TEXT: 1
  By Steve Lawrence
  F
  or several weeks now, someone (or something) has been 
  stealing sheep from the farmers of Dogbed Creek. Winter is
  fast approaching and the villagers are worried about having
  enough to eat but what can be done? The situation has now taken a
  turn for the worse. Yesterday one of the villagers disappeared and
  fears of starvation have been replaced by a much more 
  immediate threat to their survival. A group of traveling mercenaries
  arrived at the Inn. Maybe they can help. Hopefully they work
  cheap… 
  A HackMaster Adventure for Six 7th to 8th Level Characters.
  
  2
  GM’s BACKGROUND
  The characters are traveling in the 
  vicinity of Dorndern when they take up a
  nights lodging in Dogbed Creek, a small
  hamlet of farmers that scratch a living out of
  the northern frontier. While they are 
  enjoying their meal, they are approached by
  a local farmer named Anitol Orni and his wife
  Elrenn. For the past few week someone or
  something has been stealing sheep and
  other livestock from the local farms to the
  point that many locals are worried about hav-
  ing enough to eat during the coming winter.
  Their young son Culran, having more confi-
  dence that brains, took off to find the thief
  with an old sword he had found in a field. He
  has now been gone for two days and Anitol
  and Elrenn are worried that something terri-
  ble has happened. 
  The sheep thief is an Eōten named RekRuz
  that has taken up residence in an old cave a
  short distance from the village. Finding the
  pickings easy, he has decided to stay for the
  winter and it is just a matter of time before he
  runs out of livestock and starts taking villagers.
  In fact, Culran has been captured by RekRuz
  and will be eaten in 2 days if not rescued. 
  The Village
  Dogbed Creek is a hamlet located to the
  west of Dorndern in the northern reaches of
  Cosdol. The inhabitants of this small 
  village are free farmers whose crops supply
  the markets of Dorndern. Although they are
  of Brandobian Human stock, for the most
  part they are, as is usual for this region, very
  tolerant of outsiders, half-breeds, and the like.
  They are lucky enough to have a blacksmith
  but no other services are available locally 
  except for a small inn/tavern called the ‘Wolf
  at the Door’ or usually just ‘The Wolf’. 
  The Wolf at the Door is a small Inn and 
  watering hole that is run by Myno. It is a very
  poor inn, consisting of 3 small rooms with
  straw mats on the floors to sleep on in addi-
  tion to a few thrown in front of the hearth in
  the common room. It has a stable (that can
  be locked) and a low fence surrounding the
  entire place that provides a little protection
  from nocturnal predators (i.e. wolves).
  Myno has lived in this area his entire life
  and turned his home into an Inn, slowly 
  expanding over the years. He is a fine cook
  � The tavern is small, not even a hole in the wall, but what can you expect in a little hamlet
  like Dogbed Creek. If it weren’t for the old road out to Shade there wouldn’t be even be this bro-
  ken down shack. It’s better than sleeping on the ground, the locals are friendly, and you can get
  a hot meal so there’s that. As you settle in with a bowl of stew and a full tankard, an old man and
  woman approach you, cautiously but determined. When he sees that you have noticed him,
  the old man steps forward and begins to speak quickly, as if he wants to get everything out be-
  fore you send him away, “That damn fool boy went after whoever, or whatever, has been takin
  all the sheep these past weeks. Now he an’t been seen for two days. I know he’s run afoul of
  somethin’ bad. We an’t got much in the way of payment but my wife an I would sure be thank-
  ful if you could go lookin for the boy.”
  
  3
  and locals from some of the nearby thorps
  come here to eat, drink, and buy bread since
  Myno has one of the only ‘real’ ovens in the
  area.
  Myno Olfe: NG Brandobian human com-
  moner; HP 19; Init +5; Spd 5; Rch 2’; Atk +0;
  Dmg d6p with knife; Def -2; DR 0; ToP 6/5 No-
  table Skills: Administration 15, Agriculture 35,
  Cooking/Baking 53, Glean Information 17,
  language (Brandobian 65); Q/F: Gullible,
  Close Talker; Equipment: Baking Apron,
  Chef’s knife
  The locals will talk with the characters if
  they don’t feel threatened, listening to news
  from Dorndern and telling stories of the local
  folklore.
  getting the 
  players involved
  In addition to the hook described in the In-
  troduction above, there are other options to
  get the players interested in investigating the
  caves where the Eōten lives.
  1) The players are travelling through a small
  hamlet, such as Dogbed Creek, and are asked
  to investigate who, or what, has been steal-
  ing sheep and livestock. The village will pay
  whatever they can in food, lodging, or some-
  thing similar. If the players are truly merce-
  nary, 
  the 
  villagers 
  can 
  scrape 
  together small valuable items such as 
  family heirloom type jewelry, religious pieces,
  etc. worth a total of about 150 sp.
  2) The players are travelling and an 
  unexpected storm blows up. They need to find
  shelter quickly and luckily stumble across a rel-
  atively warm and dry cave to shelter in that hap-
  pens to be occupied by RekRuz.
  3) The characters are searching for some
  other cave for an unrelated adventure and
  enter this cave by mistake. Note that certain
  story awards may not be available if this 
  option is used.
  PC Prepartions &
  PRE-Encounter Notes
  � The players may investigate the farms that 
  recently have had livestock taken. The large tracks
  of the Eōten are easily found by anyone with a
  tracking skill (easy Tracking skill check). Those with
  average mastery can identify them as Giant or
  Ogre tracks. Something big anyway… Should the
  tracker possess advanced or better mastery, he still
  NUMBER OF 
  SUCCESSES *
  INFORMATION CONVEYED
  1
  “The animals started to disappear about 3 weeks ago. They just disappear
  without any trace. If you wanna look just go out to the Orni place, they got hit
  just 2 days ago before their boy ran off.”
  2
  “There are unfamiliar wolf tracks around the barns when the animals 
  disappear but how would they get inside??”
  3
  “Old man Ster did say he saw something big but it was dark and when he
  tried to look closer some wolves, big ones too, approached him and he had to
  lock himself in his house.”
  4
  “Well, the ground is pretty torn up sometimes but with all the rain lately it’s
  hard to tell what it is.”
  5 (only if they talk
  to old man Ster)
  “I don’t know what it is, but it’s big, and it sounds like a couple of them by the
  way they was talkin’. I ain’t never heard a language like that but I infer they
  were tellin’ them wolves what to do that’s all I know.” 
  *These are easy Glean Information skill checks. Each sequential favorable outcome reveals the next tier’s information. 
  Failure necessitates starting from the beginning.
  TABLE 1: Villagers’ Knowledge of Events
  
