[WIP] Serving the Empire [9 quests]

[lestodante]

Edited title and introducing the Italian cover. At the moment this is ready only in iItalian language but will make an English version very soon.
Also you can see the cover for the sequel titled Amulet of the Underworld.
(artworks by Christopher Lue-Quee)

ServingTheEmpire.jpg

Hi all, I bought a small lot on ebay wich was full of HeroQuest stuff, also including some custom quests numbered from 1 to 9. Seems they only require a Game-System to be played.
The papers appear to be yellowish and dusty and the icons are attached with some old tape wich is losing his glue. I guess they are very old.
I am not going to store them forever, especially in this conditions but since we are always searching for new quests, I decided to post them, so if someone has some time to remake them, we can have a new questpack and also the work did by the unknown author will not be vanished and will last longer.

Other members that wish to contribute are welcome, especially for the text transcription. I am going to change a lot of things and then I will format it with a UK or US layout.
Below are the links to the pics showing original maps and notes wich I am going to rework (pratically I only saved the maps and the starting idea and re-worked almost everything).
Some icons from quest 8 were missing, I found them in the box separately but it was easy to understand their correct position looking at the blank spaces on the map.
I will change a lot and use them only as inspiration to create the new questpack.
Unless you wish to see the differences beetween my work and the original quests, you can ignore the links below and skip directly to the second post.

------------------------------------------------------------
Quest 1 - Chaos Cave: map - notes
Quest 2 - Lair of the Gargoyle: map - notes
Quest 3 - The Quest of Knowledge: map - notes
Quest 4 - Lair of the Orcs: map - notes
Quest 5 - The Quest for Sir Cane: map - notes
Quest 6 - Domain of the Beast: map - notes
Quest 7 - Lair of the Chaos Warlord: map - notes
Quest 8 - Orc's Maze: map - notes - bits missing from map
Quest 9 - (untitled/unfinished): map - notes

[lestodante]

I just transcribed the first 4 quests. [w.i.p.]
Not really the best in a matter of originality as you can see... I am changing them all!
I changed some name also because the originals were the same of other well known character (the Gargoyle Mentor, the Fimir Ragnar...)
Anyone that wish to review the text or contribute with ideas is welcome.


Quest 1.xml

Quest 1 - Chaos Cave (vers. 2)

"A band of monsters lead by two Chaos Warriors have been threatening the Emperor's life.
A reward of 200 gold coins to divide among them has been offered to any group of brave heroes
that will enter the Chaos Cave, kill the two Chaos Warriors and bring back their heads as proof."


A These weapons are rusted and are not useful.
B This goblin has a small bow and can also perform ranged attacks with 2 dice.
C The secret door in this room is well hidden by the throne so the heroes can't find it unless the search is performed from the other side of the wall (see note E).
D The falling rock trap can't be detected with a search. When a Hero steps on the square marked with the trap icon, the rock will fall blocking the door.
E This secret door can be revealed only if the search is performed from this side of the wall (inside the room it is well hidden by the throne).
F The first treasure chest that is opened contains a potion of counterattack (see the new card), the second one contains 50 gold coins. Both of them are protected by a spear trap that can inflict 1 BP of damage if not disarmed.

Wandering Monster: Orc






Quest 2.xml

Quest 2 - Lair of the Gargoyle (vers. 2)

"A terrifying Gargoyle and its army are spreading panic among the peasants in the countryside along the Empire.
They ransacked and burned the peasant's homes and stolen their supplies.
The Emperor is offering 150 gold coins to anyone that will be able to put an end to this and silence the menacing Gargoyle."

A The first person to search for treasures will get a Helmet and a dagger on the weapons rack.
B Looks like this Fimir has fallen asleep. It will not notice the Heroes unless they enter the room or attack. While asleep it can't defend.
C On the bookshelf you'll find a "Clairvoyance" Spell Scroll hidden beetween the pages of a book.
D This secret door seems to be blocked. Only the Barbarian is strong enough to try to push it. He must roll 2 dice and if the result is 9 or more it will open. If the test fails the door will only open partially and a Skeleton from the other side will attack him. On each turn he can try again but every time he fails the Skeleton will attack. The heroes can also use the Genie Spell to open the door immediately.
E As soon as a Hero enters the room the Gargoyle will start growling monstrously against him and a strange fog surrounds the whole room. If still sleeping, the Fimir in room B will awake and come to aid.
The Gargoyle stats are the following: ATT:4 DEF: 4 MOV: 10 MIND: 3 Body: 4 It can also cast "Ball of Flame" twice.
Once the Gargoyle is slain read the following: the fog in the room has become deeper and deeper, as you see the Gargoyle falling into pieces on the floor you notice a figure in the shadows but you feel yourself falling asleep and lose consciousness".
Quest ends here, now go to quest 3!

