The Valley of Gad
You have chosen to be the Archveult, lord of the Valley of Gad. As you sit in the topmost turret of your castle which has been your home for three hundred years, you survey your kingdom secure in the knowledge that your sovereignty is unchallenged. You chose this valley carefully as a great ring of mountains separates it from the rest of Orb where other powerful men might have confronted you.
When you began your reign of terror after slaying the old king, your people renamed your home Castle Remorse. They fear and hate your evil ways. Your appearance alone is enough to terrify even the stoutest of heart. You are a Firedrake, one of the elder races of Orb that live north and east of the Mountains of Undying Solitude. But you are no ordinary Firedrake. You stand eight feet tall and your fierce head is topped by a bony spiked carapace like that of an ancient giant reptile. Your eyes are smoldering pits of fire. When you are angered they ignite, burning with a deep red flame that also bursts out over the blue scales of your body. You have large blue wings, but unlike your son the Demiveult, you cannot fly. You are more powerful than he, however, for you are an Archveult, a rare thing even amongst the powerful race of Firedrakes. The Firedrakes are a naturally cruel race but you have taken their lust for cruelty to the greatest lengths and are never happier than when demonstrating your superiority over your pathetic human subjects.
The Hunt
It is spring and the month of Weir has just begun. At this time of year you indulge yourself in your favorite pastime, the annual hunt. Each year a slave is set free from the standing stones near the castle and hunted down like an animal. If found, the slave is torn to pieces by your Hounds of Hell, giant dogs with flaming breath which are from the nether planes and were a gift from a Demonlord. If the slave can escape the valley, you will have been cheated of your prey. But the slaves seldom escape.
This year you have bidden Kritos Bloodheart, your ally and only human friend to spare no effort in acquiring strong slaves who will run fast and far, giving good sport. He has scoured the slave pits of Upanishad for your prey and has brought three slaves back to the valley. You will mercilessly hunt down one of these slaves until at last, exhausted and broken, he (or she) will beg you to put an end to his wretched life. Turning from the window you see Kritos giving the order to present the slaves.
The Slaves
Your quarry will be one of three possible types of slaves. Your opponent will choose which one and will inform you of his choice.
The Priest
The castle guards drag before you a slim young man, dressed only in a torn white robe and manacled. You allow flame to play over your body for effect as you sneer at this puny human.
'He looks weak,' you growl.
The young man, who has been gagged, makes a gurgling noise and Kritos cuffs him into silence.
'He is a priest, magnificence, he knows spells, he nearly escaped on the road from Upanishad. He speaks the Word of Helpless Palsy and has the Touch of Harm, and,' he chuckles, 'he has Avatar the One on his side.' There is a gale of laughter as he says this.
'Oh Avatar, where are you now, free thy servant from this evil place of torment,' you mock. There is silence in the chamber. 'Your god has deserted you,' you cry, and with that you clap your hands and he is dragged away. It pleases you that he holds his head high and there is a look of contempt in his eyes.
The Barbarian
The second slave is led before you. This one has his arms tied to a yoke, as if prepared for crucifixion, and is stripped to his loincloth. He is an enormous man, not much more than a foot shorter than you, heavily muscled but showing the bruises gained in an earlier attempt to escape. His blonde hair is wild like a horse's mane.
'I had to pay a small fortune for this one, magnificence. He was to be sent back north to become a gladiator in the Arena of Death at Mortavalon. He is the strongest man I have ever met and still barely more than a boy,' Kritos tells you proudly.
The young barbarian growls at you, he has overcome his fear. At a sign from Kritos, however, pressure is applied to the yoke and he is slowly forced to his knees, grunting all the while with the effort of trying to avoid abasing himself before you. You clap your hands once more and the barbarian is taken away.
The Thief
'I have saved the fairest till last, magnificence,' says Kritos.
Two guards enter the chamber and between them, chained to them both, is a young woman dressed like a man in leather breeches and shirt. There is a murmur of appreciation from the guards.
'It's a woman!' you exclaim. 'They are weaker than the men.'
Kritos does not look unduly troubled by your displeasure. 'Not this one, magnificence, she is a skilled swordswoman and, until she was delivered into our hands, was a master in the Thieves' Guild of Upanishad.'
You can tell from the reaction of the guards that she would be considered beautiful amongst humans, but you are more concerned with her powers of endurance. Unlike the two men, she is taking in every detail of her surroundings, watchful for a chance to escape, but Kritos has ensured there is none. The guards force her to her knees and invite her to beg for mercy, but she replies: 'It is you who will beg for mercy out in the wilderness, Firedrake.'
You smile and order her to be taken back to the dungeons, confident she will soon change her tune.
*
Your victims will find little help out in the valley for all know of the annual manhunt and few would dare to oppose you in any way. It took you forty years to subdue the whole of the valley to your rule and you have used fear to discourage revolt ever since. Almost everyone pays heavy taxes to your tax-house in the valley's city, Askelon, and your troops man the wall at the town of Gap which seals the western entrance to the valley. The monks and the wizard Callisto in his tower might dare to oppose you and there are strange beings in some of the forests, but you walk abroad in the valley without fear. Now that the slaves have been led away you are free to peruse the map that hangs in the topmost turret and to guess which way the hunt will twist and turn across the valley.
Escape
Your opponent will be trying to find a way out of the valley. Obviously you know much of the valley, but it is a large place and even you do not know it all.
