Chapter 3: Glory of the Godking
When the heroes finally arrive at the massive walled city of Palask, describe the scene below to them.
Read Aloud: You and your contingent march on a wide and well-worn dirt road. Just over the hill ahead, you can see the fabled walls of Palask - massive walls of stone that defy reason by their sheer scale. As you crest the hill, you see that the legends are true: the walls are not only enormous in scale, but in beauty. Colorful mosaics scrawl across the walls in beautiful displays of Godking Gilgalon’s feats of strength and charity. Here, he wrestles a tyrannosaurus rex into submission. There, he shares freshly baked bread with the hungry and weak.
You would know that Gilgalon himself has long since transcended, but his progeny, Mangondulon, is the reigning Godking. Both Gilgalon and his eldest, Ekinad, ascended to take their rightful place in the heavens. Ekinad’s son, Godking Mangondulon, has a reputation much like that of a longnecked dinosaur: inscrutable, majestic, and wise, yet unpredictable, powerful, and terribly strong.
Growing FameThe heroes’ Fame increases based upon the number of refugees that are in their following. Consult the table below to determine how much Fame the heroes gain.
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Trouble at the Gates
When the heroes and their refugees arrive outside Palask, the city guards will refuse to let such a large group of people in. One of them sends a messenger to get an official from the Grand Ziggurat, and they ask the heroes and refugees to wait in the fields outside the city in the meantime.
The speed at which the city officials make their way to the gates to appraise the situation depends upon the heroes’ Fame. They will arrive after a number of days equal to (6 - the heroes’ Fame) have passed. If this means that they would respond on the same day that the heroes arrive, they show up 1d4 hours later.
Food and Shelter
If the heroes and their following must wait outside the city gates for more than 1 day, then they will need to find food and shelter. Luckily, the weather is fair, and so the refugees will accept sleeping on the ground with little to no structural shelter.
Food poses a larger challenge. There is ample grain, and there are plenty of fruit-bearing trees and bushes in the countryside nearby. The refugees may freely eat any of this food, but doing so will cause the guards to become angry.
They will approach the heroes and insist that everyone abstain from eating any food within eyesight of Palask, as it is the property of the Godking’s greatest city. As large as the great walls and Grand Ziggurat are, the weary refugees would have to travel for many hours before they could eat, and there is no guarantee that they would not run into other trouble from beasts or Palask’s countryside patrols.
The heroes can resolve this by attempting to convince the guards to be merciful to the refugees’ situation, or by helping the refugees safely find food outside of the city’s visibility.
Convincing the Guards
In order to convince the guards that the refugees should be allowed to gather food within eyesight of the city, each of the heroes will need to make a CHA check. If the average beats a DC of 16, then the guards are convinced and will leave the refugees in peace. If the heroes make any arguments such as, “It’s better than asking the city for food handouts,” or “We will even keep watch for bandits and miscreants while we’re out here,” lower the DC by 1 per reasonable argument made.
If the heroes fail this check, they will have to look elsewhere for food.
Looking Elsewhere for Food
Some of the refugees will readily follow the heroes’ instructions, while others will loudly complain about having to spend a large portion of their day traveling out of sight of Palask and then back to Palask’s outer walls. They have done nothing but travel lately, and this feels entirely unreasonable to them.
Heroes will need to make CHA checks to keep their following placated. If the heroes’ average beats a DC of 12, then the refugees will accept the inconvenience. Otherwise, ¼ of the refugees will leave permanently, looking for another town that they might make their new home. If this happens, the heroes lose 1 Fame (but this does not affect the number of days that they must wait for Palask’s officials to meet with them).
A Plea for Sanctuary
After a number of days determined by the heroes’ Fame, a group of officials from the Grand Ziggurat arrive at the gate to discuss the situation with the party. The officials are led by Nergal, a small, gray-skinned bhrunai with an incredibly self-important air about him. More details on Nergal’s personality and motivations are in Appendix A.
Negotiating with Nergal is a protracted affair, and Nergal’s attendants brought an entire collapsable table and tea set so that Nergal can appear properly royal while tending to the matter. Over the light snacks and blend of herbal teas, the heroes will need to complete two attribute challenges to determine the outcome of their conversation with Nergal.
