Grey Star the Wizard: 215

215

As the Shadakine officer dies,²⁵ the Knights of the White Mountain give a victorious cheer and charge forwards. The Shadakine that remain continue to fight, but eventually falter and retreat into small groups. With their numbers divided into small pockets of resistance, the knights are quickly able to overcome them, demonstrating their superior fighting skills in one to one combat. The Shadakine warriors fight to the last man and you expend another WILLPOWER point before the battle is over.²⁶

As soon as the fighting is over, the unarmed man jumps down from the wagon onto the bridge. ‘My thanks, stranger. A timely arrival indeed,’ he says, smiling broadly.

His name is Madin Rendalim, a Durenese herbwarden, famous throughout the Lastlands of the far north for his knowledge and skill in the healing arts. He is journeying through the provinces of the Shadakine Empire seeking the Druse tree, and the clear, sticky resin beneath its bark—the only known cure for the terrible Red Death plague.

‘I had found the Druse tree growing some distance from here, in the Forest of Fernmost at the foot of the Kashima Mountains. I was returning to Port Suhn to journey back to my home in Hammerdal when these ill-mannered Shadakine brutes refused to let us pass. They have closed the roads around Suhn it seems, searching for some fugitives or outlaws.’

As a sign of his gratitude he offers you the following items:

Potion of Rendalim’s Elixir (restores 6 ENDURANCE points)
Enough food for 5 Meals
Pestle and Mortar (Backpack Item)
3 Tarama Seeds (1 seed permits the use of a Magical Power or Wizard’s Staff without the loss of any WILLPOWER points)²⁷
Sealed pouch of Calacena Mushrooms (the spores of these mushrooms may enhance the illusions of those using the Power of Enchantment).

You may take any of these items. Carry them in your Herb Pouch unless otherwise indicated, or unless you have no Herb Pouch, in which case carry them in your Backpack. Remember to mark the items on your Action Chart.

When you have made your choice, he offers Shan and Tanith a selection of gifts. At last, you bid the herbwarden and his brave bodyguard farewell, requesting that they mention your encounter to no one.

Turn to 2.

[25] If you have arrived here from Section 156, there is no description of how the Shadakine officer is killed. This appears to be an oversight by the author.

[26] If you do not have sufficient WILLPOWER points, you may choose to simply subtract the specified number of WILLPOWER points. This may leave you with a negative WILLPOWER score, or if it was already negative, it will make your score become even more negative. Alternatively, you may choose the method used in Section 175 of War of the Wizards for resolving this problem: For the WILLPOWER points you lack, you use ENDURANCE points at a rate of 2 ENDURANCE points for every 1 WILLPOWER point (i.e. 2 ENDURANCE points = 1 WILLPOWER point).

[27] Tarama Seeds may be recorded as Special Items since they don’t take up space in your Herb Pouch or Backpack. Each Tarama Seed can be used to cast exactly one spell or to use your Wizard’s Staff outside of close combat (e.g. to fire a bolt of energy at a distant enemy) without using the normally required WILLPOWER points. Tarama Seeds cannot be used to maintain the effect of a spell or in place of other drains on your WILLPOWER, like mental attacks. It also seems inappropriate to use a Tarama Seed in close combat where you could then decide to expend an infinite amount of WILLPOWER to automatically win a fight.