from your 
  presence there.”
  The desert prophet reluctantly nods.
  King Varias suddenly finds his energy again.
   “Kill her!” he shouts. “Kill her and I’ll give 
  you whatever you want! Even my throne! 
  Kill her!”
  The choice is with the heroes now. There 
  are several ways they can end the scenario, 
  described below.
  Attack the Lady
  The most straightforward solution, but 
  probably not very wise. The battle is set on 
  the same battlefield as above. If the heroes 
  win the battle, the Guardians in the city 
  will continue to fight to the death, and the 
  city will be saved. But it is only temporary: 
  after exactly one year from today, the Lady 
  of Death will return, with another army 
  and this time very upset. She’ll try to 
  destroy Zura and take away Kithaso. In 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  72
  addition, during this year, the land around 
  Zura will become darker: the drought will 
  continue and an unknown plague will kill 
  a many of the population. This could be a 
  great setup for a very gloomy campaign…
  (E) Garden Hounds (up to 3 per hero): 
  See page 74.
  (WC) Queen of Death: See page 76.
  (WC) Tasir the Kennelmaster: See page 
  78.
  Surrender the Boy
  If the heroes decide to surrender the boy 
  to the Lady, this is what happens.
  King Varias, maddened, picks a dagger from 
  one of the fallen soldiers, and raises it.
  “If you cannot stay with me, I’ll stay with 
  you!” He says.
  Then, unless a hero stops him (with an 
  Agility (-2) roll, +2 for a Quick Hero).
  The king stabs himself, and dies under 
  the horrified eyes of Noramon and his son 
  Kithaso.
  The Lady of the Garden watches the king die 
  with her inhuman, Keronian eyes. Then she 
  shakes her head. “Not every soul reaches the 
  Garden. Only those who died before their 
  time. And this is your time, my lord.” 
  Once the Lady has the boy she and her 
  army retreat back to Keron, in the Garden, 
  never to be seen again. The drought ends 
  but King Varias (if still alive) isn’t the 
  same anymore, and in few years he’ll die, 
  leaving the kingdom without an heir.
  Exchanging the Prince for 
  the King
  The Lady needs a soul back in the garden, 
  but must it be that of the Prince? Would 
  another be acceptable? If a hero is smart 
  enough to ask this question, he could 
  probably convince the Lady of the Garden 
  to pick a replacement, but this requires 
  a Persuasion roll. If he succeeds, the 
  Keronian princess says:
  “Only a person willing to stay in the Garden 
  forever can enter it. Who of you wants to 
  pass eternity with us?” 
  There is one: King Varias himself, who 
  will follow the Lady into the Garden, to 
  allow his son to live his life. The drought 
  ends and Kithaso is now king of Zura, but 
  he is still a boy of fourteen, with only Lord 
  Noramon at his side. He needs all the help 
  he can find. Maybe the heroes will help 
  him? Or the Nomads?
  The King Asks the Lady 
  to Join his Son in the 
  Garden 
  If King is saved from his suicidal instinct, 
  he can propose to follow his son into the 
  Garden. It is a very unusual request, but if 
  the heroes support him, talking very fast 
  (with a Persuasion (-2) roll), she can be 
  convinced.
  This causes the end of the royal bloodline 
  of Zura. Who will take the throne? One 
  of the heroes? In this case, if he developed 
  a romantic interest with Darketa he could 
  marry the warrior-woman, to unite the 
  nomads and the farmers into a single 
  people. By doing so, they’ll have a chance 
  to resist the influence of Hillias, and 
  maybe, in a few years, a powerful new 
  
  Garden of Death
  73
  kingdom will be born in the southern 
  Dominions…
  The End
  As described above, there are many 
  ways this scenario could end: from bitter 
  desperation to hope for a new future and 
  the possibility of giving a new direction to 
  the campaign. In addition, remember that 
  a year has passed, and many other plots 
  and events could have been happened in 
  the Dominions.
  On the topic of the rewards, if the 
  characters save the kingdom, surely they 
  will receive a noble title in Zura and a 
  position of some kind (the Noble Edge, 
  for Zura only). More materialistic heroes 
  will be instead rewarded with a tidy sum of 
  4000 Moons, enough to stay permanently 
  drunk for several months.
  In addition, the Commandant character 
  has now at his disposal a band of die-hard 
  soldiers, the Black Hawks, who will go to 
  hell and back for him…
  Creatures and NPCs
  Caravan Member 
  This sun-burned man has worked in 
  Jalaaro’s caravan for a while. He is skilled 
  with camels, horses, carts, and, if the need 
  arises, he can wield a sword to defend 
  himself.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6
  Skills: Fighting d6, Notice d6, Persuasion 
  d4, Riding d6, Shooting d6, Survival d6.
  Charisma: 0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5/6; 
  Toughness: 5
  Edges: Woodsman (see below).
  Hindrances: -.
  Gear: Bronze sword (Str+d6) or bronze-
  tipped spear (Str+d6, Range: 3/6/12, 2 
  hands, +1 Parry, Reach 1), dagger (Str+d4, 
  Range: 3/6/12), bow (Damage: 2d6, 
  Range: 12/24/48), desert robes.
   
   Darketa 
  Also known as Houtani Gar, the Desert 
  Jackal, Darketa is a stunningly beautiful, 
  yet savage, warrior woman. Raven haired 
  and sharp-tongued, she is the daughter 
  of an important chief of the Red Desert 
  Nomads, Tavarok. Fiercely faithful to her 
  people, she hates King Varias of Zura, who 
  dispossessed her clan of their ancestral 
  lands.
  Darketa belongs to the Brown Nomads.
  Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d8, Strength d6, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d8, 
  Knowledge (Battle) d6, Notice d6, Riding 
  d10, Shooting d8, Survival d8, Throwing 
  d6.
  Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; 
  Toughness: 7(1)
  Edges: Attractive, Born in the Saddle, 
  Command, Iron Will, Noble, Quick.
  Hindrances: Loyal, Mean.
  Gear: Bronze saber (Str+d6), kullah – 
  traditional dagger (Str+d4, AP 1, cannot 
  be thrown), light leather armor (+1), 
  Desert Jackal helm (+2), desert composite 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  74
  bow (Damage: 2d6, Range: 15/30/60), 
  desert robes.
  Special Abilities
  • Desert Jackal: Darketa made herself a 
  name as the Desert Jackal, the chief of 
  a large band of nomads marauding the 
  northern part of the Red Desert. Dauntless 
  and strong, half of the marauders are in 
  love with her and the other half will die 
  at her command. Her command Radius 
  is tripled (15”) but only for Red Desert 
  Nomads.
  Executioner’s Assistant 
  This not-very-smart man is one of 
  the assistants of Zakharo, the Royal 
  Executioner of Zura.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
  Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d4.
  Charisma: -2; Pace: 
  6; 
  Parry: 
  5; 
  Toughness: 5
  Edges: -.
  Hindrances: Outsider.
  Gear: Bronze dagger (Str+d4, cannot be 
  thrown), cudgel (Str+d4), executioner’s 
  robes.
  Garden Hound 
  This hideous beast resembles a sort of 
  gorilla, but is more slender, and equipped 
  with a cruel horn on its forehead and 
  set of razor sharp claws. They prefer to 
  crouch on all fours, but they are perfectly 
  capable of standing erect. They are a race 
  of minor demonic servants, used by the 
  Keronians of the past, and answer to the 
  name of Kravatra. They obey the Lady 
  of the Garden and her loyal herald, the 
  Master of the Hunt, faithfully. When 
  they die, their body melts into a bloody 
  pulp over some minutes, then their bones 
  crumble to dust. Every morning the Lady 
  can summon another Hound to replace a 
  fallen one.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A), 
  Spirit d8, Strength d10, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d6.
  Pace: 7; Parry: 6; Toughness: 7
  Special Abilities
  • Claws: Str+d4.
  • Horned Head: Str+d6. AP 1. The Garden 
  Hound rarely uses its most powerful 
  attack, the horn, in melee (he suffers -2 
  to the Fighting roll). The only exception 
  is if he hits the target with a raise. In this 
  case the beast automatically delivers an 
  additional Horned Head attack. 
  • Uncanny Vitality: Garden Hounds 
  aren’t real demons, but are gifted with a 
  supernatural vitality. They receive +2 to 
  Vigor rolls and to any roll to recover from 
  being Shaken.
  • Size+1: A Garden Hound is somewhat 
  bigger than a man.
  Guardian of Nal Ashak 
  This Red Nomad has the blood of the 
  ancient Keronian slaves, manifesting itself 
  in a grayish complexion and a hunch. 
  For centuries, people like him have been 
  sent to live in the City of Night, to guard 
  it forever. There, they join the other 
  Guardians, and their tongues are cut out, 
  so they cannot taint this holy place with 
  human language. Actually, the Guardians 
  learn to subvocalize sounds, so they can 
  communicate among themselves with 
  hisses and other creepy noises.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d8, Strength d8, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d8, 
  Notice d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d8, 
  Throwing d8.
  Charisma: -2; Pace: 
  6; 
  Parry: 
  6; 
  Toughness: 6
  
  Garden of Death
  75
  Edges: Quick.
  Hindrances: Mean.
  Gear:  Obsidian dagger (Str+d4+1, cannot 
  be thrown), blowpipe with Guardian 
  Powder (Range: 5/10/20, delivers the 
  Guardian Powder, 3 doses, see below), red 
  rags.
  Special Abilities
  • Guardian Powder: This mysterious 
  Lotus 
  concoction 
  provokes 
  strange, 
  terrible visions. Any target hit by the 
  powder must roll Spirit (-2) or be Shaken. 
  If he rolls a 1 on the Spirit die, regardless 
  of the Wild Die, he must immediately 
  make a Fear Check.
  • Low Light Vision: The Guardians of 
  Nal Ashak are well-acquainted with 
  darkness, they ignore penalties for Dim 
  and Dark lighting.
  • Hardy: The Guardians of Nal Ashak 
  aren’t common humans, and have an 
  unholy vitality. If they are Shaken, a 
  second Shaken result don’t cause them a 
  Wound.
   