Part 1: Sizing Up Nergal
In preliminary introductions, Nergal comes across as exceedingly self-important. Heroes may make AWR or CHA checks to size him up, work with his eccentricities, and appeal to his influence.
Take the heroes’ average and note the result.
Part 2: Appeal for Sanctuary
Having exchanged pleasantries, the heroes must convince Nergal to allow the refugees into Palask. They might make appeals to the Godking’s generosity, or make arguments that the influx of people will help boost Palask’s economy. Have the heroes make INT or CHA checks.
Take the heroes’ average and note the result.
Add together the heroes’ averages from part 1 and part 2 of this encounter. Use this sum to determine Nergal’s response.
| DC | Nergal’s Response |
|---|---|
| 15 or Less | Ask the Godking |
| 16-30 | Enter the City on a Trial Basis |
| 31+ | Enter the City Immediately |
Ask the Godking. Nergal declines to allow the refugees sanctuary in Palask without first taking the issue before the Godking. The heroes may accompany Nergal and make their case before Godking Mangondulon, but the refugees must remain outside in the meantime. The heroes lose 1 Fame.
Enter the City on a Trial Basis. Nergal grants the refugees admittance into the city. They will be allowed to stay in run-down buildings in a state of disrepair in the Ramshanties neighborhood. They will be allowed to stay in these buildings for free, provided that every able-bodied adult immediately joins the workforce as laborers, gatherers, or guards at one quarter the typical pay. This is to last for one week and then be reassessed.
Enter the City Immediately. Nergal grants the refugees admittance into the city. They will be allowed to stay in run-down buildings in a state of disrepair in the Ramshanties neighborhood. They will be allowed to stay in these buildings for free, provided that every able-bodied adult immediately joins the workforce as laborers, gatherers, or guards at one quarter the typical pay. The heroes gain 1 Fame.
An Audience with the Godking
If the heroes are brought before Godking Mangondulon to ask him directly, then the heroes will need to repeat the two attribute checks that they made with Nergal. If they roll a 15 or less, then use the Ongoing Encampment result.
Ongoing Encampment. The refugees must remain in a camp outside the city, but may enter the workforce as laborers, gatherers, or guards at one quarter the typical pay. They will be allowed to gather food for themselves within eyesight of the city. If the refugees do this for two weeks, then they will be allowed entry into the city to find housing in the Ramshanties neighborhood.
Contest of Champions. Alternatively, if the heroes are feeling bold, they can earn the Godking’s respect by displaying feats of strength. The Godking will offer that the matter be settled through combat: all of the heroes together against the Godking’s champion. If the heroes accept, they must fight a Champion (AB:tFS chapter 5). This is intended to be nonlethal, and if someone starts gaining Death Points they are ordered to retreat and start Catching their Breath. Heroes may choose to ignore this at their own peril.
If they win, then the heroes secure the “Enter the City Immediately” result. If they lose, then the Godking’s “Ongoing Encampment” solution is enacted. If the heroes win but one or more of them gained Death Points and kept fighting, then Godking Mangondulon expresses that he dislikes their violation of the rules but is impressed by their courage. The heroes secure the “Enter the City on a Trial Basis” result.
Warning the Godking
The heroes will likely want an audience with Godking Mangondulon in order to warn him about Brazodir’s acts of war west of the river. If the heroes seem to have forgotten this, have some of their refugee followers ask the heroes if they will speak to the Godking about taking back their land.
When the heroes travel to the Grand Ziggurat to have an audience, Nergal will stop them, explaining the Godking is quite busy.
Timeline
Nergal will put the heroes down to meet with the Godking in a number of days equal to (14 - the players’ average Fame). It is possible that this will result in the heroes not getting a chance to speak with the Godking before the Brazodiran Blitz (see the last section of this chapter), which happens 10 days after the refugees’ situation at the gates is resolved.
In the meantime, the heroes are welcome to explore the city of Palask (detailed information below).
