Centuries ago, a dark sorcerer, in his frenzied quest for power, entered into a pact with the Lord of the Seventh Circle of Hell. He then tried to conquer Maloess with armies of undeads, vampires and other diverse fiends.

In the end, he was defeated by an alliance of heroes and fearless warriors, almost all of whom died in the battle. However, once the dark sorcerer dead, the threat wasn't over yet: a portal was still ajar, and the powers from Hell and the Underworld were only waiting the right time to free themselves, spring back into existence and conquer the world again – an opportunity to fight again the Chaos Wars.

The rare surviving heroes swore then, that as long as they drew breath, they would stand watch over the cursed shrine and keep its dark inhabitants at: The Daz'Tergauns sect was born.

Zombies, vampires, and liches : what more to ask for?

!+ A Roadrunner and a Coyote On the road to the Lost Temple where the menace lies (see the Daz'Tergauns quest), a bird wearing jet stilts hops by you, soon to be followed by a coyote. Panting, the canine stops a couple of meters from you. You can, either with your auk-form or with the ourang-outelf, ask him what's going on.

Quite naturally, he explains he's after the bird to eat it.

If you help him by catching and bringing the bird (dead), il rewards you with one of his inventions, a very powerful bow that only works on every other try.

On the contrary, if you ditch him and go warn the bird, the latter will reveal his secret, the Steven-Leag's boots. He tells you where to find this bootmaker and buy shoes to cover greater distances in less time, and others magical shoes.

!+ The Genie in the lamp As you look around Al Birzuun's market – a genuine bazaar -, a trader as round as a hogshead insists on selling you an old, rusty, battered oil lamp, talling you it's magical, it's a godsend, Offensi, real cheap, at such a price I can as well cut me own throat !

If you buy the lamp and scrub it, a genie (you obviously needed a backrub) get out of it. He begs you to free him from his metal prison. To do so, you'll have to use one of your wishes (you have three of them, how surprinsing ...).

If you swear you'll free him, he will answer to the will of the wishes – limited as they have to be, the genie confessing he's out of practice from waiting so long in his lamp and that he's not powerful to begin with. If you don't, he'll only respect the letter of the wish ... asking to become the richest man in the town will probably get all the inhabitants poor.

If you made that promise but don't hold it in the end, the genie won't do a thing to you : he conveniently forgot to mention he can't harm any of his former masters. You can then sell the lamp away ; once cleaned, it's worth a decent amount of gold.

If you hold your word, in this gratitude, the genie does nothing to you ; which is very nice of him, you've exploited him, didn't you ?

!+ The Six million Liards Halfling In Al Birzuun's suburbs can be found an apparently abandoned, magnificent dwelling, bearing a sign "Do not disturb – Plot in progress ". When you enter, you only meet a dark-skinned elf. When spoken to, he barely answer ... you'd almost swear, by his stature, that he is a Drow !

While being discreet and wary of other's possessions, you wander around the house : from time to time, some moaning makes themselves heard. Strange : would the weird elf be hiding something ? In the master bedroom, nothing out of the ordinary : huge bookcases cover the walls and a bureau stands in the middle of the room. On top of the latter lies a letter : you can read it or not.

Hello Mirador,

Your new plan is devilish, I'm very pleased with it. Pecsyglas is going to be a very precious asset, he can fight like on one ! Shame we had to torture him to convince him… on the other hand, would've been disappointed otherwise, I guess.

I hope his hiding place won't be found… there'll little risk, as so few people are interested in cooking – my own sense of humour leaves me breathless.

With all my regards

Lord Boulachki

Something's fishy and starting to smell strongly. You've no sooner started thinking about the whole thing, that the elf pops in – you didn't hear him coming, he really is a Drow !

"So, you enter into houses and read other's mail ? Curiosity killed the cat, and will kill you my friend..."

The dark elf unsheathes a long sword, smiling with glee : the fight begins. The dark elf is pretty good at sword fighting and should normally give you some trouble. If you kill him, as he dies he whispers : "Sorry, Lord Boulachki, I failed you."

If you search the bookcases, you'll find a book named "One thousand and one ways to cook meat pie" : pushing it triggers a secret mechanism and the bookcase slides away to reveal a door to the basement. In the underground room, are some trunks and a chained Halfling, who was obviously whipped and tortured. You can free him and also heal him - if you want to spit on him, do it while he's unconscious, after waking up he won't be to thrilled about it-, he'll then tell his story : his name's Pecsyglas, and he was abducted in the middle of the night before ending here. You show him the letter and he recognize the handwriting : said Lord dwells on the Central Peak and tried to recruit him, a few months ago, for some mission he wouldn't explain.

Entirely consumed by the beauty of freedom, he offers to join you on your quest – if you so wish -, until he's avenged himself from Lord Boulachki. As you'll realize if you don't push him away, he's a sharpshooter.

+ The captain's past %%%On Hazgordie, in Al Birzuun, if you talk to one of the ship's sailor while in a bar, and make him drink enough, he'll confess they weren't always honest mariners. Their captain was once known as «Bulshark» and they roamed the oceans from the Rim to the Hub as fearless pirates. %%% One day, they found on a boarded galleon a strange map. From the little they were able to decipher, it leads to heaps of gold, but none in the crew managed to decrypt it the whole of it. After saying that, the now comatose sailor falls asleep. %%%If you can convince the captain that you can be trusted and that you can help him, he'll show you the map. In the eventuality of your deciphering it –‘' the player has to do this by himself, not through the skills, you'll make an extra stopover on a small, lost island way off the coast. In the only cave on the atoll, after going through a number of doors barred with enigmas, mummies and Minotaurs, you may fight an old hero, keeper of the treasure. Afterwards, you can take your equal share of it, or negotiate with the captain to have more.

+ ' The sig Dragon guest %%%If you go north of the *drum roll* Forest of the Wolves *drum roll*, you end up face to snout with a scared wolf cub. Using his elvish heritage, the ourang-outelf translates the animal's whimpers. Otherwise, your auk-ish form allow you to talk artic fox, a language that somewhat resembles wolf; So you understand roughly (no that's not the wolf's name) but can get the finer details… and, as anyone know, hell lies in the details…%%%* Ourang-outelf's version (his name is Felix by the way): The Cub, named Scout, got out for a walk but when he tries to get back into his den, the ground was littered with sharp lumps of ice and the way is barred. As he was trying to find a way in nonetheless, there was a sound like a huge thunder roll, and Scout saw a flash of light near the glade's border, as if something huge had reflected the sunlight while moving into the air. More ice blocks had then fallen on the ground. %%%* Auk-ish version : After a walk through the forest, the cub wanted to go back to his den. However, there was too much ice to get in. He wanted to clear it away. Caution is in order as there are often snowstorms in this area, with big bolts of lightening and thunder rolls. %%%As you walk into the glade, a tremendous boom resonates and you barely avoid a HUGE, very spiky lump of ice. If you follow the reverse trajectory than said lump, you'll find a white dragon, sneezing more discreetly now. If you try to attack it, it'll cry out (yes, it talks human) «Have bercy, I'm sig and gan't fight !».%%%If you have in your sack a Rub's Potion, you can give it to him (it's a male). He then agrees on guiding you from above to each of the six main *drum roll* Forest of the Wolves *drum roll* glades (but won't get involved in combat, arguing he's still weakened from his cold). You can also choose not to give him anything, or indeed attack him. %%%Before leaving this small glade, you can clear the access to the cub's den. He then let out a prolonged howl before yelping and disappears into the hole. In one of the main glades, you're faced with a group of ten wolves : six of them are from Scout's pack, you'll only have to fight the other four.

