❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

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VERSION 2.3 - SEPTEMBER 2015
The Gates Of Hellwinter by Andrea Tupac
Mollica is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-
ShareAlike 4.0 International License
DESIGN, LAYOUT AND MAPS
Andrea Tupac Mollica.
REVISION
Stuart Lloyd.
ART
Andrea Tupac Mollica, Canicula, Jef
Thompson, Lord Zsezse Works, The
Forge.
All art used with license.
Fighting Fantasy™ and Advanced Fight-
ing Fantasy™ are registered trademarks.
VISIT MY BLOG
hellwinter.blogspot.it
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FOREWORD
The Gates of Hellwinter was the first ad-
venture scenario I wrote for the Fighting
Fantasy™ Role-Playing Game back in 2010.
Since then, for some strange reason, I had
the opportunity to story-tell it over and
over again to various groups of role-players,
more than any other adventure I ever wrote.
In its original form, this scenario was meant
for the basic Fighting Fantasy™ RPG, only
slightly modified by some house rules of
my own. But now, thanks to the interest of
Stuart Lloyd (a fellow devourer of Role-
Playing Games and Game-Books) it has
been revised for the Advanced Fighting Fan-
tasy RPG™ 2nd Edition ruleset, and re-
vamped to the actual version which, I hope,
stands as a decent fantasy module that will
grant some merry hour of good gaming.
If you want to share any thought about this
scenario, please feel free to write me to
atmollica@gmail.com or visit my blog.
SETTING
The Gates of Hellwinter is meant for a
group of 2 to 4 Heroes, and - thanks to its
linearity - it’s particularly suitable as an in-
troductory module for a newly-created
party of adventurers. With a little effort by
the Director it can be adapted to a larger, or
even a smaller, party.
The Director should set this adventure in
any northern region, scarcely populated and
possibly secluded from greater kingdoms.
In these lands the currency is the Golden
Crown (GC) and its tenth part, the Silver
Schilling (SS).
❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER
SOUNDTRACK
It would be a good idea to play a sound-
track during the game to further the role-
play experience and add a musical com-
ment to the events and places described in
this scenario. So, for every Scene of the ad-
venture we will suggest the Director a
soundtrack that can be easily found on the
internet.
ADVENTURE SYNOPSIS
The party has been engaged in a message-
delivering quest. If the Heroes are newly-
created ones, assume they teamed up some
days ago, when they were hired - for a re-
ward of 20 Gold Crowns each - by Sir Be-
divere Grayson, Baron of Tyntern.
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Read Aloud
Sir Bedivere Grayson, Baron of Tyntern,
has hired you to urgently deliver a missive
to the northernmost outpost of his fief: a
solitary stone tower on the top of a rocky
peak always burdened by fierce icy winds,
called the Tower of Hellwinter, after the an-
cient name of that small and secluded
mountain region. The tower, however, en-
joys an excellent view of the borders be-
tween Grayson’s Barony and the lands of
his treacherous cousin: the Duke Mornay.
Every season’s change, one of the Baron’s
loyal knights volunteers to reach Hellwin-
ter and guard the borderlands by himself.
It’s a harsh and lonely task which, unsur-
prisingly, has gained for the solitary out-
post a gloomy fame…
Now, almost three months have passed
since Sir Gallaharn Kairn, one of the brav-
est Baron’s knights, took on his duty, and
he still hasn’t sent any news to Sir Be-
divere, as he was supposed to do on a
weekly basis. Thus, the Baron has decided
to send a group of Heroes to check
whether something bad has happened.
Director’s Background: Nobody knows
that Sir Gallaharn, has fallen prey to a vi-
cious ICE FIEND.
The infernal creature freed itself from the
Crystal Cage: a cave deep in the bowels of
the Bron Mountains overhanging Hellwin-
ter, wherein it was imprisoned by the High
White Elves of Taranis centuries ago with
many others of its wicked kind. The cave
was inscribed with arcane symbols by a
powerful elven Sorcerer in order to keep
❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER
the demons at bay. But some months ago,
an incredibly violent thunderstorm shook
the mountains and broke some of the magi-
cal sigils, thus freeing one of the demons.
