An Epic Adventure! Includes the revised Aerie of the Slave Lords
series plus totally new adventures through the Wild Coast! Set in
the fantastic WORLD OF GREYHAWK Setting.

TSR, Inc.
PRODUCTS OF YOUR IMAGINATION

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons
OFFICIAL GAME ADVENTURE

Scourge of the Slave Lords

by Cook, Hammack,
Johnson, Schick, and Carmien
HTML version dedicated to those who fought against the American slavers back in the day

A1 SLAVE PITS OF THE UNDERCITY: CREDITS
Designed and Written By: David Cook.

Layout and Editor: Brian Pitzer.

Editing: Kevin Hendryx, Harold Johnson, Frank Mentzer,
Paul Reiche III, Evan Robinson.

Art: Jeff Dee, David S. LaForce, Jim Roslof,
Bill Willingham

Development: Kevin Hendryx, Paul Reiche III, Evan Robinson.

Able Assistance: Allen Hammack, Harold Johnson,
Lawrence Schick.

Play Testing: Brian Blume, Helen Cook, Jeff Dee,
Gary Gygax, Frank Mentzer, Tom Moldvay,
Erol Otus, Bob Waldbauer, Jim Ward.

Tournament Coordinator: Bob Blake.

Table
of Contents
Foreword ................................... 3
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Chapter 0: Danger at Darkshelf Quarry +

Chapter 1: The Road to Hiighport +
The Invitation +
Welcome to Safeton +
The Feast at Dame Gold's +
The Mission +
Life in Elredd +
Leaving Town +
Captured +
Fates Worse Than Death +

Chapter 2: The City of Highport +
Geomorphic Highport +
The NPCs of Highport +
Jobs Available +
Information +
Special Encounters +

Chapter 3: The Temple of Highport +

Key to the Temple Level +

1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	10.
11.	12.	13.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	-

Key to the Sewer Level +

1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	10.
11.	12.	13.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	20.
21.	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Captured Documents +

Chapter 4: Into the Wilderness +
The Hill Trails +
The Tribes +
Runaway Slave +

Chapter 5: The Slavers' Stockade +

Key to the Hill Fort +

1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	10.
11.	12.	13.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	20.
21.	22.	23.	24.	25.	26.	27.	28.	29.	30.
31.	32.	33.	34.	35.	36.	37.	38.	39.	-

Dungeon Level +

1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	10.
11.	12.	13.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	20.
21.	22.	23.	24.	25.	26.	27.	28.	29.	30.
31.	32.	33.	34.	35.	36.	37.	38.	39.	-

Chapter 6: The Caves of the Drachensgrab +
The Trail +
 

The Caves of the Drachensgrab +

A.	B.	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	-

Chapter 7: The Hidden City of Suderham +
The Aerie of the Slave Lords +

Key to Suderham +

1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	10.
11.	12.	13.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	20.
21.	22.	23.	24.	25.	26.	27.	28.	29.	30.
31.	32.	33.	34.	35.	36.	37.	38.	39.	40.
41.	42.	43.	44.	45.	46.	47.	48.	49.	50.
51.	52.	53.	54.	55.	56.	57.	58.	59.	60.
61.	62.	63.	64.	65.	66.	67.	68.	-	-

The Catacombs of Suderham +

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

-

Chapter 8: Dungeons of the Slave Lords +

Key to the Labyrinth +

1.	2.	3.	4.	5.	6.	7.	8.	9.	10.
11.	12.	13.	14.	15.	16.	17.	18.	19.	20.
21.	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Chapter 9: Suderham in Flames! +

Key to the Island Encounters +

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

F.

G.

H.

I.

J.

K.

L.

The Slave Lords +
Pre-generated Characters +

Design: David Cook, Allen Hammack, Harold Johnson, Tom Moldvay,
Lawrence Schick, and Ed Carmien
Revision: David Cook
Editing: Harold Johson, Jon Pickens, Brian Pitzer, Edward G. Sollers,
Stephen D. Sullivan, Steve Winter
Cover: Jeff Easley
Interior Art: Ron Lindahn, Val Lakey Lindhahn, Erol Otus, Bill Willingham
Cartography: Jean Koebernick, Dave LaForce, Stephen D.
Sullivan, David C. Sutherland III
Typography: Linda Bakk

Foreword

Here in your hands is the next stage in the
sweeping adventure begun in The Temple of
Elemental Evil. With this book you can
carry on the adventures of the band of
heroes introduced in The Temple of Elemental
Evil as they journey from the safety of
Hommlet to the untamed lands of the
Pomarj. Now your players can adventure in
the lands of Greyhawk from 1st through
10th levels or even higher.

