"Trespass of Drachenfels": Castle Drachenfels

Putting Trespass into Drachenfels The party is given 60/120 turns before midnight comes (vide. The Evil Eye rules below) their talismans of protection ought to be enough to keep the wily magics and dark forces at bay, however after midnight the party is left at the mercy of Drachenfels. Their purpose is simple, pillage the castle and find some things of interest as well as pilfer a statue to shift it at Obereik, sculpture options are at the bottom of the post. The party is not meant to see every corridor and room, they are to find the sculpture and be awed at the level of detail and levels that are there to explore, to make the castle feel trully grand, it should feel like doing a trolley dash for cursed magical items. Roll Common Knowledge The Empire on Drachenfels The castle of Drachenfels is no mere thing, it is a daemon in and of its right, for all the undead souls that infest it, the sacrificial blood it was seeped with, and daemon fumes it ingested. The wicked place is weakened, half-dormant but it still desires to entrap your soul in its dark bowels. Drachenfels’ laugh is akin to a breaking of some accursed Imperial college of engineering machine choking up as its gears devour a young engineer, gory, hollow and metalic. Drachenfels The Great Enchanter, the Eternal Champion of Evil, the Darkness Who Would Not Be Defied. Not only was it harried by crusaders but also it was destroyed during the scuffle during the theatre fight with Drachenfels himself. Drachenfels was destroyed and his ravaged corpses cast for the wolves to feast upon in the gorges of the Gray Mountains, they say the beasts died after eating of him, and came back to haunt the living... The spirits of the dead swarm about the castle like flies, trapped by its wicked will. A visit to the castle induces hallucinations through evil glamour. Each of seven towers is supposed to fulfil a defensive role but also be a transmogriphic symbolic representation of one of painful emotions and experiences, showing the artistic side of Drachenfell's design. Razing of Drachenfels Despite the letters of warning from Lector Kaslein to the Emperor, an attempt was made to finish Emperor Lutipold’s work and level the wicked lair of the enchanter. Not as a lair of an evil wizard but an Imperial fief of a traitor. The military escapade to destroy the castle failed, it was attempted in 2509 and yielded little results. The whole venture was a failure from the very start, with the encroaching Imperial host losing wagons and artillery pieces along the way, harried by the creatures dwelling in the dark caves of the Gray Mountains. Attempts were made to bombard it, burn it, wreck it with hammers and magic and eventually explode it with kegs of black powder, but all failed and the crusading army had to return back to Reikland. Heads lowered and halberds rested on their shoulders as they awkwardly made their slow descent towards Vorbergland. Partial success was reported. All the crusaders did was that they vandalised the main body of the palace and fell a few of the towers. Their camp was built at the summit of the mountain at the two ruined gates, form there they opened fire at the castle, and cast their spells to topple its towers. Thinking that the castle ought to be laid to waste as many times as it’s necessary. Seeding the ground with silver and salt. Emperor Karl Franz never took up the matter again. PARTS OF THE CASTLE GREY MOUNTAIN WILDS: Two withered pines stand by the ruined bridge demarcating the border of Drachenfels Castle. A glade of withered grass and mossy stone

Dark Gray Mountains ravine stream- The water here is deep and terribly cold. Odd glimmers and shapes swim in the current twisting in a sickly fashion. Falling into the water demands a -3o% roll for swim in order to be able to act. The water is oily and it feels like one is heavier than they truly are, and the water pulls them deeper in. You roll for swim until you drown or get out, there’s no option to give you any help other than when you’re on the map, and you’re moving towards 16 yards a turn and begin to drown. If you survive your swim test you get to re-emerge from the water back unto the shelf where the camp stands, soaked and shaking after 2d6 turns. The stream runs along A/B/C/D 10 and E 10.1/4 and 3/4 then moves to E9.1/4,2/4,3/4 and F/G/H/I/J 7 and 8. It flows from J8/J9 to A10. Stone Shelves (H6.4/4)- Deep down upon one of the shelves descending towards the river, you see a stout corpse of some poor wayfarer. Upon closer examination you find it to be a corpse naturally mummified by the high mountains. A dwarf with his beard still intact, the back of his head and ribs smashed flat from a fall from a great height. He wore a chainmail shirt. He had a backpack on him which was crushed upon impact (Lantern, kettle, wooden utensils, glass bottle of something, tankard; All crushed and half price), a few yards of old rope (Magical Sense; success; You see a slight glimmer rising from the corpse’s chest, you realize that the shirt of mail the dwarf wore, was indeed once enchanted, now however but a tiny glimmer of magic still clings to the few links binding it but the spell was undone somehow. The warhammer he clung to was also sealed with a dwarven rune which despite being of high binding was also undone. Failure; You have an odd feeling about this corpse, your senses are overpowered by the moribund stench of Shyish.) 500 enc + rusted chainmail shirt 80. Bridge- The stone bridge adorned with stone urns has a chunk missing from the side. The degree to which it was damaged allows for foot traffic but anything heavier, such as a horse drawn cart could spell doom to the bridge and those upon it, in the deep dark stream flowing past swiftly below. Once you return through the bridge with enc. of at least 500 the bridge collapses after you pass. Or when you decide to leave it crumbles into the deep oily currents of the Grey Mountains stream. Dead Ass (H9)- Skeletal remains of a donkey once tied to a tree remain in this place. The poor creature was brought here by someone not so long ago. All beasts naturally shun the castle. It has a sentence in bald carved into its skull in Reikspiel. ”GO BACK” the sentence reads. A platitude in a place like this. Remains of an Old Camp (I10)- Old fireplace, definitely more recent than the Reikland army invasion. The Collapsed Passage (J4)- A small balcony passage to which one may shimmy along the cliff side had collapsed upon itself. It would take a while to clear out but this way you’d make your way into the deep of the castle. The passage could be overgrown with something impeding movement and could only be realized through a perception roll cast for the Gatehouse, as in; “I don’t want to climb the slippery walls... do I see something interesting?” Or through sheer exploration, the thing has to be destroyed to grant passage, perhaps thorny brush; you can clear it away with fire or simply hack away at it; each square of brush would have T-1 and 10 Wounds.

COURTYARD AND WALLS; Two great towers dominate the walls. The spired taller tower, the tower of sin and a shorter stout gate house tower. There is the main gate. The gate house tower has a wall at its base toppled into the inside with a siege weapon strike of old. Crumbled wall allows for one to climb inside of the darkness of the tower. However the entrance is overhung with skull garlands, twelve human skull hanging from ropes slowly move on the wind. There’s also a viewing balcony. There used to be a path leading into the deeper part of the castle through there but it was collapsed during the siege, the stones however could be cleared. The castle seems eclectic, trying to incorporate designs ancient and modern, Brettonian and Imperial alike. Decrepit Alure: The creaking wooden walk way leads along the castle gate and into the second level of the gate house tower. If any character enter F-4 square they must roll on agility or collapse with the walk way F-4 and E-4 into a pile of rotten planks.

Inner Castle Gates- The grand gates were smashed in by the Sigmarite crusaders taking the castle. The outer gate was surpassed through the broken tower and the inner one turned into splinters. The path leads into the vestibule level. The outer gates has T-6 and 100 wounds. Windows (D1 and E1)- Thick leaded and draped. Breaking them down allows the party to climb into a chamber through which they may enter the Vestibule, a smoking room. Courtyard- The courtyard is greasy for some reason, its cobbles slippery, as if covered with grease. As if some unholy ungent was applied upon the cobbled stone. Well (B5)- Descends into the darkness of the castle deep. It has no rope nor chain. A great stench rises from the well. (If you descend down into it you will find yourself in a room filled with bones from the walls to the floor, then you may follow a tunnel into the depth of the castle.)

Charred Path (A3 and A4)- The charred planks blocking the path deeper into the courtyard are the remnants of the low stables once standing by the castle. Brought to ruin by a raging inferno. Gate Wall (G-4)- There are murder holes in the floor, both can be opened. The Cliff Gates- The closed gates remind you of a daemonic maw. On each side you see there used to be a gargoyle but they were shot apart with rifle shot by the crusaders. You can scale the gate tower or the wall. Entering through the wall requires you to brake the door down (TB 3; 12 wounds; or lockpicking +1o%) into the gatehouse. The walls of the castle seeped apart with the dark dhar energies and contorted at odd angles are hard to climb for their stone is as if bound by lard or some other vile grease -2o% Scale Sheer Surface or -3o% if it rains. Palace Gates (B1 to C1)- These lead into the vestibule, the infamous Gargoyle Corridor at E10 to F10. GATE HOUSE TOWER: Stout old four level tower. Built in an archaic Imperial style.

