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Many thanks to all of you guys who downloaded the first issue and gave such great feedback. Thankyou also to those readers who donated through the Pay What You Want system on Drive Thru. The system isn't designed to shame you if you choose not to donate and Folio is always intended to be a free resource for you (and a shameless way for us to promote FP's titles), but every little helps and donations are always put to good use!

We were spoiled for choice for Kickstarter reviews this issue but went with two of my favourite projects, Fragged Empire from Design Ministries and Outbreak: Undead from Hunters Books (focusing on the 2nd edition starter kit). I also wanted to showcase White Star, White Box Science Fiction Roleplay, but unfortunately was unable to do so. If you get the chance please check that one out and please show your support for Fragged and Outbreak, both awesome projects worthy of your time.

Also in this issue, the first Unsung Weave adventure, a lateral thinking scenario set in the industrial city of Dunkunom (famed for its obsession with the 'beautiful game' of folkball), a look at Midwich, Forever People's new battlemap based adventure system and the next installment and adventure of Mazes, Maps & Monsters. Had some really great feedback on MM&M and would especially love to hear details of games you've run with or for your kids to post in future issues.

- DS Forever Folio Issue 2, June 2015 Š Forever People Digital Press, all rights reserved 2015 Graphic Design: David Sharrock Written and produced by: David Sharrock, Wyn F Dawkins Cover Art: Fragged Empire, by Clonerh Kimura for Design Ministries (http://clonerh.deviantart.com/) Other Art: David Sharrock, Clonerh Kimura, the design team at Hunters Books and Design Ministries. Creative Commons licensed images indexed on last page.

Thanks to: Christopher De La Rosa, Ivan Van Norman, Wade Dyer, James M Spahn, and also diehardgamerfan.com for their positive review of issue one!

Drop by: www.foreverpeople.co.uk Get in touch: foreverfolio@foreverpeople.co.uk

If you redistribute or share this electronic product please ensure you do so for non-profit purposes and that no part of this PDF is in any way altered from its original format and that all contents in their entirety are included.

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First adventure for the Wyrd campaign, The Bearing Pit is a lateral thinking scenario introducing players to the Anglian city of Dunkunom. Starts page 8 The magical troll stones of Fang Forest keep time flowing smoothly in the realm. But the stones have been taken - lost in the woods - and now time itself is breaking. Starts page 26

Showcase: Wade Dyer's post-apocalyptic RPG and hugely successful Kickstarter project . . . p5

Showcase: Christopher De La Rosa and what's new with the Second Edition Starter Kit . . . p22

Preview: Forever People's new battlemap and agnostic adventure combo . . . p52

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Showcase Wade Dyer's post-apocalyptic RPG takes the off-set concept by the throat, generating over $110,000 AUD from more than 1200 backers after starting with an original target of just $15,000 AUD and an additional $20,000+ AUD from Backerkit. Enthusiastic us e of media and marketing, combined with a great game results in one of the best post apoc RPGs and successful crowd-funds we've seen in a while. By Wyn F Dawkins.

Set in a far future 'post, post-apocalypse', Fragged Empire puts players in the shoes of four non-human races seeking to build a new society for themselves after barely surviving a genocidal war.

An RPG in the style of Firefly, Millennium Falcon, Alien, Farscape, Blake's 7, Mass Effect & Knights of the Old Republic, Fragged Empire was designed, written & developed by Australian graphic designer Wade Dyer with additional writing by Simon Nolen & Stuart McNabb.

The final product is a high quality, full colour, hardcover, 350+ page rule book with everything needed (for players & GM) to play the game plus interactive player & GM sheets.

Along with the core rulebook the team are also releasing The Antagonist Archive 1, a 140 page colour hardcover supplement containing information about the darker side of the Haven System - including NPCs, faction and locations for your players to contend with - and two adventures, Let Sleeping Gods Lie and Genetic Spectres, Sleeping Gods being a useful introduction to the setting, while Genetic Spectres is a good scenario for low to mid-level characters.

The backer kit provides options for digital patronage (the PDF version of the game), the four printed book bundle or the core rulebook plus postage. Cool goodies include custom dice, a GM screen and a signed copy of the core rulebook. The two adventures and the Antagonist Archive are also available as separate books, along with options for extra core rulebooks should you need them.

Fragged Empire is based in a post post-apocalyptic setting - as in, the apocalypse is a distant memory, one hundred years in the past - shaped by The Great Forever Folio Issue #2

War. The four surviving races have had these one

hundred years to create distinctive cultures formed from their experiences and core beliefs. The races have only had a few years to interact with each other, not enough time to fully understand or accept each other, and thus their delicate coexistence is held together more by need than by choice.

Forever People's own post-apocalyptic fantasy, Wyrd, shares a somewhat risky aspect of Fragged Empire, which is the total omission of a playable human race and reliance upon character races of a somewhat alien (albeit very humanoid) nature. Humanity is long dead but created their own genetically engineered successors: the Archons. Not burdened with the moral dilemmas of their creators, the Archons repopulated their inherited empire with their own creations, in an effort to build the perfect race. This pursuit not only led to a wealth of new technological advancements but also empire-wide genocidal war and the eventual obliteration of the Archons by their own vengeful creation. So the new society is built not only on the ruins of the Archons' former empire, but also on top of the ancient Human empire and (to quote the blurb) 'who knows what else'.

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Its these intriguing suggestions of layers beneath the apparently obvious fantasy/sci-fi aspects of the game that sound most tantalizing, though there is plenty here to keep gamers enthralled even before they start delving into the hidden secrets of the setting.

make the ‘perfect’ race.

Players will regularly have to make the most of what little resources they have ” balancing short and long term options and making short term sacrifices for long term gain or vice versa.

Eventually they created what they initially thought was the ‘perfect ‘ race, naming them Xion. When the Archons attempted to rescind the title of ‘perfect’ the Xion fought back. The Archons eradicated the Xion.

That is, all but one, who escaped far into uncharted space.

The game comes with a ready-made setting, but rules are flexible and seem robust enough to be adapted to any science fiction realm. Skill rolls are done with a simple 3d6 +/- bonus or penalty vs a difficulty value or target's defence.

Characters have a pool of options available to them, with no set ability or equipment progression path.

This allows for characters to quickly specialise or diversify and to create unique combinations of abilities and equipment. Low level characters can be a dangerous threat to high level characters due to specialization. Even if two characters have very similar attributes, skills or equipment, they can function quite differently due to trait selections.

Paths offer options such as Cunning Mercenary, Black Market Smuggler, Archaeological Treasure Hunter or Power Mad Scientist. All are balanced with each other.

Over thousands of years, the Archons built a mighty empire and created hundreds of species. But they played favourites, lavishing their love and generosity on some, while entirely neglecting others.

Two hundred years later the lone Xion returned with its own genetically-engineered army (the Nephilim).

The ensuing war lasted six years and spelled the destruction of the Archons, their created races and empire. Vindicated, the lone Xion again disappeared, abandoning its army. Small pockets of survivors were scattered across the galaxy, unknown and alone.

Now, a century has passed since the Great Xion War and descendants of the survivors have started to emerge. They have begun to rediscover space travel and are just now making tentative contact with one another in a small star system named ‘Haven’.

Fragging , Wade explains, is a term used to describe

the assassination of a leader during wartime by their own soldiers, usually in a manner that could look like an accident, commonly during the heat of battle. The term can also be used to describe the manipulation of the chain of command to have a subordinate deliberately killed by placing them in great danger, such as sending a soldier or unit on a suicide mission.

Which raises the questions, Did the people kill their creator? Or were they betrayed by their creator?

After expanding throughout the galaxy, terraforming millions of planets and creating electronic wonders beyond imagination, humanity became apathetic and faced extinction due to genetic erosion. Unable to save themselves, they engineered a race to inherit their fallen empire: the Archons.

Rather than treading in the footprints of humanity, the Archons pushed into scientific fields that their creators had barely explored: genetic engineering and the creation of scores of new species, all in an effort to

Corporation Rejected by their creators (the Archons) as inferior, the Corporation (formerly known as Vargarti) have grown to love the Great Xion War as it freed them from an existence of insignificance and irrelevance.

They are now eager to prove themselves. Not a nation in the classical sense, the Corporation is a massive corporate entity comprised of millions of smaller, affiliated business enterprises; a purely capitalistic society.

Kaltoran Born with the genetic memories of their ancestors, Kaltorans are an innately gifted and flexible race. They are eager to make a new future for themselves, though they struggle with the ‘genetic memories’ of not only the Great Xion War but the extreme measures taken by their ancestors to survive it.

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Legion A physically imposing race, hastily created by the Archons to fight their losing war against Xion. The Legion now struggle to create a stable society and to find meaning with no war to fight. In recent times the Legion have formed a close economic relationship with the Corporation, acting as enforcers for hire.

Nephilim A junk-word term used to describe the diverse descendants of Xion’s genetically engineered army.

Created to wage war on the Archons & their creations, before being abandoned by their creator, Xion, once the war was won.

The Nephilim have an eclectic, primal and often violent society supported by advanced biological technology. While publicly no longer loyal to Xion, their pursuit of genetic perfection at any cost is pervasive.

“ Encouraging Player-Driven Goals: "Help players be invested in your world. NPCs’ opinion of your character have a statistical effect on your stats; not everything has to be done for money. You can also be a merchant or scientist, plan trade routes or research new or forgotten technologies." “ Tactical Personal & Spacecraft Combat: "Build or modify your own Weapons & Armour." “ Build your own Custom Equipment & Spacecraft: "Will you make a gunship for fighting, a cargo ship for trading, create labs & workshops to modifying weapons or perform research or do a bit of everything? The choice is yours."

Explore Fragged Empire...

Official website: www.fraggedempire.com/ “ Light, Fast & Flexible non Combat rules: "We don't want rules to slow the role playing down." “ Player Creativity is Encouraged: "We balance the math by telling you what roll needs to be made but not what skill needs to be used. Your approach to a problem will give you bonuses or penalties."

The Kickstarter page (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wadedyer/frag ged-empire-tabletop-rpg/description) The Backer Kit page (https://fragged-empire-tabletoprpg.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders)

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a serialised adventure campaign for the wyrd setting and elderune multi-dice roleplaying system.

AUTHOR'S INTRODUCTION Four years ago I began writing Wyrd, starting with a mythology and following (with all due humility) in the footsteps of Tolkien by constructing a language from which the mythology would evolve. From language and mythology came the Wyrd setting, the world of Yarnia and the continents of Ereth, the wyrmen and their rich civilisations. The result was Chronicles of Yarnia 1 - The Age of Thaw and the work you may already have seen me discussing in a previous issue of Forever Folio.

One year after putting pen to paper on Wyrd , I also began working out the framework for a fully realised adventure campaign which I intended to publish as part of a gamesmaster's guide covering the setting.

However, the title in question ( the Overmaster's Companion ) has since ballooned beyond my original plans and is unable to sensibly support the campaign, which itself is sizeable and no longer fits as a mere addendum to another title.

For a while I considered collecting The Unsung Weave into a separate title for sale in the usual outlets, but then decided instead to give those gamers who have gone out on a limb to give Wyrd a try the break I think they deserve and which I am only too happy to give them by offering the campaign here, in the free pages of Folio. Here it will be serialised over the coming issues into a complete and unabridged volume.

Here, in issue #2, is the first of ten adventures designed specifically for your Wyrd game, but which, with a little adaptation, should be applicable to most fantasy settings and systems.

Forever Folio Issue #2

Full background disclosure, for the benefit of the GM, can be acquired from the Forever People website as a short PDF. This full background is provided as a seperate file in order to ensure players don't discover any major spoilers by leafing through these freely available copies of Forever Folio. The GM Background is priced at $1.98 in order to fund the continued release of Forever Folio and to dissuade casual acquisition of the file. Either use the link above or find a link to the sales page for this title on our website.

Visit www.foreverpeople.co.uk

In order to run this campaign as a Wyrd game, using the Elderune multi-dice system, the GM will also need the essential Wyrd rulebooks including System & Setting, The Wyrd Pandemonium and the first of the Wyrd gazeteers: Chronicles of Yarnia 1 Ereth in the Age of Thaw.

Set Up The player group are assumed to be new to the Wyrd setting and are also assumed to be playing newly rolled characters, fresh from their respective places of origin and seeking an itinerant lifestyle and the mutual help of similar individuals.

At some point on the road the group have met and agreed to travel together for mutual safety. This

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meeting occurs on the country roads of The Angle .

Characters from abroad arrive in The Angle after a few days travel aboard a Gigaerack. Characters from Listholm came to the Angle on the Hyns-Horn.

The group assemble in Verdandi , capital city of the Anglian counties, on the first day of Apryl at the start of Merrydew, a series of spring festivities celebrating the coming of summer.

For suggestions on introducing the player group to Verdandi, see issue #1 of Forever Folio.

Verdandi Verdandi is the capital city of the Angle. By no means the largest city in the southern lands it is, however, one of the wealthiest, much of its economy dependent on its enviable role as an over-arching authority in the midst of numerous unified counties.

Verdandi has a busy harbour and local fishing fleet Forever Folio Issue #2

but little to zero in the way of shipping from outside.

Hyns-Horn Bay lies at the southwestern tail of the Damnum Channel and while there was once a great deal of traffic into and out of this bay, the return of evil in the city of Old Urd and the threat of assault from the Hammer Dwale mountains have effectively severed Verdandi from the world's sea-faring merchants. Instead, Verdandi's point of trade now comes in the form of import/export made using either the railway or the Gigaerack of Skytor (a unique form of living transport, as vast and ponderous as it is useful in its ability to transport large quantities of passengers and heavy goods). The majority of the city economy is dependent on income in the form of tax and fealty payments from the unified noble houses and the various rural counties.

For a full and minutely detailed description of the city, along with a key to prominent locations, artwork and full size maps see Chronicles of Yarnia 1, The Age of Thaw.

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Introducing Soul Stones When a Fell enemy is dispatched back from whence it came and Gungin’s spirit is hurled from the Warp back into the abyss, the torn fabric of time and space left in his wake appears as a glittering stone of green, red and in rarest cases, black. Soul Stone, as it is called, though the stone harbours no real soul and is merely a manifestation of the effect Gungin has on the realm of Yneur; the realm of time.

Introducing players to Dunkunom and the industrial culture of that city, The Bearing Pit focuses on magickal rules and is a particularly useful scenario for player groups with numerous rune-casters.

This scenario also introduces buy and sell methods typical of Wyrd, giving players the opportunity to garner wealth by procuring and selling apparently mundane materials. When using this scenario with alternative systems the GM will need to adjust the cost-to-sale ratios given for materials etc as appropriate to his own setting and campaign. He will also need to replace Soul Stones with something equally valuable.

Words italicized are coded in order to keep certain spoiler aspects of the campaign hidden from players. These code words are explained in the GM revealer PDF (see above).

Chronology The Bearing Pit will preferably be played early on in the campaign, if not first before any other scenarios. If later adventures have already been completed and Wormwood is already defeated, Bromhead will be alone when the group meet him. He has managed to save himself from implication in the Wormwood fiasco and is now tying up loose ends in order to save his own skin. Only one person knows of his connection with Wormwood - Sud Kuthein. Bromhead will emphasize the slaying of Sud rather than request his capture. The Soul Stones will, for Bromhead, be a bonus. He may hope to use them as leverage, or as funds to begin a new life elsewhere.

If Bromhead is dead, or captured, the group will be employed by a journalist working for one of Verdandi's newspapers (see page 114 of The Age of Thaw). The journalist has pieced together evidence from his

When infused into the natural energies and ordered structure of wyrman physicality, Soul Stone dissipates and becomes, once more, a functioning part of the logical universe; repairing the fabric of time and space. Scholars of the esoteric interpret this as a stitching of the rip in reality and a healing of damage to the tapestry, the membrane weave and boundary that tells the story of the dream to the Nüsphere’s attentive consciousness.

Some Soul Stones represent much greater rifts in reality than others and are therefore more soporific to the Nüsphere. The Dread Soul Stone, black with the Dunlight of the abyss beyond the tapestry, where Gungin lulls the Nüsphere toward dream-time, cannot be so easily stitched and is the manifestation of a hole so great that it threatens the integrity of the whole.

The only tear greater than that of the Dread is the Gungin Gap itself, a cleave in the earth but also in the stuff of reality. Black with the lightlessness known only to the sleeping mind, it gapes between the Entopic Plane and the realm of pure chaos and is the only place in all the universe from which chaos can actively seep into reality.

Where Gungin grows stronger, the Gap widens, and where he grows weaker, the Gap shrinks. Such alterations in the dimensions of the chasm are barely noticeable in the limited life-spans of the wyrmen, but over long aeons such changes will likely become more apparent.