There are many more of its infernal kin still
imprisoned within the Crystal Cage, so the
mischievous monster has decided to haunt
and possess a mortal in order to force him
definitively break open the mystical sigils.
The ICE FIEND has no other choice, for
the powerful enchantments that still lock
shut the icy prison cannot be broken by the
hands of a servant of Evil.
For months, the ICE FIEND has haunted
the dreams of the poor knight, driving him
irremediably insane. Sir Gallaharn has been
convinced by the creature that he has found
the legendary Doors to Sheol: and entrance
to the underworld, and that if he were to
open them he could retrieve from the lands
of the dead his beloved wife, who died
three years ago to a cruel fever.
Needless to say, were the infernal ICE
FIENDS be freed from the Crystal Cage,
the entire region will soon fall prey to the
forces of darkness!
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SCENE 1
GALLOWS END
Soundtrack
Taverns of Azeroth, by David Arkenstone.
Read Aloud
After a two-days journey from Tyntern -
baron Grayson’s home - you finally enter at
dusk the small village of Gallows End, your
last leg before facing the Forest of Bron
and, eventually, ascending the mountains
in order to reach Hellwinter.
You know that on the last part of your
travel you will have to walk along a steep
path that leaves the forest to an insidious
mule-track.
Action: Gallows End counts a bunch of
stone houses scattered on a low hill near the
forest’s borders. Here, our adventurers may
find a tavern with a prancing gryphon sign-
board, where to rest for the incoming night.
It’s the Gryphon’s Nest, a cosy place run by a
scarred woman named Asa. The tavern’s
specialty is the Thunderbrew: an excellent
spicy strong ale. A meal, some Thunder-
brew and a bed in the tavern’s common
❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER
room for the night will cost the Heroes 1
Crown each. If they decide to enjoy their
last evening in a civilised area drinking near
the tavern’s fireplace, they overhear some
rumours and hearsay. The Director rolls
one die and compares the result with the
chart below.
1 The last knight to reach for Hellwin-
ter was a sad man named Gallaharn,
well-known and respected by the vil-
lagers. Some years ago, Gallaharn’s
wife died to an incurable fever. No
one in the village has heard of him
since he reached the tower at the be-
ginning of winter. [True]
2 A band of cutthroats, led by a dark
robed bandit, elected the forest its
home. [False]
3 An army of Undead is gathering on
the heights north of Hellwinter.
They’re searching for something
hidden amidst the highest moun-
tains. Maybe they plan to descend
on spring to ravage the lands of men.
[True, but this issue will be dealt
with in a forthcoming scenario:
The Three Beggars]
4 The Forest of Bron is a perilous
place, inhabited by ferocious beasts
and monsters. But in ancient times it
was home to a benign druidical or-
der. [True]
5 Dark Elves have recently been spot-
ted in the Forest of Bron. [False]
6 This has been the cruellest winter in
decades. The Hellwinter peak is vio-
lently shaken by fierce thunders al-
most every night. [True]
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In Gallows End there is also a small and
poorly-furnished emporium, where the He-
roes can purchase some equipment.
10 metres of rope 6 SS
Iron rations, each 4 SS
Linchpin 16 SS
Bronze mirror 3 GC
Violet Potion 8 GC
The emporium’s merchant knows nothing
about the Potion, but he firmly believes it
has magical properties, hence its rather high
price. In fact, it’s a Potion of Stamina. The
Potion’s properties may be detected with a
Test for Skill (Magic Lore), or by a Hero
with the Attunement Talent.
SCENE 2
THE FOREST OF BRON
Soundtrack
The Burning Crusade, by Russel Brower.
Read Aloud
At dawn, you check one last time your
equipment and leave Gallows End to start
your trek in the Forest of Bron, under a
dreary and darkened sky. As you leave the
village, some yokels glance at you with a
sorry look in their eyes.
As soon as you step into this wood of an-
cient oaks, beeches and maples, a gelid rain
starts pouring down like hell, dunking
heavy your clothes.
It seems likely this damn shower will see to
you throughout the reaching of Hellwin-
ter’s Tower.
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Action: For the events that take place in the

ENEMY SKI STA ATT
Forest of Bron see the referenced map be-
low and the following numbered sections. GOBLIN LEADER 7 6 1

! Ambushed!: A small band of errand First GOBLIN 5 6 1

GOBLINS has set camp here. The Second GOBLIN 6 5 1
creatures hear the Heroes approaching and
decide to ambush them to try and loot Third GOBLIN 5 7 1
some booty. But in their haste, the not-so-
smart monsters forgive to erase their tracks; Short Sword 1223334
so the ambush can be spotted by success- Leader’s Cuirass 0000112
fully Testing for Skill (Awareness or Forest
Lore). If the ambush were successful, the The GOBLINS meagre assets consist of:
GOBLINS start by throwing their daggers
❖ A pair of worn bone dice.
at the Heroes, then they rush to engage
❖ 25 Silver Shillings.
them in close combat with their short rusty
swords, yelling a crooked war cry. The dag- The GOBLIN LEADER’s leather cuirass is
gers will hit on a roll of 1 to 2 on a dice for 3 lousy, and too small to be worn by any Hero
STAMINA points of damage each. If the taller than a Dwarf. At the end of every
GOBLINS weren’t able to ambush the combat in which it’s used, its owner must
party, they nonetheless attack the Heroes. roll a die: with a result of 1-2 the cuirass
These stupid monsters fight to the death. falls apart.