  4
  cannot assuredly distinguish the exact species of the
  footprints (since they are those of a new monster he’s
  never encountered).
  � If the characters question the villagers, they will
  need to roll a series of Glean Information skill
  checks and consult Table 1 to determine the 
  results of their inquiry. Note that given the fact
  that the PCs are gathering background informa-
  tion vis-à-vis a matter of vital importance  to the
  hamlet’s survival, all villagers are considered to be
  allies thus making this an easy skill check.
  � If the characters ask about Culran they will get
  the same story from everyone. He was a head-
  strong but basically good kid. He always talked
  about leaving someday but, of course, everyone
  figured he would just be a farmer like his father.
  They aren’t too surprised that he ran off on this 
  little adventure.
  THE EŌTEN’S CAVE
  The characters can locate the cave without
  too much difficulty once they are on the trail
  of the Eōten. He has not bothered to disguise
  his tracks and would actually like some of the
  villagers to come looking for his prisoner.
  The cave itself has been the lair of many
  bandits, humanoids raiders, and marauding
  monsters over the years. It was originally a
  holy site of a long forgotten sect of mage-
  priests of an ancient Dejy tribe that domi-
  nated this region in past millennia.
  Footing: The ground within the cave can be
  treacherous and, unless otherwise noted, the
  terrain should be considered “Noticeably un-
  even ground” (see GMG p. 24) which imposes
  a -1 penalty to Attack and Defense and limits
  movement to running speed.
  Area 1: Cave Entrance
  The tracks the PCs have been following
  lead directly to a seemingly unremarkable
  cave mouth. Due to the gravel strewn about
  the ground and the heavy rains of late, it is
  impossible to ascertain what type or number
  of creatures have entered the cave. 
  If the characters search carefully they will
  find, hidden beneath overgrown vegetation,
  some very old symbols carved into the stone
  around the edge of the cave entrance. 
  � This necessitates a successful average difficulty
  Scrutiny check.
  These are ancient Dejy symbols, long since
  forgotten by any Dejy living today. They mark
  this place as a ‘place of power’, a holy site
  used by ancient mages to cast powerful rit-
  ual spells. 
  � Deciphering this meaning requires a successful
  [Very Difficult] Ancient History skill check. Failing
  this, their significance is imponderable.
  Area 2: Stone Face Cavern
  � An easy Scrutiny skill check reveals that within
  hollow in the forehead is emplaced a small stone
  ‘pedestal’ that looks as if it should be holding an
  object of some kind but is currently bare. Success
  at a difficult skill check discloses that the effigy is
  at least hundreds of years old – if not more 
  ancient.
  The hollow in the stone face held the 
  Crystal of Zoan (see this issue’s All Things
  Magic) when these caves were originally 
  occupied by the ancient Dejy. Placing the
  Crystal here has no actual effect other than
  showcasing its unique beauty. 
  � There is a large stone in this cavern that
  has been carved into the likeness of a solemn
  face with bas-relief emulating face paint pat-
  terns 
  and 
  a 
  headband. 
  A 
  small 
  hollow is chiseled into it over the forehead.
  