Wandering Monster: Orc





Quest 3.xml

Quest 3 - The Fimirs Burrow (vers. 2)

"You have been captured by a band of Orcs and their leaders seem to be Draakgur, a strong and sneaky Fimir and its brother Rugfus.
It is known they use Chaos magic and are hunters of magical items which they often gift to powerful sorcerers to earn their goodwill.
While the guards sleep you manage to pick the lock with a rusty old nail. You must reach the stairs to escape.
You may also take any treasure in Draakgur's stronghold."

Special rules for this quest:
In this quest the Heroes awake inside a cell and without any equipment.
Until they'll find a weapon they will attack and defend according to their basic stats but require to roll black shields instead of skulls or white shields.
Once a monster is killed a hero can pick up its weapon and can again attack and defend normally; Orcs and goblins are all equipped with a short sword or an axe.
Anyway Wizard and Elf can still use their magic as no special item is required to cast a spell.
Players must collect their stuff before leaving the dungeon or they will lost it forever!

A. As soon as the Heroes enter the room they will notice this Fimir is wearing Borin's Armor!! It's Draakgur and can roll white shields to defend. Its stats are:
MOV: 6 ATT: 4 DEF: 4 Body: 3 Mind: 3
B. This Fimir is Rugfus and knows some magic tricks; the first Hero who enters the room will have to defend immediately against a "Sleep" spell and his turn ends anyway.
Rugfus can also cast "Rust" and "Cloud of Chaos" spells and has 4 Mind Points.
If a Hero searches for traps he will not find any secret passage. A search for treasures will reveal a lever book that will make the bookcase slide on its left side. They can now search again for traps and the secret door will be found.
C. Place the chest only if a Hero goes looking behind the cupboard. The chest contains 2 scrolls: "Veil of Mist" and "Mind Recovery" plus all the other artifacts previously owned by the Heroes, with the only exception of the Spirit Blade (it will be found in a further quest). You can say to the Heroes that it was probably given by the Fimirs to someone else.
D. All the Heroes equipment is here but all the artifacts are missing... (they are in room A and C)

Wandering Monster: 2 Goblins





Quest 4.xml

Quest 4 - Abandoned Castle (vers. 2)

"The old and abandoned Lane Castle was once the mansion of Lord Lane. In ancient times he was a mighty warrior of the Empire.
At his death he was buried in the dungeon below his castle.
But since then the forces of Chaos have taken over and settled inside the castle and now you must go and grant Lord Lane's soul to rest in peace again."

A The treasure chests have been already opened and are now empty.
B The first Hero to search for treasures will find a Potion of Strength.
C This is Lord Lane's tomb. The inscriptions on the tomb say: "Only fools stand in the centre of the battle. When backed into a corner you'll find your path".
The secret passage can not be found with a normal search. When a Hero steps on of a tile maked with a X he will hear a click but nothing else will happen. When at least 3 Heroes will stand on the X the passage will open.
D There is just a fireplace in the room. But when you look closer you realize the framed picture has a real necklace holding a small key (it opens room E).
E This door has a very small keyhole and is locked (you will need the key from room D to open it or alternatively the heroes can cast a "Genie" spell to open it).
F A message is carved on the cupboard: "My gift to the bravest hero"; once you open it you'll find Lord Lane's quiver: it contains 9 magical arrows (take the artifact card).

Wandering Monster: Skeleton

[lestodante]

Quest 5.xml

Quest 5 - The Disappearing of Sir Senet (vers. 2)

"One of the Emperor's best knights disappeared many years ago and the Emperor offered a reward to anyone that could find him but no one could.
Now years later some heroes found proof of him being still alive and they set out to find him in the dark and dreaded Catacombs of Chaos.
They never returned and the Emperor is offering 100 a piece, to any brave hero that can bring him back alive."

