The City of Greyhawk (2e) By Rick Rose, Carl Sargent, & Douglas Niles & Castles & Crusades

 When it comes to Castles & Crusades Greyhawk there's 'the other box set' in my humble opinion and that's the AD&D second edition boxed set The City of Greyhawk. According to the The City of Greyhawk Wiki entry; "The City of Greyhawk is an AD&D second edition boxed set detailing the Free City of Greyhawk. Written by Douglas Niles, Carl Sargent, and Rik Rose, the boxed set was released by TSR in 1989, and was highly praised by Dragon magazine." 

For a Castles & Crusades Greyhawk campaign this is where you want to set up your adventurers right within  'The Free City of Greyhawk, Gem of the Flanaess'. And this city certainly lives up to it's name and it's really the second book your going to want to use Folk, Feuds, and Factions. Folk, Feuds, and Factions has a bit of everything for the DM looking to get the PC's into the deep end of the city of Greyhawk; "The second book, Folk, Feuds, and Factions, describes a wide variety of NPCs, their fellowships and conspiracies, and their associated game mechanics, personalities, tactics, and loose narrative threads. Potential allies, patrons, informants, and enemies are available for any group of characters. External politics are intertwined in the city's internal affairs, and rival guilds compete for power and influence, while dark conspiracies are plotted beneath the streets. Folk, Feuds, and Factions also includes four adventure scenarios that develop themes and elements already presented in the city background." 
 The twisting & turning of the city's maps can be printed out. Because of this & other details baked into the urban landscape of the City of Greyhawk. This is a must box set for anyone running the low or high life grittiness of the Greyhawk campaign world. 
And 'The City of Greyhawk' box set is an excellent companion piece for James Ward's Greyhawk Adventure book. Seriously all of the campaign details spill over into each other. 

For C&C these two resources along with the Gygax Greyhawk Folio or boxset are enough to light the way into a successful campaign from the ground up! These resources give the Greyhawk setting the depth & breath it deserves especially when dealing with C&C's system asthetics. 

Castles & Crusades with Greyhawk doesn't suffer under its own weight of campaign setting history or legacy unlike the staleness of Forgotten Realms or what passes for a campaign setting today. But we  digress, Greyhawk's urban centers suit the full rank & treatment that Castles & Crusades provides even more so then the system's home campaign setting. Sorry, Trolls but its true even though there are place where the campaign setttings can & should overlap. And this is where Greyhawk Adventures and The City of Greyhawk shine. These old school resources blend & can be homebrewed into the mold that the DM needs & wants for his player's PC's. 
And these resources for   the AD&D second edition boxed set The City of Greyhawk box set tie into the urban encounter and tables that are in the Castles & Crusades Castle Keeper's Guide. 

Some OSR Thoughts On James Ward's Greyhawk Adventures & Castles & Crusades

  If there's one book that a DM has to have if their going to run Greyhawk in the minds of many players of AD&D or Castles & Crusades. It has to be James Ward's Greyhawk Aventures! Why?! Because of the fact that Greyhawk Adventures expands Greyhawk of course! Expands upon the dieties, the monsters, Hall of Heroes places, persons, & things of Greyhawk, huge nimber of magical spells, new Greyhawk magic items, the geography of Oerth, adventures on Greyhawk, zero level PC options & available customization, and a Greyhawk spell list. 

So while all of this is packed into here running Greyhawk with Castles & Crusades is going to be a bit of a challenge. Greyhawk Adventures helps a ton because it gives the dungeon master the first real expansion on Greyhawk since the classic box set. 

Greyhawk is the down & dirty fantasy Europe that never existed & yet its influence within modern campaigns is still felt. Forgotten Realms might get all of the credit as one of the most influencal campaign settings. But its Greyhawk that has such a devoted following. Geyhawk still retains its cult following as the oriinal iconic campaign setting unto itself. And Greyhawk Adventures follws right there the original box set's footing. The adventures within? The adventures are easily adaptable to your own campaign settings. 

