The Pilgrimage - Rough (WFRP2)

The Pilgrimage A SCENARIO FOR WARHAMMER FANTASY ROLEPLAY, SECOND EDITION Writing, Graphics & Layout: David Graffam Illustration: J.R. Head Story Assistance: Danny A. Torres Rough Draft - September 2005 © 2005 David Graffam, J.R. Head & Danny A. Torres

Introduction This manuscript is intended for gamemasters only. If you’re going to be playing a character in this adventure, stop reading now. You’ll only ruin the fun if you know what’s in store. The Pilgrimage takes place on a lonely trail through the Drakwald, the vast forest that is the heart of the Middenland. The exact location is never specified, allowing you to run the scenario along any roadway in the Empire by making a few adjustments. The setup is simple enough: the player characters come across a small party of religious pilgrims who have taken a vow of non-violence, leaving them defenceless against the hazards of the road. If the adventurers are out of work, looking for a few crowns, a noble cause or some excitement, they’ll find them all by signing on as the pilgrims’ guards long enough to complete their mission to reach their deity’s shrine. This scenario is inspired by horror classics such as Alien, The Thing and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Use it to generate some cheap thrills with your group. The less the players know, and the longer they go without learning all the details, the scarier it’ll be. The player characters will come face to face with horrors of Chaos and some of the ways it infiltrates the good people of the Empire. Two tough fight scenes form bookends to the story, so your PCs should be in top form if you expect them to survive. The encounters are written for a group of three adventurers starting their second careers, to give you a rough gauge of the challenges they pose. If you’re running the game for a stronger or weaker party, adjust the number of enemy combatants. The pilgrims eventually become the PCs’ enemies, so consider adjusting their numbers to suit your group as well.

Disclaimer: This document is completely unofficial and in no way endorsed by Games Workshop Limited. Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay logo, WFRP, Chaos, the Chaos device, the Chaos logo, Citadel, Citadel Device, Darkblade, 'Eavy Metal, Forge World, Games Workshop, Games Workshop logo, Golden Demon, Great Unclean One, GW, the Hammer of Sigmar logo, Horned Rat logo, Keeper of Secrets, Khemri, Khorne, the Khorne logo, Lord of Change, Nurgle, the Nurgle logo, Skaven, the Skaven symbol device, Slaanesh, the Slaanesh logo, Tomb Kings, Tzeentch, the Tzeentch logo, Warhammer, Warhammer World logo, White Dwarf, the White Dwarf logo, and all associated marks, names, races, race insignia, characters, vehicles, locations, units, artefacts, illustrations and images from the Warhammer world are either ®, TM and/or © Copyright Games Workshop Ltd 2000-2005, variably registered in the UK and other countries around the world. Used without permission. No challenge to their status intended. All Rights Reserved to their respective owners.

Adventure Summary Background – A Curse on Plattendorf: This is the unhappy tale of a small village in the Middenland, in which a trinket found by a child begins a dreadful turn of events. The villagers only thought they had avoided the scourge of Archaon’s armies in the Storm of Chaos. Episode One – Job Offer: The adventurers meet a small band of religious pilgrims, worshippers of a littleknown regional saint named Schnalle, on their way from Plattendorf to a shrine deep in the Drakwald. With them is their hired Dwarf cart-driver, Ragni Rognisson. They appeal to the adventurers’ sense of piety in order to get them to sign on as armed escorts. If that’s not enough, they offer gold. The pilgrims are just what they seem to be, but Chaos will eventually turn them against the adventurers. Episode Two – Broken Bridge: The party enters the deep forest on a remote path. The signs of Chaos are all too clear, remnants of the recent war. After some time, the group arrives at a broken bridge, and must attempt to negotiate an aging, poorly-made river ford. Episode Three – Nurglish Warband: A warband of mutants attacks the travellers as they attempt to cross the river ford. One of the mutants is the host to a foul hive of worm-like parasites. When he is struck down, one of these Worms of Nurgle finds its way to a pilgrim and burrows into his skin, unseen by the rest of the party. The mutant warband is defeated, but as the pilgrims continue on their journey, the worm is a silent stowaway, plotting the demise of them all. Episode Four – Act of Vengeance: The party camps for the night. Unable to forgive the priest for the death of the young boy in Plattendorf, one of the pilgrims murders him and sneaks away into the forest. The PCs and pilgrims discover Gregor’s body, and know that his killer is still somewhere out in the Drakwald. The party’s bonds of companionship begin to unravel. The adventurers are forced to decide if they should continue to the shrine or turn back. Episode Five – What’s In the Box?: Along the way to wherever the PCs have decided to go, Ragni loses his temper and finds out what’s in the box they’ve been carrying around for the priest. Inside is a little money, a huge book, a bittersweet letter, and an unholy pendant that is the key to the troubles. They also find the priests’ murderer – with a broken leg. As the adventurers grapple with some very tough decisions, the pilgrim infected with the Worm of Nurgle can hardly contain himself. Aftermath: Some possible outcomes and ideas for follow-up adventures are presented here. Following this section are adventure resources, including stats for NPCs and other supporting information used throughout the scenario.

Background – A Curse on Plattendorf The tiny Middenland village known as Plattendorf is tucked away in verdant hills, consisting of little more than a few farms and a cold spring. The village’s name comes from its original settlers who believed the hills to be rich in iron ore. Their mines dug out nothing but granite, and eventually the Plattendorfers resigned themselves to subsistence farming. Thanks to its remote location, the armies of the Storm of Chaos never discovered it.

But all was not right in Plattendorf in the year 2522. Alexei Foller, the son of a Plattendorf farmer, began to suffer from insanity. Within days he was completely deranged, plagued by dementia and fits of rage. His temper was so violent that he was thought to be possessed by dark spirits and devils. Around the same time, two farmers were found slain in their fields, but no witnesses would come forth. The people of Plattendorf believed that a curse had taken hold. The only clergy for miles around were the Bearers of Schnalle, who admittedly had no experience conducting investigations or exorcisms. (See the description of the Bearers of Schnalle in the resources section.) But the locals insisted that something be done. Priest Gregor Hulzhoffer stepped to the task full of hope that he would find the truth, but his investigations into the murders were fruitless. He turned to the matter of the child that had gone out of control. Truly Alexei seemed possessed. His violent outbursts, filthy language and refusal to do as told convinced Gregor that he had become a host to wicked daemons. He fretted over what to do, as daily the pressure to cure the boy grew. Some families had been shattered by the curse on their village and few would venture out of their homes. The fields went untilled, and one distraught woman was found hanging in her home. Was it yet another murder, made to look like a suicide? Gregor prayed and fasted, and did not sleep for a week. The murders went unsolved, and the child’s condition worsened. The cure eluded him. However, Gregor did find a clue to Alexei’s troubles, in the form of a tiny artefact among the boy’s belongings: a pendant bearing the mark of Nurgle. Where the boy found it or why he had kept it remained a mystery. In the face of powers he could not hope to control, exhausted and suffering from a cold, the priest finally slept. In a fever dream, he saw the afflicted boy walking unharmed through a cleansing fire. Schnalle was standing next to him. Believing the dream to be a literal sign – perhaps because he was not thinking clearly in the throes of his fever – Gregor leapt from his bed and raced to test his vision. Loudly proclaiming that the daemons would be driven away by a great flame, he bound Alexei to a stake in the heart of the village, and set it alight. By the time he realized his vision had been nothing more than a dream, Alexei was so badly burned that he would not survive the night. Daemons or no daemons, the child’s screams would forever haunt all who heard them. As his fever cooled and he regained his senses, Gregor knew his followers were dismayed at his failure and were prepared to abandon him. The other villagers, too few and too frightened of the priest to oust him directly, made secret plans to murder him. Needing no powers of foresight to see this eventuality, Gregor realized he was past the point of no return. If he was a fraud, he decided he would take as much as he could with him as he went into exile. He devised a dramatic way to regain his follower’s trust, knowing that their faith had been shaken. He gathered his flock and explained that he’d had another vision. Everything that had happened in Plattendorf, he said, had been Schnalle’s will, calling his worshippers to his shrine deep in the Drakwald. Upon arrival, he promised, the faithful would see that Schnalle had a plan for them. But they would have to leave their homes, perhaps forever, to find out what it was. Gregor’s parishioners had become guilty by association and come under pressure from the rest of the village to leave with their leader. Caught between their love of home and loyalty to Priest Hulzhoffer, all but one of them chose to join him in exile. The initiate that chose to stay behind was stoned to death by the villagers. The message was clear: the Bearers of Schnalle would never be welcome back in Plattendorf. Gregor packed his valuables into a wooden chest and locked it securely.

