Riders on the Storm

Set Up

* The PCs are headed into Sterich from the Grand Duchy of Geoff, having heard rumors of strange happenings in Istivin.

* The PCs are headed to the Grand Duchy of Geoff to seek adventure pro tecting that beleaguered land against ogres and giants flooding down from the Crystalmist Mountains.

* The PCs hear of ghostly riders in the Stark Mounds that drive villagers from their homes and take the riches of mining communities. The PCs are trying to stop this terrorizing, and maybe get back those riches!

The Appeal for Help

The accompany ing map shows the main pass from Geoff to Sterich. Alvein and Elnore are the villages marking the ends of the pass. The PCs get involved in the village of Talbaire.

Talbaire is a village community of some 120 folk-70 gnomes, ten dwarves, and 40 humans. It lies approximately in the middle of the pass, and is used as a resting place by almost everyone passing through it.

It is also a trade post for the silver mines dotted around Maraber and Glistar; gnomes come from these settlements to trade silver ore for goods brought in from distant towns in the Grand Duchy and in Sterich.

Talbaire has a steady economic niche and is a prosperous, but no-nonsense community.

As the PCs ente r the place, it is clear that there has been much trouble of late. A couple of buildings have had doors and windows smashed down, and there is much rubbish and signs of havoc in the streets - broken barrels and crates split open and the like. There are some men and gnomes in chain mail, with swords, trying to get the place back to order.

The PCs learn that Talbaire was attacked the previous night by a force of giants. each riding a huge war mammoth! There were about a dozen of the giants, each astride a monstrous woolly mammoth, carrying huge lances and brandishing massive clubs. The small militia here are used to goblinoids, even the odd ogre, but a force of a dozen giants is too much for them. They fled.

They came back to find that the giants had pillaged silver ingots from Obendorf the Moneylender's . The people here know that this has happened to other villages in the area lately, and are desperate for help. Indeed, a fair shipment of silver has arrived this very day, and since the giants didn't get much yesterday, maybe they 'll be back.

Showdown in the Night

In the late afternoon, clouds roll over, and by nightfall the weather is turning very nasty. Outside, storm lanterns are hung up outside homes, and strung on very sturdy poles along the pass for some 50 yards (for the benefit of anyone foolish enough to be night riding).

The PCs can stay in the Motherlode, get a good dinner, be nearly ready for bed-when the doors of the tavern burst open, and a man wide-eyed with terror bursts in from the pouring rain and storm outside, squalls of wind slamming the door in its frame as he stands transfixed against the "They're pale lamplight beyond. back!" he screams, "and they've brought their whole clan with them!" This is just for dramatic impact, of course. The whole place empties through the back door, fast.

When the PCs venture out, they see a dozen or so frost giants on mammoths, flourishing enormous lances and looking very threatening. If the PCs prepare for attack, or even stay in line of sight, they are attacked (see "Fighting the Riders" below).

If the PCs duck back in the tavern immediately they are not selected for special attack, and they may be able to observe the "giants" tethering their "mammoths" to the wooden rail outside Obendorfs and entering as Obendorf the gnome lets them in! They then enter, which is impossible. They are frost giants and the doorway is but seven feet high. Allow each PC a saving throw vs. spell, with a +4 bonus, to detect the illusion if they see this.

The "giants" enter, come out with ingots of silver some two rounds later, dump them in saddlebags, and do some vandalizing of the place with their weapons (and stealing wine from the tavern) before riding off. It is up to the PCs when they attack these monsters.

The Scam

Obendorf the gnome is an evil, bitter little creature who wishes woe and ruin on his kind. He was recently captured by the two evil gnomes he now aids, and for his ransom he gladly traded them a plan for robbing local people of riches. Obendorf owned some dust of illusion that he gave to the dour gnomes that captured him on his mule along the pass. This en ables them to appear as a whole dozen gi ants. The gnomes also have leucrottas as mounts, having reared them as cubs after killing their mother-hence the "mammoths." The magical fear the militia felt was the scare effect of the gnome illusionist's spell.

Obendorf thinks that the gnomes will make good their agreement to give him a slice of the profit in return for having given them the magical dust. Their plan is to hand him that silver and then kill him. Ideally the PCs will put a stop to this.

