DA4 The Duchy of Ten (1987)

 I talked a bit about DA4 back in 2016 when it was first released on PDF at the DMsGuild. Back then I mentioned how Dave Arneson's name does not appear on the cover of this adventure and that Dave had expressed some dissatisfaction about the adventure as he had not been given a chance to give it his approval which he presumably had done with the previous modules in the series.

Duchy of Ten is the final instalment of TSR's DA module series. Although the name Duchy of Tehn also appeared in Gary Gygax' Greyhawk, its origins are likely from Dave Arneson's campaign. In the original campaign, these lands may have been home to the villain The Ran of Ah'Foo and it may at one point have been controlled by a player named Chuck Munson. 

The adventure as published covers the sea voyage to the Duchy which is located to the west of Blackmoor. On the voyage there, the PCs may have to deal with a number of threats including Skandaharian raiders, Merfolk and traitorous sailors. Upon arrival, it is revealed that the Duchy of Ten is now under the occupation of the the conquering people known as the Afridhi and their queen, Toska Rusa. In this adventure you can also learn about the evil deity known as Zugzul and what nefarious plans his priestess Toska Rusa has with the artifact called the Well of Souls. 

It is unfortunate that Dave Arneson did not get the chance to give his final approval of this adventure, but comparing the information given here with what we learn about the Duchy of Ten in DA1, it does seem like much of the information does come from sources Arneson had approved of, even if he may have wanted the storyline to be different. We don't really know if there were any specifics Dave was unhappy with and if so, we don't know what those might have been. We do know that when Zeitgeist Games revisited the Duchy for the d20 Dave Arneson's Blackmoor line, they decided to keep the Duchy pretty much as presented in this adventure. At the time, ZGG said it was what fans had come to expect from the region. It is unfortunate that they did not revisit this adventure for the d20 line as they did with the previous modules in the series. 

Overall, this is a fun adventure and like the rest of the DA series, it allows for much exploration outside the main storyline and can in many ways be used as a setting sourcebook as much as an adventure. Mystara fans can use the introduction part where the heroes are PCs travelling through time, but this part can easily be skipped and the adventure can be ran with PCs who are heroes from Blackmoor. 

DA4 The Duchy of Ten 

 Item Code: #9205 (DA4) 

Title: The Duchy of Ten 

Type: Adventure 

Author: David J. Ritchie 

Published: 1987 

Format: 48-page book w/tri-fold cover, fold-out map

"The Well of Souls... 

That's what Zugzul bade the Afridhi call the evil artifact that he had taught them to make. They call it the Well of Souls, and they must carry it before them into every battle - and they would be mighty. Thus said the god of Afridhi, Zugzul the One. So the Afridhi did as they were bade. Seeking the volcano called the Hill of the Hammer in the far Barrens of Karsh, they built in its heart a great forge. There, as Zugzul had promised, efreet came to help them make the mighty artifact.

 

There, amid vile, unholy rites, they bound the souls of men into its very substance, and, as it took shape, they sharpened their swords for the red-handed work that must surely follow hard upon its completion. Many were the men who guarded the Hill of the Hammer during the days of making - for their foes in hated Blackmoor would try to unmake that which they had wrought. Yet, it was not men that would keep the Well of Souls from destruction, but a prophecy - that the artifact would be unmade only by the hand of one as yet unborn!"

Buy this adventure in Print or PDF format from DrivetrhuRPG

More discussion of this adventure at The Comeback Inn. 

Do you own a copy f the Duchy of Ten? What do you think about this adventure?

-Havard

Eastern Marshes of Thonia Revealed!

A new region in the world of Dave Arneson's Blackmoor is being explored in detail for the very first time. The Empire of Thonia, also known as the Great Kingdom, consists of ten provinces. The Eastern Marshes is one of the more traditional of the Thonian Provinces.

Get your free fan-created PDF booklet today!

Also, read more about Thonia here.

-Havard

Hackmoor: Blackmoor meets Hackmaster!

Totally fake cover!

I finally got around to picking up Hackmaster 4th edition last week. I never bought the game when it first came out because I thought it was just a funny, but expensive joke. I later realized that it is a well designed fully functional AD&D-like RPG, but it was not untill reading though the Players Guide that I realized how many cool ideas can be found within its pages.

One of the reasons my interest in Hackmaster was rekindled was the Hackmaster Blackmoor Game, dubbed Tracy's Hackmoor that poster Tracy has been writing about at the Comeback Inn. The campaign is set in the Duchy of Ten and based on the module DA4.