A The first person to search for treasures will find 2 Spell Scrolls: "Genie" and "Swift Wind".
B There are no special weapons on the rack but you find two daggers that can be useful.
C The chest contains 50 gold coins but is protected with a trap that will knock off 3 body points if not disarmed.
D On the table there is a bottle of Holy Water and a map with some notes.
E Sir Senet is prisoned in this cell (use a iron door from KK if you have). He has been taken prisoner for a while and is very tired. Bring him to the stairway to complete this quest.
MOV:4 ATT:0 DEF:2 Body:2 Mind:2
F Once Sir Senet has been found, if the monsters hidden in this corridor have not yet been killed, they will attack the Heroes from behind on their way back to the stairway. Release them when the last Hero reaches the bottom corridor.
G Do not place these monsters at the start of the quest. Once the Heroes have freed Sir Senet and are coming back to the stairs, the two Orcs will be here waiting for them.
Wandering Monster: 2 Orcs



Quest 6.xml

Quest 6 - Domain of the Beast (vers. 2)

"Sir Senet informed us that he was imprisoned because he has information on how to locate an ancient cave.
The map found in the catacombs partially shows the way to reach it while the notes say that a powerful item is hidden inside.
With the information provided by Sir Senet and the map you will be able to locate the entrance of the cave but it will not be easy to get out as the cave
is the domain of a ferocious Gargoyle that will not be kind with unexpected guests..."

A These Orcs are equipped with crossbows and can also make ranged attacks with 3 dice.
B A search for treasures will reveal a Potion of Strength on the desk and 50 gold coins in the drawer.
C This Gargoyle is the cave guardian! He has 6 BP and can cast the "FEAR" spell. It has also a special skill that can use once: by roughly stomping the ground it causes 3 rocks to fall from the ceil where shown by the arrows.
D These chests are empty. If a Hero searches for secret doors read: "you notice some furrows in the the wall on the east, seems to be something hidden here..." but he will not find any passage.
If someone wish to search again he must roll 2 dice: on a result of 10 or more he will find a hidden trigger that opens the secret door; otherwise, roll a combat die, if a skull is rolled a Wandering Zombie will reach the Heroes!
Repeat until someone can open the secret door or the Heroes quit.
E This chest contains 400 gold coins and the Gem of Restoration (see new artifact card)!
F The three doors in this corridor are already open. Reveal their content when they match a Hero's line of sight.

Wandering Monster: Fimir





Quest 7.xml

Quest 7 - Hunting the Chaos Warlord (vers. 2)

"The forces of Chaos are growing faster and are a real menace. It is necessary to weaken them before they can strike the Empire again.
Mekis is a Chaos Champion who has killed two of the Emperor's personal guards and a reward of 200 gold coins has been offered to any group of Heroes who can enter Mekis' lair and slay him.
You will also receive 30 gold coins for any killed Chaos Warrior beside Mekis."

A The Heroes start from this room. As soon as one door is opened the other two doors will also be opened and the monsters will be activated.
B These three doors are marked with numbers 1,2,3. They are locked and can be opened only with their key.
Every Orc in this quest may own one of the keys. Once a Orc is slayed, the Hero will roll 1 combat die:
if a SKULL is rolled he will get the key to room 1, with a SHIELD the key to room 2 and with a DARK SHIELD the key to room 3. If they get the same symbol of a previous roll no key is found.
Heroes don't know wich key they have until they try on the door. A locked door can also be opened by a Genie spell.
C The first Hero to search for traps will cause the bench to move forward revealing the secred door.
D This Chaos Warrior is Mekis! He is so skilled in combat that he can take advantage of every attack struck against him: when an adjacent Hero attacks him, both Mekis and the Hero will roll their attack dice; the one who rolls more skulls will inflict 1 BP of damage to the opponent. A Hero attacked by Mekis must defend normally.
Mekis has the following stats: MOV:7 ATT:4 DEF:5 BODY:3 MIND:3
The Chaos Sorcerer protects Mekis canceling the effect of any kind of magic into the room: unless he is killed, if a spell is cast it will have no effect but its card must be discarded anyway.
For the reward it counts as a Chaos Warrior and has the following stats: MOV:4 ATT:2 DEF:2 BODY:2 MIND:4
E This chest contains 100 gold coins but is protected with a spear trap.
F This chest contains 50 gold coins and a "Stone Dust" scroll (see the new artifact card).

