OSR Commentary On The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dieties & Demigods By Robert Kuntz & James Ward - Stains Upon The Green, Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing, & The Dwarven Gate

 The Dwarven gods that appear within Dieties and Demigods might actually predate the Elven gods of our Greyhawk campaign that we've been talking about last time on the blog. 

So let's pick it up with the Fall, September is around the corner and already the chill of Autumn is in the air of August. If you've been following our posts we dive back into both classic Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition Dieties & Demigods & Castles and Crusades with Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing. Last time we spoke about a multiplicity of Greyhawks. And let's assume for a moment using the Great Wheel cosmology that someplace among the Prime material plans that there's a Greyhawk that follows the Celtic mythology put forth within Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing. The rebellions & battles of the Celtic gods might actually line up with the Elven gods of Chaos that appeared in Adventurer,Conqueror, King's King's  By This Axe. Giving the Dwarves a rather dim view of the Elves while enhancing the human's postion within this world. 

This is a world of Celtic tribes and peoples, the Fey have full reign here, and the word of Druids might be law. The Dwarves are actually older then the Fey, the Elves, and most certainly the humans. The abandoned Dwarven city dimensional gates of Stains upon the Green lead into  Dark Wizard's #4 Vault of the Dwarven King. 

And the Fey would not be happy at all with the release of a Chaos elemental Earth elemental in the hands of the Dark Fairy, Elves, and others forces of Chaos.This world of Greyhawk may be far more raw, primative, and highly dangerous. Perhaps this version of Greyhawk might even be pre Iron Age.  The PC's gate into a very different Dwarven city from Stains on the Green. The Dwarven halls are full, the city is fully staffed, and even the Dwarven gods walk the fields of battle. 

This version of Greyhawk is within the grip of the time of legends Clangeddin Silverbeard walks upon the field of battle himself. The Dwarven race here is in thier prime. Even here Chaos rears it's head and the races of humanoids are on the uptick. If the party is captured and questioned by the Dwarves they are going to have to do some fancy foot work and talking to escape. 

Clangeddin Silverbeard, the Father of Battle, as depicted in Dragon #58 (1982).

This is a Greyhawk that reeks of legends & lore in the full of itself. Castle Greyhawk may still stand or have fallen to the forces of Chaos long ago. Something is amiss and off even as the PC's are beguiled by the forces of the Fey. But why?! 
Tales of the Outer Planes may contain the answers as the PC's try to deal with thier position within the Dwarven fortress city. Jeff Grub's Manual of the Outer Planes might be of some use when moving into another alternative Prime Material plane. And then there's the facts that the Castles & Crusades Codex Celtarum 2nd Printing may contain alternative forces of Evil that the players will not be expecting. My advice for the forces of Chaos is to use the Random Esoteric Creature Generator for Classic Fantasy Role-Playing Games and Their Modern Simulacra. The monsters will be the stuff of nightmares quite literally. 

OSR Commentary On The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dieties & Demigods By Robert Kuntz & James Ward - Stains Upon The Green & The Dwarven Gate

 One of the reasons why Kuntz and Ward's Dieties & Demigods is useful is because of the fact that the gods and mythologies protrayed in this Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition book sorta conform to our world. When I say sorta of some of the entries are not quite in line with the 'real world' mythology. And we're gonn pick it right up from here on the blog. And this is just fine. Why?! Because it conforms to TSR classic era Greyhawk. 

What do you mean fine?! Well this is because classic first edition Dieties & Demigods plugged into classic era Greyhawk and according to the Forgotten Realms wiki;"Deities & Demigods was the first print appearance of various fictional non-human deities, such as Corellon, Moradin, Gruumsh, and others, many of which have become standard features of Dungeons & Dragons and its derivatives. These deities were the creation of James Ward." And all of these non human dieties end up referenced in the original Greyhawk box set. So Dieties and Demigods ties in with Greyhawk exceedly strongly. 