A few miles outside of the village, the wandering pilgrims met Ragni Rognisson in his makeshift cart. He, having nothing better to do and seeing the chest they were carrying, decided it would be worth his while to take some of the burden off their backs. Interpreting Ragni’s generosity as a blessing from Schnalle, Gregor then and there made his people swear an oath of pacifism, another test of their faith. Though some of them spoke the words reluctantly, they all complied. Alarmed by their foolishness, considering the dangerous lands they were passing through, Ragni has kept an eye out for mercenaries or anyone else willing to carry a sword in their defence. By his estimation there’s enough gold in the Schnallites’ ‘money’ chest for a Dwarf to retire on, and that’s exactly what he intends to achieve. He just needs the right opportunity to get away unseen.

Episode One – Job Offer Starting the adventure should be straightforward. If the PCs are travelling along any pathway in the vast Drakwald, they will find themselves catching up to a small band of pilgrims. If the PCs are standing around looking for work in town, the pilgrims will be passing through, perhaps stocking up on travel supplies, ringing their bells and chimes so loudly that the PCs can’t help but notice them. The six pilgrims rattle and clang as they go, followed by their lumbering cart and cart-driver. At the head of the procession is the eldest and apparent leader: a stout man with a bushy black beard. He is Gregor Hulzhoffer, Priest of the cult known as the Bearers of Schnalle. He clutches a tome in one hand, taking long strides. Behind him stumble half a dozen wailing initiates. Their blue-grey robes are worn and falling to pieces, and they seem to possess little else. Behind these unwashed pilgrims plods a single aging horse pulling a cart held together with wire. Driving the cart is a dour faced Dwarf in plain clothes, a cap pulled low over his road weary eyes. He’s certainly not a member of the clergy, judging from the looks of him. The Dwarf spots the adventurers right away. With an air of command he points directly at them, and calls out in a gruff voice asking if they’d like to earn a few marks. If the PCs are interested in hearing the offer, the cart driver will call them over for a closer view. He’ll introduce himself as Ragni Rognisson, a beer merchant by trade. In the wake of the Storm of Chaos kegs of brew have become exceedingly scarce, as he explains: ‘It’s a terrible lot, forced as I am to turn my cart into the lowest form of transport for a ragged gang of smelly, brainless stargazers. But I’ll let you in on a secret. They may not look wealthy in those rags, but this cart’s loaded over with tents and blankets to try to fool you into thinking they don’t have a chest full of gold hidden underneath. They say their journey is blessed, and nothing will harm them on their pilgrimage. They believe it so much they took a vow of pacifism, the fools did. ‘So you see, we’re a fat ripe target for thieves, and we’re heading out on a road not oft travelled. I’ve already talked it over with the pilgrims here, and they’re willing to give you each three crowns for signing on, and another ten when we reach some shrine what’s out there. Shouldn’t take you too far out of your way, and nobody’d pick on a convoy that big and well-protected. Easy money, don’t you think?’ Haggling for fair wages may be all that stands between your PCs and acceptance of the job. Ragni knows that the pilgrims will trust their gods to protect them, a trust he doesn’t share. As such, he’s getting

desperate and is willing to throw in a few gold crowns of his own in order to hire the adventurers. Let one of the PCs make an Opposed Haggle skill test with Ragni. This test will be Easy (+20) for the adventurer, but Challenging (-10) for Ragni. If the PC succeeds, the Dwarf can be negotiated into paying as much as 5 gc per adventurer now, and another 15 gc each when they reach the shrine. If the offer still seems too low, you may want to prod the PCs by mentioning the lack of work around town, and how everyone’s wondering where they’ll find their next job. It could be a long time before another opportunity like this comes around. If the PCs are in transit when they meet the pilgrims, they should be heading in the same direction. It should seem like easy money to simply share the road for a couple of days. Safety in numbers and some extra coins ought to be too good to pass up. While Ragni talks with the adventurers and gives them their advance payment, the pilgrims preach their beliefs to anyone who will listen. Any time the pilgrims are around and awake, a Very Easy (+30) Gossip skill test will give the adventurers all of the following information: these pilgrims are Bearers of Schnalle, a subcult of Ulric. (Any PCs with a devotion to Ulric should feel compelled to help these pilgrims, as their chief deity is the same.) They’re undertaking a pilgrimage to the shrine of Huld Schnallmann, fallen champion of the Middenland, dead these thirteen long centuries, their chosen deity. This small but devout group of worshippers has survived many miles with the gods’ blessings, but the road ahead is notorious – and to go ahead without armed escort is suicide. None of the pilgrims can say with certainty how long it will take to reach the shrine, as of course there may be unforeseen delays. Gregor makes a rough estimate of three days from this point, recalling his first journey there as a young man. The shrine itself is not well known and its location is out of the way, but the adventurers may be allowed a Routine (+10) Navigation or Challenging (-10) Common Knowledge (the Empire) skill test for a more exacting estimate. Characters familiar with the Drakwald and Middenland should get a +10 bonus for this test. Whatever the distance you decide on, it should require at least two days for the party to reach the shrine on foot. The journey begins as soon as the PCs agree to join and gather their trappings. To make the most of the scenario, the adventurers should begin discover the relationships between the pilgrims. As the first leg of the trip won’t give them much to do other than walk and talk, a couple of Easy (+20) Gossip tests should be used when chatting with any of the pilgrims or Ragni, with extra degrees of success giving more information. Gregor Hulzhoffer: The Priest of Schnalle, around 40 years old, with an overgrown beard. He’s a bear of man, who seems to have forgotten his own muscles over years of academic research. His devotion to Schnalle is complete, and he never stops preaching. Gossip: 1. We travel to the shrine of Schnalle, for he has summoned us in dreams and portents. 2. The Bearers of Schnalle have complete faith in their lord; nothing shall harm us as long as our faith in him is true. 3. We intend to pray at the shrine to lift the curses that lay upon our village, to end the murders and possessions that have plagued our people. Manfred Bergmann: A dull-witted man of around 25 years. He is tall and lanky, with a beard a Dwarf would envy if it weren’t so filthy. He has loose lips, but speaks a little too loudly. Gossip: 1. I don’t think they ought to have told us we couldn’t never go back. 2. They hate us back home, so we’re going to live at the shrine. 3. When Hulzhoff’ burned that boy, he didn’t know it would kill him. He was just trying to get that daemon out of him. Wilhelm Dresch: A wiry, shaven-headed, 18 years old. Wilhelm believes himself to be Gregor’s prodigy, always seeking his favour. The Priest has grown tired of his fawning, and gives him the toughest jobs, such as digging the latrine for their camp or finding firewood. Gossip: 1. Schnalle has blessed me! I see as the Priest does.

