Opulent Pearl Campaign
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The Horseman The year is 1114, and the Empire is in Chaos. The Black Plague of 1111 rages across the realm, killing thousands. Skaven vermin scampered from their tunnels, looting and destroying where the plague had taken its costly toll. The people plead for help from their Emperor, but their crys are unheard.
Gerhardt Blackthorn was one of Goldgather's highest officers, one of his noble champions. Commoners feared him, as his skill and prowess as a warrior was nearly unmatched in the realm. His coffers were full from both the commoners under his control, and the fees the Emperor paid him for his skills - to see Gerhardt Blackthorn at your door was a sign you had truly angered the emperor himself. In 1115 the Plague took the life of the Emperor, and it gave hope to the oppressed populace. Rebellion sprang up everywhere, and the former Emperor's officials were caught and slaughtered whenever possible. Those who weren't killed outright, tried to run into hiding, leaving their possessions behind them in hurried escape. So was the path Gerhardt followed, escaping into the Ostermark and disappearing into hiding. The people, distracted because of the skaven hoards and the attempt to rebuild their former lives, forgot him and the few others that escaped. He remained hidden until 1124, when Count Mandred Skaven Slayer was elected Emperor. By chance being recognized in a town square by a passing merchant, Gerhardt Blackthorn was quickly captured, charged with crimes against the Empire, and beheaded with is own sword. He was buried in a simple grave, a
small sapling the only marker for the gravesite. The graveyard was in the
northern edge of the capital of Ostermark, where the warrior had hidden himself
for 9 years - The grave lay undisturbed for over 100 years. Overgrown and uncared for, most had long forgotten the story of Gerhardt Blackthorn, his corpse rotting and intermingling with the roots of the small sapling, which grew larger and more ominous over time. Being in the graveyard, the tree was the only thing that thrived and grew. People called it "the Tree of the dead." In the fall of 1230, a Necromancer by the name of Trenvis Shadowdown seeks out the graveyard, in search of components for new experiments. He inadvertently uncovers the skeletal remains of Gerhardt and removes the skull from the grave, taking it back to his secret laboratory in the catacombs beneath Mordheim. He is never seen again, and none know his fate. The cataclysm of 2000 brings the city of Mordheim to ruins. A wizard, Grethor the Great, discovers a cache of papers that reportedly contain a map to Trenvis' hidden laboratory, as well as a parchment detailing a magical item that he created - "The skull of Ne'var." Grethor hires mercenary bands to determine if the map is true and to acquire the item. The Horseman awakens several days following, when a warband finds the Skull of Ne'Var. The Horsemen
Special Rules: Immune to Poison: The Horseman is undead, and therefore immune to poison.Cause fear: The Horseman is terrifying undead creature and therefore cause fear Fearsome Apparition: Because the Horseman is such a fearsome sight to behold as he gallops through the night mists, enemy models have a difficult time sighting on him. Missile weapons cannot target the horseman until he is within 2x the shooters initiative. Regeneration: When the horseman has lost his last wound, and a "taken out of action result" has been rolled - leave the model in place until the end of the round. At that time, roll 1d6: · 1 - Remove the horseman model from play. He has been defeated, but may ride again in another scenario. · 2 to 6 - Stand the horseman back up. He may continue fighting normally. Slayer: When the horseman rolls a critical hit in an attack, roll a leadership test for the individual model (based on that models leadership, NOT the leaders) If failed, the model is removed from play as the horseman easily dispatches him. Single-Minded: The Horseman will attempt to ignore all models on the table, except the carrier of the skull. To this end he will ignore all models on the table, unless he is engaged in melee combat. He will move from the combat as quickly as possible to resume pursuit of the carrier. (leaving knocked down or stunned models) THE SKULL The Skull itself acts as a Holy Relic for the model
carrying it - it does NOT work against The Horseman however. (It is his head
after-all) The Skull cannot be passed off as a normal item would. It will remain
in the carriers hands until one of the following: 1) The carrier is dropped in melee fighting. At that time, roll a 1d6 - on a roll of 3-6, the skull is picked up as "booty" by the attacker that fell him - and becomes the new "Carrier". 2) NOTE: Henchmen cannot hold the skull - if a henchmen takes down the carrier, roll randomly among that warbands heroes to see who picks up the skull. 3) The warband goes on a special "Quest" (Administrators device here) to Trenvis' laboratory to destroy the skull. This can be accomplished through several means - we ran a "Warhammer Quest" style dungeon using Mordheim rules that worked wonderfully. The Horseman is going to be used during the Special Scenario on Oct 31, 2000. Warbands will be setting up using the rules from the Multi-payer scenario Street Brawl. One randomly determined warband start with the skull with the objective of possessing the skull for 6 turns or until all the other warbands rout. This should make for an interesting scenario as the Horseman begins to hunt down the characters that are holding the Skull. A Special thanks to Jeff. Awesome idea with pictures to match. So little time. So much to do. Again, Thanks Jeff.
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Emperor Boris
Goldgather reigns with an iron fist, extracting exorbitant taxes from an already
poor people. His officials are even worse, taking what little is left after the
Emperor's tax collectors have passed.
Mordheim.