Base- Entrance to the stash at the base of the stout gate tower is covered with a garland of skulls hanging form ropes over the entrance as well as some strange markings (Thieves’ Tongue meaning ”It’s my stash, if you fear death back off. Signed Ervin.”). Inside of the tower stash of Erwin Kroetz the cannibal bandit has its place. The old bandit has an unhealthy relationship with this accursed castle, he’s hunting the merchants of the local hills and stashes his goods in the castle so no one dares steal it. At the very first box to the entrance you see a skull in a very nice feathered merchant’s bonnet. In the stash the goods you can pillage from the barrels and boxes are; 6 yards of rope, quiver of 12 arrows, mail coif (1o gc), bale of wool (1o yards; 2o gc) There’s also a packet of six bottles of Marienburg gin (1o silver shillings a bottle; When transporting it down the mountain each failed roll of drive breaks 1d6 bottles). There is also a locked chest -15 % Lockpicking, it contains personal belongings like common clothes and a dagger, there is also a book on astromancy in a terrible state, it is quite clear this belonged to an apprentice wizard and was a borrowed from the college library (35 gc) as well as an uncut topaz (4o gc) it is cursed and causes all rolls on weather to be a degree worse.

Gatehouse-  Inside the room there’s the old mechanism controlling the gate. Simple roll of S -1o% defines if you manage to pull on the lever of the rusty mechanism. Failure over more than one point means you brake the lever, leaving the mechanism useless, you need to find a different way to open the gates. It turns out only one of the wings is functional.

Barracks- A cauldren of congealed tar and some broken down rusted to powder weapons, old barrels formerly full of weapons and arrows. Summit- At the top of the tower there’s an old crane used by the defenders to drop rubble unto the besiegers. It can be used to move the sculpture or anything heavy you desire, characters for instance. As a half action you can move the crane one square (Horizontally or vertically).

TOWER OF SIN: An orange shingled spired rectangular tower.

Attic (G/H/J at 2/3/4)- Rancid stench, piles of bones, odd particles in the air. The place is infected with weevil cough (T 1; +0%) and there’s a huge harpy nest in the centre of the attic. The floor is covered in bird droppings. The ground is also strewn with harpy feathers. Room of Brettonian Gobelins (A to E from 6 to 10)- The walls of this languid chamber are overhung with lavish tapestries of Brettonian make. There’s a banner depicting Drachenfels' coat of arms. There’s one strange soggy tapestry depicting some ungodly creatures with strange human shapes midst peculiar symbols. There’s a tapestry depicting a double scene of a man hunting a deer during daytime and an upside down scene of a beastman hunting a man on all fours at nightime when both the moons are in full, there’s also destroyed tattered tapestry, and finally there is also a magical tapestry depicting an army of skeletons blowing bugles and waving their banners, the tapestry comes to life when someone looks at it and an illusion of an army of approaching skeletons appears as if a portal and requires a terror test to not flee the castle in panic. You can shift the magic tapestry for 100 gc, but it has an effect on anyone looking at it for the first time, you cannot carry it into battle, it works only when fully hung up. It is considered necromantic powers adjacent. The door at E9 leads to the castle wall, and the wall at A8 leads to the Tower of Sin Bridge leading into the secret passage into the castle. Heraldry Room (F to J at 6 to 10)-  Shields of vanquished houses are hung upon the walls, with etchings made upon them of either daemonic deity to which the vanquished house was sacrificed. Both of Brettonia, Empire and Tilea and an Orc tribe banner. One can see the coat of arms of house Konigswald. There’s a mummifed orc hand crudely nailed over the doorway. And if any of the party own a coat of arms, their own shield is hung up on the wall, if anyone attempts to pull it down or interact with it it turns into a mundane shield without a coat of arms. The door at G6 leads into the privy. Fimir tapestry (D6)- This soggy green wall carpet depicts the ancient blood-mating rites of the cyclopean Wasteland fog daemons. A truly disgusting sight. Upon being studied grants a WP roll against 1 IP and 5 experience points. A right creep can pay a good price for this one, however it may be deemed slightly heretical. Drachenfels Banner (D10)- A fine fabric depicting drachenfels’ mask. These used to be carried by his vile minions into war. Tower Base- There’s a ladder leading up to the room of Brettonian Gobelins. There’s also an eternal staircase leading down, no matter how long the party descends, going back up the stairs four yards brings one back to the Tower Base. There is a little headless blood-imp statue on a tall thin plinth in the room, but its head is missing.

Privy- Hanging over the walls from the giant tower. An ancient eldritch privy of unspeakable doom. Here you can find the cowering corpse of one of the adventurers. A skeletal body of an elf crumpled into a foetal position. Rusted crossbow and an empty poison vial at his feet. ”He seems to have drunk it himself then fired the crossbow into his own pallet.” (Thief's signs; The pendant around his neck marks him as a professional assassin, this guy was a grizzled professional. Whatever drove him to suicide must have been a serious matter)

Daemonic Weather Vane- You can use scale sheer surface (Success means you move your normal move, failure means half, critical failure has you fall with Ag saving you) to move up the tower roof towards the Daemonic Weather Vane. Shaped like an unspeakable creature of some daemonic nature. It actually points to the winds of magic rather than air. (Perception: You can see the odd weather vane on the top of the Tower of Sin, it seems to turn and change haphazardly absolutely not heeding the direction fo the strong mountain wind. Magical Sense: You can that the weather vane turns in the direction of the winds of magic, rather than the mundane winds, it seems to be a powerful conduit of magic. It must be where the castle sources part of its power)

Tower of sin Bridge- You can see the daemonic weathervane swinging despite of the winds. No banisters. You may reach it along a corridor in the south western wall. Travelling through it takes one into a secret side passage taking the party into the kitchens in the Halls.

GARGOYLE CORRIDOR: Entry hall into the formerly inhabited part of the castle. Long winding halls fallen into ruin.

Gargoyle Corridor- A whole corridor used to be filled with grotesque sculptures and figures, now all shattered into rubble. Now only one remains (F4). It as if attempts to lift itself out of the wall chest first, an abhorrent bat like daemon. One can use skill masonry to bring it down with +1o% for masonry trade roll and 1d10 damage per every point of failure. Tying a piece of rope about it, and and about one who would climb up to get it down. There used to be a sculpture of Drachenfels in ne of the side rooms but nowy his stone shoes on a pedestal remain (D9 to D10).

Great Hall- Sinister empty hall, with paintings, once broken and old, now mere splinters and scraps. The arch at E1 to F1 leads into the archway of the Halls at E 10 to F10.

The door that killed Stellan the Worlock (E5)- Malicious magical wooden door with inlaid copper design of Drachenfels’ mask. If touched the magical door emits sparks and glows white hot spewing foul smoke. If magically meddled with the doors explode you leaving a still standing skeleton for a moment, which then falls apart. We could call it the Stellan's gate. (3d10 damage disregarding toughness) Broken stick trap (I2)- Perception roll +1o% to dodge out of a way of a damage S-1 attack. A wooden pillar erupts from the wall, you can see the mechanism is broken, were it functional it would have snapped you in twain. (If you’re a dwarf or a halfling it flies over your head.) Someone seems to have purposfuly broken the trap.

Corridor of Discord (C6)- A peculiar corridor with a destroyed painting of a chatting elf and a dwarf. To a dwarf the emissary of the dawi seems to try and make a good with the elgi despite it’s evil intent, he reaches for his dagger slightly, in the distnace elves are visible mustering to strike. To an elf it’s obvious the dwarf sneers at the elf and a party of dwarfs in the distance are encroaching to slay him. They hear things the other character doesn’t say. WP +0% test is required lest a fight breaks out, the character affected by it are given an option to attack the other character for 1o xp, they have 1d6 turns to do it or the enchantment wears off. The painting is slashed to the very board, it is rendered worthless. Chamber of Temptation- Paintings of one of the principal mortal sins depicted in a nasty grotesque way on canvas by some mad artist. Each of them carries a curse but may be sold for quite a price. The room may only be accessed through a secret passage. GM should pick the most fitting sin to depict as pertaining to the party.

