It is New Year’s Eve, and near midnight on this frigid evening the party gathers in a small condemned tavern in the Free Citystate of Gate Pass. Located in the mountain pass which separates two hostile nations – Ragesia and Shahalesti – Gate Pass has been neutral since the end of their last war, but now from Ragesia a scourge comes for the city.
By now, every magic-user in Gate Pass knows of the Scourge. The Emperor of Ragesia died barely a month ago, and in a move to cement herself as the next emperor of Ragesia, Leska, leader of the Ragesian inquisitors, has decreed that all disloyal magic-users are to be tracked down and killed, to prevent future threats to the empire. The inquisitors, clerics specialized in countermagic, travel with military escorts to the borders of Ragesia. Their first target is Gate Pass, its neutrality long viewed as an insult to the nation’s honor. Those who resist them will have to face the searing power of the Ragesian Empire.
An entire army marches for Gate Pass, and the people of the city fear that they will not be able to resist the might of the Ragesian military. The city leaders are bowing under pressure, and have barred the exit from the city, intending to welcome the inquisitors that come with the army, for they foolishly hope that the Ragesians will reward their cooperation with mercy.
A local resistance movement, devoted to keeping both the Ragesians and the Shahalesti out of the city, has gathered vital military intelligence, and they need messengers to deliver the information to allies at a distant wizard’s school. With all their strongest warriors preparing to hold back the Ragesian assault, this vital mission falls to the party.
The Ragesian army is nearly at Gate Pass’s doorstep, so time is short. The war is about to begin.
That one is not intended to be used as a battle mat.