What about the Castles & Crusades rpg system? Depending upon Greyhawk era & local setting C&C adapts quite easily with Jim Ward's Greyhawk adventures. The rounded out campaign elements of Greyhawk Adventures can easily be molded by the DM to their Greyhawk campaigns. This is one of the strengths of the classic era TSR AD&D first edition books. 

Greyhawk works for C&C because of its scope, adaptability, and use as a campaign world that fits your world campaign. The potenial there is to take the classic Greyhawk folio & using Greyhawk Adventures to mold the fluff to fit your own worlds of adventure. The reason why this works is that Greyhawk Adventures is a tool kit of adventure elements that can be added or subtracted from as needed in your C&C campaign world. 

WGR1 Greyhawk Ruins (2e) By Timothy B. Brown, & Blake Mobley With The Castles & Crusades rpg - Updated

  "Enter the infamous ruins of Castle Greyhawk, the most formidable and expansive dungeon on Oerth. Its mazes and catacombs have drawn hundreds of adventurers from around the Flanaess. They are intrigued by tales of its riches, undaunted by its reputation for death in countless unspeakable ways. Getting there is no trick-it's a well-traveled path. The trick is getting in and out again with your own hide intact!"

"Try your hand at the busiest dungeon ever created. There are more than two dozen levels of horror and treasures. Run into brutal foes and gain uncountable wealth-nearly 1,000 separate room descriptions in all!"

Greyhawk Ruins is a complete guide to the most famous dungeon in the World of Greyhawk campaign setting. All you will need is the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition role-playing game, nerves of steel, and the resolve to challenge the puzzles and powers the ruins have to offer!"

WGR1 Greyhawk Ruins (2e) By Timothy B. Brown, & Blake Mobley is one of Greyhawk's most underrated dungeons. Oh sure there are better known & far more deadly classic mega dungeons but Greyhawk Ruins returns to the fold one better & dangerous ones. And it's with no irony that I bring Greyhawk Ruins up with Troll Lords whose  Castles & Crusades deals with "Castle Zagyg" (2005-2008). And while that set of dungeons is solidly done & easily one Troll Lords best. This blog entry is going to pick right from this blog post here. 
Greyhawk Ruins deals with something else entirely and that's Greyhawk. And yes, you can transfer "Castle Zagyg" to Greyhawk. Greyhawk Ruins does something else entirely & that's to ground this version of the famous mega dungeon in Greyhawk entirely. Is this Gary Gygax's creation? No. Is it his "Castle Zagyg"? No. Greyhawk Ruins is a mega dungeon that ties itself in deep to the lore of Greyhawk. And this works very well for Castles & Crusades rpg. 

Greyhawk Ruins connects deeply into the Greyhawk 2nd edition setting as a way of covering over the foulness that is Castle Greyhawk. The Greyhawk Ruins is a part of the 2nd edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragon mega dungeon trend. And for the Castles & Crusade rpg style suits both the Greyhawk Ruins & even Robert Kuntz's  RJK1: "Bottle City" (2007) and "The Original Living Room" (2007) adventure modules.
The mega dungeon ideal is time tested & very well defined by the time we get to the second edition era. Its definition that was the megadungeon's undoing in a way. There were never enough adventures set witin the megadungeon settings to show DM's & players their real campaign potential in my opinion. 

Greyhawk Ruins doesn't see this out and instead present a series of mini adventures & campaign seeds within. We see this ideal expanded upon within,"Castle Greyhawk in Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk (2008), which revised some of the levels from "Greyhawk Ruins" and also invented new ones. " And this further makes it perfect for a C&C campaign. 

And these are adventure & campaign ideals that we saw previously within The City of Greyhawk & Greyhawk Adventures by James Ward. 

Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk Part 15 - " The Eye Is Opening." AX5 Eyrie of the Dread Eye By Courtney Campbell Commentary On The Lands of Greyhawk

Now let's pick this up where we left off on the blog the other day on the blog here.  The player's PC's have meet the enemies of "Five Shall Be One" & brought the multi tribal mess of Greyhawk into a focussed series of united armies. Has Chaos been idle?! The answer is no because the Chaos worshipping Elves have been on the move & sacrificing various pawns & knights in their chess game on the chess board of Greyhawk. And this is because events of  T1-4 Temple of Elemental Evil have already taken place! And the PC's have secured the Keep from B2 Keep on the Borderlands & put down the forces of the village of Hommlet. 