Lust- It depicts a man dressed up in Imperial clothes, looking into a mirror in which stands a daemonette. (-1o% WP) Gluttony- This picture depicts a stylised fat man (History: It's Ludwig the fat) His eyes bulging out of his head madly with gluttony, his body bloated, clothes ripping on his frame. Robes stained with all colours of the stews and meats of the table. He looks like he's about to burst. (-1o% T) Greed- You see a picture of a man dressed up all in gold (History: Boris Goldgather) You can see he is in a process of devouring coins by the handful. (-1o% T) Sloth- You see a sleeping Sylvan elf, the image is peaceful, dominated by hazy green and white colours, and it depicts a drowsy glade near to a ruin of white stone. The elf slept for so long that a tree grew around him leaving only his torso and a sleepy head. (-1o% Str) Wrath- You see an image of two beastmen fighting naked midst the strange deformed hills, one is ripping the arm of the other from his socket beneath the crimson red sky raining blood. (-1o% WP) Envy- You see a picture of a imperial man skulking behind the imperial throne upon which sits the Emperor Karl Franz. (Perception: The man is clearly mutated beneath his robes) (-1o% Fel) Pride- You see a picture of a man wearing a peculiar intricate elven armour being burned in a deep seering flame of odd hues and colours. The armoured elf seems to be in exhuisit agony. The fire is clearly supernatural. (-1o% WP)

Two corpses of Adventurers- I;2.4/4 You see a rusted breastplate and helmet wearing skeletal corpse, upon closer examination proved to be that of a woman, next to her, a broken great weapon.. ”She seems to have broken it on the rubble so that it would not get into the enemy hands” 500 enc. B;9.1/4 You see a skeletal body in fine but withered clothes with a bronze fleur de lis pendant attached to his garments. The jaw of the corpse is opened wide as if in a bestial howl. 250 enc. Pile of rubble- Each of these takes four turns to move + amount of yards you wish to move it/2. It takes an additional turn to move it 2 squares further (4 yards). Making it six turns. Rubble is difficult terrain. Fallen pillar- To push the pillar out of the way you must succeed on Str -3o% roll to move it a square (2 yards) a turn. It takes a turn to push it out of the way. It can be climbed over but it takes a scale sheeer surface test or you lose a turn scrambling over it. Collapsed chandelier-  To push the chandelier out of the way you must succeed on a Str -1o% roll to move it a square (2 yards) a turn.  It takes a turn to push it out of the way. It can be climbed over but it takes a scale sheeer surface test or you lose a turn scrambling over it. Windows- You can see a deep jagged Grey Mountains ravine through the yellowish tinted glass windows. A fast flowing oily river rushes through its deep. Servants' Door (I1)- It leads into the Poison Feast Chamber in the Halls at I10) HALLS: These were the throne room of the Dark Enchanter as well as the staging grounds for the grand play at some points.

Burnt Library (H to J from 1 to 4)- The door into this room is burned shut (T-1; 8 wounds) Whatever dark lore was left in this library the torches of the crusaders brought it to cinders. The door into the Poison Feast Chamber is blocked by burnt ruin which can be cleared up after two turns of moving the scorched debris from the inside of the library. The only thing remaining are charred remains falling apart from flame. Here in the dust you may search for any surviving books. On a roll of 01 on a d100 wins you a mundane grimoire of Chaos or Necromancy. Each square of the library containing burnt rubble can be searched only once. Waiting Lounge- Here those waiting for an audience with the Dread of Grey Mountains had to endure their terrible torment. 1. Spy Portrait (Waiting Lounge) You can see a peculiar protrait of a strange looking man hung up in the waiting lounge, for some reason the crusaders decided not to destroy it. You feel the piercing gaze of the man sending shivers down your spine. (Perception -1o%; You can see that the holes for the eyes of the painting could be removed. There is a passage behind this painting surely; The painting can be brought down to reveal a passage behind it.)

Poison Feast Chamber- This shunned evil chamber was left behind by the pillagers, a series of skeletal corpses sitting around a table, all dressed fine. If anyone touches the cobwebbed screaming skeletons a sudden strike of the thunder clap in the windows will cause all to shudder, a powerful rain will begin to pour down smashing against the windows. This causes a terror test +0%. Dark shadows will stir in the corners of the chamber. The skeletons are gone. Or if the party leaves them be and then returns, they find them gone. Common Lore the Empire; “You recall someone saying that these were supposedly buried long ago...” The bronze goblets can go for 6 silver shillings (Enc. 2) and would make for a mean souvenir from the castle.

Music Room (D6 and D7)- The room is locked with a +0% Lockpincking, it has T 3 and 12 wounds. This used to be the music room, the wall is plastered with sheet music and overhung with old and busted instruments. There is a peasant viol with a busted and nailed together box (1o gc), a half eaten through recorder (1 gc), a Strigany tamburine missing some of its rings (1o s), rotten through drum with skull tipped hammers (1o s). One can hear a peculiar tangy music in the distance when in this room. If you listen with a skill roll it becomes stronger. Eventually you begin dancing and humming a creepy tune yourself and are stunned for a 1d6 turns. There is an odd ancient peace of sheet music which upon close examination does not seem to be written in any familiar notation. (Arcane Language Magick; This here is the dark ritual of dance without end. It describes how to spread a terrible magical disease that makes people dance themselves to death.) Kitchens- Here the poison feast was prepared. There are human charred bones in the hearth (C8), and a small shaft of a dumbwaiter leading down (A8). Maggots walk the place as if in anticipation of food. There are three old large sacks, if you check their contents it would seem they're full of fresh wheat flour (Trade cook/farm; Evaluate) This stuff is rather expensive, especially considering each has about 5o pounds in it (1oo enc) these would go for 2 gold crowns per pound. Maybe the old castle kitcheners forgot to take it back with them? The flour however transmorgrifies the moment you leave the castle, next time you check you realize this stuff has a terrible sharp osseus smell, the sack is full of ground up bones. There is a little larder and a dumbwaiter room. Larder (A9)- The moment you open the doors you find yourself facing a room filled with a sea of rat. They begin for to scamper running out single file out of the castle like a terribly creepy line of dancers. They are small enough that they do not care for you obstructing the path, they clear it between your legs. Dumbwaiters (A8)- You can go up and down the dumbwaiters, they're opareted from both ends, they lead to the alchemical laboratory. It takes a half-action to activate the dumbwaiter and go down a level. Throne room- It bares the torn tapestries and arches, and the throne itself in half ruin. You may try and sit upon it. There is a great broken red stained window behind the throne through which you can see the far away Reikwald deep. There are daemon shrines shattered into pieces along the walls. Here you can see the remains of the short lived theatre of Detlaf Sierck, now but a pile of ruins. There is a whole pile of backdrop props of painted wooden shrubs, twinned moons Morrslieb and Mannsleib (E-1).

 The play hosted here was attended by the Emperor himself along with his issue and the nobles of the Empire, before the unthinkable happened. The barricade leading under the ruined stage is blocked by a barricade of various props and furniture amounting to an obstacle of TB-4 and 24 wounds (G2).TB-4 and 24 wounds.TB-4 and 24 wounds.

Notice Nailed to the Door (E6)-  One left after the Drachenfels play took place. It is a warning about apprehension of one of the stagehands who turned out to be a mutant sabotour, and that he’ll be tried for murder, and that one ought to watch out for the place can turn you into one as well. Bath Chambers- With frescoes of eldritch sea monsters on the walls. Mermedus as a giant crowned triton standing over a wrecked ship, picking out drowning sailors and devouring them. The place smells of mould and sea water. There's a great painting of a merwyrmon the wall choking the whole room with its serpentine body. A tiny stained glass pink window overlooks the room, it depicts a sort of twisted mix between a mermaid and a daemonette (As you look upon it you hear a perverse but alluring song; suddenly your mind is flooded with horrid imagery of sea-shanty themed gore-porn! Gain 1d6 IP, that voice will stick in your mind!). There is also a fountain peace shaped like a mutated horned Stir-Pyke.

Bretonian Tapestry- It depicts a stylised Bretonian perspective of a mounted questing knight having his head cleft to the teeth by a vampire knight. If its investigated (Perception -1o%) or cut or pulled down, it uncovers a secret passage into the study. Study- This chamber must have been a small study of Drachenfels'. The whole of the room is covered in a thick blanket of dust and cobwebs. You see a crumbled pile of bones and robes. It's a skeleton of a scholar collapsed at a lectern. A vile servant of Drachenfels no doubt. There be a book of ancient lore, upon being examined it produces a goatling looking homonculus (C1). Homonculus This dismal being was enchanted into a grimoire, which upon being disturbed spawns the beast in the room magically. It is masterless and dim, but it will heed a powerful enough a sourcerer.

WS   |   BS    |    S    |   T    | Ag   |  Int  |  WP  |    Fel                    23         25        25      32      18       33      10         18 A |  W  |  SB  | TB  |  M  |  Mag |  IP  |  FP   1     6        2       3        5        0        0       0                                                                      Skills: Perception 2o%, Scale Sheer Surface, Common Knowledge (the Empire), Dodge Blow, Magical Sense, Read/Write, Speak Arcane Language (Magick) Talents: Fearless, Natural Weapons, Acute Hearing, Aethyric Attunement, Alley Cat, Flee! Keen Senses, Resistance to Chaos, Resistant to Magic, Sixth Sense, Strong-minded, Unsettling Special rules: In order to bind the Homonculus you need Magic Characteristic of at least 2, you must have the Charm Animal skill, and you must have one of the following: One of these Arcane Lore talents: Beasts, Fire, the Heavens, Life, Light, or Shadow or the Witchcraft talent. After succeeding at a -2o% Int roll you get to keep it. It has the ability of Magic Focus (Doubles the magic and adds a chaos die to magic rolls) and Aethyric Reservoir. It cannot speak but it can understand magic language.

