YKAdventures:Ilmiora

Young Kingdoms

Young Kingdoms Adventures is a supplement filled with story ideas specifically intended for Elric! or Stormbringer Fifth Edition. A listing of all of these background pages can be found at the Young Kingdoms Adventures Main Page.

This set of adventures is set in the Young Kingdom's northern continent. Chaosium's Atlas of the Young Kingdoms, Volume 1: The Northern Continent provides a wide variety of information on the lands of the Northern Continent, including: Vilmir; Ilmiora; the Weeping Waste; Nadsokor; Org and the Forest of Troos; the Sighing Desert; and Tanelorn. The Young Kingdoms Adventures articles on this area include a general article on Ilmiora as well as more information on the city-state of Bakshaan there and an article on the duchy of Rignariom in Vilmir.

The NPCs, Locations and Items in this article are intended to be set somewhere in the country of Ilmoria (see Atlas, pg. 37-66). Note that other articles cover specific areas of Ilmoria.

Background Information

Ilmiora is a populous country located on the northern continent of the Young Kingdoms. It was ruled by Melnibone until uprisings some four hundred years ago; now humankind rules itself.

NPCs of Note

Atlas pg. 60-65 includes notes on many Iliorans of note, including Senators Farrat (pg. 61) and Voashoon (pg. 64), two of the members of the Senate that rules Ilmiora.

Places of Note

Ilmiora is a collection of city states. They are covered in slight detail in Atlas pg. 41-54. See the article on Bakshaan for more information on that individual state.

Below are other notable locations not associated specifically with one of the city states.

The Altar of Blood

Upon the rock was a building, a great castle all colored scarlet. And the scarlet rippled as if water had somehow been molded into a permanent shape. A familiar, salty smell came from the scarlet castle.
--Description of Duke Teer's Castle, _The King of the Swords_, Book 2, Chapter 2

In the wilderness of Ilmiora, amidst the grasslands that are still untamed by the young nation, there is an ancient altar to chaos which was once worshiped at by a people that are now long dead. It has been abandoned for ages, but very recently, new worshipers have been drawn to it.

The altar is a shrine to Duke Teer, the Lord of Blood. It is approximately rectangular in shape, five feet long, two feet wide and two and half feet high. The entire altar is composed of blood. It is fluid, constantly rippling, yet it is set into its current form. Occasionally, shapes can be seen in the rippling surface, sculptures made of blood. The altar is not fully solid, but there is increasing resistance if anyone tries to reach into it. The stench of blood can be smelled for hundreds of feet around. Carrion eaters constantly circle the altar, but seem unwilling to actually touch it.

Duke Teer has been banished from the Young Kingdoms for long ages, but now that Old Ollen has rediscovered the altar, he is reawakening the worship of Duke Teer. He has over a dozen cultists who have joined in his worship, and he is preparing to spread the cult of Duke Teer further.

Residents of the Altar:

Old Ollen is the current high priest of Duke Teer. He has totally accepted the ways of Duke Teer, and is committed to bringing them to all of the Young Kingdoms. He sees humans merely as vessels. Some, he allows to be tools to spread the ways of his lord to all.

Description: A middle-aged man who looks old for his age. He has wild, white hair and his white vestements are often spotted by blood.

Chaos 62, Balance 18, Law 2

STR     9       CON     13      SIZ     11      INT     17      POW     18
DEX     16      APP     6                                       HP      12

Damage Bonus: none 

Weapons: 
Blood Dagger 75%, damage 1D4+2 

Armor: none

Spells: Affliction [TBG], Hell's Razor [Elric!], Shape Blood [See Below], 
Stop Blood [See Below]

Demons & Enchantments: see Blood Monsters below 

Skills: Craft (Blood) 93%, Disguise 51%, Dodge 78%, Fast Talk 49%,
Hide 83%, Insight 75%, Oratory 97%, Own Language 85%, Search 67%,
Young Kingdoms 34%

Statistics for cultists should be created as appropriate. They should be moderate warriors, who are utterly amoral. A few will know Duke Teer's special spells.

The Blood Monsters:

Duke Teer has gifted his greatest worshiper in the Young Kingdoms with creatures composed entirely of blood, to protect him, and help him to spread the word of Teer.

All creatures of blood have the following characteristics:

• impaling weapons do no damage
• edged weapons do half damage
• blunt weapons do normal damage
• when they are slain, they explode, sending blood in all directions

One example of a Blood Monster is given below. Old Ollen should have several more at his disposal. Simply adapt demons as necessary for these.

STR     24      CON     20      SIZ     25      INT      5      POW     10
DEX     12      APP      3                                      HP      23

Damage Bonus: +2D6

Abilities: 
Absorb Missile at 90%
Vomit Acidic Blood at 50%, POT 1D10, 5 yard range

Weapons: 
Claws 90%, damage 2D6+db
Bite 60%, damage 3D8+dbp

Armor: none, but see special notes above

Skills: Act Threateningly 99%, Climb 50%, Dodge 30%, Wrestle 60% 

Need: 1 SIZ of blood each day

Properties of the Altar:

• Followers of Duke Teer may learn certain spells of Chaos unique to the Lord of Blood. To do so, they must worship at the Altar of Blood for a week, and then suceed at an INTx1 roll. The two spells available in this way are described below.

The Spells of Blood:

Shape Blood (1 POW + varies) - Range is touch. Chaotic. This spell allows the caster to shape a quantity of blood into some solid form. One magic point must be expended when casting this spell for every SIZ point worth of blood that is shaped. All such items created are sacred to Duke Teer. Teer's followers believe that it is their duty to one day cover the entire world in blood.

Stop Blood(3) - This spell disrupts the flow of blood within a victim, causing them considerable pain. If the caster suceeds in overcoming the victim in a MP:MP roll, the victim immediately takes 1D3 damage. In addition, the victim will be unable to act in the next round unless he suceeds at a CONx3 roll.

Story Ideas:

• The PCs are drawn to the area of the altar when the followers of

Duke Teer begin kidnapping local people to drain their blood in rituals to Duke Teer. They will likely end up in conflict with Old Ollen, many cultists and creatures of blood. If they defeat Duke Teer, the players will still need to figure out what to do with the Altar of Blood, since it cannot be destroyed by normal, mundane means. If the PCs are unable to stop the followers of Teer now, the Cult will slowly spread across the Young Kingdoms, and become an important force in the future.

Items of Note

No particular items of note are recorded outside the city-states of Ilmiora.

Creatures of Note

See above for notes on the Blood Creatures, which are sacred to Duke Teer, and will lurk near the Altar of Blood. No other creatures of note exist outside the city-states of Ilmiora, except what snakes and other creatures might sliter into the northeastern lands from The Sighing Desert and likewise what might crawl in from The Weeping Waste in the east. (See Atlas pg. 78-79 for information on the Mole-WOrms and the Waste-Ponies of the Weeping Waste.)