Wandering Monster: Orc (may have one key)





Quest 8.xml

Quest 8 - Saving the Spirit Blade (vers. 2)

"Loretome has finally shown me where the Spirit Blade is located.
It is hidden inside Gegel's manor. Gegel is a necromancer and is preparing a ritual that will destroy the Spirit Blade.
You have to intervene and retrieve the sword before it's too late."

A A search for treasures will reveal a fake book being a lever. A hero that tries to pull it will notice that once pulled it slowly start to come back to its original position. It is probably a timed mechanism (this lever opens door C: after a Hero activates it, the door will close again after 5 turns).
B These pit traps will not be revealed. A Hero searching for treasures or trap will find a fake book which is a lever. If he tries to pull it the 3 traps will open and everyone standing on a pit will lost 1 BP.
C To open this door the lever in room A must be activated. If a Hero reaches the door after 5 turns, say that a mechanical sound indicates the door is closing again. Let the players understand on their own the connection beetween the door and the lever. Even after the Heros pass through the door it will again close after 5 turns.
D This is Gegel the Necromancer. He can cast "Command" and "Summon Undead" twice. His stats are the following: MOV:7 ATT:2 DEF:4 BODY:3 MIND:5
Once he is killed the Heroes can pick up a special key that open doors C and E. The treasure chest contains a Potion of Rage and 120 gold coins.
E The door is closed, you need Gegel's key to open it. This is the ritual chamber. The Spirit Blade is in the centre of the room surrounded by a magical vortex.
As soon as the Heroes will grab the sword the vortex will swallow all the Heroes and will teleport them to another dimension! Continue to Quest 9.

Wandering Monster: Orc (before door C is passed) / Zombie (after door C is passed)





Quest 9.xml

Quest 9 - Into Your Mind

"The vortex has swallowed and teleported you into another dimension! Now you find yourself into a room with 5 doors.
A voice talks into your mind: "the Spirit Blade has been proved and weakened by Gegel's ritual. To help the sword to recover its power you must find the five gems which encapsulated its energy.
When you'll return all the gems the sword will free you from this dimension.
What you see here is a nightmare of your mind, it looks unreal but if you die here you die on the earthly world too."

Special rule: each time a Hero will suffer a damage he will also lose 1 mind point in addition to the standard body points.
A Hero can't lose more than 1 MP at time. If the Hero who is bearing the Talisman of Lore reaches zero mind points, the talisman will automatically recover 2 mind points but only once.
Since the Heroes are wandering in another dimension, no search for treasures is allowed in this quest.

A This is the starting point, place the stairs tile upside down for now, showing its black side. This is one kind of magic black hole and it cannot be passed by anyone. Only when all the 5 gems are found the stairs will appear.
B Use wood doors here if available. When one of these doors is passed by a hero they will automatically close on his back and all the other doors marked B will also close avoiding anyone else to enter in the same room or in another B room. Only when the door is closed the Gargoyle will appear rising from the rocks of the ground.
Once a Gargoyle is killed it falls in pieces leaving a gem on the floor. Once a hero pick up the gem all the Heroes on the same path are teleported back to room A and the gem floats into the black hole and disappears. Remove all the doors and secret passages (they disappear too) that lead to an already defeated Gargoyle.

At this point the quest is finished; the Heroes has saved the Spirit Blade which fully recovers its power. Give the artifact card back to the Heroes and read the epilogue.

[Drew]

I'm really interested in making this a proper quest pack. Do you want to work together on this?

[lestodante]

As I told before, anyone is welcome to contribute. We can change everything we want to make it better and even add additional quests.
I noticed there is no Chaos Sorcerer in any quest. Plus some extras will be nice. All the chests are trapped in this quests. Some of them causes 4 BP of damage wich seems exaggerated to me.
Any idea what's written in quest 5 intro? There's a word I don't understand: and they set out to find him in the dark and ________ Catacombs of Chaos.
The original text is here: http://www.lestodante.com/hq/quests/unk ... uest5n.jpg
I just updated the previous posts with maps 1-6 made in HeroScribe (link to download an editable xml file is under each map). Maps 7, 8 and 9 in progress.

