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Author Topic: Broken Halls  (Read 426 times)

Aurhinius

Broken Halls
« on: January 13, 2004, 10:52:00 am »
Broken Halls

Deep in the Kheldell forest, amidst the trees and the howls of the forest animals, burns the soft glow of a campfire. Gently bubbling on the fire is a pot filled with the meat from the day's game. The traveller there bids you welcome and motions for you to join him, as he has a magnificent tale of dragons and grand cities to tell.

"Ahh but where to begin? Broken Halls is all that remains of an ancient Elven Kingdom that has been lost for over a thousand years. At one time it was the base of power for the Elves on Mistone and Dregar and much of the rest of Layonara. Many centuries ago, the city was destroyed and buried underground during a titanic battle of dragons. It is rumored that one of the younger dragons returned to claim the ruins as her own. However, the place has been tainted by evil for a very long time now."

"Broken Halls has become the base of power for an ancient vampire by the name of Saproprias. He has used the dungeon as a place of power to spread his evil across the continent. It is thought that he is the master vampire on Mistone, but nobody is sure. Tis a foreboding place filled with the souls of the restless dead, a fate i would wish upon none of my greatest enemies."

The conversation wanes and he stares wistfully into the bleakness of the swaying branches and hangs his head, muttering 'a terrible place...'
 

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RE: Broken Halls
« Reply #1 on: June 22, 2004, 08:27:00 pm »
Saproprias was a young elf that grew up in the Grand Elven Halls of the High Forest. He grew up during the violent Human Elf Wars. Bred with a deep hatred of Humans for their ignorance and arrogance, Saproprias volunteered at the young age of 70 to fight against the human onslaught. For nearly 70 years Saproprias fought against generations of humans becoming a great military leader for the elves and one of the youngest elven generals of record.
 
  Early in the year 334 the elves had been pushed back with their last foothold being the once great Halls of the High Forest. No longer did the elves have strength or even dominance in the continent of Mistone. Rumor had it that the humans had found a great ally. Elven scouts had returned to the Halls with reports of a young Blue Dragon siding with the humans. No doubt the humans had paid a large price to get such a mercenary. Sapropriasfeared greatly that if the humans were to push forward with their new dragon ally it would be the end to the elven foothold on Mistone.
  Filled with passion and hatred Sapropriassought out the help of an evil dark elven wizard of great power named Arit'zar. His hatred of the humans had grown beyond his hatred of the dark elven race. Arit'zar demanded a high price to aid Saproprias. He requested a young elven woman as his slave.
  Sapropriasreluctantly abducted her using his high profile and notoriety to lure her to Arit'zar's home. Saproprias recieved his reward a mated pair of Mud Wyrms bound to Saproprias to be used in the battle against the Humansand their Blue Dragon Mercenary.

  Early in the summer of the year 334 humans began their assault on the Halls of the High Forest. With the help of their winged ally, the humans quickly pushed the elves back to the outside walls of the elven fortress. Saproprias, fearing they could not hold off the incoming armies, called in his new companions, the mud wyrms. Humansbegan falling from the aura of death the wyrms gave off and the battle began looking favorable to the elves, but no sooner then the wyrms appeared were they attacked by the blue dragon. Over the city and buildings of the Halls of the High Forest they battled. Destroying homes and crashing through walls in battle. Foundations fell and battlements toppled while bellow, the humans invaded the city and its inner most walls.
  The elves had lost their last foothold on the continent.
 
  Sapropriasand his mud wyrm companions retreated to the deepest parts of the Halls while the rest of the elves retreated to the coast and in the coming months mostly left the continent of Mistone.
 
  The Halls, broken and battered, were filled with the corpses of humans and elves. In frustration, Sapropriassent his loyal lieutenants to bring Arit'zar to the halls. When Arit'zar arrived, Saproprias murdered him stabbing him with an elven ceremonial dagger. However, with his dieing breath Arit'zar cursed Saproprias turning him into a vampire and binding him to the Halls, trapped forever. At first, Saproprias did not see the curse as detrimental. With his new found power he raised an army of undead from the corpses of battle to defend his stronghold. At last he had the ability to defend his home and hold the humans at bay. In retaliation he sent evil out of the halls to fill the surrounding areas with abominations.
 
  For over a thousand years, the Broken Halls were a taint in the splendor of the High Forest, but nobody knew of a way to cleanse it. However, apart from the occasional group of undead leaving the Halls, the taint did not seem to expand, so the Halls were mostly ignored.
 
  Then, in the year the shadows ruled Layonara at night, and it was unsafe to roam the lands, the evil from the Halls seemed to increase, as the Halls themselves also turned into a source of shadow.

  Brave adventurers found out that Sapropriashad made an unholy alliance with the force behind the shadows, and had grown more powerful than ever before.

  At great cost to themselves, and with mortal peril, they found their way into the Halls, only to confront Saproprias, who no longer even remotely resembled a vampiric elf, but looked more like a demon made of shadow.

  Using clever tactics, the party managed to lure this shadow demon into the sunlight, which made his power crumble. The tie with shadow broken, Sapropriasreturned to his old vampiric shape. The adventurers, however, did not want to end his existence once and for all, and sentenced him to perpetual imprisonment in his Halls.
 
  Until one day, not too long ago, a ship from Voltrex arrived in Leilon. An old elf disembarked and was welcomed by a group of adventurers whom he requested to help him with a problem. The white-haired elf's name was Sorathen, and he explained that he was the great nephew of Saproprias.
 
  Sorathen had come to finally clear his family name from the shame Sapropriashad put on it. By removing Saproprias and his evil presence from the Halls, their name might be cleansed and the fallen elves can be laid to rest and find peace.
 
  Sorathen explained that Sapropriascould probably not be destroyed by using conventional means, as he was cursed. His essence had to be reunited with his body, and once reunited, the curse would be broken.
  The location of the essence, however, was not known to Sorathen. Travelling far and wide, searching for information, the party finally manages to find the ghost of Arit’zar, the dark elf mage that got murdered by Saproprias.
 
  Arit'zar explains the location of the essence but also explains that he knows not how to get through the locked door into Saproprias's tomb. The bold adventurers are also told that the mud wyrms are linked to Saproprias and they would be able to open the door. When the heroes finally manage to open the door to Saproprias’ inner chambers and bring his essence close to him, Saproprias turned to dust and blew away on a mysterious wind.
 
  With the vampire gone, the Halls started to cave in on themselves and very little remains above ground. However, it is whispered that true evil, like Saproprias, never dies…
 

 

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