There is also a few books in the room Constant Drachenfels by Joachim Munchberg (5 xp; Reikspiel). -Drachenfels The Great Enchanter, the Eternal Champion of Evil, the Darkness Who Would Not Be Defied. His laugh is akin to a breaking of some accursed Imperial college of engineering machine choking up as its gears devour a young engineer, gory, hollow and metalic. No one can trully precisely know when did the great enchanter come to be. He seems to be ancient even by the means of elves, which remark of his being long before the breed of men of Sigmar line crossed over the mountains and settled the lands we know as the Empire. He seems to be a vestige of a darker Stygian era, a terrible sickly disease upon these barren mountains. -The castle of Drachenfels is no mere thing, it is a daemon in and of its right, for all the undead souls that infest it, the sacrificial blood it was seeped with, and daemon fumes it ingested. The wicked place is weakened, half-dormant but it still desires to entrap your soul in its dark bowels. The poison feast and other legends by Claudia Wieltse (5 xp; Reikspiel); -Each of seven towers is supposed to fulfil a defensive role but also be a transmogriphic symbolic representation of one of painful emotions and experiences, showing the artistic side of Drachenfell's design -A visit to the castle induces hallucinations through evil glamour. The spirits of the dead swarm about the castle like flies, trapped by its wicked will. -The terrible deed was brought on by the gulible Emperor Carolus’ upon the nobles of the Empire and his own very family in 1937. As Drachenfels paid reparations and on his knees swore fealty to the Emperor in Altdorf. Great ball was ordered, elven music plaid, fine Brettonian delicacies served. Not before long the many nobles of the empire along with their kind emperor ended their lives paralysed before platters full of fine food and goblets of exquisite drink. That was the horror of the poison feast. A book by Vladislav Dvorjietski (15 xp; Kislevarin), it's a series of erotic poems about the experience of being bled by a vampire Kattarin the Bloody to whom he was a courtier and a lover. She herself was the infamous Lahmian Vampire tzarina of Kislev, who reigned from 2309 to 2465 IC for a total of one hundred and fifty-six years. She was assassinated by her own great-great grandson Tsarevich Pavel.  An empty spiked cage with dust and skeletal crumbling remains of a mutated two-headed bird. There is a peculiar long bone spike (Common Knowledge Elves +1o%, Academic knowledge Magic +1o%; This here is a peace of unicorn ivory...) next to a peculiar ampule containing a viscous substance (Common Knowledge Elves -1o%, Academic knowledge Magic -2o%; And this must be unicorn blood) If you drink it you gain a fate point. There is also a tin mask of Drachenfels left on one of the tables. There are three books in the room, they're in very poor condition, gnawed on by rats and ravaged by time. And finally a strange ampule which contains nothing but a healing draught.

Stained Glass Window Depicting Drachenfels (J2)- A whole description of his apperance, you feel like you saw him. Wearing a mask, cape and drinking from a goblet whilst looking at a pile of bones. Next time you enter the room and have sixth sense talent you feel uneasy, something changed in this room. When you look at the stained glass window you realize that Drachenfels depicted there disappeared. Pile of rubble- Each of these takes a four turns to move + amount of yards you wish to move it/2. It takes an additional turn to move it 2 squares further (4 yards). Making it six turns. Rubble is difficult terrain. Fallen pillar- To push the pillar out of the way you must succeed on Str -3o% roll to move it a square (2 yards) a turn. It takes a turn to push it out of the way. It can be climbed over but it takes a scale sheeer surface test or you lose a turn scrambling over it. Collapsed chandelier-  To push the chandelier out of the way you must succeed on a Str -1o% roll to move it a square (2 yards) a turn.  It takes a turn to push it out of the way. It can be climbed over but it takes a scale sheeer surface test or you lose a turn scrambling over it. LOWER CASTLE: Darker and more foreboding part of the castle.

Warpflame Torch (H4)- A peculiar torch lighting with green flame is mounted on a wall, lighting the murk with an eery green flame. It may be used to unvail secret passages. For instance with this torch in hand the wall at I2 becomes a portal into the Private Chambers. It glows green and cannot be extinguished, it mutates victims upon touch. It is fashioned from a skull of a vampire bound with spiked bands of iron at the skullcap which was sawed off and therein burns the daemonic flame. Touching it means you suffer S-1 damage hit without your TB mitigation and roll for T -2o% or suffer a minor mutation. Taking the torch out of Drachenfels extinguishes it. However the vampire skull torch makes for a great souvenir, you can also sell it to the odd peddlar or gift it to the innkeeper.

Stairs of Torment (E9 and F9)- Every step down these stairs of which there would be three WP checks of progressively increased difficulty, causes the characters physical pain as they descend down them; -1o%, -2o% and -3o% would eventually let them descend the stairs of torment and gain some experience. They may turn back at any point, the stairs cause no suffering when scaled. Failling a check has no ill effect other than the character not being able to move due to the mental anguish. Doors of Eldritch Unknown (D10)- Something bashes and screeches at the chained door form wihtin, a woman trapped inside tries to get out with violent clawing and cries. Seeing it requires a terror test +1o%.

Alchemy chamber- Doors to the alchemy chamber is closed with pick lock +1o% (J5 and H5; TB-3 Wounds 12). Spoilt potions in an alchemical laboratory. Ampule of mercury, sulphur balls and other such alchemical ingredients litter the place. Mortar and pestle of black marble. General set of trade tools for alchemy but already very extensively used (25 gc) Alembics and a large Athanor. A book tittled Dwarf gold written in Reikspiel by Brandivogius the Hermit, successful study requires an Academic Knowledge Alchemy WP -1o% and causes 1d6/2 IP for which you gain 1o xp: It's a tome written by a mad Ulgu sorcerer, who claims that gold can be extracted from dwarven flesh if properly treaded with alchemical agents. It also details the trails conducted by the wizard.. There is also a dumbwaiter leading up to the kitchen, it is operated from the position where the tray resides, so at the start from the Dumbwaiter room in the kitchen. It seems like there is only one potion prepared in the room, it is not marked in any way. Roll of Academic Knowledge Alchemy -2o% allows to deduce this to be an old batch of Essence of Chaos. (11o gc) Imbibing this potion causes 2 wounds and 2 IP, you gain +5% to your magic sense and +1 to your casting roll for (10 turns x  your Mag). There is also a clay mould in the shape of a winged gargoyle next to a three gibblets of gold next to the strange tome (2 gc each)

Wine Cellar- Ancient barrels of wine rest here. A few smaller barrels as well. Most of them are full of mould or empty. They sprot a Brettonian 12th century pegasus seals of Parravon. There’s one full avarege sized barrel (J4), it’s full of human blood (4 gallon cask; 32 pints). Recreational Room- This room seems to have been used for housing guests, whoever they might have been. There is a large ancient couch facing a grotesque fireplace adorned with daemonic motives over the mantlepiece. By the gaudy and ramshackled style of the castle you can easily deduce that Drachenfels was a novue-riche, his need to boast his wealth and grandure shows the insecurity of one lowborn. There is a hide of a beastman flayed into a carpet in front of the fireplace (1o gc)

Daemonic Fire Place- It was used by Drachenfels to barter with daemons. If one ignites it with a warp torch, the fire forms a peculiar portal and it doesn't burn your flesh. The passage way allows you to slide into the liminal places between the rooms. When passing through the tunnel from the daemonic passage you are randomly teleported upon passing through the warp passsage (1-2; Up to the kitchens fireplace 3-4; Gargoyle corridor J;10-4/4 5-6; Courtyard base of the bridge A-8 7-8;Walking up the eternal starway 9; Dungeon mirror at A;4-1/4 10; Drachenfels' mausoleum) when you use it for the second time however the rout is not shorter but instead leads you through the lair of the Liminal Horror. When you use it for the first time two doors manifest at the end of the road, if players travel in a group roll for each door seperately; if two players go through the same door they end up in the same place.