Important points to remember:
1. Castle Remorse seals the eastern end and there is no escape for the quarry there.
2. The only exit known to your quarry is a large gate at the west entrance to the valley. This is close to Gap Town.
3. Gap Town is heavily guarded by your own troops which should make it difficult for the quarry to escape there.
4. There are three other exits, determined at the start of each game.
There seems to be a mistake in the text, because the random table that determines possible exits always includes the gate near Gap Town as one of the three, so it should really be two other exits.
In this game, the exits are A (Gap Town gate), K (near the ice waste), and L (in the lake).
In this game, the exits are A (Gap Town gate), K (near the ice waste), and L (in the lake).
The Archveult's Allies
You have three allies or henchmen: Kritos Bloodheart, the Captain of your guard, a pleasantly evil and bloodthirsty warrior; Ka-riim, the Hashishin, your chief assassin; the Demiveult, a large winged reptile which some say is a Firedrake in its larval form, while others believe it is a product of your genetic experiments. He is actually your son, but can never become a full-fledged Archveult due to a druid's curse.
As soon as you start this game you will be given the opportunity to place these three allies in certain areas of the valley to wait in ambush, should the quarry pass that way. You can communicate with your allies through a crystal ball, which enables them to tell you when they have found the quarry. you will have the chance to move your allies as time passes. Remember to keep a record of how many wound levels each ally has lost - you will have the opportunity to heal only one of them.
The Archveult
Wound Levels:
Healthy/Bruised/Injured/Wounded/Badly Wounded/Crippled/Dead
Combat:
+2 Damage
+2 Strike with mace
Equipment:
Spiked mace
Armor (Absorbs one level of damage on a roll of 5+)
Special Abilities
Night Vision
Breathe Water
Strength
Endurance
Warrior Skill
Awe others
Hounds
Suit of Armor
Allies
Hounds of Hell
Savage (+2 strike, +1 damage)
Vicious (+1 strike)
Wounded (-1 damage)
Whimpering (-1 strike, -2 damage)
Dead
Wound Levels:
Healthy/Bruised/Injured/Wounded/Badly Wounded/Crippled/Dead
Combat:
+2 Damage
+2 Strike with mace
Equipment:
Spiked mace
Armor (Absorbs one level of damage on a roll of 5+)
Special Abilities
Night Vision
Breathe Water
Strength
Endurance
Warrior Skill
Awe others
Hounds
Suit of Armor
Allies
Hounds of Hell
Savage (+2 strike, +1 damage)
Vicious (+1 strike)
Wounded (-1 damage)
Whimpering (-1 strike, -2 damage)
Dead
The Beginning
You have ordered the slave to be tied to one of the standing stones to the west of the castle. The bodies of previous victims adorn the stones. At dawn your quarry will be set free.
It is dawn, the magical chains which have held your captive against cold stone all night long will be fracturing now. Your court magician casts a spell and you speak words which your quarry will hear as if the stone itself was talking. 'Run, run for all you are worth, you cannot escape me and my Hounds of Hell. You have a few hours' grace before I take up the chase.'
You will not be idle during these next few hours, however, there is much to be done. You have to decide where to station your allies, Kritos Bloodheart, Ka-riim your assassin, and the Demiveult. A man-servant coughs discreetly, reminding you that you must decide where to set your mantraps and send messages via crystal ball to your servants in the valley.
WAIT
You turn to your map of the valley. In past years you have used trap in nine different places. This year you have decided to order five mantraps of various types placed at strategic points in the valley. These traps are designed to wound and delay rather than kill. The nine possible locations are as follows
• The bridge at the cataract.
• The road from the Barrow Weald to the mountain pass.
• The route into the jungle.
• The Misty Wood, southwest corner.
• The Moorland near the misty wood.
• The entrance to the Mines of Smelt.
• The track in the icy wastes.
• The Volcano.
• The town of Gap, at the wall.
When you have chosen five locations you can relax, secure in the knowledge that your minions will set the traps.
WAIT
So, mantrap locations and who gets the healpot. Then, your agents.You decide also to equip one of your allies with a healing balm. Will you give it to your trusted henchman, Kritos Bloodheart who is resplendent in black armor with a scarlet plume atop his helm and impatient to begin; to Ka-riim the Hashishin, your accomplished assassin; or toyour own son the Demiveult who is far larger than you, like a great flying reptile with his fierce beak, yet no more powerful than you. You may use the balm to restore all the wound levels of the chosen ally, once only.
WAIT
Kritos Bloodheart is the first ally you send to take up his position. He is used to patrolling the following areas during a hunt, but you can only send him to one of these.
• The Barrow Weald
• The Jungle
• The cataract at the gorge
• The Moorland
• The Wizard Callisto's tower
• The wall at the town of Gap
Make your decision, then WAIT.
Ka-riim the Hashishin is the next ally you will deploy. He is familiar with the following areas and may only be used in one of these at a time.
• The city of Askelon
• Braggart's Hold
• The Monastery
• The Misty Wood
• The Forest of the Living Dead
• The Mines of Smelt
Make your decision, then WAIT
The last ally you deploy is your son the Demiveult who can soar above the valley and then stoop on your quarry on sight. He will patrol one of the following areas at a time:
• The mountain pass
• The icy wastes
• The plains
• The volcano
Make your choice, then WAIT.