Remember Dieties & Demigods introduced the 'Great Wheel' concept into Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition. Even further back it came into focus in Dragon issue#8 with a commentary by Gary Gygax. 'The Great Wheel' model of the planes includes multiple Oearths as a matter of course. 
And so we have a multiplicity of Oreaths out there in the various Prime Material universes.
So this means that there are multiple Greyhawks that are still in the multiverse. 
And to tie this in with Our Stains Upon the Green campaign. 

The Dwarves know of this multiplicity of planar material reflections through thier divinities. And so took full advantage of this fact within  the lead from Stains upon the Green's abandoned Dwarven city straight into Dark Wizard's #4 Vault of the Dwarven King. 

If we build on Adventurer,Conqueror, King's  By This Axe. The Dwarves know of this multiplicity of planar material reflections through thier divinities. And so took full advantage of this fact something that we see within Adventurer,Conqueror, King's By This Axe with Dieties & Demigods then the Dwarves place becomes clearer. 

OSR Commentary On The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dieties & Demigods By Robert Kuntz & James Ward - Godly Matters

 "Cyclopedia of Gods and Heroes from Myth and Legend

Provides the Dungeon Master with gods, heroes and monsters from myth, fiction and legend for use in rounding out an Advanced D&D campaign. Within this book are seventeen pantheons of divinities, each profusely illustrated. Also included are new material on clerics' conduct and their relationships with their deities, information on character mortality and immortality, and more!" 

This blog entry is going to pick up from here with our Jeff Grubb Manual of The Planes entry. 

Dieties & Demigods 1st edition ( yes the edition with the Cthulhu Mythos, the Elric, & Lieber Mythos) within remains a favorite. And what kicked this off is Thomas Denmark's review of the Kuntz & Ward's Dieties & Demigods. The publication history &information from the Dieties & Demigods wiki entry contains several interesting things;" TSR published the first version of Deities & Demigods in 1980 as a 144-page hardcover for the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules.^[2] This edition, by James M. Ward and Robert J. Kuntz, served to update the material they had earlier included in 1976's Supplement IV: Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes for the original D&D ruleset.^[3] The book presents the game statistics and background information for gods and legendary heroes and creatures taken from various mythologies.^[4] The original edition included 12 pantheons of gods taken from both myth and folklore, as well as gods for various nonhuman races, and four groups taken from fictional works: the Arthurian heroes, the Nehwon mythos from Fritz Leiber, the Melnibonéan mythos from Michael Moorcock, and the Cthulhu Mythos from H. P. Lovecraft.^[2] These statistics are presented in a fashion similar to that of the Monster Manual, and illustrations accompany the statistics, as well as a short description that details what circumstances might cause the god to personally appear and what actions the god might take in such an instance, and what responsibilities and penchants that god may have.^[3] The book also details the mythoi of these religions, as well as what behaviors are expected of clerics, and describes the known planes of existence and how characters may find themselves in the afterlife .^[3] Interior illustrations were submitted by Jeff Dee, Eymoth (Kenneth Rahman), Jennell Jaquays,^[a] Dave S. LaForce, Jeff Lanners, Erol Otus, Darlene Pekul, Jim Roslof, David C. Sutherland III, and D.A. Trampier.^[5]

The original Deities & Demigods includes a 9-page chart for clerics, as well as an entire chapter about the various planes of existence.^[" 

Now I'm not going over any of the controversy that surrounds the Dieties & Demigods book. You can read about that on the Dieties & Demigods wiki entry here.
What no one really talks about in thier various reviews, commentaries, etc. is the nine page clerical chart & Great Wheel Cosmology section within the Dieties and Demigods Gods book. Sure you'll see Amazon reviews like Patrick Payne's from October 2007; "This is a good addition to any 1st Edition AD&D library, particularly any one that is going to be set on a fantasy Earth. The book presents a number of well-known real mythoi (even if they are somewhat changed from their historical underpinnings for ease of gameplay -- but Schick and Kuntz do provide an extensive bibliography for the source material) including lesser-known pantheons such as the Native American and Finnish gods. There is even a section for King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table (following Mallory's Morte d'Arthur, and not the post-Roman noble he probably was, but that's just a nitpick). Monsters and other heroes conected with the deities are also included.

