BEASTMEN OF MARS

CREDITSDesign: Lester W. SmithCover Art: Janet AulisioInterior Art: Jim Holloway, Steve StilesArt Direction: Dana ReischauerText Manager: Michelle SturgeonText Processing: Julia Martin, Julie Amdor

Copyright©1989 GDW, Inc.All Rights Reserved.Made in USA.Printed in USA.ISBN 1-55878-022-X.Space: 1889 is GDW's trademark

for its science-fiction role-playinggame of adventure in a more civi-lized time.

A catalog of Space: 1889 productsis available from GDW. Just writeand ask.

PO Box 1646Bloomington, IL 61702-1646 USA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of ContentsIntroduction 4

Synopsis 6

An Inauspicious Beginning 8A Madman's Tale 9Quuglaani's Note 10The Rendezvous 10Using Chase Diagram 11Chase Diagram Movement 12Ending the Chase Scene 14The Assassin's Statistics 14Larger Chase Scenes 15Movement Hazards 16A Pair of Thwarted Murders... 18A Justified Paranoia 20A Final Warning 20

A Trip by Canal 22Taking Leave of Syrtis Major.. 22The Meepsoori Sprite 24Who's Who 26

Running the Voyage 28The Northern Cities 30The Drowning of the Sprite 32

An Overland Trek 34If the Sprite Was Saved 35If the Sprite Was Destroyed 36Like Flies to Honey 36If the Group Reaches a City 37The Skrill-Riding Queln 38Quarry of the Queln 38Captives of the Queln 40Within the Queln Village 40Escape From the Queln 41Wagon Masters of Meroe 42Quarry of the Wagon Masters... 43Meeting the Wagon Masters 44Guests of the Wagon Masters... 46Taking Leave 47

Captives of the Beastmen 48In the Wilderness 49

In the Hands of Hattabranx 50The Interview 51A Short Incarceration 52Sacrifices to the Worm God..... 52A Change of Plans 53

Guests of the Worm Lord 54A Terrifying Fall 55Happy Landings 55An Absent Host 56Some Basic Facts 58Learning From the Ancients.... 58Exploring 58The Building Descriptions 60Meeting the Worm Lord 62Days of Revelation 62Confession 62Death Sentence 63Escape 63Epilogue 63

Space: 1889 64

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INTRODUCTION

^ ^ S ^ - ^ ^

INTRODUCTION

IntroductionHIGH IN THE Astusapes Moun-

tains, home of the dreaded HighMartians, often called the beastmenof Mars, King Hattabranx, lord ofKraag Barrovaar, strongest of theHigh Martian mountain fortresses,sits upon his throne and nurses hishatred for humans. At his ear whis-per the hideous Worm Priests, devo-tees of a bizarre god that delights indeath and pain.

On the western edge of the Astu-sapes, a clan of Queln, the savageskrill-riding Steppe Martians, hasrecently made its home. The clan hascome to raid the bhutan spice tradeof the Umbran League, despite thefact that the High Martians alreadypirate that trade. As a result, HighMartian screw galleys and fierceQueln riders ply the same winds, in-viting war between the two savagepeoples.

East of the Astusapes, the Hashas-

sa, a peaceful tribe of the WagonMasters of Meroe, struggle to settlethe difference between their chief-tain's two sons—differences thatthreaten to tear the clan apart. Andto add tension to their troubles, theruumet breehr herds that these no-mads follow have strayed into theAstusapes, inviting retribution fromthe High Martians if the Hashassafollow the herds.

On the canals of the British CrownColony of Syrtis Lapis, a young cap-tain risks his future on a new bargedesign, hoping to make a name forhimself and ensure profits. Not real-izing his peril, he agrees to carry ahandful of dangerous passengers tothe cities of the north.

In the city of Syrtis Major, a groupof human adventurers become entan-gled in thwarting a plot to rob an oldman of his one chance for wealth. Inso doing, they call down on their

own heads the wrath of a dark cultof assassins. As they struggle fortheir very lives, innocents are slaugh-tered before their eyes.

Deep in the bowels of the planet,an ancient evil plots, weaving thesethreads together into a twisted webthat will draw the humans into itspower. Do they have the fortitude toface that evil and break its uncleanhold on them?

All this and more occurs in Beast-men of Mars, an adventure modulefor Space: 1889. The events in thisbook form a mini-campaign thatshould take the average group aboutfive nights to play through if eachchapter is played as a separate epi-sode. Along the way, player char-acters will have chances to learnmuch about Mars, gain some wealth,and frustrate the plans of evil as itreaches into the heart of the Britishcolony.

WARNINGIn order to preserve suspense,players should read no further.

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SYNOPSIS

SynopsisEPISODE ONE, "An Inauspi-

cious Beginning, " opens with theplayer characters in the Canal Cityof Syrtis Major, jewel of the Britishcolony on Mars. While going abouttheir business, the PCs becomefriends with an old Canal Martianwho has made a living as a scholar,studying the writings of ancient civi-lizations. One day, the old scholarsends the player characters a note ex-plaining that he has learned the loca-tion of an ancient tomb, and evilforces are trying to kill him for it.He asks the PCs to meet him at noonat a particular spot in Syrtis Major'sbazaar quarter.

When the PCs arrive at the bazaar,they are just about to talk to the oldMartian when an assassin strikes himdown from behind and runs off withthe map he has made. Chasing the as-sassin through the streets, the PCsfinally retrieve the map, whichshows them the location of an ancienttomb within the Astusapes High-lands. The group members set aboutmaking arrangements for a journeyto the tomb, but they experienceseveral failed attempts on their livesin the process. Eventually they ac-quire everything that they believethey will need and prepare to leavethe city. As they square their ac-

counts at the hotel, they find that anote has been left for them—a notethat warns of certain death if theyproceed with their plans.

Episode two, "A Trip by Canal, "deals with the canal trip from SyrtisMajor to the borders of the AstusapesHighlands. The PCs can follow ei-ther of two main canal routes—oneleads to Parhoon, a city just south-west of the Astusapes; the other leadsthrough Haatt to Gorovaan, a city tothe Astusapes' southeast. Regardlessof the route they choose, the partywill finally have to take a boat alongthe canal that stretches between Par-hoon and Gorovaan, with the intentto disembark about halfway betweenthose two cities and begin their wayoverland. Before they reach their in-tended unloading point, however, theship they are travelling on is blownup, and the PCs barely escape withtheir lives.

In episode three, "An OverlandTrek, " the PCs crawl out upon theshore of the canal and find them-selves stranded almost 100 milesfrom civilization, with nearly all theirequipment gone. They begin an over-land trek along the course of thecanal, heading for the city they leftjust recently. Along the way, theyare forced to hide from repeated

searches by a High Martian screwgalley that has been sent to look forthem. Then, a few days into theirjourney, they are discovered by aclan of Steppe Martians (one of twopossible clans, both described in thisbook), who take them as hostages.There follows a period in which thePCs dwell and travel with the SteppeMartians, learning the culture ofthese people as they struggle to re-main alive.

Eventually, the player charactersleave the company of the SteppeMartians, possibly during an attackby High Martians, possibly in thecompany of a guide who will leadthem into an ambush, or possiblyrelying solely on themselves. What-ever the course they choose, it seemsinevitable that they will finally bediscovered by the High Martianscrew galley that has been doggingtheir heels.

In episode four, "Captives of theBeastmen, " that screw galley carriesthe PCs to Kraag Barrovaar, wherethey are dragged before the bestialHigh Martian, King Hattabranx. Af-ter gloating over them for a bit, Hat-tabranx turns them over to the Priestsof the Worm Cult for sacrifice totheir bloody god. Just as the first ofthe characters is to be slain, a chill-

SYNOPSIS

ing voice seems to speak from thevery air, commanding that the char-acters be dropped into "Hell'sMaw, " a chasm from which no oneever returns. The Worm Priestsobey, beginning to cast the boundheroes into the chasm. The episodecloses as the first of the PCs isthrown over the edge.

In the final episode, "Guests of theWorm Lord, " the PCs discover thatthe fall is not fatal and that they haveentered an ancient underground com-plex unlike any they have ever seenbefore. A bit of exploration revealsthat it is seemingly empty of any in-habitants, but there is one door thatis mysteriously locked, preventingtheir entry into whatever lies behindit. Days pass as the characters ex-plore, learning a few of the city'ssecrets but finding most incompre-hensible. A multitude of emeraldsabound, and the PCs can fill theirpockets if they like. Finally, themysterious door opens, and the PCsmeet their host, the Lord of theWorm, self-styled god of the WormCult. This personage is so humanlikeas to be nearly indistinguishable fromTerrans, but he is a complete albino.

He is also obviously mad. Over thecourse of many days in his presence,the PCs learn much about the man.They find that he claims to be amember of a race of immortals, hav-ing discovered by their arcane sci-ences how to put aside death. But,paradoxically, he claims that all hiscompanions eventually killed them-selves to escape the maddening bore-dom of their existence.

He shows the PCs much of themechanisms that run his palace—those that provide light and com-munication with the Worm Priestsare kept in perfect working order; allothers have been left to fall into ruin.There is one small flyer the partymight be able to squeeze into, but itlooks dangerous.

The Worm Lord then reveals tothe party members that it was he wholured them here, he who planted thereference to Haataneethra I's tomb,he who sent an assassin to slay theold Martian scholar, and he who hadthe boat blown up. He also instigatedthe search by the High Martian screwgalley, and, of course, it was hispriests who cast the group into thechasm and sent them on their way to

the underground city. His sole pur-pose for doing all of this: He hadheard that people like himself wereon Mars once again, and he wantedto meet them. Now that he has, heplans to dispose of them. He givesthem five minutes to hide, and thenhe begins stalking them with anenergy rifle.

Escape involves the PCs taking theflyer out of the cavern, whereuponit can be nursed along above themountains, finally depositing thegroup a mere 50 miles from any ofthree nearby cities. Forced to leavethe flyer, the group marches into thecity and safety. If they organize aparty to go get the flyer, they dis-cover that it is gone, undoubtedly re-claimed by some minion of theWorm Lord. Without that evidence,no one will believe their incrediblestory, although their gems will bewelcomed, and any scientist PCsmay have learned something fromthe group's adventure.

If the group has retained the mapto the tomb of Haataneethra I throughall the adventures, the referee has anexcellent beginning for a new adven-ture.

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AN INAUSPICIOUS BEGINNING

AN INAUSPICIOUS BEGINNING

An Inauspicious Beginning

Teegok Quuglaani (Green NPC)TEEGOK QUUGLAANI is a rather eccentric Canal Martian in his

late-middle age. He has devoted his life tostudying the writings and artifacts of the an-cients, hoping to restore something of theirknowledge to his race, to bring a renaissanceof the science of the Seldons. Since Syrtis Ma-jor was once the seat of the Seldons' empire,it contains many ancient libraries and museums,and Quuglaani gravitated there to explore them.

Over the years, Quuglaani has scavengedenough knowledge to make a meager living asa scholar, but recently he discovered a map ofan ancient temple, resting within the AstusapesHighlands, realm of the bestial High Martians.

What Quuglaani has no way of knowing is that the map is a fake andhe a mere pawn in a game played by an ancient evil.

Quuglaani speaks Parhooni as his native language.

Attributes SkillsStr: 1 Fisticuffs 2Agl: 3 Stealth 2, Marksmanship 1 (pistol, bow)End: 2 Wilderness Travel 2 (foraging)Int: 6 Observation 5, Science 3 (physics)Chr: 5 Eloquence 4, Bargaining 2, Linguistics 3 (Son-Gaar-

yani, Khallan, Umbran)Soc: 3 Riding 3 (ruumet breehr)

Motives: Knowledge, Friendly.Appearance: Teegok Quuglaani is fairly old for a Martian, and the

years have weighed heavily on him. Quuglaani's back is bent from ageand poor posture. His complexion is pale from years of study indoors.His concentration-creased face is topped by white, shaggy hair, andhis eyes are rheumy. His clothing is old, frayed, and faded, but clean.

Quuglaani's appearance belies the old man's sharp, if somewhatsingle-minded, intelligence. If his attention can be drawn from study,Quuglaani can prove an asset when cool, insightful thinking is needed.

THE PLAYER characters are inSyrtis Major for several days, withno airship at their disposal. If thegroup normally has an airship, it isin need of repairs, or the Worm Lordcould plant a bomb on the ship anddestroy it. But the less dramatic thereason for being stranded, the better.

The Worm Lord is using everymeans available to bring thecharacters to his city without reveal-ing his existence to anyone except afew Worm Priests, and withoutrevealing his true nature even tothem. This requires that he worksubtly but convincingly through falli-ble operatives over great distances,depending completely on their loyal-ty to the Worm Cult. It is only as theplot unfolds in later episodes that themore dramatic instances of hismachinations should be revealed.

A MADMAN'S TALEIN SYRTIS Major, the characters

meet several local Martians. Onesuch is Teegok Quuglaani, a histo-rian/philosopher who has spent hislife studying the writings of the an-cients, hoping to learn something oftheir wisdom. Quuglaani is eccentric,making a meager living by repairingmechanical devices, telling stories ofancient civilizations, and settlingphilosophical debates in taverns.

As the story begins, one of Quu-glaani's nephews brings a note fromhim to the PCs. The handwriting isshaky, as if the old fellow wrote itin a hurry and under some stress.

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THE RENDEZVOUS

QUUGLAANI'S NOTEAN ENGLISH translation of the

note the characters receive fromQuuglaani is reproduced here.

THE RENDEZVOUSWHEN THE PCs go to the Bazaar

District to meet Quuglaani, they willfind the streets crowded with peoplewalking to and from market squares,but the traffic flows pretty smoothly.The market squares themselves area much different story, with crowdsof people travelling in every direc-tion, and strolling vendors pushingwagons of foodstuffs, cookingware,clothing, carvings, and the like be-tween more permanent tents. In thesesquares, the flow of several streetsmerge, and it almost seems that ed-dies form, as if each square were apool and the crowds were water fromthe canals. Humans are at a disad-vantage in the press, being shorter onthe average than Martians.

As the PCs make their way towardSilk Merchants' Square (the openspace at the upper left of the ChaseDiagram), they find themselves look-ing down a long street into the open-ing of the square. They catch aglimpse of Quuglaani waving tocatch their attention.

As the PCs watch, horrified, aMartian in a dark cloak steps upbehind Quuglaani with a long dag-ger in his hand. He pulls Quuglaaniback into the shadow of a doorwayand plunges the dagger deep into theold Martian's back. Quuglaani stiff-ens, then sags, and his assailantlowers him to the ground, quicklysearching his clothing. If the PCsbegin to run toward the pair (the ex-pected reaction), the assassin seesthem coming and turns to flee.

THE RENDEZVOUS

If any PCs stop to help Quuglaani,they find the old Martian to be con-scious but bleeding profusely fromthe wound in his back. Quuglaanikeeps trying to raise himself on oneelbow and tell the PCs that the as-sassin has his map. If any PCs seekto capture the fleeing assassin, theywill find themselves in a hectic chasethrough the crowded streets of theBazaar District.

USING THE CHASE DIAGRAMTHE NEXT few pages of this

book contain a Chase Diagram anda Movement Hazards Table to beused in administering this chase

scene. The Chase Diagram is a geo-morphic street layout that can beused for any event that involves apursuit through city streets. Super-imposed over the diagram is a squaregrid for use in measuring movementduring the chase. The squares in thisgrid (hereafter referred to as"spaces, " to distinguish them fromthe market squares) each represent aspace 10 yards across, so any char-acters sharing a space are withinclose combat distance. Moving ver-tically or horizontally on the diagramtakes up 10 meters of movement perspace; moving diagonally takes up 15meters of movement. Diagonal

movement can only be made withinthe market squares, never in thestreets.

The black areas represent blocksof buildings. Streets run betweenthose blocks, and where they meet,they form intersections and largemarket squares. The square to theupper left in the diagram is the SilkMerchants' Square in this scenario,for instance.

As the chase scene is run, the ref-eree should describe the streets, in-tersections, and market squares theplayer characters encounter. Theplayers should not actually look atthe diagram.

Quuglaani's Map

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CHASE DIAGRAM MOVEMENT RULES

CHASE DIAGRAMMOVEMENT RULES

THE FOLLOWING RULES ap-ply to character movement on theChase Diagram. Note that the rulesfor the assassin (an NPC) differ fromthose for the player characters. Thisis intended to simplify things for thereferee while making the chase scenevery interesting for the players.

The Assassin's MovementTHE ASSASSIN'S movement is

simplified in this encounter to makethings easy on the referee. Theassassin moves 30 yards per turn onopen streets, where the traffic flowis pretty good, and 25 yards per turnif any part of the turn is spent in asquare, where traffic flow is terrible.This translates into three spacesalong the streets and two and a halfthrough the market squares. If the

assassin does not have sufficientmovement to enter a space, his ex-cess movement is considered lost forthat turn; movement cannot be savedfrom turn to turn.

The assassin's movement for thescenario has already been plotted—on turn one he is at position 1, onturn two he moves to position 2, andso on. The diagram is geomorphic,so when the assassin moves off anyedge of the map from a letteredspace, he enters on the opposite edgeat the same letter.

By examining the path of the num-bers in the diagram, the referee willbe able to fully understand howmovement is counted on the grid.Notice, for example, that when mov-ing from position 13 to position 14,the assassin uses a full 25 yards ofmovement. He uses 15 to move di-agonally one space and the remain-ing 10 to move vertically the final

space. On the other hand, his move-ment from position 22 to position 23is only two spaces. This is becausefurther movement would take him in-to the market square, lowering hismovement rate to 25 yards, but sincehe has already used 20 yards for theturn, he has only five yards of move-ment remaining, which is not enoughto enter another space.

If the PCs have not caught up withthe assassin by the end of turn 45,he gets away by disappearing into acrowd in the blind alley where posi-tion 45 is indicated on the diagram,and from there into a locked retreat.If the PCs do catch up with the as-sassin before this time (enter thespace he occupies), he will attackthem in close combat. If the PCswin, they will find Quuglaani's mapon the assassin after the fight. Theassassin's statistics are listed with theMovement Hazards Table.

Player Character MovementIN THIS PARTICULAR encoun-

ter, the PCs begin at the squaremarked "X" on the diagram. Eachturn they can move 20 yards plus theroll of their Agility dice, as explainedin the basic rules. Just as with the as-sassin, any movement not used in aturn is lost.

Each time a PC enters an intersec-tion, he must make a Moderate sav-ing throw versus Observation,Stealth, or Tracking, whichever ishighest, to determine quickly whichdirection the assassin went. If he rollssuccessfully, he can continue chas-ing the assassin without hesitation.If he fails the roll, he must hesitatefor a moment while searching thecrowds for glimpses of the assassinor signs of his passing. In doing this,the PC loses five yards of movement

CHASE DIAGRAM MOVEMENT RULES

for the turn. If any of the PCs in theintersection roll successfully, theycan point out the assassin's trail tothe others with no loss of movement("There he goes! Follow me. ")- No-tice that the assassin never loses anymovement in an intersection, sincehe is familiar with the area and neednot search for a trail to follow.

PCs also treat market squares dif-ferently than does the assassin. Un-like the assassin, the PCs do not sim-ply lose five yards of distance whenthey spend part of the turn in a mar-ket square. Instead, each turn that aPC begins any movement in a marketsquare, before he rolls Agility dicefor movement, the referee should roll2D6 on the Movement Hazards Ta-ble to determine an encounter forhim. (Note that a separate hazard rollshould be made for each such PC. )Each hazard is rated with a difficul-ty number, and if the PC does notroll that number or above successful-ly on his Agility dice, he loses allmovement for the turn (the first haz-ard on the table can even end his pur-suit of the assassin completely). Afterthe player learns what the movementhazard is for his character, he candecide how many Agility dice to useon the saving throw. If the PC is suc-cessful at the saving throw, anyAgility dice left over can be rolledfor movement (added to the standardbase of 20 yards, of course).

