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Prelude

Starting Out

When the module starts, you'll find yourself in conversation with your four companions. It doesn't matter what you say here; your party will soon decide that it should chase down the Masked Man.


Keep of Cyan

When you arrive at the Keep of Cyan, don't be alarmed that you're suddenly level 10, and that the module made your leveling decisions for you. You'll only be level 10 for the amount of time it takes you to kill the goblins and orcs, and reach the Masked Man at the front gate of the keep. If you need to, let your companions do the bulk of the fighting. They can't be killed during the prelude.

When you confront the Masked Man, a wizard from the keep will cast a spell, killing everybody on the battlefield. Don't despair; you'll quickly be resurrected by a shaft of light. However, the resurrection process will have drained you, and you'll be back at level 1. The shaft of light will then transfer itself into a weapon for you (all melee weapons that your character can wield should be available), and it will let you know that you can bring two of your companions back to life (to act as your henchmen in the module), while relegating the other two to death.


Henchmen

You'll find your four companions scattered around the battlefield. You can talk to them to learn more about them, and to see if they'll mesh well with your character. To raise a companion back to life, you'll first have to send one to death.

Calibast (#1) is an azer fighter. An azer, if you're curious, is a dwarf from the plane of fire. Jaboli (#2) is a rakshasa wizard. She'll claim to be able to tell when people are lying, but this talent will only come up in a couple of places in the module, and it won't make a difference. Kaidala (#3) is a nymph druid. She'll ask you to let her die, but she'll help you in the module just as much as the other companions if you choose her. Trip (#4) is a wererat thief. He can "find" (that is, steal) some things for you during the module, and, being a wererat, he won't need armor or a weapon.

Male characters can have a romance with Kaidala, and female characters with Calibast.


Last Things

Before you go to the keep (Exit A), be sure to loot all of the dead orcs on the battlefield. You should find some basic weapons, leather armor, and a chain shirt.

At the gate itself, you'll learn that the keep is commanded by a Hand and a Banner, and that the lord of the keep has been dead for many years.