IM3: The Best of Intentions

IM3 "The Best of Intentions" (1987) by Ken Rolston is a D&D adventure for 4-6 Temporals, levels 1-2.

IM3 "The Best of Intentions" by Ken Rolston.  Tongue-in-cheek illustration by Jeff Easley.

Eminent mortals on the Prime Plane have been meeting violent ends, with evidence implicating demons of the Sphere of Entropy.

The PCs are tasked with penetrating a conspiracy to eliminate candidates for Immortality, in favor of those from the Dimension of Nightmares.

Creative Team:

Ken Rolston's previous credits included work at Chaosium (Runequest), TSR (AD&D), and West End Games, where he was a major contributor to the Paranoia RPG.

I must admit... Best of Intentions seems more like a PARANOIA experience than a D&D project.

Ken Rolston, from an interview on The Piazza (February 7, 2025)

Rolston also contributed GAZ 2 "The Emirates of Ylaruam" (1987) and GAZ 7 "The Northern Reaches" (1988) to the Gazetteer line.

Editing was by Christine Christensen.  Typography was credited to Betty Elmore.

Cover art was by Jeff Easley, with interior black-and-white illustrations by Jim Holloway, in the humorous style typical of Holloway's previous work for the Paranoia RPG.

Cartography was by Dennis and Ron Kauth, and Sue Myers.

The Adventure:

Pharamond (Energy; Empyreal 4) desires to foster diaboli from the Dimension of Nightmares as candidates for Immortality, by eliminating the competition.*

*Pharamond is motivated by "the best of intentions", ie. since the 5th dimension adjoins the 6th dimension, diaboli might become Immortals capable of crossing the Dimensional Vortex

His conspirators include Harrow (Thought; Temporal 3), the highest ranking Immortal diabolus; Mazikeen (Energy; Celestial 4), a former protege; and Hircismus (Entropy; Celestial 2), a demon.

When Mazikeen develops some misgivings, Pharmond feebleminds and incarcerates him, giving Mazikeen (and his avatars) a case of hysterical paranoia.

The Olympic Trials

The Sphere of Matter sponsors an Olympic trial, in which Immortals of all spheres are invited to compete for recognition and modest prizes.

*in the Immortal Set, each Sphere holds its own Olympic games, in which competing Immortals ascend to higher ranks by defeating one or more peers in competition

The PCs face NPC Temporals: Luca (Time), Cochere (Thought), Soubrette (Thought), Raith (Energy), Macroblan (Matter), and Infaust (Matter).

The Doubles Planetoid Scramble, illustration by Jim Holloway, incorporating caricatures of TSR staffers (clockwise from right: Larry Elmore, Betty Elmore, Clyde Caldwell, and Keith Parkinson).

PC and NPC teams compete in "The Wild Hunt" in a populous region of Karameikos, and as pairs in "The Doubles Planetoid Scramble".

Afterwards, the PCs are summoned by Utnapishtim (Matter; Empyreal) to his Home Plane of Rhyolite, where he briefs them on the mysterious fatalities involving Immortal candidates.

Utnapishtim directs the PCs to locate Mazikeen, whose disappearance may somehow be connected, with the aid of Pangloss (Thought; Celestial).*

*if the PCs require additional assistance, Utnapishtim assigns them a worse-than-useless advisor, Buglore (Matter; Temporal 2)

The 24 Planes of Mazikeen

Pangloss shows the PCs the location of Mazikeen's presumed Home Plane of Serpentia, where the missing Immortal is known as Stirpicore, the Serpent God.

From there, the PCs must search through 24 interconnected Outer Planes* for Mazikeen.

*including the Warren "an underground complex where humans live a wretched existence under the domination of an insane computer." (ie. the Paranoia setting) described as a trispace in the reference chart on the inside cover, but a tetraspace in the description on pg. 11

Six of Mazikeen's avatars reside on six of the 24 planes, and serve as a means of locating Mazikeen, using the Cube of Six Planes (lesser artifact).

