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Student Prelude - Fact Sheet

It has only been months since the disappearance of the Empress, the rumor of which is little more than a growing worry among the powerful figures of the Realm. Juggernaut is nothing but a rumor and a secret whispered by spies, a surprise yet to be shared. The Mask of Winters dwells in the White Tower, a massive structure deep within the Shadowland of Innesvale, though he increasingly spends his time...elsewhere.

Overall Timeline

Stage 1: the Conquest of Thorns The time has come, and the living shall come to know the might of the dead. The first stage runs for about one year, dealing with the events preceeding the invasion of thorns, the revelation of Juggernaut, the actual conquest of Thorns, the aftermath of the invasion. It will end as the Mask of Winters shifts his attention someone, back to the Underworld.

Notable Events
This is definately an interesting stage, and its exploration will reveal a lot about both Student and the events of the campaign itself. In a way, we'll be playing out a scenario very similar to the Fall of Chiaroscuro but from the opposite side and in more detail. Key players in this scenario will be Lookshy and the Realm, as well as the other Deathlords. Expect the focus to start off in the Underworld and Shadowlands as the momentum gets building, and then shift into establishing a powerbase in Creation.

The ultimate result of this attack is never in doubt, and it's also pretty much common knowledge that Thorns fell to the Mask of Winters without a huge amount of trouble. Even so, this does not mean that the players can expect a 'cake walk'. While the Realm is too shocked and disorganized to strike back against the Mask in force, individual heroes can and will cause trouble for the prelude characters if they drop the ball.

Stage 2: Hanau and Tyoka The City of Thorns has fallen, and the Masks of Winters plans are well underway. Yet, their master is not content with simple victory in the lands of the living. He also seeks total power over the lands of the dead, and dominance over his fellow Deathlords. Thus, a bit of light conflict with the Walker in Darkess in the Underworld Kingdom of Hanau and Tyoka quickly escalates into open war between the two Deathlords with the ghosts caught in between.

Notable Events
This stage will be filled with thrilling war in the underworld, and emphasize the growing conflict between the Mask of Winters and the Walker in Darkness. The Lover Clad in a Raiment of Tears might very well end up involved in this plotline! The main adversaries will be other Abyssals and various heroic ghosts, with the prelude characters actions determining the fate of an entire Underworld Kingdom and setting up stage three.

The details of this stage are currently undefined. Unless "rather or not the Mask ultimately conquered Hanau and Tyoka" comes up in the main storyline (and its hardly a common topic of fireside conversation), the prelude characters actions will define rather or not the Masks efforts in this direction paid off or not.

Stage 3: The Walker in Darkness More detail about this stage will be provided once Stage 2 has gotten underway. The ultimate goal of this Prelude, however, will be to resolve the Walker in Darkness/Mask of Winters plotline. There are several possible outcomes here, ranging from an unlikely alliance, subjugation of the Walker in Darkness, a punishing loss inflicted on the Mask of Winters, or a stalemate.

Observed Facts

the Juggernaut

• The Juggernaut is a massive reanimated behemoth, and the main citadel and stronghold of the Mask of Winters. We know that Juggernaut survives the storyline and makes it into the current storyline but other details are vague and can be stretched and shifted.
• One of the big themes of Stage 1 is the idea that Juggernaut is something new and impressive. In order to emphasize this, I made it a secret even in the Underworld. When the Mask of Winters used Juggernaut to attack Thorns was the first time anyone had heard of it.
  • The existance of Juggernaut, at the beginning of Stage 1, is a huge secret. Some of the other Deathlords know of it through spies, and those Abyssals with Liege 3+ might have heard that there is some secret war machine that the Mask of Winters is working on.
  • None of the characters really suspect exactly what Juggernaut is, however. When it is first revealed it is likely to be quite frightening even to the Abyssals. They have accepted the Black Exaltation, given away their names, and pledged to bring an end to all life. The existance of such a powerful and horrible weapon, however, is quite shocking. At least at first...

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