Ultimately the Gap seeks to expand to infinite proportions, swallowing not only the world of Yarnia but all the universe and even the Cosmic Cavern itself, overwhelming the conscious multiverse of the Nüsphere and returning all that is, that will be and that once was back into the state of dreaming sleep. If Gungin achieves this end the void will overwhelm all substance. The Elvians will perish, Yneur's time and order snuffed out as the Nüsphere sublimates into chaos. The Web of Wyrd will collapse, sinking into the sockets of the gaps between the strands and the Elgan gods, pure minds of malevolent force, will finally be free.

Soul Stones are representative avatars of this creeping doom, but they are also schismatic in form for once the manifest being surrounding them is slain the stone reverts to raw chaos and in the hands of wyrmen can be used to great effect. For this reason are Soul Stones a rudimentary form of currency within the world of Yarnia, the more powerful the stone, the more potent its effects on the wyrman and therefore the greater its monetary worth.

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investigation of Wormwood and has concluded that Sud Kuthein is somehow involved. His belief that Sud is a wicked character embroiled in Wormwood is mistaken, but he will employ the player group in any case to seek out the character known as 'The Black Raven' and return him to Verdandi to face justice.

Player Information RUMOUR A break-in at the house of the noble Lord Gonville Bromhead resulted in the theft of several red Soul Stones which had been in the Bromhead family for generations. A reward is offered for the capture of the thief and the safe return of the stones.

Interested parties should attend the Ducal Order of Abbraxists and ask for an audience with Lord Bromhead.

In fact, and once player characters begin investigating this rumour, they will learn that the stones did not belong to Bromhead but that Bromhead is merely working on behalf of an anonymous client 'within the Wythian church'. The stones were stolen from the client's personal cache and are believed to be stashed in the cellar of a tower in Dunkunom. Help is needed to recover the stones and bring the thief to justice. The preferred anonymity of the client should be considered normal for someone in the Wythian faith as the hoarding of red Soul Stones is typically frowned upon by the church.

Details INTRODUCING THE SCENARIO Players should begin by seeking out the Ducal Order of Abbraxists which can be found in the Ward of Orders (see page 114 of The Age of Thaw).

Here the player group will be given the address of a town-house situated in a wealthy district of Verdandi where they will be instructed to go the following evening for a meeting with Lord Bromhead. The group will need to amuse themselves until this time.

A MEETING WITH BROMHEAD When the group arrive at the address, a servant will usher them into a plush reception hall where they will be greeted by Lord Bromhead and his assistant, a severe looking wyr-woman called Dollabella Vine.

Dollabella Vine is an NPC the group are sure to encounter in several different guises as they progress through the campaign (see The Warp ). Dollabella will take notes throughout the meeting but rarely speaks, if she speaks at all. She will appear to player characters as an attractive but business-like common

wyr-woman, her attention entirely on the notes she is writing, which merely seem to be a record of the meeting.

Bromhead will momentarily break away to say goodbye to guests whom he was entertaining in an adjacent room. He may be seen bidding farewell to a collection of aristocrats among whom is Conteth Skylerat Eaglewood. Eaglewood is another recurring NPC and an integral aspect of The Plan , though his name and appearance will probably be unknown to the player group if this rumour is followed early in their campaign.

Bromhead will present the group with their brief. The following points should be conveyed in order: o The stolen Soul Stones, of which there are ten in total, are red and are the rightful property of a Wythian Weaver friend of Bromhead's acquaintance. The Wythian reserves the right to remain anonymous, which is why Bromhead is acting publicly on his behalf. o The Weaver has a long term enemy whom Bromhead refers to as 'The Black Raven'. o The Black Raven is the prime suspect in the theft.

His address in Dunkunom is known and given to the player group as The Bearing Spire, Manufacturing Ward, Ditaria, Dunkunom. o The Black Raven is purportedly a rogue runecaster of considerable talent. o The reward for completing the job is 5000 Wealth for the safe return of all ten stones, minus 500 Wealth for each stone the group fail to recover. o If the group capture the Black Raven alive and bring him back to Verdandi to face justice they will receive a further 5000 Wealth, regardless of how many stones they recover. o City gatekeepers know the group are coming and will take the Raven off their hands at the threshold of the city. o There is no additional reward for the Raven's body if the characters have to kill him, but nor will there be a penalty.

Gamesmaster's Background The Black Raven is actually a righteous Weaver (real name Sud Kuthein) who has fled Verdandi in order to escape Wormwood and The Warp .

The character referred to as Bromhead's 'Weaver friend' and client is Lord Harrow Mand, reputedly a direct descendant of a divine bloodline. Harrow Mand serves The Warp and is an active participant in Wormwood .

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The stolen red Soul Stones are spoils from Skylerat's activities in Menhirnar.

While investigating Wormwood , Sud Kuthein mistakenly believed the stones were destined to be used to further The Plan .

Fearing this, he stole the stones and though he has no intention of using them he hopes to at least keep them from being used.

Sud belongs to the order of the Tablemen of the Mountain and if he is captured then handed over to authorities (as opposed to Bromhead and his cohorts) the Tablemen will vouch for him as one of their own.

The players may never learn of Sud's true name and identity. It is likely the players will only know Sud as The Black Raven and, since their quarry will be taken off their hands at the city gate by guards on the payroll of Bromhead, none within the city will see Sud again in order to identify him.

Bromhead will claim the Black Raven has gone to ground in an old delapidated tower in Dunkunom, hiding the stolen stones somewhere in the grounds of the tower while he hides somewhere inside the building. If the players fail to enquire about the nature of the tower, Bromhead will give only the tower's address.

When they meet him, Sud will probably assume the player group are merely another aspect of Wormwood . Because of this, he will probably refrain from revealing his real name and will instead use the moniker Raven (the Black aspect is added by Bromhead to give the player group a false impression of Sud's ethos).

Sud favours black robes and a black hood which he hopes will conceal his features. The result gives him a sinister appearance which is likely to substantiate the player group's mistaken belief that Sud is some kind of wicked character.

If captured and handed over to Bromhead's cronies, Sud will vanish. His likely fate after this cannot be known but his knowledge of The Warp and The Plan are likely to ensure his fate is terminal.

BEARING SPIRE The tower known as Bearing Spire dates from a time when Dunkunom was on the cusp of its current industrial revolution. The place was once a factory producing metal ball-bearings which were, in the tower's hey-day, used in factory machines.

Molten lead would be carried by a crude elevator to the top of the tower then dripped from a mechanical crucible, droplets falling the full height of the tower's hollow interior would form spheres as they fell, cooling and becoming solid by the time they hit the ground level.

The ball bearings were then collected in a pit set into the floor at ground level where thousands of the objects would then be drained into wagons and taken via underground tracks to a nearby distribution warehouse.

When demand for machinery bearings dried up, the balls were exported to Skyssa as lead shot for rifles, pistols and other Skytorian firearms. But the market was saturated and Bearing Spire went out of business.

Much of the surplus product remains on the premises in the pit at the base of the tower. The industrial mogul who currently owns the tower intends, at some point, to melt the lead down and sell it as a base metal. The building will probably then be demolished.

The structure of Bearing Spire has switched hands a few times, but was found to be subsiding due to the tunnels excavated beneath its foundations. It is no longer fit for purpose and seems likely to collapse 12

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before long if the owner doesn't get around to tearing it down.

SUD KUTHEIN

The owner's interest in the place is minimal but he has a fearsome understanding of possession laws and will utilize the full force of Dunkunian law against anyone seen or discovered breaking and entering.

Rune School: Wythia Size Bonus: 3 Spirit: 10

Word has reached the owner in recent weeks of strangers spotted in the grounds. In response he has attached razor wire to the top of the surrounding wall and has also kennelled guard dogs in the grounds.

GROUNDS OF THE TOWER The area around the outer wall is quiet and secluded, over-looked by a few broken factory windows which are too high for anyone to be peeking through at inopportune moments.

The player group should be able to scout out the site and gain entry without drawing any unwanted attention to themselves: AA Sneak dice checks should be made when scouting the tower. Anyone failing their check will only be spotted if they then also fail a Spirit roll.

TOWER APPEARANCE Bearing Spire is a tall, delapidated tower, standing over 100ft in height and looming over the outer wall.

The main shaft of the building is hexagonal, topped by a wider upper storey whose projecting floor is supported by timbers of rotten wood.

The roof of the tower appears to be flat, surrounded by a stone balustrade. In fact a conical tiled roof is situated inside an outer retaining wall, rain water flowing off the roof collected by internal guttering then channelled into stone culverts which would once have connected to water storage inside the tower.

This water would then have been poured into the pit of bearings to cool the metal ready for transport.

There are no visible windows in the tower and if there is a door it will be hidden from view by the outer wall and thick undergrowth filling the grounds.

SUD KUTHEIN A Tableman of the Mountain and a Weaver known to many who frequent the northern territories of the Angle and in particular the city of Verdandi. Sud drinks regularly at the Blade & Lion and is known as an upstanding citizen and Wythian adept by many of Verdandi's righteous aristocrats and businessmen.

He is a fiery character, prone to melancholy but alive with energy, fiercely devoted to his faith and sworn to battle the dark cults wherever he finds them. He is fond of a drink and known to sometimes experiment with mind-altering substances. A lateral thinker, Sud is inventive and clever, but impulsive and unpredictable when roused.

Art & Expertise: 7 Acrobatics [+2], Archery [+1], Bladed Weapons [+0], Brawl [+2], Climb [+2], Combat Talent [+3], Craft [+4], Dodge [+1], Engineer [+1], Firecraft [+3], Hit Bullseye [+2], Leap [+2], Polearm [+0], Rune Scribing [+5], Sling [+2], Sneak [+3], Swift [+4], Swim [+4], Two Weapon Combat [+0] Force & Form: 6 Bludgeon [+0], Granite Skull [+0], Might [+0], Physical Intimidation [+0], Pitch [+0], Sturdy on the Feet [+0] Mind & Memory: 11 Allure [+3], General Knowledge [+6], Immune to Charm [+2], Intellectual Intimidate [+1], Learn [+3], Meditation [+1], Orphic Knowledge [+6], Place in the Cosmos [+2], Read Person [+2], Speak/Read/Write Language [+2] Sense & Sympathy: 8 Hear a Pin Drop [+0], Kinship [+3], Orphic Effect [+4], Sense Motive [+2], Spot Secrets [+2], Taste & Smell [+3], Zone Out Noise [+2] Fate & Fortune: 10 Aesthete [+2], Courage [+5], Opacity [+1], Orphic Talent [+3], Resistance to Evil [+2] Storm & Stamina: 7 Endurance [+1], Hold Breath [+1], Immunity to Disease [+1], Immunity to Poison [+0], Recover [+2], Skirmish Strength [+2] MAGICK Nudge Bank: 13 Orphic Plasm: 26 STRENGTH Life-Force: 110 Max Psychic Wounds: 5 Max Severe Wounds: 4 COMBAT Skirmish Smarts: 20 Weapons: Standard Short Sword (medium sword, 1 handed melee weapon (AA Bladed Weapons) b+0 [short blade made from ferror steel] 28k/6w) Armour: none Common Gear: table and page in System & Setting given after each item (page numbers correspond to the PDF, not the printed version). x10 Beeswax candle (t23, p362), Black Gauntlets of the Raider (t25, p366), Black Breeches of the Wanderer (t25, p366), Blankets of Warmth & Comfort (t23, p362), Comfy Bedroll (t23, p362), Cowled Robes of Shadow and Mire* (t25, p367), String of Many Uses (t23, p363), Sun Food Provisions x 5, Tindercase/ Promethean (t23, p363). *Ee4 to Physical Intimidation dice checks or Dd2 to AA Read Person/Sense Motive made against Sud when hood is raised COMBOS: none

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Sud might be encountered again at another point in the campaign only if he is rescued from Bearing Spire by the players then from his enemies in Verdandi by the Tablemen of the Mountain. Thereafter he might be encountered in and around Verdandi.

Sud is currently hiding on the uppermost floor where he intends to stay until he can somehow get word to allies in the Tablemen of his predicament.

Location Key (Grounds) The Spire (vital statistics) Exterior Walls: Object Strength 800, Might 2, Sturdy on the Feet 18.

Front Door: Object Strength 12, Might 0, Sturdy on the Feet 0.

A Rusted Iron Gate The owner of Bearing Spire has attached a substantial padlock to keep out prowlers.

The padlock will prove difficult to break, but targeting the lock will create very little noise.

Padlock Object Strength: 8 Armour Bonus: 1, AA Might: 1 Rusty Gate Object Strength: 4 Armour Bonus 0 AA Might 0 The gate is weaker than the padlock, but breaking the gate will cause a lot of noise. Any noise will wake the guard dogs sleeping in the undergrowth at location B (see below).

If the player characters decide to try to scale the wall or gate they make a passive AA Climb dice check with Dd1 incurred to get to the top, falling on a failed roll and incurring 1d4 Life-Force damage.

Razor wire has been wound in loops along the top inside edge of the wall. The wire can only be cut using some kind of tin snips or wire cutters and cannot be broken in the conventional sense.

To get past the razor wire players make a passive AA Acrobatics dice check with 1 Life-Force damage incurred if the check succeeds and 1d6 damage if it fails. Any roll of double zero on the check hand indicates the character is tangled in the razor wire, incurring an additional d6 Life-Force damage. They will subsequently need to be cut free by an ally.

Once past the gate the player group will find themselves on a raised landing with a crumbling stone balustrade overlooking the dense and prickly foliage throttling the grounds of Bearing Spire. Out of all this rises the tower, a tall hexagonal structure with a flared uppermost level whose floor extentds some feet from the main shaft and which is supported by rotted and algae green wooden timbers.

Most of the tower is covered in strangling ivy and climbing weeds, lichen growing in great jagged cracks that encircle the tower entirely in some places.

The overall impression is of an abandoned site likely to collapse before long.

B Guard Dogs Two guard dogs are sleeping in this approximate location. The dogs are trained fighters and will attack any intruder on sight, however they will need to run through the grounds and up the stairs onto the landing, giving the player group time to prepare a defence.

Sud will hear if the group battle the guard dogs. Any combat between player characters and dogs will alert Sud to the presence of the player group and he will

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have time to prepare himself for their arrival.

If the player group are sneaking in at night they fail to spot the dogs unless they are actively searching.

If the player group are sneaking in by day they make a passive AA Spot Secrets dice check per player (Dd2 imposed due to the undergrowth) to notice the dogs. This roll does not determine whether the dogs hear or see the player characters in turn.

Whether the dogs are spotted or not, all players venturing into the grounds must make an opposed AA Sneak dice check vs the dogs' AA Hear a Pin Drop value (maximum Evident Ease to the player character's advantage as the dogs are sleeping). On any failed roll the dogs are woken and come charging through the garden to investigate.

C Balcony Overlooking Grounds This crumbling and ancient landing affords a view over the thorny tops of the undergrowth.

From here, player characters will be able to see a path amidst the choking weeds and nettles and an old rotten door in the base of the tower.

If players make successful AA Spot Secrets dice checks, both the path and the door look to have been cleared of foliage recently and an inspection of the path will reveal the presence of fresh footprints leading to and from the tower, along with canine paw prints.

D

GUARD DOGS x 2 Size Bonus: 3 Art & Expertise: 6 Acrobatics [+5], Brawl [+5], Climb [+5], Combat Talent [+1], Craft [NA], Dodge [+0], Hit Bullseye [+0], Leap [+4], Polearm [+0], Sling [NA], Sneak [+4], Swift [+7], Swim [+5] Force & Form: 6 Bludgeon [+0], Granite Skull [+2], Might [+1], Physical Intimidation [+2], Pitch [NA], Sturdy on the Feet [+4] Mind & Memory: 2 Allure [+4], Immune to Charm [+3], Learn [+4], Place in the Cosmos [+9], Read Person [+3] Sense & Sympathy: 6 Hear a Pin Drop [+7], Kinship [+6], Sense Motive [+0], Spot Secrets [+6], Taste & Smell [+8], Zone Out Noise [+8] Fate & Fortune: 10 Courage [+12] Storm & Stamina: 8 Endurance [+6], Hold Breath [+0], Immunity to Disease [+0], Immunity to Poison [+0], Recover [+5], Skirmish Strength [+6] STRENGTH Life-Force: 57 Max Severe Wounds: 4 COMBAT Skirmish Smarts: 18 Weapons: Bite of the Jackal (natural bite, melee weapon (AA Brawl) b+3) Armour: coat b+1 (doesn't deplete when incurring damage).

Combos: none

Old Track & Bearing Drain An old and rusty cart track. If characters investigate the thick undergrowth into which the track vanishes they will find an upturned cart made of heavy bronze and a scattered pile of small metal spheres in the long grass.

If the player group follow the track it leads into a low tunnel too small for any character with a Size Bonus of 4 or more.

The tunnel branches off in two directions. An old way-point on the track can be shifted using a lever handle to allow the cart to take either route, though this is now so rusty any attempt to move it will either fail or the lever will snap.

