The Lord of Lost Heart

or, A Plague on Both Your Houses

Despair all ye nations, for the time draws apace,

When the rot of the cynic shall steal our good grace.
And our sweetest of dreams shall fade to lost hope,
Our pride and our arrogance; our noose and our rope.
- The Song of Death

Introduction
The Lord of Lost Heart pits the PCs against the forces of Nurgle in the prosperous village of
Hohlesbruck. Two families the wealthy Faulebrands and the noble Verlorens are engulfed
in the machinations of the Fly Lord, and the ties of affection and blood are too strong for any
but an outsider to reach the bottom of the plot. The players will have to use both brains and
brawn to survive, and in the process, will witness how Chaos can subvert even the noblest of
sentiments.

Plot Synopsis
BACKGROUND
Esther Verloren was the beautiful daughter
of Hohlesbrucks lord of the manor, Mils
Verloren. She was courted by two men of
noble birth from the neighbouring towns
the handsome Ricard Talsberg, and the
worthy Reinhardt Anhame.
On the eve of the Storm of Chaos, both
men were to be called away to war she
made her choice in Ricard, regretfully
turning Reinhardt away. Heartbroken,
Anhame rode away, no longer caring for
his own life, and losing himself in the
pursuit of battle. In the closing days of the
war, his troop of knights was slaughtered
in a fierce battle with a Beastman warband
Reinhardt survived by taking up the
weapon of the entombed Chaos Champion
the mutants had gathered to worship, and
was lost to the service of Nurgle.
Throwing himself into the embrace of the
god who understood his despair, Reinhardt
asked

his new Father to help him share his gift

with those who had brought him there.
On the night of Reinhardts fall, Esther
was taken ill with the Green Pox she
survived, but was hideously scarred. When
Ricard returned from the Pistolier corps,
he was disgusted by her appearance,
discarding her and taking up instead with
the young Alexa Faulebrand. Driven out of
her mind with sorrow and jealousy, Esther
prayed to any god who would listen to
make Alexa as ugly as her and Nurgle
answered her prayer.
THE PLOT
Two other strangers have arrived in
Hohlesbruck along with the PCs the first
is Doctor Reifennen, a travelling physician
and secret worshipper of Nurgle directed
there by Reinhardt. On the night of
Esthers prayer, daemons of Nurgle danced
the Dance of Death around Alexas home,
inflicting Ricards fiance with the
Neiglish Rot: Reifennen plans to sequester

the young lady from her family as soon as

she falls ill, allowing the disease to reach
its horrifying fulfilment while using his
patient to provide the raw materials to
infect the rest of the town.
The other is Dionyse Ribault. Unlike
Reifennen, he has been here some time,
spying on the shipments that Aloysius
Faulebrand the villages wealthy miller
sends out to neighbouring towns, in order
to tip off the band of robbers currently
hiding in the woods. A career criminal

with an eye for the main chance, Ribault

gets wind of Esther and the Doctors plan,
and sees an opportunity for blackmail.
Unknown to them all, Reinhardt is
watching from the woods, the unseen
orchestrator of the entire scheme. He cares
nothing for Alexas fate, or Reifennens
dreams of an epidemic he has returned
only to bring the gift of his Lords peace to
the woman he loved, and to find the
reckoning he was promised with the man
who stole her from him.

GM NOTES
The Lord of Lost Heart is a rather linear adventure mainly due to the need to pace the
PCs discoveries so that they dont bring about a premature ending. This is best concealed
and compensated for by treating the chapter-by-chapter notes below as sort of check-list
rather than a fixed progression: the PCs are thrown into an investigative adventure in a
small community, where all witnesses and sources are accessible by a short walk. As
such, they may conduct their investigations in an entirely different order informationgathering sections from one chapter can be cut and pasted into another with a little
improvisation and no real loss to the game.
The only fixed events are those precipitated by the actions of the Nurgle-worshippers and
Ribaults robbers things like the abduction of Esthers maid or the murder of Ribault
happen on their own timeline, and will happen with or without the PCs. These events
serve the important purpose of keeping the plot moving, and of opening new avenues of
investigation as such, it may sometimes be worth shifting the location or the details of
such an event to unwittingly suck PCs who are fixated on red herrings back into the main
plot.
On a completely unrelated note: A GM about to run The Lord of Lost Heart may want to
read the Cast pages before getting stuck into the meat of the plot, as they go into the
background of the key players and the relationships of the various characters in rather
more detail than the synopsis. Ingenious PCs can always find ways to derail a plan if
they manage to completely break the pre-written form of events, the personalities and
motivations of the NPCs given should be enough to improvise a new course of action.

Prologue
This prologue exists only as a way to re-route the PCs to Hohlesbruck: the GM can easily
dispose with it if they can see an easier way to guide them to the village, or if they wish to
transplant the village elsewhere in the Empire.
GUARD DUTY
outside the village, the bodies of the
Aloysius Faulebrand, the wealthy
bandits Aloysius was afraid of are heaped
patriarch of the Faulebrand family, has
by the side of the road they have been
been in Eldagsen on business: there has
cleanly killed with a heavy sword, wielded
been trouble on the roads with a band of
robbers, and he wishes to hire a group of
with considerable force. PCs who are
guards for his return to Hohlesbruck. He
adept trackers may discern that a horse
approaches the PCs in order to hire them in
passed this way the previous night, and
this facility.
was surrounded by the bandits: a second
rider approached at a gallop, and
Hopefully they agree to the job if they
presumably despatched them all. One of
dont, some improvisation will be required
them rode away into the woods, the other
to get them to Hohlesbruck! Asking
continued for the village.
around in any of the surrounding towns
will yield a few rumours about
If the PCs attempt to follow them, they
Hohlesbruck (see below).
will find that the tracks of the first
horseman quickly disappear into the forest
In any case, the PCs are put on their way
- Hohlesbruck awaits ahead.
to Hohlesbruck. In the thickest woods

Rumours
They say Herr Faulebrand has bought up the old mill in Hohlesbruck.
(True)
Greta Hofstadter said shed seen a knight all in black ridin along the
Hohlesbruck road.
(True this was Reinhardt)
They say Lord Verlorens daughters mutated, and he bricked up the door to her
chamber with her still inside no-ones seen her outside his manor for months.
(False Esther has kept out of the public eye due to her disfigurement by the Pox)
Young Master Talbergs gettin married down Hohlesbruck way, to some millers
daughter. Whats the world comin to?
(True)
Theres a witch who lives in the woods around Hohlesbruck. They say shes been
there four hundred years.
(Partially true Yilese lives in the woods outside the village, but is only sixtyseven.)

Hohlesbruck
A village of one hundred and forty-three souls, Hohlesbruck is a farming community situated
in a dell in the Great Forest, near where the River Delb meets the Talabec its nearest
neighbour is the river-trading town of Eldagsen on the Delb, an important stopping-point for
river-boats and caravans (and therefore a likely place for PCs to pitch up en route to
anywhere else in the region). It mostly farms wheat and rye, grain from the mill being
transported by wagons to Eldagsen and other neighbouring towns for sale.
A map of Hohlesbruck is to be found in the Handouts section feel free to give this to the
PCs as soon as they arrive, either as an in-game artefact (maybe one hangs on the wall of the
Heartless Man) or just as a playing aid the village is small enough that the characters should
understand the lie of the land from a brief walk around.
What follows is a brief breakdown of Hohlesbrucks notable locations, as labelled on the
map:
THE HEARTLESS MAN
Hohlesbrucks only inn, the Heartless Man is a respectable establishment, run by a the
innkeeper Hans Totden and his wife Flora. Its sign shows a man with a clean, circular hole
through his chest allowing a clear view of the scenery behind him it is a reference to local
legend (see the Legend of Black Gaerovald, Chapter III)
VERLOREN MANOR
The seat of Hohlesbrucks ruling nobles for centuries, Verloren Manor is an old manor house,
situated on a low hillock overlooking the village. Partially screened from the village square
by trees, it is now inhabited only by Mils Verloren, his daughter Esther, and a skeleton
household staff, most of the servants having been dismissed many years ago when Mils wife
passed away.
FAULEBRAND HOUSE
The home of the wealthy Aloysius Faulebrand and his family, this grand home has been build
on the site of the much humbler dwelling the Faulebrands inhabited growing up in
Hohlesbruck, the old cottage having been razed to make way for its successor. It has been
built in the style of an Altdorf townhouse - albeit a townhouse with a small stable, and
surrounded by fields and looks amazingly out of place among the villagers cottages.
HERR FLYCHERS
The village butchers shop, one of the few buildings in Hohlesbruck to have a cellar (to keep
the meat cool) Flycher and his wife live in cramped, separate rooms at the back of the
house, with the front being the public butchers shop. With the arrival of their lodger, Doctor
Reifennen has taken Mrs Flychers room, Mrs Flycher joining her husband the Doctor is
also using the cellar to store the vials of pus he will extract from Alexa, so that he and
Flycher can taint the villages meat.
HOHLESBRUCK BRIDGE
The only stable crossing of the fast-flowing Taalbruck, this old stone bridge sees much use as
the start of the direct land route to Eldagsen and the other towns on the Delb.

SHRINE OF SHALLYA
An old wayshrine that has been maintained down the generations, its construction has passed
out of living memory. The villagers leave offerings of flowers and sometimes more valuable
sacrifices in times of sicknesses, while the weathered stone walls of the shrine itself can offer
valuable shelter to travellers caught in a storm.
HOHLESBRUCK MILL
Recently bought by Aloysius Faulebrand, Hohlesbrucks mill has been expanded and
improved: more than half of the flour produced here is taken out of town on Aloysius
wagons, for sale in towns and cities as far as Altdorf.
COMMON PASTURE
Technically the property of Mils Verloren as lord of the manor, this is one of the few fields
not turned to the farming of grain for the mill the villagers keep their animals here, with the
exception of the few fowl and goats in Bernhardt Flychers yard.
YILESES HOVEL
The home of the villages wise woman, the hovel has stood for almost as long as the village,
passed down from mother to daughter from time immemorial there is some speculation as
to what will happen when the current inhabitant dies, as she has no descendants, but it is
assumed she will pick a bright girl from the village to take her place. While the people of
Hohlesbruck respect Yilese as an apothecary and midwife, the hovels isolation has led many
of those from the surrounding towns and villages to tell stories of the Witch of Hohlesbruck
stories which may have a grain of truth in them.