A few examples will help to makethis all clear.

Example 1: Annie Fairbanks, aPC with an Agility of 6, begins theturn at position 2 on the diagram. Be-ing outside of the market square, sheneed not roll for a movement hazard.She rolls her six Agility dice and getsa 31, for a total movement of 51yards. Annie spends 10 yards to

move to the next space, an intersec-tion. She rolls her five dice of Stealthto spot the assassin's path and suc-ceeds with a roll of 12, so she con-tinues on without losing any move-ment. Annie spends another 20 yardsof movement to reach position 3,where she must make her Stealth rollagain. This time she rolls a 17, andshe can continue following the assas-sin, ending the turn one space awayfrom position 4.

Example 2: Howard Hume, a PCwith an Agility of 5, begins at posi-tion 11 on the diagram, two spacesoutside of a market square. He rollshis five dice for distance and comesup with a roll of 21. Adding the 20yards that every character has as abase, Howard finds that he gets 41yards of movement, or four spaces.Howard's third space of movementbrings him into a market square, but

since he did not begin the turn there,he need not roll for a movement haz-ard, but can continue on one morespace, using his full movement forthe turn.

Example 3: Mike Wilcox, a PCwith an Agility of 3, begins a turnat position 14, inside a marketsquare, and is headed for the mouthof a street one space away. Being in-side a market square, he must roll fora movement hazard. The result is a5, "Slick Spot, " overall an easy haz-ard to avoid. Mike devotes one Agili-ty die to avoiding it, saving his othertwo for movement. He rolls a 5 onhis first die, easily avoiding the haz-ard, and rolls a total of 11 on hisother two dice, gaining a final move-ment of three spaces (31 yards).Mike's gamble in only spending oneAgility die on the hazard luckily paidoff.

GDW

ENDING THE CHASE SCENE

ENDING THE CHASE SCENETHE ASSASSIN may avoid cap-

ture and escape with Quuglaani'smap. In some ways this is best forthe story because the players willnow have to worry about a possiblerival expedition to the ancient tomb.If this happens, the players will needQuuglaani to guide them there ormake them another map, and even ifhe makes a second map, he will in-sist on going along on the expedition.In this case, the referee should treatthe wound Quuglaani received fromthe assassin as serious, but not soserious that a little bit of medical helpcannot heal him enough to accom-pany the PCs within a few days. ThePCs can spend the intervening timepurchasing supplies and arrangingfor canal passage north.

If the player characters succeed inrecapturing Quuglaani's map fromthe assassin, Quuglaani is no longernecessary for the play of the adven-ture, although he might be of help.If the referee wishes, he can treatQuuglaani's wound as mentionedabove, and Quuglaani can accom-

pany the PCs on the expedition to thetomb. However, if the refereeprefers to have one less NPC toworry about, he can treat Quuglaa-ni's wound as poisoned and thereforehave the old Martian die. This mighteven increase the sense of drama sur-rounding the recapture of the map,and if any PC takes a wound fromthe assassin's blade, it will give thatplayer something more to worryabout. It is suggested, however, thatthe player's worry be needless; hischaracter's wounds should not bepoisoned.

Regardless of the outcome of thechase scene, the PCs should have toexplain themselves to authorities whoshow up—although enough witnessescan be found to testify about theassassin's attack on Quuglaani thatthe PCs can be justified in their ac-tions. And Quuglaani himself cantestify as well, even if the referee hashim die from a poisoned woundshortly thereafter.

If the player characters used fire-arms to try to stop the fleeing assas-sin, however, their actions will beclosely scrutinized by the authorities.

QUUGLAANI'S assailant is aCanal Martian wearing a brown,hooded cloak that hides his facefrom view. If caught, he will drawa long dagger from under his cloakand engage in melee combat. He isa Trained Thief NPC, so he isphysically oriented, has a Moralelevel of 9, a Close Combat skill of2, and takes 4 hits to become un-conscious or 8 to be killed.

The assassin has a poison capsulein his mouth, and if he is obvious-ly going to lose the fight, he willbite on the capsule and die from thepoison in two rounds. If the PCsbest the assassin, they will findQuuglaani's map hidden under hiscloak. If the assassin bests the PCs,he will be satisfied with leavingthem unconscious while he makesgood his escape.

THE ASSASSIN'S STATISTICS

CHASE SCENE DIAGRAM

If they fired through the crowds, forexample, they should be fined heavi-ly and maybe even jailed. The Brit-ish, in particular, will be very upsetat such behavior since it adds morefuel to the fire of antihuman senti-ment in Syrtis Major. At the veryleast, the PCs' firearms should beconfiscated, although it will be easyenough for them to buy replacementslater. If the PCs fired on the assas-sin while in close combat with him,they are somewhat more justified butwill still be questioned thoroughly,delaying their expedition to the tomb.

Much of this depends upon thejudgment of the referee. If the ref-eree believes that the players actedirresponsibly in their use of firearmswhile pursuing the assassin, heshould bring the ire of the British tobear on them. If they are fully con-vinced that someone else is headedfor the tomb while their charactersare delayed for questioning or jailed,it will make them more careful intheir use of firearms in crowds in thefuture.

LARGER CHASE SCENESTHE DIAGRAM on this page can

be used for other chases than the oneincluded in this chapter. The diagramis geomorphic, so long chases can berun by allowing the characters in-volved to leave a map edge and re-turn to the diagram from the corre-sponding point on the opposite mapedge. In such cases, it is a good ideato keep track of how many times thecharacters have left a particular edge.For example, if a character begins atposition 1 and travels to the right un-til he exits at point D on the rightedge of the diagram, when he reen-ters the diagram at point D on the leftedge, he will not be standing outside

Chase DiagramYards

the same market square as the one heleft. In this case, the diagram repre-sents two different parts of the ci-ty—the section the character beganin and the section he ended in.

Since the players will not be look-ing at the diagram but will be rely-ing on the referee's description of theintersections and squares they en-counter, they should not be awarethat the referee is using the same dia-gram for many adjacent parts of thecity. If the referee would like to add

B C

some variation, however, whenevera character leaves a diagram edge,the referee can randomly roll to de-termine at what point he reenters thediagram. To do so, roll 1D6 for theside to use: 1 means top, 2 meansbottom, 3 or 4 means right, and 5 or6 means left. Then roll 1D6 to deter-mine which entrance to use: For thetop or bottom, 1 or 2 means A, 3 or4 means B, and 5 or 6 means C; foreither side, 1 is D, 2 is E, 3 is F, 4is G, 5 is H, and 6 is I.

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0 20 40

MOVEMENT HAZARDS

MOVEMENTHAZARDS

DieRoll Result

2 City Guard, Difficult3 Angry Gang, Mod.4 Cut Canopy, Mod.5 Slick Spot, Easy6 Passing Figures, Easy7 Small Wagon, Easy8 Fallen Figures, Easy9 Large Wagon, Easy

10 Tumbled Produce, Mod.11 Startled Gashant, Mod.12 Enraged Ruumet Breehr,

Difficult

MOVEMENT HAZARDDESCRIPTIONS

THE FOLLOWING section ex-plains the Movement Hazards Table.

City Guard: Breaking through anopening in the crowds, the PC sud-denly finds himself confronted bytwo of Syrtis Major's city guards-men. They were patrolling the streetswhen their attention was suddenlydrawn to the commotion caused bythe assassin's passage. Both arephysically oriented, ExperiencedSoldier NPCs with rifles and bayo-nets. They have a Morale level of 10,and each has a Close Combat skillof 3, a Marksmanship skill of 3 (ri-fle), and takes 4 hits to become un-conscious or 8 to kill.

If the PC makes a Difficult savingroll versus Agility, he can avoid theguards while slipping through thecrowd and continue his pursuit of theassassin. If he fails the saving throw,he is stopped by the guards, and thereferee can role play the results. Theguards will not be difficult to con-vince that the PC is innocent ofwrong-doing (an Easy task versusEloquence or Leadership), but dur-ing the time that the PC is explain-ing, the assassin will be getting away(this PC cannot pursue him any fur-ther).

cuts a rope that holds a tent's canopyup, and it begins to fall on the PC.If the PC makes a Moderate savingthrow versus Agility, he manages toavoid the falling canopy and can con-tinue after the assassin. If he fails theroll, the canopy falls partially onhim, and he loses his movement forthe turn but can begin pursuit againat the beginning of the next turn.

If this result is rolled more thanonce, the referee may want to de-scribe it as something other than a cutcanopy, such as a tumbled barrel ora thrown bale of grasses.

Angry Gang: If this hazard isrolled, the PC has encountered agroup of four Canal Martians whodislike humans and have been an-gered by what they perceive as thePC's cavalier attitude in runningthrough the marketplace. If the PCmakes a Moderate saving roll versusAgility, he can avoid the group andcontinue to pursue the assassin. If hefails the roll, he loses all movementfor the turn in evading the gang.

Slick Spot: Something slick isspilled on the pavement. It might befood, drink, or something worse. Ifthe PC makes an Easy saving throwversus Agility, he sees it in time andleaps over it. If he fails the roll, heslips on the slick spot and falls, los-ing all movement for the turn.

Cut Canopy: As the PC runsthrough the marketplace, someone(the assassin, if he is close enough)

Passing Figures: The crowd isunusually thick, with many womenand children. If the PC makes anEasy saving throw versus Agility,

MOVEMENT HAZARDS

he is able to work his way aroundthem. If he fails the roll, he musthesitate until they get out of his way,and he loses all movement for theturn.

Small Wagon: A strolling vendorand his cart are between the PC andthe path of the assassin. If the PCsucceeds at an Easy saving throwversus Agility, he can vault over thecart and continue on his way. Other-wise he runs into the cart, spilling itscontents across the ground and los-ing all movement for the turn.

Fallen Figures: While trying toelude the PC, the assassin hasknocked down a group of innocentbystanders. If the PC succeeds at anEasy saving throw versus his Agili-ty, he sees a clear way around thepileup. If he fails at the saving throw,he becomes part of the pile and losesall movement for the turn.

wagon loaded with bulky items forsale (barrels, furniture, cages ofsmall animals, or the like) surround-ed by a crowd of buyers. If the PCsucceeds at an Easy saving throwversus his Agility, he is able to diveunder the wagon or climb over it,slip through the crowd following it,and continue on his way. If he failsthe roll, he must go the long wayaround the crowd, and he loses allmovement for the turn.

Tumbled Produce: Seeking toslow his pursuers, the assassin hasknocked the supports from a producestand, spilling fruits and vegetablesonto the pavement. The stand's own-er is trying desperately to pick themall up before the crowd can scavengethem, and the resulting press blocksthe PC's path. If the PC succeeds ata Moderate saving throw versus hisAgility, he finds a quick way aroundthe back of the stand and can con-tinue on his way. If he fails, he mustforce his way through the crowd, los-ing all movement for the turn.

sale, and in the excitement caused bythe assassin's flight, one has brokenloose and is running amok. SomeMartians are trying to chase it down,but most are running to avoid it. Ifthe PC succeeds at a Moderate sav-ing throw versus his Agility, he isable to find a quick way through thecrowd. If he fails the roll, he is sweptaside by the running Martians or con-fronted by the panicked gashant andloses all movement for the turn.

Enraged Ruumet Breehr: Whilefleeing the pursuing PCs, the assassinencountered a ruumet breehr andslashed it with his dagger as hepassed by. The enraged beast beganthundering through the crowdedmarketplace, and the PC has caughtits eye. If the PC succeeds at a Dif-ficult saving throw versus his Agili-ty, he is able to melt into the crowdand avoid the angry creature. If hefails at the roll, he must spend theturn dodging its charges until thebeast's handlers recapture it. Allmovement is lost for the turn.

Large Wagon: Moving slowlyacross the marketplace is a large

Startled Gashant: Someone hasbrought gashants to the bazaar for

GDW

A PAIR OF THWARTED MURDERS

A PAIR OFTHWARTED MURDERS

THE CHASE SCENE at thebazaar should convince the playersthat Quuglaani's lost tomb of Haata-neethra I is genuine. They will like-ly wish to put together an expeditionto search for the tomb, and sincetheir flyer (if they had any) is out ofcommission, they will have to travelmost of the way by canal. (The pur-chase of canal passage is dealt within the next chapter. ) The referee canallow the players to have their char-acters purchase or hire whatever theythink is necessary for their expedi-tion, even allowing them to acquireloans, if he desires. This time of buy-ing and hiring can give the playersa lot of enjoyment, and since theywill eventually lose it all anywaywhen their boat travelling betweenParhoon and Gorovaan explodes, thereferee will not be saddled with the

responsibility of running an actual ar-chaeological expedition in this ad-venture. Of course, while the PCsare out purchasing supplies, Quu-glaani (if he is not dead already) willbe healing as well.

During the few days that thecharacters spend making arrange-ments for the trip, their enemies willbe busy. Two inept assassination at-tempts happen during this time. Thepurpose of the attacks is to furtherconvince the players of the impor-tance of the lost tomb. In each case,a player character is the target of theattack, even if Quuglaani is stillalive. (If the players have a flyer andare stalling for time while it is re-paired, these assassination attemptscan be used to convince them to getunderway quickly. But if all elsefails, the servants of the Worm Lordwho is orchestrating this plot wouldnot hesitate to burn the player char-acters' flyer if necessary. )

The First AttackONE DAY, while one or more of

the player characters are out andabout in the streets of Syrtis Major,they hear a short hissing sound, fol-lowed by a meaty "thunk. " A Mar-tian standing next to them in thestreet cries out in pain and tumblesover, an arrow transfixing him.

If the player characters involvedlook around, they will sight an as-sassin in a hooded, brown cloakstanding on a balcony of an aban-doned building nearby, drawinganother arrow. If they run toward thebuilding, the assassin will fire onemore time, missing them and hittinganother bystander; then he will flee.By the time the player charactersreach the balcony, he will be gone.

If instead of looking around fortheir assailant, the player characterslook for cover first, they will noticea barrel of trash and a gashant-drawnwagon both within a few yards. Asthey run for this cover, the assassinwill fire once again, missing them.After they have taken cover, he willfire four more arrows toward theirplace of refuge. If they are hidingbehind the wagon, he will fire thefirst of those four arrows into thegashant, causing it to begin runningin panic, and drawing off the wagon.

If the archer gets an unbelievablygood opening, such as a player char-acter who just stands and stares at thehapless victim, he will put an arrowthrough the character's leg beforerunning away.

Remember that the archer's pur-pose is not to kill or injure the playercharacters, but to convince them thattheir lives are in danger. It shouldseem to the players, however, thathe was trying to kill their characters

A PAIR OF THWARTED MURDERS

and simply bungled the attempt.If the referee wishes to allow the

PCs to catch the archer, the archerhas a poison capsule just like theassassin in the Bazaar District, andhe will use it rather than be capturedalive.

The Second AttackDURING THE DAYS that the

PCs spend preparing for their canaltrip north, they will naturally needto eat. The referee can use thesemeals as an opportunity to bring thecity of Syrtis Major more to life forthe players, introducing their char-acters to its inhabitants and lettingthem sample its shops and inns. Inparticular, he should encourage themto frequent The Gored Roogie, an in-auspicious little Martian establish-ment located in an abandoned towerin the British Quarter. This couldeven be the place where the PCs arestaying, since it has rooms for renton its upper floors. The Gored Roo-gie is very comfortable, with goodfood, good drink, clean beds, andlow prices, all of which should beenough to ensure that the PCs fre-quent the place.

One evening, while the charactersare having their meal in this inn, ajovial party of Canal Martians entersand swaggers up to the bar. The ap-parent leader of the group tosses ahandful of coins on the counter andshouts, "Bartender, if you have thatcask of Saardaari Spice Wine I or-dered, please bring it out. And poura round for the house—my treat. "

The bartender goes to a back roomto get the rare beverage. When hereturns, he begins making his wayamong the tables, pouring glasses ofthe wine for everyone. Once thehouse has been served, he pours a

glass for himself as well and drinksit with obvious relish. A few minuteslater, the leader of the group at thebar commands that another round bepoured for the house, calling for atoast: "To my success!" Thistoasting continues for another tworounds, with other toasts beinggiven, at which time the cask willhave been emptied.

About 10 minutes later, the PCsbegin to feel feverish and dizzy(unless they did not drink the wine).Looking around, they notice that theMartians seem to be in even worseshape. Martians begin stumblingaround the room, falling off theirchairs and clawing at their throats asif they cannot breathe. During thistime, the PCs become so dizzy andnauseated that they cannot remainupright. However, although everyMartian in the place is dying, oncethe PCs have vomited they begin tofeel better, and within half an hourthey feel almost normal once again.

If the PCs go for help, a handfulof the Martians in the tavern will besaved (one of these might be Quu-

glaani, if he was with them duringthe fateful meal). Otherwise, all theMartians will die. In either case, thebartender and the members of themerry party at the bar are beyondhope.

After the event has come to the at-tention of the city's authorities, thedregs of the cask will be tested, andit will be discovered that the winewas poisoned with macaava root, arare plant that grows only in the foot-hills of the Astusapes Mountains andis used by the dreaded beastmen, orHigh Martians, who dwell in that re-gion. Unknown to this point, how-ever, was the fact that while macaavaroot is fatal to Martians, it onlymakes humans miserably ill.

If the player characters seek to findthe place that the innkeeper pur-chased the cask from, they willdiscover that he kept no records ofsuch purchases. If they somehow dis-cover friends or relatives of themerry party that paid for the rounds,those people will not know where thegroup got the money that it wasspending.

GDW

A JUSTIFIED PARANOIA

A JUSTIFIED PARANOIABY NOW, the player characters

should certainly realize that there isa plot afoot to stop them from mak-ing an expedition to the tomb ofHaataneethra I. (The referee-knows,of course, that the plot is faked, inorder to have the exact opposite pur-pose and firm the PCs' resolve tomake such a trip. ) It is likely thatthey will be much more careful intheir dealings, perhaps almost para-noid, as they conclude any businessthat remains before they leave thecity.

The referee can use this paranoiato good effect, making every eye thatglances at them seem the stare of amurderer, every subtle noise behindthem the step of an assassin. In par-ticular, the group will probably bevery wary of Martians in brown,hooded cloaks. In reality, the PCsare being watched, by the minionsof the Worm Lord, but only to en-sure that they begin their journey.

The PCs should be firmly con-vinced by this time that the map theyhave is extremely valuable. If thegroup tries to sell the map, they willnot find any takers; no one they meetcan be convinced that the map is real.The few people who might believethem on account of the story they cantell will, as a result, be too frightenedto want any dealings with the map,and they will probably make it apoint to avoid the PCs themselves,being fearful of dying like the peo-ple in The Gored Roogie.

If the group members try to talkto the British authorities or perhapsto their own nations' diplomats aboutthe matter, the referee should havethem spend a few days making ap-pointments to see various officials asthey work their way up the chain ofcommand in the bureaucracy. Mostof the officials they speak to shoulddiscount their experiences as coin-cidental, and these officials will showno interest in the map. If the refereedesires, the player characters might

meet a minor official who is uninter-ested in the story the PCs have to telluntil he hears about the map. At thispoint, he will become very interest-ed and will ask repeatedly to see themap that has brought all this trouble.If the player characters let him lookit over, he will attempt to confiscateit "for further study" but will giveit back if the PCs become insistent.If Quuglaani is still alive, the refereeshould play this official as very deter-mined to confiscate the map—Quu-glaani can make another one. Butagain, the group now has anothercontender for the tomb to worryabout.

A FINAL WARNINGAT SOME POINT close to the

time that the group members areready to leave Syrtis Major and begintheir expedition to the north, thereferee should have a written mes-sage delivered to them. The WormLord's agents will slip the messageinto their rooms if they have an op-portunity to do so. If not, one of theagents will stop a Martian boy in thestreet outside the inn (or some otherspot the group is at) and pay him afew coins to deliver the message tothe PCs. The agent, of course, willslip away as soon as he is convincedthat the message has been delivered,and the boy will only be able to de-scribe him as a tall Martian in abrown, hooded cloak.

