The Darke Crusade Read online

  Politely you dismissed the envoy whilst you considered your response to his plea. In the solitude of your chamber you pondered the problem, weighing the plight of Lencia against your duties and responsibilities there at the Kai Monastery. At length, after careful deliberation, you reached your decision.

  ‘Well my lord?’ enquired the envoy, nervously, upon re-entering your chamber. ‘Will you help us thwart Magnaarn?’

  ‘Once, not so very long ago, your King and his army aided me during my quest for the Magnakai,’ you replied. ‘Perhaps now the time has come for me to repay my debt of gratitude. Yes, I shall help you. I shall return with you to Lencia and champion your cause. I vow that I shall do all in my power to thwart Magnaarn's quest.’

  [1] The Drakkarim land of Nyras has been referred to as ‘Nyraz’ in previous publications. We have left it as it stands in this book due to its consistent use here and under the assumption that the author intended this name change.

  The Game Rules

  You keep a record of your adventure on the Action Chart.

  For more than five years, ever since the demise of the Darklords of Helgedad, you have devoted yourself to developing further your fighting prowess — COMBAT SKILL — and physical stamina — ENDURANCE. Before you begin this Grand Master adventure you need to measure how effective your training has been. To do this take a pencil and, with your eyes closed, point with the blunt end of it onto the Random Number Table. If you pick a 0 it counts as zero.

  The first number that you pick from the Random Number Table in this way represents your COMBAT SKILL. Add 25 to the number you picked and write the total in the COMBAT SKILL section of your Action Chart (i.e. if your pencil fell on the number 6 in the Random Number Table you would write in a COMBAT SKILL of 31). When you fight, your COMBAT SKILL will be pitted against that of your enemy. A high score in this section is therefore very desirable.

  The second number that you pick from the Random Number Table represents your powers of ENDURANCE. Add 30 to this number and write the total in the ENDURANCE section of your Action Chart (i.e. if your pencil fell on the number 7 on the Random Number Table you would have 37 ENDURANCE points).

  If you are wounded in combat you will lose ENDURANCE points. If at any time your ENDURANCE points fall to zero or below, you are dead and the adventure is over. Lost ENDURANCE points can be regained during the course of the adventure, but your number of ENDURANCE points can never rise above the number you have when you start an adventure.

  If you have successfully completed any of the previous adventures in the Lone Wolf series (Books 1–14), you can carry your current scores of COMBAT SKILL and ENDURANCE points over to Book 15. These scores may include Weaponmastery, Curing, and Psi-surge bonuses obtained upon completion of Lone Wolf Kai (Books 1–5) or Magnakai (Books 6–12) adventures.2 Only if you have completed these previous adventures will you benefit from the appropriate bonuses in the course of the Lone Wolf Grand Master series.3 You may also carry over any Weapons and Backpack Items you had in your possession at the end of your last adventure, and these should be entered on your new Grand Master Action Chart. (You are still limited to two Weapons, but you may now carry up to ten Backpack Items.)

  However, only the following Special Items may be carried over from the Lone Wolf Kai (Books 1–5) and Magnakai (Books 6–12) series to the Lone Wolf Grand Master series (Books 13-onwards):

  Crystal Star Pendant

  Sommerswerd

  Silver Helm

  Dagger of Vashna

  Silver Bracers

  Jewelled Mace

  Silver Bow of Duadon

  Helshezag

  Kagonite Chainmail

  Korlinium Scabbard

  [2] The Discipline bonuses mentioned do not affect your permanent scores. If you have completed previous adventures, the Disciplines that you have mastered may still be beneficial. See the Grand Master Rules section of the Readers' Handbook for details.

  [3] If you have completed any previous Lone Wolf Grand Master adventures, remember to choose an additional Grand Master Discipline and add +1 to your basic COMBAT SKILL and +2 to your basic ENDURANCE for each adventure you successfully completed (cf. Grand Master Disciplines).

  Grand Master Disciplines

  Kai & Magnakai Disciplines

  During your distinguished rise to the rank of Kai Grand Master you have become proficient in all of the basic Kai and Magnakai Disciplines. These Disciplines have provided you with a formidable arsenal of natural abilities which have served you well in the fight against the agents and champions of Naar, King of the Darkness. A brief summary of your skills is given below.

  Weaponmastery

  Proficiency with all close combat and missile weapons. Master of unarmed combat; no COMBAT SKILL loss when fighting bare-handed.

  Animal Control

  Communication with most animals; limited control over hostile creatures. Can use woodland animals as guides and can block a non-sentient creature's sense of taste and smell.

  Curing

  Steady restoration of lost ENDURANCE points (to self and others) as a result of combat wounds. Neutralization of poisons, venoms, and toxins. Repair of serious battle-wounds.

  Invisibility

  Mask body heat and scent; hide effectively; mask sounds during movement; minor alterations of physical appearance.

  Huntmastery

  Effective hunting of food in the wild; increased agility; intensified vision, hearing, smell, and night vision.