   Impaler Spider
  This dangerous creature, typical of 
  the Red Desert, dwells in moist areas 
  (typically oases and tombs). Quite furry, it 
  isn’t poisonous and doesn’t produce webs, 
  but nevertheless is very dangerous: nature 
  gifted it with a particular long “tongue” (in 
  truth a sort of chitin cave spear), which 
  the spider uses to impale its victims and 
  sucks away their bodily fluids. Usually 
  Impaler Spiders grow up to the size of a 
  dog, but this specimen is particularly big. 
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A), 
  Spirit d6, Strength d10, Vigor d10
  Skills: Fighting d8, Notice d6, Stealth d8.
  Pace: 8; Parry: 6; Toughness: 8
  Special Abilities
  • Fear: An Impaler Spider, especially one 
  of this size, is very scary, and seeing it 
  requires a Fear (-2) check.
  • Impaling: Str+d8, AP 2, Reach 3. If 
  the Impaling Spider hits with a raise, it 
  means it has fixed its “tongue” in the body 
  of the victim. From the next round, the 
  beast will suck away the body fluids of the 
  victim, causing her 2d8 damage (armor 
  doesn’t protect and Soak rolls are made at 
  -2) until she breaks free (by winning an 
  opposed Strength roll and suffering 2d8 
  damage) or the “tongue” is broken (with a 
  Called Shot (-2), Toughness 6). 
  • Size +1: An Impaler Spider is as big as 
  a large man.
   
   Jalaaro 
  Jalaaro is a wandering Jalizaran mechant 
  who has walked more caravan routes than 
  he remembers. Despite not being the 
  most honest of men, he is a decent person, 
  if you can endure his constant babbling 
  and the occasional “embellishment” to the 
  stories he tells.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d6, Vigor d6
  Skills: 
  Fighting 
  d6, 
  Notice 
  d8, 
  Lockpicking d6, Persuasion d8, Riding 
  d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d8, Streetwise 
  d10, Survival d6, Throwing d6.
  Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; 
  Toughness: 6 (1)
  Edges: Connections (merchants), Danger 
  Sense, Watch Your Back!.
  Hindrances: Big Mouth.
  Gear: Bronze saber (Str+d6), bronze 
  dagger (Str+d4, Range: 3/6/12), light 
  leather armor under merchant’s robes 
  (+1), lockpicks.
  Special Abilities
  • A Man of Many Paths: Jalaaro is a 
  natural-born caravan master. He receives 
  +2 to any Smarts or Survival rolls linked 
  to leading a caravan or for similar logistical 
  tasks.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  76
   Lord Noramon 
  An elegant man in his late seventies, Lord 
  Noramon is the eldest and most faithful 
  counselor of King Varias. Despite his age, 
  he is still a strong-willed man, ready to do 
  anything to save the kingdom.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit 
  d8, Strength d4, Vigor d6
  Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d8, Persuasion d10, Riding d4, 
  Streetwise d6, Taunt d8.
  Charisma: +4; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; 
  Toughness: 7(2)
  Edges: 
  Charismatic, 
  Connections 
  (Noblemen), Helper, Iron Will, Noble.
  Hindrances: Loyal, Elderly.
  Gear: Bronze dagger (Str+d4, Range: 
  3/6/12), robes.
  Special Abilities
  • Servant of the Kingdom: While Lord 
  Noramon is actively working to save the 
  kingdom of Zura (GM’s call) he receives 
  +1 to all Trait rolls.
   Melanconio  
  the Poet 
  A man in his late thirties, Melanconio is 
  haunted by a sense of desperation deep 
  in his soul, one with no real explanation. 
  This makes him an excellent poet, but also 
  a wreck of a man, and a potential traitor.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit 
  d8, Strength d6, Vigor d6
  Skills: Fighting d6, Knowledge (Legends 
  and Lore) d10, Notice d8, Persuasion d6, 
  Streetwise d6, Taunt d8.
  Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; 
  Toughness: 5
  Edges: Charismatic, Poet.
  Hindrances: Melancholy.
  Gear: Iron stiletto (Str+d4+1), fancy 
  clothing.
  Special Abilities
  • Hand of Fate: Melanconio considers 
  himself the hand of destiny, and in this 
  particular adventure he could be. By 
  spending a Bennie, he can obtain the 
  Drop on a target.
   
   Queen of Death 
  Shakara was a Keronian Princess many, 
  many centuries ago. Revived in the 
  Garden of Death, she has free will, 
  because the spell was woven around her. 
  She was of kind spirit, an unusual trait in 
  a Keronian, and for this reason she was 
  loved by Prince Ashak. She died too soon, 
  but her husband, grief-stricken, conjured 
  a magical place for her to live forever, the 
  Garden of Death. However this place, 
  being the kingdom of death itself, slowly 
  erased any trace of love from Shakara’s 
  heart. Today she is almost inhuman, 
  permanently bored and searching for 
  something she cannot find anywhere.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d10, Spirit 
  d12+1, Strength d8, Vigor d10
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d10, 
  Knowledge (Arcana) d10, Notice d8, 
  Persuasion d10.
  Charisma: +5; Pace: 6; Parry: 8/6; 
  Toughness: 9(2)
  Edges: Bikini Heroine, Binding Ritual 
  (armor, deflection), Noble, Very Attractive.
  Hindrances: Greedy, Vengeful.
  Gear: Jeweled bikini.
  Special Abilities
  • Invulnerability (Garden Only): When 
  in the Garden of Death, nothing short 
  of a Greater Demon or Death itself can 
  wound Shakara, although she can be 
  Shaken. Outside the Garden, she can be 
  wounded and killed normally, but her soul 
  will return to the Garden of Death where 
  she will reincarnate. The process usually 
  requires 2d6 months.
  
  Garden of Death
  77
  • Lady of Death:  Shakara is at one with 
  the magic of the Garden, which grants her 
  uncanny abilities. She has 30 Power Points 
  and can use the following Powers, using 
  Spirit as arcane ability: armor (invisible 
  barrier), bolt (invisible force), boost/lower 
  trait (caress of death), deflection (I am not 
  here!), fear (see your own death), puppet 
  (manipulate body), zombie (return to life). 
  • Queen of Death: When in the Garden 
  of Death, Shakara has inhuman powers: 
  she can use of her sorcerous powers 
  without paying any Power Points.
  Red Desert Warrior 
  A nomad of the Red Desert. A fierce 
  warrior and a dangerous marauder.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d6, Riding d6, Shooting d8, 
  Survival d6, Throwing d6.
  Charisma: -2; Pace: 
  6; 
  Parry: 
  7; 
  Toughness: 6(1)
  Edges: Born in the Saddle.
  Hindrances: Loyal, Mean.
  Gear: Bronze saber (Str+d6), kullah – 
  traditional dagger (Str+d4, AP 1, cannot 
  be thrown), light leather armor (+1), small 
  shield (+1 Parry), desert composite bow 
  (Damage: 2d6, Range: 15/30/60), desert 
  robes.
  Snapper 
  A sort of bipedal lizard, Snappers have 
  long tails, small, almost vestigial forepaws 
  (which they can use for manipulation with 
  some rudimentary skill) and an elongated 
  head with powerful jaws, capable of 
  breaking the leg of a horse with a single 
  bite. They are very intelligent, for animals, 
  and hunt in packs, showing a capability to 
  coordinate their actions equal to that of 
  wolves. They can run in short bursts, and 
  use this to charge their prey and eliminate 
  it with a powerful bite.
  They are almost exclusively found in 
  Keron. Probably they are the descendants 
  of some type of domestic lizard tamed by 
  ancient Keronians.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8(A), 
  Spirit d6, Strength d10, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d8, Notice d6, Stealth d8.
  Pace: 7; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
  Special Abilities
  • Bite: Str+d6. AP 2.
  • Quick: Snappers are lightning-fast, 
  discarding and redrawing Action Cards 
  below 6. They must stick with the redrawn 
  card, however.
  • Sprint Attack: A Snapper which moves 
  at least 4” in straight line against an enemy 
  gains +2 to attack rolls, but suffers -2 to 
  Parry till the next round.
   Talasco 
  A man in his fifties, General Talasco is a 
  born soldier, and a very good swordsman, 
  too. With a past in the Iron Phalanxes, 
  he is consumed by ambition: he wants to 
  become King of Zura, even if this means 
  being only a pawn of Hillias.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit 
  d8, Strength d10, Vigor d10
  Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d8, 
  Knowledge (Battle) d8, Notice d8, Riding 
  d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Survival d6, 
  Throwing d6.
  Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 8; 
  Toughness: 9(2)
  Edges: Ambidexterity, Block, Command, 
  Dodge, First Strike, Florentine, Improved 
  Level Headed, Noble, Two Fisted.
  Hindrances: Greedy.
  Gear: Iron sword (Str+d8), iron dagger 
  (Str+d4, Range: 3/6/12) medium leather 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  78
  and metal armor (+2), silver crown of 
  Zura (+1, head only, see below).
  Special Abilities
  • The Usurper: Talasco’s greatest desire is 
  to be the usurper of Zura. While he wears 
  the crown of Zura, he receives the Elan 
  Edge. When the crown is removed, he 
  loses all his bennies but flies into a rage 
  (consider him under the effect of the 
  Berserk Edge).
  Talasco’s Bodyguard 
  This rugged cutthroat is part of General 
  Talasco’s personal guard. Skilled and cold-
  blooded in any situation, he is a deadly 
  opponent.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d8, Strength d8, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d6, Riding d4, Shooting d6, 
  Survival d4, Throwing d6.
  Charisma: -2; Pace: 
  6; 
  Parry: 
  8; 
  Toughness: 8(2)
  Edges: Combat Reflexes, First Strike or 
  Sweep.
  Hindrances: Loyal, Mean.
  Gear: Bronze sword (Str+d8), medium 
  leather and metal armor (+2), shield (+1 
  Parry, +2 Toughness vs ranged attacks) 
  short 
  bow 
  (Damage: 
  2d6, 
  Range: 
  10/20/40), bronze helm (+2, head only).
  Special Abilities
  • Cutthroat: This man is a stone cold 
  killer. Whenever he gets a raise on an 
  attack, he gains AP 2.
   