The message is scrawled on dirtyparchment in English, as illustratedon the next page.

The parchment is not signed, buta poisonous insect is crushed againstthe bottom of the sheet.

With thoughts of this message intheir heads, the player charactersspend their last night in Syrtis Major.

A FINAL WARNING

GDW

A TRIP BY CANAL

A Trip by CanalIN THIS CHAPTER, the player

characters will take a boat trip fromSyrtis Major, through Parhoon orthrough Haatt and Gorovaan, towardtheir destination on the southern edgeof the Astusapes Highlands. The ves-sel they travel on will be the Meep-soori Sprite, captained by its ownerand designer, Zoho Winiimolaak.Along the way, they will meet anenemy, a fool, and a red herring.Will they be able to determine whichis which?

TAKING LEAVEOF SYRTIS MAJOR

SINCE THE PLAYER charactersdo not have any aerial transportationavailable to them in Syrtis Major andsince overland travel from Syrtis Ma-jor to the Astusapes Highlands wouldbe exceedingly slow, their bestcourse of action is to buy passage bycanal. If they believe that theirenemies already have knowledge ofthe location of the tomb of Haata-neethra I, speedy travel will be of theessence. When they seek out passagein Syrtis Major's Harbor District,one vessel in particular should catchtheir attention, the Meepsoori Sprite,captained and owned by Zoho Wi-niimolaak, a young merchant ofMeepsoor.

When the player characters meethim, Captain Winiimolaak has justrecently arrived from Meepsoor, andhe is planning a trip through the citiesof Haart, Gorovaan, and Parhoon be-fore returning to Syrtis Major andthen to Meepsoor. This journey is anexperimental voyage to carry mailand fresh Meepsoori squash (some-thing of a delicacy, but notorious forbecoming overripe in transit) to themajor cities of the British Colony inan attempt to drum up future busi-ness. But Winiimolaak has plenty ofspace left on board his ship, and hewould be happy to take on passen-gers to help defray some of the costof the trip. Also, it does not matterto Winiimolaak which direction hebegins what will, for him, be a cir-cular voyage, so he is willing totravel whichever route the playercharacters prefer, and he is free totake them all the way to their planneddebarkation point midway betweenthe cities of Parhoon and Gorovaan.

First ImpressionsWHAT SHOULD first catch the

player characters' attention about theMeepsoori Sprite is its obviousnewness (although Winiimolaak willnot admit it, this is the vessel'smaiden voyage) and its unusual de-

sign, even for a Martian ship. Also,although Winiimolaak is a haggler,on this first trip he realizes that hemust make some concessions in or-der to develop a clientele, and the op-portunity to have humans use his shipwill highly appeal to him—as a con-sequence, his charge to the PCs willbe something of a bargain. But whatshould especially sell the PCs on theidea of shipping out with Winiimo-laak is the short travel time that heassures them the voyage will take.

Most merchant vessels, being windpowered, average 35 miles per dayand so require a little over a fortnight(two weeks) for the Syrtis Major toParhoon trip. But the Sprite, by vir-tue of its rowers, almost assures aminimum travel of 30 miles per day,averages 40 miles per day, and canmake the Syrtis Major to Parhoontrip in only 12 and a half days. In ac-tuality, during seasons when thewinds are particularly slack, a nor-mal merchant vessel could take asmuch as 50 days to reach Parhoonfrom Syrtis Major. The Sprite's ab-solute maximum time would be justhalf that, or 25 days.

After the player characters havearranged passage on the Sprite, Cap-tain Winiimolaak informs them thatthe vessel will ship out of Syrtis

LATE ARRIVALS

Major at dawn on the day they wishto leave on their journey.

Late ArrivalsONCE THE player characters

show up for their voyage on theSprite, Winiimolaak and his crewshow great care in loading any equip-ment they are bringing along, and heoffers them berths in the cabin amid-ships. If the group has hired men forthe expedition, those men will beberthed on the main deck, among thecrates of mail, Meepsoori squash,and the like.

Shortly after the player charactersget on board, another pair of passen-gers arrive, both Martians. One isdressed richly and is carefullygroomed—the PCs catch a scent ofexpensive perfume from him. Theother Martian is dressed in servant'sclothing and wearily pushes a smallcart loaded with baggage. Thewealthy Martian has a merry man-ner, but any player character whosucceeds at a Quick Roll against hisObservation will note that the fel-low's eyes have a cruel look to them.Apparently Winiimolaak has beenexpecting the pair because he wel-comes them warmly and calls acrewman to help the servant with thebaggage. If the PCs approach thecaptain and the wealthy Martian tointroduce themselves, they willoverhear that the new passengerbought his ticket just a few hoursafter they bought theirs.

Finally, just before the ship getsunderway, a third passenger joins thejourney. This fellow is a haggardlooking Canal Martian in a stainedgray cloak. He slips up to the end ofthe dock as the harbor workers arepreparing to cast off the Sprite'slines, and he catches Winiimolaak's

attention, then spends a few momentsin a rapid haggling session with thecaptain before getting on board. Ifthe player characters approach thepair, they hear enough to realize thatthe fellow cites "personal business"as his reason for needing to bookpassage so suddenly, and he ends up

paying nearly three times the amountfor his passage that the player char-acters each paid. This Martian im-mediately walks to the aft end of theSprite and finds a seat on a crate inthe shadows under the port rowers'platform, as far from the dock as ispossible.

GDW

THE MEEPSOORI SPRITE

THE MEEPSOORI SPRITETHE MEEPSOORI SPRITE is an

unusual vessel, designed by the pro-gressive mind of its captain and own-er, Zoho Winiimolaak. In its con-struction, it is something like atypical merchant barge, being wideand squared off, with a shallow draft,an open deck, and a single sail. Butunlike other barges, which are builtto carry bulky cargoes over long dis-tances at a relatively slow pace, theSprite is intended to carry smaller,more perishable or precious cargoes

more quickly. To ensure this speed,the Sprite not only sports a sail foruse when the winds are favorable,but it also has a bank of oars alongeach side for speedy travel when thewind is slack or against the vessel.

Typically, only military boats onMars have rowers, often felons serv-ing out a sentence, occasionally freemen paid from a city-state's treasury.Winiimolaak's Sprite makes use offree men as well, and the cost of pay-ing this crew is offset, in theory atleast, by the higher prices that Wi-niimolaak can charge because of the

demand for the special nature of hisservice. In actuality, many of thecaptain's rowers are passengers whodo not mind performing a bit of la-bor to pay for their passage.

The Sprite's shallow draft andsmall size also allow it to traversemany petit canals, bringing special-ty goods that cannot be carried bycaravan. Winiimolaak has put mucheffort into advertising the Sprite asan alternative to military vessels inthe carrying of civilian mail, for in-stance. The speed of delivery hasbeen a major selling point, and the

THE MEEPSOORI SPRITE

merchant captain hopes eventually tobuild a small fleet of ships like theSprite.

The main deck of the MeepsooriSprite lies just a few feet below thewaterline. At either end of the ship,a sloped ramp rises from this deck,and the upper portion can be loweredto mate with dock edges or elevatedduring travel. The rowing platformsalong each side are raised about fivefeet above the main deck, leavingspace underneath for cargo. In theexact center of the ship, a singleheavy mast rises, supporting a trian-gular sail. This mast is partly sup-ported in turn by a set of cross beamsthat connect one rowing bank to theother, forming another small deck.Built around the mast is a cabin thatrises from the main deck to the crossdeck, allowing privacy for the cap-tain and for particularly importantpassengers. A pilot house rests uponthe cross deck itself, just above thecabin. The aft ramp is flanked onboth port and starboard sides by apair of long, wide-bladed tillers,which also serve to supplement theship's small keelboard when the ves-sel is under sail. These tillers can beshipped to allow the aft ramp to belowered for the loading of cargo toobulky to be carried past the cabinfrom the fore ramp.

Although the Sprite does not carryguns, as a military ship would, theraised ramps and rowing platformshelp give cover to passengers andcrew during the event of attack byraiders from water or land. The ves-sel's only protection from sky gal-leons is its speed, a less than idealdefense, but its small size makes itan unlikely target for most sky pi-rates, who would rather take a largerprize.

Zoho Winiimolaak (Experienced NPC)ZOHO WINIIMOLAAK, a Canal Martian, is the captain and owner

of the Meepsoori Sprite, one of the many mer-chant ships that ply the canals of the BritishCrown colony of Syrtis Lapis. Winiimolaakdesigned the Sprite himself, breaking with tradi-tional lines in an effort to build a vessel thatcould carry small cargoes quickly from city-state to city-state, avoiding pirates by its speedrather than by armament.

Winiimolaak is a young man with a winningsmile and an impressive stock of tall tales. Heis also a very ambitious fellow, and he driveshis crew hard. But complaints are few since henot only drives himself even harder, but also

pays well, and he has a reputation for fair dealing that other merchantcaptains find difficult to match. As well, the Sprite is one of the fastestmerchant boats in the British Colony, and members of the crew takegreat pride in serving on such a vessel. Winiimolaak's long-range planis to build a fleet of such vessels to carry perishables and mail throughoutthe British Colony and neighboring regions that are not hostile.

Unfortunately, Winiimolaak's career, and possibly even his life, aresoon to be sacrificed to the whims of an evil he does not even recognize.

Winiimolaak's native tongue is Meepsoori.

Attributes SkillsStr: 1 Fisticuffs, 1Agl: 5 Stealth 4, Marksmanship 3 (bow 3, pistol 2)End: 2 Wilderness Travel 2 (foraging)Int: 4 Observation 3Chr: 6 Eloquence 5, Linguistics 2 (Koline, Parhooni)Soc: 3 Riding 2 (gashant), Piloting 4 (sailing vessel)

Motives: Mercantile, Honest.Appearance: Zoho Winiimolaak is a young Canal Martian with pleas-

ing features and an energetic, confident manner that wins him friendseasily. Even his few enemies, who resent his mercantile successes andnontraditional outlook, grudgingly respect him. Winiimolaak wears com-fortably worn but immaculately clean merchant captain's dress, withthe addition of a bow and quiver of arrows that he always carries, almostas a trademark.

The young captain has a deep voice that is strong and pleasant, car-rying his commands to the Sprite's crew well. He is something of afavorite among the ladies in the canal cities that his vessel frequents.

GDW

WHO'S WHO

WHO'S WHO ONTHE MEEPSOORI SPRITEIT IS ONLY natural that the player

characters should be suspicious of therecently arrived passengers, especial-ly of the fellow in the stained cloak.As the days go by, the PCs will haveopportunities to try to get acquaintedwith them all.

BaraakTHE LAST OF the passengers to

arrive, Baraak (the only name hegives) is simply a thief who wascaught in the act of burglarizing awealthy home the night before theSprite left town. Escaping his pursu-ers, he decided to move on to anothercity rather than risk being capturedby the local police. He spent the earlymorning hours after the abortive bur-glary hiding in the dock area andchose to board the Sprite simply

because it was the first vessel to pullout.

Needless to say, Baraak will notreadily admit this all to the playercharacters. Instead, he spends histime during the trip alone, rebuffingany attempts at conversation. Whenthe ship reaches the first city in itsjourney to the Astusapes Highlands,Baraak disappears into that city anddoes not return. Unless the playersstate that their characters are beingvery careful about watching their be-longings, after Baraak leaves theyshould notice a few things missing.

During the time that Baraak is onboard the Meepsoori Sprite, thereferee should play him as a red her-ring to draw the suspicion of theplayers away from Mynosii Aalum.Baraak's sudden arrival on the dock,his aloofness during the voyage, andhis watchful ways as he sizes up thepeople and cargo on the Sprite, look-

ing for something to steal before heleaves ship at the next port, all shouldmake him seem a logical enemy.This is especially true since the PCshave left Syrtis Major with a deaththreat hanging over their heads. Usedproperly, Baraak can add consider-able tension to an otherwise peacefulvoyage to Haatt or Parhoon.

If the referee needs attributes forBaraak, the character should beplayed as a Trained Thief NPC.

Mynosii Aalum and SefMYNOSII AALUM appears to be

a prosperous merchant. If questionedabout his line of business, he answersthat he does not like to limit himselfto one line or another, preferring tosell anything that will bring him aprofit. If pressed, he mentions hav-ing sold books, agricultural products,and even weapons, but he gives nodetails.

WHO'S WHO

If the player characters questionSef about his master, he is not ableto give any more accurate answers,but he tries to think of something in-teresting to answer with. Sef is some-thing of a simpleton, and he adoresthe attention that the group showshim in asking about Aalum. Unfor-tunately, in his zeal to please them,he tells stories that are absolute andtotal fabrications. He might begin bytelling the PCs that Aalum sells pre-cious gems and has millions ofpounds sterling worth of them in hisbaggage, for example. Later, if itseems that the interest of the playercharacters is wearing thin, he willeven tell them that his master issecretly a prince of Parhoon (the onlycity whose name Sef can easily re-member) going to reclaim his thronefrom the British Regent-Commis-sioner.

In actuality, although Sef does notknow it, Mynosii Aalum is a devotedfollower of the Worm Cult and hasserved the sect several times in thepast on missions of minor impor-tance. This particular trip is some-thing special for him, however. It ison this trip that he will have an op-portunity to make a martyr of himselffor the cause. Among Aalum's bag-gage is a valise that he carries withhim at all times. Given the storiesthat Sef tells the player characters,they might suspect that the case con-tains gems or other precious items.In actuality, it contains five poundsof dynamite, which Aalum plans touse to destroy the Meepsoori Spritewhile it is in transit from Parhoon toGorovaan (or vice versa). The playercharacters will be stranded on thebank of that canal, where they caneasily be captured by the HighMartians.

Mynosii Aalum (Experienced NPC)MYNOSII AALUM, a Canal Martian from Syrtis Major, seems a

prosperous merchant. As such, he might not beexpected to be very dangerous in a fight. Butthis Martian's appearance is deceiving in moreways than one. Aalum is not actually a mer-chant, although he has some talent at haggling.Instead, he is an operative of the Worm Cult,placed in Syrtis Major to act against the British(and humans in general). It was Aalum whosold the poisoned Saardaari Spice Wine to theowner of The Gored Roogie and hired the par-ty to have it given to everyone in the inn whilethe player characters were there.

While Aalum appears too soft to be of muchgood in a fight, he has some training with his fists and with a pistol,and he has had occasion to use both in the past. Like all faithful membersof the Worm Cult, Aalum believes that life is vain, and he only con-tinues to live because it is not yet his time to die. The voyage of theMeepsoori Sprite has brought his end in sight, however, and Aalumlooks forward to his death as he destroys the Sprite in a glorious explo-sion that will bring about the desires of his masters, the Worm Priests.

Aalum's native tongue is Parhooni.

Attributes SkillsStr: 3 Fisticuffs 2, Close Combat 3 (bashing weapon),

Throwing 2Agl: 3 Stealth 2, Crime 3 (forger), Marksmanship 2 (pistol)End: 3 Wilderness Travel 2 (foraging)Int: 6 Observation 5, Science 2 (archaeology)Chr: 3 Eloquence 2, Bargaining 3, Linguistics 2 (Koline,

Umbran)Soc: 4 Riding 4 (ruumet breehr)

Motives: Mercantile, Hatred.Appearance: Mynosii Aalum is a middle-aged Canal Martian with

a perpetual smile that does much to conceal the cruelty in his eyes. Hedresses richly, as befits his appearance as a wealthy merchant, and heis always carefully groomed. Wherever he goes, he carries a leathervalise with a brass lock, and it is in here that the most precious, ordangerous, of his belongings are carried. He is also closely attendedby his fawning personal servant, Sef. When the player characters meetMynosii, he has five pounds of dynamite in his valise with which heintends to destroy the Meepsoori Sprite before the voyage is completed.

GDW

RUNNING THE VOYAGE

Sef (Trained NPC)SEF (he does not know his surname), servant to the evil Mynosii

Aalum, is too stupid to be very evil himself.He has served Aalum for as long as he canremember, although he has vague recollectionsof living as a child in the poorest quarter of Syr-tis Major. He is not large for a Canal Martian,but he is surprisingly strong, and he has anatural ability with his fists that may stun theplayer characters if they come against him ina fight. Even if arrows or bullets are flying,Sef remains seemingly oblivious to them, andthis serves him well in close combat. In suchsituations, Sef will pick up anything at hand thatcan serve as a club and will use it to good effect.

Over the years, Mynosii Aalum has tried to train Sef in some pettytypes of crime, but he has been largely unsuccessful. If something wereto happen to Mynosii, Sef would be devastated for a few hours, buthe would then attach himself to anyone else who happened to be nearand serve as a loyal servant to him instead. If Sef survives the explo-sion that Aalum sets off on the Sprite, one of the PCs may find himselfsaddled with a devoted follower. Note that Sef can swim, and he mighteven end up saving one of the players when the Sprite explodes.

Sef's native language is Parhooni.

Motives: Loyal, Eccentric.Appearance: Sef is moderately sized for a Canal Martian, and he

walks with a perpetual stoop that makes him seem even shorter. Hisface is broad and expresses his emotions transparently. Usually he hasa vacuous smile, but he can look positively bestial when angry. Sef'slimbs are thin but very strong, and his hands and feet seem overlargefor his body. He wears rough, workman's clothing that ranges fromspotlessly clean (when reminded to bathe) to stained and greasy. Sefconveys a simple-minded desire to please, and he really loves to bearound other people, especially when they let him join in their con-versations.

RUNNING THE VOYAGETHE REFEREE SHOULD ad-

minister the trip from Syrtis Majorto Parhoon, or to Gorovaan by wayof Haatt, using the Water Travelrules (page 116) in the Space: 1889rules book. Given these rules, thevessel may encounter inclementweather, but that will have no effecton travel. Also, since Captain Winii-molaak's Piloting skill is rated at 4,he automatically avoids all Naviga-tion Hazards (since the minimumpossible roll on four dice is 4, exactlythe number for success on the Easytask required to avoid NavigationHazards). Because the vessel is trav-elling a canal, there is no chance ofwilderness encounters either.

Since this part of the voyage isuneventful, the referee should notdwell on it overmuch, but he shouldplay through each day's passage.Each day he should simply roll to seeif the weather changes, then roll tosee how many miles are covered, de-scribe these effects to the players,and ask if they want to do anythingin particular that day. If so, he canplay out the results of their actions,then go on to roll the next day'spassage.

The emphasis of play during thisperiod of travel should be on the in-teractions of the passengers aboardthe Sprite. Baraak will spend his timesizing up potential items to steal, in-terspersed with bouts of gamblingwith some of the crewmembers.Captain Winiimolaak will divide histime between carefully overseeingthe operation of the Sprite and enter-taining his passengers. During thefirst several days, Aalum will walkabout, sizing up the ship and decidingwhere his dynamite would do the

AttributesStr:Agl:End:Int:Chr:Soc:

534121

SkillsFisticuffs 4, Close Combat 4 (bashing weapon)Stealth 2, Crime 1 (pickpocket)Wilderness Travel 3 (foraging), Swimming 2

Eloquence 1Riding 1 (gashant)

RUNNING THE VOYAGE

most damage. Finally, he chooses thehull near the base of the mast, closeto his berth—he will not place thedynamite until just before it is need-ed, of course. After making a deci-sion on that matter, he will contenthimself with reading most of thetime, but he will also be willing totalk to the player characters period-ically if they wish. His servant, Sef,will wander around the deck fromperson to person, thrusting himselfinto any conversations he finds go-ing on, and making inane and point-less comments. If he cannot find any-one else to talk to, he will spend histime talking to himself, a habit thatcan be very irritating to those peo-ple near him.

The actual play of a few sampledays might sound something likethis:

Day 1: The referee rolls a 1 for en-counter and a 6 for travel.