But the most legendary point of the book is, of course, official AD&D stats for Cthulhu and others in the Lovecraft mythos -- and they are bruisers.

Don't let the deities' stat blocks fool you into thinking the gods are there like other monsters -- for the purpose of "kill it and take its stuff." These gods are GODS -- they have stats only to be used "if absolutely necessary." Any of these deities could reasonably be expected to kill a PC of almost any level within a round or two (and some, like Cthulhu, could even make short work of some of the toughest critters from the Monster Manual such as Demogorgon or Orcus). Use them sparingly as direct combat opponents (although sending Cthulhu [400 HP, 30 attacks (you read that right) of a damage level I don't recall, but obscenely high] against a "full of itself, 'let's rip the moustache off the king and raid his treasury'" party might just knock some sense into them <evil laugh>), instead trying to use them as either patrons or prime movers -- The PCs probably would never face Loki or Izumo, but might be fighting fire giants or Ogre Magi/Oni that the gods are directing.

One thing -- make sure to look carefully at the product description. If you want just any copy, any edition of this book (or the identical-but-for-a-different-cover-and-title Legends and Lore) are extremely serviciable. But if you're a collector, or are looking to use the 1st Edition stats for the Cthulhu or Melinebone (sp?) mythoi, be sure the product description states that it is the first edition -- after that (and perhaps a second printing), TSR decided to take the stats out rather than have to give a "thank you" credit to Chaosium. However, some later printings have the "thank you" note without the stats (they hadn't gotten around to changing the plates) -- therefore get the first printing and you're assured of Lovecraftian goodness."

Sure there's a ton of great information there but what the reviewer isn't telling you and what makes Kuntz & Ward's Dieties & Demigods the fourth core AD&D first edition book is that nine page chart for clerics. Why? Because it gives all of the information about whom the cleric's god is opposition too, what is required of the cleric, and more. Its the combination of the chart and the stat blocks of the gods that makes Dieties & Demigods an invaluable book. In point of fact Dieties and Demigods 1st edition is invaluable for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons clerics. Because it continues the material from Kuntz & Ward's Gods, Demigods, and Heroes from original Dungeons & Dragons. 

Comparing and contrasting the two supplements is day and night. The Advanced Dungeons & Dragons version expands on the entries of Gods. Demi Gods, and Heroes. This isn't to say that it's superior but simply that it's a different edition of the same material spun & edited for a different edition. But if your PC's somehow 

do end up on a god's home plane, boy are they going to be in trouble. 
And  for the 'Great Wheel Cosmology' Dieties & Demigods collected all of the information about the planes and then spun it with the gods. And this is also the first appearance of the Demi Human & Humanoid races which were James Ward's creation according to the Forgotten Realms Dieties & Demigods Wiki entry; "Deities & Demigods was the first print appearance of various fictional non-human deities, such as Corellon, Moradin, Gruumsh, and others, many of which have become standard features of Dungeons & Dragons and its derivatives. These deities were the creation of James Ward.