And this proceeds the coming of the main event 'The Eye Opening!' Because this follows on the heels of AX5 Eyrie of the Dread Eye; " The Eye Is Opening."

"Thousands of years ago, living gods named Khepri wielded powers beyond understanding. Their bizarre magics rived a rent in reality itself. This portal—the Oculus—led to the deepest realms of Chthonic Darkness, but it was not yet fully open. Malign forces, opposed to all life, infested the Oculus, and waited. The Khepri kept vigil over the Oculus till time moved her hand. When the Khepri vanished in the Day Without Night, their Elven epigones took up the watch. In time, the Elves were conquered by the diabolic Thrassian race, and they in turn were subjugated by the Zaharans. Through the millennia, the caretakers of the Oculus studied, waited, and watched."

"Now the Awakening is near, the Spheres are coming into alignment, and the Oculus is beginning to open. The dark power is reaching out and for the first time in an age the Eyrie of the Dread Eye is accessible again. As the Eye opens, reality itself comes under further and further  strain. And as rumors of a new valley containing an underground forgotten city filled with untold riches spread out from the Dark Wall, the Oculus continues to open ever wider. " That's right the  living gods named Khepri are coming to call once again on Greyhawk! The events of T1 Village of Hommlet were only the start! The awakening of the Elemental Evil cult has lead to one of the other forces behind the cult  the living gods named Khepri!  These Khepri living gods are served by armies of sword wraiths so devoted to thier alien masters that even in undeath they continue to serve thier alien masters! 

We get hints of all of all this in Matthew Skail,  & Alexander Macris's AX1 The Sinister Stone of Sakkara as well as the first hints located within B2 Keep of the Borderlands By Gary Gygax.              

These two modules are key to keeping the borderlands secure & the PCs are by now witnin the 'conqueror' or 'king' level allowing them to take the leadership roles in the Greyhawk military that they were meant to be. And remember Greyhawk's Suloise barbarians are key to saving the Borderlands themselves. And PC's being a part of the marshalling of them is a key pivot point within this campaign. The return of the Khepri was hinted at within the AX2 The Secrets of the Nethercity & those were only some of the living god royals. AX5 is one of the main shows then in the Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk campaign but it's not the only one! 

Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk Part 14 -WGS1 Five Shall Be One By Carl Sargent OSR Commentary On The Lands of Greyhawk

 Let's pick right back up from yesterday on the blog here.  The forces of Law are trying to rouse themselves as blow after blow has been rained by Chaos in the Borderlands. And here's where we pick up on Carl Sargent's 'The Five Shall Be One'. According to the Greyhawk wiki entry; "Five Shall Be One is an adventure module for the World of Greyhawk campaign setting. The module bears the code WGS1 and was published by TSR, Inc. in 1991 for the second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules"

Now I realize that this is a second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons module but it's the first of three Greyhawk modules in the WGS series; "The adventure was written by Carl Sargent with cover art by Jeff Starlind and interior art by Ken Frank. It was originally intended as the first of three modules in the "World of Greyhawk Swords" (WGS) trilogy. It therefore precedes the second "Swords" module, WGS2 - Howl from the North. The third module in the series (which would have been coded WGS3) was never produced. Instead, the material originally intended for WGS3 was reworked and incorporated into the board game Greyhawk Wars."

"The title of the module refers to the Five Blades of Corusk, ancient magical swords which, according to the legends of Greyhawk's Suloise barbarians, can be brought together to be made even more powerful."  These are the blades that can literally turn the tide of the war with Chaos if A. They don't destroy it first & B. if they don't destroy the PC's in the long run. And this is no idle boast! Why!? Beccause according to the Canonfire website; "Blades such as Blackrazor, the Pillars of Heaven and Druniazth the Claw of Tharizdun could fill sheets of vellum in the halls of loremasters." 
Yes, yes, these were the blades that kicked off the Greyhawk Wars. We're not talking about that. We're talking about the fact that these legends bring together  Greyhawk's Suloise barbarians! Greyhawk's Suloise barbarians are key to saving the Borderlands themselves. 