   Tark 
  Only twenty-two years old, the freckled 
  Tark is already a grown man. Of mixed 
  blood, his mother was a courtesan in a 
  tavern of Zura, he was picked as a right-
  hand man by the Commandant, and he is 
  very faithful to him. He is a good leader of 
  men himself.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d8, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d8, 
  Knowledge (Battle) d6, Notice d8, Riding 
  d6, Shooting d6, Stealth d6, Survival d4, 
  Throwing d6.
  Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; 
  Toughness: 8(2)
  Edges: Command, Sweep.
  Hindrances: Loyal.
  Gear: Bronze sword (Str+d8), bronze 
  dagger (Str+d4, Range: 3/6/12) medium 
  leather and metal armor (+2), bow 
  (Damage: 2d6, Range: 12/24/48), bronze 
  helm (+2, head only).
  Special Abilities
  • Commandant’s Right Hand: Tark 
  would give his life for the Commandant: 
  he can use the Fanatics setting rule to save 
  him. At the end of the adventure, if he 
  survives, the Commandant can take the 
  Sidekick Edge if he wants, ignoring the 
  normal Rank requirements, selecting Tark 
  as his follower.
   Tasir the 
  Kennelmaster 
  This man belongs to a now-lost race of 
  Keronian slaves. He died many centuries 
  ago, but was resurrected in the Garden of 
  Death and became Lady Shakara’s right 
  hand, and the master of the Kravatra, the 
  Garden Hounds. He secretly loves her 
  and would do anything to please his lady.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit 
  d10, Strength d8, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d8, Riding d8, Shooting d8, 
  Survival d8, Throwing d8.
  Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; 
  Toughness: 7(1)
  Edges: Command, Command Presence, 
  Fervor, Hold the Line!
  Hindrances: Loyal.
  
  Garden of Death
  79
  Gear: Bronze sword (Str+d8), light 
  leather armor (+1), Horn of the Master of 
  the Hunt (see below), Keronian horse.
  Special Abilities
  • Garden Dweller: This person died 
  and was reborn in the Garden. He can 
  die normally inside the Garden, but, if 
  killed outside it, will return to life in the 
  ensorcelled grove a day later.
  • Horn of the Master of the Hunt: This 
  ancient relic was made with the horn of 
  the father of all the Kravatra, granting 
  great powers over them. The wielder will 
  never be attacked by them. In the hands of 
  a skilled user (like Tasir) it can be cast the 
  boost trait Power (only on the Kravatra) 
  using Spirit as Arcane Skill and with 20 
  Power Points.
  • Kennelmaster: Tasir commands the 
  Garden Hounds, and he is the only one 
  (apart from Lady Shakara) the savage 
  beasts obey. All his Leadership Edges 
  work only with them, and he has a 
  Command Radius of 15”.
   Tul, Desert 
  Prophet 
  Tul became a desert prophet by chance. A 
  simple shepherd, he got lost in the desert 
  for an entire week, before his brothers 
  found him, half-starved and raving from 
  sunstroke. Time passed but the raving 
  didn’t stop and Tul came to believe 
  the Sun God speaks through him. His 
  brothers were his first followers, but soon 
  many other people joined him, leaving 
  their tribes to hear the words of the Sun 
  God. After the destruction of the Demon 
  Ulasha (see B&B 1 – Death of a Tyrant), 
  Tul wandered in the desert for several 
  years, before hearing a calling to reach the 
  nomads of the northern desert, where a 
  black shadow hovered.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit 
  d12, Strength d4, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, 
  Knowledge (Arcana) d8, Knowledge 
  (Religion) d10, Notice d6, Persuasion d8, 
  Taunt d8.
  Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; 
  Toughness: 6
  Edges: Charismatic, Command, Danger 
  Sense, Elan, Inspire, Fervor, Priest.
  Hindrances: 
  Anemic, 
  Bad 
  Eyes, 
  Delusional (thinks he hears the voice of 
  the Sun God).
  Gear: Staff (Str+d4, 2 hands, +1 Parry, 
  Reach 1), desert robes.
  Special abilities:
  • Prophet of the Desert: Tul has a 
  charismatic 
  personality 
  and 
  great 
  influence over his followers. For this 
  reason, he has a Command Radius of 15”, 
  but only the Desert Nomads benefit from 
  his Leadership Edge. In addition, if Tul 
  is Incapacitated, every Desert Nomad 
  in his Command Radius must make 
  an immediate Spirit roll. If he fails, he 
  becomes Panicked.
  Whip Slave 
  This Keronian slave is tall, thin and very 
  pale. He doesn’t look very smart, but there 
  is an incredible strength in his sinewy 
  frame.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d10, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d8, Notice d4.
  Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; 
  Toughness: 7
  Edges: Brawny.
  Hindrances: Outsider.
  Gear: Keronian silver whip (Str+d4, 
  Reach 5).
  Special Abilities
  • Queen Slave: The Whip Slave, during 
  the banquet scene, is a mere extension 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  80
  of the Lady of Death’s will. He uses her 
  Spirit (d12+1) in place of his own.
   Zakharo the 
  Executioner 
  A surprisingly well-educated person, 
  Zakharo is a huge man, with arms thick 
  as a bull’s legs, and the heir of a long 
  bloodline of executioners. He doesn’t like 
  inflicting pain, but is very good at his job, 
  and very proud of ending the lives of his 
  victims with a single chop.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d12, Vigor d10
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d8, 
  Notice d6.
  Charisma: -2; Pace: 
  6; 
  Parry: 
  5; 
  Toughness: 8
  Edges: Brawny.
  Hindrances: Outsider.
  Gear: Executioner’s axe (Str+d10, 2 hands, 
  Reach 1, -1 Parry), bronze dagger (Str+d4, 
  cannot be thrown), executioner’s robes.
  Special Abilities
  • Merciful Blow: Zakharo can use the No 
  Mercy Edge, but only against targets on 
  which he has the Drop.
   Zarimo 
  Zarimo is the right hand of general 
  Talasco. A pale, blonde man with blue 
  eyes, he doesn’t have a strong personality, 
  but he is vicious with a blade. He is a 
  former Hoplite who Talasco brought with 
  him after leaving the Phalanxes.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d8, Vigor d8
  Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d6, 
  Knowledge (Battle) d4, Notice d8, Riding 
  d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d6, Survival d4, 
  Throwing d6.
  Charisma: -2; Pace: 
  6; 
  Parry: 
  8; 
  Toughness: 8(2)
  Edges: Block, Counterattack, Improved 
  First Strike.
  Hindrances: Mean.
  Gear: Iron sword (Str+d8), iron dagger 
  (Str+d4, Range: 3/6/12) medium leather 
  and metal armor (+2), short bow (Damage: 
  2d6, Range: 10/20/40), bronze helm (+2, 
  head only).
  Special Abilities
  • Talasco’s Lapdog: Zarimo doesn’t have 
  a strong personality, but the soldiers know 
  he is Talasco’s right hand and fear his cold 
  cruelty. He has the Command Edge, but 
  this only applies to Zura’s soldiers.
  Zuran Soldier 
  A soldier of the regular army of Zura. 
  Well-trained and armed, this man is a 
  skilled fighter, but not very familiar with 
  fighting in the desert.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit 
  d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
  Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d6, 
  Notice d6, Riding d4, Shooting d6, 
  Survival d4, Throwing d6.
  Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; 
  Toughness: 7(2)
  Edges: -.
  Hindrances: Loyal.
  Gear: Bronze sword (Str+d8), medium 
  leather and metal armor (+2), shield (+1 
  Parry, +2 Toughness vs ranged attacks) or 
  bronze tipped spear (Str+d6, 2 hands, +1 
  Parry, 2 hands, Range: 3/6/12), short bow 
  (Damage: 2d6, Range: 10/20/40), bronze 
  helm (+2, head only).
  Special Abilities
  • Officer: One Soldier in every twelve is 
  an officer, a Right Hand with Fighting 
  raised by one die step and the Command 
  Edge.
  
