Epilogue - The Tyrant's Tomb
The Heroes' Tale ends...
"The fellowship of four has parted company, leaving you free to pursue your own inclinations. Despite your many adventures and victories, there is something that still gnaws away at you; you never did get to lay your eyes on the great riches that lie in the tomb of Chungor Chan. The hideous Orc Witch, Ghashlug, stole the treasure map, along with any chance you had to locate the tomb. Almost as bad, the Witch managed to escape from the battle beneath Mt Anger. The way forward then dawned on you; to kill two birds with one stone by hunting down the Witch to exact justice and, if she still has the map, use it to find your fortune.
It took you many months to find where Ghashlug has been hiding since her defeat, a squalid cave deep in Troll Country. After the wounds she sustained, you can only hope that she will be less hot to handle than in previous encounters.
The hoard of Chungor Chan would be the ultimate prize for a treasure hunter such as yourself. Chungor Chan was said to be the most direful despot ever to inflict his rule on the lands of men. His Empire stretched further than any before or since. As his power and cruelty grew, so did his wealth. When he finally met his demise, his servants carried his body to the far northern edge of the world, and buried it in a secret tomb set inside a pyramid of ice, along with treasures greater than all the lost hoards that lie in the ocean depths. Your palms start to sweat just thinking about all that loot!"
Notes - This Quest is for any ONE Hero that the Hero player chooses to use. It makes sense for it to be the Dwarf, but it doesn't have to be as the other Heroes know all about the treasure after spending time with him. The Hero may use any items and artefacts he has found so far, and before this Quest begins he may spend any gold he has accumulated on equipment from the standard equipment card deck. He may also buy any of the following items from the market place for his grave-robbing attempt; Rope 25 gold, Lantern 30 gold, Shovel 50 gold, Mongoose Statue 50 gold, Wooden Stake 15 gold, Holy Water 50 gold, Silver Dagger 200 gold, Healing Potion 150 gold (will restore 4BP).
A - This door bears Ghashlug's personal symbol (four serpents intertwining to form an eight-pointed star). However, the door is locked and can only be opened with a Bone key (even a Genie spell won't open it).
B - A Troll stands on the X. It has these stats - Move 8, Attack 4, Defend 4, Body 3, Mind 2, and is immune to all spells. The chest contains a Bone key that will open door A.
C- Ghashlug the Orc Witch stands in front of the fireplace. Some of the fire has left her since her defeat in Kyrax's tomb, and of course she has lost a hand, but she still looks dangerous and cackles at the Hero as he enters. Her voice sounds like something slithering in the recesses of a cavern, and her breath leaves a festering miasma in the air in front of a face covered in tiny toadstools and warts. Stats - Move 7, Attack 2, Defend 4, Body 3, Mind 5. She has the Chaos spell Firestorm, and the WOM spell Strands of Binding.
D - The treasure chest contains a Potion of Healing (4BP) and a Genie spell scroll, but is armed with a spear trap. There is also a spear trap on the cupboard, which will also inflict 1BP of damage if it is not disarmed. Inside the cupboard the Hero will find a threadbare Journey Bag, much like the one the Heroes used to escape from My Anger. Inside the bag is the treasure map! The Hero may travel to the location of the tomb marked on the map, simply by climbing into the Journey Bag. The Hero is immediately moved to the teleportation symbol in room E.
E - Use the Snow Cavern tile here. The Hero finds himself in a snowy wilderness beneath a glacier. The tracks in the snow were probably made by Ghashlug as she travelled to and fro using her Journey bag. Unfortunately the Bag gave out after the Hero's journey and now lies in useless pieces in the snow. He is obviously in the far north but there is no sign at all of the ice pyramid. Could it be that he is now stranded here?
F - Use an Iron door here, to show the entrance to the Pyramid tomb. The pyramid itself has been covered up by the glacier, which is why the Hero couldn't see it until now. The tunnel beyond the door is packed deep with ice and will need to be cleared using a pickaxe or shovel, or by sacrificing any one fire spell. If the Hero does not have any of these options open to him, he will need to use a weapon to hack at the ice; he will lose 1 Body Point from the effort and the weapon will break upon clearing the last square of ice.