The myths & legends that surround,' blades such as Blackrazor, the Pillars of Heaven and Druniazth the Claw of Tharizdun' are the glue that will unite the Flanaess. More over it's this united front that will in theory destroy the backbone of Chaos. And here's where the PC's are going to be on point to help with this by gaining their own tribe of barbarians. 

And yes I'm playing very fast & loose with the chronolgy of Greyhawk. Bare with me there's a reason for this. Part of this is  Garel Enkdal, an underground city of orcs in the Griff Mountains of the northeastern Flanaess.Originally Garel Enkdal belonged to the Chaos worshipping Elves we been seeing within Secrets of the Nethercity. 

'

Garel Enkdal has many of the same traits as the mini dungeons of Secrets & it's going to require a massive effort on the part of the PC's to clear it out later on! But the PC's are first going to need to complete WGS1 Five Shall Be One By Carl Sargent too start the process of uniting the barbarian tribes!  This is going to happen after the events of GDQ0 House of the Brothers.
 But what there's more to come! 

Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk Part 13- GDQ0 House of the Brothers OSR Commentary On The Lands of Greyhawk

 "The House of the Brothers is an AD&D® game scenario for 3-6 characters of levels 6-10. Parties composed of less experienced players should have higher levels, while seasoned players may be able to handle this adventure with lower-level characters."

:This scenario s designed to fit into the WORLD OF GREYHAWK^TM Fantasy Setting. It takes place in hex M5-127 on the WORLD OF GREYHAWK  boxed-set maps three hexes north of Loftwick in the Yeomanry, on the border of the Jotens mountain range. "
We've talked about the scattering of Greyhawk's relics & treasures here & the role that Cyfandir plays in the Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk campaign here. What if there was a module or adventure that could segway into the Giant series of modules?! What happens if Luz's return is just the signal that the giants have been waiting for?! House of the Brothers from Dungeon magazine just be that adventure according to the Greyhawk wiki entry on this adventure; "House of the Brothers is a Dungeon Magazine Module for 1st Edition Ad&D, for 3-6 character of levels 6-10, but is a considerable challenge for most players at that level. It's designed to expand the GDQ1-7 Queen of the Spiders super module, but could also be used to expand the G 'Giant' Series as well."
If the dragona of Cyfandir have returned then this could be the sign that the forces of Chaos have been waiting for because it may mark the return of the one of the gods of destruction for the orges & the trolls. These are two of the backbone forces of Chaos;'Worship of Vaprak, god of destruction worshipped by ogres and trolls. The module describes a small, horrifi idol with the words 'MIGHTY IS THE POWER OF THE CLAWED ONE. GREAT IS HIS FURY. DARK IS THE HOUR OF HIS RETURN.' engraved on it's pedestal. "Vaprak, god of destruction just might be one of the side gods of evil that unites the humanoids within B2 Keep on the Borderlands. 
Remember the forces of Chaos within Adventurer.Coqueror, King are all based around the evil humanoids of old school gaming. And in the Giant series of modules it's the Drow who are stirring the pot. And it might be the evil Chaos worshipping Elves who have called a temporary truce with the Drow to further the plot of the cult of elemental evil. And it could be the Drow who have furthered the corruption of Hommlet. 

The village of Hommlet & the Keep must both be secure by the player's PC's in order to run House of the Brothers! Why? A letter to Dungeon magazine addresses this; " House of the Brother's had two letters addressing the difficulty challenge of he module:

Dear Editor: I have some worries about the level you are assigning adventures. The range in toughness for the same strength party seems pretty wide. Take "White Death" and "House of the Brothers" (issue #6). In "White Death" 4-8 players of 4th-7th level (a party averaging 33 levels) takes on 36 hp of dragon. In "Brothers", 3-6 players of 6th-1th level (36 levels) take on 200hp of Giants plus 61 hp of hell hounds. To make matters worse, "Brothers" is heavily trapped, and the PCs don't know what they are facing until probably too late, while he PCs in "White Death" know from the star they are after a white dragon and may well meet him when they are at full power.   