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" The Remains of a Fight: Here the
party discovers something cruel that
happened about half a day ago. There is a
burned cart, still smoking in the damp air of
the forest, and the corpses of two woods-
men and a mule that have been cruelly
slain. These wretched woodcutters were
surprised by the GOBLINS of Area 1 while
they were going back home after a day of
hard work. Here the Heroes may find:
❖ A woodcutter axe: 2223334
❖ Bread and ham for two Provisions.
# A Stone Circle: This small clearing is
not easy to reach, for the path leading
here is hidden by bushes and moss-covered
stones. A successful Test for Skill (Forest
Lore) is necessary in order to spot the path
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to the clearing, as soon as the party gets
closer to its hidden outset. It’s also possible
for a Hero who passes a Test for Skill (Secret
Signs or Awareness) to recognise some an-
cient druidic runes, barely visible on what
remains of a fallen dolmen that marks the
entrance to the glen. If none of these Tests
for Skill succeed, the Heroes are lured to
think they’ve just come to a dead end.
Once in the glen, the party notices it has
been decades since this place was last tres-
passed by human beings. An eldritch, yet
serene, atmosphere permeates the place
and the cromlek: the circle of ancient stand-
ing stones found in its very centre. A small
altar of black stone stands in the circle. On
the altar lies a crude iron goblet, etched
with strange symbols.
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Fill me with the ruby pith of life
The Director hands over the Players the
Handout 1 to let them see the runic sym-
bols A clever Player may read the runic text
by himself - since it’s in english, albeit writ-
ten in a convoluted text font. Otherwise, a
Test for Skill (Languages: Runic) is required
to decipher the runes, whose meaning is:
Fill me with the ruby pith of life. A Hero with
the Natural Linguist Talent can try to deci-
pher the runes, too. The “ruby pith of life” is
no other than blood. If a Hero fills the gob-
let with 1 STAMINA point worth of his
blood, it will begin to boil quietly until it
transforms itself into a sparkling golden liq-
uid. The liquid counts as a Potion of Skill
and Luck (thus restoring these Statistics to
their Initial score), but it will work only on
the blood’s original owner. The goblet
works only once and it will turn into useless
rust were it ever to leave the stone circle.
SCENE 3
ASCENDING TO HELL
Soundtrack
Wrath of the Lich King, by Russel Brower.
Read Aloud
The climb to Hellwinter Peak is an arduous
one, indeed; even more than you’ve imag-
ined. You start trekking along a steep rocky
path, that rapidly becomes frozen and slip-
pery. There’s no sign of life here, and you
all feel a little uncomfortable.
Unnatural gelid winds, bearing echoes of
despair and death, whip your faces and the
frost is almost unbearable.
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Action: The Director must ask the Heroes
to Test for Skill (Terrain Lore: Mountain).
On a failure, they lose half a die STAMINA
points (round down) because of the cold,
unless they’re decently equipped and
dressed to face extreme cold. The Director
must also ask the party to make a Test for
Skill (Climbing) and a Test for Skill (Naviga-
tion) in order to avoid tripping and falling
off the ledges of the ice-covered path. If
such is the event, a Test for Luck is necessary
to avoid smashing oneself onto the peak’s
rocky spikes for two dice STAMINA points
of damage. During the climb all the Heroes
must also consume a Provision.
SCENE 4
HELLWINTER
Soundtrack
World of Warcfraft, by Jason Hayes.
Read Aloud
At the height of 2000 metres, exactly on
the top of Hellwinter Peak, stands a soli-
tary watchtower made of grey stone and
bathed in an eerie silence, solely torn by
sudden hailstorms.
Dark clouds gather over the area, as if to
warn you to turn back as soon as you can
and leave this sorrowful place.
The eastern ledge of the peak looks out to
the borders of Baron Grayson’s fief over a
vast vale dotted by solitary and mossy
stone boulders and sparse shrubs.
Action: For the events that take place in
Hellwinter see the map on the next page
and the following numbered sections.
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! The Entrance: The entrance to the

tower’s courtyard is secured by a
rusty iron gate, chained from the inside.
The gate is placed in the middle of the path,
some 10 metres before the tower, firmly
hinged to a stone archway dappled by moss
and scrubby pale bushes. In order to open
the gate a Test for Skill (Lock Picking or
Strength, depending on the Hero’s actions) is
required. An Open Spell, however, will do
the work just as fine. Once inside, from the
windswept courtyard, a desolate view of the