The left branch of the tunnel ends abruptly at a cave-in where boulders, rubble and earth bar the way.

The right branch of the tunnel curves around sharply out of sight and leads to a low ceilinged

circular cave, the tracks ending at a buffer in the middle of the room.

In the centre of the flat ceiling a large metal chute protrudes down into the room, its narrow funnel situated above the end of the track. Next to this, a rope hangs down from the ceiling.

If the rope is pulled hundreds of thousands of ball bearings will pour down the chute, emptying onto the floor of the cave. If the chute is left open the flow will eventually stop as bearings clog up the funnel.

Yanking the rope again will close the chute.

The GM should make a secret Spirit roll for the character who yanked the rope and if he succeeds a red Soul Stone is visible in the mound of bearings.

If player characters sift through the pile they will cause more bearings to pour down, unless the rope is pulled again (closing the aperture hidden above the

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Workman's Tool Roll of the Tinkerer) the resulting aperture in the ceiling will be big enough for any character with a Size Bonus of 3 or less to climb through. They will emerge into the pit at the base of the tower which will now be covered with a few centimetres of ball bearings, the remaining red Soul Stones scattered about the bottom of the pit (see On The Ground Floor below). The character will find themselves 10ft below the ledge and the front door.

E The Front Door of Bearing Spire A sturdy door with a large iron knocker shaped like a folkballer's leg, replete with folkball boot and ankle socks. The proud-looking image of a rooster perched atop an ammonite fossil and grasping a sword in its talons is etched under the knocker and above an inscription which reads: Bearinge Spire, constructed in 1879 following the great fire of Dunkunom under proprietor Finbarr Bagshaw. This grande furnishinge is awarded to the Bagshaw family by The Grande Duke Pentecost Gwelenbryal III as a moste splendid gift for their aid in the resolution of the Lundian Civil Treaty of 1880. long live Norsia FC, long live The Gaffers, long live the Gwelenbryals.

The only way into and out of Bearing Spire is through this front door or through one of the extremely narrow windows which will be impossible for anyone with a Size Bonus of 2 or higher.

The door cannot be opened normally from the inside and both magickal barriers described below will need to be dealt with regardless of which side of the portal characters are on. chute). The player group will find d6 red Soul Stones until finally one plugs the funnel and stops the ingress of any more bearings. Anyone clearing the bearing pile then shining a light up into the chute will see the Soul Stone and may be able to dislodge it.

When Bearing Spire was a working interest the cart would be loaded with bearings in this room (the bearings pouring down from the pit in the base of the tower above. These would then be taken through the other spur of the line to the basement of an adjacent building where the balls would be checked and packed for transport. The cave-in has cut off this main spur and any attempts to dig through will only cause further risk of collapse. Only by engineering a fresh tunnel, building supports and excavating the old track can the link be reinstated. The cost of this should be considered prohibitive for any practical purpose.

If all the bearings are cleared through the chute and into the cave then the chute itself is removed (requires passive AA Engineer dice check and the

The 3ft thick walls are made of the same local granite forming many of the larger buildings of Dunkunom.

The door has been reinforced by Sud with two spells Dara's Obstacle of Might and Impass of Frun (for the door's basic vital statistics see the start of this location key).

At a glance the door will appear to be old and rotten with a rusty keyhole and a metal grille peephole set a foot or so above the ornate door knocker. Runes are clearly visible, carved into the surrounding doorframe, the frame being included in the Obstacle of Might.

Any Weavers in the group will recognize the runes as part of the spell Dara's Obstacle of Might. If the group has no Weaver creed among them, any player may attempt a passive AA Orphic Knowledge dice check to identify the runic school and another with Dd2 incurred to identify the spell.

The runes for Impass of Frun are invisible and therefore the presence of this spell will only be known

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if some form of magick detection is used, or characters attempt to break down the door after successfully dismissing Dara's Obstacle of Might.

Dara's Obstacle creates a forcefield barrier which anyone reaching out to touch the door will feel immediately, the sensation akin to touching a sheet of plate glass just shy of the door's surface. The barrier has no AA Might value but possesses an armour bonus of 173 which boosts the door's Object Strength in the usual way.

Impass of Frun gives the door an additional armour bonus of 200 which can only be degraded using magickal attacks. Any standard attacks made against the door will be deflected, regardless of their ferocity.

Only when armour bonus associated with both spells has been degraded can the door itself be damaged.

Location Key (Inside the Tower) On The Ground Floor (Overview) The front door opens into a circular chamber.

Looking up, the roof is dizzyingly high and shrouded in darkness, the inner shaft of the tower looming above like the bore of some enormous gun.

A pit is set into the floor a few feet away from the front door, a ledge running around this pit for a short distance.

The ledge to the right meets the first step of a stairway which coils around the inside wall of the tower, rising counter-clockwise into the shadows above. The ledge to the left ends at a square platform.

Upon the platform is some kind of cradle. In an arched alcove next to the stone platform is a stone crucible with an iron winch (see The Elevator).

The cradle is made of worm-eaten wood and contains a battered metal tray. Thick ropes attached to the four corners of the cradle merge into a single knot which in turn rises as one length of rope into the shadows above.

The rope is furnished with knots spaced approximately one foot apart. Sturdy and well secured. It will support any character with a Size Bonus of 4 or less and the knots will make the climb relatively easy (see Using the Rope, below).

The platform, cradle, and winch form a crude elevator once used to convey crucibles of molten metal into the uppermost floor of the tower and is the means by which Sud has been gaining access to the room in the roof, the stairs being unstable and dangerous.

Ground Floor (The Pit) Within the pit are hundreds of thousands (if not

The Treasure of Be aring Spire The ball bearings could theoretically be one of the most valuable treasures the player group encounter on their travels. However, benefiting from this treasure will require greater effort than merely opening a chest and transferring loot into a sack.

A buyer will first need to be secured who is willing to take on a vast quantity of ball bearings if any serious wealth is to be made.

As a market for bearings no longer exists in any large way, this will likely prove to be an exercise requiring patience and guile.

The bearings gain the greatest worth when melted down to their constituent metal (lead). This might then be sold as a material/ingredient for the value listed in System & Setting (table 22, page 361). Such a large quantity of lead could potentially present a decent haul, but requires a buyer prepared to invest wholesale. Such a buyer is likely to be a long way from Dunkunom and will also expect the player group to arrange all smelting and delivery at their own expense.

Hefty costs should be expected for the transportation of the metal (a Dunkunian haulier will typically charge between 1w and 2w per 1k of weight to be transported, with costs rising over any great distance, especially for the player group whom the haulier may identify as being unused to negotiating a price. Storage will also take a chunk of any profit, a Dunkunian warehouse typically charging 10w per 5k of weight per month the item is warehoused). The seller will also require the use of an industrial crucible for smelting such a large quantity of metal in the first place. And where all of this needs to be performed outside Dunkunom most costs can be doubled.

For example, the bearings are melted to their constituent metal (lead) giving them a base value on the market of 60,000k x 4+d4w.

Where (2) is rolled on d4 this might be 60,000k x (4+2) = 60,000 x 6 = 360,000w.

The bearings will need to be smelted, presumably by a local forge to reduce transport costs - the charge being anywhere between 500w to 800w per 1000k weight (most forges will go in at 1w per 1k but will then reduce the fee if the client seems knowledgable or takes offense, and then reduce even further if the client seems likely to offer return business). For 60,000k this might amount to costs of 48,000w.

Standard haulage costs might be anything up to 120,000w but could be far more where the metal needs to be shipped by sea or Gigaerack. Warehousing costs might amount to 12,000w per month. Again, all quotes are negotiable and the GM should allow players AA Intellectual Intimidate dice checks and any others she deems appropriate (including Spirit rolls) to help the group achieve a lower price.

Returning to the example, the player group will lose 264,000w from their profit margin (a vast outlay they will need to source from somewhere), but will still enjoy an attractive return for all their effort and expense (180,000w profit). However, if a buyer cannot be found immediately, warehouse costs will be incurred every month and where the buyer is in a distant land, haulage fees could potentially double. All this omits the logistics involved in getting so much metal out of the grounds of Bearing Spire without attracting attention.

The GM (if not the players) should remember that the ball bearings belong to the owner of the tower and cannot be classified as salvage unless the tower is officially 'abandoned'.

Taking the lead and either selling or smelting the metal then selling it wholesale or in part should be classified as stealing and, indeed, will be viewed as theft in a court of law. This could have a detrimental affect on the player characters' Allegiance values.

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millions) of spherical lead pellets, mixed with slabs of fallen masonry and the odd shard of broken timber.

The uppermost surface of the bearings lies just two feet below the top of the pit. One double handful of bearings weighs 1k and are worth 1+d4w per 1k on the open market (the entire pit holding approximately 60,000k in weight altogether). In the lowermost depths of this mass of bearings are the red Soul Stones the group have come to retrieve, hidden there by Sud. Though the player group will have no way of measuring unless they have some kind of magickal detection method planned, the pit is approximately ten feet deep by eighteen feet wide.

To search the pit requires one passive AA Spot Secrets dice check (incurring Dd2) per ten in-game minutes of searching. Sifting through the bearings will make a great deal of noise, alerting Sud to the presence of the group almost immediately.

For every instance of (1) rolled on the check hand the searcher will recover one red Soul Stone.

Removal of the ball bearings without utlizing the hole and chute in the base of the pit (see Old Track & Bearing Drain, above) will require at least three to four days of shovelling and transporting them out of the tower and into the grounds. Excavation will also require dealing with the large chunks of masonry which are likely to be far too heavy for anyone with a Might value of 18 or less to shift. Transportation of the bearings will need to be made using some kind of cart or wheelbarrow.

Ascending The Tower A gap 40ft above the base of the staircase is caused by an alarming crack, itself caused by subsidence and the age of the building. The crack encircles the stonework entirely and where this meets the stairwell the steps have crumbled and fallen away. A gap of some 20 vertical and 18 horizontal feet exists where the stairs end and the precarious lower step of the next flight begins on the far side of the shaft.

The steps are extremely perilous and anyone attempting to climb them should make a Spirit roll every 10ft they rise into the tower (four checks before they reach the gap in the stairwell).

The steps will collapse beneath their feet where the Spirit roll fails and anyone above will be trapped on a section now cut off from below, while anyone below will be unable to ascend any further (the GM should be clear of marching order and which characters are in front of or behind others).

Anyone caught on the section of steps that collapse will plunge into the ball bearing pit.

FALLING FROM A HEIGHT Anyone who falls, either from the rope or from the landing above, incurs 1d6 Life-Force damage for every 10ft they fall. Falling characters make a Spirit roll and land in the ball bearing pit if they succeed. If they fail they hit the ledge surrounding the pit then rebound into the pit incurring one Severe Wound on top of standard damage (see Severe Wounds table).

Anyone who falls into the ball bearing pit from a height will sink 3 feet for every 10ft they fall.

Where the depth the victim sinks exceeds the victim's AA Force & Form value they vanish under the surface of the bearings. They will be stuck firmly as though buried in quick sand and will need to be rescued. Anyone sinking this far will still be able to breathe thanks to tiny pockets of air between the spherical bearings, however there is a chance the victim will accidentally inhume the bearings themselves.

Anyone who submerges beneath the surface of the ball bearings should make a Spirit roll. They breathe in bearings where they fail the roll and incur 1d10+10 LifeForce damage per skirmish round they remain in the bearings as they slowly choke to death.

As soon as they are rescued it can be assumed their rescuer slaps them hard on the back, they cough up the balls lodged in their throat and recover their breath.

The safest way to ascend the tower is by climbing the

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ASCENDing THE ROPE

In-Game Chatter

One passive AA Climb dice check will be required for every 20ft of height (80ft and four checks total) and one AA Courage dice check for every 40ft (one at the halfway point and one at the top).

Sud Kuthein is likely to hear characters who make excessive noise or are deemed to speak without talking in hushed whispers.

Ascending the rope will take a number of skirmish rounds equal to 30 minus any Skill Dice the player has in AA Swift.

If any AA Climb dice check fails the character loses their grip and falls into the pit; if any AA Courage dice check fails the character freezes in position, suffering from vertigo.

Characters frozen in position must make a successful passive AA Recover dice check to move again. They may make one Recover dice check per skirmish round, for a maximum number of skirmish rounds/dice checks equal to their AA Endurance value. After the maximum time their strength fails and they fall into the ball bearing pit. See Falling From Height above.

The GM should monitor, at the point characters begin to ascend the tower, the amount of chatter likely to translate as conversation between player characters (i.e. conversations that convey information between characters as opposed to out of character conversation, comments or questions). Where this occurs the GM should make a passive AA Hear a Pin Drop dice check for Sud, with Evident Ease applied depending on the amount of noise the GM deems the player group to be making.

Sud will also hear the group coming if they sift through the ball bearings in the pit or fall from the rope into the bearings. If they make any other kind of excessive noise he will also hear them without requiring a Hear a Pin Drop dice check. This all assumes the player group did not succumb to temptation at the front door of the tower by testing the door knocker.

sturdy rope attached to the grounded elevator cradle (Dungeon Master's Jute Rope - 100ft, see table 23, page 362 of System & Setting).

of bursting rockets and a cacaphony of noise.

At the rope's highest point it has been tied onto a horizontal spur of wood which juts out of the wall beneath a trap door in the wooden floor of the uppermost storey.

A pull down metal ladder above the trap door allows easy access to the uppermost room.

Directly under the trapdoor is the uppermost step of the stairway and an extended but crumbling stone landing big enough to house wyrmen with a combined Size Bonus of no more than 12.

A hole furnished with a metal collar next to the trap door is where the rope would originally have travelled up into the room above, but the rope is new and sturdy, replacing the original which Sud didn't trust to hold his weight.

The Trap Door A short pull-string dangles from the trap door and at the end of this is a rune-stone. The GM should state only that there is a weighted pull-string, describing the stone and the runes carved on its surface only if players ask for more details or seem suspicious about the nature of the word 'weighted'. Alternatively if players request either a Spirit roll or a Spot Secrets dice check they will notice the curious nature of the stone and guess it is some kind of rune object.

The rune-stone is decorated with the runes for Menhir's Trigger.

If anyone grabs the stone and pulls the string the spell Folly of Kamm will erupt from the stone, firework effects exploding, whizzing and popping all around the hapless victim, creating both a dazzling light show

If opened, the trap door will drop a few centimetres before a piston system lifts it upward on hinges.

The spell effect will get the attention of anyone working in Ditaria at the time (GM note: if the day is Saturday, so many Dunkunians will be either watching folkball or enjoying after-game revelries that nobody will notice the noise and light-show).

Folly of Kamm Folly of Kamm will cause no damage or effects other than the noise and light show of a sudden firework display in close proximity. The fireworks are harmless. They are intended to surprise anyone climbing the rope and give fair warning to Sud of the intruder's presence.

If Folly of Kamm triggers and a character is still clinging to the rope or climbing they will be startled, lose their grip and fall the full 80ft height of the tower into the bearing pit below.

Anyone standing on the landing or the stairs directly under the trapdoor when Folly of Kamm triggers must make one passive AA Courage dice check and one passive AA Zone Out Noise dice check, both with Dd2 incurred. If either check fails the victim staggers away from the exploding lights and falls from the edge of the landing into the bearing pit.

Characters who fall from the landing (and not from the rope) may make one AA Acrobatics dice check with Dd2 incurred as they attempt to fall laterally, landing on the stairs instead of plunging vertically into the shaft. In this instance they incur just 1d4 Life-Force damage and come to a stop just 10ft below the top of the stairs.

19

The Uppermost Room This room, like the rest of the tower, is cylindrical with hexagonal outer walls, but wider than the tower shaft.

The floor is made of rotten timbers which should give anyone treading on them great cause for concern.

The ceiling is a criss-cross web of old rafters, daylight (or starlight) visible in large patches where the tiles above have fallen away. An old straggly length of rope hangs down from one of the rafters onto one side of the room.

A strange contraption stands in the middle of the room spanning floor to ceiling, with pipes going off in various directions and some rusty workman's tools lie on a metal table near this contraption.

An upturned crucible is being used by Sud Kuthein as a seat, though he isn't using it when the player group arrive.

Sud Kuthein's things, including the remains of meals, a small flask of mead and a Wythian prayer rug are scattered around the floor of the room.

Sud Kuthein (probably better known to the players as The Black Raven) is seated on one of six deep window ledges, the windows little more than arrow loops flaring into the room to a width of about three feet per window. He is dressed in black, a deep cowl pulled up over his head, shading his face.

Sud will linger on the south side of the room where the wood seems to creak and flex less underfoot. He will stay here where possible, using magick to either conceal or defend himself until his Orphic Plasm is exhausted.

If the player group attempt to engage Sud in direct combat or otherwise harm him, Sud will clamber up the rope and onto the roof. From there he will threaten to jump if the group don't leave him alone and may even start to scream for help. From such a high place his cries are likely to be heard, unless the day is Saturday and most citizens of Dunkunom are in one of the city's folkball stadiums.

