Citadel Beyond the North Wind
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The follow-on from the acclaimed Spider-God's Bride ¸ Citadel Beyond the North Wind contains a sandbox setting for classic sword & sorcery adventures. In the World of Xoth¸ there is a land far to the north¸ past the black hills of Lamu and beyond the frozen moors of Tharag Thule. It is a dreary land of mist and thunder¸ and the white people of Yg have dwelt there since ancient times. Across this land¸ on towering hilltops and beside fog-shrouded lakes¸ stand somber granite castles¸ and therein dwell the princelings and tyrants of Yg with their countless thralls and slaves and subjects. The free men of Yg tremble when fools dare to utter the name of Arkanth Mal¸ for he is the greatest and oldest of the tyrants of this primeval land. He is the witch-king of Galuga¸ grand master of necromancy and alchemy. Yet there are times when drunken bards in the smoke-filled taverns of Tartuun dare to sing the forbidden song of the witch-king and his first consort¸ Eliyh. In his youth¸ the bards say¸ Arkanth Mal left the land of Yg and wandered east of the mountains to study sorcery. Among the Easterlings he met the witch Eliyh and was enraptured by her charms. The two dwelled in the east for several years¸ sharing many earthly pleasures and sorcerous secrets. But when Arkanth Mal returned to Yg in the west¸ he was alone¸ for Eliyh was not by his side. Soon thereafter¸ Arkanth Mal took as his wife Verina¸ a princess of Lamu. Using the plentiful gold from her dowry¸ he purchased the loyalty of the grim hill-men of Natla. The sorcerer and his army conquered vast tracts of the land of Yg in a series of bloody battles and protracted sieges. In the end¸ Arkanth Mal reigned supreme among the tyrants of Yg from his citadel of Galuga¸ and the princelings were forced to pay tribute to the witch-king. However¸ at the moment of the sorcerer's triumph¸ while he was away on his last campaign¸ Verina fled from Galuga for unknown reasons¸ and returned to the realm of her father in the south. And now¸ the bards of Tartuun whisper¸ the witch-king of Galuga seeks a new queen. For the minions of Arkanth Mal sweep across the borders of Tharag Thule and Lamu¸ slaying men and taking only young women as slaves back to Galuga¸ the Citadel beyond the North Wind! Includes the Song of the Beast Gods adventure! Fully revised for the Legend rules system.