+ The besieged swordsmith %%%In the Forest of the Wolves, in a very secluded part, there is a small house besieged by wolves, that you will have to fight. Inside lives an old man : as you enter he explains he's a sword- and armoursmith and that the monsters living nearby prevent him from going outside, that he's missing his family, that he's starving and parched and may die if he doesn't find a way out to his home. Since you've managed to get this far, maybe you can clear the environs and escort him to the exit. Of course, he has more than enough to reward you with : he's an excellent smith and he has created very interested items…%%%If you accept, wolves and monsters will keep on attacking all the way out : it's your duty to keep the smith alive ! At the forest's exit ''(if you succeed)'', the man thanks you profusely and presents you with a superb magical weapon, to be chosen from his stock : the Courage Sword, the Valor Ax, the Dagger of the Braves, and the Temerity Spear. Those weapons are of equivalent power and very interesting. If you are abastard, a genuine one, killing the smith allows you to get all the weapons…%%%Before leaving, the man (if alive…) tells he's looking for a enchanted pan pipe for his so : if you heard of something, you can find him back at the castle.

+ The Bell jar rings %%%You offer the Duke to spare ''(Yes you're merciful)'' a glance at the bell. In fact, you'll need the ourang-outelf's help to climb up to the bell. There, you'll notice the bell appears all but normal, the clapper is in place. You'll have to wait for night, cloaked in shadows, to watch a minute lutin walking out of a crack: he then levitates up to the clapper and cottons it with wadding. Once again, you have to ask the ourang-outelf for assistance: only he is nimble and stealthy enough to catch the small fairy. The latter ''(Tamar)'' will reveal he's been blackmailing into this action: some rival of the Duke holds his wife hostage. If you convince him to issue a written statement, the duke will be able to blackmail the blackmailer ''(Earl Imp)'' about Royal Court intrigues. Besides, Earl Imp isn't his only enemy: a neighbouring lord is causing much trouble too, so if you could…? %%%The Duke will pay liberally (sleep-deprived and probably light-headed, the duke isn't cautious and let you see his safe's opening code) to get the statement into his hands. Finally, succumbing to sleep and alcohol, he falls asleep, snoring. If you want to rob the safe, it's the perfect time.

+ Lutin Tamar's wife %%%''This quest hinges on the good march of the preceding one.''%%%Upon exiting the Duke of the Mount Maudlin-Seer's Manor, you can go directly for the Killing Rabbit or go free the lutin's wife. Steered by the latter, you find quite easily the abductor ''(by going directly through the castle and several guards' bodies. Or you can also use stealth and earn experience points in that skill for it)''. However you're in for a surprise; in truth, the lutin's wife ''(Kerbell)'' hasn't been abducted, she had devised a plot with Earl Imp to get rid of her cumbersome husband, because she's in love with the earl. Wow. %%%Now, you have two alternatives: kill the lutin's wife ''(now ‘human' due to a powerful metamorphosis spell that cost her an arm and a leg)'', and maybe her lover too. In that case, the lutin offers you some gold ''(but it's a fool's gold: it disappears after a couple of hours)''. Or kill the lutin, like the dirty bastard you are: in that case, Kerbell gives you a parchment, the one that had her metamorphosis spell written on it; On the back of it is another, less powerful, but still useful, spell.

+ Underlord ''' %%%Following the Duke's request, and possibly prodded on by PlecsyGlas the Halfling's revenge urges, you go pay a visit to Lord Boulachki. A tramp on the road tells you the stronghold is barricaded, but that, in return for some gold, he can show you a secret entrance that will lead you directly in the heart of it: before being sacked and humiliated by Lord Boulachki, he was the castle butler and knew all of its nooks and crannies. %%%You can agree to pay for the information, or beat up the old man till he spills everything, out flat out refuse his offer. If you use the secret entrance, you get in easily and discreetly – thereafter, you keep on discreetly or not; if not, you have to kill the sentinels, break down the door, and fight the knights on watch duty in the court. %%%Once in presence of the Lord, he confess all of his intrigues – he had planned to get the Duke assassinated, take possession of his lands then move against the current King. From there, you can:

• Force a written confession out of him, make him prisoner and get him make to the Duke.%%%
• Kill him and make Plecsyglas happy.%%%
• Make him choke up some gold. (This isn't inconsistent with the first two options).%%%
• Congratulate him for his plot, and offer your help with it. You'll then have to kill Plecsyglas.