  5
  If the characters aren’t taking extreme
  measures to cloak their presence (GM’s 
  discretion), the Orkin Wardawgs in Area 4 will
  hear them and come to investigate any in-
  truders after a minute’s delay.
  Alternatively, they must succeed at an 
  opposed check against the noisiest character
  (O !+ Sneaking vs. the wardawgs’ !+80 
  Listening mastery) 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  notice 
  interlopers in the cave. Should they hear a
  scout, immediately roll initiative for both par-
  ties (the scout may end up having a few sec-
  onds to take evasive action before the
  wardawgs react and scamper the 35 feet
  from their den to the stone face). 
  If a battle ensues with the wardawgs,
  RekRuz (Area 7) will come to check out the
  commotion provided he makes a successful
  Listening skill check ( O ! -80 [easy] vs. 05
  mastery). Check each 30 seconds of combat. It
  will take the Eōten 60 seconds to arrive once
  he hears fighting. 
  Area 3: Fungi Filled Cave
  There are actually several different species
  of fungi growing in this room. Half are edible
  while the others have a Pharmacological ef-
  fect. If a character retrieves a sample, roll on
  Table II to determine its properties.
  � Specific effects are uniformly considered a VF
  14 toxin. This saving throw must be attempted 
  before the special effect is applied – whether 
  beneficial or deadly. Only those failing the save
  may be affected.
  � A successful average Botany skill check will 
  reveal the particular fungi’s qualitative properties
  (data in column “fungi found”) but not its specific
  effects. Should the character fail this check by 20
  or less, he has misidentified the mushroom (roll a
  d4 to determine what he ‘thinks’ its properties are.
  Greater failures simply leave him stumped.
  Area 4: Wardawg Den
  Any character with an appropriate skill (An-
  imal Herding, Dog Training, Hunting, Track-
  ing, etc.) will have no difficulty identifying
  � Water drips from stalagmites into a
  large pool in this cavern.
  The most striking feature, however, is the
  fungi present all about the place. It grows in
  various shades of yellow and brown along the
  edges of the pool and up the sides of the cav-
  ern walls. Within the pool large white fish
  swim lazily.
  � This area of the cave is strewn with
  bones, some with bits of meat still on them,
  small pieces of fur and other remains of what
  appears to be several meals taken by a large
  carnivore.
  d10
  ROLL
  FUNGI
  FOUND
  SPECIFIC
  EFFECTS
  1-5
  Edible
  This fungi is edible and nutri-
  tious. A sufficient quantity can be
  gathered to serve as three day’s
  standard rations.
  6-7
  Helpful
  Ingesting this mushroom ren-
  ders a person resistant to fear
  due to a mild narcotic effect.
  They’re granted a +4 bonus vs.
  any fear related saving throws or
  moral checks. Of course, this will
  also make them more prone to
  taking unreasonable risks. It is
  suggested that you maximize
  the “General Role-Playing” por-
  tion of post-adventure honor
  awards if the character puts
  him/herself into real danger to
  role play this effect.
  8-9
  Harmful
  This mushroom causes neuro-
  logical symptoms including loss
  of coordination, nausea, and hal-
  lucinations 1 hour after inges-
  tion. This results in a decreased
  movement rate as they stumble
  along (see HoB p. 13 and penal-
  ize PC by one category), -3 on all
  Attack and Defense rolls, +4 to
  weapon speed, and +2 to the
  number of seconds required to
  perform any other action. Symp-
  toms persist 3d4p hours.
  10
  Deadly
  This fungi yields symptoms
  identical to ‘Harmful’ but instead
  of recovering at the effect’s con-
  clusion, the poisoned individual
  enters cataleptic shock and
  promptly dies.
  TABLE II: Fungi Varieties
  
  6
  this cave as the lair of several immense wild
  dogs or wolves. An average check with an ap-
  propriate skill will be required to glean that
  they are size L and weigh in the neighbor-
  hood of 450 pounds. 
  During the day there will be 3 Greater Orkin
  Wardawgs in this area. At night there is only a
  50% chance they will be here. If they aren’t,
  they are out hunting but could return at any
  time (25% chance every 10 minutes).
  Area 5: Sheep Pen
  When the characters approach, they will
  bleat frantically as if they can sense that the
  characters are ‘friendly’ and will return them
  to their farms. Unfortunately this creates
  quite a bit of noise which will attract the orkin
  wardawgs from Area 4 if they are present
  (and still alive…)
  Area 6: Crystal Cave
  Size M creatures may only pass through this
  area at crawling speed while size S creatures
  may progress at walking speed.
  The kaleidoscopic lightshow will alert
  RekRuz that there are intruders and prompt
  him to investigate. Although these forma-
  tions are too close for the Eōten to pass
  through, if he sees the characters he will use
  his clubs to smash a path for himself. He can
  advance 10 feet every 7 seconds (with this ac-
  tion substituting for his attack).
  Such ‘cleared paths’ are strewn with debris
  that makes footing a very serious concern for
  creatures smaller than huge sized. This crys-
  talline rubble should be considered compa-
  rable to “Large broken rocks, fallen logs,
  abatis” (see GMG p. 24) which imposes a -1
  penalty to Attack, -3 to Defense, increases
  Speed by +1 and limits movement to walking
  speed. [RekRuz need only adhere to the stan-
  dard footing penalty for anyone in the cave
  as specified on p. 37]. Additionally, anytime a
  combatant is knocked prone (including
  RekRuz), they must roll a Feat of Agility vs.
  d20 +6 or fall on a sharp shard of crystalline
  rock causing 2d4p damage.
  The crystal formations are actually Cobolt
  Arcanitine, a mineral often used in magical
  research and alchemy. Only the purest crys-
  tals are of value for this purpose. These will
  be perfectly clear and a darker blue than the
  surrounding crystals.
  � A crude pen has been built in this small
  recess in the cavern passage from what appear
  to be small trees that have been ripped up
  from their roots. Inside the pen are 8 large
  adult sheep.
  � Passage through this area is impeded
  by dozens of crystalline stalagmites and 
  stalactites that have grown to several feet in
  size. Although not luminescent, they do 
  refract and reflect light to create erratic rain-
  bow patterns throughout the area. 
  Greater
  Orkin Wardawg
  7
  9
  +9
  +5
  5
  4d4p
  +5
  +1
  2’
  Bite
  Movement: 15
  Tenacity: Steady
  Size: L
  63
  4a
  9
  7
  9
  Listening 80%
  Tracking 60%
  26
  Greater
  Orkin Wardawg
  7
  9
  +9
  +5
  5
  4d4p
  +5
  +1
  2’
  Bite
  Movement: 15
  Tenacity: Steady
  Size: L
  54
  4c
  9
  7
  9
  Listening 80%
  Tracking 60%
  22
  Greater
  Orkin Wardawg
  7
  9
  +9
  +5
  5
  4d4p
  +5
  +1
  2’
  Bite
  Movement: 15
  Tenacity: Steady
  Size: L
  61
  4b
  9
  7
  9
  Listening 80%
  Tracking 60%
  25
  Extreme
  Low Light Vision
  Extreme
  Low Light Vision
  Extreme
  Low Light Vision
  