CHAPTER I: Denial
Arriving at the Faulebrand residence, the PCs are thanked for their services and invited to the
open-air feast being thrown that night for Alexas engagement to Ricard: most of the village
will be in attendance. Meeting Alexa, she will mention that she feels unwell: any PC
qualified to recognise symptoms will notice that her complaints should be taken seriously.
Aloysius brushes them off, saying his daughter cannot miss her own banquet (for which he
has paid a great deal of money).
PCs who did not take up Aloysius job offer can find out about the feast from any passing
villager: it is open to the whole village, so they will hopefully seize the chance for free food
and alcohol.
THE FEAST
The feast is a chance for the PCs to
familiarise themselves with many of the
key players of the plot, and to gauge the
various rivalries and relationships in
Hohlesbruck.
At the banquet, the PCs can make the
acquaintance of Mils Verloren, Ricard
Talberg, Doctor Reifennen and Dionyse
Ribault, as well as the entire Faulebrand
family (if they have not already met).
Mils will keep himself to himself. If
approached, he will be polite and quiet,
unless a lower-class PC is insolent: he is
conscious of his station as lord of the
manor, but not unnecessarily arrogant.
Ricard will be jovial and hospitable, but
will not pay particular attention to the PCs
as strangers.
Doctor Reifennen is reasonably
approachable, also being a stranger in
town: it is reasonably easy to extract from
him that he was the one attacked by
bandits on the road, and he claims to have
been saved by the roadwardens. He sits as
close to Alexa as he can manage,
discreetly watching her.

If confronted with the fact that only
one rider came to his rescue, he will be
rather thrown, and say that by

roadwardens he meant one

roadwarden.

If pressed on the fact that the
roadwardens use pistols while the
bodies were clearly dispatched by a
sword, he will become offended,
challenge the PCs as to whether they
are calling him a liar, invoke his status
as a physician and stop talking to them.
Dionyse Ribault actively seeks out the
company of people like the PCs, as the
villagers distrust his foreign accent and the
nobles his appearance. He seems to know a
lot about the bandits, and makes
insinuations about the noble families to
anyone will listen:

Mils hates the proceedings and is
hiding it.

Ricard is marrying Alexa for Aloysius
money.

Aloysius is marrying off Alexa in
order to buy his way into the
aristocracy.

Having mentioned the above, Dionyse
is very amused by the hypocrisy of all
the fine and virtuous speeches.

Maybe some of them are even so
deluded as to believe their own lies (he
subtly implies Alexa).
If asked about his own business in town,
he will be jokingly mysterious, but suggest

that he will be leaving soon. If the PCs

avoid him, he will attempt to befriend
Ricard instead. If they ask him about his
origins, he will say he left Bretonnia
because he found it too restricting, and
praise the Empire as a land of opportunity.
The villagers will gladly point out Mils to
the PCs and tell the story of Esther and
Ricard, delighted to have a new audience.
If asked, they will tell them about
Reifennens arrival last night (looking
rather shaken), and Ribault (been in town
for a while, lodging on the edge of town
arrived around the same time as the trouble
with the robbers started, often vanishes for
days at a time). The general consensus
seems to be that hes invited himself to the
banquet.
Eckhart, the village idiot, claims to have
seen shadowy figures dancing around the
Faulebrand residence last night. No-one

believes him. He works up on Yileses

garden.
Towards the end of the banquet, Ricard
will make a speech, expressing all sorts of
fine sentiments towards Alexa, her family,
and the village. During Ricards speech,
Alexa faints and has to be taken away to
her room: Doctor Reifennen immediately
volunteers to help.
Watching them go, Ribault will make the
following observation, delivered to the
best effect if spoken from behind the PCs
when none of them knew he was there:
What have I been saying? Death of my
life, they are all the same. All pretences
most happy on the outside, when
underneath, something, it is rotten.
Grinning enigmatically, he will excuse
himself without explaining any further.

SHADOWS
This is an addendum to Chapter I that the players may not see anything of only the most
paranoid of PCs, or those whose suspicions have been roused by the events of the banquet or
the murdered bandits (or perhaps supernatural warnings, if the party contains a priest or
wizard), will keep watch that night, in which case they can see the following events.
Doctor Reifennen leaves the Faulebrand
residence very late he writes a letter and
delivers it to Verloren Manor himself,
before heading to the Flychers house and
taking up lodgings.
Ribault shadows the Doctor to the manor
he then returns to his lodgings, fetches a
raincloak, and heads out into the woods. If
the PCs follow, they see him find the
bodies of the bandits, examine their
wounds, take any valuables they have left,
and stand for some time in thought before
heading back to the village. He seems to

know the deceased, and doesnt exactly

grieve.
Both NPCs are glib enough to demand that
any PCs they encounter (either by spotting
them or being confronted) leave them
alone, stating that they have not done
anything wrong. Reifennen will insist that
his business with the Verlorens is private,
while if Ribault is confronted for looting
the bodies, he will claim he was planning
to take the items back to Lord Verloren as
evidence they were dead, and that
someone would have looted it if hed left it
there.

CHAPTER II: Anger

THE PRODIGAL SON
The next morning, Leopold Faulebrand Aloysius son - rides into town. Aloysius
is angry with him for missing the banquet,
which Leopold shrugs off. Hearing his
sister is ill, he wishes to see her, but
Reifennen denies him access, and
Aloysius complies. The village is abuzz
with the news, even if the PCs are not
present to see.
As soon as the PCs are in a position to
witness it, Leopold, who has taken up
lodgings at the inn, accosts Reifennen on

his way back to the Flychers, demanding

to see his letters of accreditation.
Reifennen is offended and refuses
(although he does in fact have them in
plentiful supply, from respectable places),
and an acrimonious confrontation
develops, ending with the doctor saying he
is not obliged to listen to Leopold and
striding off. Leopold will willingly speak
to PCs who get involved, and after the
confrontation, will spend most of his time
in the Heartless Man.

Leopolds Take
Leopold does not like the seemingly innocuous situation in Hohlesbruck at all: he is
extremely protective of his sister, and sees her being exploited on all sides.

As something of a rogue himself, he recognises Ricards monetary motive for
marrying Alexa, and points to how Ricard treated Esther.

He is also painfully aware of his fathers desire to marry Alexa into the nobility,
and sees Aloysius pandering to Ricard as shameful.

He also believes that the Faulebrands owe a debt of gratitude and friendship to
the Verlorens for their past in Hohlesbruck, which his father is sullying by
associating with Talberg he believes this is because Aloysius is trying to erase
the familys lowly Hohlesbruck origins by pretending they never happened.

He is suspicious of Reifennens obsequiousness towards his father, and
extremely alarmed by the sudden nature of Alexas illness.

THE VILLAGE IDIOT

If the PCs do not show any interest in
Eckhardts story during or immediately
after the banquet, have Eckhardt become
very animated at this confrontation, seeing
it as another sign that bad things are
happening, and try to tell them about the
dancers he witnessed last night.
If the PCs choose to visit Eckhart in
Yileses garden (any villager will point
them the way, while warning them to be

careful of Yilese), he will recount a very

basic story: he saw tall silhouettes
traipsing round the borders of the
Faulebrand estate, as if dancing. Then one
of them looked at him, and he was scared
and ran away. He is addle-brained, and
clues to the fearful identity of the dancers
will be muddled together with figments of
his imagination and his inability to clearly
express himself or comprehend the PCs
questions. The clue he is best able to

convey is the revolting smell of the

dancing daemons.
Unless they question him only very
briefly, Yilese will emerge to defend him.
Yilese is extremely sharp, and will issue a
cryptic warning not to get mixed up in the

marriage, as it is bad business. She is

easily annoyed, in which case she will
swiftly and fearlessly evict the PCs from
her property if they convince her they
mean well, however, she will speak with
them, and prove substantially more useful
and informative than Eckhart.

Yileses Thoughts
She suggests that Eckhart is not lying: he is too simple, and she recognises
elements of the Dance of Death from her knowledge of folklore, although she is
cryptic enough to protect herself from accusations of witchcraft or heresy.
It is her opinion that the gods punish heartlessness, and it is heartlessness that
will bring down their punishment on the Faulebrands. If the PCs attempt any
kind of discussion of her theological point, she will laugh at them, as she is not
referring to any of the gods of the Empire.
She knew the Faulebrands before they left Hohlesbruck decades ago, knowing
Leopold as a child, and can accurately recount the entire story. She implies that
she knows much about all the people of Hohlesbruck, even living so far outside
it alluding subtly to the Verlorens.
She will not easily recount the story of Esther and Ricard she is unaware of
Esthers scheme, and thinks people should leave the poor girl alone.
THE MISSING MAID

That night, Mils approaches the PCs: his

daughters maidservant has gone missing,
and Esther is in a state of great distress.
Having heard about them (from Aloysius
if they took his job in the Prologue, from
the villagers if not), he asks them to help.
Tracing the maids movements leads to the
Heartless Man, where she was last seen
she was enquiring about finding someone
literate, and Ribault volunteered. The
maid being rather flirtatious and not too
bright, he charmed her into agreeing,

plying her with alcohol she showed him

what she wanted read, and they left very
shortly afterwards, in order not to speak in
the landlords hearing. PCs who were in
the Heartless Man may actually have
witnessed this if they followed Ribault,
they will have seen him enter his lodgings,
and lost sight of him there.
Ribault was last seen heading off into the
woods by the member of the town militia
on guard, with a heavy rolled-up blanket
over his shoulder.

The Truth
Doctor Reifennens letter of the previous night was addressed to Esther, informing her
that he had arrived to help her plan Esther had given it to her maid to destroy, trusting
in her illiteracy and (mistakenly) in her loyalty. Curiosity got the better of her, leading
to the events of the evening - realising its value, Ribault knocked her out, and left the
village to dispose of the body, concealing it in a rolled-up blanket. If he was followed
from the Heartless Man, he will have been aware of it, and secretly left his lodgings via
the window in order to fool those watching the door.

Tracing Ribault into the woods leads to the

lair of the surviving robbers, to whom
Ribault entrusts the maid he does not
want her blabbing. If the PCs eavesdrop,
they hear Abel Korpen, the chief robber,
arguing with Ribault.

make this an evidently winnable fight,

particularly with the element of surprise.
The robbers are cornered, and will stand
and fight: Ribault, meanwhile, will flee via
a narrow, secret exit at the back of the
cave.