But these adventures haven’t always been
The Scourge of the Slave Lords. 1st published
in 1980 and 1981, they were released
as a series of four modules: A1, Slave Pits of
the Undercity; A2, Secret of the Slavers
Stockade; A3, Assault on the Aerie of the
Slave Lords; and A4, In the Dungeons of the
Slave Lords. While these 4 modules
linked to each other, there was no thought
or intention to connect them to the The Temple of
Elemental Evil adventures. Indeed, that
product had not even been finished at the
tirne!

In truth, the A series of modules had
humble origins and simple goals. In late
1979, 4 members of the TSR Design
staff--Lawrence Schick, Harold Johnson,
Allen Hammack, and, myself, David
Cook--listened with some dismay and
unhappiness to complaints from players of
the GENCON Open Tournament.

We had little idea whether these com-
plaints were valid, but something had to be
done. Before we knew it, we had committed
to creating and writing the next year’s
AD&D Open Tournament.

Great, marvelous--but how were we
going to do it? The 1st thing we needed was
an idea that would make the tournament
exciting. Finally, in November, the thunderstroke
came. One cold evening Harold
Johnson ran the 1st adventure of a new
AD&D@campaign. With a large amount of
perverse glee, he quickly arranged to have
all our lowly 1st-level characters arrested,
stripped of our meager goods (right down to
a loincloth), and locked into a labyrinthine
system of caves. There our characters were
left to die, assisted by a relentless and hungry
minotaur. It was our wits against impossible
odds, Somehow some of our
characters survived.

That adventure was great and exciting. It
made us think, be clever, use our skills, and
truly role-play to find solutions. There was
no doubt-this same situation would make
a perfect final round for the tournament.
What better test could there be to find the
ultimate role-playing team? So, we had an
ending, but no beginning. Somehow we had
to bring the PCs to this point.

The AD&D Open Tournament required
7 different rounds of play: 5 first
rounds, 1 semi-final round, and 1 final
round. We knew what happened in the final
round and had a pretty good idea of what
was needed in the semi-final (everyone gets
captured). We needed the 1st rounds and
we needed a story. For the story, we created
the infamous slavers. They would provide
the connecting thread and motivation for
the characters. However, designing the 1st
rounds was a much more difficult matter.

To be fair, every 1st round had to be balanced
against the other 1st rounds. For the
tournament to he fair, every team in every
opening round had to face ahout the same
amount of challenge. With 3 designers
doing different rounds of the tournament, it
was necessary to have careful discussions
and plans for the tournament. 1st, each
designer chose a low-level monster that
would be the basis for his round: orcs in A1,
hobgoblins in A2, and gnolls in A3. Next we
decided on the number and type of encounters
that would occur: 9 encounters to fit
the time limit of 3 1/2 hours. We guessed this
would give a good team just enough time to
get through every encounter. We also figured
that every encounter should be tough
enough to kill 1 PC. With
9 tournament characters, there could
only be 9 encounters.

We also set what would happen in each
encounter. Thus we came up with the following
list:

2 Traps
1 Trick to fool the players
1 Problem the players had to solve
1 Encounter with the basic monster of the <adventure>
1 Ambush prepared by the basic monster of the round (orcs, hobgoblins, gnolls, etc.)
1 Encounter with the basic monster and a friend (an ogre, for example)
1 Encounter with an unintelligent monster
1 Encounter with a brand new monster
1 Grand Finale

Using this list, we each went to design our
tournament rounds.

Even after this, our work was not yet
done. Each round had to be carefully compared
and playtested. Adjustments were
made to bring the rounds into proper balance.
Many people helped, Tom Moldvay in
particular, with his suggestions and assistance.
Finally, the rounds had to be expanded
into modules, adding details to fit the
demands of campaign play.

David Cook
February 6, 1986

Introduction

From the boozy refuse of sea-front taverns
to the war councils of murderous orcs, there
is only 1 gang that can bind and command
them--the slave lords. At 1st they
were only a vague whisper on the lips of a
few barbaric scum, a whisper that grew to
an icy chill of dread and despair--the slave
lords! They are masters of vile cruelty and
terror. And they are unnamed and unidentified,
hiding behind a veil of secrecy and
deception!