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surroundings is shown to the Heroes. The
tower spires northeast about 15 metres
high, like a claw made of the same dark
stone as the peak’s. Only the howling wind
and the squeaky caws of the crows may be
heard from here, as there’s seemingly no
sign of human presence.
" The Stone Well: An old stone well
lies in the courtyard’s centre. There’s a
rope hanging from a pulley shaft. Sir Galla-
harn threw down the well a small iron cas-
ket which may be retrieved by simply pull-
ing the bucket out of the well. The casket
contains:
❖ A leather pouch with a small emerald
inside, worth 12 Gold Crowns.
❖ An ivory amulet with the effigy of a
woman (Sir Gallaharn’s wife).
❖ A piece of parchment with writings on
it: it’s poor Gallaharn’s last statement
(Handout 2).
Now I know for sure the Fiend came from
the Crystal Cage the telltales of this region
talk about. To think I always believed them
to be superstitions of naive yokels...
The demon knows no rest. He will haunt
me until I will succumb, wherefore it will
happen very soon, I fear.
My courage is betraying me. I feel I’m los-
ing my soul to the Fiend’s maddening
whispers. The gate that once sealed the
Crystal Cage must be closed shut again, or
his infernal comrades and lieges will come
from Hell plaguing forever this land.
I failed in my duties.
May God have mercy on me.
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Gallaharn wrote this statement in his last
moment of mind-clearness, shortly before
succumbing to the ICE FIEND’s will, the
knowledge of what was happening be-
stowed unto him by the contact with the
alien mind of the creature. Then, he threw
the casket into the well, not to be tempted
to destroy it later on.
# The Knights’ Graveyard: A short
stone path to northwest leads to a
small graveyard, graced by ancient gnarled
oaks. There are seven tombstones marking
the spots where the dead Knights of Hell-
winter rest - for more informations, see next
page. This dreamy place is caressed by the
icy winds and perfumed by the Knightwort
and white lavender shrubs that spontane-
ously grow in here. Some Knightwort flow-
ers may be picked to concoct, with a suc-
cessful Test for Skill (Healing), a wound-
wrap which restores 4 STAMINA points.
Most of the engravings on the tombstones
have been erased by the ceaseless work of
time; two of them, however, are still legible.
LADY YGREINE THORNE
BRAVE AS A KNIGHT
FAIR AS THE GOLD
SIR DECKAR KAIRN
FRIEND OF THE DWARVES
FIRST WARDEN OF HELLWINTER
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There is nothing else interesting in the
graveyard. The Director should strongly
discourage any attempt to desecrate the
burials, imparting the adventurers severe
penalisations to their LUCK.
$ The Stables: These stables are in mis-
erable conditions. Gallaharn slew his
loyal warhorse some weeks ago in raging
madness, and the cruel ICE FIEND has
resurrected it as a DEAD MARE, who at-
tacks the Heroes on sight.
ENEMY SKI STA ATT
DEAD MARE 8 7 2 niche which shelters a book, its pages yel-
Hooves 2223344
Flaming Hooves: If the DEAD MARE scores
a 11 or a 12 with the dice in a winning com-
bat round, its hooves ignite with hellfire and
the monster delivers a tremendous kicking
blow which doubles the damage dealt.
If the Heroes search the stables, they find
there’s nothing useful in here, except for a
rusty horseshoe beneath the rotting straw,
which restores 1 LUCK point to the Hero
who finds it. There’s no need, however, to
keep it in the backpack in order to gain the
LUCK point.
% Tower’s Entrance: The doorway to
the tower is crashed open out of its
hinges, as if a raging storm had violently
ravaged it. It was the rabid manifestation of
the ICE FIEND, who broke the doorway
the night it entered the tower to haunt Sir
Gallaharn. The tower’s rooms are all similar
to each other, so they need not to be
mapped. We just provide you the descrip-
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tion of what’s inside. The ground floor is
divided in three smaller areas: the common
room, the kitchen and the latrine.
Ground Floor - Common Room: The
common room is cold and damp, and hosts a
large fireplace, embellished by stone herald-
ries that bear the blazon of a Black Dragon.
On a successful Test for Skill (Etiquette), the
Hero recognises it as belonging to a long-
forgotten order of knights. Searching the
fireplace with a successful Test for Skill
(Awareness) +3, points to a loose stone. Re-
moving the stone, the party reveals a small
lowed and mouldy. The book is titled The
Seven Poor Knights and contains local ancient
lore (Handout 3).
Many centuries ago, seven Knights swore
to make amend for an unspeakable guilt.
They decided to seclude themselves, build-
ing a solitary outpost in the Bron Moun-
tains. The Knights accepted no new initi-
ates, so the order faded away with the pass-
ing years. The legend holds they were loyal
to a wise Black Dragon they revered as
their grandmaster, hence the name of the
order: The Knights of the Black Dragon,
also know as Knights of Hellwinter.
So, the tower and its purpose are much more
ancient than Grayson’s lordship on this land
is. A large destroyed oaken table stands in
the room, and pewter dishes and cutlery are
scattered throughout the hall. From the
common room, a massive flight of ruined
stone stairs ascends to the first floor. There
are also two wooden doors leading to the
kitchen and to the latrine.
❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER
Ground Floor - The Kitchen: Not even
this place has been spared from chaos and
destruction. Rotting foodstuff is littered
everywhere. However a, thorough search -
with a Test For Skill (Awareness) +2 - reveals
a small barrel of good brandy, still drink-
able. The kitchen’s stone oven is now home
to a nest of GIANT RATS. The creatures lie
silently in wait until the majority of the
party gives them away. Then they swarm
out to attack. The same event triggers if one
of the Heroes investigates the oven.
ENEMY SKI STA ATT
First GIANT RAT 5 4 1
Second GIANT RAT 5 3 1 tower’s vantage point.
Third GIANT RAT 4 4 1
Fourth GIANT RAT 4 5 1
Fifth GIANT RAT 5 4 1
Bite 2233334
Ground Floor - Latrine: There’s absolutely
nothing interesting in this filthy room.
First Floor: It seems like a tremendous bat-
tle took place here. The mess is indescrib-
able: destroyed furnitures lie on the
ground, the window panes are broken and
frozen bloodstains daub the room’s walls.
Here Gallaharn fought his last, desperate,
struggle to repel the ICE FIEND, before
succumbing to his infernal powers. In this
wide room, that could cosily host up to four
persons, there’s a poster bed, a bedside ta-
ble and a beautifully carved maple ward-
robe. The bedside table contains an em-
broidered silken handkerchief that be-
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longed to Gallaharn’s wife and a crude
sketch of the surroundings, where the loca-
tion of the Crystal Cage has been frantically
outlined (Handout 4). The wardrobe bears
an elegant pyrography of hunting scenes
and the delicate scent of lavender. By
searching underneath the wardrobe, the
Heroes find Gallaharn’s large shield: a mas-
terfully crafted item: 0001122. In-
side the furniture there are:
❖ A silver mace
❖ A pair of warm wolf fur boots which fit
well to any Hero.
A creaky wooden ladder takes the adven-
turers to see the darkening sky from the
Vantage Point: Here Gallaharn, his face
blood-daubed with demonic sigils, awaits
the Heroes for an ominous, suicidal battle
as a thunderstorm starts raging in the sky.
The ICE FIEND has taken over Gallaharn’s
will and now the wretched man can’t do
anything but to obey any order the demon
has for him… and he wants the Heroes
dead! A flock of DEMONCROWS, an-
nounced by deafening thunders, descends
from the sky in a haze of black feathers to
aid Gallaharn in his fight. The DEMON-
CROWS are a lesser demonic manifesta-
tion, summoned by higher powers, who al-
ways comes in flocks, for whom cumulative
Statistics are given below.
❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

