Act One: Farholde

It has been a long and bloody year. The fair nation of Talingarde, beacon of goodness and light, is under assault. A mighty horde of Bugbears, ogres and other assorted monsters has invaded from the frigid North, united under the leadership of Sakkarot Fire-Axe. The villages of Ambryl and Tarrington Fields lie sacked, and the fortress of Lorrinsgate lies in ruins. Even now, bands of roving monsters scour the land, bringing misery and death to all they find. Talingarde has been caught utterly unprepared, their defences found woefully lacking.

For generations, the northern Watch Wall has held back the scourge of the wild, its garrison forts manned by the very cream of the Talirean soldiery and watched over by Paladins and clerics of the Sun God, Mitra. It would have held them back for generations more, had it not been betrayed from within. The fortress of Balentyne, lynchpin of the Wall, was infiltrated and subverted by agents of the devil god, Asmodeus, acting under orders from the renegade Cardinal Adrastus Thorn. In other words, by you.

You infiltrated Balyntine, murdered its commander, demoralised the garrison and threw open the gates to the Bugbear horde outside. The soldiers within never stood a chance, and even as the watch-fort burned behind you, you disappeared into the shadows, ready for your next task.

It seems that task shall soon be delivered to you. Tiadora, a proud and cold woman subordinate only to Thorn himself, has regrouped with you aboard "The Folly", a fat-bottomed river barge that plys the waterways of Talingarde, currently bound for a frontier town named Farholde. The dozen or so crew take no notice of you as they move about their duties - indeed, they look right past you without seeing you at all, their senses evidently clouded by some spell.

Tiadora emerges onto the deck of the ship, her dark red dress rippling in the morning breeze, and gestures to the cabin behind her. "The master is here, and he commands that you attend him." she says grimly.