" The sun had set an hour ago, and the rain lashed down and the wind howled on the dark moor. A storm this late in the season was unusual, but this one seemed different. The clouds were more menacing, tinged with anger, the rain colder and more biting than usual.
Skerrill had to find the lost calf and get him back to the farm before his father came back from the city on business. He’d been looking for two hours now, and he was right in the middle of the moor when the storm hit. He knew he should have turned back as soon as darkness fell, but then he was never the brightest boy in the valley. If only he had remembered to lock the farm gate."
"The calf was now likely dead anyway having stumbled among the boulders and rocks, panicking in the dark, and then fallen in a floodwater stream and drowned. Either way, he was in more trouble than he could imagine."
"Suddenly, a bright flash of white light and a roaring peal of thunder were preceded by an explosion as a huge object fell from the sky and impacted the ground of the moor no more than a stone’s throw from him. Dirt, mud, water, and debris erupted from the impact site, flying high into the air and then covering the moor for hundreds of feet all around."
Skerrill was knocked to the ground instantly and covered in the fallout from the blast. His ears rang and his head spun, but he staggered to his feet in a daze.
He stumbled to where the blast had happened only moments before, and in a depression in the ground lay a huge stone glowing orange as if hot. Skerrill passed out.
Two more thunderous explosions crashed in the distance.”
This blog entry is going to pick right up from here for more Hyperborea rpg high jinks.
Just around my birthday back in about 2016 in June the 'Pay What You Want' Adventure 'The Demon Stones ( Swords & Wizardry) appeared. I've DM'ed 'The Demon Stones ( Swords & Wizardry) a multiplicity of times over the years as mini campaign. The adventure clocks in at about sixty one pages & has Glenn Seal's usual thumbprints. Solid cartography, easy to read layout, & interesting adventure plot that keeps the players actually interested at the table top. And them wanting to return. This all goes back to some articles that I found back in 2016 or so about the origin of the Demon Stones adventure back when I did the original review; "While it was an adventure that was designed for Pathfinder to me and some friends it didn't work on that level apparently the author saw that there was room for OSR expansion. "When I wrote The Demon Stones, I had envisaged it being compatible with the latest edition of the world's most popular role-playing game, currently now in its 5th Edition. At the time, a system reference document did not exist, which meant that a decision was made to switch to the Pathfinder system (© Paizo Publishing) which was a safer bet. A dreamier foreword lies in that version. The Pathfinder version was released, but I still wanted to create an old-school version with less rules-crunch. It could easily be adapted to other OSR systems on the fly. It would also be a homage to my gaming roots. For that, I chose Swords & Wizardry, primarily for its popularity amongst the OSR communities. Luckily, Edwin Nagy stepped up to the plate to provide his wealth of expertise and knowledge, and was already a fan of The Demon Stones story. It has taken a little longer than I hoped to release it, with commissioned works taking priority, but you now hold it in your hands or on your screen. I hope you have as much fun playing it as I did creating it. Until our paths meet again, Glynn Seal (MonkeyBlood Design) - May 2016"
So what I'm I doing trotting out the Demon Stones now?! Well the Demon Stones has one part feel of an early White Dwarf magazine adventure & some foreshadowing of Glenn's highly successful Midderlands campaign that would come later on. What if we took the Demon Stones and stoked the adventure for a Sword & Sorcery campaign?! Hear me out here. Given the origins, backdrop, etc. the 'Demon Stones' could be rather easily slipped into Hyperborea.
You've got the otherworldly elements, slip in some Weird Tales back door traits, add in a few Cthulhu references, and then allow it to simmer during the Summer seasons of Hyperborea. And there's a strong possibility that the Demon Stones could work as a Hyperborean mini campaign. Add in the fact that 'the Demon Stones' adventure plot could tie right into events around the Hyperborean version of T1 The Village of Hommlet. And you're off to the races with a Hyperborean version of T1-4 Temple of Elemental Evil.
How?! Easy the black magical forces that cults of Elemental Evil are unleashing are attracting the Demon Stones from the Aboreus Winds around Hyperborea. The demon stones themselves were never meant to fall! The evil that they imprison was supposed to stay caged for eternity. But now the forces surrounding Hyperborea are in a state of flux resulting in this invasion of the farmlands! Only brave adventurers can set this right! But wait there's more! Because this is a mid level adventure it's perfect for intermediate level PC's! Yet challenging enough to keep even veterans entertained!
Because of the necromancer's tampering with the delicate forces surrounding the bounds between life & death the demon stones may hold part of the key to putting this to bed. A brave fool must venture deep into the abandoned fortresses where the key to these events might be found. We'll get into that next time.
The 'Pay What You Want' Adventure 'The Demon Stones ( Swords & Wizardry) version by Glenn Seal
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