TSR 9508 The Silver Key.pdf

?i'

... \._.- _... . .

Introbuction

The Silver Key is an AD&D@adventure for two

to six PCs of 2nd to 8th level. The PCs should

have a total of at least 12 levels between them.

One of the PCs should be a ranger or possess

other significant woodcraft skills, one PC

should speak orcish, and at least one PC should

be skilled at sneaking, spying, and finding

things out in an urban environment.

While The Silver Ke14 is written for a cam-

paign with very few magical items, it could be

adapted to a more conventional style with a

minimum of DM effort. Given the difficulty

and special circumstances of this adventure, the

DM should use the negative hp rules even if

they are not normally used in the campaign, as

well as utilizing the optional nonweapon profi-

ciency rules.

bat, the players must be able to pick tht

moment to fight, or they will not succe(

This adventure takes place in the hui

of Honshar, which can be set in any gar

world. The campaign should have a his

antagonism and occasional fighting bet

orcs and humans (and their demihuma

In The Silver Key, orcs are about to attacK nwi-

shar. A human traitor has defected to the orcs

after stealing the Cu’egu, a magical item vital to

Honshar ’s defense. The PCs are transformed

into orcs and sent to retrieve the Cu’egu and res-

cue the traitor (whom the Honsharians believe

was captured by orcs). During most of the

adventure, the PCs will remain in orc form.

Chapter 1presents background information

on Honshar, discusses possible adventure

hooks, and starts the adventure. The trip to the

orc stronghold and the events inside it are cov-

ered by Chapters 2 and 3. Chapter 4 details the

return journey to Honshar and the conclusions

of the adventure.

Getting through The Silver Key requires a

great deal of role-playing. The PCs will have to

sneak, wheedle, talk fast, and generally do their

best to avoid fighting. While there is plenty of

material for players who enjoy a rousing com-

ission

plied by their gods, contacted Lord Herpein (a

man who had long ago sold his services to evil)

and told him that the time had come to honor

his vows to the dark gods. Herpein was

ordered to steal the Ca’egu and defect to the

orcs. This traitor used his high military rank to

arrange an ambush. He departed from a border

camp with a small cavalry escort and the mage

Otasura. The orcs attacked, killed most (if not

all) of the cavalry, and ”captured” Lord Her-

pein and the Ca’ega.

Beginning the Abventure

Otasura of Twofold House will recruit the

PCs into this adventure. Otasura is a tiny,

ancient, birdlike woman. She moves with great

grace and has bright, active eyes. Her duties as

a tenured professor at the War College of Hon-

A border barony with a very strong military

bent, Honshar exists in the twilight line

between the orc-dominated mountains and the

human highlands and seacoasts. The barony is

currently experiencing a period of unusually

intense orc activity.Honshar has already sent

all of its noncombatants to places of relative

safety. This has happened before; the Honshari-

ans fully expect to fall back to Honshar for a

while. Then, when the time is right, they will

reclaim their land.

At the start of the adventure, the orcs are

pressing the Honsharians hard. The overt move-

ment of armies is a small part of the orc leader-

ship’s grand plan to conquer Honshar. The orcs

have also implemented a plan for cutting the

attack short, since the). do not want a long siege.

The orc priests, acting on information sup-

’ ‘

shar include researching spells to give soldiers

special talents when needed.

Twofold House is both a family designation

and an actual location. Otasura is a rich and

influential citizen of Honshar, and her ancestral

home reflectsthis. The wealth of Twofold

House comes from a network of farms, trading

companies, distilleries, and mills. The income

from Twofold House’s business interests sup-

ports magecraft.

vided information, pulled strings, taught

spells, etc., to them. Now she is collecting

on these past favors.

Arrange it so that the PCs own property in or

near Honshar. Players care when their PCs’

inn will be burned down!

The PCs have heard rumors of Honshar’s

War College (a school that trains officers and

battle-mages)and wish to investigate.

The PCs want fine quality armor and weap-

ons and have heard tales of Honsharian

smiths. Honshar (out of sheer necessity)has

some very fine armorers and weapon smiths.

Otasura of Twofold House, hf M13: AC 6

(armor spell 21 points); MV 9 (old age);

hp 27; THACO 16; #AT 1; Dmg ld6

(quarterstaff)or ld4 (dagger);SA spells;

SZ M (5’3” tall); ML elite (14);AL LN.

S 6, D 14, C 10, I 15, W 13, Ch 15.

Personality: serious, droll.

Spells (5/5/5/4/4/2):

Although humans predominate in Honshar,

there are a few dwarves, mostly stonemasons,

sent to provide engineering support. There

are also some elves who are there both to

scout and to show a presence to their human

allies. This provides a logical excuse for the

presence of any non-human PCs in the PC

group.

1st-armor, com-

prehend languages, shield, unseen servant,

wizard mark; 2nd--ESP, locate object, mir-

ror image, stinking cloud, strength; 3rd-

clairaudience, clairvoyance, dispel magic,

infravision (variant-augments infravi-

sion if target already has it), protection

from normal missiZes; 4th-enchanted

weapon, improved invisibility, magic mir-

ror, stoneskin; 5th-contact other plane,

extension 11, teleport (x2) (variant-

allows caster to remain behind), 6th-

ensnarement,legend lore.

When you have selected a hook and the PCs

are ready to talk to Otasura about her mission,

read or paraphrase the following to the players:

The DM should provide a reason for Otasura

to recruit the PCs to her cause and work it into

the ongoing campaign in some fashion. Here

are some adventure hooks:

The PCs could be part of Honshar’s military.

A superior officer could assign the PCs to

help Otasura, who is a VIP after all. Or the

PCs could be part of the escort that Lord

Herpein uses in his disappearing act. This

presents an opportunity to play through an

interesting battle encounter.

Otasura could be developed as a mentor or

friend for the PCs. Or the DM could

arrange it so that the PCs owe Otasura

favors. For example, she might have pro-

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika: