Haunted Heroes ......................................... 13 Adventures in Har'Akir

Untold years passed, but on the day the last memory of Ankhtepot's name faded from his homeland, a voice intruded on the priest's prison, asking if he still felt he was worthy to rule. Through the ages, Ankhtepot's arrogance hadn't waned, and he answered with certainty. Granted new freedom by the Dark Powers, Ankhtepot emerged from his crypt into the domain of Har'Akir.

In this new land, Ankhtepot found a pious people devoted to the same gods he once served. Immediately he set to wiping out that religion, replacing it with new gods of his own imagining, false divinities for whom he alone spoke. Using blasphemous rites, Ankhtepot resurrected the priests once buried alongside him as powerful mummies, replacing their heads with those of beasts holy to his new faith. These Children of Ankhtepot served him as they did in life, and together the dead conquered the souls of Har'Akir. The ages have marched ever on. Ankhtepot has known treachery and conquest. He has known divinity and rule. But now he knows only boredom and despair. His sole remaining desire is to recover his lost ka, which he knows remains somewhere in Har'Akir. With it, he hopes to become mortal again, die, and face his original gods' judgment once more. Whether this means peace or oblivion is meaningless to him. Ankhtepot seeks only an end. ANKHTEPOT'S POWERS AND D OM I N ION

A fantastically ancient Undead, Ankhtepot has statistics similar to a mummy lord. Beyond this, he rules as pharaoh, national leader, and voice of the gods. None in Har'Akir, among the living or the dead, denies his will, but the Darklord's wishes are few. He cares only for order and to find his lost ka.

Children of Ankhtepot. The Darklord is served by many of the same priests who died alongside him in ages past. He resurrected these mummies and mummy lords with the heads of animals, painting them as spirits and harbingers of his fictitious gods of Har'Akir. As Ankhtepot has grown bored with mortal concerns, the Children of Ankhtepot have pursued their own vices. Many dream and despair in their crypts. Others foment small cults of their own. And still others seek to undermine the pharaoh and claim his position-including the treacherous mummy lord Senmet.

The Gods' Law. Although Ankhtepot cares nothing for fragile, short-lived mortals, he has a tyrant's obsession with order and knows the living might be useful in finding his lost ka. To that end, he relies on his priests to maintain peace in Har'Akir and provide for the people. Should the populace grow discontent, Ankhtepot expects the priests to deal with discord swiftly. If they can't, he sends his mummy servants to indiscriminately quell any uprising. Examples of such massacres fill Har'Akir's h istory, but they are known only to the domain's priests.

Pharaoh's Priests. The priests of Har'Akir's gods work Ankhtepot's will. Most priests believe themselves to be devout servants of the gods, having no idea that their deities are false. They keep alert for strangers and omens, reporting them to their superiors and, ultimately, High Priestess Isu Rehkotep. The high priestess dutifully watches for signs of a mysterious treasure her pharaoh seeks and orders any strangers in H ar'Akir brought to her at the Temple of Ese, but she also relishes her influence and decadent lifestyle. She dreads the day Ankhtepot blames her for not finding what he desires, though she has no idea she's searching for the Darklord's ka.

Closing the Borders. When Ankhtepot wishes to close the borders of Har'Akir, mighty sandstorms rise at the edges of the domain. Those who enter the storms are affected as detailed in "The Mists" at the start of this chapter, but in addition, they take 2d6 slashing damage per round from the scouring sands. A N K HTEPOT'S TORMENT

T h e Dark Powers torment Ankhtepot in one simple, all-encompassing way: they won't let him die. Existence is pain for the pharaoh. He vividly remembers every one of his crimes and understands that his ambitions have sustained his corporeal form for untold lifetimes. He seeks his ka and rebirth as a mortal not to prolong his existence, but so his life might finally end. ROL E P LAYING ANKHTEPOT

Ankhtepot is seen only a few times a year, when his priests bring offerings to Pharaoh's Rest and beseech him for the gods' empty blessings. Those who glimpse the pharaoh describe a withered corpse clad in black linen wrappings and gold adornments, with a voice like sand ground between clashing mountains. The only time he bothers with either the living or the dead is when they actively offend him (such as by trespassing upon his solitude at Pharaoh's Rest), when they bring him hope of finding his ever-elusive ka, or when disappointment kindles his rage.

Personality Trait. "The stirring of a song, the scent of bread, the cool rush of water over skin. I have forgotten it all."

Ideal. " I will regain my ka and stand before the gods renewed, before I face the final darkness."

Bond. "My final age will be peaceful, and my domain will know order."

Flaw. "I will cross any boundary, uncover any secret, shred any soul, if it gains me my death."

I f you find terror i n trap-laden tombs and ancient curses (explored further in chapter 4), Har'Akir provides them in endless supply. The land's central plot-the search to find Pharaoh Ankhtepot's ka-can lead adventurers to explore mysterious sites as they seek hiding places undisturbed for centuries. Consider running a tour of the domain's most intriguing locales, punctuated with treks across the brutal deserts-landscapes fraught with hazards such as extreme heat, quicksand, and sandstorms whipped up by strong winds, all detailed in the Dungeon Master's Guide. I n the course of their adventures, characters can learn the truth of Ankhtepot's origins and Har'Akir's original gods. How they use these discoveries is up to them, but each discovery should bring the characters closer to sealing Ankhtepot's doom or their own. "The Darklord's Soul" below provides ideas for running adventures focused on Ankhtepot's obsession, while the Har'Akir Adventures table suggests other plots that might unfold in this domain.

H A R 'A K I R A DV E N T U R E S d 8 Adventure

T h e priests of Ese seek adventurers to retrieve s o m e o n e they con d e m ne d from the L a by r i n t h . 2 T h e h isto r i a n K h arafe k h a s excavated a c a nyon r i d d l e d w i t h sealed tom b s . S he's paying l aborers well b u t i s a l so u s i n g them to bear t h e b r u nt of the curses t h e crypts con ce a l . 3 T h e h e r m its settled i n River's S helter accid ental l y reve a l e d a crypt a n d released mummies t h at resent b e in g d isturbed. 4 T h e pyram i d of a fo r m e r h i g h priest h a s v a n i s h e d . T h e p riests of N e b s e e k h e l p fi nd i n g t h e m o n um e n t before t h e p ha ra o h notices a n d i s d i s p l ea s e d . 5 S n efru , a p r iest of O r u , d iscovers . t h at t h e B e n t Pyra m i d res p o n d s to s o n g. S h e seeks a i d to a s s e m b l e a m assive c h o r u s to o p e n a p a t h i ns i d e . 6 The revo l u t i o n a r y A l iz is secretly a j a c kal - h ea d e d werewolf a l li e d with t h e m ummy lord S e n m e t . S h e seeks to fi n d A n khtepot's k a to b r i n g t h e p h a ra o h ' s r u l e t o a n e n d . 7 S ute's C h o s e n seek h e l p resc u i n g travelers m i s s i n g i n t h e B reath of t h e Forgotten . T h e party m u s t e n d u re t h e gods' tests t o save t h e m from t h e stor m . 8 N e p hyr, a cat- h ea d e d C h i ld of A n k h tepot, a rrives i n

M uh a r. To motivate t h e l i v i n g t o fi n d t h e p h a ra o h ' s l o s t t re a s u re , each d aw n s h e curses a n u m be r o f i n n ocents e q u a l to t h e d ays s h e ' s s p e n t i n t h e city. Har'Akir's people once worshiped the deities o f the Egyptian pantheon-the same deities Ankhtepot once served. But the spiteful Darklord scoured the old religions from his domain, replacing them with parodies that make him and his followers central to the land's faith. Over generations, these deities have become the gods of Har'Akir: Anu, who judges the fate of the dead Ese, who presides over life and the living Neb, who guards the path of the dead Oru, who orders the heavens and all beneath Ousa, who controls death and the dead Sek, who heals the sick and cultivates life Sute, who sows despair and discord The Dark Powers have granted a measure of power to Ankhtepot's false gods. Clerics who worship one of Har'Akir's gods or the pantheon as a whole receive power as if they worshiped a true deity that offers the death domain. Despite their distinct roles, traditions, and places within the lives of Har'Akir's people, these gods are all especially aloof, cryptic, morbid, and supportive of the pharaoh's rule. THE DARKLORD's S ou L

Above all things, Pharaoh Ankhtepot seeks t o retrieve his ka, the missing piece of his soul. Characters i n Har'Akir are l i kely to become involved i n the pharaoh's search. Before they do, though, consider the specifics of that search, what form his lost ka might take, how characters might become involved , a n d what happens if t h e pharaoh does recover his soul. THE SOU L' S SHAPE

Before tasking characters with retrieving i t , determine what form the pharaoh's ka takes. It might be a physical object, a living creature, or a spiritual concept that needs to be summoned into being. Roll or choose an option from the Ankhtepot's Soul table to determine the form of the Darklord's ka.

A N K HT E PO T ' S S O U L d8 The Ka's Form

A hawk or giant eagle t h at t i re l e s s l y c i rcles the s u n . 2 A c a n o p i c j a r contai n in g the p h a ra o h 's h e a rt h i d d e n withi n a forgotten tom b 3 M u m mi fi e d a n d d iv i d e d - u p h e a rt-meat, a p i ece of w h i c h is h i d d e n with i n each of t h e rem a i n i n g loyal

C h i l d re n of A nkhtepot 4 A b l e s s i n g granted to those w h o s u rvive both the

B reath of the Forgotten and t h e B reath of t h e False