More locations around Mount Gulugu...

"Mount Gulugu is the tallest peak in the Golathun Range, rising above these dusty uplands like a Titan among giants. Its lower slopes, crenelated with outcrops and supporting crags, give way to precipitous upper reaches, studded with boulder-strewn fields, though snow never actually falls here. Mount Gulugu was a sacred mountain in the cosmology of the Djaratians and Vatosians, and many of their ruins can be found in the area."

Flavius of Carsepolis, Notes on a Journey to Southern Allansia. (1879 OT)

The Olive Groves of Mother Olea (#19/30, #323/365)

"This part of the hill is covered in gnarled olive trees, their grey-green leaves glinting in the sunlight. Further down the hill, in the shade of the orchard, you see a stone hut, whose well-kept yard  contains the entrance to what looks like a large well or underground cistern of some kind."

Contents: The hut is home to Mother Olea, a retired Black Elf Demi-Sorcerer from the Forest of Yore's Magic School, who, after plenty of adventures, retired here to grow olives and sell them and olive oil in the Souq of Pellod. She offers the following for sale:

- 3-18 bottles of olive oil (5sp each; enough oil in each bottle to start a fire or lantern, use for a Potion ingredient, or make a short section of floor very slippery)

- 4-24 jars of preserved olives (3GP, counts as 1 Provision, breaks on a roll of 1 after a fight or fall, spoiling other provisions)

These are in the hut, along with a spare suit of Leather Cuirass, a Shortsword, flint and tinder, a brass lantern, 4-24 empty bottles, a pot of lamb-bone soup on the fireplace (worth 1 Provisions), some Garlic drying on strings, and a wooden cot with a woolen blanket. On a wooden desk is Olea's Spellbook (locked), several scrolls, ink and quill, and a copy of the recipes from Urgun Runaway's Good Rat Guide, with the word 'Rat' crossed out and substituted for 'Lamb?'.

Under the hut is a cave-like cellar (accessed via a locked gate above stone steps leading down), where there is an olive press, and several stone tubs for processing olive oil and preserving olives. There is also a large Jar of Salt here.

If threatened, Olea will blow on a bamboo pipe, and summon a bound ally from her adventuring days, a TOAD DEMON that lives in the well, and is tied by a glowing green metal Chain of Demonic Restraint. The chain allows the Demon to leave the well in an almighty leap, but it can only attack anything within 10 metres of the well. Olea will endeavour to stay within this range casting spells at any spellcasters while the demon will attack the nearest warriors.

The well is 5m deep and is actually a natural cavern, with little water other than a muddy pool (Olea actually gets her water from a hidden spring at a rocky outcrop in the middle of the olive grove). The cavern is around 10m across, with several possible access points to the rest of the Eyrie tunnels within the mountain summit.

Olea is on good terms with many who live in or venture into these uplands including Old Barney Gorbus, Ghun-Fang the Astrologer, F'Sal the Shepherd and Larna the Weaver, and the herbalist Khalsha Mossfriend.

Stats:

Mother Olea, BLACK ELF DEMI-SORCERER

SKILL: 8
STAMINA: 16
LUCK: 10
MAGIC: 7 Magic Points: 20
Talents: Natural Mage
Special Skills: Common Speech (Allansian) 4, Elvish (Black) 4, Magic-Demi-Sorcery 3, Bargain 2, Evaluate 2, Farming 2, City Lore 1, Locks 1, Magic Lore 1, Mountain Lore 1, Religion Lore 1, Second Sight 1, Sleight of Hand 1, Staves 1, Herb Lore 1, World Lore 1
Spells: Creature Copy (4), Creature Sleep (4), Entangle (4), Detect Trap (2), E.S.P. (2), Light (2), Open Door (2), Truce (2), Create Water (1), Creature Sleep (1), Fool's Gold (1), Language (1), Magic Arrow (2), Read Symbols (1), Shielding (1)

 

She has 1-6 GP, 2-12 SP, an Oak Staff, her Bamboo Flute, a key to the cellar and the Spellbook, a vial containing a Potion of MAGIC.

1 TOAD DEMON, SKILL 14 STAMINA 14, Very Large Bite, Medium Armour, Double Damage. Completely immune to all kinds of fire, magic or otherwise.

Chain of Demonic Restraint: Glowing Green Metal chain around 15m long, can be used to restrain any Demon by lashing it at the Demon in combat and winning an Attack Round. The chain will then instantaneously bind the Demon into the chain-wielder's service for a year and a day. The chain must be affixed to the ground with a platinum-tipped stake - the Demon can only venture 15m from the stake at any given point. The Demon will follow all commands of the chain-wielder within reason (at the Director's discretion. The chain only works on Lesser Demons, though it counts as a magical weapon and will wound Greater Demons and Demon Princes as normal if it hits in combat.

A Pleasant Meadow (#20/30, #324/365)

"The gentle slope of this mountain meadow is covered in flowers and aromatic herbs, growing in a carpet atop crumbling slate-stones and lichen-adorned rocks. There is a strange sound in the air, like that of a baby's rattle, sometimes clicking and clacking singularly, and other times in chorus. Could it be cicadas?"

Contents: This stretch of pleasant sunny mountainside contains many interesting plants but is also home to a nest of RATTLESNAKES who enjoy stretching out and sunning themselves on the rocks, reacting poorly to anyone who disturbs them.

Any foraging for herbs here can add a +3 bonus to their roll, and, if successful, use the Hills and Mountains (roll 1-3) or Deserts and Plains (roll 4-6) Distribution tables (see The Titan Herbal, p. 76) to see what they find (reroll any results that do not fit with the area). For each attempt, whether successful or not, they must Test their Luck to avoid being attacked by a Rattlesnake. Searchers can continue looking for herbs as long as they are successful; as soon as they fail a roll they may search no more this day.

In addition, in the exact centre of the meadow is a low-lying bush with short pale grey-green leaves and a single strange triangle-shaped golden yellow fruit. This is the legendary Xentos Fruit (see The Titan Herbal, p. 73)! Wars have been fought over this plant, so discretion is advised if attempting to sell it in Pellod, Dust Town or elsewhere. The bush is in the middle of a particularly sunny spot of flat rocks housing 2-7 remaining RATTLESNAKES that must be slain to reach the Xentos fruit.

Stats:

2-12 RATTLESNAKES, SKILL 5 STAMINA 2, Venom causes 4 STAMINA damage per bite, Light Armour. Rattlesnake venom causes a cascading series of issues in anyone unfortunate enough to be bitten by the snake:

1. If the victim's STAMINA is above 18 after being bitten, they have a strong constitution and only lose a further 2 STAMINA points damage (if this takes them below 18 STAMINA, there is no further effect).
2. If the victim's STAMINA is 18 or below, the poison runs quickly through their system. The bitten area starts to throb, and the victim breaks out into a sweat. Their vision blurs and they have difficulty retaining consciousness. They must lost 5 more STAMINA points.
3. If their STAMINA is now above 9, they survive, despite feeling dangerously weak from the effects of the poison.
4. If their STAMINA is now 9 or below, the venom is too strong for the victim's system and they lose consciousness. They must now Test their Luck.
5. If they are Lucky, they survive the effects of the snake's venom, although they do come perilously close to death. When they regain consciousness in 10-60 minutes, they will find themselves seriously weakened by the venom, with a SKILL score of 5, and a STAMINA score of 4.
   
6. If they are Unlucky, there is nothing they can do to stop the effects of the venom and the snake bite is fatal. They die here on a barren hillside in southern Allansia.