  Pathsmanship

  Read languages, decipher symbols, read footprints and tracks. Intuitive knowledge of compass points; detection of enemy ambush up to 500 yards; ability to cross terrain without leaving tracks; converse with sentient creatures; mask self from psychic spells of detection.

  Psi-surge

  Attack enemies using the powers of the mind; set up disruptive vibrations in objects; confuse enemies.

  Psi-screen

  Defence against hypnosis, supernatural illusions, charms, hostile telepathy, and evil spirits. Ability to divert and re-channel hostile psychic energy.

  Nexus

  Move small items by projection of mind power; withstand extremes of temperature; extinguish fire by force of will; limited immunity to flames, toxic gases, and corrosive liquids.

  Divination

  Sense imminent danger; detect invisible or hidden enemy; telepathic communication; recognize magic-using and/or magical creatures; detect psychic residues; limited ability to leave body and spirit-walk.

  Now, through the pursuit of your new skills and the further development of your innate Kai abilities, you have set out upon a path of discovery that no other Kai Grand Master has ever attempted with success. Your determination to become the first Kai Supreme Master, by acquiring total proficiency in all twelve of the Grand Master Disciplines, is an awe-inspiring challenge. You will be venturing into the unknown, pushing back the boundaries of human limitation in the pursuit of greatness and the cause of Good. May the blessings of the Gods Kai and Ishir go with you as you begin your brave and noble quest.

  In the years following the demise of the Darklords you have reached the rank of Kai Grand Defender, which means that you have mastered four of the Grand Master Disciplines listed below. It is up to you to choose which four Disciplines these are. As all of the Grand Master Disciplines may be of use to you at some point during your adventure, pick your four skills with care. The correct use of a Grand Master Discipline at the right time could save your life.

  When you have chosen your four Disciplines, enter them in the Grand Master Disciplines section of your Action Chart.

  Grand Weaponmastery

  This Discipline enables a Grand Master to become supremely efficient in the use of all weapons. When you enter combat with one of your Grand Weaponmastery weapons, you add 5 points to your COMBAT SKILL. The rank of Kai Grand Defender, with which you begin the Lone Wolf Grand Master series, means you are supremely efficient in the use of two of the weapons listed below. For
each book that you complete in the Lone Wolf Grand Master series (Books 13–20), you will gain mastery of an additional weapon. For example, if you complete The Plague Lords of Ruel and have the Grand Master Discipline of Grand Weaponmastery at the beginning of the next Lone Wolf Grand Master book, you may choose an additional Weapon to gain mastery of.

  If you have the Discipline of Grand Weaponmastery with Bow, you may add 5 to any number that you pick from the Random Number Table, when using the Bow.4

  Animal Mastery

  Grand Masters have considerable control over hostile, non-sentient creatures. Also, they have the ability to converse with birds and fishes, and use them as guides.

  Deliverance (Advanced Curing)

  Grand Masters are able to use their healing power to repair serious battle-wounds. If, whilst in combat, their ENDURANCE is reduced to 8 points or less, they can draw upon their mastery to restore 20 ENDURANCE points. This ability can only be used once every 20 days.

  Assimilance (Advanced Invisibility)

  Grand Masters are able to effect striking changes to their physical appearance, and maintain these changes over a period of a few days. They have also mastered advanced camouflage techniques that make them virtually undetectable in an open landscape.

  Grand Huntmastery

  Grand Masters are able to see in total darkness and have greatly heightened senses of touch and taste. If you have chosen the Discipline of Grand Huntmastery as one of your skills, you will not need to tick off a Meal when instructed to eat.

  Grand Pathsmanship

  Grand Masters are able to resist entrapment by hostile plants and have a super-awareness of ambush, or the threat of ambush, in woods and dense forests.

  Kai-surge

  When using their psychic ability to attack an enemy, Grand Masters may add 8 points to their COMBAT SKILL. For every round in which Kai-surge is used, Grand Masters need only deduct 1 ENDURANCE point. When using the weaker psychic attack — Mindblast — they may add 4 points without loss of ENDURANCE points. (Kai-surge, Psi-surge, and Mindblast cannot be used simultaneously.)

  Grand Masters cannot use Kai-surge if their ENDURANCE score falls to 6 points or below.

  Kai-screen

  In psychic combat, Grand Masters are able to construct mind fortresses capable of protecting themselves and others. The strength and capacity of these fortresses increase as a Grand Master advances in rank.

  Grand Nexus

  Grand Masters are able to withstand contact with harmful elements, such as flames and acids, for upwards of an hour in duration. This ability increases as a Grand Master advances in rank.

  Telegnosis (Advanced Divination)

  This Discipline enables a Grand Master to spirit-walk for far greater lengths of time, and with far fewer ill effects. Duration and the protection of his inanimate body increase as a Grand Master advances in rank.