Sud's go-to spells will include Ambient Merge (where he tries to conceal himself either in the grounds or in the tower), Arcane Burn (which can be fired from windows in the highest point of the tower down on targets in the grounds - however Sud will avoid this where possible as the noise and light may attract attention from locals which Sud only wants if the uppermost room in the tower is breached). He may also employ Quadric Defence, Orphic Implosion and Runes of Countering. Sud will only use Orphic Implosion as a last resort as he will assume his attackers are Craven rune-casters, immune to the spell's effects.

The GM is free to use any other spell in the Weaver's

arsenal provided Sud possesses enough Orphic Plasm to fuel the spell.

On The Roof If the chase progresses onto the roof, the GM should make one AA Sturdy on the Feet dice check for Sud and for anyone else on the roof for every one in-game minute characters remain on the roof. Where any roll fails, the character loses his footing and slips, rolling down the tiles and smashing into the retaining wall surrounding the roof. This will subsequently collapse and the character will plunge over the edge, falling to almost certain death in the grounds below.

Either the GM (for Sud) or the player (for a falling player character) may make one passive AA Acrobatics dice check and if the check succeeds manages to grab the edge of the roof and hangs there. They may subsequently pull themselves back to safety. If the dice check fails, the character makes a final Spirit roll and on a successful roll survives the plunge but incurs 1d4 Severe Wounds and loses 4d20+20 Life-Force. The fall will render the character unconscious if he lives.

End Game If Sud can be captured and the situation explained, or he can be otherwise calmed down and convinced that the player group are on his side there is a small chance he will bring them into his circle of trusted friends, but this will require some overt displays of friendship and Sud is likely to require some kind of proof that the player characters are not leading him on or trying to trap him.

Sud

will

never

divulge

any

information

about

Wormwood to the player group but will give this information to someone in authority at the Tablemen or a trusted political figure (or even a trusted journalist) if the players can get Sud back to Verdandi without attracting the attention of Bromhead and his cohorts (Bromhead is likely to have the road through Tanowder and the approach to Verdandi watched so that he can install loyal guards on the gate in readiness for Sud's arrival).

If Sud is not surrended to the guards at the gate of Verdandi they will likely try to hold the player group and Sud while one or some of their number run to alert Bromhead of the situation. Only these guards are loyal to Bromhead and any others summoned will wish to know why their fellow guards are so eager to arrest Sud (and indeed who Sud is and why the player group have brought him to Verdandi).

Test of Morality Sud is of righteous ethos and is a Weaver and a member of the Tablemen of the Mountain. Where the 20

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player group are also of righteous ethos (or at least some participating members are) there will likely be conflicting interests should they attempt to apprehend or kill Sud. The GM should distinguish between knowledge of wrong-doing and accidental wrong-doing, but also between how something appears to outside observers compared with the actual reality.

In other words, a righteous player character can perhaps be forgiven for attempting to apprehend Sud if that character believes Sud is a wicked Craven rune-caster and a thief, or some kind of turncoat Weaver intent on some form of wickedness.

Attempting to kill Sud without first confirming that he deserves to die may, however, be considered immoral (simply being wicked may not be enough to warrant cold-blooded murder of any enemy unless Sud is clearly and actively trying to kill the player characters and they are forced to defend themselves).

Where the player character unwittingly attacks or injures Sud in the process of apprehending him but is unaware of Sud's true ethos, this may still be viewed as an act unworthy of a character of righteous ethos by his cult or other Allegiance based superiors.

The amount of Allegiance points lost (if any) for wrongly attacking and trying to apprehend Sud should depend on the above factors and how the GM deems the player character's actions may appear to those who may not be present but may hear of the incident through the usual channels.

Family Allegiance (Community) is particularly likely to suffer from a case of mistaken identity as the story is liable to be warped as it makes its way back to the character's seat of origin.

Next Issue THE AURA OF CORIOLA The Grand Duke's wife, Coriola Gwelenbryal, has not been seen in Verdandi for many months. Some say she has lost her mind and languishes now in the Salver's Asylum of Listholm.

The player group pass a newspaper vendor selling The Courant, a cheap newspaper featuring small ads and local rumours. Within this paper is a story about Coriola speculating on gossip that she has been taken to Listholm's Meresken Mansion (an asylum for the mentally and physically infirm) for treatment. The story is vague and ends with a hint that anyone capable of confirming the rumour by, for example, attending the asylum, might earn themselves a handsome reward from other newspapers.

The Crier is one of two dominant newspapers printed at the House of Leadletter and player characters who wish to enquire about the mentioned reward will need to attend this location in Verdandi and meet with the editor of the paper. If they attend the Courant offices first they will meet with Xenophil Goodlove, a bohemian Shamancer with little interest in getting to the bottom of the story himself. He will instead direct the group to Garran Rustbridge, editor of The City Crier.

He will also purchase any rumours the player group have for between 2 and 10 Wealth per rumour depending on how well known they are and how interesting he deems them to be.

Rumours on the rumour sheet are probably known to Xenophil already.

This scenario will take the player group to Listholm and the city of Tunturthis, introducing them to the Hyns-Horn railway (if they haven't already completed the Sleeper Agents scenario) and the perils of Sanas Morcorm.

Weavers are also likely to suffer greater losses than other righteous ethos creeds if they attack or kill Sud without first ascertaining his identity and intent.

Wyrd is a fantasy setting and game system (Elderune) written for mature gamers by mature gamers and intended as a next level RPG for roleplay veterans who feel they've 'seen it all'. A mix of the familiar and the very definitely unfamiliar combine in a setting so detailed you'll never need 21 another. Download the free System & Setting PDF here for a preview of the game. For more visit www.foreverpeople.co.uk

showcase A look at the highly anticipated second edition to Outbreak: Undead and a Q&A with game developer Christopher De La Rosa on the Kickstarter project and his plans for future releases.

Have you ever considered playing out the zombie apocalypse in your own town? With your own friends? Pitting yourself against the hordes of undead. As a survivor?

Thousands have already tested their Zombie Survival Plan with Outbreak: Undead‌ and now developers Hunters Books and lead designer Christopher De La Rosa claim to have made it even better...

Outbreak: Undead is a Zombie Survival 'Simulation' RPG that originally premiered at GenCon way back in 2010, and won several awards (ENnies 2011 - Judges Choice, GenCon Marketing Fellowship Award). It was vastly popular with the Zombie/Survivalist community and sold a great many books, obtaining a Gold Seller rating on DTRPG. Hunters Books, development team behind the game claim to have taken the feedback and challenges from the first edition and improved upon it, simplifying the rules while still allowing gamers to run the kind of game they want, with a degree of realism to create themselves as player characters using a sophisticated personality evaluation tool known as SPEW-AI. In short, not only do you get to plunge into the fray as a player character, but your player character will represent you in a very fundamental way. Christopher De La Rosa explains,

in-game Gestalt Level (previously called "Gestalt Dice" in 1st edition) has been an excellent way to round out a character to be more accurate to the player. Generally speaking, the way it works is that the longer a player uses the same character, the closer it will be to representing the player's actual ability ingame."

Short for the Strength, Perception, Empathy, and Willpower Assessment Inventory, SPEW-AI is an online test that was designed under close advisement of a PhD of Social Psychology strictly for the use in Outbreak: Undead.

The SPEW-AI also includes professional insight from Psychologists, Social Scientists, Police, Fire, Military, and Search/Rescue: it has been regarded as highly accurate, and been constructed to minimize bias, and to prevent ego and opinion from dictating results (unlike some other systems which boast a "create yourself as a character" function).

Finally the test also references it’s own data to help decide what is the universal bell curve. It has been taken by over 200,000 individuals and is completely free. You might like to try out the test yourself by following this link. (http://outbreakundead.com/spewai/)

"S.P.E.W.-A.I. is the test by which you can break yourself down into four generalized statistics. It was constructed with academic advisement and careful wording and application of question placement. Since such care was taken into making it, it serves as a pretty accurate baseline to build a character based on the player. It's got some weaknesses, but we're doing what we can to get the funding to continue its development with the proper professional rigor. Our 22 Forever Folio Issue #2

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The first edition boasted a simple and unique percentile based combat system, the use of everyday objects as weapons, virtually endless scenario types, with the ability to form missions from any and all existing zombie lore and fan-fiction, easy-to-use charts that could be used to customize outbreak scenarios for players of all levels of experience, dynamic rule-sets designed to turn the game into a simulation (including realistic factors such as ‚Panic,‛ ‚Pain,‛ and ‚Empathy‛) and character templates for all survivor archetypes, such as firemen, military personnel, civilians etc.

The core rulebook of Outbreak: Undead consisted of a player's guide, a game-master's guide, and a zombie guide all in one.

So what's new with the second edition?

"The main differences," Christopher explains, "are that since the "monster catalog" for O:U is so narrow, that combat itself is more strategic and interesting.

Cumbersome elements have been streamlined to limit "book-keeping" and character creation is much faster and easier. The terminology and structure of 1st Edition is preserved, but the system has been homogenized so that there are fewer mechanics to understand, which makes the learning curve and improvised rules much easier."

It's a simulation, but what can players expect, exactly?

Zombies, of course, but terror? Lots of combat and dice rolls? Strategy? Violence and gore, or subtle scares? All of the above?

Christopher is emphatic, "all of the above, of course!

Combat has dice rolls for sure, but it's less direct than "hit, kill, move on". We designed combat to build tension as a character doesn't get the immediate gratification of success or failure in their action. The dice are rolled at the beginning of the round by all players and opponents and the rest of the round resolves more like a game of poker. By doing the bulk of dice rolling at the beginning of a round, the rest of the round plays out with a high degree of player interactivity and generates tension and fear as players decide whether or not to use some of their generated combat resources to help themselves or friends in peril.

"In regards to violence and gore, it is up to the players and gamemasters' tolerances but we have some pretty inherent elements of both violence and gore.

The gamemasters have pools of player and scenariogenerated resource called "Risk" which can be used to expose characters to subtle terrors, grotesque opponents and horrifying situations. The real beauty of it is that a GM dialing back (or amping up) their level of violence and gore will not alter the difficulty of the game. Instead, the nature of the dangers and

horrors faced change and can be used to reflect the tastes of their group and the reality of the situation the GM is trying to represent."

Outbreak: Undead was a huge success and an ENnie award winner, with many positive and constructive reviews on DTRPG. Christopher describes how that feels to an indy game designer: "The word that most comes to mind is "gratitude".

There are a few times in life where you get validated in any way for work that you do and each time it happens, it is precious."

But Christopher isn't the sole driving force behind the project. Undead: Outbreak is very much a team effort: " We were in the same fraternity, it's where we met but there are plenty of people who get into fraternities together that don't do business with each other. It was really an attraction of like-minds combined with the courage to put your future in the hands of the marketplace. Not everyone has the guts for that, but it's that quality that has kept us going, even when the occasional disagreement arises. The main distinction between roles is that marketing and production are two tremendous beasts that command the attention of one of us, but we confer on everything as a general matter. We're all professionals in our respective fields so there is a trusting atmosphere among all our staff."

The system works. But successful game design is about more than like-minds. The RPG market is awash with creative friends producing the games they've played together and worked on for years. Why does it work so well at Hunters Books? " The general way I approach game design (after determining if the market is even in need of your product) is you start with a core mechanic that best represents the reality of your setting. We felt percentile was best because we used a lot of research and our emphasis is on realism, for example. After that, you begin to make exceptions or extrapolations [from] the core mechanic. What modifies it, how or why, under what circumstances, etc? Those modifiers will begin to take shape and be given proper names and categories which makes their appropriation determined by the choices and creativity of the player as well as the nature of the desired setting of the gamemaster. At some point, some deference is made to setting and that directs the categorization of the rule exceptions described earlier. This is very general, but most games fall into this development structure."

The second edition Starter Kit has already reached its funding goal, but there are still plenty of opportunities for backers to get onboard with stretch goals.

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Christopher describes some of the team's aims in this respect.

"We hope to reach the final stretch goal of starting the S.P.E.W.-A.I. 2. That is very important to us and our fans, but it's one we take seriously enough to make sure it's developed professionally or not at all. In between that and where we are, a contributor can expect more character cards, GM screen inserts that use our current reusable GM screen and three extra character cards, one of which is our gorgeous cover model. We also offer cards for use in Pandemic Play, as described earlier. These are usable for a wide range of functions in organized play."

And beyond that? What's next for Hunters Books.

"We're going headfirst into Pandemic Play and the developing of the 2nd Edition books. That's our primary focus. Outbreak: Deep Space will also get love as we're recruiting writers for our supplements in that arena. We are also developing off-zombie genre games that are fun, but are looking at different market segments. Most notably a rock-themed card game. A more recent development is that we're partnering with a Hollywood production company to develop gorgeous high-concept role playing games of their prospective intellectual properties. But that's about as much as we can say about that development in particular without betraying confidences."

For now it seems all energies are focused on the zombie genre. A genre many would argue is approaching the end of its shelf life. The team behind Outbreak: Undead are unlikely to agree: "Honestly, every time we feel the genre is in its decline, something comes out of the woodwork that demonstrates a complete understanding of the genre's appeal and reanimates it (pun 100% intended). For every good title, there are a hundred others that are trying to capitalize on a trend and smother the genre with mediocrity, so there's a cycle of ups and downs as breakout titles utilize the genre successfully emerge and are smothered. That can be said about most genres though. One other thing that sets zombies in general apart is that zombies in the traditional sense are the only monster that it's still ok to kill and want to kill. Max Brooks made that point and he's completely accurate, and this goes a long way in trying to make sense of the pop cultural resilience of zombies."

With that in mind we'll let Christopher sign off this showcase: "Thanks so much for giving us time and space to share our thoughts with you. If you are interested in learning more, you can visit our forums on www.outbreakundead.com/TheForum/ - Also make sure you check out the Kickstarter for our Second Edition Starter Kit!" The Kickstarter page, which still features plenty of stretch goals for backers to unlock can be found here (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/186293494/out break-undead-2nd-edition-starter-kit)

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The free, serialized fantasy roleplaying system with adventure scenarios, designed for, and playtested by, kids

You know... for kids. Want something that will tear them away from the iPad, the app store and the TV? Want to spend some quality play time with them but feel stupid dressing up as a Power Ranger? Want to give them something that will test their brain-power, their imagination and their creativity?

Mazes, Maps & Monsters is a serialised fantasy

roleplaying game for you and your minions. Designed with an old school structure but using new-school methods to engage a younger audience, MM&M will introduce them gently to the roleplay hobby while simultaneously giving them something substantial to cut their teeth on.

The system is designed to appeal to, and to be understood by, players between the ages of 6 and 14.

This is a considerably broad brushstroke, but the system has been thoroughly playtested, with successful sessions including players belonging to the full spectrum of suggested age groups.

Your players will need a pencil, a copy of the character sheet (see below), an eraser and the following dice: 1d4, 2d6, 1d12, 1d20.

Note, the following rules include fixes to the character types, which were mixed up due to a technical glitch in the last issue. If your players are already playing the 'Wizard' or the 'Shortling' they should continue doing so. The Wizard is precisely the same as the Enchanter or Enchantress, the 'Brave' is precisely the same as the Champion or Heroine, and the Shortling is precisely the same as the Gnome or Fairy. The adjusted character names merely offer players a wider range of feminine/masculine sub-types.

Choosing Characters To begin with players choose a character type and may choose from the Enchanter or Enchantress, the Virtuoso or Sorceress, The Champion or Heroine or the Gnome or the Fairy.

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Enchanter/Enchantress The Enchanter (male) or Enchantress (female) is a talented magician who can use magic. Players who choose to play as this character will get to cast (and collect) plenty of spells.

Virtuoso/Sorceress The Virtuoso (male) or Sorceress (female) is an expert in the use of mystical objects, including rings, talismans, amulets, wands and any other kind of magical item. This character will get to collect lots of special and interesting items of equipment.

Champion/Heroine The Champion (male) is a mighty warrior, while the Heroine (female) is a warrioress. Both character are skilled with a sword, or any other kind of weapon.

These characters can expect to be involved in lots of fighting and will be able to use their strength and bravery to protect the other characters in their team.

Gnome/Fairy The Gnome (male or female) or Fairy (male or female) are small, shy characters. Their speciality is climbing, tumbling and hiding. The Fairy can also hover using her wings and can turn invisible if she needs to, while the shrewd Gnome can use his special ability to hypnotize his enemies.

Selecting a Character Type The GM should read out these character descriptions, giving players a chance to choose one character each and, where necessary, giving players advice on which character might best suit them during the 26 p26

Mazes, Maps & Monsters ~ Game Rules game. Characters can either be taken at the start of the first session then used for subsequent sessions, or players can try a different character in each new adventure. Where some players wish to change their character but others wish to carry theirs over, the GM should be flexible and allow this, though any equipment collected by previous characters in previous sessions should not be carried over to new characters.