If you are interested, check out the Campaign Journal and Story Hour forum (at the CBI) where you can read about Weasel, Snizzlephish, Elefus and the rest of the gang as they take on the Afridhi Empire!



 -Havard

Nystul and the Duchy of Ten

Many of you will know the story of the player and game designer Mike Nysul who gave his name to the spell Nystul's Magic Aura. Eventually Nystul also became a character in the Greyhawk setting. Later Greyhawk products describe Nystul as a citizen of Greyhawk's Duchy of Tehn where he, during the Greyhawk Wars, was active in evacuating refugees from the realm, as it was being invaded by outside forces.

Time to put on my Blackmoor glasses. Blackmoor's Duchy of Ten and Greyhawk's Duchy of Tehn both come from a realm in the C&C Society Setting. Blackmoor's Duchy of Ten also suffered from invading forces, which we know as the Afridhi under the leadership of Toska Rusa, Bride of Zugzul. Could not Blackmoor also have a Nystul the Wizard? The Tenians sure could use all the help they can get.

This got even more fun when I learned that Nystul also is a wizard in the Ultima games, which is where the image above is borrowed from.

More discussion of Nystul and Blackmoor's Duchy of Ten here!

-Havard

[Races] Gatormen

Also known as Broadgrin, the Gatormen are, as the name implies a cross between man and aligator. The Gatormen of Blackmoor make their home in the Barrier Swamp. This swamp marks the border between the Duchy of Ten and the Duchy of the Peaks. There have been many speculations to where this horrid race came from. One theory is that they were created by Lord Ran at the time when he controlled the Duchy of Ten. The Egg of Coot has been known to spawn a number of mosterous creatures, and Ran is reported to have stolen many of the Egg's secrets when he betrayed his former master. Although fellow swamp dwellers, Gatormen have no love for Froglin and are clearly not followers of the Frog God. Most likely they are followers of Demogorgon.

Behind the Curtain:
DA4 is the first recorded appearance of Gatormen, who later appeared in the D&D Creature Catalog. This means the race was invented by Dave Arneson or David Ritchie. They were later incorporated into the Red Steel Setting (Mystara) through Bruce Heard's excellent Voyage of the Princess Ark series. Red Steel offered no link to Blackmoor, but instead provided a much later creation date for when the race supposedly was created by a Wizard. It seems likely that this Wizard had discovered some old Blackmoorian scrolls which he used as a basis for his recreated race.


-Havard

[Races] Tree Lords of Blackmoor

One of the oldest races of Blackmoor, older than the elves by far are the Tree Lords. Sometimes called Ents, these walking tree like humanoids are as ancient as the oldest forests of the planet.  Ordana the Forest Mother is said to be one of the first generation of Tree Lords. After her ascendance to Immortality, she created the elves. From the birth of the elven race, the forests took care of them. As the elven race matured, the elves learned to care for the forests, like children growing up to care for their aging parents. In the North, King Uhlmar instructed the elves to care for the Tree Lords.

The Oldest Tree Lords are known as the Gakkaraks. These creatures are easily mistaken for dark moss covered trees. These ancient ones have grown bitter over the centuries, recenting all but those who show the utmost respect for the woodlands. Gakkaraks have a special connection to the forests they live in, being able to sense intruders of any sort. In addition to the Wizard of the Woods himself, Druids are the only humanoids that the Gakkaraks will fully tolerate. Even the elves are viewed by suspicion by these woodland giants.

The more common of Tree Lords are usually referred to as Treants. In the Age of Blackmoor, Treants are the servants of the elves. Treants are often called for when elven realms are threatened. It is not unheard of to see armies of Treants marching at the command of elven lords. In the great wars of the North, Treants under elven leadership have been known to serve both Blackmoor and Thonia in various alliances.

As the elven race became divided, Treants remained loyal to the Cumasti elves. In the Western Woods, they no longer obey the Westryn, but instead act as they see fit for themselves. A powerful Gakkarak lives within the borders of the Duchy of Ten. His name is Benoit and he cares little for the affairs of man, trying to stay out of the recent conflicts in that part of the world. Still a creature such as Benoit would be a vast source of information, having lived for such a long time. He even remembers Halgred Forestwalker, the first druid in this part of the world.

In the Cumasti Woods, Treants remain loyal to Menander Ithamis. With the elven lord’s alliance with King Uther, it is not unlikely that armies of Treants could once again be called upon in the service of Blackmoor, just like in the days of King Uhlmar.