The original edition covered 12 pantheons of gods from myth and folklore, plus gods for various nonhumans, and four fictional groups: the Arthurian heroes, Fritz Leiber's Nehwon mythos, Michael Moorcock's Melnibonéan mythos, and H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. These statistics are presented in a fashion similar to that of the Monster Manual, and the statistics are accompanied by illustrations, as well as a short descriptive piece that details under what circumstances the god will appear, what the god might do if he does appear, and what his responsibilities and penchants may be. The book also details the mythoi of these religions, as well as how their clerics should behave, and describes the known planes of existence and how the afterlife applies to characters." 
For the Delving Deeper rpg, OSRIC, or even Castles & Crusades - Dieties & Demigods remains incredibly useful especially for putting a complete different spin on clerics for these games. Dieties and Demigods is almost but not quite completely unknown to the fifth edition player. 
There are are vast differences between the cosmology of Jeff Grubb's Manual of the Planes & Dieties & Demigods in the placement of the gods and planes. This is something that the DM is going to have to work at resolving themselves. For Castles & Crusades this means possibly either using or ignoring C&C dieties cosmology & mythology or using Dieties & Demigods cosmology as thier campaign setting's. 
The Manual of the Planes & OP1: Tales of the Outer Planes" (1988) comepletely messes with the cosmology further indicating some huge planar conflict that may have upset the balance of the multiverse or planes. The DM has to decide this from here. 

Coffee, Tea, or Elric of Melnibone By Michael Moorcock - Some Quick Sword & Sorcery Thoughts on The Elric the NPC

 "Elric of Melnibone, an albino prince, travels in the Ship Which Sails Over Land and Sea to the city of Dhoz-Kam, through the Shade Gate to the Pulsing Cavern where the magic swords Stormbringer and Mournblade await him"

Written in Seventy two when I was but a wee lad of two, by Michael Moorcock Elric of Melniboné. This was one of my bed time stories when my dad got back from
 to. There's something about Elric's situation which just goes from bad to worse that seems more akin to how Sword & Sorcery sometimes plays out. Moorcock's writing is at his best here someplace between 70's Rock & Roll & the Pulps. In other words the majority of Elric's saga is lightning in a bottle. It will not come again. Why because Elric isn't really a likeable guy but does he deserve the part he plays in the saga of the multiverse?! Yes & no.. 

Yes & no, the consequences he unleashes to stop his cousin ultimately doom all of reality to the cosmic cycle of things when Law & Chaos come calling. Chaos itself is ultimately a force of evil unto itself that people are only far too willing to play with. Magick itself is power. That unto itself is dangerous & nothing about the Elric saga is safe. And its that danger that propels the saga forward in a way. The older I'm getting Elric is not an NPC that should ever really be encountered! Every place he goes gods, evil, & destruction follow in his wake. 
                                                                                                                   

Recently the group of players that I'm with have been tossing the Stormbringer rpg back & forth. And talking about the fact that Elric isn't really an NPC that they'd want to run into. And in point of fact he might be a danger on level with the Jammers in The Design Mechanism's Luther Arkwright rpg. 

This was a topic of conversation over coffee & tea today with some friends. How would you get rid of Elric & co. if they blundered into your world?! He's got the attention of the chaos gods & elemental lords on his side?! Not to mention a god killer & soul sword at his side in the form of Stormbringer.

If Elric shows up on your back doorstep in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition your campaign is  in major trouble. Elric is a mercenary & antihero of the highest order & no where is this more evident then in the recent Titan comics releases of the graphic novels. Elric's appearance in AD&D first edition's Deities & Demigods gives a good overview of the NPC. 

Make no mistake he really is Chaotic Evil in every sense of the word after a quick re read of Elric of Melnibone By Michael Moorcock. We used to run or clean up after Elric would show up in my uncle's Stormbringer rpg campaign. But how the Hell do you get rid of Elric? What happens if the anti hero is actually the real villain after all?! 

Warduke Prince of the Damned?! A More Moorcockian Dive & Speculation Into XL1 Quest for the Heartstone By Michael L. Gray For Expert Dungeons & Dragons

We know that the cold, cruel, & calculating Warduke remains one of the most popular of 'The Dungeons & Dragons' cartoon but is there far more going on under the red glowing eyes of the bat winged helm?! Whom does Warduke really serve!? And is there a Moorcock connection?!


“A heart of stone, beyond the mist you’ll find,” Loftos said softly. “The heartstone will tell you who should be your king.”

