Present

This present time has ties to a 1000-year-old problem.

Political. Ri-Laganth is still ruled by military govemment, one fairly decent to its people. The kingdoms to the north have agreed to aid Ri-Laganth if the orcs come back, but it is an old treaiy, and several of the kingdoms may not honor it. The leader is City Commander Joranthal, a descendent from the hero general of long ago.

The orcs are a problem again, having defeated several small kingdoms to the south. The orcs are tribal by nature now, so they have some organization. They have been sullen and unappröachable since their defeat, and they are back for vengeance. They are driven with religious fervor since Vareth is instigating this attädk, wanting revenge for his failure to kill off Ri-Laganth so long ago.

Social. A normal caste system has been established. The military is considered upper-middleclass, since they are a highly professional bunch and have the ability to raise their status into the ruling/upper dass. Elves and dwarves are weleomed here, but neither are in great numbers, Gnomes are tolerated, but a few confrontations have made them unwelcome guests.

Religion. Religion was nonexistent for some time after Vareth's downfali. New religions have been slow to attract dedicated followers, and any religion that gains too much popularity is always suspected. The people aren't even sure why they're suspicious anymore, but they are nonetheless.

Vareth has become a lich named Raveth. He is guiding the orcs, again through the church of Set, Raveth caters to the orcish belief that they are the supreme race, and he builds them to a fanatical pitch that makes them hard to stop.

Economic. The normal exchange rates of precious metals apply but their buying power has fallen slightly. This is due to Ri-Laganth's iarge military force and the fact that they pay their military well. Services and goods cost 50% more than normal. The plus side is that they are always hiring, and they pay special rates for high-level heroes.

Magic and Technology. Approximately 10—20% of the items on the normal equipment list have been improved in some smail way. The booster pack (page 78) is here, too.

Other advances include improved armor crafting (a nonmagkal +1 to AC). Ri-Laganth has a "special forces" in their army. Gunpowder is not here yet, but it's not far off. A few hippogriffs or pegasi are used for aerial scouting. For magic, the emphasis is on offensive spells, like a 2nd-level spell cailed improved magic missles (1d6-1 per missile).

Adventure Ideas. This is set up for lots of combat or a fair amount of scouting and intrigue. The characters ean be used as a raiding party sent to harass the orcs and keep them off balanee until a full-scale attaek can be arranged. They could be sent in to find out what is stirring up the orcs this time and remove it (Raveth). The characters do not even have to get near this fighting. They could be sent to other kingdoms to convince them to help. All sorts of intrigue are available there. The least of which is that another kingdom pians to attack Ri-Laganth while they are weak from battling the orcs.