  7
  � Anyone thinking to use his Arcane Lore with 
  respect to the crystal formation will know of this
  mineral’s unique properties and utility should
  they succeed at an easy skill check.
  Once aware of the potential value of the
  crystals, characters may attempt to harvest
  the best ones. For every 15 minutes spent
  searching, investigators are permitted an av-
  erage Arcane Lore check with success indi-
  cating they have located a crystal worth 50
  sp. Only 10 such crystals exist in the forma-
  tion – further searching will be fruitless after
  all have been located.
  If they crystals haven’t been smashed due
  to combat, the characters will need to make
  significant noise to get the crystal shards
  from larger formations.
  There is a powerful artifact hidden among
  the crystals, left here long ago when the an-
  cients abandoned this place for reasons
  known only to them. The Crystal of Zoan is
  wrapped in coarse wool and locked in an iron
  box lying in a small niche in the cavern wall.
  The box itself is easy to find if the area is
  searched but its key has been lost to the ages
  and the lock has long rusted shut.
  � Anyone with the Maintenance/Upkeep profi-
  ciency can unfreeze the lock tumbler. This will not
  open the lock but does permit someone profi-
  cient in lockpicking to attempt to do so. Without
  this maintenance, the lock cannot be opened or
  picked. The lock isn’t very complicated and 
  requires only an average skill check to circumvent. 
  Area 7: Eōten Lair
  The characters will only be able to see to
  the edge of whatever light source in use. The
  floor is littered with empty kegs, broken
  crates, and other accumulated debris from
  the many former occupants of this cave.
  If the characters are able to enter this cave
  without RekRuz becoming alert to their pres-
  ence, they will hear two deep bass voices
  conversing.
  � The Eōten’s heads are talking in a dialect of 
  Orcish. Should a stealthy character understand
  this language, he may opt to eavesdrop.  
  Rek seems to want to eat the little human they
  have captured but Ruz is trying to talk Rek into
  saving him for a while longer in the hopes that
  other villagers will come looking for him (Ruz is
  the smart one and the dominant personality). 
  Ruz will finally win the argument by getting Rek
  to agree that they will wait another day and then
  eat him. Having agreed to this they will then
  argue about whether to go hunting later in the
  night or open another keg of ale and eat a sheep.
  � This large cavern is completely pitch
  black.
  RekRuz
  Eōten
  7
  10
  +12
  +4
  9
  4d4p*
  (x2)
  -1
  3 3/4’
  Club/Claws/Bite
  Movement: 15
  Tenacity: Brave
  Size: H
  77**
  7
  14
  8
  10
  31
  Low Light Vision
  * Normally attacks by grabbing adversaries and then 
  biting for 4d4p once they are immobilized and cannot 
  escape. Alternatively, they can wield two clubs striking for
  2d10p+6 with each. Both attacks are simultaneous on the
  creature’s count. See creature writeup on p. 46-48
  ** Can regenerate wounds at a rate of 1 HP every 10 seconds
  
  Although RekRuz argues with itself a lot, it
  is actually quite alert and will react quickly
  and violently to intruders in its lair. RekRuz is
  notably fond of fresh meat (having many
  times in the past become violently ill by eat-
  ing a spoiled carcass) so any characters that
  get TOP’d in combat will be spared the coup
  de grâce so they can be captured and eaten
  later.
  Culran is still alive although just barely. He
  is bound and tied in a sack near the back of
  the cave. He is unconscious and will not be
  able to help his rescuers in any way. If he is re-
  vived (requiring an average difficulty First Aid
  skill check), he will still be weak from his or-
  deal but will at least be able to walk with the
  characters to escape (he cannot move faster
  than a walk or ride a horse without support). 
  Note that if the characters have taken more
  than two days to find and rescue Culran, he
  will be dead. The 48 hour countdown begins
  from the time they walk into the Wolf at the
  Door and meet Myno.
  The Eōten has only been in the area for a
  short period of time and thus is still stockpil-
  ing supplies. He has amassed a ‘hoard’ that is
  scattered around the area in small piles (see
  Rekruz’s Loot above).
  AFTERMATH
  � The villagers have little to offer the party in
  material reward but will feed them and 
  provide lodging for as long as the characters
  want it. 
  8
  