  Appendix
  Handouts
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  82
  The Diary
   “Ashak, lord of Nal Ashaka, had a wife, Shakara, and he loved her dearly. 
  But she was frail of health, and the cold hand of death took her in her prime 
  despite the efforts of the best healers of the kingdom.  
  And not even the powers of a Priest Prince of Keron can undo the work of 
  death.
  But if death cannot be defeated, she can be courted: one night, when the moon 
  was red as blood, Prince Ashak walked down into the small garden of the 
  palace, which Shakara loved so dearly, and chanted old forbidden spells. 
  When the last echo of his words faded, something in the garden was subtly 
  changed: the shadows were longer, somewhat darker and the light of the stars 
  was dimmed and slightly different. But, more importantly, Shakara was standing 
  in the garden again.
  “My beloved,” Ashak asked, with a trembling voice. “Are you alive?”  
  “Nay, my love,” Shakara answered. “I am not. Neither I am dead. We are in the 
  Garden of Death, where life and un-life have no meaning.”
  Ashak hugged her and said: “If you cannot be the Princess of Nal Ashaka in 
  life, then you shall be in death!”
  From that day the Priest Prince visited Shakara daily in the ensorcelled garden, 
  enjoying every moment together as time stolen from death itself. If Ashak noticed 
  how dark the Garden had become, he decided to ignore it, full as he was of 
  love for his wife…”
  
  Garden of Death
  83
  Jalaaro’s Letter
  “The three dames are willing to dance with 
  the lord. But they want to meet him before 
  the dancing begins. Bring the old coot to 
  Wylila’s Tavern at first dusk tonight – or 
  there will be no dancing.”
  Your Seven-Lovered Friend
  
  84
  Book of Lore 
  – The Fallen 
  Kingdom  
  of Keron
  This section expands the background 
  information about the Fallen Kingdom 
  of Keron found in Beasts & Barbarians 
  Golden Edition. The greater part of it is for 
  the Game Master, but some of it can be 
  shared with the players in the form of wild 
  tales, legends and stories.
  Geography
  A Trembling Land
  The Fallen Realm is a place of suffering. 
  Despite having escaped the direct impact 
  of the Dread Star, this large plateau is 
  continuously shaken by earthquakes, 
  tremors, fissures, geysers and other similar 
  geological activities. The few travelers who 
  have survived a trip through this cursed 
  land say that, especially during nighttime, 
  you can actually hear the earth moaning 
  and shrieking in pain, as if deep under 
  ground, legions of demons are shrieking 
  their anger.
  The Sages of Syranthia say this is only 
  superstition, and that these sounds are 
  actually the effect of great land masses 
  grinding one against the other. The 
  Keronian Range, as the mountains around 
  Keron are called, are still being born, 
  and these shrieks are the sounds that 
  mountains make when they come into the 
  world.
   But this rational explanation doesn’t 
  cover all the natural dangers of the Fallen 
  Realm. There is a sheer malevolence in 
  this land: geysers seem to explode when 
  people are near them, earthquakes happen 
  while travelers are passing along the edges 
  of cliffs, and sinkholes open under the feet 
  of beasts of burden.
  The Red Nomads call this particular 
  type of bad luck karavakasa, which can 
  be roughly translated as “the evil eye 
  watching you”.
  So, if this land is so cursed, why do people 
  cross it?
  For the great treasures it hides, of course.
  A Maze  
  of Mountains...…
  The Fallen Realm survived the cataclysm 
  due to the peculiar geography of the land. 
  It was a large plateau, with a number of 
  cities and other outposts built on it, which 
  had great strategic importance in the past. 
  When the Dread Star fell, the plateau 
  was outside the direct impact area, and 
  
  Garden of Death
  85
  even the tsunamis following the disaster 
  weren’t high enough to flood it.
  But this doesn’t mean the land was safe.
  The plateau started cracking, like the 
  ice of a frozen lake hit by the hammer 
  of a fisherman. Many of the cities and 
  observatories on top of it fell down into 
  large fissures, made in few hours, while 
  others were isolated by the new geography.
  On the southern border of the plateau this 
  effect was even worse, with mountains 
  born in few months. This created a sort of 
  labyrinth of ravines, tunnels, passages and 
  narrow valleys which are, today, the only 
  way to navigate the Fallen Realm. 
  If you manage to survive the dangers 
  lurking in them, of course.
  Another issue with the geography of the 
  land is the difficulty of actually reaching 
  the Fallen Realm, at least from the desert. 
  Large cracks in the ground surround 
  the land, the mountains are very steep, 
  and the paths leading through them are 
  few, dangerous and known only to Red 
  Nomads, who would rather die than 
  reveal them to a foreigner. 
  This problem doesn’t exist if you enter 
  Keron from the sea, but first you must 
  find a captain and crew mad enough 
  to accept dropping anchor in these 
  cursed waters. 
  …and a Network  
  of Ruins
  In the Fallen Realm the remnants of 
  Keron are more frequent than anywhere 
  else. Cities, observatories, arenas, palaces, 
  towers and other undefinable structures 
  dot the land. A few of them still stand 
  on the top of the plateau, while others 
  are buried, more or less preserved, at the 
  bottom of the various fissures. These are 
  the places where adventurers and other 
  daring souls venture, looking for ancient 
  treasure. But we must remember that a 
  number of Keronian sorceries were based 
  on the energies of the ground, and nobody 
  truly knows what the earthquakes did to 
  the delicate energy patterns lying at the 
  base of some of these evil cities…
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  86
  Gm’S tIp: 
  natural haZardS In Keron
  Sometimes the greatest enemies of the adventurers aren’t monsters or evil cultists, but 
  the hostile environment itself. Below you’ll find several natural (and not-so-natural) 
  hazards typical of the Fallen Realm, very useful to put the players in danger and as plot 
  devices when needed. Note that some of these Hazards can be combined (for example 
  Tremors can precede an Earthquake).
  Howling Ground. This spooky hazard happens only by night. From the depths of 
  the earth, terrible growls, shrieks and other scary sounds are heard. Nobody knows 
  if it is only the earth suffering, or the voices of demons, or of the thousands of people 
  who died during the cataclysm. Rules-wise, characters experiencing a night of 
  howling ground must make a Spirit (-1) roll to rest peacefully. Failure causes a level 
  of Fatigue. If the character scores a raise on the Spirit roll, he is allowed an immediate 
  Knowledge (Arcana) roll, but only if he knows High Tricarnian: on a success, he actually 
  understands and learns something from the howling voices. Write a dot on the character 
  sheet, near the Knowledge (Arcana) skill. At any time the player can cancel the dot to 
  gain +2 to a Knowledge (Arcana) roll. Beasts seem immune to the effects of the Howling 
  Ground, except dogs, which are very sensitive to it and must roll with an additional 
  penalty of -2.
  Tremors. The ground shakes dangerously under the feet of the heroes! Each character 
  present must make an immediate Agility (-2) to avoid being knocked prone. Beasts, in 
  particular horses, are very sensitive to tremors: they can foresee them 1d6 rounds before 
  they happen and must make a Fear Check to avoid being Panicked by such an event. 
  Tremors usually last 2d4 rounds, and often they precede something worse (like a Fissure 
  or an Earthquake).
  Geysers. A geyser is a sudden spurt of hot water, capable of boiling a man in his armor 
  like an egg in a ceramic pot. Geysers come in various sizes and intensities. Spotting 
  them, with a Notice roll, can be difficult, but it is always better than trying to avoid it 
  when you tread on it: in this case a successful Agility roll only allows halving damage. 
  Geysers came in many sizes. You can randomly decide the stats of a Geyser by drawing 
  one or four cards from the Action Deck and checking the table below. If you draw a 
  single card, use it for every column, if you draw four, each card defines one of the columns 
  (Notice Roll Modifier, Damage and so on…). 
  RANDOM GEYSER TABLE
  Card Drawn
  Notice Roll
  Damage
  Agility 
  Roll
  Size
  2
  +2
  3d10
  0
  1”
  3-6
  +1
  3d8
  0
  SBT
  7-10
  0
  3d6
  -1
  SBT
  J
  -1
  2d10
  -1
  MBT
  Q
  -2
  2d8
  -2
  MBT
  K
  -3
  2d6
  -2
  LBT
  A
  -4
  3d4
  -4
  LBT
  Joker
  No Geyser!
  