Torture Room- All the things in the chamber appear as if taken meticulous care of still. There are tools of the interrogators' trade on all the tables, quite the assortment. Here the great enchanter would recuperate after a long day of maintaining a domain of evil. There’s a machine that can peel a man like a vegetable, spinning giant corkscrew like construction with spiked clasps to hold the victim in place. There is a great gibbet used for the transportation of the prisoners from the deep oubliette to this chamber, the elevator requires an operator for to descend someone a level (E8). One can only dread what horrors await in the dreaded oubliett, it's only so deep one can lower oneself into the Drachenfels with hope of return. The rusted clunky tools in the room cost about 25 gc for the lot, and have enc. 1oo

Iron maiden- It can be forced open with a Str +15% roll. When it is done, the coffin errupts with the stench of dust and grave, and a robe wearing corpse of a woman falls out crumpling on the ground. You can see that the corpse is clutching a Verenan holy symbol in its hand, she was one of the forlorn company.

Garden balcony- Opening unto a wall of the Gray Mountains, surrounded with a fence of iron spikes. A little garden with stone benches where a mossy sculpture of a Blut-Teufel stands, each can be picked up and taken back to Altdorf.

In the garden there stands a little wooden edifice, a wooden sign over the structure proclaims it the "Puppet Theatre of Gepetto Collodi." Once the party takes interest with it the little colourful courtains magically open and reveal four dancing puppets. It's a living puppet show that will mock the players exploits and tell of the Drachenfells story, they can do no harm to the players and if ripped off of their strings they begin to quiver and tremor as they give off floating flakes of glowing green, so they do as well if they are attacked, they stop moving after that. The puppets can give players lore and hints; for example the overall Drachenfells story, and the looting by the Reikland crusader grunts. They can give hints about the castle for drops of blood (One wound per question, and always turn it into one of their silly little plays) There are four one with a beard, one with lady like braids and hair and two regural looking ones, but one without a jaw, as they are made out of wood wearing silly reinessance costumes with bells, they have child skulls for heads and plenty of props, that they use, the backdrop changes to their whim, all of it handpainted scroll of oil. If asked about their origin or gossiped with they say: "We were once orphans of Margiliano, but then we were made into this shape by the Tilean master Geppeto Collodi, we are a gift to the great enchanter!"  The creatures speak with a tall falsetto, aside of one that has no jaw, and speaks naught at all. They can do a singing bit about Drachenfells exploits; Fighting Sigmar, Sacking of Paravonne, Lepers' Pavanne, Poison Feast, Death of Drachenfells, The recent ploundering of the castle. They always finish by saying: "But the master will return..." and importantly they'll remark "Don't linger after dark!" If the players offend Drachenfells they scream and punch their ears hard "You must not say that about our master! The master hears! He strolls through these chambers though his flesh long withered away, his spirit lingers!" The wooden wall making up the back of the stage falls down without being touched and they let the party through with theatrical gestures.

Puppet of Geppetto Collodi These little beings are more intent on putting on a show than hurting you. They're rather disturbing however.

WS   |   BS    |    S    |   T    | Ag   |  Int  |  WP  |   Fel                   15          0          12      15      30       12      10        10 A |  W  |  SB  | TB  |  M  |  Mag |  IP  |  FP    1     4       1       1        4        0        0       0                                                                      Skills: Concealment, Disguise, Performer (Actor, Singer, Jester, Story Teller), Ventriloquism. Talents: Fearless, Night vision, Mimic, Resistance to Chaos. Equipment: Little outfit (Noble, Jester, Landsknecht, Empress) Special rules: They will attempt to escape if kidnapped. Familiar- You could bind the puppet to be your familiar if you're a wizard of Shyish. But some could take issue with this as its a form of enslaving an undead creature, however technically, the puppets are not trully undead. Private Chambers- Secret room of one of the mistresses of Drachenfels in which she’d primp herself before a torture session with old Drachenfles upon the local peasants in the geol. A finely decorated chamber of red satins, mahogany and other such fine materials. In the corner of the room there upon a Tilean column stands a cherub of Morr clearly stolen from a graveyard. The bed is decorated with bones. A trumpet carrying skeletal cherub spits a ball of flame at the first character through as they enter (Dodge -1o% or 1d10+3 damage).

There is armoire with  robe of Drachenfels himself (15 gc), very expensive material, fine but out of style even in Brettonia. It is way too big for anyone present. Cut sleeves and adorned with bronze buttons of skulls. Smelling of a charnel house. There are Tilean style shoes of humans skin (Best I can do is 1o shillings) As well as a cape and a silver mask of Drachenfels (25 gc; -2o% WP if worn, or -1o% if carried when resisting possession). There is also an old bottled elixir Nectar of Beauty (The potion causes +1o% Fel 3d10 hours but you become irritated by sunlight suffering -5% in the sun and you become stinking drunk) Upon the mahogany bed rests a skeleton. By the dress you can guess it was a woman, her body is strewn with a thick layer of cobwebs, she's died many years ago. (Perception +1o%; You can see scratchmarks on the secret door as well as on the walls and the bed, it seems she was trapped here) (Search roll; Upon ravaging this room you find a terrible daemon shaped codpiece (8 gc) a salacious shape of it makes it a trully heretical peace of dress. There is also a fascinus of Slaanesh, a terrible pendant in an utterly perverse shape, that of a daemonette devouring a baby; Magic; It's a form of love magic, a contraception)

Ritual Room- There are old tapastries on the walls, one showing nuns of Shallay put to the sword by men at arms as Drachenfels watches on from a nearby tower and another smaller one depicting Drachenfels shaking hands with a terrible Daemonic entity through a fireplace. All of them are dirty as if some nasty acrid smoke charred them. There is also a summoning circle made of salt in the midst of the room. There is a human skull on one of the tables next to a silver bottle of daemon blood (Imbibing requires -3o% T roll; failure means loss of 1d10 wounds no TB, becoming stinking drunk). Three black candles of human tallow. Stepping upon the salt drawn pentagram has disastrous consequences. Behind the Nun tapestry there is a secret passage leading off into the well. There is a statue of a Blood-imp and a sacrificial chalice of cursed gold (Evaluate; 25 gc) There is also a tome of Book of Demented Riddles (Tome details the slow descent into madness of a certain magus, who took upon himself to catalogue the answers to the riddles of Tzeentchian horros; each reading grants you 5 xp to a maximum of 25, however each reading requires passed roll of Int -1o% and WP -2o%; if you fail the WP you gain a 1 IP, if you fail the Int you do not gain the exprience; "The very meter of their rhymes makes you mind pulsate with anguish" The book also adds a +1o% to decyphiring the Daemonic riddle in the dungeon) There is also a deck of intricate and gilded tarot cards (1o gc) Any ritual sourcing from Dhar energies gains +3o% to its casting rolls here.

Cursed Golden chalice- True proper gold, the chalice is cursed as it was used for daemon summoning. Whoever handles it looses their luck points for the day. (25 gc) Cursed silver candlestick- Just as is the case with the cursed chalice, those handling it suffer only a loss of one luck point however. (12 gc) Gate- The gate between G 6/7 is shut (-3o% Locpicking; T-5;Wounds 24), the same type of locked gate is keeping the ritual room closed. Tomb- The tomb has an inscription written upon it in Classical +1o%. It reads the names of the player characters as if they were the ones laying in the grave, the tomb in fact is a secret passage. It leads into the Drachenfles Dungeon a staircase at G-5.

DRACHENFELS DUNGEON: Least devastated but also the most perverse part of the castle. The dungeon. During play this part of the castle is bathed in absolute Stygian darkness, for the sake of visualisation light was provided to the whole scene.

The party is required to bring their own light or simply walk about in the dark with a little "sight light" provided. Without the light the scene will look like this;

Mausoleum of Drachenfels (A9/B8 to B10/C8 to C10)- A room with a great sculpture of Drachenfels. In front of it a huge well leading down into the darkness of the castle, one can only imagine what horrors await below. I mean you've found what you've been looking for, its unlikely you'll find a sculpture better than this one... but on the other hand... desire drives you to see what awaits below... The secret door opens outside into the dungeon (B7), but the Mausoleum can only be accessed via the warp-passage or the flesh corridor. Descending down the Shaft of Darkness requires at least 9 yards of rope to get out, jumping down into the darkness without a way out does not seem the right idea. A scale sheer surface -3o% may be attempted, but its per every 3 yards.

Shaft of Darkness- Leading of to peculiar places and eventually to the catafalque of Drachenfels himself in the secret passages section. When opene a terrible metallic cackle resounds throughout the castle, the only thing in the tomb is a golden mask of Drachenfels. (5o gc; -3o% WP if worn, or -15% if carried when resisting possession)

Maw Doorway (G4)- The door opens into a square filled with teeth and flesh with another door right behind it.

The maw devours anything that enters it with S-4 attacks every turn automatically hitting anything that enters and fails a dodge roll.