Referee: The first day out of Syr-tis Major the winds are strong, andthe ship travels quickly up the canaltoward Parhoon. As the Sun climbsthe sky, looking remarkably smallerthan it does from Earth, you slip pastpetit canals branching from the main

watercourse, leading to fields hiddenbehind the levies. The blustery windcarries the smells of greenery acrossthe water toward you, interspersedwith the merry shouts of the Sprite'screwmembers as they work under thecareful eye of Captain Winiirnolaak.Baraak is not to be seen—apparentlyhe is still sheltering under the row-ers' walk—but Mynosii Aalum isstrolling around the vessel, lookingit all over as if sizing up its capabil-ities. Sef is dogging Aalum's heels.Is there anything in particular youwant to do today?

Players: Yes, we are going to goquestion Baraak.

The referee plays out that confron-tation.

Day 2: The referee rolls a 4 for en-counter and a 4 for travel.

Referee: The next day, the winddrops off somewhat, but you stillmake pretty good time. You passother vessels on either side, someheading for Syrtis Major, and otherstravelling in your direction instead.The captain is standing at the foreramp, looking out over the water, asatisfied smile on his face. Baraak isin the stern, dicing with a couple of

crewmen. Aalum and Sef are in thecabin, apparently arranging theirberths more comfortably. Is thereanything in particular you wish to dotoday?

Players: Let's go check out whatAalum and Sef are up to.

The referee plays out that meeting.Day 3: The referee rolls a 3 for en-

counter and a 1 for travel.Referee: The Sprite has made

about 100 miles from Syrtis Majorover the last two days. Today, how-ever, the wind drops down to almostnothing, and Captain Winiimolaakorders the first shift of crewmembersto the oar platforms. They line upalong either side of the ship and runthe oars out, then begin stroking intime to the captain's count. Younotice that Sef is pulling an oar onthe starboard side. That will keephim busy for a while. Baraak isstanding by himself, looking over theaft loading ramp toward the city youleft two days ago. Aalum is sitting ona crate of mail, reading a book. Isthere anything you want to do today?

Players: No, we'll just sit and en-joy the Sun, keeping an eye on Ba-raak, of course.

GDW

THE NORTHERN CITIES

THE NORTHERN CITIESAS THE Meepsoori Sprite carries

the player characters toward theirdestination on the southern edge ofthe Astusapes Highlands, along theParhoon/Gorovaanese Canal, it willhave to pass either through Parhoon,or through Gorovaan by way ofHaatt. Captain Winiimolaak willwant to spend one day in each ofthese cities to conduct business. Ashas been mentioned before, Baraakwill disappear into the first city thatthe Sprite enters, carrying offanything he believes he can get awaywith. It may be that the referee willwant to have Captain Winiimolaakpick up other passengers as well.

In any event, the player characterswill have only one day to spend inany of these cities before their shippulls out again. If they want to sight-see in the city during that time, thereferee can allow them to, but theywill not have much time to explore.In order to aid the referee in runningsuch an event, some description ofParhoon, Haatt, and Gorovaan is in-cluded here.

ParhoonTHE CITY-STATE of Parhoon is

located in the northwest corner of theBritish Crown Colony of Syrtis La-

pis. It is accessed by two canals, onefrom Syrtis Major, some 500 milesto the southeast, and one from Goro-vaan, 400 miles away, almost dueeast. The city is surrounded by hills,as it is near the point where theAerian Hills give way to the Astu-sapes Highlands. Because of this,Parhoon lies almost 2000 feet in al-titude above Syrtis Major, and it isjust over 700 feet above the level ofGorovaan. Parhoon maintains an im-pressive series of locks and cranes inthe first 200 miles of canal leadingto Syrtis Major; after that, the canalis interrupted only by intermittentcascade pools. The route to Goro-vaan is subject to raids by High Mar-tians, along whose border it runs.Occasionally, the Queln even raid itswestern end, or the Wagon Mastersof Meroe its eastern end. Because ofthis, military craft patrol the canal tohelp protect shipping, but periodiclocks would be vulnerable to attack,leaving merchant vessels stranded atthe mercy of the raiders. Fortunate-ly, the ancient canal builders cut theParhoon/Gorovaanese canal straightand level, relying on one series oflocks on Parhoon's eastern edge tocompensate for the cities' differencein altitude.

As a consequence, the route fromParhoon to Gorovaan is very impres-sive as it cuts deeply through the hillsto either side. No farming is donealong the sides of this canal—they areleft as raw cuts through the nativestone, revealing the strata of rocklaid over the ages. The low flowchannel of the canal remains near thecenter along most of the way, divert-ing to one side or the other onlywhere breaks in the hills make goodcamping sites.

At one time in the distant past,

before the coming of Seldon's reign,Parhoon was a sister city to Goro-vaan in the combined kingdom ofHaataneethra I. In those days, Par-hoon was the junior member of thetwo cities, a fact that rankles manyGorovaanis, whose city is now sub-ject to Parhooni rule.

The manner in which this cameabout involves the coming of theBritish to Mars. They first arrived in1872 on the outskirts of Parhoon, andthis was the first city they visited. Ini-tial relations were very friendly, andsoon the British were established intheir own quarter of the city, fromwhich they conducted trade. Then,in 1878, the Anwaak of the city andhis young son were assassinated,many say at the instigation of Goro-vaani nobles. Queen Victoria as-sumed regency of the city, ruling inthe name of the only surviving heir,a three-month-old infant. The year1879 brought an invasion attempt bythe Gorovaanis, who viewed Par-hoon as their rightful property andfeared that it was falling into alienhands. The British and Parhoonesefought well together, crushing the in-vasion forces and annexing Goro-vaan to Parhoon. Needless to say,while Parhoon is a welcome homefor the British, Gorovaan resentstheir interference.

GorovaanGOROVAAN LIES in the extreme

northeast of the British Crown Col-ony on Mars, between the southern-

THE NORTHERN CITIES

most reaches of the Meroe Badlandsto the northwest and the NilosyrtisHills to the east and northeast. Inelevation, it rests just over 700 feetbelow Parhoon, its neighbor 400miles to the west, and nearly 850 feetabove Haatt, its nearest neighbor tothe south, just 200 miles away. Gor-ovaan is a city of three canals,however, and the third leads nearly400 miles to Mylarkt in the NeithSteppe region, stepping stone to thecities of the Umbran League, fromwhence comes the only source ofbhutan spice. All three canals runrelatively level from Gorovaan to itsneighbors. The canal to Parhoon hasthe majority of its locks at the Par-hooni end, and Haatt is, in itself, alock town placed primarily to main-tain the locks that lead from SyrtisMajor to Gorovaan. The route fromGorovaan to Mylarkt is broken bycataracts that depend upon slipwaysfor passage around them.

Located as it is at the juncture ofthree canals, Gorovaan is an old ci-ty with an ancient tradition of eco-nomic and political power. It was thishistory, in fact, that prompted theGorovaanese to attack Parhoon whenthat city's ruler was assassinated,hoping to reestablish a joint Goro-vaani/Parhoonese unit once again.Unfortunately for Gorovaan, thepresence of British at Parhoon pre-vented such an occurrence andturned the ancient tradition on itshead by annexing Gorovaan to Par-hoon after the abortive war.

Resting where it does, Gorovaanis a very populous city, and it isrenowned for its long, graceful ave-nues and the impressive architectureof the towers that line them. Muchof that beauty has fallen into decay,however. Historically, Gorovaan has

also been something of a center forart and science, but that tradition hasslowly eroded over the ages. Present-day Gorovaan retains many evi-dences of its historic greatness, butits people have lost something of thefire that once drove them. Instead ofcreating new works of wonder, theyseem content to boast about theirformer achievements.

HaattHAATT IS A much smaller city

than Parhoon or Gorovaan, and itsbiggest business is charging tolls tovessels that use its extensive seriesof locks and crane points. Haatt liesapproximately 375 miles due northof Syrtis Major, at a point where thecultivated lands of Meepsoor andSyrtis Major run up against the feetof the Nilosyrtis Hills. Approximate-ly 500 feet separate Haatt and SyrtisMajor in elevation, and most of thisrise in altitude occurs within 25 milesto the south of Haatt. Gorovaan liesanother 850 feet in altitude above thelevel of Haatt, and again, the majori-ty of this difference occurs very closeto Haatt, this time to the city's north-

east. This sudden rise of close to1350 feet over the course of approx-imately 60 miles makes Haatt a na-tural location for a city. Not onlydoes it serve to maintain the locksnecessary for travel between northand south, it is also able to benefitfrom the energy of the canal wateras it drops that distance. All the an-cient locks and cranes depend on thiswater power for their operation.

Historically, Haatt has been large-ly uninvolved in the politics of theother city-states in its neighborhood.Its central location protects it fromthe High Martians of the Astusapesand the Steppe Martian raiders of thewilderness lands alike. Haatt's canalprinces have usually been content tobenefit from the canal traffic thattheir city's position brought them,but they have fought like corneredbeasts when necessary to prevent theannexation of their city to anotherruling power.

When news of the British arrivalin Parhoon reached Haatt, its currentruling families feared that the redmen would bring an end to the statusquo. Therefore, when war broke outin 1880 after the annexation of Goro-vaan by Parhoon, Haatt joined theforces fighting against the British, amove that proved to be unwise. Withthe ending of the war, Haatt's rulersonce again retreated to an attitude ofnonintervention in the affairs ofothers. The result has been that whileHaatt is technically a part of the Brit-ish Crown Colony of Syrtis Lapis,its rulers have retained their positionswith the understanding that they re-port to a British governor. Haattreadily accepted these terms, un-ashamed to be subject to foreign ruleas long as it means business contin-ues as usual.

GDW

THE DROWNING OF THE SPRITE

THE DROWNINGOF THE SPRITE

EVENTUALLY, THE playercharacters will begin the last leg oftheir journey toward the tomb ofHaataneethra I, travelling along thecourse of the Parhoon/Gorovaanesecanal. The referee can read thefollowing narrative description tothem as they do so.

A few short hours after leaving thecity, rough hills arise on either sideof the canal. In places, the canal cutsright through the center of a hill, ex-posing its rocky heart to the light ofday. Where this happens, the starkslopes of the split hill replace thelevies that normally line the canal tocontain its waters during surge. Theraw stone of these hills reaches allthe way to the water's edge in bandsof red, brown, and dusky yellow. Oc-casionally when the Sprite passessuch a hill, you see spots where highwater has washed out a soft layer of

rock, forming shallow caves or spill-ing shards of the more brittle layersabove in treacherous slopes of scree.

Between these hills lie deep, rug-ged valleys, their bottoms hiddenbehind the canal's embankments. Asthe day passes by, you notice thatsome of these locations have dock-ing places, with stairways that climbthe levies leading to sheltered camp-ing spots. Most of these camps arelocated on the southern shore, thewater serving as a barrier to attackfrom the wilderlands to the north. Butin other spots, the lay of the landforces the camps to be located be-yond the northern shore.

Watching the sunlight sparkle onthe water of the canal, you continueon your journey.

A Sinister PlotMYNOSII AALUM'S secret

orders are to blow up the MeepsooriSprite at such a time that the playercharacters will be cast up on the ca-

nal's northern shore and stranded atleast 100 miles from the city theyhave left, but also a safe distancefrom Haataneethra I's tomb. A screwgalley has been sent from Kraag Bar-rovaar to gather the PCs up after-ward and bring them to the HighMartian King Hattabranx. Thisscrew galley can travel the length ofthe canal once each day, patrollingat a safe distance to the north, wait-ing for the Sprite to be sabotaged.

It is possible that the player char-acters, if they are particularly astute,may discover the dynamite in Myno-sii Aalum's valise before he has anopportunity to use it. If anyone at-tempts to take the dynamite awayfrom him or if they steal it while heis unaware, Aalum will fight to re-gain it, giving himself away as anenemy in the process. If this occurs,the Sprite's voyage will continue tothe player characters' debarkationpoint, where they can disembark andbegin their trek toward the tomb.

THE DROWNING OF THE SPRITE

It is most likely, however, that theplayer characters will not discoverAalum's dynamite. In this case, Aa-lum will choose a time during anevening when a northern campsite isnear to perform his sabotage. He willwait until he can have the cabin tohimself so as to set his valise at thebase of the Sprite's mast and light ashort fuse. Aalum will remain quitenear the dynamite, sheltering it fromdiscovery until it explodes. If neces-sary, he will command Sef to helphim defend the door to the Sprite'scabin in order to prevent anyone elsefrom entering.

When the dynamite explodes, ittears a ragged hole nearly six feet indiameter through the Sprite's hull,blasting the cabin to flying splintersand freeing the mast to fall across theport rowers' platform. As the mastfalls, it rips the cross deck free andcrushes the rowers' platform, tippingso far to the port side that the watersof the canal rush over the vessel'sside. Of course, all the cargo on thedeck slides toward the port side aswell, knocking crewmembers offtheir feet and crushing some of themin the process.

The player characters themselvesare dumped into the night-darkenedcanal and must swim to shore. Eachshould make an Easy roll versus theirSwimming dice to see if they makeit to shore without difficulty. If theyfail their roll, the referee may assumethat they have been struck by a pieceof debris and stunned. Stunned char-acters and characters with no Swim-ming talent must make an Easy rollon their Agility dice to grab a largeplank or other floating item and dog-paddle to shore. If they fail this roll,they are washed up on shore uncon-scious and must make a Moderate

roll on their Endurance dice to recov-er. Failure at this roll means that thecharacter dies.

If a swimming character wishes totry to save a character who cannotswim, he must make a Moderate rollon his Swimming dice. Successmeans that he tows the other char-acter to shore safely; failure meansthat he loses the other character inthe water. If the swimming characterrolls below a 4 in his attempt, heshould be treated like a stunnedcharacter, as mentioned above.

If the player characters are all par-ticularly bad at Swimming, the ref-eree may wish to have them towedto shore by crewmembers rather thanlet the adventure end with their ig-nominious deaths.

When the time has come for Aa-lum's sabotage to take place, thefollowing narrative section can serveas a guide to the referee in describ-ing to his players what transpires.

The Sprite is gliding peacefully asthe Sun sinks behind the hills to thewest. In the gathering dusk, CaptainWiniimolaak stands at the barge's

fore ramp, peering intently ahead,watching for the docking place thatthe vessel will stop at for the night.No other vessels are within sight onthe canal's dark waters.

With a rapid wave, the captainsignals to his tillermen to bring theSprite to bear on the quarter he ispointing out. They respond nicely,and the ship begins a slow turn to thenorth, then straightens once again atWiniimolaak's signal. The sail islowered, and the Sprite coastssmoothly toward the north shore,now about 100 yards away.

It is a peaceful scene, despite theundercurrent of tension to be felt atspending the night on the canal's

northern shore, on the edge of landsthat lead to the High Martians' bor-ders. Nearly everyone is on deck,taking in the sight of the loweringhills toward which the Sprite is drift-ing. Mynosii Aalum is not in evi-dence, however, but his servant Sefstands just 10 feet from the cabindoor, making it likely that Aalumrests inside.

Suddenly, the still night air is tornapart by a thundering explosion thatshakes the Sprite from stem to stern.Chunks of wooden planking flythrough the air as the cabin's portside and rear disappear in an im-mense cloud of sulfurous smoke. Aflood of dark water rushes out of thecabin door, carrying small items inits flow, and the mast groans as itbegins to topple to port. Its first smallsway soon gains momentum, and itcrashes through the port rowers'platform, splitting the Sprite's hullto the waterline. The ship begins tolist to its port side as the weight ofthe mast drags it over, and on thetilting deck, crates break their moor-ings and begin sliding rapidly towardthe vessel's injured side, carrying afew crewmembers with them. Beforeyour horrified eyes, a Martian sailoris crushed to death between a par-ticularly large crate and the Sprite'shullside.

As you clamber across the deck,avoiding falling cargo and searchingfor something to cling to, the Spritelurches once again, throwing you in-to the waters of the canal. The chill,dark waters close over you, but youfight desperately back to the surface.Ahead, you can see the dark shore-line; around you the air is filled withmen's cries for help. Marshalingyour flagging strength, you begin toswim.

GDW

AN OVERLAND TREK

AN OVERLAND TREK

An Overland TrekIN THIS CHAPTER, the player

characters leave the Parhoon/Goro-vaanese canal and begin an overlandtrek through the desolate hills on theborder of the Astusapes Highlands.To their surprise, they will soon havemore company than they might wishfor.

IF THE SPRITE WAS SAVEDIF, IN THE LAST chapter, the

player characters thwarted the plansof Mynosii Aalum to destroy theMeepsoori Sprite and were able tocontinue their canal voyage to theirplanned debarkation point, they willstart this chapter by beginning anoverland journey toward the locationof the tomb. Unknown to them, how-ever, the High Martian screw galleyMoon of Woe is patrolling the area,searching for the party.

Having looked for the wreckage ofthe Meepsoori Sprite and not foundit, the captain of the Moon of Woehas justly concluded that the agentplanted on the Sprite has failed in hismission. With King Hattabranx'spermission, the Worm Priests atKraag Barrovaar provided theMoons captain with sealed orders incase of such an occurrence, ordersthat reveal the location of a "site ofhistorical importance" (the tomb ofHaataneethra I) "that the party ofhumans will be seeking. " Readingthe orders, the captain finds that heis commanded to capture the partymembers before they find the site.

The party arrives at its debarkationpoint late in the afternoon of the dayafter the Sprite was to be destroyed.

It takes them the rest of the day tounload, set up camp, and generallyget things in order. The Moon of Woereaches the Parhoon/Gorovaanesecanal and begins looking for thenonexistent wreckage of the Spritelate in the morning of that same day,and by the time the player charactersare unloading at their debarkationpoint, the Moon has given up thatsearch, moved near the site of Haa-taneethra I's tomb, and moored forthe night. The next morning, as thePCs prepare to begin their groundsearch for the temple, the Moonbegins its aerial search for the PCs.

Just before noon on this day, as theplayer characters' party winds itsway between a couple of hills, theMoon of Woe is seen on the horizonthrough a break in the hills. It is ra-pidly approaching the party. If thegroup attempts to hide, have one ofits members make a Difficult testagainst Fieldcraft to conceal every-one from the vessel's sight. If thischaracter is successful, the Moonpasses over them unsuspecting andcontinues toward the canal, thenturns and begins a return trip. Thegroup loses an hour of travel timewhile waiting for the Moon to passover.

Every 1D6 hours, the Moon willappear again in its search. Each time,the party must make another Field-craft roll to avoid being discovered,and each time the group loses anotherhour of travel as it hides. Each hourof travel lost cuts the distance theparty covers that day by one mile.

Since the Moon of Woe is concen-

trating its patrol on a line between thetomb site and the PCs' debarkationpoint at the canal, if the party mem-bers diverge from that path, they willsuffer less chance of discovery. In-stead of rolling 1D6 for the numberof hours between appearances of theMoon, the referee should roll1D6 + 2. If the party membersdiverge from this path, however,they are subject to discovery by theQueln or the Wagon Masters of Me-roe, as explained later.

If the Moon of Woe discovers theplayer characters' party (because thegroup's Fieldcraft roll was failed), itwill drop to very low altitude and be-gin sending out flying parties to cap-ture the humans in the group. Mar-tians in the player characters' groupwill be killed without a secondthought, but the humans will simplybe beaten senseless and carried off.It takes two flying Martians to carrya single human back to the ship. Ifthe flying Martians are driven off,they will return 24 hours later withreplacements and, if the refereedeems it necessary, reinforcementsas well. Of course, they will have tosearch for and find the player char-acters' party once again beforelaunching any new attacks.

GDW

LIKE FLIES TO HONEY

IF THE SPRITEWAS DESTROYED

IF THE PLAYER characters didnot thwart Mynosii Aalum in his mis-sion to destroy the Meepsoori Sprite,after the explosion they are cast upon the northern shore of the canalabout midway between the city theyrecently left and their planned de-barkation point. The referee shouldallow them to salvage enough foodstores from the wreckage to feedthem for two weeks. Other itemsmay be salvaged as well, if thereferee desires (in particular, each ofthe player characters should be pro-vided with a weapon, whether it bea firearm, a bow and a few arrows,a machete, or something else). ThePCs must now decide whether to trekback to the city, push on toward thetomb, or wait on the banks and tryto flag down a passing canal ship.

