Vampirium
The Claw of Naar is the evil wand of power used by Agarash the Damned during his ancient conquest of Magnamund. Legend held that it had been lost forever in the molten ruins of Naaros, but now it has resurfaced, and its dread return heralds a dawn of disaster for the peaceable nations of Magnamund. Your allies, the wise wizards of the Elder Magi, have the power and the means to destroy the accursed Claw. But they do not possess it. In
Vampirium
, you must venture into the hostile land of Bhanar and snatch the Claw from the clutches of the evil Autarch Sejanoz. Can you deliver the Claw safely to the Elder Magi … or will you be destroyed by the terrifying wrath of the vampire lord Sejanoz?
Joe Dever
, the creator of the bestselling Lone Wolf adventure books and novels, has achieved world-wide recognition in three creative fields — as an award-winning author of international renown, as an acclaimed musician and composer, and as a games designer specialising in role-playing games.
On graduating from college in 1974, Joe Dever became a professional musician, and for several years, he worked in the music industry in Europe and the United States.
While working in Los Angeles in 1977 he discovered a then little-known game called ‘Dungeons & Dragons’. Although the game was in its infancy, Joe at once realised its huge potential and began designing his own role-playing games along similar conceptual lines. These first games were to form the basis of a fantasy world called Magnamund, which later became the setting for the Lone Wolf books.
Five years later, in 1982 at the Origins Game Fair, Joe won the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons World Championships in Baltimore, an event held before 16,000 people. Inspired and encouraged by his success at Origins, Joe decided to quit the music business and devote his time to writing and games design.
In 1983, after a brief spell at Games Workshop in London, he wrote
Flight from the Dark
— the first Lone Wolf interactive gamebook. His manuscript immediately attracted a frenzy of interest from three major London publishing companies, all of whom bid for world rights. Joe accepted an offer of publication from Hutchinson's (later to become Century Hutchinson Ltd; now Random House UK) and
Flight from the Dark
was first published in 1984.
This first book sold more than 100,000 copies within its first month of publication, and overseas rights were snapped up by twelve countries (including the United States, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Sweden). The success of Joe's first book laid the foundations for the future of the Lone Wolf series, which has sold millions of copies around the world.
The Lone Wolf series ended after 28 books and 14 years. Joe has continued to work in the games industry as script writer and games design consultant.
Brian Williams
was first noticed by Joe Dever for his work in
White Dwarf
magazine (circa issue 50) and the
Real Life Gamebooks
series by Jon Sutherland and Simon Farrell. Brian Williams was Joe's first choice of illustrators to replace Gary Chalk. Jon, being an old friend of Joe's, introduced the two. Brian was excited to work with Joe on the
Lone Wolf
series. He illustrated
The Cauldron of Fear
and almost every book about Magnamund since that time.
Internet Edition published by
Project Aon
. This edition is intended to reflect the complete text of the original version. Where we have made minor corrections, they will be noted in the
Errata
.
Publication Date: 12 November 2010
Text copyright © 1998 Joe Dever.
Illustrations copyright © 1998 Brian Williams.
Distribution of this Internet Edition is restricted under the terms of the
Project Aon License
.
For Julian Egelstaff
‘I would be especially pleased if my granting of the rights to distribute my books in this way was seen as my “millennium gift” to all those devoted readers who have kept the Kai flag flying high, through all the good times, and the not-so-good. It would make me very proud indeed if this enterprise laid the foundations of a lasting legacy, securing the longevity of Lone Wolf by making my creation freely and readily accessible to current and future online generations. For them, for us, for Sommerlund and the Kai. … ’
Joe Dever
Project Aon would first like to thank Joe Dever for making this generous offering of the books that we have all loved from the beginning. We are also grateful for the generosity of Rob Adams, Paul Bonner, Gary Chalk, Melvyn Grant, Richard Hook, Peter Andrew Jones, Cyril Julien, Peter Lyon, Ian Page, Graham Round, and Brian Williams for contributing their portions of the world of Magnamund to Project Aon. We would also like to acknowledge the following members of Project Aon for their diligent work:
- Transcription
- Björn Floderus
- Illustration Transcription
- Jonathan Blake
- XML
- Jonathan Blake
Simon Osborne - Action Charts
- JC Alvarez
Jonathan Blake - Proofreading
- Nixon Na (Frontmatter and Sections 1–140)
Simon Osborne (Sections 141–350) - Editing
- Jan Charvát
Ingo Klöcker
Benjamin Krefetz
LeRoy McSwain
Sean Donald
Simon Osborne
Timothy Pederick - Coordination
- Jonathan Blake
- Special Thanks
- James Durrant, Paul Haskell, Patrick Kalinauskas
It is spring in the year MS 5085 and you are a Grand Master of the New Order of the Kai, the warrior élite of Sommerlund.
Thirty-five years ago, the First Order of the Kai was massacred by the Darklords of Helgedad, a host of powerful creatures sent by the evil God Naar to destroy the world of Magnamund. Lone Wolf, the supreme leader of your illustrious fighting order, was the only survivor of their attack upon the Kai. As a young initiate he stood amid the burning wreckage of the old Kai Monastery and vowed to avenge the slaughter of his comrades. Twenty years later he kept his pledge when alone he infiltrated the foul domain of the Darklords and destroyed the infernal city of Helgedad, the base of their evil power.
With the destruction of Helgedad, chaos befell the Darkland armies who had, until then, been poised to conquer all Magnamund. Quickly, their disorder escalated into a mutinous civil war, allowing the Freeland Alliance armies of Magnamund time enough to recover and launch a successful counter-offensive. Against all odds, a swift and total victory was secured over the feuding armies of evil.