The Rescue of Mazikeen

The gate to Mazikeen's Home Plane of Lodestar is located in Corridor:

Corridor, a planet of immense icecaps almost covering the entire northern and southern hemispheres, with a narrow equatorial band of ocean.  The inhabitants, the Sudarans, are cold-blooded reptilian/avians who sleep one-half to three-quarters of their lives in a semi-hibernating state.  Descendants of a dinosaur-like fauna, these creatures became intelligent before the planet entered its ice age cycle, and thus they adapted to the arctic environment.

Their culture is extremely old, very conservative and ritualized.  Their social order is feudal, with hereditary noble families controlling the habitable caverns beneath the ice sheet and the ancient technology that provides energy to warm the caverns and support crops.  The Sudarans reached a level of technology equivalent to 21st century Earth before the ice age.  Now it is a stable mixture of 19th, 20th, and 21st century technologies.

IM3 "The Best of Intentions" by Ken Rolston

Once Mazikeen's feeblemind is dispelled, he can be convinced to inform against Pharamond, his former mentor.

Ambushing the Ambushers

The PCs must protect three Immortal candidates while discovering the identities of any Immortal attackers in the Battle of Shillabeer Gap.

War machine scenario for the Battle of Shillabeer Gap

The conflict is set in northwestern Thyatis, in the foothills of the Altan Tepes, 50 miles northwest of Biazzan (hex 4722 of the map in X10 "Red Arrow, Black Shield").

The Battle of Shillabeerap takes place 2 hexes to the northwest of Biazzan.

An Ylari irregular cavalry unit is stationed in Ctesiphon,* within four days of the Shillabeer Gap.

*Ctesiphon is further detailed in Rolston's GAZ 2 "The Emirates of Ylaruam" (1987)

The three Immortal candidates are Aline Sigbert (C34, AL L), Conquering Splendor, Daughter of Apollo** (the mother of the current Emperor of Thyatis); Charek Hilda (F31, AL N), the Great Defender, The Sword of Ares** (her paramour); and Dernfara of the Southern Isles (MU30, AL N).

**the mention of Greek gods was possibly inspired by their appearance in IM2 "Wrath of Olympus"

Aline's Lawful followers include Lendor (a 10th level Karameikan fighter); Anarachak (a 15th level Thyatian cleric); Bynar Raedwulfsen (a 20th level Northman fighter); Vestri Thjofrson (a 12th level Northman mage); Brethil Moonkindler (a 10th level Elf); and Drogo Prickthom (an 8th level Halfling).

(Aline succeeds in her quest for Immortality, and appears as Liena, an Initiate in the Sphere of Time, in "Wrath of the Immortals" (1992)

In the Lion's Den

Mazikeen shares the location of the gate on Corridor which leads to Pharamond's Home Plane of Nous, and the PCs are tasked with bringing Pharamond to justice.

Immortal Justice

A hearing is convened by Solarios, the Hierarch of Energy, to determine whether Pharamond’s actions were contrary to the letter or spirit of the Goals of the Immortals and/or his Sphere, and what actions should be taken by Noumena, the Hierarch of Thought, as punishment.

Mazikeen, Hircismus, and Harrow face judgement.  Illustration by Jim Holloway.

A Hierarch reference chart is included, describing the personalities, opinions of counterparts, and objectives of the five Hierarchs, (along with a suggestion to dragoon five other gamers familiar with Immortals D&D game play into portraying the five Hierarchs).

Pre-Rolled Characters:

Raven (Thought; Temporal 1)

Shaper (Energy; Temporal 1)

Carnelian (Time; Temporal 1)

Tiresias (Thought; Temporal 1)

The Eternal General (Matter; Temporal 1)

The Hanged Man (Energy; Temporal 1)

A Power Awards Chart is provided as a guide to awarding Power Points for each episode in the adventure.

Commentary:

Despite its tongue-in-cheek style, Rolston presents a complex and fascinating adventure, involving exploration of numerous outer planes, imaginative use of avatars, an epic war machine scenario, confrontations between powerful Immortals, and tense courtroom drama.