Regardless of what course theychoose, the High Martian screw gal-ley, the Moon of Woe, will show upat the wreck site about two hours af-ter sunup, searching for the group.If the player characters have notchosen a course of action by the timethe Moon arrives, someone in thegroup will have to make a Formida-ble roll versus Fieldcraft to succeedin getting everyone hidden. If thisperson is successful, the Moon willpatrol overhead for about two hours,searching for signs of the group, thenbegin a search pattern that alternatelyreaches first toward the city and thentoward the tomb. Once every 2D6hours, the Moon will appear over theplayer characters' group again, anda roll versus Fieldcraft will have tobe made by someone in the party toprevent the group from being spot-ted. If the party is travelling, this roll

is merely Difficult, since the playercharacters are able to use the roughterrain well, and the Moon is only inthe immediate area for an hour. If theparty is waiting on the banks, tryingto flag down a passing canal ship, theroll to avoid detection by the Moonis Formidable, since the canal sidesprovide much less cover and theMoon is hidden by the embankmentsuntil it is nearly overhead, leavingthe party less time to hide.

LIKE FLIES TO HONEYTHE ACTIVITY of the High

Martians' Moon of Woe does not gounnoticed by other races. Canal ves-sels see it, of course, and report itin the next city they enter, but the skyfleets of that city are not sent to driveoff just one lone High Martian ship.More importantly, though, the Moonis watched by the jealous eyes of cer-tain Steppe Martian nations. In par-ticular, the skrill-riding Queln to thewest of the Astusapes Highlands andthe Wagon Masters of Meroe to theeast note the Moon's search patternand divine that something of value isto be gained along the Parhoon/Gor-ovaanese canal.

Tribes from both these nationsmove closer to the canal to discoverwhat that something is. If the playercharacters are not somewhere on theroute running directly from theirplanned debarkation point to thetomb of Haataneethra I, whether theyhave diverted from that route toavoid the Moon of Woe or are mak-ing their way back to a city, or what-ever other reason they might have,there is a good chance that they willbe captured by one of these clans. Ifthey are to the west of the route, theywill encounter the Queln; but if theyare to the east of the route, then they

will encounter the Wagon Masters.If the player characters are travel-

ling west, the first chance of encoun-tering a Steppe Martian clan will oc-cur two days after the PCs begin theiroverland trek if they are travellingwest, or four days after they begintheir trek if they are travelling east.Each day after that time, the refereeshould roll 1D6. On a roll of 6, thegroup will encounter Steppe Mar-tians that day (unless, of course, theyare first captured by the crew of theMoon of Woe). The referee canchoose at what point during the daythis event should occur, but obvious-ly it should take place between thetimes that the Moon of Woe appearsoverhead, since the Steppe Martianswill not risk moving while the Moonis near.

When the encounter with theSteppe Martians occurs, the refereeshould have the player charactersmake a Difficult roll versus Obser-vation. If everyone fails the roll, thegroup walks into an ambush and issurrounded. If anyone succeeds, thegroup discovers the Steppe Martiansbefore they can be discovered inturn. In this case, the players havea choice of whether to approach theSteppe Martians and ask for aid orattempt to evade them. Attempts toevade require someone among theplayer characters to make a For-midable roll against Fieldcraft. Fail-ure at this roll means that the SteppeMartians spot them and begin pur-suit. Success at the roll means thatthe player characters' party can avoidthe Steppe Martians for that particu-lar encounter. Once the Steppe Mar-tians first show up, however, theplayers will encounter them againevery 2D6 hours thereafter (even ifthis makes the encounter at night).

THE MOON OF WOE

IF THE GROUPREACHES A CITY

IT IS POSSIBLE, but unlikely,that the player characters might makeit all the way to a canal city withoutbeing discovered by High Martiansor Steppe Martians. If this occurs,the referee has a choice to make—

he can either have the Worm Lordgive up in his attempts to capture theplayer characters, or he can inventanother plot to bring them to theWorm Lord. If the Worm Lord givesup his attempt, the players can stillseek out the tomb of Haataneethra I,and the referee can simply roll forrandom encounters as they resume

their trek. If the Worm Lord triesonce more, his plot should involvedelaying the player characters untilthe Worm Priests can convince KingHattabranx to send a screw galley outonce again. Using the events in thismodule as a guideline, the refereeshould be able to come up with sucha plot without much trouble.

£23, 200

300TONS

Bridge

Deck

Maneuver

Screw

GDW

MarinesHullHits

THE SKRILL-RIDING QUELN

THE SKRILL-RIDING QUELNPAGES 174 and 175 of the Space:

1889 rules book contain a basicdescription of the Skrill Riders ofMars. The particular clan that theplayer characters encounter is, ofcourse, the clan mentioned as settlinginto the Astusapes Highlands recent-ly and raiding the spice trade. At the

time of this adventure, the clan isdwelling in the western portion of theAstusapes region.

QUARRY OF THE QUELNLIVING AS CLOSE to the High

Martians of the Astusapes as they do,these Queln are very aware of themovements of the High Martianscrew galleys. That one would be pa-

trolling dangerously near to cities ofthe British Colony indicates thatsomething very valuable is to begained there, and that something isobviously mobile. The fact that thesomething is valuable is what firstputs the Queln on the player charac-ters' trail, but that value also preventsthe Queln from performing a typicalraid on the party, killing most of its

NorthernSyrtisLapis

KEY

City

VillageRuinMountains

Hills

Cultivated

MajorCanalPetitCanal

QUARRY OF THE QUELN

members, looting the group, and car-rying off a few prisoners. The rithall(skylord) of this clan is very astute,and before leading the raid, he com-mands that whatever is found whenthe Queln search the patrol area ofthe Moon of Woe, no one is to bekilled unless it is deemed to be ab-solutely necessary.

Setting out on their skrill mounts,the Queln work their way quicklysouth to the canal and begin a huntof their own. Whenever they spot theMoon of Woe approaching, they landand hide in any craggy places avail-able, so as not to give away theirpresence to the High Martians. If theplayer characters are surprised by theQueln or if they attempt to evadethem and fail, leading to pursuit, theskrill riders will dive their mountstoward the PCs' group, fight to dis-arm its members, then try to dragthem over their saddles and carrythem away. If a skrill rider gets aplayer character across his saddle,the referee should emphasize to theplayer the unstable position hischaracter is in and inform him thatany further struggle is likely to resultin his character falling from the backof the skrill.

Any members of the PCs' partywho fights particularly effectively orheroically will draw the attention ofseveral Queln riders who will take itas a point of honor to personally cap-ture this person. The riders will nothesitate to have their mounts graspthe character in their razor sharp tal-ons—because of the care the ridersare taking to capture the party mem-bers alive, however, the skrill willuse both sets of talons to hold thecharacter, rather than holding withone set and continuing to attack withthe other.

Krraghar Rithall (Veteran NPC)KRRAGHAR RITHALL (Krraghar skylord) is clan leader of a tribe

of Queln. He is renowned among the tribe asthe best skrill rider, since he must defend hisposition yearly in a deadly flying competition.Krraghar is a consummate warrior chief—fear-less in danger, savage in battle, ruthless inparley, and arrogant in dealing with his in-feriors. As prisoners of the Queln, the PCs canexpect from the rithall exactly the treatment thatthey merit in his eyes. If they act like weak-lings, he will treat them as such. But if theydemand respect and can back up that demandas warriors, the rithall will treat them as equals.

Krraghar has nothing personal against hu-mans. As a product of his culture, he respects strength and fierceness.He views humans as another race to do battle with for the treasuresMars produces, such as the bhutan spice of the Umbran league. Ifhumans can protect their treasures, the rithall respects them as worthyadversaries. If they cannot protect them, he views them as weaklingsto be plundered by the strong.

Krraghar rithall speaks Queln as his native language.

Attributes SkillsStr: 3 Fisticuffs 2, Close Combat 3 (khivatt—pole arm)Agl: 2 Stealth 2, Marksmanship 2 (bow)End: 4 Wilderness Travel 5 (foraging)Int: 4 Observation 3Chr: 3 Eloquence 2, Linguistics 1 (Koline)Soc: 5 Riding 7 (flying skrill), Leadership 3

Motives: Proud, Arrogant, Aggressive.Appearance: Krraghar rithall, like all Hill Martians, is somewhat

shorter and hairier than members of the Canal Martian race. This isespecially true in respect to the Queln, among whom the lightest andlithest typically make the best skrill riders.

The rithall is very stern looking, especially when dealing with under-lings, and his face and torso are crossed by numerous old, puckeredscars. The upper third of his left ear is missing, having been bitten offby his skrill when he was training it. Krraghar dresses virtually the sameas any other Queln warrior—in rough skins and a heavy cloak. But evenfrom a distance, he can be distinguished from other members of theclan by the great number of rings and armbands that he wears, tokensof raids he has made.

GDW

CAPTIVES OF THE QUELN

CAPTIVES OF THE QUELNONCE THE MEMBERS of the

player characters' party have all beencaptured, the Queln begin a days-long journey to their village locatedin the hills to the north. This trip,which would normally take only twodays, is lengthened to four days, bothbecause the skrill must carry the add-ed weight of the PCs' party membersin their flight and because the Quelnriders must evade the Moon of Woein its continued search for the playercharacters. Finally, however, theplayer characters spot the village ly-ing in a sheltered hollow between thehills. At this time, the referee canread to them the following narrativedescription.

The Martian Sun is low over thedry hills as your captors direct theirmounts to descend. The chill windsraised as the skrill soar at the higheraltitudes begin to give way to hot airrising off the desert pavement. Theskrill labor to slow their plummet,and you begin to smell a strong,sweaty odor coming from their hides.Their riders screech commands tothem, and the skrill perform a dizzy-ing bank, drop rapidly, and swooptoward a hollow in the hills.

Striving to keep your last mealdown as the skrill perform their aer-obatics, you catch sight of a clusterof hide tents set in a rough circle—inthe circle's center is an open, wood-en framework dome nearly 10 yardshigh and 20 yards across its base.Standing about in this makeshiftvillage are the wives and children ofyour captors, protected by a fewyoung warriors.

The scene grows larger as you ra-pidly approach it. Suddenly, thewings of your skrill snap as they cup

the air, slowing the great beasts toa stall just a few feet above the sand.There is a lurch, and you are on thesolid ground once again.

WITHIN THEQUELN VILLAGE

IMMEDIATELY AFTER land-ing, the rithall calls a handful of theyoung warriors who were left at thevillage to come and guard the pris-oners while the riders care for theirskrill. Each rider tethers his beastand rubs it down thoroughly beforeallowing it to graze. During thistime, the women and children collectto look the captives over, peering atthem between the glowering guards.

By the time the riders have fin-ished with their mounts, the Sun hasfully set, and they gather in a widecircle around a communal firepitwhere a great deal of food and drinkis laid out. They feast themselves,boasting and laughing (and teasingthe children) for several hours, dur-ing which time the prisoners aregiven neither food nor water. Whenthe feast begins to wind down,Krraghar rithall gives another com-mand, and the prisoners are led into

the circle to stand before him and theelders for questioning.

The rithall first ceremonially com-plements any of the player characterswho demonstrated great bravery orferocity in the fight in which his war-riors captured the group. He then be-gins his interrogation with the mat-ter-of-fact question, "Why should Ilet you live?"

Negotiating With the RithallTHE REFEREE WILL need to

keep Krraghar rithall's personalityand motives firmly in mind whilerole playing this confrontation be-tween the rithall and the player char-acters. Krraghar wants to know whatvalue the player characters hold forthe High Martians, and he will notaccept attempts to draw him awayfrom the subject. He will, however,entertain offers to negotiate for theinformation he wants, and he will befaithful to any terms he agrees to, buthe will use the fact that the PCs arehis prisoners fully to his advantagein such negotiations. His best deal islikely to be release from captivitywith weapons, food, and water, inexchange for the map that the grouppossesses.

Note that this negotiation should berole-played fully. The referee shouldnot allow a player whose characterhas a high Bargaining skill to sim-ply get the group off the hook by alucky roll of the dice. Emphasize tothe players that this is not so mucha bargaining situation, as if the twosides were dickering over the priceof a gashant, as it is a negotiationprocess between two races whichhave had little contact with oneanother in the past. What is impor-tant in this situation is cleverness andcoolness under pressure.

ESCAPE FROM THE QUELN

Keeping SilenceBefore the Rithall

IF, INSTEAD of negotiating, theplayer characters simply refuse to tellthe rithall what he wants, he willrespect silence from them as bravewarriors, but he will make them jus-tify that silence by purchasing it insingle combat with a clan champion.The combat will be fought on theground with khivatts, the short spearscommon among the Queln, and itwill halt when either contestantbecomes unconscious. Each charac-ter who wants to maintain silence,PCs and NPCs alike, will have topass through this ordeal. Any indi-vidual who is defeated by his oppo-nent may still maintain his silence,but he will be kept as a slave of theclan. Any individual who bests hisopponent will be allowed to maintainhis silence and will be given weap-ons, food, and water, and will bereleased from captivity to find hisway back to civilization. Charactersso released will be allowed to remainwith the clan if they desire (possiblyto stay near enslaved characters).

Optional OrdealsIF THE REFEREE desires, he can

emphasize the savagery of the Quelnand their great respect for bravery byreplacing the single combat eventabove with an ordeal of pain. In thisordeal, characters who remain com-pletely silent in the face of torturewill be greatly respected and mayeven be adopted into the clan. Thereferee should be careful to empha-size the respect given to stoic war-riors and not dwell upon the torturesthemselves, which in any event willonly consist of such things as runninga gauntlet (running between a dou-

ble line of warriors who strike at therunner with wooden rods as he goes),enduring a day staked out in the Sun,or being branded on the shoulderwith a Queln warrior's mark. Noneof these should do any permanentdamage to the character or evenleave any scars (other than the brand-ing).

Ordeals and NPCsIT IS POSSIBLE that the player

characters' xgroup may consist ofsome NPCs from the wreck of theMeepsoori Sprite. One of theseNPCs might give away the secret ofthe player characters' map (if heknows of it) rather than go throughan ordeal. The referee will have touse his own judgment in deciding ifthis is the case, but it is important thatthe PCs be questioned first, so thatthey will have a chance to bargainwith or impress the rithall before anNPC spoils it all. Even if an NPCdoes give away the party's secrets,the rithall will treat the PCs in what-ever manner they have earned.

ESCAPE FROM THE QUELNTHE PLAYER characters and

their companions can escape fromthe Queln village in one of severalpossible ways. They may negotiateor do battle for their release, as de-

scribed above. Possibly the playerswill be able to suggest another wayout of their dilemma, such as over-coming their guards and slippingaway at night.

If no other manner of escape pre-sents itself, however, the refereeshould keep in mind that the HighMartians in the Moon of Woe are stillsearching desperately for the playercharacters, and as the days go by,their searches will range in an ever-wider pattern. Eventually, the Moonwill find the Queln village. When thishappens, the High Martians, discov-ering the presence of the player char-acters in the village, will begin an at-tack on the village in order to takethe hostages for themselves.

The attack should occur near sun-down, giving the player charactersa chance to escape into the surround-ing hills during the ruckus. TheMoon of Woe will hover about 75feet above the ground and beginbombarding the village, hoping togenerate confusion while it sends fly-ing parties to search for the playercharacters among the tents. TheQueln riders will assault the Moonitself, attempting to overcome thecrew and fire the ship, thus destroy-ing the High Martians' means of re-treat. Because of the ferocity of bothgroups of antagonists, the battle willbe long and bloody.

The referee can play up the dramaof this event by having the escapingPCs run into a few Queln riders, andjust when it seems that all hope islost, a party of High Martians dropsupon the Queln, allowing the PCs torun a bit farther. They are thendiscovered by a group of High Mar-tians, and as they fight them off, theHigh Martians are attacked by sev-eral Queln riders, and so on.

GDW

THE WAGON MASTERS OF MEROE

Photho Nhe (Experienced NPC)PHOTHO NHE is the aged chieftain of the Hashassa clan, a tribe

of the Wagon Masters of Meroe. He has servedas chieftain for three decades, and during thattime he has developed a belief that the best in-terests of his clan are more often attainedthrough negotiation than through violence. Thisview has made him very popular among the old-er members of the Hashassa clan, who havethrived in peace during the chieftain's rule. Butit has drawn the disdain of the younger Hashas-sas, who prefer a more direct approach to gain-ing their ends.

Chief among these young men is a son ofPhotho, the eldest of twins (by less than 10

minutes). This son's name is Tycuus, and he is a favorite among theyouths because of his prowess as a warrior. Unfortunately, Tycuus,while he craves the position of chieftain, is not terribly bright, and hedemonstrates no talent for handling the day-to-day problems that makeup the bulk of a chieftain's work. His brother Myya, on the other hand,is well known for his wisdom and insight, but he is scorned by Tycuus,who outshines him in all martial skills. Photho, as chieftain, has chosenMyya as his successor, though it grieves him to affront Tycuus so.

Besides the languages listed below, chieftain Nhe also speaks his nativeMeroen.

THE WAGON MASTERSOF MEROE

TO THE EAST and north of theAstusapes Highlands, yet west of theNilosyrtis Hills, lies a region of aridhills called the Meroe (pronounced"Meh RO eh") Badlands. Greatherds of ruumet breehr roam thesehilly wastes, and following the mi-grations of these lumbering beastsare clans of Hill Martians known asthe Wagon Masters of Meroe. TheWagon Masters' name arises fromthe huge, carved wagons in whichthey dwell, pulled by teams of do-mesticated ruumet breehr. Each ofthese wagons serves as home to oneor more families. At night, when theherds of ruumet breehr settle tosleep, a clan's wagons are drawn intoa circle, and a bonfire is built in thecenter to provide light for the eve-ning's festivities and to keep malev-olent spirits away from borders of thecamp.

Since very few natural predatorscan threaten a ruumet breehr andsince even those that can tend toavoid whole herds of the greatbeasts, the Wagon Masters have aconstant source of food and materialsin the herds. Thus, despite the relent-less travel involved in their lifestyle,Wagon Master clans tend to leadvery stable lives, with few worries(other than the occasional steppe ti-ger). They perform some trade withthe cities that border their region,mainly of ruumet breehr hides, wildspices, and medicinal herbs (forwhich the Queln are famous). But theQueln own too little to tempt raidsby the High Martians of the Astusa-pes, whose attention is held by thericher Canal Martians of the UmbranLeague.

Motives: Steady, Frugal, Wise.Appearance: Photho Nhe is perhaps the oldest Hill Martian that the

player characters will ever meet, and he looks it. His hair is complete-ly white, even on his shoulder hump, his noble face is lined with themany years of his service, and his flesh hangs loosely on him. ButPhotho's startling yellow eyes and his quick and easy smile still revealthe clarity of mind that this old Martian possesses. Photho typicallydresses in white, homespun robes, like his forefathers, rather than inimitation of the Canal Martians, as most of the Hashassa dress.

AttributesStr:Agl:End:Int:Chr:

Soc:

12354

6

Skills

Stealth 1, Marksmanship 1 (bow)Wilderness Travel 4 (foraging), Fieldcraft 4Observation 5Eloquence 3, Bargaining 4, Linguistics 2 (Koline,Umbran)Riding 5 (ruumet breehr), Leadership 6

QUARRY OF THE WAGON MASTERS

QUARRY OFTHE WAGON MASTERS

AT THE TIME that the MeepsooriSprite sets out on the Parhoon/Goro-vaanese canal with the player char-acters aboard, the Hashassa tribe ofthe Wagon Masters of Meroe havefollowed their herd of ruumet breehrto the extreme southern end of theMeroe Badlands and then just overthe border of the Astusapes. That theruumet breehr have travelled intotraditional High Martian territory isa matter of some concern for theHashassas, but there is simply noth-ing to be done but pray that the herdwill soon change its collective mindand return to the north.