Fighting the Riders

The leucrottas can chew through their tethers to move to attack in one round, if they have been tethered; they are very aggressive and fight readily. The gnome spellcaster will use scare to try to reduce the party in strength. Then the illusionist will cast invisibility on the thief, and both will drink potions of super-heroism before closing to melee. The gnomes will dismount, if necessary, to engage the PCs in combat.

Gnome fighter/illusionist 5/5: AC 8 (Dex 16 hp 18; THAC0 16; #AT 1 ; Dmg 1d6; SA spells; Int Exceptional; AL CE; SZ S; XP 650.

Spells: armor ( x 2), phantasmal force, spook, ventriloquism, blur, invisibility, scare, invisibility 10' radius, suggestion.

Magical items: potion of super-heroism, four applications of dust of illusion.

Gnome fighter/thief 5/5: AC 4 (leather and Dex 18 hp 20; THAC0 16; #AT 1; Dmg 1d6; SA triple damage on backstab; SD thieving skills; Int High; AL CE; SZ S; XP 420.

Thieving skills: PP 50, OL 45, FT 50, MS 45, HS 35, ON 30, CW 75.

Magical item: potion of super-heroism

Leucrotta Mounts (2): AC 4; HD 6 + 1; MV 18; hp 22, 39; THAC0 15; #AT 1 or 2; Dmg 3d6 or 1d6 /1d6; SA vocalization; SD rear kick attacks; Int Average; AL CE; SZ L; XP 975

After one gnome is killed, the other surrenders and begs for its life when reduced to 5 hp or below. If allowed to live, it reveals the agreement with Obendorf, and also leads the PCs to its lair, which has silver ingots worth 5,000 gp stashed away (this weighs a monstrous amount, and the PCs will need mules or something to help with this). An XP award is given for treasure even if returned to those who lawfully own it, but the grateful local people will give the PCs 25% of the value in gems as a reward.

Terrain: Village/Hills (Stark Mounds)

Total Party Levels: 30 (Average 5th)

Total gp: 5,000

Monster XP: 2,020

The following can be learned by the PCs if they make the appropriate type of enquiry about the village. You may want to use an Intelligence check (roll Int or below on ld20) for success in certain cases (e.g., noticing the type of damage to buildings as opposed to which ones have been damaged). Also, give information only if the PCs are clearly trying sensible lines of inquiry.

1. The damage to the buildings does not look like it was caused by the tram pling of mammoths, although giant caused damage is present.

2. Damage is very selective. Only the secure building of Obendorf the Moneylender (which held a safe in which silver was kept) and the tavern next door (The Motherlode) have been damaged.

3. The giants did not attack at once. They sat on their huge steeds, frighten ing everyone a lot, and chasing them out of town. Only then did they ride in.

4. Some people didn't run off last night; a few stayed in town for various reasons. Old Ma Vickerty is bed-ridden and her son fled in fear; she didn't see no giants nor mammoths, no sir, and yes she does know what giants look like, fer an old fire giant dun kilt her husband, yes sirree (and more in this vein, but the old woman is right, and she was awake at the time).

Young Geran the blacksmith's son and Jenna the barmaid stayed in the tavern cellar, and heard footsteps upstairs, but they were not very heavy, just like normal human footsteps. Whether these two will admit to where they were last night is another matter.

And so on; you may add similar NPCs to this list with equally tantalizing scraps of information.

5. At least two of lhe militia felt that they were affected by magical fear. They have experienced something like it before (when they saw a white dragon). and say it was an experience similar to dragon awe, not mundane everyday fear (as it were). They are reluctant to admit it, because it sounds like making excuses, which the men don't want to do.

6. There are no mammoth tracks in the area. There are no giant-sized footprints either. Note that a ranger, or someone with Tracking proficiency, is needed to discover these facts.

This information may well persuade the PCs that something odd is going on here, and convince them to stay and solve this puzzle. If they are clever, they may get suspicious of Obendorf the Moneylender, but everyone saw the giants and feels the threat is very real. The complicity of this wicked little gnome may be seen only later!

The fighters of the militia, for reference, are six 1st, four 2nd, and three 3rd level types, with a 5th level leader, Hargeff lrikan. Stats for them should not be needed for this adventure, since they will flee in fear once more.