G - This is an altar to the Snake goddess. Large stone tablets set in the altar depict vanquished lords being disembowelled on her altar or images of blood-drenched conquest, with Chungor Chan in his chariot at the head of a vast army. Tell the Hero that the tablets can be removed, but they are too heavy to bring back to civilisation and are therefore worthless.
H - Use a stone doorway here. Tell the Hero that it is carved in the likeness of Chungor Chan and two large metal dishes hang from chains connected to the door. The door is extremely heavy and can't be opened by normal means. If the Hero places the stone tablets from room G on to the metal dishes, the stone door will lift up high enough for the Hero to duck under. A Genie could be used, but the door will then fall back into place behind the Hero as he moves through it. Pass Through Rock will also allow passage, but the way back will also be blocked. The only other way to get past the door is to smash through it using brute force, using a Hammer, a Pickaxe or a Toolkit. If either of these three items are used, the Hero will lose 1 Body Point from exhaustion and the item will be destroyed, but the door will be permanently opened.
I - The Hero has now reached the inner temple of the pyramid, which is unnaturally dark. The Dwarf will have no problem here, but for any other Hero this corridor cannot be searched for traps or secret doors unless a lantern is used. A fire spell will also light up the darkness. If neither of these methods are available, the Hero will automatically fall into any pit of darkness tile that he moves into.
J - There is more light in the rooms either side of the door marked J, as the glacier has partially broken through the roof. The ingress of the ice over the centuries has warped the archway above the door, leaving this section of the pyramid likely to collapse. If the Hero searches for traps in this room, tell him that the doorway is weak but by passing through carefully he will avoid danger, but any pressure at all on the archway will lead to collapse.The falling block traps either side of the door will only be triggered, on Morcars' next turn, if the Hero walks through this weakened door without first searching the room for traps.
K - Use the Frozen Horror chamber tile here. The tomb of Chungor Chan, the tyrant of a bygone age, has gold and gems piled up high around it. A black snake lies coiled up inside the ribcage of the skeleton lying atop the tomb. The snake is filled with the soul of the dead Tyrant and is waiting to be reborn in the body of a man (or Elf, or Dwarf!). The snake opens its eyes as the Hero enters and begins to speak. "The Snake goddess promised I would be reborn in a thousand years, as this serpent grew in my mouldering body. When the seal of the tomb was broken, she said I would eat the intruders soul, then go forth once more to impose my will on the world of men. Now rivers of blood will flow to fill the altar-cups of my goddess. I will make each day a monument of hatred. The wars of your era will seem as the tantrum's of children beside the carnage I shall wreak..."
The black snake is nearly immortal and cannot be harmed by weapons or spells (all attacks bounce off its magical scales). Allow the Hero to waste an attack before hinting at this. However, if the Hero has a Mongoose statue in his possession and he thinks to use it, it will summon a mongoose familiar that can fight the snake (see below). The snake itself cannot attack but will instead cast two spells. On Morcar's first turn it will summon a Draugr (see note J of Quest 6 for its stats and abilities). If the Hero defeats the Draugr, the snake will then cast a spell to pull the Hero into the Chaos void; the Hero must roll the same as or less than his mind score on one red die or will be dragged into the void and instantly destroyed.
If the Hero survives these spells, he must then attempt to deal with the snake again. If he uses the Mongoose Statue, the familiar will kill the snake and the evil soul inside it, allowing the Hero to loot the room at his leisure. He can take 5,000 gold coins, and if he manages to get back to the snow tile (room E), he can journey south on foot (the Quest pack is complete).
If the Hero doesn't think to use the statue, or doesn't possess one, he will be at an impasse as he cannot harm the serpent and it has in turn used up all its spells. Tell the Hero that he can snatch up no more than 1,000 gold coins and make a run for it (with the snake slowly slithering behind him at 4 squares per turn). If the Hero can get back to room E the Quest is considered complete. If the Hero thinks to collapse the archway above door J (a free action as he passes through the doorway), all the falling block traps will fall on Morcar's next turn. If the black serpent is on the far side of the door, it will be trapped inside it's pyramid tomb forever. If the snake is not trapped here, the Hero may escape with his gold but tell him that he has doomed the world to an age of war and conquest now that Chungor Chan has been set free.
Wandering monster - in the cave in Troll Country; Goblin. In the Tomb of Chungor Chan; Spear Trap