Meeting Mangondulon
Once the heroes meet with Mangondulon, they will also meet the rest of his court. They are briefly described here and are described in greater detail in Appendix A.
Godking Mangondulon. A larger-than-life human with a reputation akin to that of a herbivorous dinosaur. Godking Mangondulon is known to be powerful and wise, but also unpredictable and at times brutal. His hair and beard are both quite long and carefully arranged in many braids, and the weight of the world has tinged his dark hair with streaks of iron gray.
Enshunu, Shelter Keeper. Enshunu, the Godking’s husband and most trusted advisor, is a human who keeps his long hair and beard in wild, free-flowing curls the color of ebony. He is charged with ensuring that Palask’s infrastructure is running smoothly, paying special attention to physical housing and food supplies.
Labashi, Knowledge Keeper. Labashi is a sphinx and a brilliant philosopher with a talent for seeing how decisions might play out in the medium and long term. Labashi is one of the head educators in the Tower of Mystery, and is one of the Godking’s key advisors.
Nergal, Treasure Keeper. Nergal is the Godking’s most public - and most irritating - advisor. Mangondulon only keeps Nergal around because of how talented the little bhrunai is with numbers and cyphers. Nergal is responsible for Palask’s economy running as smoothly as it does, and also oversees intercity commerce.
Commander Tarisha. A human woman who quickly rose in the ranks of Gilgalon’s military thanks to her daring and mighty prowess, Tarisha commands the nation’s dinosaur cavalry.
After hearing their story, Mangondulon will almost immediately take their side, as he is incredibly angry that Assurgazzar, the Godking of Brazodir, could be so vile.
Read Aloud: Mangondulon rises to his feet, a titanic force set in motion. He paces, his visage that of thunderclouds, his fists clenched and his sculpted muscles rippling with pent emotion. “The gall,” he rumbles. His voice rises a from distant storm to the roar of an erupting volcano. “The gall of the man! He who calls himself a god, yet relishes destruction! Such is not the way of the divine. Assurgazzar - the name curdles my very spittle. Yes, I spit on his name, Assurgazzar. Who is he to attack what is mine? Who is he to break my walls, to burn my villages, to slaughter my people? Who is he to rampage across my kingdom and desecrate my forests with the putrescence of his pathetic little soldiers? Who is he, this Assurgazzar? I tell you - my court and my champions as my witnesses - who is he? He is a dead man walking.” The Godking’s eyes flash. “Yes, this dullard believes he can throw a tantrum like that of a child and face no retribution, but we will show him the folly of this belief! Assurgazzar - he shall be accursed! Last of his name, for when he has met my wrath, all who look upon his works will scourge his name from their memories, and we shall salt his kingdom with the tears of his people! Never again will life spring from the loins of Brazodir. For it shall be a land of death! There will be weeping, and gnashing of teeth - there will be the tearing of sackcloth and showers of ash! All who once bowed to Assurgazzar shall look on what became of him, and they shall curse the day that his parents met. This is my oath to my council, to my champions, and to my kingdom: Assurgazzar’s fate is sealed in his own red blood.”
Wartime Preparations
The heroes or one of his advisors will remind Mangondulon that going to war takes time and planning. It will be a minimum of a few days before everything is in order. Mangondulon agrees, immediately authorizing his council to make the necessary preparations as quickly as feasible. He wants to march on Brazodir within two weeks.
In the meantime, he orders his council to spread the word throughout the city of the crimes that Assurgazzar has committed and orders Palask to treat the refugees as their own. Living conditions for the refugees will improve markedly after this point. Mangondulon’s military advisors will meet with the refugees, especially those who wish to enlist, and will gather what intelligence they can about the natural landscape west of the river, so that they will be prepared for what awaits.
The Blitz
10 days after the refugees’ situation at the gates is resolved, Brazodiran advance forces launch a surprise attack against Palask, attacking both from the sea and the air.
If the blitz occurs before the heroes meet Mangondulon, he will meet with them immediately after the dust settles. If it occurs on the same day, then the first alarm bells begin gonging during the heroes’ meetings with Mangondulon at a suitably dramatic moment.
You can find details about the attack in the last section of this chapter.