The maw refuses to open upon being shut. To hack your way through the maw you must break the lower jaw which has T-4 and 20 wounds. It opens slack and refuses to budge from then on. If you throw something into it, it closes shut. The door behind it leads into the secret rooms, the Flesh Corridor. Ossuarium (H to J from 1 to 3)- Entrance to the dungeon from the Stairs of Torment filled with the skulls of those claimed by the castle. You may only hope that your head won't end up on this wall. Room of Necromancy and ossuarium in one. A place of Drachenfels’ work with the many bones of the tortured dead prisoners. There is a grand depth leading into a dark inky blankess, fall into this pit requires a clearing of a 4 yard jump. Falling into the depth means death without any fate points saving you, it is a dark enchantment of death and this pit reeks of it.

However on the other side of the jump is a lectern, presumably Drachenfels simply hovered over the pit whenever he needed to consult the dark grimoire. The tome there is in fact a terrible grimoire of necromancy (545 gc) however it is closed with a book lock -3o% lockpicking skill, it is also strapped ot the lectern with a thick metal chain, ripping it out of it would destroy the book as it would rip the spine out. The chain has a T 5 Wounds 20. Reading the grimoire and spending 1oo xp points allows for the learning of Dark Lore (Necromancy) The lectern has an encumberance of 4oo. The doors at H1 and H3 lead to the Gargoyle Room.

Mountain Stream Trapdoor (D4)- This terrible device is a trap awaiting those unwary -3o% perception roll allows you to foresee the coming danger (Sixth sense allows for an Ag roll before falling) Falling into the trapdoor causes 1d10+3 damage and also requires a -3o% swimming test, you splash about a terrible labyrinth of water, choaking on the acrid cold stream, you spin up side down, try to gasp for air, water rushing all about. You must succeed on your swimming test the fourth time to escape the tunnel, you can start drowning from the first test onwards but you cannot escape the tunnel until the fourth roll. If you survive your swim tests you get to re-emerge from the water back unto the shelf where the camp stands, soaked and shaking after 2d6 turns at H6 on the map fo Grey Mountain Wilds.

Blood Pool of Frenzy (H to J from 7 to 10)- If a character touches the viscous blood comprising the pool they must succeed on a WP -1o% or suffer frenzy attacking the nearest creature (or object in absence of creatures) for 1d6 turns screaming and frothing at the mouth. There are two piles of skull neatly stacked on either side of the chamber, there is also a Classical pillar upon which the inscription is written (Daemon tongue +1o%: The inscription reads that this here is Akhash'Khar The frothy spittle harvested from the blood hounds of Khorne.) Atop of it is a cursed gobblet of gold (15 gc)

Pit of Plague (A to B from 3 to 6)- This terrible rancid pit is full of floating carcass, bog and tar. It is infested with Neighlish Rot. Each turn spent in this sceptic tank of the castle causes a -3o% 1 TB damage of Neighlish rot a turn. Falling into the pit causes a 5+1d10 damage due to the six yards fall.

Daemonic Riddle Door (H6)- It is written in Daemonic tongue, if one answers it, the door will likely open. One has to know the Daemonic tongue, and find an answer to the question;"What is the key to this world held by the Chi'khami'tzann?"

-3o% Academic Knowledge Daemonology allows you to answer it. "Rhan'k'adanra" or as Reikspiel would put it, "The End Times". Upon uttering the phrase in the Daemonic tongue, the stone slab begins to slowly and magically slide into the floor allowing you passage into a dark chamber.

Secret Daemon Room- This dark room containes a golden statuette, a barrel of daemonette milk and a raw peace of warpstone inside of ritual skull circle. There is also a set of keys, they open the prison doors in the Geol as well as the lock on the necromantic grimoire in the Ossuarium.

Cask of Daemonette Milk- Roll -3o% T or suffer an 1d6/3 IP and a -2o% WP for 2d10 rounds. (There is an inscription in Daemon tongue on it; Daemonette milk) The cask contains a sweet smelling chalky frothing liquid. (4 gallon cask; 32 pints.) Room of Prophecy- Two chambers, one containing a lectern with a great tome upon it and a mirror and the other with a skull pendant hanging off of the wall and a table covered in purple cloth with a strange crystal ball up on it next to a gold daemon statue. The tall mirror in the room opens a secret door upon being investigated, it leads into the Private Chambers in the Lower Castle, but it may only be opened from the Room of Prophecy, once opened it works both ways.

Tome of Daemonology Bound in Human Skin- This books allows you to learn deeper daemonology by learning the true names of the Great Four. But it is also a sage reading on the nature of Daemons. Each reading takes a toll on your psyche, you require a roll for Classical, but you may gain Academic Knowledge Daemonology upon spending 1oo xp from reading it. Each reading costs you an IP with +0% WP but you gain 5 xp per reading (Max 15 xp). -Chi'khami'tzann; There are four of them, dark forces each emergent as the strongest in the deep of the Warp. Fed by the notions of mind and deeds of the body, devouring spirits from the dark days to this day, and to the very end of days... Tzeneth the lord of wayland shifting, fate and magic. His many eyes see beyond the eons. Nurgleth the lord of rot and decay, his legions of pox corrode the Empire from the bottom up. Slaaneth the androgynous master of pleasure and delights. Karneth the lord of fury and blood, his throne of skulls. These are the only four who claim the Chi'khami'tzannship and their work is evil. -Another entry tells the tale of friend of the author that travelled the streets of Middenheim upon a road in this daily commute, finding a peculiar doorway which was never there before. And of how his companion bet him into going into it. Of terrible Daemons that infest reality and devour the souls of those who walk through such passages. Orb of Fulb- "It glows and whispers dark things to you, of the most calamitous and Cassandraic prophecies of doom in all forms.". You see your body contorted in death in a hundred forms, you see the end of it all. Every turn in its malicious presence you suffer 1 IP if you fail a -15% WP roll, you realise it wants to show you something. However you may attempt to peer into it with -3o% WP roll and glimpse anything you wish, this however, even upon success, imposes a 1d6/2 IP. If you wish to destroy it; (T 3 Wounds 8) If smashed a terrible scream can be heard and you no longer suffer the IP. On a critical failure if you did not get your dooming you experience your own death, causing additional  1d6/2 IP. (Academic knowledge Daemonology +0%; This powerful Daemonic artefact allows you to see through one the many eyes of a Changer of Ways) Geol- The gates are locked with -15% Lockpicking skill difficulty. They have TB 4 and 20 wounds each. The spiked gibbet elevator descends down and opens into the upper part of the room (E7), but at the start of the game the gibbet resides in the torture room. This is where the victims of the castle were kept before their grisly end. One of the cells holds a golden daemon statuette. The door at F10 is closed with pick lock 2o%. Falling into the spiked pit at E7 ends the same as falling into the trapdoor at D4.

Trapped body (F8.4/4)- There is a skeletal body wearing robes and a metal headband in one of the cells. It seems it belonged to an elven wizard. Whatever his death was, it did not come easy. The eye (E10)- A wall painting of an eye causes a terrible sense of unease in you. It makes you feel like a prisoner in these halls, caught by the jailer in the act of fleeing. For as long as you're in its field of view you must roll your WP -1o%, for every failed roll your evil eye goes up by 1. It sees you through the grate and gibbet bars.

Unholy ungent (A1 and B1)- It seems this terrible ungent was used by Drachenfels to perform some dark deeds, the contents seem to be formed into a white pasty mass. (Alchemy; The main ingredient seems to be human adipose, you presume it's exactly the stuff with which the walls and courtyard of the castle are coated. The purpose of this unholly deed, unknown.) Its properties will remain unknown, but if you smear it on a corpse or an object it does not age, an ancient Lahmian secret.

Gargoyle Room- This room sports 6 pristeen Blut-Teufels. This however comes at a cost. The metal portculises are operated from opposite sides, meaning you must open both in order to allow for them to be transported out grate at CD 1;2;3 has the winch operating it at G;2-3/4 and FG 1;2;3 has it at C;2-2/4. It takes a half action to open it.

Golden Daemon Statuettes- Each is worth 15 gc but the gold it was made of was acquired from transmorgrified dwarf flesh. The gold is cursed and handling it takes away your luck points for the day. There is one in the Geol, one in the Gargoyle Room and one in the Secret Daemon Room and one in the Room of Prophecy.

SECRET PATHS: The castle is rife with ancient secret passages, each more eldritch than the other.