The activities of the High Martianscrew galley, Moon of Woe, havecaught the eye of the Hashassas, andcuriosity, coupled with some fear of

attack, has prompted Photho Nhe,the chieftain of the tribe, to send asmall band of eight young warriorsby gashant to spy out what has drawnthe Moon into their area.

This band is captained by Photho'sson Tycuus, with the aid of Tycuus'twin brother Myya. The two youthshave some personality conflict, sinceTycuus, who is minutes older thanMyya, wants to succeed his father aschieftain of the Hashassa, but Myyais perceived by his father to be themore suited for the job.

If while avoiding the Moon ofWoe, the player characters roam tothe west of the line leading betweenthe tomb of Haataneethra I and theirintended point of debarkation fromthe Meepsoori Sprite, they stand achance of encountering this recon-naissance party. This is especiallytrue if the Meepsoori Sprite was

destroyed halfway to that debarkationpoint. Each day of travel, the refereeshould roll 1D6; on a 1 or 2, the PCswill encounter the Hashassas' reconparty that day. The specific time ofthe event is left up to the referee, butit should be at. some point betweenthe Moon of Woe'?, appearancesoverhead in its search for the PCs,since the Hashassa youths spend suchtimes hiding as well.

When the event occurs, the refereeshould have one of the player char-acters roll a Routine task versus hisObservation to detect the Hashassasbefore the PCs can be detected inturn. If the player character fails inhis roll, the Hashassas spot the PCs'group and halt to parley. If, instead,the PC succeeds in his roll, theplayers have the choice of whetherto reveal themselves to the Hashassasor not.

GDW

MEETING THE WAGON MASTERS

MEETINGTHE WAGON MASTERS

ONCE THE PLAYER charactershave met the reconnaissance partysent by the Hashassa, some hot de-bate will arise between the two sonsof Photho Nhe as to what should be

done with the humans and their com-panions. Tycuus is all for treatingthem as prisoners, but Myya arguesthat they should be received asguests. Both young men agree thatthe PCs and their friends should betaken to the clan to talk with theirfather. After much discussion, it is

Tycuus Nhe (Veteran NPC)TYCUUS NHE is the captain of the eight young men sent on foot

as a spying party by the Hashassa clan of theWagon Masters of Meroe. His father, PhothoNhe, is the clan chieftain, and as the eldest oftwo sons (by a little less than an hour), Tycuusbelieves it his own destiny to become chieftainwhen his father dies. Almost all clan membersof his age agree, but Tycuus' father has saidthat his younger son, Myya Nhe, is more suitedfor the responsibility.

Tycuus cannot understand this, since every-one recognizes that he is a great warrior, muchbetter than his more studious brother. Besides,he has the right as firstborn. Unfortunately,

Tycuus, while being a charismatic leader among the young men of theclan, is not very bright, and his father fears that he will not be ableto judge wisely in clan matters that do not require a warrior's solution.

Tycuus speaks only his native Meroen.

Attributes SkillsStr:Agl:End:Int:Chr:Soc:

453135

Fisticuffs 3, Close Combat 4 (pole arm)Stealth 4, Marksmanship 5 (bow)Wilderness Travel 4 (foraging), Fieldcraft 3

Eloquence 2Riding 6 (ruumet breehr), Leadership 4

Motives: Aggressive, Driven, Leader.Appearance: Tycuus is an extremely handsome young man by Hill

Martian standards, and he is well liked by other clan members his age.His hair is very dark, almost as black as that of Shistom, a legendaryhero of the Wagon Masters. His skin is clear, his teeth strong and even,and his eyes a penetrating yellow that is widely recognized as a signof great bravery. Tycuus' dress, like the dress of his companions, isa rough equivalent of Canal Martian fashion in Mylarkt and Gorovaan.

finally decided that the PCs' groupshould be escorted back as somethingless than friends but more than hos-tages. The PCs will be allowed tokeep any possessions that they mightbe carrying, but the Hashassas willform their gashants into a ringaround them, and the PCs will notbe offered a ride.

As can be deduced from the map,the trip to the Wagon Masters' campwill take more than a week of travel,especially since the High Martianscrew galley, Moon of Woe, ispatrolling the area, forcing the Ha-shassa youths to hide the group often.When the player characters finallyreach the Wagon Masters' camp, thereferee can read the following nar-rative description to them.

Laboring up yet another scrub-covered hill, the mid-morning Sunbeating down on you, you pause for

MEETING THE WAGON MASTERS

a moment to wipe the sweat fromyour face. Taking a deep breath ofthe Martian air, you are surprised todetect a faint scent of wood smoke.It is obvious that the gashants smellit too, because they begin pulling attheir reins like a mare that sights itsbarn. Tycuus frowns belligerently atyou and growls a command in his na-tive tongue. Myya translates, "Hesays, 'Let's not stand here; the campis just over this hill. ' '' Resolutely,you resume your march.

When you crest the hill, you haltagain, this time in awe of the view.Below you lies a broad plane dottedwith the greatest number of ruumetbreehr you have ever seen; nearly100 of the beasts must be scatteredover it, grazing on the tough, drygrasses that sprout from the sun-baked soil.

At the edge of the plane liesanother startling sight, a ring of thedark, wood-floored, walled, androofed wagons that serve as home tothe Hashassa. Although the sizes ofthese conveyances vary, most arenearly 25 feet high, at least thatwide, and 30 to 40 feet long. Theyare supported on 12-foot-tall wheels,making their undersides about sixfeet above the ground, and their longtongues have harnesses for as manyas six ruumet breehr. Every inch ofthe wagons' outer surfaces arecovered with intricate carvings, somerepresenting fables or moral tales,but most simply grotesque faces tokeep malevolent spirits at bay.

Again Tycuus growls a commandand urges the group forward. Myya,however, bows in his saddle, smiles,and tells you, "Welcome to thehomes of the Hashassa. '' He nudgeshis gashant and begins to descend thehill.

Myya Nhe (Trained NPC)MYYA NHE is somewhat smaller than his brother, Tycuus, and he

is less skilled at arms. He is also much lessoutspoken than Tycuus and much more obser-vant. Many have been the times that a smallfact noticed by Myya and passed along hassaved Tycuus from running headlong intomisfortune. But Tycuus accepts those hints sonaturally that he soon forgets their origin.

Myya and Tycuus were born as twins, a veryunusual occurrence among the Hill Martians,but Myya was birthed slightly less than 10minutes after Tycuus, and so is technically theyounger brother. Photho, father of Tycuus andMyya, and chieftain of the Hashassa clan of the

Wagon Masters of Meroe, believes the younger son to be most fittedto take his place as chieftain upon his death. Unfortunately, Tycuus,as eldest, believes that the right to rule the tribe belongs to him. Phothoand Myya accept this attitude resolutely, but Photho constantly sendsthe brothers out together, hoping that Tycuus will eventually recognizehis younger brother's wisdom. Tycuus, however, refuses to recognizeanything except his own superiority at arms.

Myya Nhe speaks Meroen as his native tongue.

Attributes SkillsStr: 2 Fisticuffs 2, Close Combat 2 (pole arm)Agl: 3 Stealth 3, Marksmanship 3 (bow)End: 1 Wilderness Travel 3 (foraging)Int: 6 Observation 6Chr: 4 Eloquence 4, Bargaining 3, Linguistics 3 (Koline,

Parhooni, Umbran)Soc: 5 Riding 4 (ruumet breehr), Leadership 5

Motives: Cautious, Wise, Fair.Appearance: Myya Nhe, although somewhat smaller than Tycuus

in stature, nonetheless shares many of his brother's characteristics. Hishair is lighter than Tycuus', but his skin is as clear, and his yellow eyesare as startling. Where Tycuus' gaze is impressive in its ferocity,however, Myya's impresses the viewer with its frank intelligence andinsight.

Like Tycuus, Myya dresses in imitation of the fashions of Gorovaanand Mylarkt, cities to the east of the Meroe Badlands. But while Tycuusdresses to draw attention to himself, Myya chooses clothes of simplestyle and pattern, resulting in an effect of understated elegance.

GDW

GUESTS OF THE WAGON MASTERS

GUESTS OFTHE WAGON MASTERS

WHEN THE PLAYER charactersarrive at the Wagon Masters' camp-site, Photho Nhe, chieftain of theHashassa and father to Tycuus andMyya, gives them great welcome andis very interested in hearing whateverthe PCs might care to divulge aboutthe High Martians' interest in them.If the PCs give no reason at all forthe beastmen's pursuit, or if they try

to make it seem as if they have noidea what the Moon of Woe is search-ing for, they will have to do somefast talking to convince the old chief-tain. However, he will not pressthem, even if he doubts their tale.How much he trusts their story willhave an effect on how fully the PCsare welcomed into the clan, though.

Shortly after the player charactersjoin the Hashassa, the ruumet breehrbegin to migrate back to the north.The clan follows them, of course, so

Hashassa WagonKey: Door

Window

Stairs(Down)

Lantern

Side View

Upper Floor(Main Family)

Lower Floor(Secondary Families)

while the PCs are guesting with theHashassa, they will be travelling fur-ther from the canal cities to the southand deeper into the Meroe Badlands.

This can be a very profitable timefor the PCs in terms of experience.During their stay with the WagonMasters, the PCs can pick up someexcellent knowledge of how to liveoff the land in this region, since theWagon Masters are very knowledge-able about such things. If the PCsspend a week or two, the refereemight want to simply have each ofthem raise their Wilderness Travel(foraging) skills by one point.

Of course the presence of theplayer characters in the clan and thefact that the High Martians aresearching for them rapidly becomesa focal point in the conflict betweenthe chieftain's two sons, and betweenthe supporters of each, as well. Ty-cuus and his followers want to takeaction and either chase the PCs awayor turn them over to the High Mar-tians. They insist that the playercharacters' presence in the Hashassacamp is bound to bring trouble,either from the High Martians orfrom the PCs themselves. Tycuusdoes not trust the PCs at all; he can-not speak any languages that theyknow, and that fact not only enforcesthe distrust he has for them, it alsosecretly embarrasses him by pointingup an area in which his brother out-shines him. Myya and Photho bothview the player characters as curios-ities and as a potential tie to theBritish and other humans on Mars.They consider it a point of honor thatthe humans are guests of the tribe,and they insist that it would beshameful to turn them out into theprairie or give them over to the HighMartians as captives.

TAKING LEAVE

TAKING LEAVE OFTHE WAGON MASTERS

EVENTUALLY THE player char-acters will either desire to leave theHashassa, or, if the referee wishes,they will be forced to leave by Ty-cuus' followers. When this leave-taking occurs, the referee will haveto be careful that the PCs are startedon the next leg of their journey to theWorm Lord. This can be broughtabout in one of several ways.

First, the referee can simply havethem found by the Moon of Woe. Itis best, for dramatic purposes, thatthe Moon not discover them at theHashassa camp. A High Martian at-tack on the Hashassa camp is likelyto make the players feel guilty thatPhotho and Myya's friendship totheir characters has been repaid sopoorly, and such an attack also vin-dicates Tycuus' warnings about thedanger of sheltering the player char-acters, encouraging a peaceful peo-ple to become more warlike.

Instead of finding the player char-acters with the Hashassas, then, theMoon should discover them shortlyafter they leave the Hashassa camp.The referee can use the same guide-lines as were given in the If the SpriteWas Saved section on page 35.

Alternatively, the referee can usea secret minion of the Worm Lordin the Hashassa tribe to trick thecharacters into the High Martians'hands. This minion is a solitaryfellow who has been prone to makesolo hunting forays in the past. Onone of these trips, he fell in with theHigh Martians and joined the WormCult. The priests of the cult sent himback to his tribe as a spy, and nowthat the player characters have ar-rived, he actually has something to

report. Shortly after the PCs join theHashassa, this young Hill Martianleaves on another of his trips. Whilegone, he reports to the High Martiansof the PCs' presence, not realizingtheir importance to the Worm Cult.The Worm Priests decide that itwould take too much to convinceKing Hattabranx to attack the Ha-shassa, so they send their youngagent back to the tribe to bring thePCs to them.

When the PCs decide that it is timeto leave the Wagon Masters, this fel-low volunteers to serve as a guide tolead them safely back to Gorovaan,or wherever, through the MeroeBadlands. In reality, however, hewill lead them right into the waitingclutches of a High Martian party sentby the Worm Priests to lay inambush.

Last, if the referee desires, Tycuushimself could carry the player char-acters away with the help of some ofhis supporters. He would wait untilsuch a time as his father and brotherwere gone to look at the herds, orwere otherwise occupied, beforestriking. Then he would begin a jour-ney toward the Astusapes Highlands,searching for the Moon of Woe toturn the PCs over to the High Mar-tians. Along the way, it is even possi-ble that the PCs could escape him,beginning another desperate raceacross the hills, pursued by bothTycuus and the Moon.

However the referee chooses to getthe player characters into the clutchesof the High Martians, it should re-main a great mystery to the PCs whythe High Martians want them any-way.

GDW

CAPTIVES OF THE BEASTMEN

CAPTIVES OF THE BEASTMEN

Captives of the BeastmenIN THIS CHAPTER, the player

characters finally become captives ofthe dreaded beastmen, the High Mar-tians of the Astusapes Highlands.They are brought before the HighMartian King Hattabranx as prison-ers. After gloating over them for ashort time, he turns them over to theWorm Priests. The Worm Priests, inturn, cast the PCs into a bottomlesschasm as a sacrifice to their insanegod.

IN THE WILDERNESSIF THE PLAYER characters were

captured by either the Queln ridersor the Wagon Masters of Meroe dur-ing the last chapter, they will havetravelled somewhat north of the pointat which they left the MeepsooriSprite. If they then escaped from oneor the other of those tribes of SteppeMartians, they will find themselvesfacing a long overland journey backto the more civilized lands to thesouth. During this time, they willhave to pass either very near to, oreven through, the Astusapes High-lands.

To run this portion of the adven-ture, the referee should keep track ofthe player characters' progress on thesmall-scale map included in the lastchapter, and he should roll for dai-

ly encounters from the Mars Wilder-ness Encounters Table on page 209of the Space: 1889 rule book, usingeither the Hills or Mountain col-umns, depending on which is appro-priate.

When using the Hills column, thereferee should treat results of NomadHunters as sightings of the Moon ofWoe, which has been searching forthe PCs. When using the Mountaincolumn, any result of High MartianGalley should also be treated as theMoon of Woe. The High MartianHunters result on the Mountains col-umn and the Bandits result on theHills column should both be treatedas a clan of High Martians that issubject to some king other than Hat-tabranx.

If the Moon of Woe captures theplayer characters, they will bechained as galley slaves until theMoon returns to Kraag Barrovaar. If,instead, a clan of High Martians sub-ject to some king other than Hatta-branx captures the player characters,the clan will put them to work asslaves in the liftwood groves that ittends. However, human prisonersare extremely unusual (the only otherrecorded instance of humans beingheld by the High Martians of theAstusapes was the capture, by ves-

sels of King Hattabranx, of theUnited States envoy to the OenotrianEmpire, Mr. Sidney Boynton, andhis daughter Elizabeth). Therefore,word of the capture will be sent tothe clan's king, and Hattabranx,guided by the Worm Priests at hiskraag, will bargain for the humansto be sent to him.

All this passing of word and bar-gaining will take about two weeks tocomplete, leaving the PCs as slavesin the liftwood groves. During thistime, the PCs can learn quite a lotabout growing and using liftwood.Any of the PCs who succeed at aFormidable roll versus their Obser-vation will learn enough to increasetheir Trimsman skill by one point.Characters who make a Difficult rollagainst Linguistics will also gain onepoint in Gaashwaan, the pidgin lan-guage used between High Martiansof differing clans.

GDW

IN THE HANDS OF HATTABRANX

IN THE HANDSOF HATTABRANX

FINALLY, WHETHER they arecaptured near the tomb of Haata-neethra I, taken from the village ofthe Queln riders, betrayed from theHashassa clan of Wagon Masters, re-trieved from the liftwood groves ofa minor clan of High Martians, orplucked from the hills in their attemptto return to the canal cities to thesouth, the player characters will becarried by the Moon of Woe back to

Kraag Barrovaar to stand beforeKing Hattabranx. The Moon willland atop the mesa that houses thekraag, and the PCs will be unchainedfrom their places at the ship's turn-crank. Their hands will be bound be-hind them with rawhide strips, andthey will be linked together withchains at the neck, then led single fileinto the upper level of the kraag.

As their eyes adjust to the dimnessinside, broken only by widely spacedtorches, the group members will dis-cover that they are standing inside an

immense cavern, at the top of a hugeshaft nearly 25 feet across, with atreacherous narrow stairway spiral-ing down around its periphery. Theirguards will prod them toward thestairway. Walking as they are, withhands bound behind their backs andlinked at the neck, the group mem-bers can expect to have some trou-ble negotiating this stairway. Thereferee should emphasize to themjust how steep it is, how narrow thesteps are, and how deep the drop isif they stumble. As they start down

KING HATTABRANX is theruthless leader of the High Mar-tians of Kraag Barrovaar, thestrongest kraag to be found in theAstusapes Highlands. While manyHigh Martian kings rule in theAstusapes, none rival Hattabranxin power or in reputation. Hat-tabranx's High Martian clans maketheir livelihood by dominating theshipment of liftwood from the As-tusapes and by raiding the bhutanshipments of the Umbran League.

A firm devotee of the WormCult, Hattabranx can be consideredslightly mad. Some of this madnessfinds its outlet in his hatred for the"red men. " In particular, Hatta-branx thoroughly hates the British,who cheated him of two humancaptives (a United States ambas-sador to Oenotria and his daughter)

King Hattabranx (Veteran NPC)whom he had taken in a raid on theSummer Wind, a Canal Martian mer-chant kite. The British lured enoughof Hattabranx's ships away from thekraag that they were able to land arescue party and steal the hostagesback. For this affront, Hattabranxcan never forgive them.

At Worm Priests' instigation, KingHattabranx has again set out to cap-ture humans—adventurers who havestrayed near his territory while on anexpedition to an ancient tomb.

Hattabranx also speaks Gaash-waan, the pidgin language used be-tween High Martian clans.

Motives: Sadistic, Arrogant,Hatred.

Appearance: Like all High Mar-tians, King Hattabranx is shorterand more hunched than either Ca-nal Martians or Steppe Martians.He is also hairier and more bestialin form. In Hattabranx's case, thisbestiality is emphasized by the ef-fects of the passing years, whichhave left the king stooped and wiz-ened. His coarse, black hair isgrizzled and spotted with gray, andhis eyes burn with hate, especiallywhen confronting humans.

Hattabranx clothes himself in thefinest outfits obtained from raidshis ships conduct, but the effect ofthose well cut clothes is ruined bythe spots of grease and filth thathave accumulated on them. Hatta-branx also wears a twisted goldennecklace, the symbol of his authori-ty, and bears a heavy, spiked scep-ter that could well serve as a mace.The player characters encounterhim in his throne room, whichstinks of discarded food scraps,sweat, and blood.

An.Str:Agl:

End:

Int:Chr:

Soc:

13

5

24

6

Skills

Stealth 3, Marksman-ship 3 (bow)Wilderness Travel 4(foraging)Observation 1Eloquence 4,Linguistics 3 (Syrian,Umbran, English)Leadership 5, Pilot 4(cloudship)

IN THE HANDS OF HATTABRANX

the stairs, the referee should haveeach player make a Difficult savingroll against his character's Agilitydice to keep him from stumbling. Be-fore they make this roll, the refereeshould stress to the players that if anyof the characters fail this roll, theywill stumble and risk pulling theother party members off the stairs aswell. In actuality, if any of the partymembers fail the roll, a High Mar-tian guard flying nearby will steadythem before they fall.