The 24 Planes of Mazikeen could be used as the basis for a Master-level adventure, or the Battle of Shillabeer Gap as the climax for a campaign set in Thyatis, involving Companion-level PCs as followers of Aline Sigbert, Conquering Splendor, Daughter of Apollo.

Unfortunately, the humorous art undermines appreciation of the adventure's merit (Easley's cover illustration in particular has absolutely nothing to do with the adventure, while Holloway's interiors are thematically fitting, but not his best work).

IM2: The Wrath of Olympus

IM2 "The Wrath of Olympus" (1987) by Robert J. Blake is a D&D adventure for 4-5 Temporals, levels 1-2, at least one from each of the Spheres of Power.

IM2 "The Wrath of Olympus" by Robert J. Blake.  Illustration by Keith Parkinson.  (Pan does not appear in the adventure).

A group of rogue immortals have adopted the personas of Olympian gods and a mountain in the Broken Lands to serve as Mount Olympus, demanding mortal worship and tribute.

They chose to emulate, at least in appearance and name, gods they had admired, gods that would be respected ... and feared.  The scope of the project?  To eventually control all of the Prime.

IM2 "The Wrath of Olympus" (pg. 9)

(The notion of gods is otherwise absent from the BECMI line.  Could these immortals have glimpsed an alternate realty, or traveled to Ancient Greece?)

Creative Team:

Bob Blake designed the Gen Con IX and X tournament dungeons, and also ran the Origins 78 and Gen Con XI tournaments.  His other credits include a Master-level adventure for AC10.

Editing was by Mike Breault, who assisted with editing of the Master DM's book.  Typography was credited to Betty Elmore.

Cover art was by Keith Parkinson, with interior black-and-white illustrations by George Barr.*  Cartography was by Dennis Kauth, Dave LaForce, Dave and Diane Sutherland.

*there is an illustration of a crysmal (pg. 14), by Jim Holloway, from the 1e MM2; also a hydrax (pg. 27), from the DMs Companion

The Immortals:

The false Olympians include Zeus (Time; Empyreal 5), Hera (Energy; Empyreal 4), Aphrodite (Energy; Temporal 4), Athena* (Matter; Celestial 3), Apollo (Thought; Celestial 3), Ares (Energy; Temporal 4), and Hermes (Thought; Temporal 2).

*Lokena is "Athena's" real name (the others' names are given in "Wrath of the Immortals" (1992) by Aaron Allston: Taroyas ("Zeus"), Patura ("Hera"), Kythria ("Aphrodite"), Palson ("Apollo"), Bemarris ("Ares"), and Turmis ("Hermes") as Initiates

Night, Hierarch of Entropy, together with three Eternals of Entropy, Masauwu (Eternal 3), Orcus (Eternal 4), and Talitha (Eternal 2) brings retribution upon the false Olympians, catching all but Athena within a magical barrier, depriving them of power.

The Adventure:

Djaea, depicted as an old man in IM1 "The Immortal Storm" appears as Terra ("Mother Earth") and asks the PCs to bring Athena to her.

*Terra refers to Athena as an Empyreal on pg. 2, although her rank is given as a Celestial in Table 2 (pg. 23)

Athena's Refuge

The PCs travel to the planet Simoom in the Outer Plane of Rylum, a tetraspace (four-dimensional plane of existence) instead of the standard pentaspace.  Hence, only mortal magic use is possible.

The dominant element in Rylum is Fire.  Simoom's dominant race are the Isiidi, a tall (averaging 7'), human-like race, with thick, brownish hide (equivalent to AC 0).

Wotan the Firemage and the Dance of the Salamanders

Lokena has taken refuge on the planet Coriopt in the Outer Plane of Kryla, a trispace (where magic use is impossible), in which the dominant element is Earth, accessible via the Plane of Rylum.

Orcus has laid a trap, a diversion to the Outer Plane of Pyts, a standard pentaspace, where the dominant Sphere is Entropy, through which the PCs must pass to reach Kryla.