Secret Passages- 1. Portrait 2.Behind a Brettonian Tapestry (Vampire knight slaying a questing knight) 3. Mirror in the Private Room 4. Catafalque Tomb with Stairs Inside. 5. Shallyan sister slaughter tapestry. Portrait Passage- It may be opened by taking the spy portrait down. It leads between two points in the Halls E8 to A4. On the Secret Paths its the corridor from I7 to G10. Catafalque Tomb- It leads from the Lower Castle into the Dungeons. Tower of Sin Passage (H from 1 to 8)- The door at H8 leads into the bridge at the Bridge of the Tower of Sin, the corridor at H1 leads into the door in the Halls, a door in the Kitchens at A10. Collapsed Tunnel (J from 1 to 10)- If the path is cleared through the collapsed tunnel in the Gray Mountain Wilds balcony it leads you deeper into the castle, you may unlock the gates in the Lower Castle at G10 which normally remain unacessable, the broad passage allows for a large object to be carried out. Brettonian Gobelin Path (C5 to A5)- It is the path opened behind the Brettonian Gobelin in the Halls section of the castle, the secret path is not a mere hole in the wall but a passagway leading from B4 to B3 in the Halls. In the Secret Paths the point at B3 opens into the archway at C5.2/4 and ends with an archway at A5.1/4. Warp Passageway- It appears as a simple corridor leading to twinned glowing green portals, each leads to a different randomly determined location (If characters pick the same doorway they go to the same random location) It is originally accessed through the Daemonic Fire Place if its lit. On the Secret Paths map the Warp Passageway opens with a portal at E5.1/4 and winds in the portals at A7 and B7.

Well Room (D to E at 8 to 10 and a corridor at A9 to C9)- A cracking heap of human bone upon the floor of this dry well, light emerges into the musty darkness from above in a perfect circular shape of the well mouth, the door at A9 leads into the passage behind the blapsphemous tapestry in the Lower Castle's Ritual Room at J9.2/4.

Sewer Grate- Entering the sewer grate at E9 in the Well Room as a halfling and succeeding an Ag -1o% test and scale sheer surface -1o% allows one to use the mould filled passage to travel to the sewer grate in the Halls in the Bath Chambers C7.

Fleshy Pulp Corridor (A10 to C10- It is entered through the door behind the Maw Doorway at Drachenfels Dungeon, it leads into the Drachenfels Mausoleum at B8. With pinkish gunk spewing from under the doorway, a whole corridor filled with pulsating throbbing flesh. Eyes, teeth, mouths, tentacles and spines.

You can hear them whimper and scream as you step through. Angulating and fidgeting upon touch. You must roll WP -1o% or suffer 1 IP. A membrane blocks the middle of the passage and has to be destroyed in order to progress through the slushy fleshy pulp (T-3;12 wounds). Squishing flesh and eyes. It is considered a difficult terrain.

Tomb of Drachenfels- A room with a catafalque of the great Enchanter, (Str -2o% to open) when opened it reavels the grave to be empty but for a golden mask (5o gc; -3o% WP if worn or -15% WP if carried, to resist possession by Drachenfels) for to then summon a resounding iconic echoing laugh which shakes the gloomy castle. (Vide Shaft of Darkness above)  The Snuffling Horror Lair (The liminal horror)- The lair is reached if the Warp Passage accessed through the Daemonic Fire Place is used twice, on the second use instead of the two magical doors the party enters a tunnel from G7.2/4 on the Secret Paths. On subsequent uses after the second the path returns to normal. The passagway ends with a single random portal at D1.2/4. When in the lair the party are hunted there by giant thaumavore daemon slug moving between the warp passages and devouring all in its way. If it devours a magical artefact or a grimoire it retreats to its nest and rests for ten turns (G3). "You come upon a great angulating vile oozing blob of a glowing and shifting entity, the liminal snuffling horror of Drachenfels passageways. Every place if not maintained properly grows over with pests and vermin, evil domains of magic are not an exception, but the creatures that come about to inhabit them are even more foul and despicable. Feeding on the stagnant ordure of the eldritch residues of enchantments made and the souls of the dead, which shape warps the minds of the living. (Magic/Daemonology +1o%; A terrible thaumavore drinking of the Dhar wells created about them. Supping from the decomposition of the spells weaved throughout the castle.)”

Liminal Horror (Nurgle Slug) This vermin devours enchantments of Drachenfels. But it does not mind devouring those that stand on its way in the warp passages.

WS   |   BS    |    S    |   T    | Ag   |  Int  |  WP  |    Fel                    45          0         41      47      40       30      44         11 A |  W  |  SB  | TB  |  M  |  Mag |  IP  |  FP    1    20      4      4(6)    3        0        0       0                                                                    Skills: Perception +1o%. Talents: Fearless, Daemonic Aura, Frightening, Natural Weapons, Night Vision, Strike to Injure, Will of Iron. Special rules: Instability- If its wounded but does not wound, it rolls WP or goes back to the Warp. Devouring - On a critical hit or if a character is rendered unconcious or made prone, the beast uses its attack to swallow the enemy. The enemy is thusly teleported to a random location in the castle erupting from a wall in a sea of mucous, roll 1d6 for location (1- Lowest level, 2- Outside of the castle 3- Gargoyle passage 4- Throne room 5- Bath 6- Gate tower top)Embodiment of Decay- Beast automatically destroy all plant life short of trees and small animals (no larger than deer) within 12 yards (6 squares). All other living creatures (including all Humans, Elves, Dwarfs, and Halflings) must succeed on Toughness Tests or permanently reduce their Toughness

Characteristic by –1d10%. Those who succeed are immune to this ability for 24 hours Plague- Beasts of Nurgle are carriers of Neiglish Rot. Any character who takes at least 1 Wound from a Beast must succeed at a Challenging (–10%) Toughness Test or suffer 4 TB of Neighlish Rot damage.

Rubbery Hide-The Beast’s rubbery hide grants it 2 Armour Points in all locations.

Slime Trail- The Beast of Nurgle leaves a glistening trail of slime infested with Neiglish Rot. The slime remains for 10 rounds before evaporating. Any creature that steps into the slime trail must succeed on a Challenging (–10%) Toughness Test or suffer 3 TB of Neighlish Rot damage. ARTEFACTS:  Rubble of Drachenfels- Any old peace of shapely stone picked up from the castle, at least its genuine. TB 5 Wounds 25| enc; 200. Headless blood imp- Found at the base of the Tower of Sin. TB 2 Wounds 50| enc; 200

Bust of a Bloot-Teufel- Pried off of the wall of the Gargoyle Corridor. TB 2 Wounds 50| enc; 200 Blood imp- A sanguin cherub with cloven feet. One can be found in the Summoning Room. TB 2 Wounds 80| enc; 250 Vandalised Bloot-Teufel statue- The eager crusaders under local Barons sent by Emperor Karl Franz destroyed the nest of evil, breaking windows and taking down the castle. This statue suffered the brunt of the damage. Bits of it knocked off. “Sigmor” “44th for the win” “Hans wus here” and other such points are chiselled into the side of the statue. TB 3 Wounds 100| enc; 1000 Mossy Bloot-Teufel statue- This statue left to rot in a mossy courtyard has suffered the strong withering rains of the Gray Mountains and its invasive mosses and lichens. TB 3 Wounds 125| enc; 1000 Preserved Bloot-Teufel statue- This one, preserved in the dark musty crypts of the dungeon, is in mint condition, though one has to carry it quite the distance over the steps. TB 3 Wounds 150| enc; 1000 Statue of Constans Drachenfels- The great enchanter himself. There used to be two, but the cursaders pulled down and destroyed the one in the Gargoyle Corridor leaving only the stone cracows on a raised daise. TB 4 Wounds 200| enc; 1500 Mask of the Enchanter- In the very depth of the castle it lays, you may steal it for yourself as a souvenir. A golden mask of the Enchanter hidden in a secret location; a few masks as he had some to wear around the castle and some for outings. This means that if the party is carrying the masks of Drachenfels the possessed suffer -3o% WP to their daily rolls.