  Garden of Death
  87
  Obnoxious Gas. Sometimes filthy, poisonous stenches come out from the ground, some 
  of them putrid as carcasses and others sour and bitter like sulfur mixed with lemon. 
  Characters caught in an area of obnoxious gas must make a Vigor roll each round 
  (from -2 to -4 depending on the concentration of the gas), +2 if they put something on 
  their face, like a wet cloth, to protect the throat. In the case of failure, the unfortunate 
  character suffers a level of Fatigue. This can lead to exhaustion and even to death. Gas 
  outbursts usually last 2d6 minutes and cover a LBT in the open, while in closed spaces 
  they can easily saturate an area.
  Fissure. A fissure is a sudden crack in the ground, large enough to swallow people or 
  animals, or cause buildings to collapse. In game terms, a fissure is divided into Segments. 
  Each Segment is a Cone Template, laid on the battlefield. Roll a d4 (the Length Die) 
  to determine the number of Segments, than randomly select a point on the battlefield, 
  letting a d12 fall on the gaming table. Mark the point where it falls, and note the 
  number: then place the first Segment on the table, as if it was the hand of a clock, with 
  the die being the center of the clock. The exact position is given by reading the die number 
  as the number on a clock face (so if a 6 is rolled, the cone is positioned on an almost north-
  south axis). At this point roll the die again, and place another Segment using as center 
  of the clock the point of the previous Segment. Go on in this way till all the Segments 
  are placed. Any character caught under a Segment must make an immediate Agility 
  (-2) roll, to avoid falling into it, suffering 3d8 damage. The same damage is inflicted on 
  buildings crossed by a Segment (consider the damage be caused by a Heavy Weapon). 
  Segments can be jumped over with normal jumping rolls and are permanent. Fissures 
  continue round after round, until a 1 is rolled on the Length Dice. 
  Earthquake. The ground shakes terribly, buildings fall down and the rage of the gods 
  smashes the world! An earthquake is one of the most frightening experiences a person 
  can have. Any character in the area must make a Spirit (-4) roll or be Panicked, running 
  away wildly. In addition, if inside a building, there is a good chance that fallen rocks, 
  debris and other similar things severely damage the characters, while, if outside, sudden 
  crevasses and sinkholes can cause a similar experience. For each character (or group of 
  characters) involved in the scene, draw a card from the Action Deck, and check the suit 
  in the table below: the hero must make an Agility roll with the listed modifier to avoid 
  suffer the corresponding damage. Earthquakes last 2d4 rounds, but seem to last much 
  longer.
  EARTHQUAKE TABLE
  Card Suit
  Agility Roll 
  Modifier
  Damage
  Clubs
  -4
  2d6
  Diamonds
  -3
  3d6
  Hearts
  -2
  2d8
  Spades
  -1
  3d8
  Joker
  No danger this round! You gain +2 to all 
  rolls during the next round.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  88
  Visions. One of the weirdest things that can happen to the incautious traveler in 
  Keron is experiencing visions. The causes are uncertain at best: the Sages of Syranthia 
  say they are caused by a peculiar type of fungal Lotus, so small that it cannot be seen by 
  the human eye, but which is very intoxicating, while the Red Nomads say they are the 
  voices of the old Keronian lords speaking. Whatever the truth, having a vision in Keron 
  is seldom an experience one wants to remember. In game terms, draw a card from the 
  Action Deck for each character present, and ask them for a Spirit (-2) roll. With a success 
  they resist the vision, while with a failure they suffer from a specific effect for 1d4 hours. 
  With a critical failure things go very badly: the mind of the unfortunate adventurer is 
  so taxed by the vision that he is hit by a bout of madness and permanently gains a Quirk 
  Hindrance chosen by the GM. Note that good roleplaying of the effect of a Vision should 
  be rewarded with a bennie.
  VISIONS TABLE
  Card Suit
  Effect
  Clubs
  Guilt. The character sees something from his past 
  which makes him feel guilty: he suffers -2 to all Trait 
  rolls.
  Diamonds
  Stupor. The character is immersed in a wonderful 
  world. He completely loses any sense of fear and is 
  incapable of recognizing a danger. He is immune to 
  fear but he must make a Spirit roll to perform any 
  action other than slowly wandering around. Violent 
  actions are totally impossible in this state. 
  Hearts
  Rage. The character sees something that makes him 
  believe that everyone is his enemy! He suffers from 
  the Vengeful and Bloodthirsty Hindrances, but gains 
  the Berserk Hindrance.
  Spades
  Fear. The character is stricken by sudden terror! 
  Everything, close friends included, is a cause of 
  terror. He must make an immediate Fear check, in 
  addition he suffers from the Yellow Hindrance.
  Joker
  Future Sight! The hero sees a glimpse of the future, as 
  if he had cast the divination Power! The exact nature 
  of the vision is left to the GM.
  Climate
  The Fallen Realm of Keron is a remarkably 
  big land, so it is subject to different 
  weather patterns. In the north, the coastal 
  area on the Dread Sea, it is quite mild, 
  with occasional storms which unleash 
  their rage on the land. Despite the water, 
  the soil seems impervious to life, and the 
  water creates large pools of sickening 
  liquid, which slowly evaporate releasing 
  obnoxious stenches.
  The southern area, on the opposite side, 
  is influenced by the dry and hot air of the 
  Red Desert, but the Keronian Range offers 
  a certain mitigating effect, diminishing 
  the peaks in temperature.
  An important fact to understand is that, 
  given the number of fissures, narrow 
  
  Garden of Death
  89
  valleys and gorges, this land contains a 
  number of microclimates: for example 
  moist valleys or very hot places due to 
  volcanic activity (see below).
  But if the Fallen Realm is quite survivable 
  by day, by night it becomes very cold, as 
  in the desert. Nomads say that this is 
  because, by night, the dark soul of Keron 
  seeps out from the wounds of the earth, 
  tainting the air. Luckily the merciful light 
  of the sun dissipates it.
  Speaking of “wounds of the earth”, an 
  important thing to remember about 
  Keron is the presence of a large number 
  of volcanos, whose names are known 
  only by Red Nomads. They aren’t as big 
  or imposing as the Mountain of Fire in 
  Northeim, but their continuous smoke 
  frequently taints the air and adds a grayish 
  layer of soot to everything.
  Flora and 
  Fauna
  Despite its dead and desolate appearance, 
  even in the Fallen Kingdom life manages 
  to cling and emerge. In this paragraph are 
  described some of the amazing plant and 
  animal species found in this land.
  Plants
  As said above, the Fallen Realm of Keron 
  is a harsh and arid place, but where the 
  plants do manage to live, they do it in an 
  amazing way.
  Speaking in general terms, the plants 
  you can find most frequently are cacti, of 
  various types, in particular a particularly 
  resistant type of agave, which the nomads 
  call Birkah (meaning “leather”), for the 
  hardness of the bark. Only wild goats 
  manage to eat it, assimilating the few 
  drops of water it contains.
  Another plant, luckily quite rare, is the 
  infamous Rovan Herb, an underground 
  plant which grows by creating a thin 
  web of filaments under the sand. Rovan 
  Herb is usually nurtured by the few drops 
  of moisture it manages to collect from 
  the sand, but, when it feels the warmth 
  of a living being, it protrudes dozens of 
  needle-like stingers, which first inject 
  a paralyzing poison, then they slowly 
  suck away the bodily fluids of the victim. 
  After these abundant repasts Rovan Herb 
  expands, even doubling its size. There are 
  rumors of entire fields covered by Rovan 
  Herb, where no living being can pass. 
  They are usually fairly easy to avoid, if you 
  spot the polished bones of the previous 
  victims shimmering under the sun.
  But in the old ruins, sheltered by crumbling 
  walls, several other plants can be found, 
  some of them so old that they date back 
  to ancient Keron. The most famous are 
  probably the Keronian Orchids, flowers so 
  beautiful and so perfumed, that can make 
  men die of melancholy, for the atavistic 
  memories they wake in the human mind. 
  Orchids exist in dozens of varieties, 
  because cultivating them was one of the 
  many entertainments of the Keronian 
  nobility.  Note that this isn’t innocent as it 
  seems: one legend says that orchids were 
  demonic gifts and many of them hide 
  dangerous secrets, for example the Red 
  Biters, marvelous red flowers which are 
  in truth carnivorous plants, or the Yellow 
  Sorrows, orchids which can make a man 
  completely lose his will to live, if exposed 
  for too long to their sweet perfume.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  90
  A man who finds a sack of the seeds of 
  these plants could become rich as a king, 
  if he finds the right buyers.
  But orchids aren’t the only plants living 
  in the ancient gardens. The Arabak, or 
  Tree of Flesh, is a slender plant, similar 
  to gingko biloba, but with a silvery, almost 
  white bark. A very elegant plant, it releases 
  round seeds, the size of peas, totally inert. 
  You can plant them in the ground, water 
  them every day, and they’ll never sprout. 
  They need a very particular soil, the 
  open wound of a living being: if put in 
  contact with the blood they’ll grow into 
  a full-sized tree in few minutes, literally 
  devouring the flesh of the poor sod. The 
  ancient Keronian lords used these plants 
  on their favorite slaves, when they grew 
  old, so that they could continue – in a 
  certain way – to “live” in their gardens. It 
  is the sort of affection that no decent man 
  would understand today.
  The seeds of the Tree of Flesh are almost 
  immortal, and can stay dormant for 
  millennia.  
  Another environment where you can 
  find strange plants is the bottom of the 
  darkest gorges, where an entire ecosystem 
  dwelling in darkness exists. There are a 
  lot of strange fungi, slimes and mosses 
  growing there, but the one you’ll hear 
  mentioned around the fires of the desert 
  nomads is the fabled Barkama Moss. 
  Barkama, if you believe the legend, was 
  a princess of the Blue Nomads, beautiful 
  as the sun in the morning. But she was 
  blind, and her father promised her hand to 
  whoever would be able to restore her sight. 
  Sages of far-away lands, witch doctors of 
  the savannah and priests of Caldeia tried 
  to cure her, but all failed. Then Katush the 
  Scarred, a rough Red Nomad marauder, 
  came to the oasis, bringing with him a 
  patch of moss, found in Keron. He wetted 
  it with his own saliva and placed it on the 
  eyes of Barkama. When the moss was 
  removed, the eyes of the girl, previously 
  white as milk, were deep blue, and she 
  could see again. But everything comes 
  with a price: Barkama’s sight was too 
  powerful, and she could see the invisible 
  spirits of the air and of the dead, and the 
  real faces of men. It was too much for her 
  mind, which shattered in madness. But 
  this didn’t bother Katush: the warrior 
  carried his raving spouse off on his horse 
  and rode back to Keron. From that day, 
  blind men always seek Barkama Moss, but 
  the few who find it are very prudent in 
  using its wondrous gifts.
  Animals
  The Fallen Realm hosts a number of 
  dangerous creatures, plus many more still 
  unknown. On this topic, an important 
  premise must be noted: Keron is in a 
  very particular state, because it is isolated 
  from the rest of the world, so some pre-
  Dread Star creatures could have survived. 
  In addition, this land was part of the 
  Keronian Empire, and the ancient Priest 
  Princes were known to toy with life, 
  twisting and altering it to satisfy their 
  weird needs.
  That said, let’s begin a brief exposition of 
  the beasts of Keron.
  Snakes, scorpions and insects, of various 
  sizes and lethality abound, especially in 
  rocky areas. In particular Death’s Head 
  Mosquitos, so called for the white sign on 
  their back. They are particularly dangerous 
  because they are attracted to blisters and 
  wounds, laying eggs inside, which hatch 
  after some days, causing terrible infections 
  and fevers.
  
