You stand once again before the great and vile edifice of the Temple of Elemental Evil. Where once your very presence here felt wrong and out of place, and you were barely able to overcome the feeling to turn and flee in terror, you stand here now feeling quite different. You have taken the battle to the forces of Elemental Evil time after time, and you have defeated each of the Temple Cults in turn: Earth, Fire, Water, Air. You have captured the Orb of Golden Death, and three of the four Stones of Elemental Power. Once the four stones have been reunited with the vile and powerful Orb, Lord Burne of Hommlet assures you that you will be able to destroy the evil artifact. Only the Earth Stone remains to be found, as High Priest Gromag of the Earth Temple was able to escape your assault upon his faction.
Gromag has since joined with the forces of the Greater Temple, in the dungeons far below the Temple. You know that the Greater Temple's forces are powerful: bugbears, trolls, ogres, and worse. But Falrinth the wizard fled the Temple entirely after facing your company, and the puissant half-orc assassin known as The Redhand followed quickly thereafter. In the taverns and shops of Hommlet and Nulb you have heard rumors of bandits and other dark sorts seen fleeing the area. Surely the forces of the Temple must be close to breaking entirely.
Still, Supreme Commander Hedrack, and his lieutenants Barkinar and Shenshock, have vowed to stand strong and rebuild the Temple's forces, and have even gone so far as to place a one thousand gold piece bounty upon each of your heads. So here again you stand, ready to end this threat once and for all. It is sure to be a hard fought victory, but each of you knows that you have what it takes to finish this fight.
In this fight you are joined by a new companion, a paladin of Kord and former champion of the Chendl called Zirat. He replaces the paladin and knight Coraine, who has been recalled by King Belvor for a mission of urgency and secrecy. While you know little of Zirat, he is an impressive figure, and the letter he bears from the king assures you that he is a steadfast ally.
