Two: Forests: Forests conceal the antagonist's stronghold, making travel difficult and visibility poor for characters going in. Forests give the antagonist an enormous advantage in ambushes. Three: River: Aside from crossing, the difficulty of the terrain will allow antagonist thugs to find and engage player characters in battle. River banks are also good for archery attacks, as one cannot engage the archers in melee. Four: Lake: It can be difficult for characters to find their way across a large body of water (while possibly exposing themselves to magical or water creature attacks). The antagonist will have an island or inlet fortified against intrusions, ready for any foolish enemy who might try to assault the stronghold. Five: Mountain: If the antagonist doesn't get you, the mountain will. A great deal of skill is needed not only to climb the mountain, but to survive the negative temperatures and hundred mile-per-hour winds. It will be difficult to climb to the stronghold, let alone get into it. Common defenses are rock slides and other sinister traps. Six: Underground: A stronghold underground will be very hard to find. Inside there will usually be traps and hidden passageways, generally dangerous to those who are unfamiliar with the stronghold. Those few who dwell underground (whatever they are) will have intimate knowledge of the entire stronghold. Seven: Desert: Sheer heat and cold are the major obstacles. Only extremely serious or foolhardy players will venture into the desert against the antagonist's stronghold. Heatstroke (for those in heavy clothes and armor), dehydration (for those who did not bring enough water), and poisoning (massive sunburns for those with too light clothing) complicate the journey. Eight: Graveyard: Not only is the evil antagonist living in an extremely spooky place, but there are also hordes of zombies, skeletons, wraiths, and ghouls on the prowl. The massive amount of combat needed to penetrate this defense warrant a lot of extra help- but who would want to help attack a graveyard full of undead?. Nine: City: Not only is the stronghold safely hidden in a huge crowd of people, but the antagonist has many connections with the local populace. While it is nearly impossible for the players to find the antagonist quickly, he/she will have imme. diate knowledge of the players' arrival and activities. Ten: Island: Place the antagonist within a group of islands: the characters will have the problem of finding just which island the antagonist occupies. Even if the characters locate him the antagonist will doubtless know of the impending arrival of the player characters, summoning reinforcements (perhaps for a sea battle) and readying for their arrival. Jack: Aboard Ship: Not only is it nearly impossible to find this ship/stronghold, but it keeps moving! Current information is a must, and then only when the players are close enough to act on it, otherwise the ship will sail again. A good ship can stay at sea for two weeks without a port. Queen: Other Dimension: A powerful item may enable the antagonist to make his home in places undreamt of by the players. Travel to this place is impossible save for the mightiest magic and items, and even then is risky. King: Shrinking: A powerful item may enable the antagonist (and perhaps his servants) to shrink to one-tenth their normal size and fit their entire society into a place (i.e., crags in a mountain), where no creature larger than 10 inches may pass. Most weapons will not fit inside. Once outside the place, the person returns to his normal height. Ace: Illusions: By virtue of an unknown source, illusions cover the surroundings of the stronghold. Swamps appear as fields, and cliffs as inviting pools. Only those who have traveled this way frequently can see through the false visions. Illuminating the Enemy Quick Rules for Beefing Up Your NPCs Introduction Clubs: Followers Diamonds: Locations Hearts: Tactics and Diplomacy Spades: Magic and Magical Items Back to Shadis #17 Table of Contents Back to Shadis List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master List of Magazines © Copyright 1995 by Alderac Entertainment Group This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com