“But where is this stone? How will I find it?” the queen asked.

“The stone was stolen over 50 years ago by Dahnakriss the Master Thief. He Who Watches originally gave the tiny, heartshaped stone to Qasmar, who was the King of Ghyr during the Prism Wars. During these wars, Qasmar used the stone to see into the hearts of men, and was so able to choose his friends and allies. Soon after the war, the magical stone vanished from Castle Ghyr’s supposedly thief-proof vaults. Until now, no one knew what had become of the heartstone. According to He Who Watches, it lies north, in the great Mountains of Ice.

“We must convince a party of adventurers to retrieve the stone and bring it back to us. But we must be very careful. No one must know of the stone’s power, especially not those who would aspire to the throne. Even those we hire to find the stone should not know of its strength!

XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray. 

And just like that two champions of chaos & law were created from the ground up. Pureheart the paladin & Warduke mortal enemies for all times each representing far more then they seem. The two are representatives of powers beyond the pale in 'the Realms'. According to the official back story he was a simple lowly fighter given almost supernatural power by the heartstone.


Now lets dive back into the fray with four characters cut from the opposite sides of the cloth. Warduke himself is a study in contrasts but its his own nature that bares out the curse that comes from the Heartstone ;" Both were exposed to the Heartstone, and Warduke’s cruel nature was brought out while Pureheart’s just nature became stronger…." The heartstone manipulates its victims traits into the best or worst alignments & personality that they can be.  The heartstone literally is advancing its own agenda giving more power to both law & chaos within 'The Realms' & Mystara in the form of champions.

[He] especially hates Pureheart, who he feels wastes his time protecting the weak and helpless. “A true fighter,” Warduke feels, “makes himself rich and powerful by the strength of his sword arm. He takes what he can—if you would keep your possessions, kill those who seek to take them.” He calls his sword “Nightwind.”"
I've said this before I think that the power of Warduke isn't the man himself but his accouterments & sword. I think the helm is an artifact similar to Frazetta's Deathdealer paperbacks & Deathdealer comic books by Glen Danzig. 

This also goes a long way to explaining some of the inconsistencies that we see in appearances, levels, etc. going all of the way back to Warduke's official inclusion in Wizards of the Coast's 'official' canon on the character here.  But imagine the tragic circumstances surroundings Strongheart the paladin whose hunted, and tried to defeat his friend so many times only to have the knowledge that he's trapped within his own body & mind!? Very dark stuff indeed. 

But surely there's not an Elric analog of the Pureheart/Warduke relationship in Michael Moorcock's Eternal Champion mythologies is there?! Meet " Prince Gaynor Paul St Odhran Badehoff-Krasny von Minct, known as Gaynor the Damned, Gunnar the Doomed, and Paul Minct, is a fallen knight of the Cosmic Balance. "

 A cursed & damned  champion of Chaos. He is an arch enemy of Elric of Melniboné, Ulrich Von Bek, Oona Von Bek, Prince Corum and The Rose, and has crossed swords with Elric of Melniboné. In the guise of Paul Minct, Gaynor antagonizes Jack Karaquazian, Sam Oakenhurst, The Rose and Colinda Dovero.

Gaynor is responsible for the destruction of a universe dear to The Rose, and this has earned Gaynor her eternal hatred. Gaynor seeks the Holy Grail to be reconciled with the Balance, or else to die and drag all of the Multiverse into Limbo."

Prince Gaynor  too appears in Kuntz & Ward's Deities & Demigods borne on the  whims of Chaos to serve in every single major conflict of Law & Chaos. He would definitely seek out the heartstone from  XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray. 

But Gaynor very cursed chaotic nature with Elric makes eerie parallels with the Pureheart & Warduke relationship dynamic & Gaynor is tied into the immortal  existence of the Eternal Champion;" In Corum's universe, Gaynor served Xiombarg and led an army of Chaos against the city of Halwyg-nan-Vake. Corum defeated him and removed his visor, exposing his face and banishing him from Corum's universe to continue his torment elsewhere."