The robbers accuse Ribault of

jeopardising their scheme by
committing such a flagrant crime: they
argue he cannot return to the village.

Ribault responds by saying the scheme
was already ruined, pointing to the
slaughter on the road.

The robbers deny that it could have
been the roadwardens.

Ribault claims that Aloysius was
getting wary anyway, and that this
scheme with the letter will bring in a
much bigger profit. To placate the
robbers, he offers them the girl after he
is done questioning her about the letter,
asking only that they dispose of her
somewhere secret when they are done.

Ribault is extremely adept at evading

pursuit, and will vanish into the woods: if
the PCs chase him, ingenious efforts
should be rewarded, but Ribault has to
escape. If his knack for daring escapes and
his knowledge of the terrain do not suffice,
have him surrender and subsequently slip
out of their grasp through some cunning
scheme. He is a hardened criminal and will
happily murder anyone set to guard him
he is probably more than a match for many
PCs. However, he is not particularly
vindictive, and wont waste time finishing
an opponent who is not in a position to
threaten him if he could be running away.

At this point (i.e. before Ribault escapes

and before anything nasty happens to the
maid), the PCs will probably intervene
tailor the number of surviving robbers to

Depending on how much they tell the

Verlorens, Esthers maid will probably be
dismissed on her return to the manor in
any case, being illiterate, she unfortunately
is still none the wiser as to the contents of
the letter.

THE DUEL
On returning to the village, they will hear
that Leopold has struck Ricard, and the
two are to fight a duel at dawn. Leopold
can be found in the Heartless Man,
drinking heavily he fears Ricards skill

as a pistolier, having very little combat

experience himself. Local law permits a
PC to fight in Leopolds place, if any of
the party have befriended him and feel like
offering.

The Offence
Leopold, it transpires, has been drinking all day attempting again to gain access to
Alexas sick-room, when Ricard tried to prevent him (reasoning with him), he struck
him. As a noble, Ricard cannot let the offence stand, although he is not particularly keen
to kill his betrotheds only brother: if there was a Faulebrand capable of protesting to
him, he would gladly stand down. Unfortunately, Aloysius is on such poor terms with his
son, and so enamoured with his son-in-law-to-be that he sides completely with Ricards
slighted honour. Pacifistic or socially adept PCs might discover Ricards feelings, and try
to convince Aloysius to ask Ricard to step down, or persuade Leopold to apologise.

Unless the PCs prevent it (see above), the

duel is fought: neither combatant
particularly wishes to kill the other. If the
PCs do not interfere, Ricard will hit
Leopold, but aim (and succeed) to cause a
non-fatal wound: the various parties will
still refuse to apologise to each other, and
Aloysius will still side with Ricard, as
soon as he sees his son is not dead. As lord
of the manor, Mils presides, and will
declare the matter settled. Alexa,
obviously, cannot attend: this may be
useful in alerting the players to the

growing evidence that her condition is

serious.
Doctor Reifennen will try to treat
Leopold for his wound Leopold will
incoherently refuse, demanding of any PCs
who he has befriended that they take him
to Yilese instead. If the PCs do not
intervene, his protests are in vain, and
Reifennen administers a pre-prepared
poultice containing Alexas diseased blood
Leopold, too, is now infected with the
Rot.

CHAPTER III: Bargaining

If the PCs abandon Leopold to Reifennen,
he will sink into a fever and be taken back
to the Faulebrand residence, to rest in his
old room as a patient under Reifennens
care. He quickly becomes coherent again,
and refuses to allow Reifennen in to treat
him out of stubbornness, unknowingly
preventing the doctor from cultivating the
Rot further.
If the PCs take Leopold to Yilese, she will
treat him with a mixture of genuine
medical acumen and folklore. She is
amenable to anyone who helps Leopold,
and will answer questions to a certain
extent it is now possible to extract from
her that she attended Esther during her
illness, and a little of her opinions
regarding Esther and Ricard (she sides
decidedly with Esther)

There are tracks on the way to the cottage

that have clearly been made by a mans
boots: PCs who have tracked Ribault may
recognise his footprint. If the PCs attempt
to warn Yilese or persuade her to come to
the safety of the village, she will laugh at
them, saying that her mother and her
grandmother and their ancestors before
them lived here, and have endured much
worse than robbers, relating the story of
Black Gaerovald as an example of such a
peril. She clearly relies to a certain extent
to the superstitious aversion of bandits for
harming her family, and exploits it rather
effectively: she is ignorant of the fact that
Ribault, as a city-dweller and a foreigner,
is unlikely to pay such things any
attention.

THE LEGEND OF BLACK GAEROVALD

Once there was a great warrior named Gaerovald: he fought in the tribal wars of
unification under Sigmar, but when he returned home, he discovered his brother had
taken up with his wife, usurping his place as chief of the tribe. Sinking into the deepest
despair, he cut out his own heart Nurgle heard his lamentations, and it amused him to
grant the chieftain immortality. Unable to end his own existence, Gaerovald slaughtered
his wife and brother before cutting a swathe of devastation through the hills, cutting out
his victims hearts in search for a replacement for his own, with which he had cut out
his compassion and humanity.
Nurgles curse was such that Gaerovald could only be killed with the very sword that
cut out his heart his own sword. The chieftains of the tribes around Gaerovalds heard
of this, and, determined to end the menace to their people, freed the boldest thief in their
prisons, telling him that if he could steal Gaerovalds sword he would be pardoned. The
thief succeeded and Gaerovald was struck down: his body and his accursed sword were
buried somewhere in the hills near Hohlesbruck.
It is important for the PCs to hear this legend one way or another its a popular
local myth, so if Yilese does not get the opportunity to tell them, they can hear it from
the innkeeper of the Heartless Man, the Verlorens, or any villager who gets the chance
to relate it. The people of Hohlesbruck love to try and scare outsiders with the story,
saying that Gaerovald rises from the grave when Morrsleib is full to seek out hearts to
replace his own, or any number of similar embellishments to put the fear of the heartless
man in their audience.

Either leaving Leopold with Yilese, or not

having gone to her cottage in the first
place, the PCs find themselves back in the
village. When they return to their inn, they
find their landlord has been taken ill this
is the first sign of Reifennens plan being
enacted through Flychers butcher-shop.
At this point, either Eckhart comes
running into town, crying that his mistress
has been murdered, or Leopold comes
staggering after the PCs: Ribault appeared
at the cottage (having waited for the PCs to
leave if they went there at all), questioned
Yilese, and then killed her.
If it is Leopold who returns, he relates that

Ribault was initially civil, knocking at
the door and being admitted. After a
short conversation, however, Yilese
declared that she knew what kind of a
man he was, at which point he turned
nasty, questioned her much more
aggressively, and subsequently killed
both her and Eckhart (who tried to
defend her).

Leopold survived by lying very still
Ribault did not search the hovel, so did
not notice him.

Ribaults questioning took a peculiar
line he seemed to be asking about
Esther. He and Yileses conversation
was rather opaque to an outsider, but
the key questions were:
Ribault: Was it Talbergs?
Yilese: Yes.

Ribault: Does Lord Verloren know?

Yilese: .o.

Not knowing he was overheard,
Ribault told Yilese that he planned to
pay the Verlorens a visit after dark,
saying that she had confirmed that he
had something most interesting to
sell.
If it is Eckhart who returns, he relates that

He was in the garden and saw the man
approach. It seems Ribault deliberately
tried to unnerve him, albeit in a
mockingly friendly way.

He heard them arguing, and
eavesdropped on their conversation
because he was afraid the man would
hurt Yilese.

The man did hurt Yilese, but he was
too afraid to intervene. He overheard
the key questions in Leopolds
account, but these can only be got out
of him by guiding him very carefully
through his own confused story in
search of such information.

He overheard Ribault saying he was
planning to visit the lady (Esther)
Eckhardt only knows Esther through
the fact that Yilese treated her during
her illness, and will refer to her in
reference to this piece of history
(letting the PCs know about it if they
didnt already).

When he heard his mistress scream, he
started running and didnt stop.

The Truth
Having read Reifennens letter, Ribault is plumbing the depths of Esther and Ricards
story with a view to blackmail. Yilese treated Esther in her illness, and is the only one
who knows that Esther was pregnant with Ricards child she miscarried due to the Pox,
and she and Yilese kept it secret from the world. This is what the two questions refer to
was the baby Ricards, and does Lord Verloren know about the pregnancy or the
miscarriage? Ribault is rather pleased to discover that both answers make his blackmail
all the more effective, although the truth he already possesses about Esthers connection
to Alexas illness is more dangerous by far. His reason for hunting out this information
is more understanding Esthers motives (the better to manipulate her) than enhancing his
store of damning information and to be able to intimidate her by appearing omniscient
about her past.

Returning to the scene of the crime, the

cottage shows the clear evidence of
Ribaults actions by the time the PCs can
arrive, however, he has made good his
escape, taking Yileses old mare.
The PCs should hopefully seize the
moment and race Ribault to the manor:
though he has a large head start, he has
first headed into the forest, to leave his
insurance in the empty robbers cave.
Nevertheless, Ribault is still just ahead of
them: he secures entrance to Verloren
Manor through the servants quarters,
leaving his stolen horse in the stables and
killing a servant who notices him enter.
Ribault steals a ring of keys from the dead
servant and slips upstairs, letting himself
into Esthers chambers and commencing to
blackmail her, threatening to tell her father
and the authorities about both her
miscarriage and her plot to poison Alexa
unless she pays him an extortionate sum.
He claims to have written down his
suspicions and placed them in the hands of

a friend, along with the incriminating

letter: they will be made public if he is
killed or imprisoned.
Should the PCs burst in on them, he holds
Esther hostage, asking her if they are
working for her: when she confirms that
they are not, he does not try to bargain
with the PCs any further, escaping through
the window.
At this point, the PCs have two options:
pursue Ribault, or stay behind (and hear
Esthers account of his blackmail attempt).
Depending on how prompt the PCs were in
following Ribault, and how inclined to
eavesdropping they are, they may already
have overheard a part of it themselves
they are most likely only to have heard the
end (the miscarriage and the demand for
money). If they heard the beginning
(relating to Alexa), Ribault was cryptic
enough to prevent them immediately
understanding the plot, but its enough to
let them know that the Bretonnian thinks
Esther is somehow deeply implicated in
Alexas sickness, and that the Doctor is
working with her.