  9
  � Unless the characters demand a payment
  to rescue young Culran, or overdo it taking
  advantage of the free room and board, the
  villages will speak highly of them to all trav-
  elers that come to Dogbed Creek. Stories of
  their good deed will spread to surrounding
  villages. The GM should grant the characters
  a campaign appropriate Fame bonus and the
  characters will be treated well by all com-
  moners in the area for a period of 1 year, un-
  less they continue to perform heroic deeds to
  maintain their fame.
  � Scholars at the Library in Dorndern would
  be very interested in studying the cave if they
  are told of it. While there would be no specific
  reward it would be a useful bargaining chip
  for any mage or scholar trying to gain access
  to the ‘private stacks’ at the library.
  � Culran Orni still wants to get out of Dogbed
  Creek. He will offer to be a squire, scroll
  caddy, crossbow loader, torch bearer, etc. for
  any character that is willing to take him
  along. His parents will grudgingly grant their
  blessing since they [perhaps foolishly] trust
  the characters to keep him safe.
  story experience 
  point awards
  Rescuing Culran alive
  K
  700 ep
  Identifying the historic/magical significance
  of the caverns
  K
  250 ep
  Returning the sheep to the farmers in
  Dogbed Creek
  K
  300 ep
  Defeating RekRuz without destroying the
  Crystal Cavern
  K
  300 ep
  Defeating RekRuz 
  K
  300 ep
  RekRuz’s LOOT
  K 10 feet of heavy iron chain (40 sp)
  K A small crate containing about 60 bars of soap (like for bathing…) still sealed. (6 sp)
  K 6 old miner’s lanterns and 17 flasks of lamp oil. (60 sp)
  K A brass signal mirror (1 sp)
  K 4 somewhat rusted crowbars (2 sp)
  K Various shovels, picks, and other broken miners tools. (30 sp)
  K 3 wooden wheelbarrows (rotten beyond use)
  K 2 sacks of coarse sugar (10 sp)
  K 3 barrels of salted fish (5 sp)
  K 1 keg of dwarven mead (300 sp)
  K A bag of blood sausages (about 12 lbs. worth) (1 sp)
  K A religious amulet of what appears to be some sort of obscure spider cult (5 sp to a collector)
  K About a dozen empty broken barrels, kegs, and crates that once held provisions (no value)
  K A blank journal with the symbol of The Traveler on the cover and a silver clasp (50 sp)
  K A merchant’s scale (2 sp)
  K An old flute (7 sp)
  K A small metal canister containing pure nutmeg (85 sp)
  K 3 small kegs of rum (100 sp)
  K 7 kegs of beer (10 sp)
  
  10
  Myno Olfe
  Skills
  Administration 
  15
  Agriculture 
  35 
  Cooking/Baking 
  53 
  Glean Information 17
  Language (Brnd) 
  65
  7
  +0
  -2
  0
  d6
  1 ft.
  M
  yno Olfe, usually just called Myno since few know
  his surname, is a simple man who enjoys simple
  pleasures.  Born in the northern reaches of Cosdol
  in the small hamlet of Dogbed Creek Myno always dreamed of
  traveling to far lands to find adventure and riches.  His family was
  poor and his prospects limited but they had a small farm that
  supported him his brothers and his parents.  On the day he came
  of age he was ready to leave and find his way in the world when
  tragedy struck.  His father, who had always been the ‘rock’ of the
  family, suddenly died.  Obviously he delayed his journey to bury
  his father and make sure his mother and siblings were settled,
  still intending on taking his journey.  It soon became clear, how-
  ever, that his family could not get along without him and he
  stayed, taking over the family farm and filling the hole left by his
  deceased father.
  Myno had not given up his hopes of leaving Dogbed Creek how-
  ever.  He waited until his younger brother was old enough to take
  over the family farm so that he could leave.  His younger brother
  began to demonstrate a gift for the arcane arts and mage craft
  and one day a traveling wizard offered to take him as an ap-
  prentice.  Myno desperately wanted to leave but he loved his
  brother and saw that this was a great opportunity.  So he stayed
  and his brother left.  
  Thus it went each time he planned on leaving Dogbed Creek.  Just
  as he would preparing for his departure, some unexpected
  calamity or opportunity would arise that would make him delay
  his departure.  Over the years Myno became a leader in the vil-
  lage, he was a talented man after all, and he now runs a small
  tavern and Inn called ‘The Wolf at the Gate’.  He has never truly
  given up his wander lust and will often spend many hours talk-
  ing with travelers, especially adventurers, who are staying at his
  Inn and will pass along stories that he has heard as he listens to
  add to his own repertoire.   
  Although Myno is only an Inn Keeper and village elder he has
  contacts that most in his position would not have.  His brother is
  a mage of some power in Cosdol who often travels to Dorndern
  to visit the library.  He also knows, and is known by, many groups
  of adventurers in the north as well as the black rangers that often
  stay at his Inn as they travel to the west on long patrols into the
  wilds.  He is a good friend to travelers but those that threaten
  him or cause trouble would quickly find that he has many friends
  who will come to his aid.     
  By Steve Lawrence
  -2
  3
  Race: Human
  Occupation: inkeeper
  Size: M
  Movement: 5 ft
  Alignment: NG
  Reared: Dogbed Creek
  Hit Points: 19
  _____________________
  STR  11/08 
  INT  12/65
  WIS 11/03
  DEX  10/57
  CON  7/48
  LKS  9/01
  CHA: 11/01
  Possessions: Baking Apron, Chef’s knife
  Proficiencies: knife
  Talents: none
  Quirks and Flaws: Gullible, Close Talker
  