Even  Gaynor gear & weapons look very similar to Warduke?! So is there a prophecy or two tied into the fate of 'The Realms' wrapped around Warduke?! 

XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray leads to more adventure opportunities & questions then answers for me. But here are ten of them right off the top of my head. 

1. Does the heartstone have a Greyhawk analog & if so will there be more conflict & chaos that it inflicts on Oerth. Could some of the wars & conflict be because of it. 
2. Are 'The Realms' subject to other darker & sinister incursions of chaos & could Tiamat's relationship with 'the Realms' be tied directly into this. 
3. Do the lords of order have a stake in 'The Realms' & if so how!? 
4. XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray tie into the greater cosmic chess game of the Eternal Champion in ways that affect Venger & his dark master. 
5. Could the 'Nameless One' be the source of Warduke's dark power?! Is this why he's so cavilier in his relationship with Venger in the D&D cartoon episode 'In Search of the Dungeon Master'. 
6. Could Elric or one of the other Eternal Champions pop up in the Realms searching for one of the artifacts that 'young pupils' destroyed?! If so would this put the albino prince in a direct confrontation with the Dungeon Master or Venger for that matter!?
7. What of the other powerful NPC's mentioned & outlined in AC1 The Shady Inn?! Could they have more then a vested interest in fate of Warduke. 
8. With his nightmare mount Warduke could theorically travel the planes including making appearances on Greyhawk during his time as a mercenary. Why was he on Greyhawk!? Did he cross swords with Gord Gary Gygax's renegade theif,  cat lord, & champion of balance?! 
9. Whose personality or mind are in charge of Warduke & what is this person's actual agenda in 'the realms'. 
10. Could Warduke be planning & building up some hidden agenda far more dangerous then Venger's?! 

'Of Albino Princes & Heartstones' A Deeper Moorcockian Dive Into XL1 Quest for the Heartstone By Michael L. Gray For Expert Dungeons & Dragons

“Elric knew that everything that existed had its opposite. In danger he might find peace. And yet, of course, in peace there was danger. Being an imperfect creature in an imperfect world he would always know paradox. And that was why in paradox there was always a kind of truth. That was why philosophers and soothsayers flourished. In a perfect world there would be no place for them. In an imperfect world the mysteries were always without solution and that was why there was always a great choice of solutions.”
― Michael Moorcock, The Elric Saga Part I



'Does the 'Realms' have an artifact that overlaps several campaign settings at once & does said artifact sew chaos on wide range of venues?' this was the question lasting night that I asked myself thumbing through my archives. One of the modules from the classic era that comes up quite obviously is XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray. Now by no means is this a fantastic module or even a great module as its a licencing tie in between the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon, the D&D cartoon action figures, several lost cartoon action figures that appear as NPC's & the grand game itself. I don't want to get lost too much in the history of XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray..



I'd like to point out the fact that the vaults of Pandius website article  'Mystara Module and Placement'  by Andrew Theisen has the following ; "XL-1: Quest for the Heartstone
Location: Ghyr
Location Notes: The module takes place near the kingdom of Ghyr, located near the Mountains of Ice, which are not explicitly located on Mystara.
Time Period: Pre-1000 AC or 1001-1004 AC
Staging Suggestions: The module can pretty well be placed anywhere in a mountainous region. A likely location is somewhere near the Icereach Mountains of Norwold.
Continuity Problems: The module can pretty well take place at any time. If one assumes that the LJN Toy Characters are the NPCs who take part in it, it could create some continuity problems. Strongheart and Mercion are listed as King and Queen of Ierendi in module X10, and they (along with Figgen, Elkhorn, Ringlerun, and Peralay) are described as being retired from adventuring (as well as being Companion level characters). This would then mean that XL-1 must take place either before 1000 AC (when Palfrit and Marianne rule Ierendi), or between 1000 AC and 1005-1006 AC (when the Master of Hule invades the Known World). As Strongheart and Figgen are both mentioned in Gaz4, either of these choices would fit. From their histories, the LJN characters did take place in some kind of Heartstone Quest, though it need not necessarily be module XL-1 itself; the DM could assume they were part of an earlier quest, thus avoiding continuity problems and allowing his players to run the module as suits their campaign.
References: AC1, X10 (p.16), Gaz4 (p.23)"

