THE NECROMANCER'S LAIR

A quest pack for use with HeroQuest.

Written by Dewayne Agin  dagin@my-dejanews.com

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File Note:  

The pack zip file contains the following files: 

    readme.txt                (this file)
    quest1.bmp - quest3.bmp   (the quest maps)
    quest1.txt - quest3.txt   (quest descriptions)
    Key.bmp                   (a key to the symbols found on the maps)
    room1.jpg, room2.jpg      (2 board overlays)
    map.bmp                   (a handout to give to the Heroes at the start of the quest)
    cards.bmp                 (new Chaos spell cards and artifact cards)

 
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Intro (to be read to the Heroes at the beginning of the quest):

THE NECROMANCER'S LAIR

Many years ago, while fighting a horde of Skeletons, you came across a map detailing an underground lair; the name 'Shantil' written across the top.  Neither the name nor the dungeon was familiar to you, but you have kept the map ever since.  At times you thought about getting rid of it, but the room marked 'treasure' has always sparked your interest.

During your wanderings in the service of the Emperor, you asked the people that you met if they knew of this hidden lair.  You showed portions of the map to some; asked about 'Shantil' to others.  Always the response has been negative.

Then one day, while sitting in the local inn of a small village, you
mentioned the name of 'Shantil' to the barkeep.  Expecting the usual
negative response, you were quite surprised when he began sputtering and making signs to ward off evil.  He refused to talk about the name, and threatened to throw you out of his inn if you continued to bring up the subject.

Intrigued by his reaction, you sat down at a corner table and discussed among your selves what your next step should be.  Your talk was soon
interrupted by an elderly man, standing by your table.  He looked around to make sure no one else in the inn was paying him any attention, then said "You want information on Shantil?  I know plenty about him.  I will tell you all you need to know".

You looked at his shifty nature and disheveled appearance, and knew that he must be up to something.  "Why?", one of you asked.

"Gold." was his simple reply.  "Ten gold coins and all my information will be yours."

You paid the man his money [Game Master - be sure to deduct 10 gold coins from one of your player's inventory] and motioned for him to sit down.

"When I was younger", the man began, "I occasionally did some work for a magician that lived about a days journey from here.  This magician was a powerful Necromancer, Shantil was his name.  Most of the people here abouts were afraid of him, but I carried supplies to him a couple of times a year, and he always treated me alright.  He had dug his home out of the rock in a hillside in the middle of a forest..."

You interrupted his narrative to show him your map.  "Is this his home?" you ask.

The man looked at the map, then says "Yah, that's it.  Anyway, one day I was delivering supplies to him.  I opened up the doorway, just like he showed me, and drove the wagon into his home.  Usually when I arrived, Shantil was there to greet me, like he knew somehow when I was there.  This time though - no one.  I poked around a little, didn't really know what else to do and I wanted to get paid.  Well, I had came to the stairs down to the lower level.  Never had gone down there before, and wasn't sure I wanted to now.  Isn't too smart to get a Necromancer mad at you, if you know what I mean.  Anyway, I had just decided that maybe I would call out to Shantil first, when up the stairs came the sound of a battle.  Swords clashing, armor rattling, that sort of thing.  Then came a roar like I had never heard before.  Didn't sound like an animal, and the evil contained in that roar nearly drove me mad.  I didn't waste any more time in there.  Ran back to my wagon and drove out.  Closed the door behind me and have never been back since.  You couldn't pay me enough to ever return, not after what I heard."

You talked to the man into the night, getting directions to Shantil's home, and the location of the secret switch to open the door.  After he left your group talked long about what you might encounter in the Necromancer's lair, but put the old man's fears down as superstition.  The next morning you bought supplies and made preparations to begin your hike to the location of the lair, eager to explore and discover the wealth contained within.


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Special Notes For The Game Master (The rest of this file is not meant to be read to the Heroes.  Doing so will reveal parts of the game):

This quest pack includes spell scrolls as treasure.  I have not drawn up special cards for these scrolls.  If a Hero finds this treasure, mark it down on his character sheet.  The Hero may cast this spell once.  Mark the scroll off the Hero's character sheet when he casts it.

The Armory will buy back any item that it normally sells for 1/2 the selling price.  Let the Heroes know this before the game begins.  You may want to allow the Heroes to take weapons from any monsters they slay.  Note that the armory will not buy back weapons from the Undead, though.


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Special thanks to Ernie from the Red Dragon's Guild for granting permission to reprint the boards used in this quest.  They were downloaded from the Red Dragon's Homepage at http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/ernie.polegato/ and slightly modified in size.