  11
  Culran Orni
  Proficiencies: dagger, hunting bow
  Talents: none
  Skills
  Agriculture 
  11 
  Animal Husbandry 12
  Hunting
  19
  Language (Brnd) 
  61
  Quirks and Flaws: Overconfident, Stutterer
  Possessions: dagger, hunting bow (as short-
  bow but arrows do 1d6p), wooden sword
  Race: Human
  Occupation: farmer
  Size: M
  Movement: 5 ft
  Alignment: NG
  Reared: Dogbed Creek
  Hit Points: 25
  ______________________
  STR  14/73 
  INT  13/23
  WIS 8/37
  DEX  11/04
  CON  13/53
  LKS  12/02
  CHA: 7/05
  7
  +1
  -3
  0
  2d4p+2
  1  ft
  I
  n Dogbed Creek everybody knows Culran Orni.  Well, in
  Dogbed Creek everybody knows everybody, but they really
  know Culran.  A big boy, much brighter than most people think
  due to his stutter, Culran is always doing exactly what he should-
  n’t be.  He desperately wants to be a hero, probably a result of
  listening to Myno’s stories at the local Tavern, so his is constantly
  looking for some threat from which to save the village.  Most of
  the time the result is that he is wandering off into the country-
  side after goblins or bandits that he never finds.  However, there
  was the time he found a wild boar that chased him back to town.
  And there was the time he said he killed a goblin and chased
  away several more that were stealing chickens from old man
  Ster’s barn.  They never found the dead goblin but he had a hell
  of a gash on his arm that he claimed was from a goblin spear.
  Culran is actually a very intelligent and likable young man.
  He is overconfident to the point of foolishness however and is
  desperately looking for an excuse to go off adventuring.  He re-
  ally did fight some goblins but instead of chasing them off he
  fled after badly wounding one of them and taking a wound him-
  self.  He spends all of his time, that he isn’t off searching for a
  battle to fight, practicing with his dagger, hunting bow, and a
  wooden sword that he carved from an old piece of hickory.  
  Of course this means he is always leaving work undone on
  his parent’s farm so they spend a lot of their time looking for
  him, hoping that he hasn’t gotten himself hurt, or worse.  Every-
  body in Dogbed Creek assume that as soon as Culran comes of
  age he will be leaving, if he survives that long.
  They would never say so to his face, those who made that
  mistake usually wound up with a broken nose, but most of the
  villagers think Culran is rather simple and they will make jokes
  to each other about his stutter and his crazy behavior.  His only
  real friend in the village is Myno, the village elder and owner of
  the local Tavern and Inn.  He also had wanderlust in his youth but
  was never able to leave.  Now he tells tales of travel and adven-
  ture to Culran who will listen for hours.
  Culran feels that he is old enough to leave and has been talk-
  ing to travelers more frequently in the hope that an opportu-
  nity will present itself.  He will use any excuse to leave Dogbed
  Creek and he keeps a bag packed with his few meager posses-
  sions in anticipation of that day.  
  By Steve Lawrence
  +3
  6
  
  I
  n the summer of my 49th year, I booked passage aboard a Bran-
  dobian spice trader bound for Cosolen. I had just completed a sec-
  ond tour of the Svimozhish savannas and was ready to return to
  cooler climes to rest and focus on turning my jumbled collection of
  notes into the newest volume of my bestiary, The Hacklopedia of
  Beasts. The captain of our ship, a rather stingy Brandobian by the
  name of Glandal Stron, had purchased insufficient supplies during our
  departure from Svimozhia. He insisted that with prices being what they
  were in that wealthy land, resupplying the ship would be prohinitively
  expensive. So, in an attempt at frugality, Glandal bought only minimal
  supplies, insisting that it would be but a small task to resupply our stock
  of food and fresh water at any of the uninhabited islands which dot
  Brandobia’s broken coastline.
  The was, of course, grumbling from the crew, but apparently, this
  was not the first time Glandal had attempted such a maneuver and we
  all went about our business without complaint. The time came to re-
  supply came sooner than expected, much of the bread our captain had
  purchased at a discount had gone to mold and we were soon to be in dire need of food. The captain announced that
  we would weigh anchor at the first island we saw. The very next day, our lookout spied an island on the horizon. After
  consulting the sea charts, our captain deemed it to be one of a cluster of small islands known as the Maragas’.  The
  ship was anchore doff the coast and I accompanied the foraging party ashore, hoping to perhaps gain some insight
  into the island’s ecology.
  The island was almost totally barren. Weeds grew from cracks in the rocky soil and lichen seemed to be the domi-
  nant life in the rocky landscape. Here and there I saw plants pulled up, their roots missing. Perhaps the island had some
  species of wild pig? Before we could become discouraged, however, distant squawking betrayed the presence of a
  seabird colony. I told my crewmates that such colonies often numbered in the hundreds, if not thousands of birds and
  would be rich in eggs and hatchlings. The crew seemed pleased at this news, but our captain scowled at my upstart
  suggestion. We made for a cliff side in the distance where the colony was most likely to be located. The island was
  rough, hilly country, but with no vegetation to slow us down, we made quick time. As we drew nearer to the cliff, we
  crested a tall hillock, covered in loose scree and beheld an unexpected sight at its base. 
  Below us, we saw a small, muddy spring and a crude, but very large lean-to haphazardly cobbled together from
  tree-sized pieces of driftwood leaning against a boulder. I cautioned that, from my experience, we were best off giv-
  ing this site a wide birth and circling around to the cliffs, but our captain, in a bid to re-establish his reputation, insisted
  the lean-to could have valuable supplies and so we went down to search for food. No sooner had we reach the bot-
  tom of the hill, a large figure appeared from behind the boulder. It was at least twice as tall as our largest man, and two
  heads sat on its shoulders, momentarily slack-jawed and staring. The creature was lean, almost emaciated and it was
  totally nude, with a 6-foot shark slung over its shoulder in one hand and a sharpened driftwood spear in the other.
  There was only a breath of silence before the two heads let out an ear-splitting bellow and the beast hurtled towards
  us, dropping the shark onto the dusty ground.
  We wasted no time and beat feet as quickly as we could back up the hillside. The large creature stumbled as the scree
  shifted under his feet and we were able to add precious seconds to our lead. We reached the dinghy and rowed furi-
  ously back towards the ship. The creature waded into the water after us, quickly gaining on our little boat. The crea-
  ture reached a muscled arm into the boat and constricted tightly around Glandran’s neck, yanking him towards the surf.
  We all held tightly to our captain’s feet and pulled with all our might, freeing him from the creature’s grasp. The deep-
  ening water proved too much for the beast and it relented, wading back to shore and we climbed back into the ship.
  In the days afterward, I spent many days wondering why such a powerful creature lived in isolation on that desolate
  island, with next to nothing available to furnish it with sustenance. What was it hiding from?
  Signs/Tracks
  Range on Tellene
  Size Comparison
  12
  