[torilen]

This really makes me wonder - there have been discussions at the Inn before about the pros and cons
of someone selling their homemade quests on ebay. A lot of people seemed to be against, since one
can post and download so much free stuff here.

Personally, I would not use the board layout or the icons for a map if I sold my stuff. I would either
handdraw a map, or simply lable the rooms with numbers/letters/etc. and write it out, so as to
avoid any copyright/trademark issues.

I post almost everything I create for HQ here, but it makes me wonder if I formated stuff and put it
up for sale on ebay..."quests compatible with everyone's favorite 1980's fantasy dungeon-crawl board
game"...if people outside of the Inn community would buy it.

Makes me wonder...and hopeful.
I may have to rethink the idea.

[lestodante]

Of course I would never buy custom stuff unless it is of very high quality and professionally made.
I just bought a lot of original HeroQuest stuff containing spares from various expansions and also including this quests. But I bought it for the other stuff not for the quests.
The custom quests were not even mentioned in the description but appeared in the photo.

[torilen]

I understand, and I figured that was the case...that you had bought the lot for the actually HQ stuff.

In the other discussion about custom quests, most other people said the same think you have, that they
would not buy custom quests online.

It did make me think, though. I would be very curious to see if anyone would buy custom made quests
though. I sell my own stuff on DriveThruRPG, so I can make it look quite professional-looking.

My big problem is the copyright/trademark issue. I am not sure how to market custom quests for HQ
without using the actual name HeroQuest...otherwise, people would not know my quests are made for
that and would probably not even find them. As I understand it, even advertising that something is
compatible with a specific intellectual property is very problematic legally.

Oh, so many thoughts.

[Drew]

As I told before, anyone is welcome to contribute. We can change everything we want to make it better and even add additional quests.
I noticed there is no Chaos Sorcerer in any quest. Plus some extras will be nice. All the chests are trapped in this quests. Some of them causes 4 BP of damage wich seems exaggerated to me.
Any idea what's written in quest 5 intro? There's a word I don't understand: and they set out to find him in the dark and ________ Catacombs of Chaos.
The original text is here: http://www.lestodante.com/hq/quests/unk ... uest5n.jpg
I just updated the previous posts with maps 1-6 made in HeroScribe (link to download an editable xml file is under each map). Maps 7, 8 and 9 in progress.

Maybe in Q5 he meant to say "dreary" or "dreadful" i cant tell for sure.
About the chests, depends on how you play the game, for example my players dont have to be on the exact next square of a chest to open it, just in the same room, so for me personally chests are not a problem.
About the 4 body damage, I think they quests are not hard, so a group of players with a couple items (maybe after Gathering Storm) wouldnt have a problem in my opinion.
About the Chaos Sorcerer I think he was meant to be in Q9, there is an X there with no Note. So I think that 9 was indeed meant to be the last quest of the Quest Pack, marking his final boss (or Sorcerer) with an X. Maybe we could do a 10th Quest as a bonus to wrap things up but I wouldnt go further than that.

When I do such things I like to stick to the original quests as much as possible. Of course some changes will be mandatory and a story is really needed in this one. The Quests have weak storylines and all have the same rewards. So we need a strong intro-outro and Q9-Q10 or rework all quest intros instead.
If you want to work on this together feel free to PM me, id love to , we've worked together before in "Creature Hunt" (aka Slumbering Monster) by the way.

[lestodante]

Map 9 was slightly modified by me. There was no X in the original version (you can check the photo in the 1st post), I added it to place a boss there.
Also added a blocked square to avoid player to go all around the board for nothing as all the corridors were open but without any content. And also modified a couple of doors at the bottom of the board because in the original version you were forced to pass through the room with 2 goblins (D) where you'll find the key that open the final room (F). With my mod the Heroes could reach the room F without the key and must have to come back and explore the dungeon more to find the key.
I didn't add any note about the boss yet, just changed the map a bit.
I also agree all this quests are a bit easy and the intros need a boost and there are too many gold coins rewards for my tastes.
So let's work together and try to make this more enjoyable!