So, we have one adventure where the party is an easy winner, and another where the party is going to be lucky to survive. Consistent bias is easily handled by the DM but this erratic evaluation is worse than useless. The party will get bored with easy wins and even more distressed by disasters. Hopefully, you don't have this problem too often. David Carl Argall (Dungeon Magazine #9, p.3)"

And David is right and the follow up letter addresses this; " Adventure Levels: I was very interested to read David Carl Argall’s comments in issue #9 on the levels assigned to adventures. As the designer of “House of the Brothers” (issue #6), I think I have some comments which may prove useful to him.

When you are considering whether to use a given adventure in your campaign, you must consider more than just the recommended level range. The level range for “House of the Brothers” was 3-6 characters of 6th-10th level, an average of 36 levels to take on two fog giants, two hellhounds, and some dangerous traps. David says this is too tough for the players. You might be surprised to learn, then, that when I playtested this scenario, my own players were running characters from 3rd-7th level, with the average character being 5th level.

Instead of considering only the level of your players, you should also consider the relative skill of your players. In some worlds, a single giant would be deadly for a whole party of mid-level characters. In my campaign, a single hill giant wouldn’t last two rounds against even 1st-level characters. This reflects the relative experience and skill of my players, not the statistics of their characters. I routinely use modules designed for 4th-7th level characters, with only slight modifications, when my own party is at 1st level."

The ACK's player's PC's are going to have to be an appropriate level in order to tackle the pitfalls & perils of GDQ0 House of the brothers. And we can see this in the secondary response to David's letter;"During playtesting, none of the fiendish traps set by Erdol and Karzahk worked on my party. A mid-level thief who checks for traps every time should be able to negate most traps on chests and coffers. Failing this, my players have devised a number of ingenious methods for avoiding traps (which I will not share here to save you from having the same problem). They know me . . . they expect to find fiendish traps. Thus, they have learned to take the elementary precautions that will avoid them. (Consequently, I was quite shocked when they did not immediately suspect that the statue in room 5 was a stone golem!)

Finally, the real responsibility for assigning levels to adventures lies with the Dungeon Master. You know your players and your campaign’s needs better than anyone, even if they live in Lake Geneva. Frequently, AD&D players expect TSR to hand feed them, balancing every campaign and clarifying every rule. This is an impossible responsibility. Think for yourself. Mark R. Shipley Bremerton, Washington (Dungeon Magazine #11, p.2)"

This brings into sharp focus the roll that the upper levels of ACKs play in sorting out the intricities of stitching together a prequel to the G series within a  Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk campaign.

Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk Part 12- The Legacy of the ruins of Cyfandir OSR Commentary On The Lands of Greyhawk

Yesterday we discussed the balance of power on Greyhawk or as it seems with Chaos on the ascent or it seems. In point of fact that there are far older forces that have seized power long ago from the busom of the Elves & the ancient peoples of Greyhawk as related by James M. Ward's Greyhawk Adventures. The Great Dragon Aisoth the spawn of Necrozyte assaulted the Borderlands Elven capital of Cyfandir. The Lizardmen tribes who fled in her & her armys wake settled around the swamps near B2 The Keep of the Borderlands By Gary Gygax. 

Once again the Great Dragon Aisoth will awaken with the coming of Chaos & destruction. Her own tribes of Lizardmen troops will flock to her side to take out any remaining resistance around a two hundred mile  radius. Unless the PC's are of a level to take out the Great Dragon Aisoth?  The fromer Elven capital of Cyfandir would require a small army of adventurers & hirelings to take out the Lizardmen & the other monsters. The elven capital of Cyfandir holds many terrors itself. 

" Two hundred years ago, the elven capital of Cyfandir fell to the savage assault of the Great Dragon Aisoth, self-proclaimed goddess and sovereign of the lizardmen who followed in her wake. The elves, occupied with the Argollëan War, were unprepared for the attack and the city fell swiftly. The elven residents fled, many dying at the claws and teeth of the lizardmen who waited in ambush in the forest."