ROLLING ABILITIES Each player rolls dice to generate the following abilities:

Agility = 1d6+6 Representing the character's skill and natural ability.

When using Agility the player rolls 1d12 and aims to roll a value which is the same as, or lower than, his Agility value. If the roll is successful the player gains a Character Point. Agility might be used where the character is climbing a stone wall, fighting an enemy, dodging out of the path of a rolling boulder or swinging across a pit on a rope.

If the Agility roll is made and fails ( the roll is higher than the value of Agility ) the player may spend Character Points to change the result. The dice roll value may be reduced by one for every Character Point spent until the value is equal to or less than Agility.

Life Points = 2d6+12 Representing the character's health. If the character is hurt or becomes sick they might lose Life Points and if Life Points are reduced to zero the character has been killed! Life Points are replenished by eating food, resting and sleeping, by drinking healing potions or by using magical items.

Fate = 1d6+6 Representing the character's luck and good fortune.

When using Fate the player rolls 1d12 aiming to roll the same as, or less than, his Fate value. Whenever Fate is used and the roll is unsuccessful the value is reduced by one point. Fate cannot be reduced to less than 1 and is replenished by spending character points, resting, eating food or using magical items.

Character Bonus = 1d4+2 The Character Bonus determines the value of abilities associated with different Characters. These are:

Enchanter/Enchantress : Luck, Blessing, Spell Casting, Speak to Animals and Knowledge of Monsters.

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Virtuoso/Sorceress : Power Bonus, Ring Lore, Wand

Lore, Problem Solving, Detect the Presence of a Trap and Identify Magic Item.

Champion/Heroine : Acrobatics, Combat Skill, Use Magical Weapon, Dodge Attack, Resurrect Other Character, Defence Bonus, Damage Bonus.

Gnome/Fairy: Hide From View, Spot Hidden Secrets, Hypnotise Monster, Hover, Vanish.

See Character Details for more information .

Endurance = 1d4 Endurance makes the Character stronger and able to resist damage. When the Character incurs damage he adds his Endurance value to his Life Points and then rolls 1d20. If he rolls equal to, or less than the total of Endurance+Life Points he resists damage and doesn't lose Life Points. If he rolls greater than Endurance+Life Points he incurs damage and Life Points are reduced accordingly.

Destiny =1d6 The player's Fate value increases by a number equal to his Destiny value at the start of every game session.

CHARACTER abilities Each character type has its own special abilities and strengths. Players should be encouraged to try different styles of character if they don't enjoy playing with their initial choice.

Enchanter/Enchantress The Enchanter and Enchantress both gain the following special abilities.

When making a Fate dice roll, the Enchanter/ Enchantress player may deduct their Character Bonus from the dice roll.

The player's Destiny value is increased by 2.

Spells, once acquired and learned, are kept forever but may only be cast a number of times per game session equal to the Character Bonus value.

The Enchanter/Enchantress may speak to animals.

When attempting to do so the player rolls 1d6, aiming to roll the same as or less than their Character Bonus. If they succeed they understand what the animal says and may speak to the animal.

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Mazes, Maps & Monsters ~ Game Rules can think of no obvious answer, or where they are faced with a puzzle or a riddle which has them mystified, the Virtuoso or Sorceress player may roll 1d6 and compare the result with their Character Bonus. If the roll value is less than or equal to the Character Bonus the GM should award the player with a clue. If the roll is greater than the Character Bonus the player gains no insights into the problem.

Clues should be considered carefully by the GM who should try to achieve a balance wherein he lessens the difficulty of the puzzle without simply giving away the answer.

The Enchanter/Enchantress has knowledge of monsters which they learned during their magical training. When they encounter a new monster they may roll 1d6, aiming to roll the same as, or less than, their Character Bonus. If they succeed they can speak the monster's language and can also intimidate the monster, causing it to turn around and run away.

The successful roll only works on one monster (if there are a group of the same monsters, for example, only one runs away) and monsters will only flee if they have 5 Life Points or less.

Virtuoso/Sorceress The Virtuoso and Sorceress both gain the following special abilities: When using any magic item which possesses a magical effect with a limited amount of uses the Virtuoso or Sorceress may add their Character Bonus to the number of times the magic may be used. For example, if the item magical effect can be used twice, and the player has a Character Bonus of 2, the magical effect can be used a total of four times. This does not apply to potions or items which vanish when their magical effect has been used once.

Only the Virtuoso or Sorceress may use magical rings.

Only the Virtuoso or Sorceress may use magical wands.

When the group encounter a problem for which they

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Where the player suspects there might be a trap hidden somewhere, behind a closed door for example, or under a stone floor, he or she may roll 1d6 and compare the result with their Character Bonus. If the rolled value is the same as or equal to the Character Bonus the Virtuoso or Sorceress detects a trap if a trap is there to be detected. Traps can only be detected using this ability and cannot be disarmed.

The Virtuoso and Sorceress are both experts in magical items and when they come across a mysterious object they may be able to identify any magical aspect and where a magical effect is attached to the item they may also be able to use it.

Alternatively the character may unlock the magical aspect and give the item to another player to use. No dice rolls are required when using this ability.

Champion/Heroine The Champion and the Heroine both gain the following special abilities: Note, this is a new ability which pertains to the old Brave character type, which is essentially identical to the Champion/Heroine.

The Combat Skills ability allows the Champion/ Heroine to add their Character Bonus to the attack dice roll when attempting to roll a value greater than or equal to the enemy's Agility.

The character has increased Agility. When making an Agility roll the player may deduct their Character Bonus from the dice roll.

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Mazes, Maps & Monsters ~ Game Rules

Only the Champion or the Heroine may use magical weapons which have a weapon bonus.

If the Champion or Heroine is damaged during combat the player may roll 1d6 and if the value is equal to or less than the value of their Character Bonus they successfully dodge the attack and do not incur damage after all.

Because of their honour, the Champion and the Heroine have both acquired the blessings of the great gods. These powerful deities bestow upon him or her the ability to restore life! The character may bring any one dead player character (or NPC if the player so chooses) back to life. The ability can only be used once per game session but renews at the start of the next session.

Bonuses from shields, armour and helmets are doubled when used by the Champion or Heroine.

Any damage roll of 6 results in a Mighty Blow and double damage! Damage is doubled after any weapon bonuses or ability bonuses are added.

Gnome/Fairy The Gnome and Fairy gain different special abilities.

Gnomes and Fairies can be both male or female.

Their abilities are racial, rather than based on training and skills acquired from their chosen path in life:

put monsters into a trance. The player rolls 1d6 and compares the result with their Character Bonus.

Where the result is equal to or less than the Character Bonus the monster enters a trance and is stunned for a few in-game minutes, giving the group a chance to escape. If the monster is touched, attacked or moved in any way he will emerge from the trance immediately.

The Fairy has wings and may hover for a few seconds using them, though they are too delicate to give her the true power of flight. If the Character falls from a height they will still plunge to their doom in the same way as any other character and they will be unable to fly to any considerable height. Instead they may use their wings to hover to a height of one foot and from there may then fly in any direction, a distance equal in feet to their Character Bonus x 3 before they must land again. If this distance carries them across a great drop (a pit for example, or chasm) and allows them to reach the other side they will be able to fly across the span safely.

The Fairy may disappear, using their special magical abilities to turn invisible at will. The effect lasts only a few in-game minutes and is exhausting. For this reason the ability can only be used once per game session.

Note, this ability is new from the first published rule set in issue #1 of Forever Folio. If your player is

Whenever the Fairy wishes to hide from an enemy or some other kind of peril the player should roll 1d6 and compare the result with their Character Bonus. If the result is the same as or less than their Character Bonus they successfully hide, melting into the shadows or curling up beneath their cloak so that they appear to be a part of the landscape.

The GM might ask the player to roll a dice when there is something hidden within the Gnome's vicinity which the Gnome might spot but which the player is unaware of. Or the player might request a dice roll when he or she wants to search a room for hidden items or secret doors. 1d6 is rolled and compared with the Character Bonus. If the roll is equal to, or less than the Character Bonus the hidden item or secret door is found or noticed by the Character.

The Gnome can use their special empathic powers to Forever Folio Issue #2

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Mazes, Maps & Monsters ~ Game Rules already using the Shortling character type you may award them this new ability, otherwise the ability should be specific to Gnomes only.

The Gnome has a natural understanding of gizmos, gadgets and mechanical machines that might otherwise mystify other characters. In practical terms the ability can be used to pick locks, to disable traps, to operate machines, or to figure out how a machine works. The player rolls 1d6 and compares the result with the Character Bonus. If the roll is equal to, or less than, the Character Bonus they succeed in either fixing, disabling, unlocking or repairing the item. If the roll fails and the character is attempting to disable a trap, the trap will instead trigger and its effect will be incurred by the Gnome (and anyone else unfortunate enough to be nearby). The Gnome cannot pick the locks of portcullis, drawbridges or large iron gates.

FINDING AND CASTING MAGIC Magic comes in a variety of different forms in the game universe and only certain types of magic can be used by certain characters. In some cases magic can be used by anyone, but the way in which the magic is used will be different depending on the type of character the player has chosen to play.

Spells Spells within the game universe are small hovering creatures which, when found and captured, can be added to the player's character sheet.

To capture a spell, the player must make a successful Agility roll. If they fail the roll, the spell flies away and vanishes into the dimension of magic where it is lost forever. If the roll succeeds, the player catches the spell and may add it to his or her character sheet under 'Spells'.

When the Enchanter or Enchantress catches a spell, that spell is theirs forever. They are deemed to have learned the spell but they may only cast it a maximum number of times per game session equal to their Character Bonus value. For example, if their Character Bonus is 4 they may only cast any given spell four times per game.

When any other character catches a spell they may use that spell only once, after which the magic of the spell is deemed to be spent and the spell vanishes into the dimension of magic.

Magical Potions Magical Potions may only be used once but can be used by any type of character. The character drinks the entire potion and enjoys the effect as specified in the potion description.

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Magical Rings Only Virtuoso or Sorceress characters understand how magical rings work and so only they may wear and use them. The spell connected to any magical ring can only be used once per game session, the magic renewed at the start of the next session.

To any other character a magical ring will merely be of interest as an item they might sell for gems or as a standard item of jewellery.

Magical Wands Only Virtuoso and Sorceress characters understand how magical wands work and so only they may use them. When a Virtuoso/Sorceress has a magical wand they may increase the number of times they can use any spell on their character sheet by an amount equal to the wand's bonus value . Once the spell has been used up it vanishes in the usual way.

Magical Items Magical items can be any type of object, from something as mundane and boring looking as a potted plant to an object more likely to be magical, such as a staff or a wizardish cloak.

Only the Virtuoso or Sorceress character will immediately recognise a magical item and will be able to identify its magical effect. All other characters must make a Fate roll and if successful correctly recognize the object as magical and spot the hidden magical effect which they may then use.

Magical Weapons Any weapon which comes with a weapon bonus is deemed to be magical. Only the Champion or Heroine (formerly the Brave) may use magical weapons and therefore only these characters will benefit from weapon bonuses.

Magical Scrolls Magical scrolls provide spells which can be kept and used by anyone. The scroll has a number of charges, with each charge powering one cast of the spell written upon the scroll. Once the charges are spent, the scroll crumbles to dust.

The Virtuoso or Sorceress may use wands to increase the number of charges a scroll has. See Magical Wands.

COMBAT

Note, these rules have been updated to a slightly more advanced version which you should use when your players are comfortable with the basic combat rules. The new rule introduces Strength Dice . In the

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Mazes, Maps & Monsters ~ Game Rules next issue we will introduce Speed Dice, which is a similar concept awarding a greater chance for skilled and dextrous fighters to go first in combat round order.

Strength Dice Player character Strength Dice are always deemed to be d12 unless the character is using an 'epic' weapon which increases the Strength Dice to d12, plus one additional die (d4, d6, d8, d10, d12 or d20 depending on the awesomeness of the weapon). The Strength Dice is the die used when attempting to roll equal to or greater than an opponent's Agility.

Strength Dice also apply to monsters and will indicate when certain monsters are more powerful than others. All other aspects of combat remain the same.

Engaging in Combat When player characters encounter monsters or other enemies they may find they must engage that enemy in combat.

When attacking a monster any player who steps forward and makes an attack is then deemed to be 'engaged' in combat and cannot retreat without incurring a penalty unless his retreat is aided by another player (see Retreating, below).

When a character and a monster are engaged in combat the following three steps occur.

1) Both the monster and the character roll 1d6. The highest roll goes first in combat order and becomes the 'attacker'.

2) The attacker rolls their Strength Dice, attempting to roll a value greater than or equal to the enemy's Agility value. If they succeed they land a blow and roll 1d6 for damage. Damage is deducted from the target's Life Points. If the attacker rolls less than the enemy's Agility they miss and no damage is inflicted. (The Champion or Heroine roll 1d12 and add their Character Bonus to the roll).

3) The defender becomes the attacker and vice versa. Step one is repeated and then the round is deemed to be complete. The next round begins with the next set of combatants (which might include one of the combatants from the previous round) and all three steps repeat. Rounds proceed until one fighter wins by reducing his enemy's Life Points to zero.

If the attacker is carrying a magical weapon, the weapon bonus is added to the damage roll.

If the attacker is a Champion or Heroine and rolls 6 for damage the result is a Mighty Blow and damage is doubled (damage is doubled after bonuses are added

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for weapons and/or abilities).

If the target is using a shield, armour or helmet the bonus associated with that item is deducted from the damage roll.

Retreating Once a character is engaged in combat they may retreat from their enemy but their enemy lands an automatic blow and deals damage without needing to roll vs their target's Agility. By retreating the character is able to run away and is safely out of range unless their enemy chases them.

A character (or monster) may retreat if one of its allies (another player character for example) moves forward and 'distracts' the enemy. This requires the ally engages temporarily in combat for one round while the retreating character flees. Afterwards the ally may also retreat without penalty and both he and his friend may escape the battle.

Shooting Arrows and Crossbow Bolts The GM must determine whether a target is in range or not. Any given character may only fire an arrow a maximum distance equal in feet to their Endurance value x 10. If the GM decides the target is further away than this the player may attempt to shoot but the arrow will fall short.

If the GM is unsure whether a target is too far away to be struck by an arrow he may call for a Fate roll, though the player may opt to simply not fire if he doesn't want to risk losing Fate points.

Crossbow bolts always fire 50ft regardless of the strength (Endurance value) of the firer.

GOLD, GEMS AND GEAR Items of equipment, when found or purchased, are added to the player's inventory box on their character sheet. The player may only carry as many items as there are inventory slots and if they amass too many items they will need to either forego new items or swap them for old items.

Items of equipment can be traded in at any time.

Regardless of the value of the item when purchased, items are always sold for 1 Gold. If the item is magical it will sell for 5 Gold and if the item has a bonus (such as armour or a weapon) the item will sell for 6 Gold.

Gems are valuable jewels which have a value equal to 20 Gold. Gems can be converted into Gold at any time during the game.

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This second adventure uses card based floorplans instead of Lego , as was the case with the previous issue. Full instructions for creating the floorplans are given below. You will not need artistic talent, but will need something to cut cardstock accurately. A guillotine of the kind found in most stationers is therefore recommended and will certainly give far better results than the use of scissors.

You will also need a nice fine line ink pen, fibre tip being preferable to ball point which may smudge, and a set of thick nib felt tip pens, colours including light green, light blue, red and pink.

Creating the Forest of Fang You will need ten sheets of white A4 cardstock of a nice thick quality (21cm x 29.7cm). The thicker, the better, though you should ensure your guillotine is capable of slicing the card so making some test cuts is recommended.

Cut each sheet in half then trim each A5 rectangle so that you have squares approximately 15cm x 15cm in size. You can achieve an accurate trim using the measuring rule on the guillotine (see Image 1).

Save the offcuts as you will need these later.

Offcuts should be 15cm x 6cm in size with an acceptable margin of error of a few millimetres either way.

On each 15cm x 15cm square mark with a pencil or fine tip pen on each of the four edges at 6.2cm and 8,8cm. This gives you an inch at dead centre on each edge, the supposition Image 1 - trimming the cardstock to 15cm 33

Image 2 - twenty x 15cmx15cm and twenty x 15cmx6cm cards being that you will be using standard 28mm figures with 1x1inch figure bases. If your preferred figures are smaller or larger, adjust accordingly.

(See Image 3). Note, this is a somewhat laborious process, but worth it in the end!

Next, the fun part - draw a path, roughly one inch wide, that starts at one of the double marks on one edge of the card. The path can become a crossroads (in which case three other paths must join with the three other double marks on the other three edges) a Y or T junction (two other paths must join with double marks, while one set of double marks are ignored) or a through-path (the other end of the path joins with one of the double marks on the card, the marks you choose determining whether the path is straight or curves at a 90 degree angle).