  HIT POINTS:
  35+6d8
  SIZE/WEIGHT:
  H/ 800 lbs
  TENACITY:
  Brave
  INTELLIGENCE:
  Obtuse
  FATIGUEFACTOR:
  -6
  Attack: Eōten normally attack by
  grabbing adversaries and then biting
  for 4d4p once they are immobilized
  and cannot escape. Alternatively, they
  can wield two clubs striking for
  2d10p+6 with each. Both attacks are
  simultaneous on the creature’s count.   
  Defenses: Regeneration, excellent all-
  around vision 
  ACTIVITY CYCLE:
  Nocturnal
  NO. APPEARING:
  1
  % CHANCE IN LAIR: 50%
  FREQUENCY:
  Scarce
  ALIGNMENT:
  Chaotic Evil
  VISION TYPE:
  Low light vision
  AWARENESS/SENSES:
  360° vision, -1 Init die
  HABITAT:
  Caves
  DIET:
  carnivorous
  ORGANIZATION:
  Singular
  CLIMATE/TERRAIN: Any
  Eōten
  GENERAL INFO
  YIELD
  CRAWL:
  5
  WALK:
  10
  JOG
  15
  RUN
  20
  SPRINT
  25
  MOVEMENT
  SAVES
  MEDICINAL:
  none
  SPELL COMPONENTS:
  none
  HIDE/TROPHY:
  no
  TREASURE:
  yes
  EDIBLE:
  no
  OTHER:
  nil
  EXPERIENCE POINT VALUE:
  850
  PHYSICAL:
  +14
  MENTAL:
  +8
  DODGE:
  +10
  E
  ōten are huge bipedal creatures vaguely
  reminiscent of a lean ogre in general build
  albeit exhibiting dicephaly (two headedness).
  While such polycephaly might lead the casual
  observer to immediately categorize the 
  creature as simply one of the rumored varieties
  of lesser ettin, the monstrous being exhibits
  sufficient morphological and behavioral 
  differences to warrant a closer examination.
  Unlike the porcine, orc-like features of an
  ettin, eōten have a narrow, elongated proboscis
  often reaching a foot in length. Their light
  brown or brownish skin has greenish or 
  yellowish undertones and is frequently covered
  with warts on the face, neck, hands, wrists and
  knees. Also notable is that their feet and hands
  feature five digits.
  It is not unreasonable to suggest that the
  eōten is a progenitor species from which both
  ettins and trolls developed – each further 
  specializing on the basic form. 
  Combat/Tactics:
  It bear noting at the onset of this section that
  Eōten, with a fully cognizant head controlling
  each side of the body, have two independent
  actions available when their count comes up.
  Unlike other creatures with multiple actions
  that are staggered into shorter intervals, these
  brutes will always strive to act in tandem. 
  Though capable of wielding oversized clubs
  much as an ogre (to wit, inflicting 2d10p+6
  damage when striking an opponent with these
  logs), their preference is to immobilize prey
  7
  +12
  +4
  7(9)
  see
  below
  3’
  -1
  10
  13
  
