Characters planning an expedition to the City of the Frog may learn of at least two prior attempts to investigate the strange cult.
The first mention of the Monks of the Swamp appears in Dave Arneson's campaign newsletter Corner of the Table (vol. 4, no. 6):
Excerpt from Corner of the Table (Vol. 4, no. 6) c. 1972
Characters played by Dave Wesely (Fnord "Otto" the Barbarian), Scott Belfry (Scotty Debelfry), and Pete Gaylord (The Wizard of the Wood) set out from Loch Gloomen to investigate the town held by the Monks of the Swamp, and weren't heard from again.*
*The Wizard of the Wood was involved in a subsequent expedition to the City of the Gods, where he met his doom
Two years later, another expedition was launched, this time led by the Great Svenny:
One of the characters was killed and his loss was a warning to the others and so set the stage for future endeavors by the group who wished revenge and to find out what happened. It was a great "what happened" set up when they finally found the the weird guy in the robes who shot an immensely powerful lightning bolt at them. Awaking later in the swamp, all that could be remembered evoked a 'riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma'.
Stephen Rocheford, from The Comeback Inn in 2010
In "A Proposal in Confidence" the Fetch states "about five years ago ... there was some kind of change inside the order."
For a century it had festered in that awful stinking swamp, getting more and more eccentric and becoming gradually forgotten. And, then, someone came along who had a head for leadership, and suddenly the order got active again.
We don't really know much more. Our informers tell us that this man calls himself Saint Stephen and is some kind of foreigner. He apparently has some very powerful magic at his disposal, and the Froggies are deathly afraid of him.
Fletcher William, from DA2 "Temple of the Frog"
The PCs may consider consulting with the Great Svenny for hints or clues, before setting out for the City of the Frog, themselves.
So the Blackmoor campaign is the source of the "Hero"/"Super-Hero" classes/ranks/whatever that we see from Dungeon! through the AD&D fighter level chart? I always thought it was odd how these terms persisted.
ReplyDeleteYes, have to love those class titles! A throwback to the wargaming roots of the hobby.
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