«I didn’t mean that... I didn’t want it… my

ENEMY SKI STA ATT
SIR GALLAHARN 9 12 2 And, more interestingly:
DEMONCROWS 6 16 4 «The devil… he… he came from the ice
Gallaharn’s Sword 2333345
Gallaharn’s Chainmail 0 0 0 1 2 2 3
Demoncrows’ Talons 2 2 3 3 3 3 4
Stormbreaker: Thanks to his magical sword -
an old and powerful legacy, see below - SIR
GALLAHARN has a +1 bonus on his Attack
Strength, already considered in his Statistics.
Moreover, his insanity makes him completely
immune to pain, stun and fear.
Daze: An adventurer wounded by the DE-
MONCROWS must immediately Test for
Skill (Awareness). An unsuccessful roll means
he has been completely surrounded by the
flock and is dazed (-3 to his Attack Strength)
for two combat rounds. The Daze malus to
the Attack Strength is not cumulative, it only
stacks over combat rounds.
Showing Gallaharn the amulet he hid be-
neath the well or the handkerchief that can
be found in the bedroom, has the effect of
temporarily stopping him from fighting. It
will look like he had regained a glimmer of
awareness. He then demands the Heroes
the item back. They could try and exploit
this advantage to ask Gallaharn a few ques-
tions, before he starts to attack again. The
knight answers the adventurers confusingly,
harshly spitting broken sentences as:
«… The icy wind… it’s in my mind… it or-
dered me to… open the seals to the under-
world… I must do it. I must, for my wife!»
And:
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13
soul is condemned!»
cage... he broke itself free and he’s trying to free
his foul brothers… please: kill me and seal the
cage once again, or it will be all lost!»
As soon as Gallaharn dies, a malevolent fro-
zen wind sprouts from the knight’s mouth:
it’s the ICE FIEND’s ghostly manifestation.
It lingers for a while on the dead body, then
it flees north, towards the dungeons of the
Crystal Cage. In this ethereal form, the ICE
FIEND can’t be attacked nor targeted by
Spells. If the Heroes decide to search the
poor knight’s body they find:
❖ A Potion of Luck.
Gallaharn’s chainmail.
❖
❖ A black bear cape.
❖ A pewter flask with a dark red liquor,
smelling of strong wine. A successful
Test for Skill (Magic Lore or Second
Sight), or a Hero with the Attunement
Talent who holds the flask, reveals the
liquor is the renowned Kalash, distilled
from the elven vineyards of Glas Amral.
A measure of Kalash restores 1 lost
SKILL point and immunises the Hero
who drinks it from the effects of ex-
treme cold. There’s enough Kalash for
four measures.
❖ A beautiful sword, with its runes-
engraved sheath. A Test for Skill (Magic
Lore) on the sword reveals the following
informations and ancient lore about it,
while a Test for Skill (Second Sight) only
reveals its magical properties.
❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

STORMBREAKER
Sword +1 Attack Strength, +1 Damage
vs. Demon Kin
The sword is crafted out of pure mithril,
silver and gold, its blade etched with an-
cient Runes of Power. The hilt is embel-
lished by precious stones from the fabu-
lous treasure of King Gillan. This wonder-
ful masterpiece of smithing was crafted
centuries ago by the legendary dwarven
smith Boreg Stonehammer as a gift for the
human knight Deckar Kairn, forefather of
Sir Gallaharn.
Deckar was appointed Friend of the
Dwarves for he led the fellowship who slew
the Balrog that haunted the dwarven for-
tress of Karak Kudril. Thus, Deckar won
for himself an honour no human had ever
attained before.
Since Gallaharn was the last descendant of
the House of Kairn, this sword is now
yours to claim.
LUXIMPERITURAINTENEBRISCDEMO
The Runes on Stormbreaker’s blade.
SCENE 5
THE CRYSTAL CAGE
Soundtrack
Season of the Witch, by Atli Örvarsson.
Read Aloud
Gallaharn’s death can’t go unavenged. The
foul creature who haunted him must be
slain. You bury the knight in the graveyard
and spend the night in the tower’s com-
mon room, eating one of your Provisions.
The day after you start following the crude
map found in Gallaharn’s room. After a
eight hours trek in the mountains you
eventually reach the small underground
complex which hosts the Crystal Cage.
You find an entrance to the caverns,
guarded by a stone portal carved with
magical symbols.
Action: The magic on the portal has faded
as a Test for Skill (Second Sight) can easily
reveal. The caves are covered by a thick
blanket of ice which shines with disturbing
rainbow-like colours. Stalactites and sta-

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lagmites protrude chaotically from every- «I’m Gurala, the Matriarch of Demons and
where and a frigid mist flutters some ten all things unclean. My infernal son has many
centimetres high on the floor. The tempera- brothers, as many brothers as he has sisters,
ture inside is incredibly low, and every Hero but each of his sisters has twice as many broth-
suffers a -1 penalty on his SKILL, unless a ers as sisters. So answer me this, trespassers,
Heat Spell is cast unto him. A sip of Kalash, how many daughters and sons do I have?»
a black bear cape The correct an-
or a pair of wolf swer to the riddle
f ur boots w i l l (which is ‘3’)
work just as fine. must be spoken
For the events that o u t l o u d . Th e
take place in the statue, then, opens
Crystal Cage dun- its left hand and
geons see the map the blue gem falls
on the right and on the ground.
the following There is no other
nu m b ered sec- way the Heroes
tions. can grab the Blue