  14
  with their formidable grip and, once secured, eat
  them alive! This is likely a behavioral adaptation to
  prevent their most common prey, quadrupedal
  mammals, from bolting after sustaining a non-
  incapacitating initial wound when ambushed.
  Functionally, an eōten will initiate combat by
  making a claw attack against its nearest adversary.
  If successful, it has firmly grabbed hold of the 
  subject preventing use of the Give Ground, Scamper
  Back, Fighting Withdrawal and Flee special combat
  moves. Additionally, the restriction on movement
  subsequently permits only the use of a d12p 
  Defense Die. 
  Some incidental damage may be inflicted by its
  talon-like nails (2d4p hp) but the purpose of this
  strike is to fix its adversary rather than wound him.
  Once an opponent is held, the eoten will then use
  its leverage to advantageously bite at the victim –
  inflicting a 4d4p hp wound should it score a hit.
  The creature’s two heads permit it to 
  independently focus on two separate opponents
  utilizing the tactics described above. Additionally,
  the encompassing 360° field of view negates the use
  of backstab, rearward strike or any flanking 
  advantage and allows the eōten to use 1 smaller die
  type for initiative.
  If challenged by a solitary foe, an eōten will 
  attempt to grasp its adversary with both hands and
  completely immobilize it before biting. This 
  requires a second successful claw attack but once
  this is achieved, the subject cannot attack back and
  is limited to an unmodified d8p defense die. The
  eōten cannot attack simultaneously with both
  heads against a single opponent so will take turns
  with each head biting alternatively every seven 
  seconds.
  Grabbed opponents may, of course, direct their
  actions at freeing themselves from the eōten’s grasp
  rather than attacking the creature. Those held by a
  single arm must succeed at a Feat of Strength 
  (vs. d20p+7) while full capture requires a check 
  vs. d20p+14. Attempts may be made every five 
  seconds. Should the eōten be knocked back as the
  result of a tremendous blow, it involuntarily releases
  any held prey. 
  Eōten are clever enough to adapt their tactics to
  best suit their opponents. Adversaries deemed
  inedible will simply be battered with twin clubs.
  Alternatively, a frisky adversary, or one proving 
  difficult to repeatedly smash, may be grabbed by
  one arm and whilst restrained and battered with
  the other.   
  Since they are not native to colder climates, these
  creatures often wear thick furs, hides or other gear
  to protect themselves from inclement weather. This
  provides additional DR boosting their natural value
  of 7 to 9. 
  These creatures are remarkably resilient often
  surviving grievous wounds. They regenerate 1 hp
  every 10 seconds though they cannot regrow 
  appendages. However, were a shorn limb recovered
  and held in place with a dressing, it would quickly
  heal. An eōten’s regenerative power – impressive as
  it may be - does not trump death. If coup-de-
  graced or reduced to -10 hp, it will die. 
  Habitat/Society/Ecology:
  The eōten are quite rare and limited to niches
  unexploited by their better-adapted progeny
  species. This often relegates them to remote 
  locations with undesirable climate and poor 
  hunting prospects. 
  They are loners, preferring the exclusive 
  company of their brother (or sister)-head to that of
  others. Most relationships with sapient beings end
  poorly as one head becomes jealous of the 
  seemingly undue attention paid to his ‘sibling’. 
  Despite their ineptitude at interpersonal 
  relationships, they frequently are competent 
  animal handlers. Depending on their current
  biome, they are capable of taming a variety of local
  fauna and transforming them into animal compan-
  ions and hunting assistants. These pet animals 
  incidentally fill the social void a lonely eōten may
  grapple with. 
  Eōten are extremely long lived, often reaching
  half a millennia in age before succumbing to old
  age. Were this not the case, the species surely would
  have died off long ago as the eōten are not noted
  for their fecundity…
  On Tellene:
  The Eōten have dwindled in number and are
  usually encountered in the most remote regions of
  human habitation such as the Cosdol frontier and
  the windward isles off the northern Brandobian
  coast.  They allegedly inhabit the frigid Deshada
  and Jorakk Mountains, though confirmation is 
  impossible.
  It is theorized that these creatures are native to
  either Svimohzia or Tarisato – admittedly based on
  little more than their coloration - but were driven
  from their homelands many centuries ago.
  
  F
  or reasons now lost to history, the Dejy civi-
  lizations of antiquity fell and their people
  were scattered into primitive tribes of hunter
  gatherers.  Many scholars believe that they had
  achieved levels of proficiency in sorcery beyond
  what modern mages are capable.  Of course they
  are generally laughed at by the ‘Wise Men’ of the
  age but one only need look at artifacts like The Crys-
  tal of Zoan to understand why such theories
  abound.
  The Crystal was used by mage priests of an an-
  cient Dejy city state in the region north of what is
  now Cosdol to perform ritual casting ceremonies.  It
  appears as a fist sized, egg shaped, crystalline gem-
  stone of striking blue color.  There seem to be
  ‘clouds’ within the stone, obviously impurities that
  merely take a familiar, although beautiful, form.  Ob-
  viously it is impossible to know its full history but it
  is obvious just by gazing into its cloudy depths that
  it is more than just a beautiful crystal.
  The power of the Crystal is such that its wielder
  can hold it while casting a spell and other mages
  can ‘contribute’ spell points by casting their own
  spells into the crystal at the same time.  These spell
  points can be used to amplify the spell that the
  wielder is casting.  It will not store any excess spell
  points.  Also, it will allow an increase in the maxi-
  mum spell point expenditure by 100% for each
  mage casting spells into the Crystal of Zoan in ad-
  dition to the wielder.  This is limited only by the level
  of the Mage wielding the stone.  If the number of
  additional mages exceeds the level of the Wielder,
  he or she will be unable to control the massive ar-
  cane forces which will be released in a burst of en-
  ergy that causes 8d8p damage to all creatures in a
  30 ft radius of the Crystal of Zoan.  The wielder will
  always take full damage but others in the burst ra-
  dius can attempt a save vs. d20 + 20.  Casting spells
  of such power are very taxing and all mages con-
  tributing spell points to the casting, including the
  wielder, will suffer a full 30 seconds of Spell Fatigue.
  The Crystal itself will not be damaged by this release
  of energy but it may (25% chance) be randomly
  teleported 1d10 X 100 miles away in a random di-
  rection. 
  This is an extremely powerful artifact that does-
  n’t have a user manual.  It should be difficult and
  dangerous for the characters to figure out how to
  use it.  There are no written records of it and it re-
  quires a very difficult Arcane Lore check performed
  by someone with Master skill mastery to even de-
  termine that it can be used for group casting.  Any-
  thing further will need to be learned by trial and
  error.
  Steve Lawrence K
  The Crystal of Zoan
  15
  
  Dogbed Creek does not appear on the Kalamar Atlas. It is included in the map above (just
  south of Dondern) to provide some geographic context for the adventure.
  16
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Hackmaster/HackMaster 5e/HackMaster 5e Adventures & Settings/HackMaster 5e Sheep Thief/HackMaster 5e Sheep Thief.pdf