PURSUIT
Ribault is, as previously mentioned,
extremely resourceful when it comes to
evading pursuit: his flight should make for
an enjoyable challenge.

Ribault first descends from Esthers
window down onto the stable roof: the
PCs might have left one of their
number guarding his stolen horse, in
which case he will have to flee on foot.

Ribault flees towards the woods,
taking the road if he is on horseback,
and running through the open ground
surrounding the Manor if he is on foot.

If any PC becomes isolated pursuing
him, he will take any opportunity that
presents itself to lay a trap, perhaps
waiting behind a tree-trunk to stab
them: he will not hang around to finish

off his victims, hoping that wounded

friends will slow his pursuers down
more than dead ones.

A heavy fog has descended on the
lower parts of the woods. At this stage,
it becomes very easy to lose Ribault
clever PCs who lose sight of him may
guess that he is headed for the robbers
cave.

PCs who stay on Ribaults trail will
hear Reinhardt Anhame passing them
in the fog, catching a glimpse of a
cloaked, armoured rider on a great,
dark horse before he overtakes them.

If Ribault is cornered before he can
reach the cave, Reinhardt rides into
their midst, cutting down Ribault and
riding off into the darkness with his
head. His Chaos Steed does not tire

to Reinhardt, claiming that he is

guiltless and wants to recover
something the bandits stole from him.
Once he is close enough, he tries to
stab him funnily enough, that doesnt
work, and Reinhardt kills him.
Reinhardt will then ride away before
any PCs can challenge him.

and can weave expertly between the

trees he will easily lose any PCs who
give chase.

If Ribault reaches the cave, Reinhardt
cuts him off, waiting in front of the
cave mouth: deducing that this is
probably the knight who killed the first
group of robbers, Ribault guesses that
he is dealing with someone with a hero
complex, and tries to talk his way close

The PCs should be able to work out that Ribault was running to the cave for a reason if not,
an NPC can suggest it to them after they return. He was bluffing about his insurance, since
all the robbers are dead and he has no friends in the village the letter and his records of his
suspicions are stashed in the cave.
PAYMENT

If no PCs pursue Ribault, they can
instead hear Esthers version of the
blackmail attempt she will cut out
everything about Alexa, making it
seem entirely about the miscarriage.
Ribault specified when and where he
wanted the money left at the
Heartless Man, tomorrow at sunrise.
With his escape, she has no choice, but
cannot leave it herself without arousing
suspicions, so entrusts the PCs with the
task. Winning their sympathy should
be relatively easy with her story.

She gives the PCs what money she
can get together, along with items of
jewellery that make up the total Ribault
asked for in their value. When they go
to the tavern at dawn, however, Ribault
is not there: the sick innkeepers wife
says an armoured knight showed up
instead, clearly heavily wounded in the
chest, and left a package in Ribaults
name, saying some men would come

looking for the Breton and she was to

give it to them. Despite seeming in dire
need of medical attention, the man then
rode away.

The innkeepers wife will willingly
relinquish the package, which she has
been commanded not to open: it
contains Ribaults head, and a sealed
envelope addressed to Esther,
containing her letter and Ribaults
record of his discoveries.
Either way, the PCs should now have in
their possession the incriminating
documents: if they break the seal, Esther
will know they know her secret; if they
dont, she will still be paranoid about it.
Dismissing them under the pretext of not
wanting her father to know, she will pay
them anything they ask. The documents
themselves can be found under Maps &
Handouts they are Reifennens Letter and
Ribaults Insurance.

GM NOTES

The PCs may bring Ribault down before he can even reach the woods, or successfully
protect him from Reinhardt (in fact they should be given a chance to the sound of
approaching hooves is a bit of a giveaway).

In the latter case, Reinhardt will abandon the chase if they kill Ribault themselves, or if
they make it impossible for him to kill Ribault without killing all of them.

If this means they retrieve Ribault alive and retrieve the documents, this is the greatest
success they can achieve! Ribault will obviously try to betray them if he can on the way
back, but assuming they successfully get him somewhere secure, Esther and Reifennen
will be forced into desperate measures to stop him blabbing to the PCs in an effort to save
his skin: Reifennen will most likely find an excuse to poison him.

If they retrieve Ribault alive but dont have the documents, Ribault will remain silent,
knowing that the information about Esther is a bargaining chip he has to reserve for the
Verlorens alone. He will maintain his bluff of having left the documents with a friend,
telling Esther she has to release him for him to call said friend off its up to the PCs to
track the documents down!

If they kill him before he can make it to the woods, and arent figuring out where the
documents are, Reinhardt will find them and deliver them as in the bargaining branch (but
obviously without Ribaults head).

The PCs may read the documents and decide to go directly to the authorities with them:
unfortunately, the authorities are Mils Verloren, who refuses to believe their slanders
about his daughter, and will order them imprisoned if they press their allegations. If they
work this out and leave town to muster help, they will need to stop at a roadside inn
before they reach another town in which case skip straight to the Dance of Death
encounter in the next chapter, but in this new setting. Any significant help they manage to
obtain from outside town (e.g. a priest or witch hunter) will be killed by Reinhardt before
they can return to the village, leaving the PCs to face the Nurgle followers alone again: a
second attempt to raise help will be blocked by Reinhardt.

If the PCs make further enquiries about Yilese after her death, Mils will be saddened,
having valued her attentions to his daughter during her illness, and grown up with her
watching over the village: Aloysius acquired snobbery, however, leads to him pretending
to be almost completely ignorant of her existence prior to her murder while he is still
shocked by Ribaults actions, he will praise Doctor Reifennens scientific medicine over
the old womans folklore, prating about the danger of such peasant herbalists falling into
dark practices with wholly unintentional irony.

CHAPTER IV: Fear

The PCs may need the day following
Ribaults flight to be persuaded to revisit
the cave and find the incriminating
documents if they already have them,
then there are several possibilities.

If Leopold went to Yilese, and the
players have not read the
documents: Leopold is back in the
Heartless Man and very interested in
the events that have transpired,
believing they probably implicate
Ricard in some kind of shady business.
He persuades Mils to allow him and
the PCs to search Yileses cottage,
looking for evidence of what she knew.

If Leopold went to Yilese, and the
players know the contents of the
documents: Leopold suggests they
must steal them back. He will pay a
house-call to Esther on false pretences
while any PCs who care to join him
rifle her possessions to reclaim the
letter. They will find only its ashes in
the fireplace.

If Leopold was taken by Reifennen:
Leopold escapes his confinement and
runs off, forcing Reifennen to appeal
to the PCs to track him down.
In the third case, they will find Leopold by
the bridge, seemingly raving: he in fact
caught a glimpse of Reifennen speaking to

Reinhardt in the early hours of the

morning, after Reinhardt had killed
Ribault. He tried to follow Reinhardt, but
lost him.
By now he is seriously ill, although the
horrors of the Rot are not yet apparent
any qualified PCs will recognise this, and
this may be the beginning of an argument
with Reifennen about what care is
appropriate for the young man. Reifennen
defends himself by pointing out that
Leopold refuses to allow him into his room
to treat him.
Leopold is contagious. Characters
touching him may contract the Rot the
difficulty of the toughness test involved
depends on the mercy of the GM (as there
will be repeated risks of contracting this
disease in the finale, and the Rot may well
spell the end of a PC), but should probably
be low as long as the full symptoms have
not manifested themselves.
Regardless of Leopolds current status,
they should be made aware that more
people are now being taken ill all across
the village, in far higher numbers than
before. The villagers are now terrified that
Alexas falling ill heralded the onset of
plague.

THE DANCE OF DEATH

Growing increasingly fearful about these
inquisitive outsiders, Esther prays to
Nurgle to strike down the PCs in the same
way he did Alexa once the sun sets, mist
begins to pour down from the woods into
the village. At midnight, a Plaguebearer
and a troupe of Nurglings (see Tome of
Corruption) will materialise out of the fog
outside their inn, and dance the Dance of
Death around it. Either the PCs should
awaken themselves, or be alerted by an

NPC, as if the dance is not disrupted they

will all contract the Neiglish Rot, which is
effectively a death sentence. PCs who hear
the chanting and witness the dancing must
take a Willpower Test or gain an Insanity
Point; the fight with the daemons may well
cause further saves against Insanity Point
gain, at the GMs discretion, as hand-tohand combat with the legions of Nurgle is
likely to be particularly horrific. The
Nurglings will swarm anyone who attacks

the Plaguebearer leading the dance with

little or no self-preservation, while the
Plaguebearer itself will attempt to continue
the ritual for as long as is feasibly possible,
only breaking off to fight once it and in its
troupe come under serious attack. Once
they are defeated, the daemons corpses
dissolve into the Aether.

rider to convince them not to attempt to

raise the alarm themselves, publicly
making the link between the rider who
slew her father and the rider who killed
Ribault. She claims that the outlaw must
have been involved somehow in the
daemonic plot, and perhaps double-crossed
his masters.

Nevertheless, there will be witnesses to

verify the PCs story: Esther will
continually argue that there cant have
been actual daemons in their village, as
such things simply dont happen here. If
the PCs have voiced any suspicions of
Esther to Mils, he may begin to grow
uncomfortable with Esthers attitude
whatever the circumstances, he cant
ignore the incident, and sets off for the
nearest city, aiming to bring the matter to
the attention of the Witch Hunters.

As a result, the village is paralysed by

terror some may blame the PCs as
outsiders with the least provocation,
while many will cower inside their houses,
and work on the fields slows to a crawl.
With Yilese dead, every villager and his
dog comes up with his own superstitious
wards against Chaos, and doorways are
quickly festooned with rabbits feet,
daemonsroot, horseshoes, hammer
symbols, and other such talismans. The
PCs may have the same idea none of the
villagers methods are effective, but those
with the right skills to sift the wheat from
the chaff of folklore may be able to find
some minor help in the books Yilese left
behind.

Reinhardt intercepts Mils coach once it

is out of sight of Hohlesbruck, killing
Mils, the coachman and Mils servant. The
PCs may go to see for themselves: by the
time they reach the wreckage of the coach,
he is long gone, but the tracks of his horse
are easily recognisable, leading away into
the woods.
As the new lady of the manor, Esther now
avoids taking any action, shielding herself
and Reifennen she exploits the villagers
low expectations of her as a broken
woman, and invokes the spectre of the

There are two further effects that heighten

the superstitious panic gripping
Hohlesbruck: firstly, the fog lingers
unnaturally, becoming particularly dense
at night. Secondly, cases of sickness
continue to spread; the commoners cannot
afford Reifennens services, and with
Yilese dead, the peasants are on their own.