Following the demise of the Darklords, peace reigned in your homeland of Sommerlund. Under the direction of Lone Wolf the ruined Monastery of the Kai was rebuilt and restored to its former glory, and a New Order was established. You are one of this new generation of Kai recruits. You were born in Sommerlund in the year MS 5063, during the time of the war against the Darklords. When you were seven years old, you were sent by your father to the Kai Monastery. There, under the tutelage of Lone Wolf, you developed your martial skills and honed the special Kai abilities which lay dormant within you. Your skills were nurtured and sharpened to perfection by years of study and rigorous training. Your exceptional talents helped you to master all of the Kai and Magnakai Disciplines, and swiftly you rose through the ranks of the New Order to become one of only five who now hold the high rank of Kai Grand Master. It is an achievement that has brought great honour upon you and your family.
In the year MS 5077 your skill and courage were put to the test when an attack was launched upon the Kai Monastery during Lone Wolf's absence. By means of a Shadow Gate (an astral corridor between the physical world of Sommerlund and the many ethereal domains which lie beyond it), Naar sent forth a host of dragon-creatures to besiege the monastery and lay waste to all Sommerlund. He had chosen his time well, yet his evil plan was thwarted by the tenacious defence that you and your fellow warriors maintained until the siege was raised by Lone Wolf and the King's Army of Sommerlund.
1
During the seven years since the defeat of his minions, Naar has sought vengeance upon the Kai. He commands many agents of evil upon Magnamund, and they wait quietly in the shadows for the chance to serve their fell master.
You have recently returned to the monastery after successfully completing a dangerous mission in the Kingdom of Bor.
2
The vast underground realm of Bor is home to the Drodarin dwarves, the oldest allies of the Kai. Forbidden excavations in the lowest levels of the kingdom had awoken and released the Shom'zaa — a supernatural creature entombed by Magnamund's earliest magicians, the Elder Magi, during their ancient war against Naar's legendary champion: Agarash the Damned.
Lord Rimoah, speaker for the High Council of the Elder Magi, travelled with you to Bor aboard a wondrous flying ship called
Cloud-dancer
and, with his help, you were able to defeat the Shom'zaa and save your Drodarin allies from destruction.
Three months after you returned from Bor, Lord Rimoah came to the Kai Monastery aboard
Cloud-dancer
. His visit was unexpected and you sensed at once that something was wrong. Lone Wolf summoned you to his chamber where, with mounting dread, you listened to Lord Rimoah's account of events in Southern Magnamund that threaten to destroy the fragile peace of that continent.
The Elder Magi had received word from King Karvas of Siyen that Autarch Sejanoz, the evil ruler of Bhanar, had secretly dispatched a squad of his Imperial Guards into the Doomlands of Naaros. At first, neither the King nor the Elders could fathom a reason why the Autarch had done this. The Doomlands are one of the most inhospitable regions in all of Magnamund, a barren wasteland of ash and cinders that once was the domain of Agarash the Damned. At its centre stood his mighty fortress-city of Naaros. Yet, following his defeat by the Elder Magi, all that remains of it now is a titanic chasm of molten lava and heat-fused rock.
Fearing for the security of his southern borderlands, King Karvas sent a group of élite Siyenese rangers into the Doomlands to spy on the Autarch's men in the hope of discovering their true purpose. When, after six weeks, nothing was heard from the group, the King and his court assumed they had perished. Then a few days later, Karvas received word unexpectedly from his missing men. They had tracked the squad of the Autarch's Imperial Guard deep into the Doomlands, and they had observed them excavating an unmarked burial mound near to the ruins of Naaros. And it was here that they were to witness a chilling discovery, for buried beneath the mound lay the Claw of Naar.
The Claw of Naar is an ancient wand of power that was crafted by the evil God himself, and used by Agarash the Damned during his conquest of Magnamund. Legend held that it had been lost forever in the molten ruin of Naaros, but now it had resurfaced, and its return boded trouble for the peaceable nations bordering upon the Autocracy of Bhanar.
The rangers reported that the Autarch's squad were returning to Bhanar with the Claw in their possession. Their chosen route would take them through the Southern Dammerdon Mountains and so the rangers went ahead to hide themselves in Sunderer Pass where they intended to await their arrival. Their plan was to ambush the squad in the narrow confines of the pass and steal away the Claw. However, the ranger leader was fearful that the power of the Claw might overwhelm his small group. He requested of his King that help be sent urgently. Karvas responded to his plea by seeking the aid of the Elder Magi, and upon hearing of the situation, Lord Rimoah readily agreed to assist.
‘In turn, Lone Wolf, I have come this day to ask for the help of the Kai,’ said Rimoah. ‘We of the Elder Magi have the power and the means to destroy the Claw of Naar, but only when we have that accursed object in our possession. To secure the Claw will require skills and courage that only the Kai possess. And so, I come here seeking your aid, Supreme Master.’
‘It will not be an easy task,’ replied Lone Wolf, thoughtfully, ‘but we have the advantage of both speed and surprise. Sunderer Pass is no more than a day's journey away by skyship.’
‘Aye,’ replied Rimoah, ‘but we must depart this afternoon if we are to be certain of reaching the pass before the arrival of the Autarch's squad.’
Lone Wolf slowly turned to face you. ‘I am tempted to accept this challenge myself, Grand Master,’ he said, as he held you with his unblinking gaze. ‘But, alas, I must attend a War Council tomorrow at the King's Court in Holmgard. Will you journey to Bhanar in my stead and help Lord Rimoah to capture the Claw of Naar?’
‘Yes, my lord,’ you replied, without hesitation. ‘For the greater glory of Sommerlund and the Kai, I am proud to accept this task.’
[1]
Lone Wolf
18:
Dawn of the Dragons
[2]
Lone Wolf
26:
The Fall of Blood Mountain