Darken Glade

Deep within the free realm of Abanasinia, in a dark forest bordering Qualinesti proper, a sinister patch of wood has grown infamous among the locals. Strange occurances have plagued the damned forest for quite some time, ranging from disappearances of merchant caravans to the savage deaths of several well-known travelers. Even fearless, happy-go-lucky kender have become wary of the dread forest. Brack Ironpost, a dwarven metalsmith of much renown, was reported to have set off near cursed wood while pettling his wares. He never returned. Those sent to find the dwarven metalsmith have also vanished under similar circumstances. This area of cursed wood has since grown infamous among all travelers from Abanasinia to Pax Tharkas. Its ill reputation has caused it to be named the "Darken Glade."

Local legends disagree on the exact location and history of Darken Glade. Many travellers insist that Darken Glade is far south, near the Sla-Mori that bridges Qualinesti to Pax Tharkas. Others whole-heartedly insist that Darken Glade is only a few miles southwest of Haven. However, all agree that wherever Darken Glade is, it should be avoided at all costs.

Many have also speculated on the origin of Darken Glade. Currently, there are two legends gaining strength among the locals. None can confirm whether either one is accurate.

When Chaos returned to Krynn, Rhakyl battled the daemon warriors and shadow wights alongside his fellow peoples of Krynn. His searing flames and thunderbolts destroyed many minions of Chaos. In the end, the battle was won, and Krynn was saved. However, salvation came at a heavy price. The gods were forced to abandon their world forever. With them, left the magic. Those who reveled and molded the magic were left empty and hollow. Life became meaningless without the magic. So it was with Rhakyl Kormoth.

Grief-stricken, Rhakyl began to pour over his vast collection of magical tomes to find a way to rekindle the magic. Night after night, and even through the day, Rhakyl painstakingly searched for the answers that would restore his magic. After diligent years of research, Rhakyl found the solution he had been searching for.

No one knows what Rhakyl discovered. On a dark and dreary night, when even the pale moon of the new age was cast into the darkness, Rhakyl enteres the forests surrounding Qualinesti. Bearing the Starsunderer, Rhakyl prepared to embrace tthe magic. In an arcane ritual, Rhakyl pricked his finger, and let a drop of his blood land on the surface of the Starsunderer. As the crimson droplet sizzled on the surface of the arcane artifact, the forest filled with a white light. The Starsunderer began to cackle with magical energy and the forest literally pulsated with life.

However, the energy was too intense, too powerful for the powerless mage to control. Frightened, Rhakyl made a deep cut in his arm. The warm blood cascaded down the sides of the artifact, but the magical energy would not be contained. Now to the point of hysteria, Rhakyl cut deeper with dagger. The blood flowed in riverts down the Starsunderer, but it was not enough. As Rhakyl grew more frantic, the magical energy pulsated and grew. Wildly, Rhakyl screamed and hacked at his own body madly, until waves of his very life poured onto the Starsunderer. However, it was not enough. As Rhakyl's dagger found his heart, ending the mage's life, the Starsunderer exploded.

The land was charred and blackened by the magical blast, and the energy was infused into the very essence of the land. From that moment on, the woods where Rhakyl had given his life became damned. No animal would ever enter the damned spot, and the plants were hollow, skeletal remnants of their former selves. Some say that in the exact center of Darken Glade, in the exact spot where the Starsunderer exploded, in the exact spot where Rhakyl died by his own hand, the very soil is still stained with the blood of the ill-fated mage.

The Curse of Chaos

In the last days of the Chaos War, when the Father of All and Nothing returned to Krynn, the races of supposedly threw down their own petty squabbles to fight for survival. However, this was not always the case. During the Chaos War, a small brigade of Solamnic Knights were attempting to enter Qualinesti to discern whether or not the Knights of Takhisis were still ruling over the elves. However, they were stopped at the border by a patrol of elven scouts.

The elven scouts insulted the Knights, who, in turn, insulted the elves. Heated words were both thrown at both sides, until both sides were reaching for their weapons. Battle might have been avoided if both sides had agreed to cooperate right there and then. However, a hot-headed Knight of Solamnia crossed the border of Qualinesti in direct defiance of the elven scouts. An elven scout loosed an arrow, and caught the young knight in the chest. Then both sides attacked. The battle was fierce and violent, but it was cut short by the sudden appearance of the minions of Chaos. Before both sides could comprehent what was happening, the daemon warriors and shadow wights struck both the elves and the knights, slaying many. Caught off guard, neither the elves or the knights were prepared, and thus, they were subsequently cut down.

As both the elves and the knights collapsed, their leaders cursed each other with their dying breaths. It was at that moment that the Second Catacysm rocked Krynn, and a drop of Chaos' blood was captured in the Graygem. As Krynn was wracked with the Second Cataclysm's tremendous effects, the souls of the elves and the knights were bound to the site where they died, as were the daemon warriors and shadow wights who slew them. To this day, the tortured souls of the dead still haunt Darken Glade, as do the forces of Chaos.

Narrator's Notes
Darken Glade is meant to be a plaything of the Narrator's. The cursed wood may be placed anywhere along the eastern border of Qualinesti. It may even move from place to place, much like Wayreth Forest. All of this depends on teh will of the Narrator. The Narrator may even decided which legend he wants to be the origin of Darken Glade, or the Narrator may simply create his own. The forest itself may also be of variable size. However, Darken Glade should be at least 5 miles by 5 miles, but not over 20 miles by 20 miles.

The trees and plants of Darken Glade are all dying or dead. It resembles the Silvanesti forest during Lorac's nightmare to a lesser degree. Blood may run down the trunk's of trees, and sunlight might not reach the forest floor, but decaying heaps of bodies and constant ruin and devastation are out of place. No animals dare to enter the Glade, and few monsters would take such a chance. Several streams run through Darken Glade, but these all have a reddish taint. Anyone who drinks from these streams is poisoned, and must succeed in a challenging Endurance action or lose one card from their hand every minute until death. Only magical healing can negate the poison. Even if the hero does succeed in the action, he or she still retches for several minutes, reducing all abilities by 2 points for ten minutes.

Heroes may accidently stumble into the damned forest, or they may have been sent to investigate it. Adventure hooks such as searching for Brack Ironpost can be found sprinkled throughout this article.

In Darken Glade, encounters are frequent. For every ten minutes, flip over a card, if the aura is black, then there is an encounter. Narrators should refert o the table below for the nature of the encounter.

Encounter Table
Suit	Monster
Arrows	Daemon Warrior
Shields	Shadow Wight
Helms	Wight
Swords	Shadow
Moons	Ghost
Orbs	Spectre
Hearts	Wraith
Crowns	Banshee
Dragons	Fire Dragon

Encounter Table