THE HORSEMAN HUNTS

Leopold now either escapes Reifennens
care (again) or approaches the PCs
normally: If Reifennen succeeded in
infecting him, he claims rather deliriously
that Reifennen is behind it all. If the PCs
kept him out of Reifennens care, he says
more rationally that since Reifennen sent
Esther the mysterious letter, the only lead
left to them is Reifennen. Either way, he
claims Alexa is worsening, that Reifennen

keeps everyone away and that there is a

bad smell coming out of her room.
Alternatively (or in parallel), the PCs may
investigate the rash of new sicknesses
across the village, and discover that all the
victims bought food from Bernhardt
Flycher.
Working on orders from Reifennen and
Esther, Flycher will approach them before

they can put any plan they compose into

action, saying he knows something about
the sickness, but that he cant talk publicly
he asks them to meet him at Yileses
now-abandoned cottage.
This is a trap: Flycher is not waiting for
them, but Reinhardt is, concealed in the
fog. He pursues them on horseback: they
can take refuge in the wayshrine of Shallya
on the path, which Reinhardt cannot enter,
or they can outrun him (difficult unless
they have mounts of their own) he will
not cross the bridge into Hohlesbruck, as
he does not wish to show himself to the
whole village.
PCs who rumbled Yileses slightly
heretical inclinations may think to ransack
the cottage for magical assistance: those
with the Magical Sense talent or academic
knowledge of alchemy will be able to pick
out two magical potions from the clutter of
tools and ingredients inside, one of which
is a Hair Tonic, the other of which is a
Potion of Pain Denied (see Realms of
Sorcery, p199-200) they require a Hard
Academic Knowledge (Alchemy) or Trade
(Apothecary) test to be identified, as they
are unlabelled. However, since nothing
stops Reinhardt from entering and he can
quickly cut his way through the door if it is
blocked, staying long in the hovel is not a
good idea.

they have a genuine chance to kill him, but

he will reclaim his weapon and retreat with
it as quickly as possible. In the unlikely
event of Reinhardt dying here, the plot can
still progress with Reifennen as the main
villain on the removal of his helmet,
Esther, Mils or Ricard might recognise
Reinhardt, for those PCs who wish to try
and solve the mystery of the heartless
knight. However, it is probably best if he
gets away.
Reinhardts Chaos Steed is not
indestructible, and killing it may give the
PCs a valuable opportunity to escape
(since the heavily-armoured Anhame
stands little chance of killing them on
foot).

If they shelter in the shrine, either Leopold

or Ricard (if Leopold is sick) will raise the
militia and come looking for them at
sunrise, forcing Reinhardt to retreat to
avoid being mobbed.

By now, it should be clear as day that

Flycher is their enemy: PCs with a knack
for public speaking or in positions of high
status can rally the village behind them,
exploiting Hohlesbrucks state of panic;
otherwise, the standard approaches of
stealth or straightforward violence are
obviously open. Hohlesbruck is too small
to have anything approaching a Watch,
and with everyone hiding from the
daemons out to eat their children, if a
bunch of armed toughs kick in someones
door, its actually unlikely that anyone will
try and stop them directly people will
run to Esther, who will take some time to
organise a response from the village.
Flycher will not answer his door to the
PCs or anyone else, and Reifennen will be
at the Faulebrands, very preoccupied with
Alexa he will refuse to see anyone, and
Aloysius will support him.

As a third alternative, if they show enough

fight, they might force him to retreat. Due
to the effects of the Sword of Gaerovald,
however, at this stage Reinhardt is
effectively indestructible (see the Cast
page for Reinhardt), and will only retreat if
he loses a limb or his head, returning to
Gaerovalds barrow to heal. An
enterprising PC might disarm him if so,

In Flychers cellar they can discover the

vials of pus that Reifennen has been
collecting (contact with the contents
requires a Toughness Test to avoid
contracting the Rot, with difficulty
depending on dosage), and how the doctor
and the butcher have been using them to
taint the meat: Flycher and his wife will
fight to the death, knowing that the

exposure of their secret means the Witch

Hunters pyre for them both. Flycher will
gloat freely (particularly if Leopold is
present) about Alexa already being lost,
and the plan already being too far
advanced to stop as a cultist of Nurgle,
he is not particularly bothered about selfpreservation.
If they bring Leopold with them, and
Leopold has been infected with the Rot,
then being brought into the inner sanctum
of the Nurgle-worshippers will trigger a
collapse. His uncontrollable vomiting and

fits of palsy may sound the alarm or terrify

any help they bring from the village.
With the evidence finally in their grasp,
they are now free to confront Reifennen. If
they didnt bring Leopold with them, he
runs up to them as they leave the Flychers
house, demanding to know whats going
on - once he knows, he will want to
confront Reifennen immediately. PCs with
a more measured plan will have
considerable difficulty preventing him
from doing so. Night is falling fast as the
final confrontation begins.

CHAPTER V: Acceptance
CONFRONTING THE TRUTH
Aloysius, his wife Johanna, and Ricard are
all already in the Faulebrand house with
Reifennen. Hearing of Flychers fate,
Esther will hurry down to the village,
hoping to forestall the PCs from exposing
Reifennen if they go straight to the
Faulebrand house, she cannot hope to get
there before them, but she will still try to
brass her way out of the situation by
demanding that these thugs (the PCs)
release the learned physician she is not
aware of what Reifennens grander plan
was, or the evidence he left in Flychers
house.
If the PCs broke the law in dealing with
Flycher, she will attempt to get the
villagers to help her arrest them, but once
the accusations of daemon-worship start
flying, any villagers present will start
being very circumspect about helping the
accused. She may attempt to counter this
by accusing the PCs of being the daemonworshippers this is only likely to work if
they have already got on the wrong side of
the villagers, but she will play on their
heavy involvement in events so far, and in
their being the only victims of the
unknown rider to survive.
At this point, Leopold will force his way
into the confrontation, mastering his
debility if he has contracted the Rot
(although in that case he will be almost
delirious) if the PCs have not done so
already, he demands that Reifennen gives
them the key to Alexas room. On his
orders, Reifennen is held downstairs he
doesnt want the doctor anywhere near his
sister.
Alexas sorry state is revealed: by now,
thanks to Reifennens ministrations, the
Rot is exceptionally advanced, and she has

nearly completed the agonising

transformation into a Plaguebearer,
rendering her almost completely
unrecognisable. PCs with an unobstructed
view of the sickbed should take a
Willpower test to avoid gaining an
Insanity Point.
Breaking down on witnessing her
handiwork, Esther will confess her part in
events: she does not apologise or repent,
instead professing her love for Ricard in
genuine distress.
I love you! Cant you understand - could
that thing have cared for you like me?
Ricard will have to be restrained from
striking her. If he is healthy, Leopold will
assist in restraining him, almost as
disgusted with Ricard as with Esther
regardless of his state of health, he will
lock the room again, saying that the PCs
must summon the Church of Sigmar to
deal with his sister. If he has the Rot
himself, he will realise his situation, and
include himself with his sister in his
evaluation of what must be done.
Reifennen remains to be dealt with a
healthy Leopold will want to kill him
where he stands, while a sick Leopold will
be incapable of doing so. Whatever the
PCs decide, they will have to head back
downstairs to confront the perpetrator of
the atrocity, who will confess any details
that remain unknown, taunting the PCs
that the village is already infected, and that
the Rot will spread.
My god has answered the poor girls
prayer. I take comfort that yours are
powerless to undo what I have done in His
name.

REUNION
Once he is done answering the PCs
questions, Reifennen will refuse to speak
any more, instead muttering prayers under
his breath to his god. PCs who care to
listen can hear the words:
Reifennens Prayer
Lo, let this night be solitary, let no
joyful voice come therein.
Let them curse it that curse the day,
who are ready to raise up their
mourning.
Let the stars of the twilight thereof be
dark; let it look for light, but have
none; neither let it see the dawning of
the day:
And let this night be exalted, in the
name of the Corrupter, the Lord of
Lost Heart, who eases our suffering
that we might understand its truth.
At this point, Reinhardt is already
approaching: he rides (or walks, if the PCs
previously killed his horse) over the bridge
into Hohlesbruck, and heads straight for
the Faulebrands house, emerging out of
the fog. Any villagers who at this point
dare to venture out of doors will scatter out
of his path he will cut down any PC who
for any reason is outside the house, but
will not pause to kill any opponent he can
freely pass to get to the house.
On arriving at the house, he opens the door
(forcibly if necessary), causing the
servants to flee in terror. With his last
reserves of pompous bluster, Aloysius
Faulebrand approaches him and
commands him to leave Reinhardt will
kill him in reply, unless the PCs prevent
Aloysius from getting too close. If the PCs
have gone in for due process rather than
on-the-spot execution, he may kill

Reifennen too, depending on whether they

give him an opportunity.
At this point, the PCs may wish to roll
initiative and attack their opponent (or
flee, if they were given a frightening
enough taste of Reinhardts invulnerability
in Flychers trap): Reinhardt forestalls
them, saying he has no quarrel with them.
He is, in fact, quite willing to talk: he is
here to talk to Esther and to kill Ricard,
and he plans on doing them in that order.

If any of the PCs are infected with the
Rot, he will know it by looking at
them, and welcome them as a brother.

Finding out what the PCs think is the
truth, he will set them straight about
the true reason for what has happened,
taking all responsibility on himself.

He sees Esther in the same state of
sorrow and suffering that he once
endured, and has come to relieve her
from it with the same enlightenment
that he received.

Once he states that his primary motive
is Esther, Ricard or Leopold will
interrupt, asking about the happiness of
others (i.e. Ricard and/or Alexa). He
then immediately drops his eerily
benevolent tone.
My new Father offered me two things.
Peace with myself, and a reckoning with
Talberg. I have already been granted the
first. I have come here to claim the
second.
Reinhardt then draws his sword on Ricard.
Ricard will attempt to talk him down, but
it is immediately apparent that this has no
chance of working.. What follows is a
complex fight that should serve as the
campaigns defining set-piece: it has the
following components.

Ricard fights, but quickly starts
looking for an escape route as he
realises that he is outmatched.


