(Kentucky, Magic Zone)
The Fictional Town of Winchester Park is a Dweomer Military Outpost to the east of the City of Magic. Winchester Park features a pre-collapse-era Library at the heart of an expansive park and conservation area. Their main economy is supported by a small TW Manufacturing Complex that specializes in TW Bionics. Consequently, the town is often visited by Practitioners of Magic who’ve lost a limb and are looking at TW Conversions and Prosthetics.
The outpost uses barter, trade, gold, or gems as its preferred currency.
Citizens and visitors are asked to respect the ‘Rule of Law’ as observed in Dweomer. They welcome all people and the general atmosphere is uplifting and positive, with little poverty and crime. Everyone will be treated well by the locals and authorities.
The local champion is a female Whip-Tailed Dragon Hatchling named, Kaphidoa. She is personable and maternal and enjoys being around humans and D-Bees, but has an unusual dislike of Necromancers and the Undead.
Good Soldiers
A Dweomer patrol is out searching for a missing squad. The patrol, led by Lusty ‘Howler’ Boone, is out exploring the wildness, along with a Wilderness Scout named Jackman Muck, as their guide. The missing squad was on a 12-hour training exercise when the Operations Commander lost contact with them. It’s been 24 hours since their disappearance. Boone and Muck are joined by 3 other Battle Magus, one a Controller with an Ice Drake.
The Adventurers come across the human remains of a Dweomer Magus. Being recognized by their distinctive ‘Bug’ armor, the Adventurers are able to see the markings of the final moments leading up to the mage’s death. The wreckage brought by the encounter has left a wasteland to a 200-foot area. Shattered trees, scorched earth, and impact craters are but a few of the telltales of an encounter. What is more surprising is that the Magus’ weapons, equipment, and personal wealth are found on the remains. This indicates that the encounter wasn’t motivated by theft, or the attacker did not value the magical sword and items carried by the Magus.
Should the adventures continue their investigation, they will find themselves confronting a group of Battle Magi, at what they suspect is the training site. They will learn from the Magi of the missing squad training here, no more than a day ago. They will be shocked to learn of the remains of their fallen comrade, ‘Ghast’ having been found.
The Scout Jackman, having inspected Ghast’s injuries, falls silent. If he knows something, he isn’t saying. He is seen walking away from the Magi’s remains when he’s suddenly attacked, by what can be described as a ‘person.’ The attacker is a zombie armed with a vibro-ax. It begins to hack at the Wilderness Scout.
Should it be radioed into the Operations Commander, Kaphidoa will appear within the next 15 minutes. Jackman, having sustained minor injuries from the attack will require some treatment. But there are no further attacks. Kaphidoa, after scouting the area, will take the remains of the zombie and ‘dispose’ of it – understanding that it will regenerate from its injuries by tomorrow.
Random Harvest
Evidence in the Forest will reveal in what direction the training squad traveled, coming upon another group of zombies. Having regenerated from their injuries from the previous day, the Zombies are once again on the move. Encountering them, the patrol magi, along with the adventurers, will deal with them quickly – as they are armed only with Vibro Weapons.
Kaphidoa will be certain that the attacker is a local Necromancer named Kurd Minqil, someone she has encountered before. She will know of his last known hideout, where she chased him off only a few months ago.
Finding the site, they will come upon a gruesome scene filled with carrion corpses, bleached skeletons, swarms of insects, and a Dark Behemoth – likely drawn by the smell of blood and rotting meat. The monster roots through the gore chewing on random morsels. The beast will fight to the death if engaged.
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The Midnight King
Emerging from the tree line are 3 Dweomer Battle Magi. They form a line and descend upon the Dark Behemoth. Attracting its ire, the beast attacks, but the Magi are quickly joined by a small army of Zombies, Mummies, and Reanimated Corpses. The fighting style and stances of the Battle Magi are foreign and awkward. Howler, without questioning the scene as it unfolds before them, joins the fray, urging his comrades to follow him.
Kaphidoa notices the scene too late to warn Howler and his men back and quickly joins the fight to support her Dweomer allies. The melee is fierce and savage as the Dark Behemoth uses its tentacles to ensnare anyone and anything that fails to evade its grasp.
In the shadows of the tree line is a small contingent of reanimated corpses. Disguised amongst them is a Lipoca Sun Demon named Altas Volta, the Midnight King. The Midnight King is a leader of a Death Cult of Necromancers and lesser monsters and demons. The Sun Demon is attempting to lure in Dweomer Battle Magi to kill and then uses to Transfer the Life Force of his top Lieutenants who can then infiltrate Dweomer. Having pulled in Howler and his patrol, he hopes to use their corpses to add to his small inventory that includes the missing Battle Magi who went missing the day before.
The Dark Behemoth moved into the Midnight King’s lair, where 3 of the ‘bodies’ of his Acolytes are buried and now possess the bodies of the missing Battle Magi. A fourth was to use Ghast’s body as a puppet when their lair was attacked and they pulled away. The Midnight King has sent a zombie to retrieve the remains if they weren’t already taken by Howler and his patrol.