  Garden of Death
  91
  Keronian Jackals, big ugly canids, roam 
  the ruins and the wild lands, living off 
  the few rabbits and some wild Glota 
  (desert goats), which are among the few 
  non-lethal beasts living in these lands. 
  These jackals are very smart, for animals, 
  and they can even communicate between 
  them using a sort of language made of 
  howls and postures. Stories say that they 
  aren’t true beasts, but the offspring of 
  a sect of priests devoted to an ancient 
  Keronian deity, which transformed them 
  into animals to guard her temple. A 
  drunken nomad may swear that after he 
  killed one of these beasts, it transformed 
  back into a man; but it isn’t clear if the 
  story is true or not.
  Speaking of legends, there is more than 
  one story about Big Lizards: enormous 
  creatures, bigger than a Syranthian 
  elephant, which incessantly roam the land, 
  looking for food. They are slow, and very 
  ancient, so sometimes their bodies are 
  encrusted with stones, debris, even plants. 
  But don’t be fooled: when their appetite 
  is awakened, they can attack with sudden 
  bursts of ferocity!
  Now, it’s unclear if these creatures are real, 
  while the existence of Snappers is pretty 
  certain: pony-sized, bipedal saurians, with 
  mouths strong enough to snap off the 
  leg of a horse with a single bite (hence 
  the name). They are quite intelligent, and 
  hunt in packs.
  But the most dangerous beast of those 
  living in Keron is surely the Tyrant 
  Lizard. Similar to a large-mouthed, giant 
  salamander, it has skin of various hues, 
  from sand-yellow to fiery-red, depending 
  on its diet and region of origin. But what 
  it really matters are its eyes: big as cooking 
  pots, they have small, mesmeric pupils. 
  If the Tyrant manages to entrap your 
  stare, you are doomed: your body freezes, 
  paralyzed, and the Lizard starts eating you 
  alive, bite after bite. Stories say that the 
  Tyrant Lizard is the origin of the ancient 
  myth of the Basilisk, but nobody can be 
  sure.
   If you watch high in the sky, you can 
  see, apart from several types of vultures, a 
  majestic hawk, black as night, called the 
  Keronian Falcon. It is a beast capable of 
  amazing feats of flying and unlike other 
  falcons, it hunts both by day and by night. 
  No fog, vapor or smoke can protect from 
  its deadly talons. The reason is simple, this 
  beast is totally blind, its eyes atrophied, 
  but can perceive its surroundings with 
  some unknown sense. Keronian Falcons 
  are very fierce, wild, and difficult to tame, 
  but if you find a hatchling and train it, it 
  will be faithful all its life.
  The skies of Keron hide other dangers, 
  especially near cliffs, in the Forest of 
  Pillars (see below), or in ruins. These 
  places are the perfect ambush sites for the 
  Tabacha, also known as Flying Frogs. They 
  are pony-sized amphibians, with a special 
  membrane between their legs, allowing 
  them to glide. Usually they position 
  themselves in high places (for example, on 
  rocks) and wait, sometimes for hours, for 
  a suitable prey to pass, and then they jump 
  on it! Some of the stronger specimens 
  can also jump very high, and use this 
  momentum to glide. They have clawed 
  legs, and, most important, very long and 
  strong tongues, which they use to strangle 
  their victims. One legend says these 
  creatures were the guardians of the High 
  Temple of Baachaga, one of the Keronian 
  demon lords (see TLD, page 44). The god 
  changed their shape to fit his desires, and 
  as he did so, a little drop of his essence 
  now exists in these animals. 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  92
  Monsters
  Generally the Sages of Syranthia don’t 
  use the term “monster”, because in 
  their language the word simply means 
  “marvelous thing”, even if the accepted 
  meaning is monstrosity. 
  But in Keron, a number of real monsters 
  exist (or are fabled to exist), so it is 
  worth describing some of them, even if 
  their descriptions often come from the 
  uncertain reports of survivors or second-
  hand stories.
  For example, if, while wandering in a 
  ruin, a sudden fog appears, you should 
  find a safe place, possibly a room where 
  you can lock yourself inside, as soon as 
  possible. The fog could be summoned 
  by the Walachi, a race of humanoid 
  monkeys, with long, strong tentacles in 
  place of hands. These hideous creatures 
  will use their slimy appendixes to strangle 
  you to death, if you are a man. If you are 
  a woman, instead, your fate will be even 
  worse, because they’ll only make you faint, 
  and you’ll awaken in some underground 
  lair, to be used as a mating companion by 
  the whole clan…
  If you are terrified by this story don’t go 
  on, because the next one is even worse.
  In the gorges or ruins, you might meet 
  raven-haired women, usually alone, but 
  sometimes in twos or threes. They are 
  always gorgeous, with deep black eyes. But 
  don’t trust them: sooner or later, they’ll 
  try kissing you, and if you let them, you’ll 
  be doomed, because they are Itrixias, the 
  Daughters of Cylatrix, a demon goddess 
  of ancient Keron. They inherited from 
  their supernatural mother a jackal’s head, 
  with a strong jaw, but they are capable 
  of disguising it with a powerful illusion. 
  When they kiss you, in truth, they bite 
  (and usually kill) you. The only way of 
  seeing through the beguiling is watching 
  them in a reflecting surface, which reveals 
  their true aspect. If you meet an Itrixia, 
  you should kill her as soon as possible, 
  because if she ever escapes, she will hunt 
  you forever, until you or she dies.
  There is another creature, dangerous as the 
  jackal woman, which dwells in the ancient 
  ruins: the Oodasha, or Soul Singer. He 
  looks like a very pale man, usually quite 
  muscular and dressed in clothing taken 
  from his previous victims. A Soul Singer 
  doesn’t speak. He doesn’t need to. Instead 
  he plays a strange flute, always made from 
  the bone of a previous victim. The melody 
  sung is always the same. Very sad and alien 
  at the same time, and capable of literally 
  melting your brain away. First you’ll start 
  feeling dizzy, then you’ll bleed from the 
  nose, but won’t survive long enough to see 
  your brain matter drip on the ground.
  Once you are dead, the Oodasha will 
  approach, licking up the gruesome slime 
  from your brain from the ground, and 
  storing the excess in a jar or a water skin, 
  for future repasts.
  Finally we should speak of the Crawling 
  Mass: this is a pudding of several animal 
  (and sometimes human) parts, joined 
  together by slimy goo. Almost mindless, 
  it is found crawling in underground 
  complexes, looking for new organic 
  matter to ingest using its long, flail-like 
  pseudopods. Sages debate if this creature 
  has the same origin as (or is a simple 
  variation of) Dread Star Matter (see 
  GE page 147), but probably they are two 
  entirely different types of abominations.
  