Reinhardt blocks off Ricards escape

routes, forcing him to retreat upstairs
towards Alexas room. His Chaos
Steed blocks off the front door, unless
it is already dead, in which case
Reinhardt will attempt to close it off
with an improvised bolt or barrier
before he begins.

Reinhardt has little interest in killing
the PCs now he will try and prevent
them from interfering, and is not
averse to setting the house on fire in
his wake to achieve this.

Leopold, if healthy, will fight: he now
sees Reinhardt as responsible for what
has happened to Alexa.

If she can, Esther will go so far as to
sacrifice herself to prevent Reinhardt
from killing Ricard this will disturb
Reinhardts fanatical composure, and
once he is free of other distractions, he
will carry her body away without
staying to fight anyone else.

The transformed Alexa will be driven
mad by Reinhardts proximity and tear
her way out of her room she, too, is
fixated on Ricard, and will kill him if
she can, although its unclear as to
whether her actions are hostile or an
insane show of affection. She
completely ignores everyone else, only
attacking any other target if the only
way to Ricard is through that person.
She uses Plaguebearer statistics, but
does not yet have the Cloud of Flies
mutation or the Stream of Corruption
ability.

If Ricard dies and Esther lives,
Reinhardt will take her, saying that
Nurgle has upheld his end of the
bargain, and she must uphold hers.

If Reifennen is still alive, he will
attempt to escape in the chaos.
Unless the PCs disarm Reinhardt and
claim Gaerovalds sword, they cannot kill
him here. If theyre already aware of this,
the fight is about organising a retreat that
will save everyone they care about, and
possibly trying to separate Reinhardt and

Esther. They can also get ingenious about

slowing him down, particularly if
Reinhardt or someone else starts a fire and
the house starts collapsing. If theyve got
this far without fully figuring out the
invulnerable nature of their opponent, this
fight will probably be where they find out,
as the vastly outnumbered Reinhardt fights
indestructibly on, and their retreat is likely
to be a little less organised.
There are three possible outcomes
(excluding Reinhardt killing everyone,
which needs no further elaboration):

Esther dies. Reinhardt takes her body
and rides away.

Reinhardt takes Esther and rides away.

The PCs take Esther.
The last requires the PCs to do the
planning: at this stage, its incumbent on
them to figure out how to defeat their
opponent. Verloren Manor and
Hohlesbruck Mill both offer defensible
positions to retreat to if thats what they
feel like doing, but their real priority has to
be working out how to kill Reinhardt.
Esther is their most powerful tool, and
while Reinhardt is unlikely to bargain with
them (he sees them as representing no
threat), his fixation on her can be used as a
very potent way of manouevreing him
where the PCs want him to be..
If Reinhardt rides away with Esther (alive
or dead), the PCs can commandeer
transport from the Faulebrand stables to
give chase. Reinhardt is headed for the
Gaerovalds barrow, deep in the woods
north of the village, and is easily followed.
In the tomb, Reinhardts behaviour
depends on whether Esther is dead or
alive.

If Esther is dead, he disinters
Gaerovalds remains to make way for
hers, giving her a reverent burial.

If Esther is alive, the dank vegetation
of the tomb forms a gateway to the
Garden of Nurgle in the Realm of
Chaos, through which she is pulled.

Reinhardt does not force her through,

but stands beside her and persuades
her: by this stage, she has lost so much
that she will, eventually, willingly step
through. Unless the PCs are
unorthodox to the point of heresy,
going with them simply means she will
be burned alive as well as damned.
Regardless of what Reinhardt is doing, he
will have put down Gaerovalds sword,
and this is the opportunity of the PCs to
kill him. His old sword is still here, as is
the decaying body of the Beastman
shaman if attacked and not killed
instantly, he will pick up his old sword and
fight.
If Reinhardt defeats his attackers (which is
definitely possible if he somehow gets

hold of the Sword again), he will not

deliberately kill them: he will prise the
Sword from their grip, saying that he is
done with Hohlesbruck and has more work
to do for Nurgle (recovering his religious
convictions if Esthers death shook them)
as does his opponent. He touches the
person who stole the sword as if blessing
them, and leaves, vanishing into the
woods: his touch inflicts a highly
infectious disease of the GMs choice on
his victim.
If one of the PCs already has the Rot, he
will address his comments to them instead,
and wont need to touch anybody before
he leaves: his recognition may be the first
clue the PCs have that something is wrong.

Epilogue
Hohlesbruck still remains to be dealt with:
excepting the actions of very exceptional
PCs, by now a large number of people will
be infected with the first stages of the
Neiglish Rot (and the far-gone Alexa may
still be wandering about). In a worst-case
scenario, Doctor Reifennen may also have
escaped. The PCs have the choice of going
to the Witch Hunters (in which case
Hohlesbruck will be burned to the ground,
and they themselves may well be
suspected of harbouring the disease), or of
fleeing the scene in which case many
peasants will flee the village as the plague
takes hold, unwittingly spreading the Rot
to neighbouring towns as Reifennen
planned all along. A third alternative, if
they can pull it off, is the PCs
ministering to the inhabitants of
Hohlesbruck themselves whether this
means medical attention or the business
end of a flaming torch is up to them, but
only very advanced wizards or priests have
any chance of genuinely curing the Rot in
even one individual.
For a GM who is inclined towards
recurring antagonists, The Lord of Lost
Heart offers plenty of opportunities.
If Reifennen escapes, he will continue in
his travelling practice, poisoning
communities to gain Nurgles favour:
tracking him down before he strikes again
could be an adventure in itself.
If Reinhardt survives, he makes for a
fearsome recurring enemy with the
business in Hohlesbruck concluded, the
last remnants of his old personality fade
into oblivion, leaving only the devoted
Champion of Nurgle. His wound makes it
unlikely that he can function for long in
plain view of society, but he could be
encountered working alone or with other
Children of Chaos in the dark places of the
Empire. If the players wish to pursue him,

a possible adventure is for them to try and

stop him making the inevitable pilgrimage
North to the Realm of Chaos for if he
reaches the seat of his lord, who knows
what kind of a monster might return?
The Sword of Gaerovald also makes for an
interesting enduring element: a PC will
have to wield it to slay Reinhardt, but even
if they resist its power, its being left to rot
in the barrow is exactly how Reinhardt
found it in the first place. The PCs may
decide to try and take it to some magical or
religious authority for destruction
another potential adventure in the offing,
as only the most powerful magic has a
chance of unmaking such a weapon, and
on the long journey, the sword will do
everything it can to find its way into the
hands of a willing wielder once again.
Characters who carry the sword without
wielding it may find calamity after
calamity befalling them, as Nurgles sword
attempts to drive them to the extremes of
sorrow that will cause them to take it up.
They might also be dogged by the
followers of Nurgle, who see the sword as
a sacred relic. If they leave the sword
behind, Hohlesbruck will soon contain
many souls lost in a sea of grief, their
minds ripe to become its new wielder
perhaps it will return in someone elses
hands to remind them of their carelessness.
If one of the PCs is a great warrior (as
Reinhardt was), it may even try to follow
them, unsatisfied with corrupting just any
human, and hungering after the souls of
heroes.
Finally, if Esther survives to step through
the gate in the barrow, her fate is unclear:
she might have been devoured by
daemons, sent mad, or remade as
Reinhardt was, a willing servant of Nurgle.
The Realm of Chaos being what it is, she
could reappear anywhere at any time, as an
enemy, messenger or omen.

Experience
The distribution of experience depends on a groups preferences for the speed of
advancement and a GMs on-the-spot judgement, but a rough guideline for the allocation of
experience in The Lord of Lost Heart would be:
Chapter 1:
20 XP for shadowing Reifennen
30 XP for shadowing Ribault
Chapter 2:
50 XP for defeating the robbers
20 XP for safely rescuing Esthers maid
30 XP for preventing the duel
30 XP to anyone who takes Leopolds place and defeats Ricard.
Chapter 3:
Up to 50 XP for successfully pursuing Ribault (with the full 50 being awarded if they
get as far as cornering him at the robbers cave)
Another 30 if they preserve Ribault from Reinhardt
20 XP for discovering more about the blackmail attempt than Esther wants them to
know (through eavesdropping or reading the letters).
Chapter 4:
20 XP if they successfully go through with Leopolds plan to search Esthers room
100 XP for surviving the Dance of Death
40 XP for surviving Reinhardts attack (50 if they kill his Chaos Steed)
20 XP for rousing the village against Bernhardt Flycher
50 XP divided by the number of PCs present for defeating the Flychers.
Chapter 5:
10 XP for remaining in control of the confrontation (i.e. facing down Esther prior to
Alexa being revealed, not allowing Ricard to attack Esther, not allowing Leopold to
kill Reifennen on the spot)
40 XP for surviving Reinhardts attack 50 if they manage to severely inconvenience
him (e.g. trapping him in a burning house, pushing him off a roof, etc.)
50 XP for escaping with Esther
50 XP for killing Reinhardt.
If all else fails, and a PC kills Reinhardt by disarming him in combat and taking up
the Sword of Gaerovald, that PC alone gains 100 XP.

THE CAST
Denizens of Hohlesbruck
Esther Verloren
Could that thing have cared for you like me?
Career Progression: Noble
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
27
31
30
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
1
10
3

T
34

Ag
36

Int
42

WP
35

Fel
41

TB
3

M
4

Mag
0

IP
1

FP
0

Skills: Blather, Charm, Common Knowledge (The Empire) (+10%), Gossip (+10%),
Performer (Musician), Read/Write, Ride, Speak Language (Reikspiel) (+10%)
Talents: Etiquette, Luck, Savvy, Schemer
Trappings: Good Quality Nobles Garb

The daughter of Mils Verloren, Esther was considered a beauty, and much sought-after by the
sons of noblemen around Hohlesbruck both for her looks and the future lordship of a
prosperous village. After a short while, the field was narrowed to just two suitors: the
handsome but flighty Ricard Talberg, and the honest and worthy Reinhardt Anhame.
Ricards family had bought him a commission in a Pistolier corps, while Reinhardts reason
for coming to the Middenland had been to prove himself in the Knights Panther: as the Storm
of Chaos approached, both men were called away, and her conscience forced her to choose.
Though fond of Reinhardt as a true and trustworthy friend, she was in love with Ricard, and
chose him heartbroken, Reinhardt rode out of her life. Afraid that they might never see each
other again, they spent Ricards last night in Hohlesbruck together some weeks after he had
left, she realised she was with child.
It was not long after that before the pregnancy had truly begun to show to any but a
practiced eye that Esther fell ill with the Green Pox. Tended to by the wise woman Yilese,
she survived, but was hideously scarred and lost the baby. When Ricard returned, she lost
him too, the young man trying to hide the fact that he was repulsed by her changed
appearance as he let her down gently. When Ricard swiftly began to court Alexa

Faulebrand, the daughter of her fathers wealthy ex-tenant, it was more than she could bear:
she prayed to any god who would answer her to make the pretty Alexa as ugly as she.
Nurgle answered her prayer. From her vantage-point in Verloren Manor, Esther watched a
thick fog envelop the village that night, growing thickest at midnight when strange, croaking
chants seemed to drift up to her ears. Daemons of the Fly Lord had come to Hohlesbruck,
and danced the Dance of Death around Faulebrand House. When the fog cleared, the sleeping
Alexa had been infected with the first seeds of the dreaded Neiglish Rot, and Esthers fate
was sealed.
Quiet and retiring since the trauma of the Pox, Esther is rarely seen around Hohlesbruck, not
liking to show her pockmarked face she is well-liked among the villagers, however, and
those who know her story tend to hold sympathy for her shabby treatment by Ricard. No-one
other than Yilese, however, knows of the lost baby: Esther has kept it a secret even from her
father. An intelligent young woman despite her fall from grace, she and Reifennen have the
Faulebrands in a vice that, without outside assistance, will surely destroy the entire family,
and perhaps the whole of Hohlesbruck.