The PCs encounter Talitha, who explains that the false Olympians will be destroyed to make room for Entropic Immortals, and mockingly hurls a metal tablet at their feet.

Earth's Heart

The metal tablet is engraved with clues, one of which explains the need for a sample of pristine elemental earth for use in the fabrication of an artifact.

The PCs travel to the Elemental Plane of Earth, where they meat Urtson, an Immortal Krsyt (Temporal 5) on his way to a council of ruling-class elementals and krysts.

The council has been convened by Land (Empyreal 2), second in command to the Earthmaster (whom the PCs may have encountered, in IM1 "The Immortal Storm")

Land agrees to give the PCs a sample of pristine elemental earth, also known as heartearth, if they are able to close a vortex between Land's domain and the Prime.

Tempus Fugit

The back of the metal tablet is engraved with a star system, containing a planet where the PCs can obtain "the breath of the rainbow" (the snort of a repeater).

Talitha's tablet

The PCs travel to the planet Eon in the Outer Plane of Tempus, the Home Plane of Fugit (Time; Empyreal 4), who loans the PCs the Net of Ninfangle, a lesser artifact.

With a sample of heartearth and the snort of a repeater, a minor artifact can be created, required in order to disrupt the barrier created by the Immortals of Entropy.

When Legends Come to Life

The DM's Guide to Immortals includes rules for pre-existing identities or characters whose form may be used by any Immortal granted permission (pg. 15).*

*the identities of these beings, the various details of their "natural" lives within society, usually belonged to true mortal beings who died

In the next part of the adventure, the PCs must enter the Prime and inhabit the identies of four legendary heroes of Darokin.

The Legends

Balthac "Polymathis" was a fighter of great reknown, wielder of Camb, a two-handed sword, forged by the Immortals (a greater artifact).*

Sinan was a great leader of the elven peoples, a gifted woman wise to the ways of people and attuned to the rhythms of the earth.*

Aurum was a huge gold dragon, who befriended the founders of Darokin in the guise of a human fighter, wielding crossed twin spears.

Ascalon was a cleric, a man of peace, a healer who never refused those in need of aid, or hospitality to those stricken in body or spirit.

*the legends of Balthac and Sinan are revisited in "Wrath of the Immortals" (1992) by Aaron Allston

Map of the Republic of Darokin and Surrounding Lands, based on the map of the D&D game world from X10 "Red Arrow, Black Shield"

Balthac’s cairn (Hex #3410) lies atop Calor’s Hump, as the mountain is known (the peak is perhaps 5,000 feet above the tree line).

Sinan's tree (Hex #3612) lies some 70 miles southeast of Calor’s Hump, a large oak crowning the flat summit of a lesser peak.

Aurum's resting place (Hex #2323) can be found within the featureless quagmire of Malpheggi Swamp.

Ascalon's tomb (Hex #1811) was constructed high on a mountain peak, in the range that forms the boundary with Glantri.

Thunder Over Olympus

Using the identities of the legendary heroes of Darokin, the PCs must face the forces of Entropy in a final confrontation atop the summit of Mount Olympus.

Pregenerated PCs:

Finidel (Time; Temporal 1)
Tourlain (Thought; Temporal 1)
Arnelee (Thought; Temporal 1)
Iliric (Energy; Temporal 2)
Lornasen (Energy; Temporal 2)
Paarkum (Matter; Temporal 2)

A simplified Immortal Character sheet is included (pg. 28).

Astral and Ethereal Encounters:

Detailed astral and ethereal encounter tables are included.

Commentary:

IM2 "The Wrath of Olympus" is a unique adventure encompassing planar travel, artifact creation, and the assumption of legendary mortal identities.

There is plenty of material that can be mined for lower-level adventures in the Republic of Darokin, or Master-level extraplanar adventures.

The inclusion of pregenerated Immortal PCs is a nice touch, although it's easier to create new Immortal-level characters from scratch than most people realize.