Image 3 - marking at 6.2cm and 8.8cm

Feel free to widen the path, to create courtyard spaces or odd angles and curving pathways.

The only restriction on your creativity is that the ends of any path that does not conclude as a dead-end must connect with double marks.

When you have drawn your paths, intersperse the white spaces with trees. Don't panic, you don't need an expert artistic hand here. Simply draw roughly circular blobs then highlight around the edges with green felt tip. Add a few stripey lines to one inner edge to give the suggestion of shadow. Edge your paths with the same green felt tip and maybe even add a few tufts of grass, the odd flower or fallen leaf (see Image 4) When you're happy with how this looks, use a random miniature or a base on its own to mark out a 1 inch grid inside the paths. Note: accuracy at this stage is not vital. Aim for a mish-mash of squares that are roughly 1 inch in width or wider. Avoid spaces that are smaller than 1 inch, but don't panic if you find you run out of space at the end of a path.

Repeat this process with 16 of the 20 Forest Cards.

(See Image 5 overleaf) Image 4 - blobs for trees - no artistic ability required.

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On three of the remaining forest cards you should lay down one of the 15cm x 6cm cards and draw around it with a fine tip pen. Outline this with green as you did with the path.

This space will be occupied by one of three buildings. The angle you choose to position the rectangular space doesn't matter, though you should aim to fit the majority of the building onto the card (see Image 6). The path should be drawn on afterwards in whatever space remains. You will likely find you need to make this a through road.

Set aside three of the 15cm x 6cm rectangular cards and on one side draw a rough representation of a rooftop. If this seems like more work than it's worth simply write the name of the building (either Hovel, Shack or Crypt). On the opposite side, divide the card along the 15cm length into two with a central line. Divide this width-ways along the 6cm width into 5 columns, giving a total of 10 squares. These don't need to be exactly 1x1inch but should be roughly thereabouts.

On one of the cards write 'Hovel' and on one

Image 5 - drawing a rough grid for the paths square write Treasure. On the second card write 'Shack' and on three random but adjacent squares write 'Monster' and on one square write 'Loot'. Mark the third card as 'Crypt' and on a random square write 'Monster', on another write 'Treasure' and on two adjacent squares write (or draw) Stairs. These steps go down into the bowels of the earth and the dungeon crawl you'll be designing in a moment.

Monsters and treasure should be easily dealt with and marginally rewarding (small sums of Gold).

On the last 15cm x 15cm card draw a through road starting from one edge to the other with trees on only one side surrounding the path.

This is the 'Forest Entrance' card which you will put down first and where player miniatures will be positioned at the start of the game.

Dungeon cards constitute the remaining 15cm x 6cm cards which should all be divided into 10 squares in the same way as the building cards.

For ideas on what to place in these dungeon cards see the suggested Dungeon Key below.

Image 6 - three of the forest cards should contain buildings.

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begin with, but eventually they should be given good reason to stray from the path, whether they do so in order to recover some kind of artefact glimpsed lying between the trees or in order to fight an enemy that attacks off the path and refuses to move onto the path in order to be engaged (enemies armed with ranged weapons will be particularly useful in luring player characters into the treeline).

This way will players be able to move between cards where the paths of the forest fail to connect.

Laying Out the Forest Start by placing the Forest Entrance card and positioning player miniatures on the approaching path into the forest. Resolving 'marching order' is useful at this point.

The remaining forest cards should be fanned face down in the style of a magician offering his audience the chance to 'choose a card any card' except the audience in this instance consists of players. Ensure card choice is fairly distributed with each player given equal chance to choose a card when the time comes.

The chosen card should be examined first by the GM, then placed so that the end of at least one path meets the end of the path along which the player group have chosen to explore.

The GM uses his best judgement to decide the rotation of the card.

The forest unfolds this way, with each step beyond the previous card revealing a new random aspect of the floorplan, the cards locking together neatly to create an evolving map which will be different every time you play.

The player group will likely stick to the path to

The Troll Stones and stone trolls of Time The following is a suggested scenario for use with the above forest floorplan idea.

The location key is kept deliberately vague in order for the GM to apply each encounter and situation to the card of his choice. Each forest card (and dungeon card respectively) should be numbered so that the number corresponds to the encounter description. This way the GM can reference the information he needs as soon as the card is laid out.

Player Introduction To be read aloud to players before the Forest Entrance card is laid down. This background assumes completion of the Ruins of Peril scenario (FF#1). If the GM hasn't run Ruins he will need to adjust the following introduction accordingly.

After defeating the evil Lord Rankinphile in his mountain lair your fame has spread throughout the land, which is why, when

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trouble befalls the kingdom, you are once again called upon by the wizard master Adagio LeSpell to help...

"This time things are serious," Adagio says solemnly as you meet him in his wizard's tower. "The Four Troll Stones of Timewinding have been taken from the four Stone Trolls of Fang Forest by none other than our old foe, Lord Rankinphile. For some reason he has hidden the stones in the forest so that nobody will be able to find them!"

"The Troll Stones are powerful magical items.

They make sure time flows properly; that the sun rises in the morning and sets at night; that one minute follows another and the hands of the clock turn in the right direction.

If the stones remain scattered time will start to behave strangely and may even stop altogether, or worse, might start to go backwards!"

"You must go into the Forest of Fang and find the stones. Find also the four Stone Trolls to which each stone must be returned. Don't panic! The Stone Trolls are not real trolls. Not anymore. They were turned to stone when their mistress, the Gingerbread Witch, was banished from this land many centuries ago.

They have held the Troll Stones of Timewinding in their hands ever since."

"You will find the Stone Trolls at a crossroads, one troll on each side of the path. In the middle of the crossroads is a sun-dial which always reads the time as midday, even in the middle of the night!"

Adagio takes you to the entrance to Fangorn Forest (GM lays down the Forest Entrance card). "I cannot come with you into the woods as I must find Lord Rankinphile while you find the stones. I will meet you back here when you have completed your quest."

Before he goes, Adagio tells you to beware.

"Do not stray from the path, for the ways of the Forest of Fang are as strange as the threads of time. If you step off the path you may lose your way, or worse. And remember, the longer you take to find the stones, the stranger time will become!"

Kitting Out the Group The group should be informed that before they arrived at the forest entrance with Adagio LeSpell they were given an opportunity to visit a nearby village where they could spend some of their gold on equipment.

If players are carrying characters from a previous scenario into this one they may have gold to spend. If not, or the players have rolled new characters, each player should roll 1d20 and add their Fate value to the result. This is the amount of gold their respective character has to spend at the village.

It is assumed that each character is already clothed and has a backpack.

The GM can either read out the following short list of gear available, or can copy out the list and hand it to players to peruse at their leisure.

Provisions - 3 Gold per provision (1 provision equals one meal)

Shortsword of Slaying - 6 Gold (+1 bonus. This sword can only be used by the Champion or Heroine).

Lantern & Tinderbox - 2 Gold (for lighting the way at night, or making fires).

Rope (20ft) - 3 Gold (always a useful tool for adventures)

Staff - 1 Gold (a standard weapon) Silver Sword - 3 Gold (a standard weapon) Helm of Protection - 6 Gold (an armoured helmet which has +2 armour bonus)

Shield of Hard Wood - 5 Gold (a shield which has a +1 armour bonus)

GM Information The GM will need to set aside one of the forest cards as the location of the four Stone Trolls and this card will need to be a crossroads.

Miniatures can be used for the Stone Trolls, or the GM can draw a rough outline of each troll in each corner of the card and a circle representing the sun dial at the centre of the crossroads. The trolls are typically gruesome in appearance but made of solid stone, each one a different colour (blue, green, pink and red).

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Time within the forest has behaved very strangely since the stones were taken from their rightful positions. Whenever the GM lays down a new forest card he should roll 1d10 and consult the following list of random time-related anomolies.

1 - Day turns suddenly to night, or vice versa.

2 - The group suddenly find themselves suffering from extreme hunger, as though their last meal was hours ago, even though they may have recently eaten. Provisions must be eaten, or one Life Point lost.

3 - Birds drop from the sky, frozen solid as though time had suddenly stood still for them.

4 - It was sunny and dry but suddenly the sky is overcast and rain falls. There is no transition period between the two states of weather.

5 - One member of the group vanishes and will only reappear when a new forest card is laid down. The character reappears with the rest of the group and will have no memory of time between. From their perspective they suddenly found themselves and the rest of their group in this new location.

6 to 9 - no anomoly 10 - The group find themselves back in time at the last battle they fought. Their enemy, already dispatched, is alive again and the battle is yet to take place. Despite this the group has a full memory of everything that occured since. Their enemies seem to have no knowledge of any strange hitch in time.

Moreover, as the players are about to embark on the same battle again, they see themselves entering the location. Each player now has two versions of their character which they should play simultaneously from this point on. Stats for characters are the same when they first meet but can change independently thereafter. The dopplegangers will vanish as soon as the player group exit the forest at the main entrance. (If the group have yet to battle a foe or this encounter has already occurred, the GM rolls d10 again for an alternative encounter).

If all player characters move off the path for any reason and enter the undergrowith surrounding the path, the strange effects of the Forest of Fang take effect and the group becomes hopelessly lost in the forest.

The GM removes the forest entrance card and the Stone Troll card (if the latter has already been discovered), replacing both cards with new cards from the top of the forest card deck.

The GM then turns in place all existing cards, rotating them once in a clockwise direction.

The forest entrance card is shuffled back into the deck (as is the Stone Troll card) and both will need to be found anew.

Key to the Forest Mark the forest cards with numbers 1 to 20.

Card 1 is the forest entrance (see Player Introduction), Cards 2, 3 and 4 are those housing either the Shack, the Hovel or the Tomb and card 5 is the location of the Stone Trolls. This card should be a crossroads.

As shocked to see you as you must be to see him, Lord Rankinphile is standing in the centre of this location, his heavily armoured guardian standing beside him. A star shape is drawn on the path with chalk and Rankinphile stands in the middle of this. In one hand Rankinphile clutches the blue Troll Stone of Time-winding! He is so surprised to see you he fumbles the stone which rolls out of his reach. "Bah!" Rankinphile exclaims. "No matter. Carbon Clone, guard the stone and dispatch these pesky adventurers. I shall return for the stone shortly!"

The star shape sparkles, then Lord Rankinphile vanishes, grinning at you as he goes, his laughter echoing between the trees.

He has stepped through some kind of teleport spell and is gone, but his guardian - a Carbon Clone - remains!

CARBON CLONE GUARDIAN Agility 10, Strength Dice d12+d6 Life Points 19

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Endurance 2 +3 Mace of Terrible Force +3 Heavy Armour of the Guardian If the guardian is defeated he implodes on himself, his armour crumpling up until there is nothing left but a small black nugget of coal.

This coal starts to squeeze smaller and smaller until it finally pops like a piece of popcorn and turns into a diamond. The diamond is worth 40 Gold.

In addition to the diamond the player group can pick up the Blue Troll Stone.

If any player character stands on the magical teleporting star nothing will happen. The magic is spent and Rankinphile has escaped.

Flitting in and out of the trees beyond reach of anyone standing on the path is a flock of six spells. Spells are small magical creatures, winged and impish. There is no way of telling what a spell is until you manage to catch it!

Doing so requires an Agility dice check, but the player character will also need to leave the path (see Straying From the Path).

Players attempt to capture spells in ascending numerical order, starting with spell 1 and ending with spell 6. The nature of the spell is only revealed if the player then succeeds his Agility roll and catches the spell, otherwise he merely frightens the spell away and it vanishes back into the magical dimension, its true nature lost forever. The spell should be crossed off the list below if it is lost or caught.

1 - Healing Spell of Great Fortitude. This spell will add 6 points to the target's Life Points. The total gained may not cause the target's Life Points to exceed 24.

2 - Healing Spell of the Band Aid. This spell will add 1 point to the target's Life Points. The total gained may not cause the target's Life Points to exceed 24.

3 - Teleport Spell Homing Beacon. As soon as this spell is caught it turns into a small shining pebble with the word HOME etched into it. This is a stone of teleporting but requires the capture of its twin spell which will be one of the

remaining spells flying among the trees. If the twin spell cannot be caught this stone crumbles to dust and is lost. See Teleport Spell Activator for details of how this spell works.

4 - Spell of Lucky Restoration. This spell will add 1 point to the target's Fate value. The total gained may not cause the target's Fate to exceed 12.

5 - Spell of Warp Space. This spell allows the caster to warp time and space so that he vanishes momentarily then reappears seconds later a distance away from his original position measured in feet equal to his Character Bonus x 3. The caster may choose the direction but may not increase or decrease the distance he or the spell's target travels.

6 - Teleport Spell Activator. The character (or another character) must already have the Homing Beacon pebble in hand. If they did not capture that spell, this spell turns into a pebble which promptly crumbles to dust. If the other spell was captured, this spell turns into a shiny pebble onto which the word GO is etched.

When the holder of this stone rubs his thumb over the word GO he and anyone linked to him by holding his hand, will teleport to the location of the HOME pebble. Thus, in order to use this spell the HOME pebble should be placed somewhere to which the caster thinks they will want, at some point, to return. If the HOME pebble is merely kept about the caster's person, when they activate the GO stone nothing will happen.

A huge barbarian, taller than two men standing one on top of the other, steps out of the trees and onto the path, barring your way.

He looks at you with a curious expression as he runs his finger along the sharpened blade of his axe.

If players have created new characters, or this is their first scenario, Dung will not recognise them, but will be friendly enough. Otherwise he will recognise them (as they recognise him) from the Ruins of Peril (see Forever Folio #1).

Either way, Dung will not fight and if he is attacked he will merely swat the player

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characters away as though they were flies while waxing lyrical about the "violence inherent in the system."

Dung is philosophical about all this, but not overly enthusiastic. He has very fixed views on the nature of time and space and he dislikes the strange effect the missing Troll Stones are having on the nature of reality. He will help the player group, by giving them some clues, but as always he wants them to work for their reward. "Thought," as Dung will remind them,

"is the machinery that turns the hands of the clock. Without thought, what use is time?"

Dung offers three riddles and requires three answers. In return for each he will furnish the player group with a clue.

Q1 - If time runs backwards, what do you

get?

A1 - the word emit, though Dung will also accept 'confused'.

Q2 - If time runs forwards, how do you spell

it?

A2 - IT The GM may wish to read the last question in his head before reading aloud in order to avoid a telling pause as he puzzles it out at the end of the first sentence. No emphasis should be made on the word Thyme .

Q3 - Four goblins are trying to beat the

A gnarly old hollow tree stands next to the path. A hole in the trunk is glowing with a strange green light. You could swear the bark has grown in such a way as to form a sinister looking face. And you could also swear two knot-holes just blinked at you.

This is the Snapping Tree Stump of Woe. If anyone tries to put their hand into the hole the hole will snap shut, biting off the unfortunate victim's hand. The victim loses 1d6+4 Life Points but may reduce the damage they suffer by 4 points if they make a successful Endurance roll.

If the tree is touched, or the player group attempt to walk past it, the whole thing will uproot itself and lumber toward them, roaring with murderous rage.

SNAPPING TREE OF WOE Agility 7, Strength Dice d12+d4 Life Points 20 Endurance 3 +4 Branches of Wompingness +2 Impregnable Bark of Strength If the tree is destroyed, the green Troll Stone of Time-winding will roll out of the monster's mouth, along with several dozen squirrels who scatter into the forest in different directions.

fastest, Thyme. Basil the goblin is slower than Caper the goblin, but faster than Lavender the goblin. Lavender the goblin is slowest and Nutmeg the goblin is slower than Basil.

Who is winning?

A3 - 'Thyme' the goblin is winning.

Dung will award the following three clues as the GM sees fit, one clue per correct answer.

1 - I saw the evil Lord Rankinphile hiding one of the Troll Stones in a dungeon beneath the forest. The entrance to the dungeon is in the old crypt, though I'm not sure how you can reach the crypt from here.

2 - Snakes, I have heard, are afraid of fire.

3 - Beware the snapping tree stump of woe.

It's bite is worse than its bark!

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From the treeline you hear a strange, moaning voice crying out "Brains!" Seconds later three zombies, each clad in the black uniform of a ninja, curly red hair sprouting from the top of their black head-masks like carrot tops, advance onto the path. They are the dread undead Ginger Ninjas of Lord Rankinphile and, as always, they are hungry for brains.

The ninjas, like ninjas everywhere, have the enviable ability to vanish at will, reappearing moments later where you least expect them.

Each ninja may utilise this skill once per combat. When the skill is used the ninja vanishes in a whisp of ginger smoke. They reappear a moment later anywhere else in the same forest card. The GM may make them reappear on the path (within easy reach of player characters) or in the trees, requiring the players venture off the path to reach them (see Straying From the Path). x3 GINGER ZOMBIE NINJAS Agility 11, Strength Dice 1d12 Life Points 8 Endurance 1 No special weapons No armour The ninjas carry 10 Gold between them.