Mils Verloren
I just want whats best for my daughter.
Career Progression: Noble, Politician, Noble Lord
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
Ag
44
36
36
38
36
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
M
1
14
3
3
4

Int
47

WP
47

Fel
49

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Academic Knowledge (Genealogy/Heraldry, Law), Blather, Command, Common

Knowledge (The Empire) (+10%), Consume Alcohol, Charm, Evaluate, Gossip (+10%),
Haggle, Perception, Performer (Actor), Read/Write, Ride, Speak Language (Reikspiel)
(+10%), Speak Language (Classical)
Talents: Dealmaker, Etiquette, Public Speaking, Master Orator, Savvy, Specialist Weapon
(Parrying)
Trappings: Best Craftsmanship Nobles Garb, Dagger

Hohlebrucks hereditary lord, Mils Verloren has been a solemn, quiet man ever since his wife
died giving birth to Esther. With no other children or surviving close relatives, he dotes on his
daughter, and is well-respected by the villagers, looking out for their interests and generally
governing the village in a responsible manner. While he is renowned as a fair man, the
villagers seldom trespass upon his time, preferring to sort most matters out among
themselves.

Ricard Talberg
You know, I dont think the army was the boy for me.
Career Progression: Noble, Pistolier
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
38
54
36
35
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
1
12
3
3

Ag
45

Int
33

WP
27

Fel
48

M
4

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Animal Care, Blather, Common Knowledge (The Empire) (+10%), Consume Alcohol,
Charm, Gossip (+10%), Read/Write, Ride (+10%), Speak Language (Reikspiel) (+10%)
Talents: Etiquette, Quick Draw, Public Speaking, Rapid Reload, Sharpshooter, Specialist
Weapon (Fencing, Parrying)
Trappings: Pair of Pistols with ammunition and gunpowder for 20 shots, sabre, Best
Craftsmanship clothing, Light Warhorse

A young man still, Ricard is one of the Talbergs of Eldagsen, a minor noble family that has
fallen from once-lofty heights into financial difficulties. A great charmer, but something of a
rake, he intended to marry Esther Verloren after a spell in the Imperial Army (which he
found to be rather too risky for his tastes), however, he returned to find her greatly
transfigured by the Green Pox, and decided against the marriage. He had intended to let her
down gently and leave Hohlesbruck, but was distracted by the advent of Alexa Faulebrand
eagerly pushed upon him by her ambitious father, he was both struck by her looks and by the
prospect of exchanging his aristocratic name for Aloysius Faulebrands money. Deciding
that Esther would get over it, he and Alexa were betrothed.
Outwardly a very confident, cheerful and charming man, Ricard is extremely self-centred
while he is not malevolent, he lacks the ability or the will to consider others feelings before
his. When faced by threats outside his everyday sphere of life, such as those he encountered
during the war, he is in fact something of a coward his main reason for leaving the
Pistoliers, though he seeks to hide it.

Aloysius Faulebrand
A fine match for both families, thats what I say.
Career Progression: Burgher, Merchant
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
34
29
31
32
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
1
12
3
3

Ag
35

Int
44

WP
35

Fel
32

M
4

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Common Knowledge (The Empire), Consume Alcohol, Drive, Evaluate, Gossip,
Read/Write, Ride, Haggle, Perception, Search, Speak Language (Tilean, Reikspiel (+10%)),
Trade (Merchant)
Talents: Dealmaker, Savvy, Super Numerate
Trappings: Good Craftsmanship Clothes, Dagger
Aloysius Faulebrand grew up in Hohlesbruck, a farmers son. Ambitious, once he became
head of the family, he left the sleepy village, heading instead to Altdorf: he has now returned,
a prosperous grain merchant, to make his mark on his ancestral home.
Aloysius now owns many of the fields around Hohlesbruck, villagers who have farmed them
down the generations now acting as his tenants he has also bought the mill, and makes
regular shipments of flour to Eldagsen and other river-trading towns, using his contacts in
Altdorf to good effect. As his personal coffers continue to swell, his overriding concern is
legitimising his wealth by buying a ticket into the aristocracy to this end, he has groomed
his daughter Alexa to be a nobles bride, and seized the chance to snare Ricard when he saw a
young nobleman going free.
Regarded by many of the villagers as far too big for his boots, but too important a figure
financially for them to openly disrespect, Aloysius is excessively proud, demanding a
disproportionate amount of respect for his station. He plays down or perhaps wilfully
ignores Ricards history with Esther, having only returned recently to Hohlesbruck and thus
been absent for most of it: he does not see himself as owing any debt to the Verlorens, hoping
in fact to rise above them in the social hierarchy with his daughters marriage.
His greatest disappointment is Leopold his son having no interest in the family business,
and remaining behind to pursue a dissolute life in Altdorf, is perhaps one of the main reasons
for his obsessive nurturing of his daughter to further the family fortunes. His wife, Johanna,
follows him in all things, perhaps unfairly believing her husband to be far cleverer than
herself.

Leopold Faulebrand
Alexa always had a soft head.
Career Progression: Burgher, Rogue
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
36
34
32
31
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
1
14
3
3

Ag
42

Int
41

WP
37

Fel
44

M
4

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Blather, Charm, Common Knowledge (The Empire) (+10%), Drive, Evaluate,
Gamble, Gossip (+10%), Read/Write, Haggle, Perception, Performer (Storyteller), Search,
Speak Language (Breton, Reikspiel (+10%))
Talents: Dealmaker, Luck, Suave, Streetwise.
Trappings: Shortsword, Good Quality Clothing
Aloysius son, Leopold was barely more than an infant when his father uprooted his family
and moved them to Altdorf growing up on the streets of that city, his character has been
formed as a city-dweller, retaining only childhood memories of Hohlesbruck. Streetwise and
independent-minded, he rebelled against the pomposity of his father, pursuing a rather
dissipated life with the money Aloysius allowed him, and finding other ways to make his
own. Seeing his more easily-led younger sister fall under Aloysius shadow, he has tried to
defend her against her father while the two siblings are fast friends, Aloysius still holds a
great influence over Alexa that Leopold resents.
On hearing of Alexas engagement to Ricard, he has returned to his childhood home
ostensibly to attend the celebrations, but in reality to evaluate Ricard. He is more than ready
to hate his sisters suitor, particularly as his father approves of him so much.

Alexa Faulebrand
I dont feel too well...
Career Progression: Noble
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
28
29
31
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
1
11
3

T
31

Ag
34

Int
27

WP
30

Fel
41

TB
3

M
4

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Blather, Common Knowledge (The Empire) (+10%), Performer (Musician), Charm,
Gossip (+10%), Read/Write, Ride, Speak Language (Reikspiel) (+10%)
Talents: Etiquette, Suave
Trappings: Best Quality Dress
Aloysius pretty daughter, Alexa has been spoiled ever since the Faulebrands fortune was
made it has not had a particularly unpleasant effect on her character, however, being sweet
and outgoing, if a little dim. Shielded from the realities of the world and raised according to
Aloysius somewhat distorted ideas of an aristocratic education, she is rather naive, and slow
to suspect anyone of malevolent intent.

Yilese
Take it from an old wife: theres more to old wives tales than yon
doctors like to admit.
Career Progression: Hedge Wizard
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
31
30
32
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
1
12
3

T
36

Ag
35

Int
45

WP
46

Fel
41

TB
3

M
4

Mag
1

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Haggle, Intimidate, Channelling, Trade (Apothecary), Heal, Magical Sense,

Perception, Search.
Talents: Hedge Magic, Petty Magic (Hedge), Savvy, Coolheaded
Trappings: Healing Draught

Yilese is Hohlesbrucks resident wise woman, known apocryphally to many outside the
village as the Witch of Hohlesbruck. She serves the village as an apothecary and midwife
many of the villagers owe her their health or their lives, ensuring she is never caught up in
one of the waves of witch-finding that tend to sweep the Empire. Nevertheless, she lives
outside the boundaries of the village, growing her own food in an eccentrically-ordered
garden, and the villagers hold her in a mixture of fear and respect.
Yilese occupies the same role that her mother and grandmother before her did, the tradition of
Hohlesbrucks wise woman going back through time immemorial with no children of her
own, the future of the post is uncertain, but despite by now being white-haired and wrinkled,
she shows no signs of failing health. Hard-headed and significantly more intelligent than
most of Hohlesbrucks inhabitants (poor and wealthy alike), she keeps a matriarchal eye on
events in the village from her remote position, and has a strong sense of moral judgement.
As well as acting as a doctor, Yilese has an almost encyclopaedic knowledge of local
folklore, including the most accurate form of the Legend of Black Gaerovald. Many people
come to her asking in a roundabout way for magical remedies, to which she replies that that
would be against Sigmars law, and sends them away with something completely mundane...