! Antecham-
b e r : Th e
northern wall of
Gem, if not an-
swering the riddle,
and the party may
this chamber is try only thrice,
occupied by a then the statue
huge crystal statue will stay silent.
re p re s ent i ng a The Blue Gem
horned demoness represents the best
with a dozen ud- way to seal the
ders, sitting cross- Crystal Cage once
legged. Sick veins and forever - see
of purplish energy the description of
pulsate within the Room 7.
statue’s cr ystal
s k i n . Th e d e-
moness’ right hand is open, its palm facing
"The Void:
In this cave
there is a strange hole that looks like if it
up, while the other tightly holds a Blue were made of pure darkness. A relaxing
Gem. If something that worths at least 1 hum comes from the hole. If the party stays
Gold Crown is placed on the open hand, longer in this area, the Hero with the high-
the statue starts to speak a riddle. est Current LUCK must Test for Luck, or
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❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

succumb to the suasive sound, trying thus
to throw himself into the hole, unless he’s
stopped by his comrades. Then, after a cou-
ple of minutes, the Director repeats this
procedure. Anyone - or anything - that en-
ters the hole is surely enough nowhere to
be seen again!
(Awareness) +1 for each Hero. On a success,
the party spots a lever hidden amongst the
icy spikes, which opens a small secret pas-
sage to Room 5.
% Secret Cache: A hidden passageway
leads to a small cave, encrusted with
glowing crystals that quietly pulsate on a

# The Cavemen: When the dungeon’s

magical seal was broken, this cave be-
came home to three ferocious CAVE MEN.
heart-rhythm. A strange tome, whose pages
are made of icy parchment, stands on a low
crystal pillar. A successful Test for Skill
The brutal humanoids will attack the Heroes (Languages: Elven) +2 allows to read an in-
on sight, unless they throw them some of teresting page of the book (Handout 5).
their Provisions (two will be sufficient), in
The High White Elves of Taranis sent Nil-
order to placate their bestial hunger.
ludya to the Crystal Cage, to secure it once
ENEMY SKI STA ATT and forever. Powerful magic did she cast
on the Treshold, as the Fiends screamed in
First CAVE MAN 8 6 1 anger and frustration. At last she put in a
Second CAVE MAN 7 7 1 secret cache some of Her belongings,
should any Hero of times to come be in
Third CAVE MAN 7 7 1
need of help from the sage Elves…
Flint Spear 2223334

The CAVE MEN fight with their flint-

headed spears that can be also thrown, hit-
ting with a 1 to 3 on a die roll for 3 points of
STAMINA each.

$ A Deadly Trap: As soon as the He-

roes enters this narrow tunnel, doz-
ens of icy spikes erupt from the walls, ceil-
ing and floor to impale them. They must
Test for Skill (Dodge) or suffer the loss of 1
die STAMINA points. If a Hero loses five or
more STAMINA this way, he must also Test
for Luck or lose 1 SKILL point as well. If the
Heroes survive the nasty trap, they could
decide to inspect the tunnel. In that case,
the Director must secretly Test for Skill
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❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

There is also an emerald casket lying on a

dais of azure quartz. It can’t be removed nor
carried. Only the correct solution to the
& The Cage’s Gates: Pillars of pure
crystalline ice spire up to the ceiling,
supporting the huge ogival arches of this
enigma engraved on itself will open it room. Within the spires, strange lumines-
(Handout 6). The solution is represented cent symbols float quietly, their ancient
by any three-ending symbol, like ‘n’, and magic slowly fading away, unless the Heroes
should be written with a finger or a stick on succeed in restoring the gate’s seals. Here,
the blank lower quadrant which is full of the wicked ICE FIEND lies in wait for the
fine sparkling emerald dust. The Heroes party. He’s is ireful, for the Heroes have
may attempt only thrice, then the casket thwarted his plans to free his kin from the
will not open for a century! Once opened, cage… for now. In fact, the creature wants
the casket reveals: to kill all the Heroes. Then he plans to pos-
Two measures of Potion of Magic. sess one of the corpses and finally free his
❖
A wonderful golden ring. dark comrades.
❖
❖ A silver chainmail cuirass.
The ancient lore about these artefacts may
be learned with a Test for Skill (Magic Lore),
while a Test for Skill (Second Sight) only re-
veals the items’ magical properties.
NILLUDYA’S RING
Ring +1 STAMINA
This golden ring was forged by Aydullin,
the Elves’ Prime-Forger of the Age of Dawn
as a gift for his beloved daughter Nilludya,
who later became the Elves’ Sorceress
Queen, on her first birthday. It magically
adapts to fit every kind of finger of any race.