Sitting on top of a stone plinth next to the path is a curious looking creature dressed in green, his head topped by a spikey crown made entirely of old twigs, his feet furnished with curly toed slippers and his ears decorated with a dazzling array of gold and silver ear-rings.

"Greetings pathetic travellers. I am Wart Digney, Pixie King of Fang Forest and none stray here without my say so. I may be lenient with you if you pay my passing toll of 20 Gold, otherwise I shall smite you with extreme prejudice."

If the player group refuse to pay the toll, cannot

pay the toll or make any attempt to attack Wart he will vanish with a pop and a mischievous giggle. From this point on Wart will make his presence known by hurling down acorns from the treetops at random moments and by appearing suddenly during moments of intense combat to cut a player character's belt with scissors so that his trousers fall down (the player's Strength Dice is d8 until he can pull his trousers back up).

Eventually Wart will grow bored of infuriating the player group and will leave them alone. His tormenting should be kept strictly within the bounds of reasonable annoyance and should not be used to impinge on the player group's enjoyment of the game. An opportunity for revenge will be gained later in the adventure.

You notice movement on the forest floor, in the shade of the trees to your right. You peer through the shadowy undergrowth and see what looks like a nest of snakes, hundreds of the creatures squirming and writhing. At the heart of the nest something red glimmers as a shaft of sunlight pierces the trees. One of the Troll Stones of Time-winding! But the stone is buried under all those snakes and they don't look friendly.

Anyone approaching the snakes will need to head off the track and into the treeline.

The snakes are deadly venomous. Anyone who puts their hand into the nest will be bitten and incurs 1d12 Life Points of damage now, plus an additional 1 point of damage every time their character enters a new forest card (or dungeon card, as applicable). If the victim rests in place they will stop losing Life Points and if 5 forest or dungeon cards are uncovered while they rest they will recover from the venom completely.

The snakes will twine themselves around the Troll Stone if they think someone is trying to take it, so that it becomes impossible to pick up the stone without also picking up dozens of deadly snakes.

Only fire will frighten away the snakes. If the player group have a method of making fire they can light a nearby piece of dead wood and use

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this to clear the nest.

The GM should reward lateral thinking where the player group come up with a good alternative way to tackle the snakes.

The Troll Stone is red in colour.

A comfortable looking wooden bench stands next to the path. A plaque on the bench reads: "This bench was placed here in honour of Myrtle, the surprisingly intelligent turtle, who set off from this spot on an epic journey around the world to raise money for charity.

She managed to make it fifty three feet and raised two copper coins for brittle-shell research before she died of old age. May all who sit here spare a thought for Myrtle, whose memory lives on in bench form."

This bench is a good place to rest. While they are in this forest card the player group are safe from harm.

These should be considered through roads or safe cards where nothing much is going on.

Coming the other way is a shabbily dressed man laden down with boxes, backpacks and bags filled with interesting things.

"Greetings fellow travellers of these here woods!" Exclaims the man. "My name is Muffin Mawker the Muffin Man and I've got all sorts for sale, but I'm all out of muffins.

Today's offer is a good one. Spend more than 20 gold and get 5 gold back!"

Muffin Mawker has the following for sale: Gauntlets of Strength (steel gauntlets which give the wearer a +1 Armour Bonus). 6 Gold.

Greatsword of the Champion (+2 Great Sword, can only be used by the Champion or Heroine, formerly the Brave). 18 Gold .

Spell - Muffin Mawker's Mystery Magical Marvel . An unknown spell which Muffin

promises is spectacular and a steal for the price, but the buyer will only know what the spell is when he casts it for the first time. In fact, the spell is a hexed 'curse of returning' and, when cast, will return all the items bought from Muffin Mawker (by any character) to him, wherever he may be (Muffin would hope to be a long way away by the time the spell is cast).

The GM should make a careful and secret note of which objects were bought from Muffin so that he knows which will be lost if the spell is cast. 2 Gold.

Potion of Fireballs - When this potion is

downed in one it imbues the drinker with the ability to hurl fireballs from the palms of his hand. He may shoot a number of fireballs equal to his Fate value at the time the potion is drunk, each fireball automatically hitting its target to cause 1d6+2 Life Points of damage. - 15 Gold.

Really Shiny Ring of Success - a magical ring which allows the player to make all Fate rolls using d10 instead of d12. 15 Gold.

Fancy Pantaloons of Adventuring (+1 armour bonus to these rainbow coloured leather pantaloons). 5 Gold.

As well as the above items, any of the items listed under Kitting Out The Group are also offered for sale by Muffin.

Once he has traded his wares, Muffin heads off along the path again and won't be encountered again.

If he is reminded of his 'spend 20 Gold, get 5 Gold back' offer he will leave the group with 5 Fools Gold, which only a Gnome will be able to spot as fake.

Ahead you see smoke coming from a small campfire. Seated around the fire, in the middle of the path are four men dressed in buccaneer outfits. A fifth, much larger man, has a parrot on his shoulder, a large black beard, a patch over his eye and a peg-leg. All look like they are armed with cutlasses.

"Aaaaarrrrr," the man with the beard says, rising to his feet as you approach, "I be Captain Bazonka, skipper of the good ship

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Stereotype, and these are my forty loyal men who have recently suffered a few losses.

Greetings to you land-lubbing strangers and, if you could spare a moment to parly with me, we men of the sea seem to be a bit lost.

Could you point the way out of this here forest?"

If the players enquire why five pirates are out in the middle of the forest which, itself, is very much landlocked, Captain Bazonka will explain with much 'aaaarrring' and 'matey'ing that he and his crew were teleported off his ship by the double crossing no good landlubber Lord Rankinphile, who had chartered them for some good honest plundering and pillaging on far away shores but then cast his magic on them, sending them here into the forest while he made off with their ship and their treasure.

Whenever the players ask any question of Bazonka or speak among themselves while he is present his parrot (Harrington Ford the Third) will make infuriating squawking noises at the top of his voice and screech out any of the following random phrases (the GM should utilize his best crazed parrot vocals)

"Tarzan in the jungle, had a belly ache, wanna go a toilet, whoops too late!

RAAAWWWK!" "Granny Granny Granny, gets in every cranny!

RAAAUUUURK!" " I must go down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky; I left my shoes and socks there. I wonder if they're dry?

SQUAAAAAWK!" Before parting company with the player group Bazonka will try to sell them Harrington Ford the Third, and when they (probably) refuse, he will try to give them gold to take Harrington Ford off his hands (or his shoulder). If the players succumb to this temptation they will be stuck with the parrot who is loyal to the bone but extremely annoying at the worst possible time. He tends to screech out funny lymericks and odd rhymes whenever the group are doing their utmost to be quiet. Diplomacy will prove impossible as Harrington Ford the Third will invariably insult anyone the group meet, be they friend or foe.

If the players decide to attack the pirates they will prove to be surprisingly tough foes.

CAPTAIN BAZONKA THE PIRATE Agility 10, Strength Dice d12 Life Points 18 Endurance 2 +1 Cutlass of Pillaging No armour BAZONKA'S PIRATE CREW Agility 9, Strength Dice d12 Life Points 14 Endurance 1 No special weapons No armour If the pirates are killed, Harrington Ford the Third will fly away and his voice will then be heard from time to time echoing through the trees.

"In the land of the Bumbley Boo, you can buy lemon pie at the zoo; they give away foxes, in little pink boxes and bottles of dandylion stew. SKRAAAAARK!" .

The pirate cutlasses can be taken if they are killed, though Bazonka's cutlass can only be used by the Champion or Heroine (formerly the Brave) character type. Between them the pirates have 15 Gold and 6 provisions (enough for 6 meals).

You hear a strange but pleasant singing coming from somewhere deep in the trees.

When you look in the direction of the sound you can see a bush which seems to be shaking in time with the music.

Investigating the bush requires the investigating character leaves the path. If this occurs the GM should refer to the 'Straying From the Path' rules.

The bush is 'Singing Ivy', and the song it sings is designed to lure curious travellers into range of its stinging whip-like tentacles. These will fly out of the bush if anyone moves within range (two to three inches on the forest card - the GM should represent the bush with a green dice or a coin marker).

If whipped the victim receives a sting, causing

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1d6+2 Life Points of damage. Armour reduces the damage, but if the victim incurs even one point of damage he is also afflicted with a temporary poison which can only be purged from the system by singing. The player may save themselves a further 1d10 Life Points damage if they are able to sing (with a nice loud, clear voice) a song of their choice. The song must have words which the player remembers, and at least ten words must be sung to constitute a song. Players able to accompany the victim on piano or any other musical instrument may do so and should be awarded at least one character point for their efforts. Risky lymericks are not admissable.

Next to the path in this area of the forest is a curious sight. A stake of wood has been driven into the ground and attached to this is an iron chain ending in what looks like a mannacle designed to go around someone's neck. The mannacle is empty, however, though the undergrowth around the stake and chain looks to be severely trampled.

On the other side of the path you find the remains of a wooden fence, also trampled and smashed, and half a wooden sign which looks like its been bitten in half.

Something is written on the remaining half of the sign. It reads: NOT NTER! Whatever was chained up here was bait rather than anything menacing. A group of mercenary monster hunters, upon hearing that Fang Forest is home to the mighty but terrifying Thunder Lizard, made the foolhardy mistake of trying to trap it. The ivory fangs of a Thunder Lizard (not to mention its magical lightning shooting horn) can fetch up to 30 Gold each on the black market.

Unfortunately the mercenaries were ill prepared for the ferocity of the monster when it finally arrived and the goat they had tethered to the stake was little more than a starter to the main course (the mercenaries themselves).

Dessert has now arrived in the form of the player group, though the Thunder Lizard is not present in this forest card. Once they have discovered the half chewed sign (and perhaps some gnawed goat bones) the group will hear...

A great bellowing roar that echoes across the tree tops. Birds take to the air in panic and leaves come fluttering down from above, as though the sound had caused even the trees to tremble. The sound is a great way off, which means the thing that made the sound is also a long way away, thank goodness. But for how long?

The Thunder Lizard is now a part of the player group's game and his horrible roar will be heard regularly, sometimes close, sometimes distant. If the group sit down to rest and eat provisions they will hear the pounding noise of the monster's footsteps as he travels through the forest, telltale ripples appearing in their cups of water. At no point, however, should he put in an appearance. Not until the players have collected all four Troll Stones and have replaced all four in the respective Stone Troll statue.

See The Adventure Concludes for details.

Key to the Dungeon The first dungeon passage should be placed next to the Crypt building card so that player characters can descend the steps and enter the dungeon.

The dungeon is then laid out in precisely the same way as the forest, the GM fanning out dungeon cards for players to select the next one and each card laid down at the GM's discretion.

Cards should (mostly) be laid down in the style of dominoes, with each card coming at the end of the previous card, though the new card might be positioned sideways on or end to end (see Image 8).

The GM should make it clear to players that, unless otherwise stated, or the ends of two cards meet either end-to-end or at a right angle, the ends of every dungeon card they explore leads to another dungeon card.

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once all other dungeon cards have been laid down, but not before.

An idol of Trope, God of the Old School, stands at the end of this passage and cannot be passed. The idol is made of pure gold, but is far too large and far too heavy to be moved. One of the idol's eyes is an empty socket, but the other is filled with a glittering gemstone.

In order to get to the gemstone the player group must climb the idol, requiring an Agility roll. If they succeed they can easily pry the gem loose. The gem is worth 30 Gold.

Image 8 - Connecting dungeon cards domino-fashion Where the GM wishes to do so he should ask players to draw two cards, or even three, laying down one card as the existing passage, and the other as a junction midway along the first, or two as a crossroad midway along the first on either side.

Number 1 to 19 of the dungeon cards, leaving the last as the location of the final pink Troll Stone. The GM may wish to add sketched items of interest to each card, such as treasure chests, stairs and pits. These should be simple in appearance to match the simplicity of the forest cards and to reduce the GM's pre-game workload. The GM will also want to read through the dungeon key before adding sketched items.

Monsters and treasure can be marked on squares on the card itself to remind the GM quickly of enemies to be positioned and rewards to be found. In almost every case a reward should be blocked by a monster or a trap.

The last dungeon card should be clearly marked and placed to one side, to be added

A heavy iron gate bars the way ahead. The gate is enormous, as tall as the passage is high, its lowermost extremity apparently embedded in the flagstone floor. A lever is visible on the far side of the gate.

The location of the gate can be easily represented by a thick black or blue line across the width of the dungeon card. The lever should be situated on the far side to that which the player group occupy.

How the group pull the lever is up to them and may require a little ingenuity. There is no easy way to reach the lever and the gate certainly cannot be opened with anything other than magic. Brute strength will fail to shift the gate even an inch.

If the lever is pulled the gate will rattle slowly into the roof of the passage and will remain open unless the lever is thrown again, at which point it will crash back into place.

Nothing to see here. These sections will give the players momentary respite from the perils of the dungeon.

A clear pool of liquid lies ahead. At first you think it might be water, but then you notice

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steam or smoke rising from the surface of the liquid, while the liquid itself bubbles and seethes.

If players opt to tip toe between the holes they must make one Agility roll for every marked square they attempt to traverse.

The GM should fill at least four adjacent squares with blue felt tip (or sketch a blue blob if he prefers) representing the pool. This is acid and anyone who touches the liquid will incur 1d10+2 Life Point damage for each square they step on. It is, therefore, possible to dash through the pool, but for each square the pool fills and which the character must therefore move across, they will incur damage accordingly.

Once triggered the trap cannot be disarmed.

Players can determine the nature of the pool by dipping something that isn't their own foot or finger into the liquid. The acid will eat away at the object until it has entirely vanished.

How the group cross the pool is up to them. It may be that the GM offers an alternative exit before the squares containing the pool in the form of a T junction.

Suspicious looking holes are visible in the floor of this section of the passage. The holes are spaced widely enough that you might be able to tip-toe between them, but it will be tricky.

The GM should use a felt tip pen to mark black dots on six adjacent squares in the passage, blocking the way ahead. The trap is triggered by a stone pressure plate on the opposite side of the passage to the player group, thus the first person to cross the holes (in whatever fashion they choose) should make a Fate roll when they get to the other side and if they fail the roll, they step on the pressure plate and trigger the trap. A loud click, the whirring of gears and the sound of fire roaring somewhere beneath the floor, along with the feeling of the floor dropping an inch or two underfoot, will alert the group that the trap is now active.

If any hole thereafter is covered, either by a foot or something else, fire will explode upward through all the holes, burning anyone standing on a marked square for 1d6+6 Life Point damage.

The GM should request Fate rolls from all players. If anyone fails their roll that player must roll 1d6 and the GM then introduces the respective wandering monster from the list below. If all rolls succeed, no monster appears.

Once a monster has been encountered it cannot be encountered a second time. d6 Roll = 1 4 x CAVE ORCS Agility 6, Strength Dice d10 Life Points 7 Endurance 1 No special weapons +1 Leather Armour bonus If the cave orcs are killed and the bodies searched they are found to be carrying four rusty picks, a shovel and a sack filled with gold nuggets worth 8 Gold. d6 Roll = 2 GIANT DUNGEON ANT Agility 8, Strength Dice d12 Life Points 24 Endurance 3 +1 Clashing Mandibles of Death +1 Exoskeleton armour bonus d6 Roll = 3 GIANT VAMPIRE BAT Agility 9, Strength Dice d10 Life Points 18 Endurance 2 No special weapons No armour If the vampire bat lands a blow and causes damage it also sucks its victim's blood, reducing their Agility by one point. If a character's Agility is reduced to zero they collapse unconscious and will revive after the combat is done with just 1 point of Agility restored.

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d6 Roll = 4

d6 Roll = 6

CAVE MOLLUSC Agility 7, Strength Dice d12 Life Points 22 Endurance 3 +2 Crushing Claws of Chaos +3 Shell armour bonus

GIANT MILLIPEDE Agility 10 Life Points 18 Endurance 2 +1 Clashing Mandibles of Death +1 Exoskeleton armour bonus

The Mollusc will initially look like a stone mushroom standing in the middle of the passage. If the player group try to move past the Mollusc it will reveal itself, the cap of the mushroom merely the creature's shell, its limbs clumped together to form the stalk.

If the millipede is killed, the crushing blow causes it to split open. From the monster's belly tumbles a glass jar which (if wiped clean) is revealed to contain many different sizes and shapes of some kind of brown resin-like material. A label on the outside of the jar reads (in smudged and bad hand writing)...

d6 Roll = 5 GROLLEM THE GOBLIN Agility 5, Strength Dice d4 Life Points 5 Endurance 0 No special weapons No armour Grollem will cower before the player group, begging for mercy if they attack him. He will put up no fight and will be easily killed if that is the player's aim. If spared he will explain that he has lost his 'Precious' and is in the dungeon looking for it.