Our purpose is true. 2. Hulzhoffer had a dream that sent on this journey. I had the same dream! 3. I saw Schnalle in my dream as clear as day. I tell you we are all blessed, and our mission cannot fail! Kastor Foller: Around 20 years old with a ruff of unwashed hair. He’s desperately homesick, making him quiet and distracted. Gregor shields him as much as possible, as he’s the one responsible for all of their troubles and knowing that Kastor’s fragile state could unsettle the entire group. It was Kastor’s younger brother who Gregor exorcised with fatal results, and he’s grieving for his ruined family and uncertain future. He’s not as approachable as the others, so the PCs will need to make an Average (+0) Gossip test to get much out of him. Gossip: 1. I miss my family. I want to go home. 2. Hulzhoffer didn’t mean to kill Alexei; it was the daemon that possessed him that did it. Now we’ll never be able to go home. They’ll never let us go back. They blame us for the curses on the town – the murders, the possession. 3. Even my own family thinks I’ve done wrong. They don’t understand how I can support my Priest, after he killed my brother. I know that he id it in faith, and meant no harm to him. But I miss Alexei, and my family. Hanna Haupf: 25 years old with red hair and freckles. More than any of the other pilgrims, she has a calm and rational demeanour. She is Gregor’s illegitimate daughter, though he doesn’t know it. Hanna’s mother kept her child a secret to prevent a scandal. Hanna has joined the Bearers of Schnalle to be close to her father, now that her mother has died. She believes in her order, but has started to lose confidence in her father and their mission. Gossip: 1. The Bearers of Schnalle are the only family I have. 2. But Schnalle cannot see all things, all the time, for he was just a man. 3. Our vow of pacifism has burdened us, but I mean no offence to you. We could have defended ourselves. I don’t understand Hulzhoffer’s decisions sometimes. Joachim Melcher: A skinny young man barely 17 years old, with an angry face. He believes in Schnalle even more than Gregor does, and sometimes speaks badly of the Priest in hushed tones. Gossip: 1. Only Schnalle can protect us. 2. Hulzhoffer may be a good man, but he has gone mad from his visions. I hate that he has made us take a vow of pacifism. I want to fight! 3. I believe in Schnalle, but I believe that once we reach the shrine our prayers will surely be answered. Ulrike Neumeier: A stocky woman around 25 years old. She has a wide-eyed fervour for Schnalle, and parrots anything Gregor says. Gossip: 1. Glory to Schnalle! Hail him who shall deliver us! Hulzhoffer, I believe in thee! 2. Priest Hulzhoffer’s visions are always right, I declare. 3. He ripped a daemon from the soul of that little boy. Though it killed him, his soul be free again. The PCs should be able to assemble a clearer picture through these exchanges. The pilgrims come from a village that has suffered from unexplained murders and spirit possessions. Gregor, who sometimes has visions, took it upon himself to perform an exorcism, killing a possessed child. The Bearers of Schnalle were forced out of their village. They’re not just travelling to the shrine to pay their respects – they’ve got no other place to go. Ragni Rognisson: In his pitch to get the PCs to sign on as guards, the Dwarf cart-driver has already revealed as much as he knows about the pilgrims. He’s not interested in talking about them, but will gladly make himself and his usual vocation the objects of discussion. Gossip: 1. There’s hardly a beer, ale, cider, lager or mead brewed between Altorf and Middenheim that I haven’t sold, but it’s been dry for months. 2. The Storm of Chaos ruined harvests, and Imperial soldiers helped themselves to any alcohol they could find on their campaigns. 3. Seems there’s more mutants than soldiers in these forests now. I’ve been keeping a mace in the cart, in case of trouble. Haven’t had to use it for years, but a Dwarf never forgets how.

Ragni is above all concerned with the wooden chest the pilgrims have loaded onto his cart. From its weight (250 Encumbrance) he assumes that it’s full of gold or religious amulets made of precious metals. It’s a sturdy wooden box (175 Enc on its own) with a heavy lock. It takes two hands to carry the chest. Gregor threw away the key before leaving Plattendorf, so that the lock can only be opened by breaking it using a hammer or some such, requiring a Hard (-20) Strength test or an Average (+0) Pick Locks skill test. Gregor and Ragni guard the chest diligently, so there should be few opportunities for the PCs to get their hands on it during the early parts of the scenario, much less try to break it open. As the adventure unfolds, there may come a time when it will become important to see what’s inside.

Episode Two – Broken Bridge As happy as they are to stand around and profess the virtues of the sainted Herr Schnalle, the pilgrims are eager to get to their destination, and the day is no longer young. The exact geography ahead of them need not be described in any detail, as they can expect to pass through endless forested hills and might as well get used to it. The Drakwald is dreary and overgrown. Whatever survives in its wilderness must be hardy and relentless. The stain of Chaos is evidenced by piles of bones, shattered weapons and torn banners that are sometimes found along the path as it winds through the forest. Some of the victims appear to be Imperial soldiers, and others are clearly the twisted shapes of Archaon’s minions. These foul pyres mark the miles as the pilgrims chant their blessings and ring their chimes, echoing out into the forbidding wilds, answered only by the calls of ravens and wolves. Anyone who takes the time to dig through one of these battle-mounds looking for valuables should make a Challenging (-10) Search skill test. Any character that has ever been a Bone-Picker may make this as a Routine (+10) Search skill test. Though there is nothing of real value in the reeking piles of charred wood and mould, a successful search could turn up an unbroken sword or hammer, a serviceable shield or piece of armour. If you feel the adventurers are well-equipped to begin with, the only noteworthy discovery could be a halfburned banner displaying the symbols of a Chaos army. A Routine (+10) Common Knowledge (the Empire) or Very Easy (+30) Academic Knowledge (Daemonology) test will determine that it is the heraldry used by the followers of Nurgle, the Plague God of Chaos. Regardless of what’s found in the mounds, searching them is filthy work. The pilgrims have no interest in weapons or wealth and may resent the adventurer who holds up their progress while looting. For this leg of the journey, let the forest itself antagonize the adventurers. Visibility is poor since little sunlight penetrates to the ground, creating an eternal twilight gloom. Strange noises and barely-seen movements will taunt them, only to be revealed as a scrounging elk or fox. Calling for a couple of Willpower or Perception rolls from the PCs, and not announcing the results, would be appropriate to build some suspense at this point. To add some bite to this part of the adventure, you can easily develop an encounter with a foraging bear, pack of hungry wolves or even a Goblin skirmishing band, using the stats from the WFRP rulebook. As the party marches on into the afternoon, the sounds of rushing water reach their ears. Ahead lays a bridge over a fast-flowing, rocky creek. The bridge is smashed to rubble, another souvenir from the Storm of

Chaos, no doubt. Just below and to one side of the bridge is a crude ford. Pieces of the bridge’s stonework and logs from the forest were laid out along the river bottom, and a layer of gravel poured over the entire thing to fill in the gaps. This temporary bridge is about three feet under the water, and looks as though it was built quickly, and some time ago. It’s roughly two yards wide and appears to span the ten yards to the other side. The river is littered with boulders, and while it’s not particularly wide or deep, it is swift-moving and full of jagged rocks. Foamy pools and treacherous-looking rapids await anyone swept away by the current. Crossing the ford requires care, as the gravel paving is loose and the current is swift. Characters move at half rate while crossing. For each round using the Move action to get across the ford, pedestrians must succeed at a Very Easy (+30) Agility test or be swept off their feet and carried 1d10 yards downstream. If charging or running while on the ford, characters must succeed at a Challenging (-10) Agility test instead to stay on their feet, or suffer the same fate and 1 Wound as well. If the adventurers have thought to tie ropes around their waists forming a chain while fording the river, they should receive a +20 bonus to these tests as long as one of their neighbours on the chain is still on their feet. The river generally isn’t deep enough to drown in unless a character is held underwater. But once they’re in the drink, an Average (+0) Swim skill test is required each round to avoid injury as they’re jabbed by a sharp stone, twist an ankle or choke on water when plunged into an unexpected deep. Each time a character fails a Swim skill test in this way, they take 1 Wound and move 1d10 yards downstream. Halve the standard swimming rates when moving through the river – that is, use one quarter of the standard movement rate. If Ragni’s cart-horse is spooked while crossing the ford, it may send the entire vehicle over the edge, plunging it into the river. If you’re willing to deal with the level of complication this could bring to the episode, the horse must make a Routine (+10) Willpower test to keep from panicking when crossing the ford. On a failed roll, the horse will attempt to run, slipping off the fort and taking the cart – and Ragni – with it. This could prove disastrous for Ragni’s plans, since the cart contains Gregor’s ‘money’ chest, their only source of wealth and the target of the heist he’s planning. Gregor and Ragni will do everything possible to retrieve the chest, including jumping in after it. Take care when handling large numbers of NPCs such as the pilgrims or the mutants from the next episode. Rolling for each pilgrim’s Agility each turn to cross the ford shouldn’t be what this encounter is about. For some situations, it will be simpler to narrate the action, or roll once for the entire group, and use the result as a guideline for their overall success or failure. If you want your PCs to have the easiest time of things, assume Ragni keeps control of the horse and cart. However, it’s important to note where all of the characters are during this risky crossing, because no matter how the pilgrims fare, just when they are feeling vulnerable, a warband of Chaos mutants launches a raid.