ELVEN CHAINMAIL CUIRASS

To wear : SKILL + Armour = 8
Although the name of the smith who forged
this armour is now lost forever, its light de-
sign is surely of elven hands. You remember
that, in ages past, these lands were home to
the High White Elves of Taranis. As it turns
out, these mountains still hold many secrets
of yore.
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❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

A very powerful magical weapon, like

ENEMY SKI STA ATT
ICE FIEND 9 18 3 gate. But the weapon will break after a so
Claws 2333445
Invulnerability (partial): On a hit, non-
magical or non-silver weapons inflict the ICE
FIEND only minimum damage. Moreover,
he’s immune to cold-based attacks.
Frost Aura: The monster emanates an aura of
cold which imparts -1 to the Heroes’ Attack
Strength, unless they drank the Kalash liquor
or have a Heat Spell cast unto them.
Freezing Breath: Every three rounds the ICE
FIEND tries to engulf one of the Heroes with
a breath of freezing cold which causes the loss
of 1 SKILL point. A Test for Skill (Dodge) is
necessary to avoid the breath. The SKILL
points lost this way, however, will be entirely
restored at the end of the combat. The Freez-
ing Breath occurs in addition to the ICE
FIEND’s normal attack.
Stormbreaker, could be used to destroy the
epic effort.
A Hero could cast at the portal a Counter-
spell Spell versus a 6 point original Spell. If
he succeeds, he overcomes the malign wills
of the ICE FIENDS within the cage, and
seals the gate. The Hero may try as long has
he has enough Magic Points to spend.
EPILOGUE
Soundtrack
Taverns of Azeroth, by David Arkenstone.
Read Aloud
You have defeated the foul creature and
avoided tragedy befell on the Baron’s fief.
You are truly brave Heroes!
Once back in Tyntern, you are profusely
thanked by Sir Grayson, who awards you

' The Threshold: Beyond this magic

threshold lies the Hell of Ice itself,
homeland of the ICE FIENDS. Since tres-
the payment, plus 50 extra Gold Crowns as
a tangible sign of his gratitude.
The Baron also asks you to take on the
passing the threshold means certain death
duty of guarding the eastern borderlands
for the Heroes, the Director should encour-
of his fief, thus becoming the new Wardens
age a second thought on the subject!
of Hellwinter.
Rather, it’s an excellent idea to find a way to
seal the gate, thus preventing the ICE DE- But that’s another story…
MONS to ever again enter our Heroes’
world. Here you are some guidelines. At the end of this adventure, assign the Ex-
perience Points basing on the Heroes’
The Blue Gem of Room 1 should be
achievements
thrown into the gate. It then explodes and
seals the cage once and forever. A Test for They merely survived 20
Skill (Dodge) is required in order to avoid
the effects of the explosion, which causes They slew the ICE FIEND 40
the loss of 1 die STAMINA points to every
They also sealed the Crystal Cage 60
Hero caught in the blast.
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APPENDIX HANDOUT 3
HANDOUTS
The scenario’s handouts are printer-
friendly. Just copy the images, paste them in
your clipboard or photo editor, print and
hand them over your Players.
You can scale these images to bigger dimen-
sions than the ones showed on page.

HANDOUT 1

HANDOUT 2

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❈---------------------------------------- THE GATES OF HELLWINTER ----------------------------------------❈

HANDOUT 4 HANDOUT 6
h leavdicaniumo
mosmi boloc

nei b

ripleiots leimocre

cmarofsua
d

nmu qsue toeilpri

t va

aseanc asfua ormca

que meun
hlea l

lalheacn
vne tur
engi m
e
mosmi boloc

s
a e
omunicda vi la e

a b
i e
recom
h

nei
oi rsi olvil c iochesti

ieroe
oonper vna le

ro
evis lo s

se fdi ech

crigno
a d u i a to n l
e emolt
itsar q
m
osue eilpri osmi boloc
t

hnei baseanch
re ecomlei nmu e
eallas
fua ormca omunci da vi la

HANDOUT 5

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20