  Garden of Death
  93
  hero’S Journal: 
  SorCerouS foCuSeS
  Sorcery often requires special items to 
  work (in particular Powers with the 
  Object Required Trapping, see GE page 
  83), but in certain cases an object can be 
  imbued with sorcerous effects by itself, 
  magnifying the power of the wielder.
  In game terms, such an item is called a 
  focus and grants +1 to Spellcasting rolls 
  for a specific Power. Extracting one 
  from a fallen prey requires a successful 
  Survival (-2) roll and a Knowledge 
  (Arcana) (-2) roll.
  At the GM’s discretion, having a focus 
  can also absorb the effects of a Sorcery 
  Backlash: instead of rolling on the 
  Sorcery Critical Failure (GE, page 
  83), the focus is destroyed, causing 2d6 
  damage to the warlock. These items are 
  highly prized by sorcerers, and can be 
  sold to the right people for 400 to 800 
  Moons.
  Some examples are described below.
  Itrixia’s Teeth: disguise. 
  Keronian Falcon Eye: darksight.
  Oodasha’s Flute: puppet.
  Tabacha’s Tongue: draining touch.
  Tyrant Lizard’s Eye: stun or entangle.
  Dwellers 
   of Keron
  Red Nomads or Black 
  Nomads?
  Very few people dare cross the Fallen 
  Realm, but only one race dwells there 
  voluntarily: Red Nomads, and only a few 
  clans of them. Sages debate if the nomads 
  living in Keron should be referred to as 
  Red or if they belong to an entirely new 
  clan, the Black Nomads, but nobody 
  really cares: if ordinary Red Nomads are 
  dangerous, the ones coming from this 
  cursed place are even worse. Regardless of 
  such subtle distinctions, all Red Nomad 
  clans, both those living in the desert and 
  those dwelling in Keron, consider the 
  Fallen Realm their holy land and ancestral 
  home and will do anything to protect it 
  from foreigners. The following paragraphs 
  focuses on the Black Nomads.
  Physical Appearance
  Black Nomads tend to be tall and lean, 
  with a physical frame made to endure 
  cold, heat and a lack of water. They 
  have an olive, or in certain cases almost 
  black, complexion, and narrow, elongated 
  eyes, of various colors, black being the 
  commonest.
  Black Nomads divide themselves into low 
  breeds and high breeds.
  Black Nomads of low breed are sons of 
  women not belonging to their race, usually 
  kidnapped or bought from other clans of 
  the desert. 
  Nomads of high breed, instead, have 
  only Black blood in their veins, and are 
  considered the aristocracy of their people.
  Both low and high breeds are usually quite 
  attractive, in particular the women are said 
  to be very beautiful, but only in second-
  hand reports, because they are jealously 
  guarded and often kept segregated. 
  There are a number of exceptions to this 
  general rule; centuries of inbreeding 
  have taken a heavy toll on this people, so 
  many Blacks are victims of deformities 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  94
  and other horrid mutations. It is not an 
  exaggeration to say that at least one baby 
  in three is born so mutated that he doesn’t 
  survive his first week of life.
  Probably inbreeding isn’t the only cause 
  of these problems: the very air, water and 
  soil of Keron are tainted, and this curse is 
  transmitted to its dwellers. 
  In addition we must not forget ancestry; 
  the Black Nomads are probably one of the 
  eldest races of the dominions, along with 
  the Tricarnians. Their blood is probably a 
  mix of old Keronians and surviving slaves, 
  explaining some of their innate behaviors, 
  like their cruelty.
  Note that mutations and deformities, 
  unless disabling, aren’t a social stigma 
  among the Black Nomads, but a trait of 
  nobility to show with pride; they call them 
  “Marks” and some of them, for example 
  having yellowish, reptile-like eyes, are 
  considered a gift and a sign of distinction.
  Despite this, Black Nomads tend to be 
  very private; in presence of strangers, 
  the few times they meet them peacefully, 
  they constantly wear the kballah, the 
  traditional nomad veil. A Black Nomad 
  willingly showing his face to a stranger is 
  granting him an enormous honor, and it 
  means he considers him part of the family.
  Black Nomads dress in a very similar 
  way to the other nomad tribes of the red 
  desert; they wear long robes, scarves and 
  the kballah. Some of the Black clans wear 
  black robes instead of red ones, but they 
  are a minority. Their garments are usually 
  made of wool, but some of the clans 
  dwelling in the very heart of Keron use 
  black silks, probably plundered from some 
  ancient city or obtained in other ways.
  Men despise any type of ornament, while 
  women are often adorned with rich jewels, 
  the fruit of plundering. This doesn’t mean 
  the women are important; in their society, 
  having a bejeweled wife is a sign of power.
  Social Organization and 
  Economy
  Black Nomads are organized into clans, 
  like other nomads, each of them a group 
  of one or more families. Consanguineous 
  marriage, as noted above, is quite 
  common, so mutations and deformities 
  are widespread, even if some fresh blood 
  is introduced through kidnapping women 
  of other races.
  Clans are ruled by chiefs who are often 
  gifted in the dark arts of sorcery; these are 
  called Yamazi, and are feared by their own 
  people, because they can unleash their 
  powers on enemies or kin alike. Yamazi 
  pass their charge and their secret from 
  father to son, through terrible initiation 
  rites which require vile pacts with the 
  entities dwelling in the darkest shadows 
  of Keron.
  Villages are more sedentary than those of 
  the other nomads: they are usually crude 
  huts made of stone or heavy tents of sewn 
  Glota skins. Certain tribes even live in 
  caverns or ancient ruins, but they are a 
  minority.   
  On the economic side, Black Nomads 
  never go above subsistence.
  Women gather herbs and edible fungi 
  around the villages, and build small traps 
  for animals.
  Men are herders, and occasionally 
  scavenge trinkets and ancient stuff in the 
  
  Garden of Death
  95
  ruins, but their main source of income is 
  pillaging and raiding.
  A man not capable of taking what he 
  wants from another is considered puny 
  and unworthy of life. Pillaging is enacted 
  with equal ferocity against other nomad 
  tribes or against strangers.
  Three or four times a year the tribe’s 
  warriors leave Keron and, using secret 
  paths, go south into the desert attacking 
  caravans or, in some cases, even outposts 
  or small Independent Cities. Then they 
  quickly retreat back into their land, where 
  nobody dares follow them.
  Black Nomad warriors are good riders, if 
  not as good as the Brown, the Blue or the 
  Green, and skilled archers, even if their 
  bows are somewhat weaker and cruder 
  than those of the other clans. 
  As with other clans, warriors always have 
  with them the kullah, a curved dagger 
  which identifies them as men. For the 
  Blacks, kullahs are even more important 
  than for the other clans; they are often 
  forged in volcanic fire, mixing the blood 
  of the owner with the metal in the forging 
  process, while chanting ancient, forbidden 
  songs. Stories say that the kullah of a 
  Black nomad can kill with a mere scratch, 
  and in some cases this is true (see sidebar).
  Religion and Superstition
  The Black Nomads are wicked people, so 
  they worship wicked gods.
  The other nomad tribes simply says the 
  Black worship the Jinni, as they call the 
  evil spirits of the desert, but in truth the 
  situation is more complex.
  The tribes dwelling in the Fallen Kingdom 
  worship bastardized forms of the ancient 
  Keronian gods. The most important one 
  is probably the Bleeding Woman, a cruel 
  creature, mistress of pain and vendetta, 
  who weeps thick tears of blood and has a 
  deep cut between her breasts, where you 
  can see her heart beating, amid running 
  blood.
  The Bleeding Woman is probably a form 
  of Hordan, as the stories say that on the 
  night of the fall of the Dread Star, all the 
  statues of the demon goddess wept blood.
  hero’S Journal: BlaCK Kullah
  These ensorcelled daggers are made by Yamazi, Black Nomad sorcerers, and are vicious, 
  foul weapons.
  Evil Blade. A black kullah is evil by itself: in the hands of anybody except the person 
  for whom it was forged, consider any 1-2 on the Fighting die as a 1. 
  In game terms, they deal +1 damage and have AP 1, plus they have one or more of the 
  following powers:
  Cold Touch. Any target hit by this blade, whether the attack exceeds the target’s 
  Toughness or not, must make a Spirit roll or be Shaken.
  Poisoned Blade. The bite of this weapon is inherently evil. Any target at least Shaken 
  by it suffers the effects of the poison Power (fast) cast with arcane skill d8.
   Stinger Blade. When the wielder of this blade is in grave danger, he feels a sting of 
  pain in his dagger hand. He is considered to have the Danger Sense Edge.
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  96
  Another important god of the Blacks is 
  Cylas the Trine, a giant jackal-like beast 
  with three heads, always ravenously 
  hungry. Cylas is probably a corruption of 
  the goddess Cylatrix, and - uniquely in 
  Black Nomad society – the priestesses of 
  this cult are always female.
  As well as these, many tribes worship 
  minor spirits or local monsters, as the 
  Burning Flame, or The Thing Which Eats 
  at Dusk, with one single exception; for 
  centuries, the clans in the center of Keron 
  have bowed before something they call the 
  Ancient Master. Nobody has ever seen it, 
  but stories say it is a living god, walking on 
  the earth, gifted with tremendous powers, 
  and dwells in “a marvelous palace made of 
  dreams and nightmares” in Ral Vashirya 
  (see below). Year after year, more tribes fall 
  under its nefarious influence, and, if not 
  stopped, in the next twenty years his dark 
  hand could cover all of Keron. At that 
  point, who, or what could stop him?  
  Survivors of 
  a Forgotten 
  Past?
  We have talked of Black Nomads, of gods 
  who walk on the ground and of many 
  hideous creatures, but there is a question 
  that more than one Sage asks himself. 
  What about the old Keronians? They were 
  almost immortal, how is it possible that 
  none of them survived the Dread Star’s 
  fall?
  The answer is simple: nobody knows.
  Apparently Keron has been dead as a 
  tomb for dozens of centuries, even if the 
  fate of Kiramas (see GE page 43) makes 
  you think that some power is smouldering 
  under the ashes, ready to burn brightly 
  again when the time comes…
  Places 
   of Interest
  Keron is a strange place. Here follow 
  descriptions of some of its most important 
  locations, useful to create a custom 
  scenario.
  Forest of Pillars
  There is a place, somewhere in Tricarnia, 
  which seems to have come from another 
  world. It is a large, flat plain, almost 
  entirely filled with tall pillars of stone, 
  probably of natural origin.
  They are made of a very peculiar stone, 
  smooth and polished, and some of them 
  even have “branches”. According to 
  ancient legends, in the past the pillars 
  were a forest of enormous trees. The very 
  night the Dread Star fell, for some reason 
  all the plants died and were carbonized 
  in an instant. Then, centuries of time 
  petrified them.
  The crystal gatherers of Quollaba (see 
  B&B #1 – Death of a Tyrant) say these 
  pillars hide incredible treasure in the form 
  of huge, precious crystals, white as milk or 
  red as blood, and one of them is enough to 
  make a man rich for life.
  The problem, apart from finding the right 
  path to the Forest, is that this place is full 
  of dangers: large flocks of Tabacha dwell 
  on the top of the pillars, looking for prey, 
  giant scorpions and even worse things 
  lurk among the rocks. Most importantly, 
  