"Now the city lies in ruins, its walls crumbled and alabaster towers fallen to rubble, and  the forest is crawling across its streets. Ivy and moss cover the walls of once-pristine  buildings, and piles of rubble mark the passage of the dragon. Only the majestic and imposing Great Hall still carries its ancient grandeur. It is there that the Great Dragon makes her lair, sleeping atop the a treasure trove of elven coins, jewels, and artifacts."

"Only the bravest adventurers will dare to plunder the ruins of Cyfandir…"

Could the cult of elmemental evil have a peace treaty with the Great dragon enabling her to spread her own minor projeny into the wilds of Greyhawk in 20,000 mile radius? Thus enabling the Great Dragon Aisoth to later on betray Luz  & the elemental humanoid forces to carve out her own kingdom on Greyhawk?! All of this might not come to pass with her defeat within the dungeons of Cyfandir! 

Cynfandir itself would be on the edges of the  Yeomanry, thus enabling the ancient Elven capital to have such an impact on events surrounding the Keep. 

Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk Part 11 Artifacts & Treasures of Greyhawk- Scattering of Power OSR Commentary Lands of Greyhawk

 Power belongs to those who take it or so the axiom goes with things moving apace since last blog entry here. Let's take a moment too get into how the Borderland was weakened & her borders made porious. And here's where Treasures of Greyhawk comes into focus. 

The forcus is centered because Treasures of Greyhawk. Because Treasures of Grethawk  is actually the history of the forces of Chaos scatterring the treasures of the campaign setting out of the Borderlands & Greyhawk's normal environs.
Let's take it back to B2 Keep on the Borderlands By Gary Gygax. The Caves of Chaos are filled with lots of loot from around the Keep & the lands of the Keep. Why?! Because the forces of Chaos have been instructed by the cults of elemental evil to keep one step ahead of the forces of Law. 
The forces of Chaos want to weaken & humilate Law not destroy them outright. They work in broad strokes & quickly to overtake thier enemies. 
We see this in Adventurer, Conqueror, King's  AX2: Secrets of the Nethercity by Alexander Macris,& Newton Grant.
We see sparkles of the power of Law through treasures like the rod of elemental spheres in AX2. And more of Chaos's machinations within  AX1: The Sinister Stone of Sakkara by Matthew Skail & Alexander Macris. 
Because  AX1: The Sinister Stone of Sakkara by Matthew Skail & Alexander Macris is a homage to B2 Keep on the Borderland. 

And this goes back into  the dark grip of the Zaharan Empire who are simply another minor pawn of the forces of Chaos on Greyhawk. They were dupes for the forces of Chaos who fell for the old hooks & lures of the cult of Elemental Evil. And this ties back into the history found within B2 Keep on the Borderlands & the border strokes of the corruption affecting the village of Hommlet. 

The scatterring of the artifacts & treasures of Treasures of Greyhawk has weakened the carefully laidout magical protections of Greyhawk. Enabling yet another piece of armor to be removed. Thus the forces of Chaos have removed another obstacle in their supposedly march towards power. In ACK's terms the temple of elemental evil is sheer sink of evil without question! 
Treasures of Greyhawk's adventures played out could be the adventure run to recover those points of Law's magical protection! 
According to the Greyhawk Adventures publication wiki entry; "

The module was published by TSR, Inc. in 1992 for the second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. It bears the code "WGR2" and contains 19 short adventures set in various locations throughout the World of Greyhawk. The storylines of the adventures are loosely connected. During the various adventures in the book, players can, for example, explore the home of the archmage Bigby, invade a dragon's lair, travel to the demiplane called The Great Maze of Zagyg, and trade riddles with a sphinx."
The PC's will be treading on the foundations & movers of  power of Greyhawk's power. This will also enable the PC's too possibly become part of that power. And this is reflected in Keith H. Eisenbeis review of Greyhawk Adevenutures for the March/April issue of White Wolf magazine. Mr Eisenbeis stated,"He stated that anyone could find use in it and that "This product is certainly worth buying for those who run Greyhawk campaigns ". And this is something that I certainly agree with. But there's far more to slide of Chaos & horror into a point of power on Greyhawk. 