If the player group ask Grollem what 'the precious' is, he will explain it is his collection of petrified ear wax which he keeps in a jar. A giant millipede ate the jar and that's what he's looking for, though he isn't sure how he'll get the jar out of the millipede when he finds it. If the player group have the jar, or find it at a later point and give it to Grollem he will reward them with a magical ring of power which is worth 40 Gold but which can only be used by Virtuoso or Sorceress characters.

Grollem will point out that there is an etching on the ring which reads: One Ring to fool them all, One Ring to blind them!

The ring is magical, of course, and when activated it will cause one target to believe anything the ring-bearer says, no matter how ridiculously outrageous the lie. In order for the magic to work the ring-bearer must roll 1d6 and compare the result with his Character Bonus.

GROLLEM'S PRECIOUS

On the flagstone floor of this passage you can see what looks like clock faces etched into the stone. Each clock looks like it tells a different time, with small and long hands pointing in different directions.

This dungeon card requires a little preparation.

The GM should draw a circle on each square and mark twelve dots within each to create a clock face.

A trap is triggered if anyone steps on a wrong clock face at any time. The clocks tell which square to step on next by pointing the way with the minute hand in every instance. Thus, the GM should make sure the first two clocks both point to the first safe square and each subsequent safe square is indicated by the preceding clock all the way to the end of the dungeon card.

If anyone steps on the wrong clock, poison darts are fired from the walls on either side at head, waist and ankle height, causing 3d4 Life Point damage to anyone occupying the passage at the time. Gnomes and Fairies incur only 2d4 damage due to their short height.

An old wooden chest stands in the passageway ahead. Alongside this is what looks like a stone coffin . A plaque on the stone coffin reads:

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Here Lies the Guardian of the Crown of Hansel If the chest is opened first the coffin will disgorge a skeleton clad in rags and armed with an ornate sword.

GUARDIAN SKELETON Agility 10, Strength Dice d12+d6 Life Points 17 Endurance 0 +5 Sword of Kings No armour If the skeleton is killed, the chest can be safely opened and contains two gemstones (30 Gold each) and a golden crown worth 60 Gold.

If both the treasure chest and the coffin are ignored nothing untoward will occur. The sword is epic and increases the bearer's Strength Dice to d12+d6.

Two stone tables bar the passage ahead. On top of each is the stone likeness of two very tall and beautiful looking humanoids, their faces serene, their eyes closed. On the side of each table is a plaque upon which are written: "Here lie Hansel and Gretel who, in their youth, defeated the evil witch of Fang Forest and grew to become a powerful king and queen of the land. Their rule was just, in their time, but ever was the forest tainted by the memory of that evil old witch. She should return only if the four Troll Stones of Timewinding should be lost for one full turn of the clock. Time would be rewound to the age of old tales and all would unravel to become again as once it was. The witch would serve the thief of the stones who would, so the legends say, become supreme ruler of all the world of myth."

The stone tables are sarcophagi containing the skeletal remains of King Hansel and Queen Gretel of old. Both are sealed by ancient magic and cannot be smashed or opened. To pass this way the player characters will need to clamber over the top, but doing so will cost each character 1d6 Fate points.

On one side of this passage stands a large round object made of stone. A line around the upper edge suggests this may be some kind of container with a lid.

On the side of the object is a plaque which reads: "Here Lies the noble Lord Dumpty, Hand of the King and champion to the Queen of all the realm. Despite winning many fearsome campaigns of war against the trolls of Underbridge and the dragon armies of the beldame Rapunzel the Reaver (to name just two) Lord Dumpty suffered a fall and left this mortal world. May he rest in honour for the hero he was."

If the stone coffin is opened the player characters will find the inside is full of broken egg shell but nothing else.

The passage starts to shake, as though the roof above were being pounded by some enormous hammer. Thunderous noises, like huge foot-falls, pass overhead then dwindle away. The quaking subsides and all is as it

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was before.

The Thunder Lizard has just walked across the ground above this section of the dungeon. See location 20 of the Forest Key.

On the floor of this passage is a star sigil which seems to shine and glimmer with some kind of magic.

If the player group have already encountered forest card 6, they will recognise the star sigil as being precisely the same as that used by Rankinphile to vanish. This star represents the other end of a 'wormhole' teleportation spell. If the player group step onto the star nothing will happen, though they may hear the malevolent chuckling of Rankinphile in their heads.

Ahead the passage reaches a dead end.

Somebody seems to be hunkering down there and as you approach they leap to their feet and turn on you.

It's the evil Lord Rankinphile! He looks as shocked to see you as you are to see him. He holds in his hands a pink Troll Stone which he fumbles to the floor. "Broken gems and tarnished gold! Can I not be left alone to complete my dastardly plans in peace?!" He curses, "ah well, it matters not. All the magic is in place now. So do your worst adventurers!" He marks the sign of a star in the air and vanishes with a POP, leaving the Troll Stone on the floor of the passage.

Lord Rankinphile will reappear at the star sign on dungeon card 19 and if any player characters are there waiting for him will then disappear and reappear at the star sigil on forest card 6.

As soon as anyone picks up the pink Troll Stone the GM should read the following aloud:

starts to quake. Great jagged cracks suddenly appear in the flagstones. The dungeon is collapsing!

As soon as all player characters have exited this dungeon card the GM should turn it over, indicating that this section of passage has caved-in completely. The ominous rumbling and quaking will continue and the cracks will start to appear in the new dungeon card passage.

Every time all members of the player group leave a dungeon card and enter another everyone makes a Fate roll. As long as at least one player succeeds their Fate roll the passage section the party occupy at that moment remains standing and the GM marks the passage as the next to collapse by placing a dice on the card. The player group are able to enter the next section which is more stable, though they will still be able to hear sounds of the dungeon collapsing around them.

As soon as all members of the group fail their Fate dice rolls the dungeon card last marked collapses and the dice marker is moved to an adjacent dungeon card. Subsequent totalgroup Fate failures will then result in this card collapsing and so on and so forth.

It should be the player group's aim to escape the collapsing sections before the collapse catches up with them, and while this will probably be a simple matter early on, the loss of one point for every failed Fate roll they make will soon start to take its toll and eventually the group will suffer Fate roll failures across the board. In short, their luck will run out.

If a passage section collapses with all player characters still inside they may make one last Fate roll and if this succeeds the player characters manage to scrabble free of the rubble into the next section of clear passage, but suffer 1d6+12 Life Point damage. If the last Fate roll fails the character is buried alive and is deemed to have died.

Something is wrong. From somewhere deep in the walls of the passage you hear a low rumbling sound. Dust starts to shower down from the ceiling and the ground underfoot

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The Adventure Concludes The adventure comes to its final scene when all four Troll Stones have been recovered and taken to the four Stone Troll statues. As soon as the player characters replace the stones, Adagio LeSpell enters the forest card, looking exhausted.

"It is too late," Adagio gasps and collapses at your feet. He looks battle weary and has clearly been fighting some kind of foe. "You did your very best, brave adventurers, and for that I am eternally grateful, but alas, Lord Rankinphile tricked us. The stones have been lost for one full turn of the clock, and the damage is now done. By drawing you into the dungeon beneath the old crypt he used you to clear a path through that underground place so that he could get his hands on the crown of the queen. It was the last piece of the puzzle he needed to turn back the hands of time."

Adagio swoons, fainting away with exhaustion. He is alive, but defeated.

As you are considering his last words you feel a sudden tingling and realise you are frozen in place, as unable to move as the stone troll statues surrounding you. You notice movement and see Lord Rankinphile himself entering from behind the trees. By his side is an impish creature wearing a crown made of old twigs. He grins at you and Lord Rankinphile pats him on the back. "My good servant Wart has been doing a grand job of keeping an eye on you as you blundered around the forest." Rankinphile surveys the fallen body of Adagio and chuckles, "And you have done a good job of returning the stones for me. You see, all four Troll Stones needed to be returned to their rightful place after being lost for one full turn of the clock in order for the effect I desire to take place.

Now, witness the end of time as you know it and the return of the age of..."

But before Rankinphile can finish his gloating something enormous comes crashing out of the trees, roaring and hurling the trees aside.

Rankinphile is tossed aside by the great swaying head of the Thunder Lizard who then

plants an enormous paw on top of Wart Digney, squashing him flat.

The spell is broken and you are free. But as you see Lord Rankinphile scurrying away into the trees, you are too late to flee yourself. The Thunder Lizard lumbers toward you, its great jaw clashing, its sharp claws lashing out.

THUNDER LIZARD Agility 9, Strength Dice d12+d6 Life Points 38 Endurance 3 +2 Mighty Claws +1 Armoured Hide Every time the Thunder Lizard rolls 6 for damage he lands one of his enormous paws on top of his victim and deals 12 points instead. The usual saving rolls for Endurance are allowed, as are Champion/Heroine dodge attempts and armour still reduces damage.

If the Thunder Lizard's Life Points are reduced to 5 or less it turns and crashes away into the forest, abandoning the fight.

When it is gone the GM reads on:

In the devastation left behind by the passage of the great Thunder Lizard you see what looks like a huge nest made of old tree branches and bracken. Inside the nest is what looks like an egg made of shining gold.

The players should be given an opportunity to catch their breath, to check on Adagio (who is alive but still unconscious) and, if they wish, to examine the nest and to take the egg. If any character tries to leave this forest card, however, the GM should read the following aloud:

The forest seems to change around you.

The sky flickers light and dark, as though day and night were passing at incredible speed. The four stone troll statues suddenly rise to their feet and hold their respective stones aloft. They speak together in booming voices: "All hail the Gingerbread Witch" And then everything goes dark.

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Lightning flickers down from above illuminating the same forest, but now something seems different. The trees around you are much shorter than they were a moment before. The grass is somehow greener and there are two moons in the sky instead of the usual one! What's more, the four Stone Trolls are gone.

What has happened? You have no way of telling. This adventure is at an end, and once again the evil Lord Rankinphile and those who serve him have escaped your grasp. All that remains is for you to return Adagio LeSpell safely to his wizards tower and, with luck, when he is revived he will be able to explain everything...

Next issue The player group discover that time has rewound to an age unknown in thousands of years. The land is ruled by King Hansel and Queen Gretel and protected by their champion, the noble Lord Dumpty, and everywhere the monstrous agents of the wicked Gingerbread Witch are abroad.

Don't miss scenario #3,..

The Gingerbread House!

Written by David Sharrock. Playtested by David (41 - a big kid and therefore valid), Cate (age undisclosed to protect the innocent), Annie (13) and Cerin (6).

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PREVIEW Sue Llewelyn looks at Forever People's latest range. A wesome Resource adventures will present a manageable tabletop battlemap for fantasy, horror, sci -fi and multi-genre roleplaying games, offering an accompanying agnostic adventure.

Offering the playability of an agnostic adventure with the aesthetic wow-factor of a full colour battlemap and the added bonus of a floorplan scenario, Awesome Resource aims to bring a high quality of artwork and written fluff to GMs who want something a little special for their next session.

David Sharrock, designer of the Awesome Resource range, explains: "we produced One Session Dungeons about three years ago, offering agnostic floorplan based adventure with maps and that was a pretty successful range. We had a lot of good feedback, but we didn't want to just release more of the same. So we sat down and looked at what worked in the past and what we personally would like to make and Awesome Resource was the result."

"Each set comes with an agnostic adventure, a full colour battlemap which is laid out as soon as the session begins and which covers an area on the table equal in size to three sheets of A4 width-ways and two sheets height-ways, or 63cm x 60cm in total. Each section of this main map can be printed on a home printer, but we are also offering the complete battlemap as a high-quality glossy print through Zazzle at a very reasonable price.

"This main map will be accompanied by additional add-ons which are laid down on top, like the interior of buildings, things like that. And then, on top of this, each set will include a second scenario directly associated with the main map, a dungeon crawl perhaps, beneath the location of the main map, or a large building to be explored in sections, and so on.

We're keeping an open mind on where we could go and what we could produce in this respect.

"The first set includes a dungeon crawl which, itself, is contained in the same footprint as the main map and which can be revealed one A4 sheet at a time, so there's no need to fiddle about with passage sections or tiles. This will be a feature of the secondary scenario and reflects the fact that we wanted to create something that could be used as a battlemap

rather than a floorplan layout. Rooms in the secondary maps are spacious and furnished with plenty of eye candy and interesting nooks and crannies for characters to explore. In other words, there's a nice mixture of space to fight and space to explore, with room to reveal the story behind the scenario if the GM chooses to run with it."

The first set, due for release in mid-June (visit www.foreverpeople.co.uk and sign up for the newsletter for immediate notification of the launch) is a fantasy setting which could also be used as easily with Call of Cthulhu as Dungeons & Dragons and is both beautiful to behold and exciting to sit down to.

From a player perspective, it screams 'explore me!'

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and there are lots of interesting visual quirks which suggest hidden information in the artwork itself.

The interior of buildings is cramped in order to fit inside the limited space, but this was necessary in order to keep the battlemap manageable on the average tabletop. Once miniatures are in play the close confines of buildings actually seems to make sense, and it prevents rooms becoming overwhelmed with multiple enemies. As in real life, the space available has an effect on your ability to fight and you soon realise why bar brawlers always want to 'take it outside'.

The dungeon, when it comes, is hard won and that makes you appreciate the reward all the more. In playtests one evening session was dedicated to the village and another to the dungeon, though the dungeon was shorter, requiring much less problem solving and investigation.

There are zombies, which made me The village battlemap, spanning the width of an average table top happy, but I won't go into the agnostic scenario in any more detail than that.

Suffice to say it was great fun to play, and even greater fun to watch as it unfolded in miniature scale before our eyes!

I think the addition of an option to buy the already printed version of the battlemap will be an appealing factor and, given the price of printer ink, isn't that far fetched in terms of cost.

Zazzle uses local printers, so waiting times post-ordering won't be long and will be available to US and Europe with no additional postage costs incurred. I think it's a way forward for things like this, a nice alternative to off-sets and Kickstarters.

Agnostic adventures are always frowned upon by someone somewhere and I'm sure this will be no exception, but I personally think the high quality of the fluff more than makes up for any stats prep the GM will need to do to make the adventure his own. It also seems very versatile for inserting into an existing campaign world, being generic enough to fit pretty much anywhere with only a few alterations to names and so on.

Awesome Resources will also come in two formats, though individual sets won't be replicated in both formats. The first will be as tabletop battlemaps for use with roleplaying games and these will be accompanied by all the extras I already mentioned.

Wargame format battlemaps will be slightly larger and won't come with the same level of scenario detail, though they will come with fluff should the wargamers need it. Plans in this respect are for fantasy and 'space marine' style, so watch this space, space marines!

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NEXT ISSUE Exploring the World Wide Web of Wyrd

The Plasmic Priest Pushed forward due to space restrictions in this issue, the Plasmic Priest for the Wyrd system and setting will appear next issue.

Fighting Fantasy A look at the latest project on the horizon for the Fighting Fantasy brand, a card based adventure game with Kickstarter support.

The Unsung Weave

The Aura of Coriola Our serialised Wyrd campaign continues with the second adventure associated with rumours. The Aura of Coriola takes players into the northern realm of Listholm, there to explore the city of Tunturthis and the lands of the lairds whose ancestry can be linked to the gods themselves.

Mazes, Maps & Monsters

The Gingerbread House More ribald fun and adventure, leading players into the start of (potentially) their first campaign using unique presentation and the original Mazes, Maps & Monsters game system.

If you have content you would like to submit to the zine, please get in touch. We're always on the lookout for great Kickstarters to showcase, games reviews, original articles and anything else you think might fit. We're particularly keen to publish transcripts of game sessions, so if you have a game you'd like to showcase and you're running playtests or regular sessions right now, we'd love to hear from you. Send email foliocontent@foreverpeople.co.uk

Creative Commons images

Bearing Spire, Plate K86, San Lorenzo (enlarged uppermost storey and added foliage) Bearing Spire door knocker, plate 01, Door Handle Guadalaxara (added text under knocker).

Woman With Wand by Howard Pyle from The Story of King Arthur and his Knights (Charles Scribner's Sons - 1903) King Mark of Cornwall by Howard Pyle from The Story of the Champions of the Round Table (Charles Scribner's Sons - 1905) Woman with Book by Howard Pyle from The Chronicles of Lancelot (Charles Scribner's Sons - 1905) Hansel & Gretel by Ludvig Richter, 1842.

CC License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Digital PDF distributed by One Bookshelf, produced by Forever People Digital Press. All content should be considered the intellectual property of the artist or writer associated with its creation. Please direct issues, questions, concerns, comments or any other communication regarding showcase and Kickstarter titles unrelated to Forever People to the respective development team. Forever People are in no way, shape or form responsible for the opinions and creative output of non -Forever People developers. Forever People is an affiliate publisher of One Bookshelf, Visit our publisher page at http://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/3320/Forever-People

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