+ John Nie's ambition %%%On the road, a young man in rags and holding a pipe flute is walking and bellowing his head off, in a insufferable din. When you talk to him, he tells you his name's John Nie, and that he's the best singer in all of Samoth. If you wholeheartedly agree with him, or manage to convince him a farming career would better befit him, he gives you his old pipe flute… Your greedy eyes notice at once his magical potential: it allows to cast spells without using up any Thaumana! Of course, you can give it to the swordsmith – if you have freed him -, in order to obtain an enchanted armour. Or you can keep it.

+ Games, entertainment, and other stuff %%%

• Swimming competition: (Untl'Gaw) Simple enough, every five minutes there's a swimming comp in the laguna; participation is at 5 asses, first prize is 10 shells, the second 7, and the third 5. %%%
• Le collector: (Untl'Gaw) In Untl'Gaw village, you meet an old man, who shows you his butterfly collections. He sighs that he's now too old to hunt, so he gives you his butterfly net: it is worth 5 shells on the market. You can also hunt butterflies on the town's border and bring them to the old man: he gives two shells per butterfly. (You've got to bring them back one by one, to empty the net, then go back to the town's border.)%%%
• Gambit: (Yzgull) Five glasses, one of them poisoned. You choose a glass, and if you're still alive after drinking it, you get 30 shields. (Each round cost 10 shields.)%%%
• Pià±a Cognata: (Yzgull) You're presented with three rounded containers, you've got to choose one, and one only. Then, you have to assess your strength correctly, and hit it with a club (supplied): if you hit too hard, everything explodes, if don't hit hard enough, the container doesn't open, in each case your 15-shield stake is lost. If it opens correctly, you get the right to take everything it holds. %%%
• Fortune's Wheel: (Dornash) There's a fair in Dornash (you get to see the whole continent from atop the Big Wheel). You turn a wheel and get the prize pointed at by the arrow when the wheel stops (a round costs: 50 cocos). %%%
• Pick'n'Grab: (Dornash) one of these devices with a pincer you have to steer and lower in order to get your dream item. Among the objects, there are a pouch, a helmet, and whistles. A lot of whistles. %%%
• Mr. Muscle: (Dornash) A vertical pole in a socle, you have to hit said socle with all you have. If the bell chimes, you've won 10 cocos (a round costs: 4 cocos) %%%*Goblets: a merchant has three goblets on a trestle. He shows you a ruby lying under on of them, then he shifts them around. If you can find the goblet with the ruby under it, you win said ruby (a round costs: 5 cocos).%%%
• Pawpotatoes: (Al Birzuun) Uptown a mansion with a superb garden is to be found. However, some trees are yellowing, seemingly ill. If you enter the domain and asks for information from the landlord, he'll explain his garden is ridden with Pawpotatoes that eat away the plants' roots. He offers a gold coin for each beast you bring him. There's a total of 100 of them. (Beware, each beast can be killed with only one swipe of your weapon, however they are very quick and unpredictable, plus trees and shrubs give them ideal hiding places.) %%%
• Flying Carpet (Al Birzuun) You race with a guy riding a flying carpet. You pay 12 asses to do this and can win 25. %%%
• The old lady: (Jilkan) Regularly, you'll see an old lady trying to get across the street. If you offer your help (followed by a mini-clip where you walk her across), she gives you some trinket as reward (sale price varies; sometimes, it's a magical ring) %%%