Barbarian Warlords of Greyhawk Part 10 The James M.Ward Difference - Greyhawk Adventures OSR Commentary Lands of Greyhawk

Everything changes & yet remains the same or at least it seems too. But everything changes on a gold piece as the forces of the temple of elemental busts forth with it's humanoid armies! 

 Let's pick this up right from where we left off yesterday from here.  Then we've brought Luz into the equation of Greyhawk's worsening situation yesterday. And here's where events  get interesting & the situation within the Borderlands. James M. Ward's Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Greyhawk Adventures changed everything within the Greyhawk campaign setting. Why?! Because it was the transition book between Advanced Dungeons & Dragon first edition & second edition. 

What the Hell are we talking about!? Well according to the Greyhawk wiki on the Greyhawk Adventures entry;" Greyhawk Adventures contains information about Greyhawk deities, clerics, major NPCs, monsters, geography, spells of the setting's famous magic-users (such as Bigby and Otiluke), magic items of the setting, rules for playing "zero-level" characters, and six short adventures.^[1] The supplement is compatible with both the 1st and 2nd Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules.^[1] As suggested by the note in the starburst-medallion on the cover, the contents of Greyhawk Adventures represent a transitional state between the 1st and 2nd edition AD&D rules;^[2] the NPCs in the Hall of Heroes include monks, a 1st Edition character class not included in the 2nd Edition rules, while the "Monsters of Greyhawk" chapter uses the 2nd Edition's system of rolling two ten-sided dice (2d10) for monster morale, rather than the 1st Edition's d100-based morale system." Because Greyhawk Adventures is cross compatible with AD&D 1st & 2nd edition it easily slots into the back half of ACK's easily. And this makes the Adventurers, Conqueror, King's Capital of the Borderlands By Newton Grant & Alexander Marcus that much more dynamic as it rears it's head within Greyhawk! 

Why?! Because for centuries adventurers have come too  Cyfaraun, ancient capital of the borderlands, seeking glory and gold. And this has left the ancient capital's borders open & perfect for abuse by Luz & his forces of Chaos especially after being softened up by plague & horror as we discussed last entry! Is there any hope?! 

Of course there is & this is where our PC's come in! Greyhawk maybe a great Sword & Sorcery settting gritty as it gets but it's also a place of divine power! Greyhawk sport's wizards such as  Bigby, Mordenkainen, Nystul, Tenser, and Rary  As well as dieties both major & minor with all concentrations going onto the PC's heads. The history of the Borderlands within a Greyhawk campaign is tied directly into the history of Hommlet & the temple of elemental evil. Here's that history from from the Greyhawk wiki entry;"In 566 CY, forces of evil from Dyvers or the Wild Coast constructed a small chapel outside the nearby village of Nulb. The chapel was quickly built into a stone temple from which bandits and evil humanoids began to operate with increasing frequency.

In 569 CY, a combined force was sent to destroy the Temple and put an end to the marauding. The army included regular forces from the human kingdoms of Furyondy and Veluna, dwarves from the Lortmil Mountains, gnomes from the Kron Hills, and elven archers and spearmen." 
" The site itself remained, however, and over the following decade rumors of evil presence there persisted. The Viscount of Verbobonc and the Archcleric of Veluna became increasingly concerned, and cooperated to build a small castle outside the Village of Hommlet to guard against the possibility of the Temple rising again."
Hommlet is outside of ACK's Borderlands region itself & it's one of  the key areas! 

The difference here is that Luz & his forces are breathing down the Borderlands collective necks. 

And if we look deeper into Greyhawk Adventures those forces have more then enough reason to take out the Borderlands with extreme prejuidice. Unless, the PC's start intervening in the matter. The evil elemental cult has been brewing up hordes of evil men and humanoids, including orcs, ogres and gnolls,etc. as per the Caves of Chaos from B2 Keep on the Borderlands. 
There is an update of the events at the keep within Greyhawk Adventures as well! 

This ties directly into the homage of AX1: The Sinister Stone of Sakkara by Matthew Skail & Alexander Macris