thedungeondelver
Adventurer
Well, the thread regarding Iconic AD&D/OD&D characters mentioned a lot of info about Erac's Cousin and Erac himself, and since grodog asked, I'll just post a bit here about his ongoings in my current Greyhawk campaign...
Firstly, to Erac and his cousin (all further references and deviations from the stuff grodog posted strictly apply to my campaign, so without further ado):
Erac and Erac's Cousin were both adventurers of legend and well thought of by all who knew them. They were both friends to Bigby, Melf, Tenser, Mordenkainen, et al. Both were lawful/good. Erac was a magic-user, while Erac's Cousin was a paladin. Erac described his adventures to his cousin after the encounters on and around The Black Pool. Wanting to know more and see more, Erac's Cousin equipped his hirelings and henchmen and disappeared into the depths of Castle Greyhawk's dungeons.
The exact details of what happened next are of some conjecture, but Erac's Cousin came out of the dungeons alone, armed with a great many magic items. Almost immediately, he slew Erac, destroyed his own fortress in the Duchy of Urnst and started a rampage through the City of Greyhawk. Erac's Cousin looted and pillaged wherever he could find even the most minor of magic items.
Finally, Mordenkainen apprehended Erac's Cousin after a terrible battle before the city gates. More interested in finding out why Erac's Cousin had gone mad than simply punishing him, Mordenkainen (at the behest of the other notables of Greyhawk) imprisoned him with powerful magic in the dungeons beneath Castle Greyhawk until such time as his perfidy could be fully investigated.
Unfortunately, yet unknown to the aforementioned worthies, throwing Erac's Cousin (even bound by spells and stripped of magic items) into the dungeons of Castle Greyhawk created an even greater threat than the now-mad fighter/magic-user had been before.
Months before, deep in the depths of the dungeons, Erac's Cousin had encountered the Great Stone Enigma of Greyhawk. Worse, he had spoken with it and listened to it when it spoke with him. The Great Stone Enigma convinced Erac's Cousin that by turning to chaos and evil and taking up the mantle of sorcery he could achieve powers beyond his wildest imaginings.
Little did Erac's Cousin know that imprisoned within the Great Stone Enigma was the demon Graz'zt. The demon lord of the Abyss had been trapped there by the Circle of Eight and it was assumed that the demonic being was dormant while trapped. Not so! Acting as an agent of the very much awake Graz'zt, Erac's Cousin gave up his followers as blood sacrifice. This freed the demon lord, and as a "reward", Graz'zt gave Erac's Cousin many powerful magic items, raised his abilities beyond that which he could have normally done so himself, and showed him the path out. Of course there is a price for this - Erac's Cousin's soul belongs to Graz'zt when the former paladin dies!
The release of Graz'zt triggered many magical alarms that alerted the Circle of Eight - and now they had two problems on their hands. A mad fighter/magic-user of unknown abilities and a major demon lord had both escaped the dungeons.
Concerned less about the depredations of Erac's Cousin, the will of the Eight is bent towards preventing Graz'zt from returning from the Abyss to wreak more havoc, although they will have their hands full considering that creature's suspected alignment with Iuz the Evil...
Erac's Cousin has since used his newfound powers to create a durance for himself in the Pomarj, where he has begun to surround himself with powerful, evil humanoid tribes. It is unknown if he is raising an army to try to attack the City of Greyhawk again or what, specifically. One thing that he keeps to himself for sure is that he does not intend to honor any bargain regarding his soul. To that end he is attempting to collect any items or artifacts that might prolong his life or permit him to be effectively immortal.
Graz'zt has learned of his perfidy and has sent a demonic agent to claim the puny human's soul. Since Erac's Cousin has surrounded himself with wards and guards aplenty to prevent this from happening, Graz'zt's agent has (under the guise as an agent of "concerned parties") recruited adventurers to enter Erac's Cousin's dungeon and bring the rogue out alive.
That's where my adventurers come in...
Of course, they don't know they're working for Graz'zt (or an agent thereof).
Firstly, to Erac and his cousin (all further references and deviations from the stuff grodog posted strictly apply to my campaign, so without further ado):
Erac and Erac's Cousin were both adventurers of legend and well thought of by all who knew them. They were both friends to Bigby, Melf, Tenser, Mordenkainen, et al. Both were lawful/good. Erac was a magic-user, while Erac's Cousin was a paladin. Erac described his adventures to his cousin after the encounters on and around The Black Pool. Wanting to know more and see more, Erac's Cousin equipped his hirelings and henchmen and disappeared into the depths of Castle Greyhawk's dungeons.
The exact details of what happened next are of some conjecture, but Erac's Cousin came out of the dungeons alone, armed with a great many magic items. Almost immediately, he slew Erac, destroyed his own fortress in the Duchy of Urnst and started a rampage through the City of Greyhawk. Erac's Cousin looted and pillaged wherever he could find even the most minor of magic items.
Finally, Mordenkainen apprehended Erac's Cousin after a terrible battle before the city gates. More interested in finding out why Erac's Cousin had gone mad than simply punishing him, Mordenkainen (at the behest of the other notables of Greyhawk) imprisoned him with powerful magic in the dungeons beneath Castle Greyhawk until such time as his perfidy could be fully investigated.
Unfortunately, yet unknown to the aforementioned worthies, throwing Erac's Cousin (even bound by spells and stripped of magic items) into the dungeons of Castle Greyhawk created an even greater threat than the now-mad fighter/magic-user had been before.
Months before, deep in the depths of the dungeons, Erac's Cousin had encountered the Great Stone Enigma of Greyhawk. Worse, he had spoken with it and listened to it when it spoke with him. The Great Stone Enigma convinced Erac's Cousin that by turning to chaos and evil and taking up the mantle of sorcery he could achieve powers beyond his wildest imaginings.
Little did Erac's Cousin know that imprisoned within the Great Stone Enigma was the demon Graz'zt. The demon lord of the Abyss had been trapped there by the Circle of Eight and it was assumed that the demonic being was dormant while trapped. Not so! Acting as an agent of the very much awake Graz'zt, Erac's Cousin gave up his followers as blood sacrifice. This freed the demon lord, and as a "reward", Graz'zt gave Erac's Cousin many powerful magic items, raised his abilities beyond that which he could have normally done so himself, and showed him the path out. Of course there is a price for this - Erac's Cousin's soul belongs to Graz'zt when the former paladin dies!
The release of Graz'zt triggered many magical alarms that alerted the Circle of Eight - and now they had two problems on their hands. A mad fighter/magic-user of unknown abilities and a major demon lord had both escaped the dungeons.
Concerned less about the depredations of Erac's Cousin, the will of the Eight is bent towards preventing Graz'zt from returning from the Abyss to wreak more havoc, although they will have their hands full considering that creature's suspected alignment with Iuz the Evil...
Erac's Cousin has since used his newfound powers to create a durance for himself in the Pomarj, where he has begun to surround himself with powerful, evil humanoid tribes. It is unknown if he is raising an army to try to attack the City of Greyhawk again or what, specifically. One thing that he keeps to himself for sure is that he does not intend to honor any bargain regarding his soul. To that end he is attempting to collect any items or artifacts that might prolong his life or permit him to be effectively immortal.
Graz'zt has learned of his perfidy and has sent a demonic agent to claim the puny human's soul. Since Erac's Cousin has surrounded himself with wards and guards aplenty to prevent this from happening, Graz'zt's agent has (under the guise as an agent of "concerned parties") recruited adventurers to enter Erac's Cousin's dungeon and bring the rogue out alive.
That's where my adventurers come in...
Of course, they don't know they're working for Graz'zt (or an agent thereof).
