33. Hargeth’s
Folly
Along the road here is the remains of a great wall that Hargeth (see hex
32) attempted to erect from the mountains to the north, through the forest,
south to the great river, creating a barrier to keep the chaos of the wildlands
to the east at bay and establish a foothold for the civilized lands to the
east, safely behind this 20 mile long wall. This was to be the great northern
gate of the East Barrier Wall. Most of the wall was not constructed before
Hargeth’s death, but the ruin of the monumental gate stands today as a
testament to the king’s far-reaching dreams. The main road runs through the
center of the gatehouse. Vines have overgrown parts of the wall and towers, but
all are in relatively good repair. Careful observation of the gatehouse will
reveal some signs of recent repair to the stonework.
 |
| Brand on the cow |
A wayward cow
has claimed this area as her home. The current occupant of the Gatehouse has
thus far ignored her presence, hoping her true owner doesn’t think he has
stolen her, but if she stays around for the two more weeks without anyone
claiming her, he will build a small paddock for her and keep her. (The cow actually
wandered over forty miles through the forest from Hope Cross – if the PCs have
been to Hope Cross, there’s a chance that they have seen the mark on the cow
and have some idea who the true owners are).
A hedge wizard
has taken up residence in the gatehouse with the (possibly unfortunately
coincidental*) name of Hargeth. This Hargeth doesn’t know any of the history of
this area, and will probably be a cause of confusion due to his name. He is an
older man (in his 60s) which might lead PCs to believe he IS somehow the
Hargeth of the region. He has only recently (six months ago) taken over the
gatehouse – mostly. He has spent considerable time and effort making the left
tower habitable and secure wherein he has set up his workshop and living quarters.
He has tried to enter the central room and the right tower, but a ghost haunts
those areas and is too great a challenge for him to overcome. He is content to
live in the left tower, but would be extremely grateful to a party who rid his
home of the nuisance (rewarding with spells, potions, etc and becoming an ally
in the region).
Left Tower:
First Level Living
Chamber. The outer door is locked and trapped (if the key is not used a 40’
radius gas cloud – equivalent to sleep spell – issues forth – save vs spells to
negate effect). Inside the windowless first level is a plain room with a small
wooden table and four chairs, a few empty shelves, a broom and a mop and
bucket. One corner holds a small table piled high with various foodstuffs.
Beneath the small corner table are three sacks (one of flour, one of sugar, one
of meal) and a small box (of potatoes). A small fireplace provides light, heat
and functions as the stove. A small ladder/steep staircase climbs the far wall
to the second story.
Second Level Working
Chamber. This chamber contains several tables with various strange apparatus,
vials, beakers and the like. A stuffed owl stares down from the ceiling beside
a stuffed goblin head. A real raven named Ralis serves as Hargeth’s familiar,
but is a mute bird who prefers to remain still and silent and surprise “attack”
unexpectedly by swooping down and grabbing at something shiny. A locked and
barred wooden door leads to the central room above the road.
Hargeth brews
potions and makes charms (in Daen Ral RPG, this is the primary function of
hedge wizards). Since every hedge wizard uses his or her own formula to create
such items, so the items in this work room are only of general use and interest
to other mages. Hargeth can brew the potions or fabricate the charms listed in
the rulebooks at double the gpv with an 80% chance of success. Doubling the
price (paying four times the gpv listed in the rule books) gives a 95% chance
of success. Potions/charms take 1week per 100 gpv to fabricate, though Hargeth
may work on up to four at any given time. The DM may want to limit which
potions and charms are available at which times (perhaps the proper ingredients
are not in season or need to be found).
Hargeth, Level
7 Hedge Wizard
Central Room: This room, bridging
the gap between the two towers of the gatehouse, is suspended 20’ over the
road. The 15’x30’ room has doors on each end and large, glassless windows on
the long walls. There is a 45% chance the ghost of Aras Mynar is in this room
and will attack any creature on sight. The room is completely barren and the
wooden floor is rotting. Each round spent in the room, everyone must make a
save vs. dragon breath or fall through the floor (for 2d6 damage) to the ground
below. If engaged in melee, the save is made at -2 per round.
Right Tower:
First Floor. The door
to this windowless level is barred from the inside. A small fireplace is along
one wall and a small ladder/steep staircase climbs the far wall to the second
story. There is a 45% chance that the ghost of Aras Mynar is in this room and
will attack any creature on sight.
Second Floor. This room is piled high with
broken crockery and splintered wooden utensils. In the midst of the rubble are
the skeletal remains of a man, wearing shreds of clothing, a ring, a dagger and
a sword. All are ordinary items, not worth a significant amount, though the
ring (a simple silver ring) is worth 30 sp. This is the corpse of Aras Mynar
who was murdered here a long time ago. There is a 10% chance that the ghost of
Aras Mynar is in this room and he will attack any creature on sight.
If anyone
gives the corpse a proper burial (with some form of blessing), the ghost will
cease attacking, fade, and be at rest.
* Hargeth can be played as a kind of bumbling, absent-minded alchemist who can provide adventuring parties with some rumors and the occassional potion or charm, or perhaps he has renamed himself Hargeth to hide his previous insidious identity, or perhaps he is the reincarnation of the so-called Hero King Hargeth, the Bold/the Fool, who is trying to reclaim his kingdom via the very means he used to originally establish his kingdom, legends not withstanding...
TO FINISH: Image, map (though may not be necessary, the image is pretty descriptive of the location...