So not only do Pureheart & Warduke appear within 'The Realms' or version of them but they also appear in Mystara. Was Mystara at some point going to take on 'The Realms' when the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon was on the airwaves?!
But the hearthstone itself is still out there in the planes spinning its web of destiny & weirdness. And this dear friends is where & when we might pick campaign events. XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray isn't a fantastic module but its got several things going for it. The module has all of the heavy hitters of the D&D cartoon built right in. With the right group of players it has potential to be a blast. But what if the Heartstone is far more then it seems?! 


The Heartstone itself & its properties remind me of several of the artifacts from a certain albino prince's adventures. Hear me out here. Michael Moorcock's Elric saga has any number of chaotic, lawful, & highly dangerous artifacts. What if the heartstone is 'The Realms' & Mystara's equivalent? The Heartstone is a heavy hitter artifact able to change the alignment, personality traits, and even the stats of NPC's. The heartstone is key to the creation of Warduke himself. In the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon every other episode there's literally an artifact level magic item that the 'young pupils' are delving for.



Since we've got all of the Stormbringer mythology from the Elric saga in Robert J. Kuntz & James M. Ward in the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition Deities & Demigods.



It stands to reason that Elric could indeed theoretically cross swords with Warduke himself if the campaign need arises. The question is do these artifacts that the kids of the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon are questing for have far more value then simply getting those kids home?!



 XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray answers this question quite nicely as the fate of a kingdom hangs quite literally in the balance. Again there's some weird parallels between the Elric saga & a tie in module for the D&D cartoon.
But could  XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray be used as the jump off point for an Eternal Champion Expert level D&D module campaign with Moorcock influences or darker?! In a word quite easily. Here are ten reasons why this would work: 

1. XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray introduces all of the heavy hitters of an alternative D&D cartoon style campaign & with a simple DM push they can become all that much more Sword & Sorcery style. 
2. The PC's following in the foot steps of Elric is easily done & they don't even have to meet the albino prince for that matter! Or the young pupils for that matter. 
3. In a campaign back in the Nineties I had my players cross swords with Warduke & they didn't survive. 
4. This is where D&D Expert set, Mentzer/BECMI version of D&D shines crossed over with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition. 
5. There were a number of artifacts that the 'young pupils' umm destroyed that could still be out in 'The Realms' causing trouble. 
6. Venger is powerful enough to cross from 'The Realms' into Greyhawk, & Mystara especially if he's expanding his power base. Venger crossing swords with Elric is a frightening prospect. Yes Elric might wipe the floor with em. But the destruction wrought on a campaign world?! 
7. Elric might be questing for the heartstone for a client to restore the sanity of a person or cure some alignment curse. 
8. Then there's that pesky kingdom up for grabs at the end of XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray. One of my players brought up the fact that the PC's might want to take it over. Adventurer,Conqueror, King rpg is perfect for this. 
9. If we push the D&D cartoon into a Sword & Sorcery light, it becomes quite dark, dangerous, and really deadly. It wouldn't take much at all to go all out in a Conan or Stormbringer style D&D cartoon campaign. 
10. XL1 Quest For the Hearthstone by Michael L. Gray is a solid campaign jump off point for a D&D cartoon style floor level campaign. Done right this could introduce a whole new Sword & Sorcery group of players to a very nice Eternal champion game.