The story of Scourge of the Slave Lords is
that of justice. and possibly revenge. For
years the slave lords have carried out their
particularly cruel trade on fishing villages
and isolated farming communities. Their
actions have been without remorse or pity,
Now, it is time for their terror to end, perhaps
at the hands of a few hearty adventurers.
Players should begin the adventure with
characters of 4th to 6th level, perhaps
characters who have adventured and survived
through the dangers of The Temple of
Elemental Evil. Characters of lower levels
had best adventure in large groups (very
large groups for extremely low levels!).
Characters of higher levels can also be used,
and the group sizes should be adjusted
accordingly. Of course. there comes a point
where a single character of very high level
can deal with the entire adventure and not
feel challenged. Such a character simply
does not have a place in this adventure.
Leave him home, tending the estate or
minding the kingdom, if you please.

Getting Started
To play this adventure, it is necessary to
have the Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters
Guide. and Monster Manual at least. It
may also he useful to have a copy of Monster
Manual II as some of the creatures
which appear herein are fully described in
that volume. No provision is made for character
classes or creatures from other books
(Unearthed Arcana or Oriental Adventures)
but these certainly can be incorporated into
any referee's campaign as he desires and
allows.

Since the adventure presented is quite
large, it is unreasonable to demand or even
ask that you, the referee, read or skim all the
material before beginning play. You should
become familiar with the organization and <9 chapters, 4 modules>
parts of the module. Look also at the map
booklet, identifying the various maps and <table of maps>
when they are needed. Doing both of these
will make it easier for you to quickly find
information when you need it.

The module is divided into chapters. Each
chapter is a separate stage of the adventure.
On the average, you should be able to to
play 1 chapter per game session. Therefore,
to prepare as referee, you should read
carefully the chapter you intend to play. It
may also help to skim through the next
chapter so you can see where events are supposed
to lead.

Inserted in this book is a smaller booklet
of maps. All maps used in the adventure can
be found there. However, you may also
wish to have the WORLD OF
GREYHAWK Campaign Supplement,
which provides the larger setting against
which this adventure occurs.
 
 

Refereeing the Adventure
As a campaign adventure set in the World
of Greyhawk, Scourge of the Slave Lords
must rely on your skills and knowledge to
succeed. You are the only person who
knows the abilities and temperament of
your players and their characters. You are
the only person who can provide the richness
of background detail peculiar to your
campaign. You are the only person on hand
to make the on-the-spot judgements which
invariably become necessary. You are an
important part of this adventure. If you
remember this fact and enjoy your role, this
adventure will excite and challenge your
players all the more.

An important factor of this adventure is
motivation. Situations are created to galvanize
and energize the PCs.

Your participation and judgement in this
motivation is vital. Some situations in this
adventure require your careful judgement.
Terrible things will happen to the PCs
and the players may become discouraged,
enraged, or unduly upset by these
events. This is where your skills are most
important. You must work to maintain the
spirits of your adventurers while retaining
the desperateness of the situation. Properly
done, they will have a strong desire to fight
their way through and track the slave lords
down to the end.

Scourge of the Slave Lords is designed for
characters of 5th to 7th level. During the <4-6?, 5-7?, 7-11?>
course of <the adventure> PCs are likely to earn
enough XP to rise 1 or
more levels. The increase in levels may be
necessary for some characters to survive the
final sections of the adventure.

The slave lords themselves are a cunning
and dangerous group. Not only are they
powerful in levels and magick, they are also
accustomed to working as team. They have
worked together for many years and have
become aware of each other's strengths and
weaknesses. Time has allowed them to
assemble a highly efficient organization.
They make few mistakes, for mistakes are
too costly in their business. They possess no
pity or mercy. Although they can be
extremely subtle, they also appreciate the
effect of brute force and overwhelming
might. Finally, they are indescribably cruel. <General Tendency>
Bear these factors in mind when refereeing
the slave lords. This is not a module for bunglers!

No opening background is given for this
adventure for 2 reasons. 1st, it is
assumed that this adventure begins shortly
after the PCs have finished
with The Temple of Elemental Evil. In this
case, you will know the situation and condition
of your PCs best. If you
are not using the WORLD OF
GREYHAWK' Fantasy Setting, you will
have to create your own appropriate background
information, adjusting what is given
here to fit your campaign.

2nd, in the opening sections of the
module, you should try to deceive the players
as to the true nature of the adventure.
You want them to believe they are going to
tackle something other than the slave lords,
springing these villains and the problems
they make as a surprise.

Information is normally presented in the
module in 1 of 2 ways.
 

Areas of boxed text are descriptive passages that should be read aloud to the players unless special circumstances prevent their knowing the information given there.

The information not
boxed is material for the DM only, so that he
can referee the encounter.

Chapter 1: The Road to Highport +

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10