After travelling downward for avertical distance of about 10 yards,the group will be led off through tun-nels on the next level. As they walk,they will see multitudes of High Mar-tians, interspersed with numerousCanal Martian and Steppe Martianslaves, all bustling about on businessof one kind or another. None of themlook very clean, particularly the HighMartians. For their part, the Mar-tians that the player characters passwill stop and stare in some surpriseat the presence of humans in thekraag.

After a walk of about five minutes,the player characters enter the throneroom of Kraag Barrovaar. The ref-eree can read the following narrativedescription at this time.

The first thing that strikes youabout Kraag Barrovaar's throneroom is the stench that wafts out ofit. The odor carried in the stone-chilled air consists of approximate-ly equal parts of rotting scraps, ran-cid grease, ancient torch smoke, andhairy, unwashed bodies.

The ceiling of the room is just over10 feet high, and its sheer rock sur-face seems to hang threateninglyoverhead, certain to collapse at anyminute. The walls are nearly 60 feetfrom side to side, and the dingy tap-

estries hung carelessly upon them doalmost nothing to dampen the harshechoes that haunt the corners. A fewoil sconces on gilded stands scatterdim light on the scene, throwinghulking shadows about the room.

Directly across from the entranceyou came through, you spot a hand-ful of the beastmen busily engaged inconversation. In their center a griz-zled old High Martian sits on a gild-ed throne, a heavy golden necklacehung about his withered shoulders.His bestial head raises, and pig likeeyes spot you where you stand. Atonce, a wicked smile comes unbid-den to his lips.

"Ah, I see my guests have ar-rived, " he croaks in Umbran. "I willbe with you in a moment. Please, beseated. "

Your guards strike your legs withtheir spears, knocking you to therocky floor. King Hattabranx grinsmalevolently, then turns his attentionback to his counselors.

THE INTERVIEWWHEN HATTABRANX returns

his attention to the player charactersa few moments later, it is only togloat over their predicament. The

"interview" is actually little morethan an impassioned speech abouthow the British have thwarted himin the past and how he will repaythem in the future. Hattabranx asksthe player characters nothing aboutwhat they were doing in the Astusa-pes Highlands. He seems complete-ly uninterested in them as individu-als, viewing them merely as the firstsufferers of his vengeance. Partwaythrough his tirade, he reveals to thegroup members that they are not go-ing to be held as hostages, so theyneed not think that someone mightbuy their freedom. Neither are theyto be added to the slave force ofKraag Barrovaar, nor are they to beimprisoned in some dank hole in thekraag's dungeons. Instead, he re-veals, the player characters and theircompanions are to be turned over tothe Priests of the Worm Cult for sac-rifice to their bloodthirsty god.

Hattabranx hopes by this cruel rev-elation to elicit some sign of fearfrom the player characters. If he suc-ceeds, he laughs wickedly as they aremarched away. If he fails, however,he simply scowls at them and sourlyorders the guards to take them out ofhis sight.

GDW

SACRIFICES TO THE WORM GOD

A SHORT INCARCERATIONAGAIN THE PLAYER characters

are led to the main shaft and starteddown its narrow stair. This time,however, they continue all the wayto the bottom, a distance of some 200feet. From here they can see theblack mouths of six different tunnelsleading off into the heart of the rock.

Their guards choose one of thesetunnels and lead the group down ita short distance to a series of iron-barred cells cut into the rock. Themembers of the group are separatedand cast into various cells (thereferee can determine randomly whowill end up with whom), and thedoors are locked. The guards thenexit the same way they came, leav-ing the player characters in darkness.

SACRIFICESTO THE WORM GOD

SEVERAL HOURS pass by be-fore the light of torches can be seenapproaching once again. As thegroup watches, a troupe of HighMartians in robes, carrying torchesand spiked maces, comes into view.There are approximately four ofthese priests for every member of theplayer characters' party.

The priests unlock the cells andlead the party back toward the mainshaft. Once there, the head priest

leads the group into another of thetunnels sprouting off from the shaft'sfloor. The procession escorts theplayer characters down a long, con-fusing array of tunnels, making a be-wildering number of turns andchoosing cross tunnels seemingly atrandom. All the tunnels appear emp-ty of slaves or High Martians; noteven the echo of a voice finds its wayhere from the populated regions.

Eventually, the procession haltsbefore a heavy brass door, much tar-nished with age. The head WormPriest intones a long and complicatedspeech in a guttural language theplayer characters have never heard,then draws a huge brass key from be-neath his robe and unlocks the door.The procession leads the prisonerswithin.

Inside, the player characters dis-cover an almost perfectly hemispher-ical cavern approximately 10 feethigh at its center. The walls and ceil-ing are of a glossy black stone,carved intricately with minute char-acters. The floor is of a dull blackstone polished almost completelysmooth, and grooves are worn in itby the feet of generations of WormPriests performing ritual ceremonies.In the center of the room, surround-ed by a deep trough cut into the floor,looms a dark gray slab eight feet longby four feet wide by three feet high.

Both slab and trough show sinisterstains.

Again the procession stops, andthe head priest intones anotherprayer. Then he moves to the headof the slab and signals for a prisonerto be brought forth. One of the groupof prisoners, an NPC if possible,otherwise a PC chosen at random, isunchained from the others, and hisclothes are rent to his waist, expos-ing his chest. He is carried to the al-tar and laid upon it. The head WormPriest draws forth a wicked-lookingbrass dagger and intones anotherprayer, then prepares to cut the vic-tim's throat.

If, during any part of this scene,the player characters put up a fight,the ceremony will be halted while thepriests bring the prisoners under con-trol. The referee should explain tothe players that there are four priestsfor every member of the player char-acters' party, and the player charac-ters are bound besides. It is an easyenough task for the Worm Priests toprevail and hold the prisoners still,without knocking them unconscious.In the struggle, however, the playercharacters might be pulled to thefloor. The referee should understandthat it is not important that the PCsbe able to see the sacrifice but onlythat they are able to hear the inter-ruption soon to take place.

A CHANGE OF PLANS

A CHANGE OF PLANSJUST AS THE high priest pre-

pares to cut the first victim's throat,a crackle of static reverberates in theroom, drawing everyone's attention.Even the priests look surprised.There is a hum of power, and thena painfully loud voice springs fromthe very air, commanding, in grace-fully pronounced Umbran, "I cravethe taste of living flesh this once! Killthem not, but cast them into Hell'sMaw!"

The hum disappears with anothercrackle of static, and the chamber issilent once more. The High Martianpriests are frozen as if stunned, andtheir eyes are wide with awe. Thenthe head priest collects himself andbarks a command to the others. Theprisoners are once more linked to-gether and are then led out of thechamber.

Pausing in the tunnel outside thedoor, the head Worm Priest oncemore chants a prayer before lockingit, but this time he mumbles thewords in a rush. Finally he finishesand turns to lead the group down thetunnels once again.

This time the party marches evenfurther than before, ever deeper in-to the rock. In some places, dust issettled on the tunnel floor; in others,water trickles from the ceiling, form-ing stalactites and stalagmites thatthreaten to block the tunnel. Afternearly half an hour of walking, thegroup comes out on a narrow ledgein a gigantic natural cavern. The ceil-ing disappears into blackness, and agaping chasm opens at the group'sfeet, its bottom lost in darkness.From the dim echoes, the players canguess that the cavern is truly im-mense.

Again the Worm Priests seize theplayer characters and their compan-ions. They separate the link betweenthe first one and the rest, cut hisbonds, lift him up in their arms, and,

without a word of warning, cast himoff the ledge into the chasm. One byone, each of the other party membersis loosed and cast into the chasm aswell.

GDW

GUESTS OF THE WORM LORD

GUESTS OF THE WORM LORD

Guests of the Worm LordIN THIS CHAPTER, the player

characters at last meet the WormLord whose machinations havebrought them to the Worm Cult.

A TERRIFYING FALLAFTER ALL MEMBERS of the

player characters' party have beencast into the chasm by the WormPriests, the referee can read thefollowing narrative description tothem.

Cast off the ledge into Hell's Maw,you find yourselves plummeting help-lessly through the darkness. The windrushes past you as you hurtle towardthe chasm's unseen bottom. As yourvelocity increases, the very speed ofthe wind begins to drown out any ex-ternal sounds, and even breathingbecomes very difficult, as if you werefacing into the most ferocious gale.

After several minutes of time mea-sured only by your frenzied heart-beats, you feel a sudden jerk, as ifyou had struck some spongy materialand were passing through it. No tac-tile sensation accompanies this feel-ing of resistance, however. But youcan easily tell that the momentum ofyour fall is slowed. It is almost as ifyou are being repelled by some sortof magnetism, if a magnet could re-pel flesh and blood. A few seconds

later you pass through the bottom ofthis resistant region and begin free-fall once again. But before you canaccumulate any speed, you hit yetanother layer of resistance. In all,you encounter a dozen of these lay-ers, and each slows your fall some-what more.

Then, without warning, as youpass through the bottom of the lastlayer, light blazes around you, as ifyou tore through a veil. Blinded, youplummet another 50 feet or so intodeep water. The breath is knockedout of you as you strike the water'ssurface and dive deeply down. Youbegin a panicked struggle to regainthe surface, but even in your extremi-ty, a small corner of your mind re-joices already that it was not a stonyfloor you struck. Against all hope,you are alive!

HAPPY LANDINGSTHE WATER THAT the player

characters and their companions dropinto is in the kidney-shaped pool atthe center of an ancient undergroundcomplex (details about this complexfollow later in this section). In orderto pull themselves from the pool,each player character should make aDifficult roll with his Swimmingdice. Those who fail regain the

surface but are too exhausted to reachthe pool's edge, being barely able tohold their heads above water. Thosewho succeed pull themselves onto theshore, and as they see their compan-ions reaching the surface, they canalso rescue those who failed the roll.

Finally, after everyone is out of thewater and shivering on the pool'sedge, the player characters can takestock of their surroundings. Whatthey discover is a large cavern, filledwith dark metallic buildings and litby overhead strips that are suspend-ed from the cavern ceiling above.The air in the cavern is a bit chillyand stale, and dust lies inches thicknearly everywhere.

If they examine the pool they havefallen into, they will discover that awithered body is lying on the bottom(about 30 feet down), dressed in astrange robe of metallic cloth andheld down by chains of dark metal,very similar to the metal walls of thebuildings around them. The skin ofthe body is very pale, almost white,but other than that, the drowned per-son appears to be quite human.

Further examination of the poolwill reveal a current of fresh watercoming from the pool's bottom, ap-parently from slits that can be dimlyperceived in the floor.

GDW

AN ABSENT HOST

AN ABSENT HOST

KLEUHT NA VRISS, the solitarydweller of the underground complexin which the player characters findthemselves, is busy with other mat-ters when the group drops in, so theplayer characters will have severaldays to explore the undergroundcomplex in which they find them-selves. It is very important in run-ning this portion of the adventure,

however, that the referee have a firmunderstanding of na Vriss, even be-fore the player characters encounterhim.

Kleuht na Vriss is the last livingmember of a race of almost humanpeople who dwelt on Mars eons ago,long before Mars entered its presentarchaeological age and the present-day Martian races evolved. Na Vriss'race was highly advanced in the sci-ences, and one of its greatest discov-

eries was the secret of near immor-tality. After undergoing this medicaltreatment, the cells of a person'sbody would cling to life past all ex-pectation. The effects of aging werenullified by the constant rejuvenationof those cells, meaning that bodiesno longer wore out with the passingof the years. This same rejuvenationwould repair the most grievous in-juries. Only if food, water, or air,the necessities of life, were withheld

Kleuht na Vriss, Lord of the Worm (Elite NPC)

KLEUHT NA VRISS claims tobe the unseen god of the WormCult, and his vast knowledge of an-cient sciences, coupled with his un-nerving alien grace, lends credenceto this statement. His race is inde-terminate—his strange eyes markhim as something other than hu-man, yet his human features markhim as something other than Mar-tian. He claims to be the last rem-nant of a race that dwelt on Marsmillions of years ago, before theevolution of the flying High Mar-tians and their cousins, the SteppeMartians and Canal Martians. NaVriss claims to have lived thosemillions of years himself, most ofthem in the underground complexwhere the PCs discover him. Whilethis seems impossible, it is difficultto offer any other explanation for

his alienness and familiarity with thetechnology of the ancients.

In fact, Kleuht na Vriss is amember of that long-vanished race,proof that Mars and Earth are follow-ing similar geological ages and evo-lution of species. Whether na Vrisshimself has been alive for all thoseages is uncertain, but he has obvi-ously been alive for a very long time,and his lifespan has shaped his mindto such an alien viewpoint as to makehim be considered insane by humans.

Na Vriss knows a number of deadlanguages in addition to those below.

Att. SkillsStr: 3 Fisticuffs 4, Close Com-

bat 6 (edged weapon)Agl: 5 Stealth 4, Marksmanship

6 (pistol), Mechanics 6(electricity)

End: 6 Swimming 5Int: 5 Observation 4, Science 6

(physics)Chr: 4 Eloquence 4, Theatrics 2,

Linguistics 5 (High Oeno-trian, Son-Gaaryani, Par-hooni, Umbran, Khallan)

Soc: 6 Piloting 6 (sky vessel),Medicine 3

Motives: Arrogant, Mad.Appearance: The Lord of the

Worm, Kleuht na Vriss, is almosthuman in appearance. He is justunder six feet tall, and although ex-tremely thin, he is within normalhuman ranges. His features arenearly human in shape, size, andarrangement. The only abnormalityis a long and rather pointed chin,which adds an alien quality to hiswide, thin-lipped smile. What ful-ly separates his appearance fromstandard human is the color of hisskin and hair—both of an almostivory hue. As well, na Vriss' eyesare completely black, and no irisor pupil can be discerned againstthe sclera. In moments of stress, itis also revealed that na Vriss' eyeshave a nictitating membrane, alsoivory-colored.

Na Vriss dresses in a tunic,trousers, and sandals, all made ofsome amazingly flexible metalliccloth that seems to repel any soil.He usually carries a fist-sizedemerald in his left hand, and hestrokes it meditatively, as if it werea pet, while his strange blank eyesstare seemingly into infinity.

AN ABSENT HOST

would the cells cease their activity,and even then they retained a sparkof life that could be rekindled byproper medical treatment.

In effect, then, a person could bedrowned, suffocated, starved, elec-trocuted, or dismembered, and stillbe brought back to life. Only by totaldestruction, such as cremation, coulda person's complete and final deathbe brought about. (Note that thismeans the bodies the player charac-ters will find at various places in thecomplex could be brought back tolife, assuming knowledge of theproper medical procedures wereavailable. )

This longevity did not ensure aperson's happiness, however. A mul-timillionaire can have more moneythan he can spend in a lifetime andstill worry about losing it to misfor-tune. In some ways, he becomesmore cognizant of the hazards thathis fortune can fall prey to. In thesame way, a person who is almostimmortal can become more obsessedwith mortality than a person whoseeventual death is certain. Mortalsmay fear the withering sickness; im-mortals fear the passing of the uni-verse into darkness.

As well as bringing a morbid fearof death, the near-immortality ofthese ancient people also broughtthem more years than their mindscould hope to contain. As the agespassed, new knowledge crammed outold knowledge in the fevered brainsof these men and women. Eventual-ly they began to forget their own his-tories, even their own names. Ahopeless sense of lostness began toset in, and one by one they began topass into insanity. Eventually theirmental suffering became so intensethat their minds became set on the

only means of escape possible tothem—irrevocable death. Like a bit-ter joke, immortality drove them tosuicide. A very few—the bodies thatthe player characters find in the com-plex, for example—have chosensomething other than complete de-struction, hoping against hope thatthey might awake in later ages tohappiness.

Kleuht na Vriss is the only remain-ing member of his race, which is tosay that he is the only member whohas not yet destroyed himself. Un-fortunately, he is as hopelessly madas any of his race has ever been. It

is he who created the Worm Cultwith its insane precepts, for exam-ple, proof enough of his madness. Inperson, however, na Vriss usuallyseems completely oriented to reality.

But one other thing betrays naVriss' insanity, and that is the factthat while the man is brilliant, hisbrilliance is marred by forgetfulnessand fits of whimsy. It was in a fit ofwhimsy, for example, that na Vrissfirst conceived of his plot to bringTerrans to his underground abode.It is forgetfulness that keeps him ab-sent for the first few days that theyare there.

GDW

LEARNING FROM THE ANCIENTS

SOME BASIC FACTSAFTER THE PLAYER characters

crawl out of the pool that theydropped into, they will have severaldays to explore the undergroundcomplex that they find themselves in.The referee will need to know somebasic facts about the complex to bestrun this period of exploration.

First, the place is so ancient thatalmost all materials involved in itsmaking have disintegrated over theages. Only the strange metal that thebuildings' walls are constructed ofhas stood, unchanged, through time.If the player characters try to test thismetal in some way, such as by at-tempting to scratch it with a rock,they will discover that it is hardereven than diamond. Inside thesebuildings, the original furnishingshave all decomposed into dust, evenitems of such metals as copper andiron. Outside the buildings, the ex-terior paint has disintegrated andfallen to join the rock dust on thecavern floor.

Fortunately for the player charac-ters, none of the accesses to thesebuildings are locked, except for thegate to the wall separating the powerstation from the rest of the complex.The electronic machinery in thesebuildings also still works, being con-structed of some solid-state circuitrythat the player characters will beunable to fathom. From this machin-ery the PCs can get food, clothing,and even some information, as willbe explained below.

The bodies that the player charac-ters find are all dressed similarly, andall are of the same race as na Vriss.Each body is withered and dried, butthe skin is incredibly tough, ratherthan fragile or papery, and the bones

hang together rather than tumblingapart. All of these people are notdead in the same sense of the wordas a human would be dead, but theycan only be revived by ancient med-ical techniques that Kleuht na Vrisshas almost forgotten. Of course, ifhe wished, na Vriss could certainlyfind the information in one of thecomputing machines located in thecompound.

LEARNINGFROM THE ANCIENTS

IT IS ENTIRELY possible that theplayer characters could learn some-thing from their exploration of thisunderground complex, especially ifthey make a point of viewing the dis-plays of the computers in the libraryor laboratory, or if they watch thehologram programs at the assemblyhall. As well, a Chemist player char-acter might be able to learn some-thing in the chemistry lab, and an En-gineer character might be able tolearn something from the heavyequipment in the laboratory's mill-ing room. Skills that might be im-proved in this way include all Me-chanics, Engineering, and Scienceskills.

Because of the ancient languagesused in the computer displays, theplayer characters will not be able tounderstand the verbal content, and ingeneral, the sciences of na Vriss'race are so advanced as to be nearlyunrecognizable to humans. Nonethe-less, they might be able to pick someclues out of the visual content of thefiles they stumble upon. In each case,the referee should first have a playermake a Formidable saving throwversus the skill that he would like hischaracter to improve, to determineif the character knows enough aboutthe skill to even recognize its men-tion in the alien sources. If the playersucceeds at this roll, his character hasa chance to learn something new. Todetermine if he actually learns some-thing, the player should roll 1D6,and if he rolls higher than the levelhis character has in that skill, hischaracter gains one point.

Note that because of the time re-quired to study the alien sources,each character can only improve oneskill in this way.

Inventor characters should also begiven more research dice as a resultof their experiences in the under-ground complex. The number andtype of dice to be awarded is left tothe referee's discretion.

EXPLORING THEUNDERGROUND COMPLEXA DIAGRAM OF the under-

ground complex is included on page59. Descriptions of the individualbuildings are given on the next twopages, with the exception of thepower plant which is locked off fromthe player characters and in whichKleuht na Vriss is occupied for thefirst few days that the playercharacters are exploring.

THE UNDERGROUND COMPLEX

The Power PlantBEHIND THE IMMENSE wall

which seals off the southeastern endof the cavern, there lies a largebuilding guarded by two smallsecurity offices. This building housesthe incredibly advanced dynamos

that provide power to the cavern.Huge computers are located here aswell, and Kleuht na Vriss has con-nected them to communicators locat-ed at various spots in the territorysurrounding Kraag Barrovaar above.It is through these communicatorsthat na Vriss keeps contact with the

most important of his Worm Priests.In order to ensure the proper

operation of this equipment, na Vrisshas to spend much of his time doingmaintenance work, and to simplifymatters, he moved his personal be-longings into the building long ago,making it his permanent home.