Episode Three – Nurglish Warband The Chaos warrior Von Krumeln and the four other mutants that comprise his war party were once Imperial soldiers. The Storm of Chaos wrought terrible dreams in those too weak to resist the allure of the Ruinous Powers, foul gods such as Nurgle. Some of them awoke to find themselves alone, survivors on battlefields overrun by their foes. Seeing the strength in their enemies, they cast off their allegiances to Sigmar and embraced Nurgle, in whose eyes their failures might be redeemed. And so they have.

Von Krumeln: Once a sergeant in Karl Franz’s army, Ernst von Krumeln has abandoned all love for the Empire. He has embraced the dark power Nurgle in his heart, and in return has been warped into a grotesque figure. He’s covered in oozing sores that run with green and yellow pus and make him stink to heaven. His coat of mail glistens with a putrid sludge, the metal rings chafing against the open boils and pustules of his decaying flesh. Yet he thrills at any chance to spoil flesh for Nurgle, thinking nothing of his own discomfort. The other former soldiers he’s gathered around him are no less craven. Bloody Lizbet: The only female in the party, and by far the most aggressive and bloodthirsty. Her emaciated form is greenish and sickly, with sinewy arms and a black-toothed scowl on her face. She wears a moth-eaten patchwork gown, its bright colours and playful patterns scarcely visible under grime and filth. Nurgle has blessed her with a scaly spiked tail that she wields as a weapon. Attacks with her tail inflict SB Damage, and have the Pummelling quality. Her only trappings are a crossbow and several bolts. Gutswag: Arguably the second in command of the small war party, Gutswag is wrapped in rough black fabric spotted with colourful mosses, lichens and moulds. The fingers of his right hand have been fused together and flattened, then sharpened to a keen edge. This bony axe-shaped appendage is the only weapon Gutswag needs when charging into a fight: a true ‘hand weapon.’ In combat, treat it exactly like a hand weapon except that it may not be disarmed or damaged if using the optional weapon breakage rules from the Old World Armoury. This mutation prevents Gutswag from using two-handed weapons, but he has no trappings to speak of. Hakfoot: This mutant possesses the cloven feet associated with Beastmen, and his horribly misshapen face appears to be in the process of elongating into that of a goat. Patches of bristly red fur poke through the holes of his tattered blue-and-white checked garb, the remnants of an Imperial soldier’s uniform. The shirt and trousers are ripped, blood-stained and crawling with lice. Skulls and severed hands hang on his belt as battle trophies. His bestial legs allow him to move faster than the other mutants. His Movement is 5. He’s equipped with a crossbow, several bolts, and a battered sword. Hogzy: This wretched creature has a single huge insect-eye in the centre of its forehead. Where two normal eyes would be, Hogzy instead has a pair of pits that drool pink liquid and attract flies. His mind seems to have shrivelled, as he can comprehend only the simplest of commands. His Ballistic Skill and Intelligence are half that of the other mutants and his mind is so weak that he doesn’t even understand the operation of a crossbow. As such he fights using a heavy club and only makes All-Out Attacks. He has no other trappings. Though these mutants will fight as a coordinated unit, each is loyal ultimately to the Lord of Decay. None of them would hesitate to betray their fellows in order to elevate themselves in Nurgle’s ranks. Von Krumeln will fight to the death, but the others will reconsider if they see three or more of their kind fall. As soon as the surviving mutants detect their inevitable defeat in battle, they will attempt to flee and scatter into the forest. The raid begins with a volley of crossbow fire from the mutants Bloody Lizbet and Hakfoot, firing from behind a line of shrubs across the river from where the PCs begin to cross. Their shots are made at a distance of around 25 yards, which is Long Range (-20 Ballistic Skill) for their crossbows. You may allow the adventurers a Very Hard (-30) Perception skill test to spot the archers as they stand and take aim. A successful roll will mean that the character has detected one or more of the mutants preparing to fire their crossbows; this PC may take act during the first round of combat. All others are surprised.

As the mutants open fire with their crossbows, Von Krumeln, Gutswag and Hogzy will spring from their hiding spot. They’ll move directly toward the adventurers and engage them in hand-to-hand combat. It will take a couple of rounds for them to reach the adventurers, especially if they have to walk across the ford. They’re smart enough not to risk a spill by charging or running across the ford, except for Hogzy, who’s not too bright. The mutants will usually attack the toughest-looking opponent they can reach, going after the biggest challenges first. The mutants’ approach may give the adventurers enough time to prepare a defence, return fire with any missile weapons they may have, or even make a charge of their own. The pilgrims will try to take cover behind Ragni’s cart, while the Dwarf does his best to control the horse. The pilgrims are absolutely committed to non-violence, leaving all of the fighting to the PCs. If Ragni hasn’t been thrown into the river and the PCs are faring badly against the mutants, he’ll step in with an old mace. Bloody Lizbet and Hakfoot will keep firing crossbows from their position until they risk hitting their own or run out of ammunition. They should have only a handful of crossbow bolts each: roll 1d10 to determine the quantity, if you like. When using their crossbows is no longer viable, these two ambushers will take up melee weapons instead and enter the fray. Von Krumeln fights hardest of all – and to the death. It’s important that the PCs kill Von Krumeln in this battle, since it will trigger one of villains of the scenario. As he falls, a foul hive of worm-like parasites, content to linger within the mutant’s body as long as he was alive, burrow out of their host’s body in a nauseating mass, seeking out new, warm homes. These are Nurglish worms, disgusting and dangerous agents of Chaos. (Complete details for these monsters can be found in the resources section.) These worms feed on living tissue, dividing and multiplying over months or even years until the host is completely riddled with them. As if on cue, the worms will evacuate the body, chewing their way out – their last meals for a while perhaps. Once exposed, they are vulnerable as they blindly crawl toward the nearest source of meat. Rows of tiny legs allow them to move quickly, however, and their sheer numbers will make it impossible to kill them all. It’s likely that Von Krumeln will be on the river ford or otherwise in the water when he is slain, releasing the Nurglish Worms. If so, characters downstream of him may be most likely to become infested with the worms. If using miniatures, place the fireball template on Von Krumeln, placing the wide end of the cone directly downriver from him. Any characters within the cone have a 60% chance of being infested. The PCs are protected by Fate, making them immune to infestation, but you shouldn’t let them know this. While most of the worms are swept down the river with the current, some of them will manage to cling to the ford. Inevitably, one or more of these worms will locate a pilgrim’s sandal or the hem of a robe. However you decide to handle this gory scene, at least one unlucky pilgrim will become a host for one of Nurgle’s Worms. Unfortunately for Joachim Melcher, the worm finds him through the water and crawls up his clothes unseen and unfelt. Suddenly it drills into his flesh, causing him to shout once but attracting no attention in the commotion of battle. After a moment of panic, Joachim regains his composure, convinced he’s just been nibbled by a fish. If Joachim is dead by this point, simply choose another pilgrim to be the worm’s victim.

The battle continues until the mutants are killed or routed. But even as the Nurgle warband is defeated, their most insidious agent of Chaos remains with the pilgrims. Ever hungry for flesh and power, it waits and prepares to form a warband of its own from them.