  Garden of Death
  97
  there are rumors of a mysterious wanderer, 
  dressed in rags, who approaches the few 
  travelers to ask them a riddle: if you don’t 
  know the answer, he takes your soul.
  Ral Vashirya
  Everybody knows the story of Kiramas’ 
  Folly (see GE page 43): the ambitious 
  Priest Prince, in 2043 AF, led a massive 
  naval expedition from Tricarnia to the 
  Fallen Realm, intending to reconquer 
  the ancestral land and to create a new 
  Tricarnian base in the south of the 
  world, but he failed miserably; his entire 
  expedition, himself included, disappeared 
  and never came back.
  The reason is probably bad planning 
  on Kiramas’ part; he decided to land on 
  the northern shore, where the ancient 
  crumbling ruins are, and then go on, by 
  land, toward the center of the Keron, 
  facing terrible threats.
  But there is another way to reach the heart 
  of Keron if you are brave enough: there 
  is a narrow cove, the Black Vein, nothing 
  more than a crack in the plateau filled by 
  the waters of the Dread Sea, which allows 
  you sailing to a city, deep inland, called 
  Ral Vashirya. If you pay heed to the stories 
  told around the nomads’ fires it has “white 
  domes of alabaster, talking statues and 
  temples with pillars of gold and silver”.
  But, as any learned man familiar with the 
  Tricarnian tongue knows, “Ral” in ancient 
  Keronian, means “port”, and Vashirya was 
  a city in the middle of a plateau. So what 
  is it a “port” for?
  In addition there are two other disturbing 
  things about this topic.
  The first is that, according to many stories, 
  the mysterious Ancient Master (see 
  page 94) dwells there, in a palace made 
  of dreams and nightmares, plotting and 
  scheming to extend his dominion over all 
  of Keron.
  The second is that the waters of the 
  Black Vein are populated by terrible sea 
  monsters: the crew of the Kyrosian ship 
  Fortune, which was forced to enter the 
  Vein to escape a storm, was attacked by a 
  tentacled creature of the deeps, and only 
  by chance, and the skill of the helmsman, 
  did it manage to escape.
  Tavern Tales
  Here are some stories the heroes might 
  hear in a tavern, or around a campfire…
  Silent Halls
  Varasko is a caravan guard you can find, 
  drinking too much, in any caravanserai on 
  the road from Hillias to Teyerana. If you 
  buy him a round he’ll tell you the story 
  of when, lost in a sandstorm south of 
  Keron, he got separated from the rest of 
  the caravan and fell into a ravine. There, 
  luckily, he found an underground passage 
  leading into the heart of the mountains, 
  under the Fallen Realm.
  You cannot believe what he found there, 
  and you must buy him another round to 
  hear this part of the story.
  There is a buried city there, of polished 
  white marble, untouched by time and 
  plunderers. But the most impressive 
  thing it that its old dwellers are still there, 
  quietly sleeping on elaborate beds! Men 
  and women, tall and pale, of a race you 
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  98
  have never seen. Varasko tried waking 
  them up, but it was impossible. Ravenous 
  and thirsty, he looked for some food, but 
  he could not find anything. Then, passing 
  near a temple, he found something.
  At this point Varasko usually feels very 
  thirsty, remembering that day, and asks 
  for another round.
  “I heard a bubbling coming from the 
  opened portal,” the caravan guard 
  continues. “I entered the temple and I 
  found a small fountain, bubbling with 
  fresh water. I was going to sate my thirst, 
  when I saw someone, a some sort of priest 
  from his garments, sleeping deeply near 
  it, an empty golden cup in his hand. So, 
  do you know what I did?”
  I fear that, to know the answer, you must 
  order the tavern lady to bring Varasko 
  another drink.
  “Well, I picked up the cup, and I ran 
  away, keeping my thirst! I am pretty sure 
  it was that damned water that made all 
  the people fall asleep! Do you want to 
  know how I got away from that place?”
  I was really interested, but sadly I had 
  spent my last Moon, so I could not buy 
  Varasko a last tankard.
  But this is probably just a drunkard’s 
  story, isn’t it?
  Tower of Yaraka
  In rare sunny days, when the sky is clear, 
  you can see something glimmering on the 
  top of the highest mountain of Keron, a 
  spike of stone which the nomads call Yar 
  Claw. The glimmering thing is an ancient 
  Keronian Tower, the last remnant of an 
  observatory, which miraculously survived 
  earthquakes and other disasters. It is 
  the Tower of Yaraka, or, in the ancient 
  tongue, Tel Yaraka. 
  There are several stories about this place, 
  each creepier than the next. According to 
  one of these, every twenty years, a human 
  sacrifice of three virgins must be made in 
  it, during the seventh full moon of the 
  year, otherwise a door from another world 
  will open and Yarak, father of all the 
  Yarakans (see BOD, page 88) will came, 
  to devour the world. Nobody, among the 
  nomads, knows the true shape of Yarak 
  exactly, nor what a “Yarakan” really is, but 
  the tradition has been kept alive through 
  generations by the Karani tribe, a clan of 
  Black Nomads devoted to the tower.
  Jilasco the Thief, a scoundrel famous 
  in Hillias for his daring thefts (and his 
  enormous boasts) told me one night that, 
  several years ago, he sneaked into the 
  tower looking for a particular jewel, the 
  Right Hand of Yarak. He didn’t find it, 
  but stumbled on an ancient mechanism 
  opening a secret door leading to a hidden 
  stair. Curious, he followed it, and found 
  a large underground room filled with 
  big, round stones, covered in strange 
  engravings.
  They were too big for one man to carry, 
  and obviously not precious, so he left 
  them, went back and closed the passage.
  The damned thief didn’t want to tell me 
  the exact location of the secret door, but 
  maybe you are luckier: I haven’t see him in 
  a while, but I heard he was forced to join 
  the Rover Guard, a mercenary company 
  based on Teyerana, and that his company 
  got lost in the Red Desert… 
  
  Garden of Death
  99
  Well of Nao
  Among the windswept ruins of an 
  unknown city in western Keron, there is 
  an ancient well engraved with Keronian 
  runes, so old they cannot be read anymore. 
  The ruins of the city are infested by ugly, 
  scaly humanoids, raving for meat, but this 
  isn’t enough to stop the wanderers; the 
  stories say, in fact, that there is something, 
  or someone, dwelling in the well, which 
  can answer any question, if you pose it in 
  the right manner and are ready to pay the 
  price, which isn’t cheap.
  Periodically warlocks or even common 
  people take great risks to reach the well 
  and ask something of the Being of the 
  Well. Some of them even returned, alive, 
  to tell the story, but trust me, it’s not 
  worth the trouble: I spoke with some of 
  them and they are detached and aloof, as if 
  they care for nothing in this world.
  If questioned in more detail about this, 
  they simply shrug and say “this is the price 
  of Nao”.
  Ruins and 
  Secrets 
  Generator
  The Fallen Kingdom of Keron is a perfect 
  place for pure exploration adventures: 
  monsters, traps, puzzles and ancient relics 
  await you among the crumbling ruins. 
  Every step of a journey in this cursed land 
  can uncover an old tomb, stir a pack of 
  predators or maybe both!
   If you, the GM, are in a hurry to prepare 
  a memorable encounter, you can use this 
  simple Ruins and Secrets Generator to 
  create an interesting situation for your 
  players. 
  Simply draw three cards from the Action 
  Deck, in order, and check the table below. 
  The first card tells you the Place where the 
  encounter is going to happen, the second 
  one describes the Object of the encounter, 
  while the last card details the Event itself.
  If you draw a Joker, put it aside and 
  redraw a card. Then, for each Joker drawn, 
  run through the process again, trying to 
  combine the two Encounters.
  In the B&B tradition, the Generator is 
  deliberately very generic, giving you only 
  narrative structures you have to fill in. 
  In certain cases, be ready to stretch the 
  concepts to fit your story. Remember, 
  generators are made to help you, so don’t 
  feel restrained by them. If you think that 
  your encounter is improved by ignoring or 
  changing one or more cards, do it!
  Example. The GM draws a Five, a Deuce 
  and another Deuce, resulting in: “In an 
  abandoned village/camp a statue/object 
  of art speaks ancient secrets.” The GM 
  thinks a bit and devises Gharvasha, a 
  small, abandoned village of the Black 
  Nomads where the heroes are forced to 
  take shelter from a desert storm. There, in 
  the chief ’s hut, there is ancient ebon statue, 
  representing a woman with naked breasts. 
  During the night the party sleeps while the 
  statue whispers to them secret commands 
  to go out and jump in a nearby crevasse, 
  where the former inhabitants already lie 
  dead. The statue represents an ancient 
  Keronian princess, Yashira, and the nightly 
  compulsions will continue till the heroes take 
  the statue to the ruins of the palace where the 
  woman lived, centuries ago…
  
  Umberto Pignatelli
  100
  RUINS AND SECRETS TABLE
  Card
  Place
  Object
  Event
  2
  In a fortress/castle…
  … a statue/object of art…
  … speaks ancient secrets.
  3
  In a fissure…
  …a race of sub-humans…
  … worships evil deities.
  4
  In a lost ship/caravan…
  … a treasure… 
  … isn’t what it appears.
  5
  In an abandoned village/
  camp…
  … a mad survivor…
  … keeps imprisoned a thing 
  that should never escape.
  6
  In a tower/temple…
  … a trap…
  … tries to seduce one of the 
  heroes.
  7
  In an arena…
  … a powerful sorcerer…
  … makes you experience his 
  own dreams.
  8
  In a place of forbidden 
  marvels…
  … a weapon of a past era…
  … craves human flesh.
  9
  In a grotto…
  … a gorgeous-looking 
  woman…
  … makes you travel.
  10
  In a library/temple…
  … a pack of wild beasts…
  … gives a great reward for a 
  greater price.
  J
  In a forest/swamp…
  … a tribe of Black 
  Nomads…
  … carefully spies before 
  attacking.
  Q
  In a crumbling ruin…
  … a mysterious device…
  … takes you for the wrong 
  person.
  K
  In a perfectly conserved 
  building…
  … a ghost of the past…
  …hides a puzzle.
  A
  During a terrible natural 
  event…
  … a powerful undead…
  … needs help.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Savage Worlds System (SWADE) [multi]/Beasts & Barbarians/Savage Worlds - Beasts & Barbarians - Garden of Death.pdf