GDW

BUILDING DESCRIPTIONS

THE BUILDINGDESCRIPTIONS

THE FOLLOWING descriptionswill help the referee run the adven-ture as the player characters explore.

The PoolAS WAS MENTIONED earlier,

the pool into which the player char-acters fell after being cast into Hell'sMaw is about 30 feet deep, and it hasa fresh current flowing into it fromthe bottom. What appears to be a hu-man body is lying on the floor of thepool, dressed in strange silvery cloth-ing and weighted down by untar-nished metal chains. If the playercharacters somehow manage to bringthis body back to the surface for ex-amination (30 feet is awfully deep totry to dive to the bottom), the refereeshould describe it following the de-scription of na Vriss, with the excep-tion that this body is female.

The Mess HallDIRECTLY TO THE west of the

pool is a fair-sized building with onlyone room inside. Along the entire in-ner west wall of this room stands acomplicated-looking machine with itsfront completely covered with but-tons and horizontal slots. This ma-chine is a food converter—usingelectricity supplied by the powerplant and an interior stock of organiccompounds somehow held in stasis,the machine makes food to the oper-ator's order.

Unfortunately, the signs and pic-tures that used to inform the operatorof what buttons provide what itemswhen pushed have all disintegratedwith the passage of time. The playercharacters can safely eat and drinkwhatever the machine provides forthem, but each time they use it, it isanybody's guess as to what sort offood it will serve.

The Lava BuildingJUST BEHIND THE mess hall

stands a smaller building built intothe rock wall of the cavern. If theplayer characters open the door, in-tense heat and a sulfurous stench willcome boiling out, originating froma deep crevasse in the floor. The in-terior of the building is lit fitfully bythe glow of a river of lava that liesat the bottom of that crevasse, about20 feet down. Many of na Vriss'people permanently ended their livesin that river of lava.

The LaboratorySOUTH OF THE mess hall and

the lava building stands a huge struc-ture that houses a great deal oflaboratory equipment. Na Vriss stillcomes here sometimes to experi-ment, when the urge takes him, andhe has kept it stocked with glasswareand chemicals. In the milling room,another seemingly human body canbe found lying prone on the floor,headless, next to a massive press.The ram of the press is fully de-pressed, as if the person stuck hishead in the machine and crushed it.

The Gate to the Power PlantSTRETCHING ACROSS the

southeast corner of the cavern is animmense, floor-to-ceiling wall withone centrally located gate. Despiteany efforts on the part of the playercharacters, the gate will remainlocked until Kleuht na Vriss deignsto come out and speak to the PCsseveral days after they have arrived.

The Director's HomeTO THE EAST of the central pool

stands a building that used to be thehome of the director of this com-

BUILDING DESCRIPTIONS

pound. It is impossible to determineexactly what the rooms inside wereoriginally intended for since all of thefurnishings have disintegrated withage. In the northeastern room, how-ever, the body of a male of na Vriss'race hangs from a wire noose. Thenoose is apparently of the same metalas the walls.

The Mining ShedNORTHEAST OF THE director's

home stands a building accessed by20-foot-wide sliding metal doors.The back wall has another set of sim-ilar doors which open onto a mineshaft that runs back as far as theplayer characters care to walk. Insidethe shack are two small drill cars atthe northern end (neither of whichworks any longer) and a stack of me-tal crates at the south end. Most ofthese crates are empty, but one ischock full of exquisite emeralds ofall sizes.

The Assembly HallJUST NORTH OF the pool stands

a building that was once some sortof theater or playhouse. The floorslopes downward toward a stage rest-ing at the west end, and although allof the seats have rusted away, thefloor is tiered in such a way as to sug-gest they once existed. In the otherroom of this hall a few controls arelocated on one wall, and if they aremanipulated, the player characterscan call up a whole host of hologramdramas at the stage end of the hall.

The referee should consider the ef-fect of 3D holograms on 19th-cen-tury PCs when describing their ap-pearance. It will seem as if realfigures have sprung into existence,but experimentation will prove themto be intangible.

The Security BuildingTO THE NORTH of the assembly

hall is located what used to be thesecurity building. On its eastern sideis an office, and on its western sideare two large cells, one of which con-tains the bodies of two more of naVriss' ancient companions, both fe-male. Although the player charactershave no way of knowing it, these twoindividuals starved themselves todeath. They locked themselves intothe cell to ensure that they would notchange their minds in a moment ofweakness.

The Storage ShedEAST OF THE assembly hall and

the security building is a small stor-age shed. Absolutely nothing is leftinside it.

The Ether FlyerUP A FLIGHT of steps, in a small

shaft that leads upward to a pinpointof light, stands a strange conveyancethat looks much like an ether flyer.If the player characters board it, theywill discover that its interior hasrusted away, with the exception ofthe control panel. If they fiddle withthe controls, the flyer's engine willrespond weakly, as if its batteries arenearly dead. The referee should ex-plain to them that in their best estima-tion, only a very desperate personwould try to fly the thing unless ithad a complete overhaul and theywere fully familiar with its controls.A complete overhaul is, of course,out of the question.

The LibraryIN THE NORTHWEST corner of

the cavern is a library of sorts. Eachof the rooms here has large wall units

that will call up alien-looking refer-ences on almost any topic. From por-ing over the pictures and diagramsincluded, the player characters mightbe able to learn something about al-most any subject imaginable. Be-cause the languages in which thesesubjects are recorded have long sincedied away, it will be impossible forthe PCs to call up information exceptin a random method.

The BarracksSOUTH OF THE library is locat-

ed a long building with a central hallrunning its length; both sides of thehall are divided into 10-foot-squarecubicles. The best guess that the PCsmight make about this building is thatit served as some sort of barracks.

GDW

MEETING THE WORM LORD

MEETING THE WORM LORDAFTER A FEW days have passed,

the player characters will have begunto grow bored with their surround-ings. They cannot tell the passage oftime while they are here, and eachday will become another cycle ofwaking, eating, and sleeping, inter-spersed with attempts to decipher thestrange dramas in the assembly halland the incredible files in the variouscomputers. The PCs begin to fancythemselves to be caged rats providedwith all the food and water that theyneed, but with no stimulating eventsto make them feel alive. They mayeven begin to feel that they under-stand why the fellow in the easternbuilding hung himself.

Then one day, the great gate of thesoutheastern wall opens, and outstrides a living representative of arace that the player characters haveonly found deceased examples of.Kleuht na Vriss walks to the pool inthe center of the cavern and calls outin perfect Parhooni for the partymembers to come speak with him.

DAYS OF REVELATIONOVER THE COURSE of the next

few days, na Vriss first explains tothe party members all about the un-derground complex that they findthemselves in. He identifies the pur-pose of each building and describeshow it was furnished in the past, andhe tells tales of the people who dweltthere. The referee can make up allthis information as he goes, not both-ering to even be consistent in his de-scriptions, since na Vriss' memoriesof such things are scrambled.

Next, na Vriss tells the group allabout his people. He explains thatthey found the secret of immortality

and describes how it eventuallydrove them all mad. The refereeshould draw heavily on the descrip-tion of na Vriss earlier in this chapterfor this information, but again, if aninconsistency or two occur, thereshould be no cause for alarm.

After that, na Vriss asks the playercharacters all about their race andplanet. If they know anything aboutVenus, he questions them about thatplanet as well. With each revelationthey make, he nods his head andmakes such comments as, "Aha, "and, "I should have guessed asmuch, " and even, "So you see, theplanets really are following similarevolutionary patterns—you and I arenot so different as one might im-agine. "

CONFESSIONAFTER THE explanations above

have been made, na Vriss excuseshimself and returns to the powerplant, locking the player charactersand their companions outside onceagain. A few minutes later, loud-speakers crackle to life all over thecomplex, and na Vriss begins tospeak over them, revealing lesssavory truths to the group.

First, na Vriss explains to thegroup that he established the WormCult as his eyes, ears, and hands onthe planet's surface. He has, ofcourse, had no face-to-face dealingswith the Worm Priests, preferring toremain a spiritual force in theirminds rather than a physical one.

Then na Vriss confesses to theplayer characters that nearly every-thing they have experienced sincethey first set foot in Syrtis Major hasbeen his doing. He explains this allmatter-of-factly and without anysense of gloating.

Na Vriss tells them that it was hewho had the book with references tothe tomb of Haataneethra I plantedwhere Teegok Quuglaani would findit, rightly judging that the old Mar-tian would have to go to humans tofind backing for his venture. It wasna Vriss who sent the assassin afterQuuglaani in order to firmly con-vince the group of the information'svalue. Likewise, he arranged the twopurposely failed attempts on the play-er characters' lives, both the archerand the poisoned wine. It was naVriss who sent Mynosii Aalum tohave someone order a cask of Saar-daari Spice Wine in the inn the hu-mans frequented, arranging it so thatAalum, in his guise as merchant,would have a stock of the rare wineon hand when the landlord went topurchase it. And, of course, it wasna Vriss who had Aalum poison thewine with macaava root, since naVriss knew from his own testing thatthe poison was not fatal to humans.Finally, it was agents of na Vrisswho left the threatening note in thePCs' room.

Once the group members left Syr-tis Major, Mynosii Aalum was sentalong to destroy whatever ship theytook, stranding them by the Parhoon/Gorovaanese canal where they couldbe picked up by the Moon of Woe.The Moon, of course, was also sentout by Hattabranx at the instigationof the Worm Priests, at na Vriss' or-der as Lord of the Worm. The timethe player characters spent with theSteppe Martians (if they spent anytime with them), na Vriss admits,was the one point at which theystrayed from his care. Of course,with enough goading of the HighMartian Worm Priests, he was ableto rectify this mistake.

DEATH SENTENCE, ESCAPE, AND EPILOGUE

Following his indirect instructions,Hattabranx turned the group over tothe Worm Priests, and, of course, itwas na Vriss who interrupted the sac-rifice with the command that the PCsbe cast into Hell's Maw.

With all this confessed, na Vrissthen proceeds to tell them why hewent to all the trouble. He explains,"I had heard that there were mencome to Mars who looked much likemy own race, you see, and I wantedto have a chance to look them over,to decide if my theory about the par-allel evolution of the worlds was cor-rect. And, of course, it was. "

DEATH SENTENCENA VRISS has one more thing left

to explain to the player characters:Now that his curiosity has been sat-isfied, they have to die, of course,to keep his secret safe. To give thema sporting chance, he states that hewill let them have five minutes tohide among the buildings, and thenhe will come hunting them with anenergy rifle. This energy rifle is arelatively light weapon that fires afocused beam of radiation, so it hasno kick (required Strength of 1). Ithas virtually unlimited shots, does 6wounds, and requires a save of 1. Aswell, it has no trigger mechanism,being fired by its owner's mind, soeven if the PCs manage to captureone, they will not be able to use it.

It is not very heroic for the playercharacters to flee at this point, butthings are definitely stacked againstthem. They have only their barehands as weapons while the WormLord has an energy rifle, and theirlives are mortal, while he is nearlyimmortal. Given the circumstances,flight is probably the wisest choicethey can make. The referee should

use all his skill in emphasizing thetension and drama of the moment asthe immortal madman begins to stalkthem through the city streets.

(If the group members come upwith some plan other than flight, thereferee should allow them to attemptit, but he should stress the danger ofna Vriss' weapon. In particular, itmight be possible for the PCs to lurena Vriss into the lava building andpush him in, although this is likelyto be very dangerous, particularly asthe Worm Lord, while mad, is nofool. )

ESCAPEEVENTUALLY, THE group

members should come to the realiza-tion that the only way out of theunderground complex is to use thealien flyer standing in the shaft northof the cavern. As they fire the thingup, it shakes and shivers, as ifsomething were about to fall apart,but it begins to leave the ground,albeit slowly. Through the portholes,the group can see Kleuht na Vrissrunning toward them, and he seems,for the first time since they met him,to be visibly upset. His normallydispassionate face is twisted in rageas he helplessly watches the flyerbegin to inch its way upward. Justbefore he disappears from view, heraises his energy rifle to his shoulderand fires. A searing beam of lightlances into the flyer's side, and thehull pings with heat, then the flyeris climbing rapidly up the shaft.

Whoever is flying the craft shouldhave to make a series of three sav-ing throws versus their Piloting(Aerial Flyer or Interplanetary EtherFlyer) skill, as the shaft the flyer isin twists and turns. The refereeshould explain that the speed control

does not seem to be working proper-ly, and the flyer continues to accel-erate as it climbs. The first turn thatthe flyer must pass requires a Routineroll; the second requires a Difficultroll; and the third requires an Im-possible roll. If the rolls are passed,the flyer narrowly misses collidingwith the shaft's side, and the pilot canbe congratulated on his handling.Whenever a roll is failed, however,the referee should grimace and de-scribe how the flyer collides with thewall, tearing loose hull plates, thencontinuing on its way. No matterhow poorly the pilot rolls, the vesselwill not crash, but the players shouldbelieve that it is about to fall apartat any minute. Finally, the flyer willlaunch itself out of the shaft and in-to the open air.

EPILOGUEONCE THE FLYER is out of the

shaft, the pilot can turn it towardParhoon, Gorovaan, or Mylarkt. Thevessel will carry the group to within50 miles of any of those cities beforemaking its last gasp and dropping tothe ground. The PCs will have tomarch that last 50 miles. Uponreaching their target city, if theymount an expedition back to thecrash site, they will discover that theflyer is gone.

No one will believe their storyabout an ancient immortal living be-neath Kraag Barrovaar, but if thePCs have been careful, they willhave come out of the adventure withsome increases in skills, a few pock-etfuls of emeralds, and a map to anancient tomb. Of course, the PCswill also have the Worm Lord's re-venge to worry about. Both map andWorm Lord's revenge can serve asstarting points for new adventures.

GDW

M

SPACE: 1889• The newest role-playing concept in years!• Science-fiction adventure in a more civilized time.Red-coated infantry stand back-to-back on the sandy banks of a Martian canal.

Explorers brave the Venusian swamps, pursued by giant lizards and the agents ofthe German Kaiser. Adventurers chart the jagged wastes of the Martian highlandsand battle the fierce beastmen while searching for the fabled liftwood groves, keysto the majestic sky galleons of Mars.

This 21 6-page hardbound rules book is the heart of the Space: 1889 role-playinggame. It contains the complete role-playing rules, plus the exciting background ofVictorian science fiction: ether flyers and Martian cloudships, the canals and civiliza-tions of the red planet, Venus' swamps and dinosaurs, the honeycombed interiorof Luna, and the thrills of inventions and inventors —the driving force behind Vic-toria's multiworld empire!

From the canals of Mars to the steaming jungles of Venus to the subsurface cavernsof the Moon, Space: 1889 is the most exciting role-playing game in years.

216 pages hardbound.$30. 00.Stock Number: 1889.ISBN 0-943580-80-3.

SPACE: 1889REFEREE'S SCREEN

• A must for every 1889 referee!Just what every Space: 1889 referee

needs to speed play: a complete 34" by11" decorative screen with all the perti-nent charts and diagrams necessary forfaster play. Every chart, table, anddiagram required to play Space: 1889 isright at your fingertips. Also included isa complete additional set of game chartsfor distribution to players. The screenitself is in full color with beautiful illustra-tions, an ideal accessory for the adven-tures of the century!

$10. 00.Stock Number: 1981.ISBN 1-55878-015-7.

CONKLIN'SATLAS OF THE WORLDS• Planetary maps!• Legendary places.• Unexplored territory.

Conklin's Atlas contains beautifullydetailed maps for the inner Solar Sys-tem worlds of Space: 1889. Conklin'scovers Earth, Mars, Venus, Mercury,the oceans, railroads, airship lines, bor-ders, unexplored territory, and muchmore. It covers topics ranging fromdetailed treatments of particular geo-graphical features, like the planet-spanning World River of Mercury, topurported maps of locations out oflegend, such as the mysterious lostcontinent of Atlantis. The enlighteningtext included with these maps willserve as an entertaining guide for thereferee, sparking adventures that willrun from the tense politics of colonialrelations to the fantastic dangers oflong-forgotten civilizations.

96 pages.$10. 00Stock Number: 1983.ISBN 1-55878-024-6.

Everything Jules Verne should have written.Everything H. G. Wells could have written.

Everything A. Conan Doyle thought of, but never published-because it was too fantastic.

Everything you need for the adventures of the century!

TALES FROM THE ETHER• Five thrilling adventures.• Mars, Venus, Mercury, Luna,

and Her Majesty's Orbital HeliographStation.

This anthology of adventures takesyou on a grand tour of the Solar System.Travel among the mountains and desertsof Mars, through the horrible swamps ofVenus, into the caverns of Luna, andacross the burnt face of Mercury. Eventhe Orbital Heliograph Station is a hotbedof anarchy with the aim of bringing downHer Majesty's government.

64 pages.$8. 00.Stock Number: 1901.ISBN 1-55878-01 1-4.

STEPPELORDS OF MARS• The Hill Martians.• And their brutal domain.Space: 1889 players will find danger

and intrigue among several differing na-tions of Hill Martians, the savage yet no-ble nomadic people who eke their liveli-hood from the barren deserts and hardyfrontiers of Mars. From this action-filledmodule, adventurers will gain a workingfamiliarity with some of the strange,ritualistic cultures of the Steppe Mar-tians, as their characters struggle to sur-vive in the hills and plains of Mars, thehomelands of the steppelords of Mars.

64 pages. Stock Number: 1904$8. 00. ISBN 1-55878-025-4.

CLOUDSHIPS AND GUNBOATS• Deck plans and additional ves-

sels for aerial battles over Mars.Enhance your Space: 1889 adventures

with large deck plans for cloudships andgunboats, beautifully executed for im-mediate play. But Cloudships and Gun-boats is more than just a collection ofdeck plans. It has additional informationand construction rules for vessels, moreships for Space: 1889, and rules on howto use the deck plans with the card stockminiatures provided —25mm charactersin full color with plastic stands.

Boxed.$20. 00.Stock Number: 1982.ISBN 1-55878-021-1.

CARAVANS OF MARSWhere the Martian canals are no longer

functional or where they were nevercreated in ancient times, transportationneeds have been taken over by vastcaravans. Large wagons pulled by half-wild Martian beasts and protected bynefarious mercenaries carry items fortrade between cities otherwise isolatedfrom one another. Join a caravan expedi-tion bound for Alclyon, a caravan besetby bad omens and subtle sabotage.Someone is willing to go to great lengthsto see that the caravan does not reachits destination.

64 pages. Stock Number: 1903.$8. 00. ISBN 1-55878-023-8.

SPACE: 1889 RELEASESFOR THIS YEAR

1889 Space: 1889 $30

1890 Sky Galleons of Mars $28

1891 Ironclads & Ether Flyers (June) $28

1981 Referee's Screen $10

1901 Tales From the Ether $8

1 982 Cloudships & Gunboats (Mar. )$20

1902 Beastmen of Mars (Apr. ) $8

1903 Caravans of Mars (May) $8

1983 Conklin's Atlas (May) $10

1904 Steppelords of Mars (Aug. ) $8

1984 Soldier's Companion (July) $12

1892 Temple of the Beastmen (Sept. ) $24

1905 Cloud Captains of Mars (Oct. ) $8

1906 More Tales From the Ether (July) $8

1985 Venus Sourcebook (Nov. ) $10

PO Box 1 646Bloomington, IL 61 702-1646

Science-fiction role playing in a more civilized time.

Copyright© 1989 GDW inc.Space: 1889 is GDW\ mult-mark for its role-playing game of Victorian Era . space- faring.

GDW 1902

S i n c e 1973

Made in U. S. A.Printed in U. S. A.

ISBN 1-55878-022-XPO Box 1646

Bloomington, IL 61702-1646