Episode Four – Act of Vengeance After the battle, Gregor is grim-faced and undeterred. His first order is to fish anyone out of the water and get them across the river. This may include the cart, horse and Ragni if things have gone especially afoul. The pilgrims waste no time in trying to treat wounded characters. Gregor possesses the Heal skill, as do Kastor Foller and Hanna Haupf. The camaraderie between the pilgrims begins to erode. The initiates are feeling bitter toward each other and angry at their predicament. If any of the mutants from the Nurglish warband have survived the battle, the possibility of another attack should weigh heavily on the travellers’ minds. Though none of them say so, most of them are beginning to blame Gregor for dragging them into danger. Gregor stays on task. There are still a couple of hours of daylight, so as soon as the party is bandaged up and ready to travel again, Gregor insists that they march until sundown. With the bloody images of battle fresh in their minds, the party may press on for a few more miles before darkness forces them to camp for the night. The cart contains firewood and four crudely-constructed two-person tents for the pilgrims. Ragni sleeps in a bedroll next to the cart, near the fire. The adventurers are expected to provide their own food and bedding, but the pilgrims will share what they have. A sack of barley, a few misshapen vegetables and a sprig of seasoning herbs is the extent of their food supply. Once the tents are set up and a campfire made, the Ulrike Neumeier prepares a large pot of gritty, flavourless, lumpy gruel. Any PC who watches Ulrike closely during the meal preparation will see that she dumps a handful of earth directly into the pot, stirring it into the mix. The pilgrims devour the stuff with few complaints; it’s no better or worse than what they’re used to. The adventurers may see the wisdom in making their own meals, especially if one of them can cook. The pilgrims are almost silent during supper, and spend the rest of the evening praying quietly. Around 9:00 PM they sombrely climb into their tents, and are soon asleep. The adventurers, in their role as guards, are expected to have someone standing watch throughout the night. If the PCs take turns, with one of them staying awake while the others sleep, staying awake while on watch requires a Very Easy (+30) Willpower test. Feel free to adjust this modifier for the worse if a PC on watch has had a rough time of things during the day, such as exerting a great deal during the river fording or battle, or if their watch is more than a couple of hours at a stretch. Keep a note of which PCs are supposed to be on watch during the night, as several events should occur according to schedule. If a PC falls asleep while they’re supposed to be keeping a lookout, they could some important happenings. Use the following approximate timetable throughout the night: 11:00 PM: Gregor leaves his tent to check on the cart and the money chest. Ragni, curled in his bedroll next to the cart, wakes and watches him closely as he pokes around in the cart. Gregor will explain, ‘Schnalle

watches everything, but I don’t sleep well unless I know everything’s secure.’ After a minute, he seems to be satisfied with the state of things in the cart, and returns to his tent. Midnight: A pack of wolves, maybe a mile to the south, howls for ten minutes before fading away. Most of the pilgrims will be awakened by this, and they will whisper to one another in their tents until the wolves’ cries trail off. 1:30 AM: Hanna leaves her tent to use the latrine. She returns in five minutes. 3:00 AM: Kastor silently murders Gregor in his sleep, driving a knife into his throat and smothering him with a blanket. It is an act of vengeance against the Priest, motivated purely by grief. Gregor unwittingly killed Kastor’s younger brother Alexei while attempting to exorcise him. Unable to forgive him, Kastor has laid awake all night with a heart full of despair and rage. He finally snaps. Kastor’s greatest fear now is that the gods will never forgive him, and that he’ll be lynched if he’s discovered. Kastor weeps quietly for the next hour, coming to grips with what he’s done and contemplating his next move. 3:15 AM: Joachim leaves his tent to use the latrine. He returns in ten minutes. 4:00 AM: Kastor tries to sneak out of his tent unnoticed. Without the Silent Move skill, he must make an Opposed Test of Silent Move (for Kastor, using half his Agility rating) vs. Perception skill (player character on watch). If he goes unseen, he’ll sneak off through the forest and probably never be seen again. If he’s heard or spotted while trying to sneak, he’ll try to bluff with the usual excuse: ‘Latrine.’ He appears nervous and hurried, as one might expect of a man in need of relief. Extra degrees of success on the PC’s Perception skill test may allow them to notice that Kastor’s hands are in his pockets – however, it’s a chilly night, and he’s wiped them clean enough to pass a cursory examination under torchlight. If any of this leads the PC to suspicion or a discussion, Kastor will whisper urgently: ‘Bad gruel. I really need to go!’ Pushing past the guard, Kastor will make his way toward the latrine. When he reaches it, he’ll take one glance back toward camp to be sure he isn’t being followed. If he’s in the clear, he’ll suddenly break into a sprint, plunging into the forest. Unless one of the PCs has followed him very closely, Kastor should be able to vanish into the night easily. Tracking him requires a Hard (-20) Follow Trail skill test, or an Average (-10) one if the tracker has Night Vision. His path goes deeper into the forest than any character should feel comfortable with at night. If any adventurer continues to pursue Kastor and stands a fair chance of catching him, put a Beastman or two in their path to ensure Kastor’s escape. The only indication that something is amiss may come when the character on watch realizes the pilgrim hasn’t returned from the latrine after a half hour. What happens next could depend on many factors, but there are no other disturbances for the rest of the night. If the PC decides to check Kastor’s tent, they will find Gregor’s body. This will lead to the events in Episode Five. 6:30 AM: It begins to rain (or snow, if appropriate for the season). Chill winds blow in from the north, moaning through the branches of the trees. The dawn is hidden behind thick clouds and sheets of rain, adding to the misery of this morning. These are the tendrils of Nurgle, if you like, winding ever tighter around the adventurers. Foul weather is merely another element you can use to create the proper atmosphere and suspense. Everything will be soaked in short order. It’s possible that no one will witness Kastor leaving his tent, or that no one will think to check his tent until morning. If the pilgrims are still sleeping when the rain begins to fall, they’ll slowly drag themselves from

their tents and break camp. As they pack up, one tent stands untouched, conspicuously unattended. Someone will then find the terrible scene inside. If it isn’t obvious, a head count will reveal that Kastor is missing. This episode begins with the discovery of Priest Hulzhoffer’s body. The remaining pilgrims will be shocked and horrified by the killing. The wound to Gregor’s neck is obvious, and his missing tent-mate is evidence enough of how the murder occurred and who’s to blame. Hanna, who seems to be taking the news very well, will even offer to explain Kastor’s motivation if the PC’s ask. She believes rightly that Kastor sought vengeance for his younger brother who died while under the priest’s care. Though saddened by her father’s death, she won’t reveal the nature of her relationship to Gregor. She also seems confident that Kastor is no longer a threat, but has no idea what his plans may be at this point. Most of the pilgrims should express their fears that Kastor is waiting for them out in the forest, or that he may be venturing ahead to the shrine. ‘We could be walking right into an ambush.’ Some of them even believe that he has been somehow corrupted by their encounter with the mutant warband and is in league with them. ‘What if those weren’t wolves we heard howling last night? They could have been Beastmen!’ If none of the PCs has thought about it yet, Joachim will offer a more sinister explanation, speaking in a somewhat paranoid, rapid-fire fashion: ‘What about those worms that came out of that mutant? He was crawling with them. Who knows what those things can do? Maybe one of them got into Kastor, and made him kill Hulzhoffer? What if Kastor’s not the only one… affected?’ Of course, this is Joachim’s way of spreading distrust among the group, sowing the seeds for greater treachery later on. The PCs should naturally begin to suspect everyone of being infected by the mutant’s worms. If the adventurers check themselves and the pilgrims for physical signs such as entry wounds, they’ll have a number of nicks and scrapes to look over. Each of the pilgrims bears at least a few small wounds from the normal wear and tear of living and travelling outdoors. Ulrike will be particularly uncomfortable with an inspection, as she’s embarrassed about her figure and would rather not be ogled or ridiculed by the males in the group. Although she has nothing to hide, she will refuse to let anyone look her over except Hanna, leaving the others to trust Hanna’s appraisal. Joachim’s worm-hole has closed up neatly, leaving a small slit that easily passes for a minor self-inflicted cut. The inspection should end with growing suspicions of Ulrike and Hanna, but no clear answers or evidence. If the PCs come up with a test to try to determine if anyone is infested with the Worms of Nurgle, the results should be inconclusive. Better still, they should be misleading. Since everyone will be subjected to the test, it should not involve life-or-death choices or preordained results. In fact the only way to reveal the infested character is to kill them, but it’s not quite time for that yet.