The incorporation of Greek mythology is puzzling and unnecessary - the adventure can easily be run without reference to the Olympian gods.

IM1: The Immortal Storm

IM1 "The Immortal Storm" (1986) by Frank Mentzer is a D&D adventure for 4-5 Novice Temporals, at least one from each of the Spheres of Power.

IM1 "The Immortal Storm" by Frank Mentzer.  Illustration by Larry Elmore.  Note the Entropic Immortal, in the background.

A great eye has appeared at the centre of the Dimensional Vortex.  The PCs must gather the essences of the five senses in order to stop the growing vortex from engulfing the multiverse.

Creative Team:

This was Frank Mentzer's only adventure for the BECMI line, and his final project for TSR before resigning to join Gary Gygax at New Infinities.

Editing was by Anne Gray McCready, who also edited the BECMI rulebooks.  Typography was credited to Betty Elmore and Kim Lindau.

Cover art was by Larry Elmore, with interior black-and-white illustrations by Valerie Valusek and Larry Elmore.  Cartography was by Dave Sutherland and Dennis Kauth.

The Adventure:

The five hierarchs, Noumena (Thought), Khoronus (Time), Solarios (Energy), Djaea (Matter), and Nyx (Entropy) confront a menacing alteration in the Dimensional Vortex.

Nyx, Hierarch of Entropy, ponders the Storm of the Eye.  Illustration by Valerie Valusek

The PCs are presented with a starting puzzle,* a message from beyond the Dimensional Vortex, which explains what must be done to save the multiverse.

*Mentzer's puzzle is extremely clever - it absolutely stumped ChatGPT, which couldn't even solve it when provided with clues

A Star is Born

The center of the Milky Way Galaxy.

The essence of sight is obtained by capturing five cubic inches of freshly made starfire from the exact center of the galaxy of the PCs' homeworld, where new stars are formed.

Before they can do this, the characters must gain permission from the Elemaster of Fire, who resides on “Starworld" in the Elemental Plane of Fire.

The Sound of Music

The essence of sound must be sought in the Home Plane of the race of tonals, living bubbles of light who communicate by changing color.

As with the Elemental Plane of Fire, the bias of the Outer Plane of the tonals is friendly towards Immortals of the Sphere of Energy.

An Odd Notion

The essence of taste can be found in the Home Plane of the race of notions, creatures of pure thought.

The notion of taste is not that of a physical sensation, normally associated with foods; it is instead an appreciation of quality and harmony in concepts (ie. "good taste").

Master of the Earth

The essence of touch must be obtained from the Earthlord, the Elemaster of Earth.

The PCs must travel to the Earthlord's planet, Cueball, in the Elemental Plane of Earth, and rescue the elemaster from a rebellious Eternal of the Sphere of Matter.

The Smell of Victory

The essence of smell is located in an Outer Plane in which the most advanced known technological society exists, a parallel version of our own planet. 

The plane is a trispace (three-dimensional plane of existence) instead of a standard pentaspace.  Hence, magic use is impossible.

Creative Fragrances Labs, Oakton Place, Skokie, Illinois

The settings described are those of two major cities in the United States, New York and Chicago, in the latter part of the 20th century.

Rules covering damage from vehicles* and firearms are included.

*see also "Modern Monsters: The perils of 20th century adventuring" by Ed Greenwood, published in Dragon #57 (January, 1982)

There are similarities to "The City Beyond the Gate" by Robert Schroeck, published in Dragon #100 (August, 1985), designed for high-level AD&D characters.**

**in Schroeck's adventure, the characters must recover the Mace of St. Cuthbert from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England

Appendix:

Astral and Ethereal Travel tables are included, with encounter types.

Commentary:

IM1 "The Immortal Storm" is an interesting adventure, with new information concerning planar travel and immortal creatures, serving as a supplement to the Immortal rules.

Each of the five main sections are quite imaginative, with details that can be mined for adventures with lower level characters.

There are no pre-rolled characters included, but players can "roll up" new Immortal characters in much the same way as creating new 1st level characters.