EVIL EYE TABLE: Bringing a magical artefact into the castle - 1 Channeling - 1 Casting a spell - 3 Suffering a miscast - 5 Vandalising the castle (Per object) - 1 Screaming - 1 Stealing  (Per object) - 1 Saying His Name - 2 Staying a turn over time - 1 If you take off your amulet - 1o If you walk around reading a passage of Sigmar’s slaying of Drachenfels from the Book of Sigmar you loose 5 evil eye table points. Uttering the name of Sigmar takes away 1 point once. Stealing or destroying the daemonic weather vane takes away 5 Entering the pentagram in the summoning room - 5 Descending a level - 1 Unsealing the tomb of Drachenfels - 5 Sitting on the throne of Drachenfels - 3 Above actions garner the Evil Eye’s attention. EVENTS: The evil eye- The evil eye is the mark of how much attention the party brings to itself, messing about in these accursed halls, breaking ancient pottery and stealing things. Various deeds bring various levels up. High alertness of the spirit of the place means danger. The level defines which events trigger. The effects always affect the offender, they trickle down every turn, you can't trigger more than one at a time. Evil Eye Table: Tier I (5 points up) 6- Fear unspeakable fear overcomes thee. Roll against fear. 8- Chills supernatural feeling of dread, you sense a noiseless sound, an odourless smell, an unheard whisper, and you tremble. Something is stirring. Everyone rolls for fear. 9- Winds loud and screeching. They put out any light sources the party has. Tier II (10 points up) 12 - Whispers undistinguishable yet profoundly spooky. Everyone rolls against fear. 13 - Doors shutting and opening truly frightening poltergeist activity. It requires an Ag roll to jump through the door, or Dodge to get out of the way if one stands in front of a door when the event triggers, suffering S-1 hit and being knocked prone on a fail. They act so for 1d6 turns. 15 - Insanity caused by the various evils of the castle, and its malicious sights. Roll WP +0% or gain 1 IP. 17 - Telepathy the very enchanter himself speaks to your mind, “This castle is me, its corridors my vanes, its towers my bones, its floors my running blood!” his voice sounding dark hollow and metallic as if some infernal Imperial College cog-machine devouring one of the apprentice engineers. Everyone rolls WP +0% or gains 1 IP. 19 -Terror unspeakable terror washes over you as you can hear Drachenfel’s iconic laugh. “Screams of the damned and the dying, the ripples of rivers of blood, the cracking of a milion spines, the fall of a dozen cities, pleas of the murdered infants, and bleating of slaughtered animals” Tier III (20 points; post midnight) 20 - Possession the worst possible fate, you’re possessed by Drachenfels himself, whom desires a host. It's time to leave! (Drachenfels targets those carrying his mask but targeting human males as his hosts preferably) 30 - Chaos Mutation the castle manifests its terrible corrupting effect, everyone rolls WP, the person with the worst roll suffers a major mutation. In case of a tie the person with the lowest WP. 35 - Apparition The walls run with blood or you see screaming faces in the stone of the walls. You also see the ghosts of the castle appear before you like “The Monks of Drachenfels” 1d6 ghosts appear on the map coming from random directions, they try to save you by terrorizing you into leaving the castle.

Possessed Stat Change Those afflicted by the possession of the spirit of Drachenfels change beyond recognition, their bodies capable of sustaining more damage and causing terrible damage.

WS   |   BS    |    S    |   T    | Ag   |  Int  |  WP  |   Fel                   -1o      -2o        +2o     +2o     -      -2o      +2o     -1o Talents: Natural weapons, Hoverer. NARRATIVE POSSESSION TABLE It is very likely the party ends up with one of their group possessed by the strange spirit which they do not know to be Constant Drachenfels himself. For every day spent on road back to Altdorf the spirit of Drachenfels will attempt to take over the body through a display of command. These if failed will slowly drive the character’s soul away in the dramatic final exorcism that will trigger the character’s body carved with chaos symbols, levitating in a T pose with glowing eyes. Having to hack your friend apart. Each failed roll causes a -5% decrease to Will Power (WP act as wounds but no modifiers are applied; so if you suffer a temporary -1o% you still count as having that WP). A person can spend their time during the day guarding the possessed (Making sure he does not harm himself or others) adding +1o% to his WP roll for the day (For each person). The party will have to contend with the possessed once they leave the castle for the Narrative Map again. On a failed roll of WP a 1d10 roll determines the event; 1-Animal Abuse ensorcelled by the wicked enchanter the poor possessed attacks the horse of the wagon harming it with an attack before being restrained. 2-Paroxysm the spirit attempts to exert a greater control over the body, it paralyses the whole of the body with violent shaking and spasms. The character must be carried for the day or must rest a night. 3-Speaking tongues the spirit steals away the ability to speak the original language of the character speaking of terrible evil in ancient High Nehekharan, Dark Speech or gibberish, the constant droning drives the party slowly insane. The character cannot communicate. 4-Violent Outburst the spirit manages to take hold over the body, causing the character to fall into a maddened fury biting one of his comrades in the neck deeply until he’s brought down and restrained. 5-Self Harm the maddened character attacks himself with a single attack before being restrained, carving terrible runes dark runes into his own flesh. 6-Walking Nightmare the character falls down to the ground as the spirit floods the mind with memories of Drachenfels causing a -3o% WP roll against 1d6/2 IP. 7-Telepathic Conduit the voice, it speaks to you, whispers promises and threats. The possessed is used as an amplifier to the telepathic powers of the spirit. Roll again on the table picking another party member with the lowest WP. 8-Vomiting Nails the possessed suffers a 1 IP for this unpleasant experience but is otherwise unharmed. 9-Abusive Dreams Drachenfels stalks your company’s dreams, no one recovers their hit points this night. 10-Enfeeblement the vile spirit drains you of your vital strength to let its magical tendrils take over your soul, you loose 1o% S and 1o% T for the duration of the possession. (It returns upon him taking control) TALISMANS OF PROTECTION The Morrite pendant, rune of Gazul or an Amethyst pendant of Thaumaturgic protection may be kept after the quest. They protect you to a point at the castle untill the sun goes down. If the party stayed in the castle after midnight they begin to shake and those with magical sense can see their magic drain. If you keep them around however after leaving before midnight they make all spells of Dhar magic have -1o% WP roll against you, and you gain +1o% WP agains them. QUESTS: Drachenfels trinkets ”As you’re heading to your certain death... how about you bring something nice from your little journey?” Innkeeper Albrecht asks you for some trinket from the castle. There are quite a few to be found. Some of which include: Drachenfels’ Golden Mask, Drachenfels’ Tin Mask, Drachenfels’ Silver Mask, Gobblet of the poison feast. Stunted homonculus, if it’s properly bound by a wizard and approached, it can be taken as a pet or a familiar. Obsequies of Drachenfels There is a total of six corpses in the castle to burry, a former forlorn escapade into the castle. Carrying the Sculpture The party of those carrying the sculpture cannot exceed 8 standing about the sculpture with a physical space to go through. The one who leads the sculpture is the one facing the direction of the head of the sculpture and that is established beforehand. Each time the party picks the sculpture up it takes a S test. Each failed point of S ammounts to a -1 Movement (Total SB of the party is a shield against the failures) from the slowest member of the carrying party, up until a point where they cannot pick it up. You can retry hoisting it every turn until you get a proper grip on it. When the party changes compostion of those that carry the sculpture must reroll their S rolls to determine the speed of those carrying the sculpture. The party may only commit to walk action or roll S and run which if failed causes the sculpture to topple over and get damaged with S-1 hit. Encumberance roll By the time you set out to leave the castle from your camp at the foot of the bridge, we check your encumberance. This is a one time check to see if you will manage to carry all this loot you picked up on your way from the castle. It was easy enough to carry it through the scary castle on your adrenaline pumped terror run for a few hours, to bring it down the mountain trail is another matter altogether. Every character gets checked for encumberance as well as the wagon, the horse is pulling the wagon it can't be loaded up with encumberance unless it's a spare donkey or horse you carry with you. Some stuff might end up left behind. Drachenfels (2oo xp) Role play- For roleplaying ideas (5xp) Dark descent- For every layer of the castle explored (15 xp max 60 xp) Destroyer of Depravity- For breaking the daemonic weather vane. (20 xp) Collodi's Craft- For watching the play of the creepy little puppets. (10 xp) Banisher- For destroying the homonculus of Drachenfels. (15 xp) Suffer not the Undead- For destryoing the little creepy puppets. (3 xp/12 xp personal) Secrets uncovered- For every secret of the castle uncovered (5 xp max 40 xp) Warp Borne- For travelling through the warp (15 xp) Morr's Quest- For burrying each member of the forlorn party. (1o xp each of the six members, if you get all you get additional 40xp for a total of 100 xp) Wakey wakey- For every level of awarness raised, given upon the bridge to Drachenfels collapsing (3 xp max 60 xp) Gift for Albrecht - For taking a souvenir for Albrecht (1o xp)

The One that Eats in the Shadows- For witnessing the liminal horror (1o xp) Daemon slayer- For destryoing the liminal horror (1oo xp) Dark Glamour- For each magical effect of the castle witnessed (5 xp) Masks of Drachenfels- For finding all three masks of Drachenfels. (5 xp max 15 xp) Tunneler of the Grey Mountains- Clear the collapsed path into the underways (10 xp) Who dares wake me?- Opening Drachenfels' sarcophagus (3o xp) I sat where he sat!- Sit on Drachenfels' throne. You get to boast you've sat in the throne of the overlord of a domain of evil (5 xp)