Episode Five – What’s In the Box? In spite of the murder and the mistrust, Hanna will attempt to take charge of the Schnallites. Leading by example, she grabs anything she can use as a weapon or asks one of the PCs for one of their spares. She makes it clear that the vow of pacifism she took for Gregor has expired with him. The other pilgrims see the wisdom in this and do likewise.

Resolved to completing their mission, Hanna will be the first to suggest that the party pack up their belongings and trudge on through the rain. She begins to walk down the forest path in the direction of the shrine. Wilhelm steps in line behind her, devout as ever. They stop when they realize they’re not being followed. Manfred and Ulrike resist, too fearful of the road ahead without Gregor, their guide and mentor. They’re only too aware that Gregor was only member of their party who had ever been to the shrine before. Manfred and Ulrike seem intent on going back to Plattendorf. If the adventure began in a town or village other than Plattendorf, that’s where Manfred and Ulrike will want to go. Ragni will definitely want to do this, since he figures his chances of getting into that wooden chest will be better with urban distractions. Manfred explains in his simple way, wiping snot from his nose: ‘Don’t care if they kill us. Just want to go home.’ ‘They’ could mean any or all of the dangers they’re facing: the people of Plattendorf, the mutants, Kastor, and whoever might be infested with a Worm of Nurgle. Joachim and Ragni are neutral, as either path presents opportunities as well as unknown dangers. They’re both going along for the ride at this point, waiting for the right opportunity to execute their schemes. That leaves the adventurers to decide the direction the group will travel in. For obvious reasons, no one is willing to split from the party. Whatever the PCs decide, that’s where they’ll go. This shouldn’t be a problem, since all of the important encounters for this scenario may be set along either course. If the PCs choose to continue on toward the shrine, Manfred and Ulrike will concede rather than go back with only themselves. Likewise, Hanna and Wilhelm will protest and complain to no end about the others’ abandonment of faith if they head back the way they came, but they’ll stay with the group. Turning around means traversing the river ford again, but mercifully this time there’s no ambush. The river may be even more treacherous with the heavy downpour. To play up the severity of the weather, you might apply an additional -10 to the test difficulty of all river-fording tasks. No matter which direction they travel, by noon the dirt path will turn into a muddy track. Ragni’s cart will get hopelessly stuck when his horse panics before stepping into a puddle. Both wheels on the cart break in thick mud, and the entire thing falls to pieces. The group will have to share the burden of tents, blankets and other items that spill out of the cart. Furious at his misfortune, Ragni takes the mace from his belt and begins bashing the lock on Gregor’s wooden chest, which is now lying in the mud. Anyone who questions him will get at least an earful in return. ‘Grungni take you all, I’ve had enough of this groaning! The old priest told me my payment was in this box. I’ve taken things as far as I’m going to take them, so I’m damn well gonna collect my due.’ Ragni will be extremely disappointed. Inside the chest are the following items: A metal trinket bearing the symbol of Nurgle, wrapped in burlap: The small pendant, hardly bigger than a gold crown, consists of three silver hoops in a triangular arrangement. If the PCs searched the mounds of debris in Episode Two, they may recognize this symbol from a burned banner as being that of Nurgle. Two of the hoops contain ruby-coloured glass insets, but the third gem is missing. The silver is tarnished and bears a patina of scratches. It has the look of something that’s been lying in the mud for years. A small metal loop on one end of the trinket is broken, as it had certainly once been hanging as a pendant on a chain. Its origin is left to you, but we like the idea that it is made in part of warpstone refined in the bowels of a Great Unclean One. As Archaon’s armies invaded the Empire during the Storm of Chaos, they moved so

quickly that Plattendorf was missed, but only just. One warband passed within miles of the village without detecting it, hidden away as it is in the hills. As they rode past, the pendant slipped from a Nurglish warrior’s neck, left for young Alexei to discover in the soil quite innocently a few months later. It may be that Gregor found this amulet among Alexei’s belongings and recognized its dark symbol. The boy could have found it while wandering the hills near his home village. If so, Gregor had just enough strength of will to resist its effects, unlike poor Alexei did not. Gregor couldn’t decide how to destroy it. He couldn’t simply leave it somewhere where others might find it and be corrupted. He might have felt the only way to lift the curse on Plattendorf and destroy the artefact was to bring it to the shrine. Or maybe it had already begin to take a hold on him, and that’s why he couldn’t part with it? If the cursed pendant ever ends up in the PCs’ hands, they should be smart enough to get rid of it right away. But like Gregor they should understand that throwing it away can be just as dangerous as carrying it around. For each week that a character carries it on their person or has been spending a great deal of time within a couple of yards of it, make an Easy (+10) Willpower test. On a failure, the character receives 1 Insanity Point. A leather purse: Contains 33 pennies, 20 shillings, and 17 gold crowns. This was the treasury for the tiny Schnallite temple in Plattendorf and Gregor’s life savings. A tome of Schnallite scripture: This huge illuminated book is bound in leather and festooned with dozens of colourful ribbons marking Gregor’s best-loved passages. The title is Vox Schnalle. The text is written entirely in the Classical tongue. It would easily fetch 200 gc from a book collector, and twice as much to an Ulrican librarian. However, as long as any of the pilgrims of Schnalle are alive, they will assert their ownership over it. This book alone has an Encumbrance value of 75. A folded piece of aged and yellowed paper): This letter is folded and stuck in the middle of the Schnallite scripture book, so that even if the chest is immersed in water (see Episodes Two and Three) there’s a good chance that this letter will survive, insulated by the scripture book. The letter is written in a shaky hand, informing ‘G’ (presumably Gregor) that he is ‘now a father to a precious daughter.’ The letter is brief and mentions nothing specific, other than a promise to conceal her ‘so that your work may continue.’ It is signed simply ‘E.’ This letter is Gregor’s most valued possession. Ragni takes the purse. If the PCs feel entitled to any of the money, Ragni will restate the conditions of the contract: payment in full upon reaching the shrine. As he sees it, the pilgrims are responsible for coming up with the rest of the adventurer’s promised payment, not him. Ragni simply negotiated the contract, which was between Gregor, the pilgrims and the adventurers. He sulks for the rest of the scenario, but itches for a chance to use his mace on anything that deserves it. Sometime during the afternoon, with the rain showing no sign of letting up, the party should find Kastor Foller lying at the side of the path. His left ankle is broken and swollen, and he’s in tremendous pain. He tripped in his haste, and now finds himself at the mercy of those he’s wronged. He begs to be forgiven, and it should be hard not to feel some sympathy for him. How this scene plays out may not depend entirely on the adventurers and their dispositions toward Kastor. The other pilgrims are unanimous in their sentiments: he should be put to death for his crime. Ragni will even act as executioner if offered a few shillings. He’s no longer pretending to be anything but an opportunist, a quality that may endear him to the adventurers after all.