  Magi-magic

  Under the tutelage of Lord Rimoah, you have been able to master the rudimentary skills of battle-magic, as taught to the Vakeros — the native warriors of Dessi. These skills include the basic use of Old Kingdom Spells such as Shield, Power Word, and Invisible Fist. As you advance in rank, so will your knowledge and mastery of Old Kingdom magic increase.

  Kai-alchemy

  Under the tutelage of Guildmaster Banedon, you have mastered the elementary spells of Left-handed magic, as practised by the Brotherhood of the Crystal Star. These spells include Lightning Hand, Levitation, and Mind Charm. As you advance in rank, so will your knowledge and mastery of Left-handed magic increase, enabling you to craft new Kai weapons and artefacts.

  If you successfully complete the mission as set in Book 15 of the Lone Wolf Grand Master series, you may add a further Grand Master Discipline of your choice to your Action Chart in Book 16.

  For every Grand Master Discipline you possess, in excess of the original four Disciplines you begin with, you may add 1 point to your basic COMBAT SKILL score and 2 points to your basic ENDURANCE points score. These bonus points, together with your extra Grand Master Discipline(s), your original four Grand Master Disciplines, and any Special Items that you have found and been able to keep during your adventures, may then be carried over and used in the next Lone Wolf Grand Master adventure, which is called The Legacy of Vashna

  [4] Weaponmastery bonuses are replaced by Grand Weaponmastery bonuses, not added cumulatively (cf. Lone Wolf Club Newsletter 28).

  If you have completed previous adventures, already possess the Magnakai Discipline of Weaponmastery with Bow, and have reached the rank of Mentora, it seems that you should already be able to add 5 to numbers picked from the Random Number Table (i.e. the basic Weaponmastery with Bow bonus of 3 added to the Mentora bonus of 2 for all missile weapons). Likely, the author intended the Weaponmastery bonus at the Mentora rank to be a ‘hidden loyalty bonus’ (cf. Lone Wolf Club Newsletter 28). In view of this, the +2 Mentora bonus is therefore not cumulative with Grand Weaponmastery with Bow.

  Certain sections direct the reader to use different bonuses when using a Bow, ranging from 3 to 5, if you have Grand Weaponmastery with Bow. This may be the author adjusting the Grand Weaponmastery bonus on a case-by-case basis (and therefore this bonus should be used instead of the standard bonus) or an error (and therefore all of these bonuses should be 5). It is up to you to decide, but it seems most reasonable to follow the first alternative, to replace the Grand Weaponmastery bonus with whatever bonus is mentioned in that section.

  Equipment

  Before you set off on your long journey to Lencia, you take with you a map of the lands and territories of the Western Tentarias and a pouch of gold. To find out how much gold is in the pouch, pick a number from the Random Number Table and add 20 to number you have picked. The total equals the number of Gold Crowns inside the pouch, and you should now enter this number in the ‘Gold Crowns’ section of your Action Chart.

  If you have successfully completed any of the previous Lone Wolf adventures (Books 1–14), you may add this sum to the total sum of Crowns you already possess. Fifty Crowns is the maximum you can carry, but additional Crowns can be left in safekeeping at your monastery.

  You can take five items from the list below, again adding to these, if necessary, any you may already possess from previous adventures (remember, you are still limited to two Weapons, but you may now carry a maximum of ten Backpack Items).

  Sword (Weapons)

  Bow (Weapons)

  Quiver (Special Items) This contains six Arrows: record them on your Action Chart.

  Axe (Weapons)

  4 Meals (Meals) Each Meal takes up one space in your Backpack.

  Rope (Backpack Item)

  Potion of Laumspur (Backpack Item) This potion restores 4 ENDURANCE points to your total when swallowed after combat. There is enough for only one dose.

  Spear (Weapons)

  Dagger (Weapons)

  List the five items that you choose on your Action Chart, under the appropriate headings, and make a note of any effect they may have on your ENDURANCE points or COMBAT SKILL.

  How to Carry Equipment

  Now that you have your equipment, the following list shows you how it is carried. You do not need to make notes, but you should refer back to this list in the course of your adventure.

  Sword — carried in the hand.

  Bow — carried in the hand.

  Quiver — slung over your shoulder.

  Axe — carried in the hand.

  Meals — carried in the Backpack.

  Rope — carried in the Backpack.

  Potion of Laumspur — carried in the Backpack.

  Spear — carried in the hand.

  Dagger — carried in the hand.

  How Much Can You Carry?

  Weapons

  The maximum number of weapons that you may carry is two.

  Backpack Items

  These must be stored in your Backpack. Because space is limited, you may keep a maximum of only ten articles, including Meals, in your Backpack at
any one time.

  Special Items

  Special Items are not carried in the Backpack. When you discover a Special Item, you will be told how to carry it.

  The maximum number of Special Items that can be carried on any adventure is twelve. Surplus Special Items may be left for safekeeping at your Kai Monastery.

  Gold Crowns

  These are always carried in the Belt Pouch. It will hold a maximum of fifty Crowns.

  Food