Behind the Curtain:

Ents are listed in the FFC as available army units for both Vestfold and The Great Kingdom (later Thonia). The term Ents was of course removed from later D&D products along with hobbits and  other terms borrowed from Tolkien.  Still, it is fascinating to imagine armies of Tree-men marching to war in Blackmoor, similar to how Tolkien described in Lord of the Rings. 

The DA modules did not feature Ents, but a new monster, the Gakkarak was introduced there. It was later included in the Creature Catalogue. Gakkaraks are more powerful than the Treants, which is what D&D’s Ents ended up being turned into, but the Gakkaraks are also more hostile towards humanoids. 

Ordana, originally a Treant herself appears in the Mystara product line, but Ordana is also the main patroness of the elves in the ZGG Blackmoor line.




Image Source





-Havard

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS - PART III

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS TIMELINE
0
Empire of Thonia Founded
Emperor Robert I founds Blackmoor as the northernmost province of the Thonian Empire

500
Rogue Mages settle in the Superstition Mountains, founding the Duchy of the Peaks.

700
The Unwanted begin settling the lands west of the Misauga River. Some of these Unwanted settle in the Duchy of the Peaks.

815-896
Mage Wars rage in the Province of Blackmoor. Many Sorcerers find refuge in the Duchy of the Peaks.

925
Unwanted living south of the Duchy of the Peaks declare their lands as an independent Duchy, the Duchy of the Peaks.

970
The Duchy of the Peaks makes contact with the Egg of Coot.

980
Lord Whitehead becomes the new Duke of the Peaks.

994
Marfeldt the Barbarian begins his massacre of the Duchy of the Peaks, reportedly reducing its population by 30%.

997
(Winter) The Ran of Ah Foo betrays the Egg of Coot. The Duke of the Peaks sides with the Ran of Ah Foo.

1015
The Duchy of Ten is occupied by the Afridhi. The Duke of the Peaks attempts to reach an understanding with the forces of Toska Rusa.

1020
Duke Whitehead marries an exotic dancer named Sonia Sholako. Through the use of her charms and magic, she is soon able to gain complete control of the Duchy of the Peaks.

1023
Duke Whitehead dies under mysterious circumstances. Donia Sholako becomes the Duchess of the Peaks.

1030
The Present. The alliance with the Afridhi has proved to be a poor one for the Peaks and the general level of conflict in the North is causing economic problems for the Duchy. Rumours of civil war and general unrest in the realm is spreading.






-Havard

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS - PART II

HISTORY
The Superstition Mountains got their name from the rogue magic users who settled there many centuries ago. These were the original founders of the Duchy of the Peaks and they claimed the lands between the Misauga River and the Superstition Mountains as their own.

Much later, around the year 700, they were joined by a people called the Unwanted. These were dissidents fleeing persecution in the Thonian Empire. The Duchy offered to protect these people, but in the end the majority were turned into slaves. Many of these slaves were used to construct a line of forts along Thunder River.

The lands to the south of the Duchy of the Peaks has also been settled by these Unwanted and when they declared their own realm, the Duchy of Ten as an independent Duchy, some of the Southern Lands of the Duchy of the Peaks were lost to the newly formed neighbouring realm. The Duchy of the Peaks accepted this, seeing the chance of making a profit on this new political situation.

Men from the Duchy of the Peaks made contact with the Realm of the Egg of Coot later that same year. The Duchy attempted to play the Egg, the Duchy of Ten, Thonia and the Peshwa against eachother and has seemed to successfully avoid getting drawn actively into conflict itself. They rely on bribes, shifting alliances and clever diplomacy to stay out of war and make a profit instead.

In 985, Marfeldt the Barbarian arrived in the Duchy. His visit would prove disastrous to the realm. Disgusted by its culture, the Barbarian went on a rampage which reputedly significantly reduced the population of the realm.

The former Duke, known to some as Lord Whitehead was perhaps not the most clever man, though he was said to have lead men into battle personally, even though he mostly tried to keep his realm out of wars. At an old age, he married the exotic dancer named Sonia Sholako, who through the use of her charm and magic was able to manipulate the Duke into handing over the realm to her. She has remained the ruler of the Duchy since the death of the former Duke.

Unfortunately, the Afridhi invasion and recent wars has been problematic for the Duchy as the markets for their gemstones has dried up. The Duchess has been forced into an agreement supplying the Afridhi with Pikemen from the Peaks, though she has seemed reluctant to follow up on the arrangement. The economic troubles the Duchy has had, in recent years, have made the barons push their vassals and slaves harder, making the country ripe for revolt.












-Havard