Simply leaving him to fend for himself could be considered a death sentence. Ragni’s cart horse, no longer pulling the cart, can be used to carry Kastor if the party decides to spare him or arrest him for a trial. Whatever the outcome of this encounter, it should give the PCs a false sense of security to have reduced their known threats by one. The rest of the day passes without incident. The rain will slow them down so much that they’ll be lucky to have covered more than five miles before nightfall. Drearily, the party will try to assemble a camp of wet tents and soaked firewood – with only marginal success. The PCs might set up night-watches again. Let them think things are going to be quiet all night. Then, at about 4:30 AM, Joachim begins to make a sputtering sound. Sharing his tent is Wilhelm, who wakes to find Joachim vomiting on him. Or, something that looks like Joachim used to. Wilhelm bursts from the tent, frightened and confused. Joachim emerges next, covered in his own bile, with a decidedly mad look in his bloodshot eyes. Thousands of sores have opened up all over his skin, and he has the strangest grin on his face. He charges at the nearest character, fighting to the death. He wants to be killed – or rather, the worms within him have convinced him that his death is the best thing he can do to spread Nurgle’s influence. If the PCs are sharp, they may have figured out that killing an infested character doesn’t stop the worms, but releases them instead. If the adventurers refuse to fight Joachim, Ragni will. The other pilgrims should be awake and out of their tents by the time the killing blow is landed. And when Joachim dies, the PCs should know what to expect. It will be a revisit of the gruesome sight of the worms in Joachim’s body – dozens of them by now – slithering out through his skin, chewing their way out of their host. The worms will feel right at home in the mud, where they scatter, seeking out the other pilgrims to be new hosts. As before, the PCs should be immune to infestation, but you might want to give them a scare or two while the worms swarm over Hanna, Manfred, Wilhelm, Ulrike and Ragni. Use the pilgrims’ screams of terror and cries of ‘Oh gods they all over me!’ and ‘Get them off!’ to impress upon your players the horrors of the Worms of Nurgle. The worms themselves are relatively harmless. Their long-lasting effects are what the PCs should fear. Each pilgrim that becomes a host to the worms becomes a threat, and they’re not going to wait the way Joachim did. As soon as Ragni or any of the other characters becomes infested, they will immediately attack the nearest PC. The most frightening aspect to this battle should be the worms, so frequently mention how they slide and wriggle beneath the PCs’ feet, and up the trunks of trees, clinging to branches overhead. The pilgrims should be relatively easy to strike down, and Ragni is not much tougher. To maintain a tense and exciting feel to this battle, any time the PCs have a moment to catch their breath, send a worm after them. You may want to choose a PC at random and describe how one of the worms has crawled onto his clothes. A Very Easy (+30) Agility test should be enough to knock the foul parasite off before it gets a chance to dig in. One tactic that could prove successful against the worms is to use open flame, such as a torch, to keep them at bay. The worms will recoil from fire, but are too well-protected in their carapaces to be damaged by anything but direct contact with a flame. The heavy rainfall should make untreated torches or other fires difficult to keep lit, however. Continue with this frightful encounter until all of the infested characters are killed or the PCs manage to escape them in some way. You should rely on your own sense of pacing and your players’ reactions to this final battle. Ideally, this fight should end with the adventurers defeating the worm-infested pilgrims and

deceitful Ragni. With so many worms crawling around, the adventurers could end up running through the night fearing every shadow, or even fearing each other just a little bit.

Aftermath Concluding the adventure is straightforward. The rain finally stops, the sun comes up and the PCs continue along their way. What happens next is entirely up to you, but it shouldn’t be a bad thing if their adventures are tinged with a degree of paranoia from now on. If they’re headed toward the shrine, there may be interesting encounters there. It may be well-tended by devout Schnallites, a safe haven in the centre of the Drakwald, or occupied by outlaws, mutants, Beastmen, Orcs or worse. Adventures in Plattendorf may involve locating the mysterious ‘E.’ from Gregor’s letter, or reporting the fate of the pilgrims to the villagers. Keeping the Nurglish pendant is a bad idea, to say the least. In the confusion of the final scene with the pilgrims, the PCs may have had to leave behind the wooden chest and its contents. With the roving worms and the cursed amulet out in the world for anyone to come across, there should be enough loose ends here to fuel several follow-up adventures. Experience Points Awards: Depending on the overall difficulty of the scenario and the PCs’ success in dealing with them, The Pilgrimage should be worth between 125 and 225 experience points. You may want to spread these awards out over the course of the adventure whenever there’s a convenient break in the action, or save the entire award for the end. For surviving the scenario, each PC should receive 50 to 75 xp. Performing in character should be worth 25 to 50 xp. Clever ideas or well-executed schemes should earn another 25 to 50 xp. Additional bonuses for exemplary play and horror-movie moments should be worth 25 to 50 xp.

Bearers of Schnalle SUB-CULT OF THE CHURCH OF ULRIC According to local legend, in 1199 was born one Huld Schnallmann, the son of a farmer. The tradition varies from village to village, but it is usually said that this home-grown hero came from nothing, emerged as a general, and died bravely in Ulric’s name. The Bearers of Schnalle believe that his transformation from a penniless runt into a true champion is confirmed by an obscure passage in a provincial chronicle. Written several hundred years after the fact, it briefly declares that ‘Herr Schnalle led two score horsemen against the Orc horde, and crushed them that day in 1220 I.C.’ Predictably, the Bearers of Schnalle have expanded on this story a great deal, so that there is little about him that is not now ‘known’ in great detail. He is said to have been a miner and metalworker of incredible skill. Some versions of the story hold that he was a town leader or some other minor noble who fought dutifully. Others insist that he was a farmer or shepherd who found himself in an unavoidable conflict. That he was courageous even with the guarantee of death is not disputed. However, suggestions of his demise under the talons of a ‘winged beast’ are largely

dismissed by all but the most fanatical of followers, as it is generally believed that he perished in the same battle in 1220 in which his name is registered. The church of Ulric tolerates the Bearers of Schnalle as a sub-cult, for it was one of their own priests who made the connection between the local legend and the ancient text. As well as bits of information forming a mosaic of his life, there have come about hundreds of artefacts attributed to him. Enough evidence became available that by 2150 I.C. Schnalle was sainted and a shrine built to honour him. But the priests of the powerful church of Ulric saw to it that the shrine would be remote. The long journey through a dark corner of the Drakwald ensured that pilgrims would travel there only occasionally to deposit relics and worship, thus keeping the cult from ever becoming a threat to its parent. Their scheme has so far been successful, as those who call themselves devout to Schnalle number fewer than 100 in all the Empire. Without an accessible centre of worship, the cult of Schnalle has remained small and scattered. Modest local shrines and temples have been constructed in the handful of villages that recognize Schnalle. There is no consensus on ways to venerate him, and each group provides its own tenets and scriptures – most often adapted from those used in the worship of Ulric. This faith makes a sharp distinction between the mortal man Huld Schnallmann and his immortal sainted form Schnalle. Its priests often speak of the two as separate entities, but never forget that one begat the other. The cult seems primarily interested in furthering their ‘true portrait’ of Schnallmann, one that cements his status as a man-become-deity. The Bearers of Schnalle ease their daily struggles and draw hope for their trouble-filled lives with the knowledge that such transcendence is possible. Despite the numerous small relics attributed to Schnallmann, perhaps the greatest prize claimed by the Bearers of Schnalle is the official endorsement of the church of Ulric. Without the church’s sanction, these cultists would certainly be just another obscure heretical order. Prominent Figures: This cult has no knights and only a handful of dedicated priests, each claiming to know the truth though their canons often contradict each other. They are a peaceful lot by and large, inspired more by the moral strength and craftsmanship of their hero than his martial prowess. Schnalle is worshipped today much in the way that he has been for centuries: in the small communities that remember his name and deeds, in daily prayers and small offerings, by small congregations with their unique retellings of the legend. Symbol and Holy Days: The cult’s device is a rather unimaginative blending of the initials ‘H.S.’ representing the saint and ‘U’ his patron god. Like the legends themselves, holy days vary from one group of Schnallites to the next. There are even two neighbouring villages in the northern Middenland that celebrate on the same day, 26 Nachexen: one village commemorates his birth with great feasting, the other his death, with fasting. Typically Schnalle is worshipped alongside Ulric’s holy days. Church Skills and Talents: Initiates of Schnalle gain the Stout-Hearted talent in addition to their starting normal career skills. Priests of Schnalle can, at their option, learn the following skills and talents as part of their careers: Fearless, Trade (Miner) and Trade (Smith). Initiates face a number of tests of will. It’s common to lead a blindfolded fledgling into the woods at night, point them in the direction of home, and leave them to navigate through the night in complete darkness. Standing on the roofs of tall buildings is another way in which initiates are taught to overcome their fears. This training is just as likely to mould strong minds as it is to shatter them. For this reason, Ulrican priests keep a close eye on the Bearers of Schnalle, lest they raise a madman from their ranks to tarnish the church’s name or start a controversy.

Worms of Nurgle Looking quite similar to the giant varieties of centipedes, these chitinous many-legged worms are unclean offspring of Nurgle. They are thought to be spawned in the cesspools of the far north and are common as lice on many of Nurgle’s favourite daemons. The Worms of Nurgle are parasites, feeding off of the flesh and fluids of other creatures. It takes just a single worm to start an entire colony. The worms pose no threat to Nurgle’s daemons, who love their parasites and consider them status symbols. In most creatures, however, to be infested by one of these foul worms is to become an agent of Nurgle. A free-roaming worm, such as might be found around the carcass of a Greater Daemon, can move quickly despite its small size. It will seek out the nearest living thing, crawl onto a patch of exposed flesh and use its drill-like mouth to burrow inside. The pain of this invasion is brief, as the worm makes just a small puncture wound and secretes a numbing drug from its skin. For many victims, they do not realize they’ve been infested at all. Following nerve bundles by taste, the worm will work its way up to the host’s brain. There, it settles in and slowly takes over. While the worms themselves are not intelligent as such, they embody the will of Nurgle and exert the Fly Lord’s influence on those they infest. The worms divide quickly, so that it is only a matter of days before a Human or Elf to teem with them. The host develops diseases that won’t heal, running sores, palsies, and worse. Many times, they lose control or appear to be insane. More often, however, the creature becomes enraged, fuelled by hatred and despair, seeking to ruin, desecrate and kill. Where other parasites might kill their hosts to so thoroughly overrun them, the worms suddenly stop reproduction when there is little left but skin, using their own bodies to reinforce the cavities in the muscles, nerves and bones they’ve drilled through. If ever the host is slain in battle, the worms vacate the body with expediency, instantly devouring the remaining portion of their host. They scatter to look for new hosts, starting the cycle all over. The worms are only vulnerable when they are roaming out in the open, trying to find a new host. A worm will survive for only a few hours without sustenance. A dead worm will liquefy over the course of a couple of days, turning into a thick, black slime infected with Neighlish Rot. Skills: Perception – Worms of Nurgle Statistics – Main Profile Talents: Acute Hearing, Flee!, Night Vision WS BS S T Ag Int WP Fel Special Rules: The worm is a small target (-20% Weapon Skill 44% 0% 10% 21% 73% 12% 50% 0% and Ballistic Skill to hit). Secondary Profile Infest: As a half action, a free-roaming Worm of Nurgle may A W SB TB M Mag IP FP attempt to infest a living creature within 1 yard. The worm 1 6 1 2 4 0 0 0 and the target make an Opposed Weapon Skill test. If the worm fails, the target may be allowed a free attack to try to stomp on the parasite. If the worm is successful, the victim suffers 1 Wound and is infested. An infested character gains 1 Insanity Point each day for each worm. Every IP brings the character into Nurgle’s service. Each day, the host must make succeed at a Challenging (-10) Willpower test or become lost to Chaos, a total slave to Nurgle. Armour: None Weapons: Unarmed Slaughter Margin: Easy (or Impossible!)

Schnallites, Initiates of Schnalle Manfred Bergmann, Wilhelm Dresch, Kastor Foller, Hanna Haupf, Joachim Melcher & Ulrike Neumeier Career: Initiate Race: Human Main Profile Skills*: Academic Knowledge (History, Theology), Charm, WS BS S Common Knowledge (the Empire), Gossip, Read/Write, Speak 38% 32% 36% Language (Classical, Reikspiel +10). Secondary Profile *Kastor and Hanna have Heal skill as well. A W SB Talents: Coolheaded, Public Speaking, Savvy, Suave, Very 1 12 3 Strong, Warrior Born Armour: None Weapons: None, except for Kastor who has a knife Trappings: Bells & chimes, purse containing 2d10 pennies, religious symbol, robes

T 30%

Ag 36%

Int 34%

WP 42%

Fel 38%

TB 3

M 4

Mag 0

IP 0

FP 0

T 41%

Ag 39%

Int 45%

WP 47%

Fel 45%

TB 4

M 4

Mag 1

IP 4

FP 0

Gregor Hulzhoffer, Schnallite Priest Career: Priest (ex-Initiate) Race: Human Skills: Academic Knowledge (Astronomy, History +10, Theology), Channelling, Charm +10, Common Knowledge (the Empire), Gossip, Heal, Perception, Read/Write, Speak Arcane Language (Magick), Speak Language (Classical, Reikspiel +10) Talents: Coolheaded, Lightning Reflexes, Petty Magic (Divine), Public Speaking, Savvy, Suave, Very Strong, Warrior Born Armour: None Weapons: None Trappings: Religious symbol, robes

Main Profile WS BS S 54% 37% 44% Secondary Profile A W SB 1 14 4

Ragni Rognisson, Cart Driver Career: Vagabond (ex-Entertainer) Race: Dwarf Skills: Animal Care, Animal Training, Blather, Charm, Charm Main Profile WS BS S T Ag Int WP Fel Animal, Common Knowledge (Dwarfs, the Empire), Drive, 43% 38% 32% 44% 32% 37% 40% 37% Evaluate, Gossip, Haggle, Navigation, Outdoor Survival, Secondary Profile Perception +10, Performer (Actor, Storyteller), Speak A W SB TB M Mag IP FP Language (Khazalid, Reikspiel +10), Secret Language (Thieves’ 1 14 3 4 3 0 1 0 Tongue), Trade (Miner) Talents: Dwarfcraft, Grudge-Born Fury, Night Vision, Orientation, Public Speaking, Resistance to Magic, Seasoned Traveller, Stout-Hearted, Sturdy, Very Strong Armour: Leather jack Armour Points: Head 0, Arms 1, Body 1, Legs 0 Weapons: Hand weapon (mace), knife Trappings: Purse containing 21 gc, cart horse and ramshackle cart carrying a bed roll, water skin, rations and fodder for 1 week

Nurglish Mutants Bloody Lizbet, Gutswag, Hakfoot & Hogzy Career: Brute Race: Human mutant To reflect the differences between individual mutants, apply Main Profile the following changes to the standard profile. WS BS S T 41% 42%* 40% 42% Hakfoot: Movement 5.* Secondary Profile Hogzy: Ballistic Skill 21%, Intelligence 15%.* A W SB TB Skills: Concealment +10, Dodge Blow, Follow Trail, 1 14 4 4 Navigation, Outdoor Survival +10, Perception +10, Prepare Poison, Scale Sheer Surface, Shadowing, Silent Move +10 Talents: Flee! Armour: Leather jerkin, mail shirt Armour Points: Head 0, Arms 0, Body 3, Legs 0 Weapons: See below. Bloody Lizbet: Crossbow, natural weapon (knobbed tail, SB damage, Pummelling) Gutswag: Natural weapon (bladed hand, SB damage) Hakfoot: Crossbow, hand weapon (sword) Hogzy: Hand weapon (wooden club) Trappings: Ragged clothes, lice

Ag 42%

Int 30%*

WP 40%

Fel 32%

M 4*

Mag 0

IP 5

FP 0

Ag 49%

Int 42%

WP 55%

Fel 37%

M 4

Mag 0

IP 5

FP 0

Von Krumeln, Chaos Warrior Career: Brute Race: Human mutant Skills: Command +10, Common Knowledge (the Empire) +10, Follow Trail, Intimidate +20, Navigation, Outdoor Survival +10, Perception +10, Search +10, Speak Language (Reikspiel) Talents: Frightening, Orientation, Specialist Weapon Group (Flail), Street Fighting, Strike Mighty Blow, Strike to Injure Armour: Full mail armour Armour Points: Head 3, Arms 3, Body 3, Legs 3 Weapons: Flail, hand weapon (axe) Trappings: None

Main Profile WS BS S T 67% 36% 57% 55% Secondary Profile A W SB TB 2 18 5 5