Outlaws
Dionyse Ribault
If you had one thousand marks, you could hear it all... but
Madame Verloren, I think she will pay.
Career Progression: Protagonist, Racketeer, Assassin
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
Ag
51
46
46
39
50
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
M
2
16
4
3
4

Int
37

WP
46

Fel
41

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Common Knowledge (The Empire, Bretonnia), Dodge Blow, Evaluate, Gossip
(+10%), Intimidate, Perception, Shadowing, Ride, Speak Language (Reikspiel), Scale Sheer
Surface.
Talents: Disarm, Flee!, Menacing, Quick Draw, Suave, Street Fighting, Streetwise, Strike
Mighty Blow, Strike to Injure, Strike to Stun
Trappings: 2 daggers (1 at belt, 1 in boot), Good Quality clothing, rain cloak, tricorn hat.
Dionyse Ribault grew up in the city of Couronne a peasants son, he quickly realised that
Bretonnia was stifling him, and headed East.
Ruthless and predatory, he has travelled all over the Western Empire under a variety of
names changing them whenever he has to escape a murder or a robbery. He is something of
a hedonist, relishing life to the full, and takes a dark excitement in risky crimes. Always welldressed for someone of his low social class, he deports himself with a great degree of
swagger and confidence, claiming it is in his character to live well: if society denies him the
means to do so, he must take them from society.
He has been in Hohlesbruck for a little while now, spying on the Faulebrand cargo shipments
to Eldagsen for a band of robbers on the road. He bores of this work-a-day felony, however,
and is looking for something bigger and more daring. He has little respect for Korpens
outlaws, being a far more accomplished criminal and killer than they are.
The villagers distrust him because he is a foreigner, because he is mysterious about his
reasons for being in Hohlesbruck, but most of all, because hes clearly not a nice man.

Abel Korpen
Rich pickings, lads, if that Breton would get off his arse...
Career Progression: Outlaw, Veteran
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
42
40
36
37
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
2
13
3
3

Ag
45

Int
30

WP
30

Fel
29

M
4

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Animal Care, Common Knowledge (The Empire), Consume Alcohol, Concealment,
Dodge Blow, Gossip, Intimidate, Perception, Ride, Scale Sheer Surface, Secret Signs (Thief),
Silent Move, Speak Language (Reikspiel), Swim
Talents: Rover, Strike to Stun
Trappings: Two axes (hand weapons), Crossbow, Leather Jack

A brutish and unintelligent man, Abel Korpen was the head of a band of robbers living handto-mouth until he met Dionyse Ribault in a tavern outside Eldagsen overhearing Korpen
talking about the vulnerable wagons travelling to and from Hohlesbruck, Dionyse devised
their current plan and set it into motion.
Korpen and his men are now making a much greater profit than they were before, but are
stuck in a grotto in the forest, awaiting their next victim as with all small-time criminals
who get a taste of something bigger, they begin to grow restless, and blame Ribault for
holding them back. Korpen himself is likely the first to make trouble, being naturally a
belligerent, unpleasant character.

Children of Nurgle
Doctor Stefan Reifennen
I thank the gods that fortune brought me here in time to help.
Career Progression: Barber-Surgeon, Physician
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
34
32
35
39
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
1
15
3
3

Ag
46

Int
61

WP
50

Fel
41

M
4

Mag
0

IP
4

FP
0

Skills: Academic Knowledge (Science, Daemonology), Charm, Common Knowledge (The

Empire), Drive, Gossip, Haggle, Heal (+10%), Perception, Read/Write, Speak Language
(Reikspiel) (+10%), Speak Language (Classical), Trade (Apothecary) (+10%)
Talents: Inured to Chaos, Resistance to Disease, Strike to Stun, Suave, Surgery
Trappings: Physicians clothes (Good Craftsmanship), Trade Tools (Physician), Spectacles,
Persistent Cough.
On the outside, Stefan Reifennen is an educated, urbane man a qualified physician, of the
rare kind whose services only the wealthy can afford. Beneath his genteel exterior, however,
the good doctor is in fact a secret worshipper of Nurgle what events in his past turned him
to the path of damnation, none can say, but he seems drawn to the promise of power in his
lords service, abusing his position as a medical man to spread contagion and suffering rather
than relieve it. It seems very likely that Hohlesbruck is not the first town to fall victim to his
ministrations.
Reifennen presents a very mild-mannered, well-educated facade: his true character is that of a
cunning, ambitious schemer. He has an easily-injured pride, and quietly regards himself as a
genius in a nation of imbeciles: an egotism that he does not yet perceive is at odds with the
gospel of his master.
He has been brought to Hohlesbruck by Reinhardt, who slaughtered the group of Korpens
men who attempted to waylay the doctor on the Eldagsen road. He recognised Nurgles mark
on Reinhardt, and on hearing the story of Esthers prayer, realised the immense potential of
the village a chance to cultivate an outbreak not just of the plague, but of the Neiglish Rot
itself. He can use Flychers meat to contaminate the village, and then the villagers themselves
will contaminate the cargoes of flour that travel as far as Altdorf. If nothing else can gain him
the favour of Grandfather Nurgle, surely this will...

Bernhardt Flycher
What do you want?
Career Progression: Tradesman, Initiate of Nurgle
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
Ag
42
30
36
43
40
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
M
1
13
3
4
4

Int
40

WP
46

Fel
27

Mag
0

IP
5

FP
0

Skills: Common Knowledge (The Empire), Gossip (+10%), Drive, Haggle, Intimidate,
Evaluate, Perception, Read/Write, Secret Language (Guild Tongue), Speak Language
(Reikspiel), Trade (Butcher, Piemaker).
Talents: Savvy, Resistance to Disease
Trappings: Cleaver (Hand Weapon)
Mutations: Extra Ear (self-amputated)
Hohlesbrucks village butcher, Bernhardt Flycher was always a surly, taciturn man some
time in his thirties, he became much more so, with the whole village being worried for him
for a week or so when he was not seen by a single living soul.
This was because he had grown an extra ear in the night. Having the tools to hand, he cut it
off and bound the wound, but every night it grew back. Begging the gods for healing to no
avail, he eventually turned his entreaties to darker beings when he implored the Fly Lord
for mercy, the cursed regrowth finally ceased, allowing him to venture once more into the
light.
Since then, Flycher has fallen deeper into the Plague Lords service he is a little insane, and
silently resents the happy, clean villagers he sees passing in and out of his shop. Only his
wife knows his secret a beaten, cowed woman, she has participated in Flychers
blasphemous prayers, and is at much at risk from the Witch Hunters as he, keeping her
fanatically loyal to her brutal husband. With Doctor Reifennens arrival in town, Flycher is
overjoyed at the opportunity to serve his dark god, to drag the rest of Hohlesbruck down into
the squalid world he inhabits, and perhaps reap the rewards of his service...

Reinhardt Anhame
The faith of your gods is a childs creed of denial. Embrace
your despair, and end your suffering.
Career Progression: Squire, Knight, Chaos Marauder, Chaos Warrior, Chaos Knight
Main
Profile
WS
BS
S
T
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
56
36
46
57
46
37
43
36
Secondary
Profile
A
W
SB
TB
M
Mag
IP
FP
2
18
4
5
4
0
0
0
Skills: Academic Knowledge (Genealogy/Heraldry, Strategy/Tactics), Animal Care, Animal
Training, Charm, Command, Common Knowledge (The Empire, Chaos Wastes), Consume
Alcohol, Dodge Blow, Follow Trail, Gossip, Intimidate, Outdoor Survival, Navigation,
Perception, Ride (+30%), Search, Secret Language (Battle Tongue), Speak Language
(Reikspiel) (+10%), Speak Language (Dark Tongue, Classical)
Talents: Chosen of Chaos, Etiquette, Fearless, Hardy, Orientation, Menacing, Specialist
Weapon Group (Cavalry, Two-Handed, Flail), Strike Mighty Blow, Strike to Injure
Trappings: Heavy Armour (Full Plate of a Knight Panther with all insignia removed), Sword
of Gaerovald, Validus (Chaos Steed)
Mutations: Cloud of Flies (not always apparent they hide inside his chest cavity)
Rewards: Heartless, Mark of Nurgle
Validus
Main
Profile
WS
40
Secondary
Profile
A
1

BS
0

S
46

T
46

Ag
31

Int
11

WP
21

Fel
0

W
24

SB
4

TB
4

M
8

Mag
0

IP
0

FP
0

Skills: Perception (+10%), Swim

Talents: Acute Hearing, Keen Senses, Natural Weapons, Strike Mighty Blow, Strike to
Injure
Mutations: Fangs

The Sword of Gaerovald

Heartless

The Sword of Gaerovald is a Chaos Weapon

(see Tome of Corruption). It counts as a Best
Quality Sword (Hand Weapon), with the
following special rules:

A character with the Heartless Chaos Reward

literally has no heart. They are animated by
sheer force of will, and lose any remnants of
joy or love in their souls.

Corruptor
Anyone picking up the Sword of Gaerovald
must pass a Willpower test or gain 1d10/2
Insanity Points. If this causes a character to
go insane, they automatically gain the Heart
of Despair insanity. Such characters will not
relinquish the sword under any
circumstances, and if and when they are
driven to kill themselves, they will use the
sword to cut out their own heart, invoking
the swords second rule. A character
wielding the sword finds it difficult to
appreciate life even if they pass the
Willpower test, seeing the futility of their
actions, the hypocrisy of their companions
and the bleak hopelessness of the future all
too easily.

A Heartless character cannot be killed: they

take wounds as normal, but suffer no adverse
effects from Critical Hits, except those which
sever the head or a limb: even then, their
bodies retain independent movement. They
need only return to the place where they cut
out their heart for all injuries to be healed.

Sufferings Cessation
Provided that someone else under the effect
of this rule is not still alive, someone who
cuts out their own heart with the Sword of
Gaerovald will not die: instead, they will
gain the Heartless Chaos Reward.

They no longer need to sleep, eat, or perform

any other bodily functions their body is a
walking corpse, held upright by Nurgles
power and sheer force of will.
A Heartless character gains immunity to all
effects based on pain, pleasure, fatigue or
desire, as they no longer have the capacity to
feel these things. The knowledge of their own
invulnerability also grants them the Fearless
talent.
The only way to kill a Heartless character is
with the weapon that cut out their heart: that
weapon inflicts Critical Hits as normal, using
the Sudden Death rules.

Reinhardt Anhame was a loyal son of the Empire when he competed for the hand of Esther
Verloren an initiate of the Knights Panther, he was honest, brave and true. It was Chaos
silent triumph when he fell head over heels in love with the young Esther, a competition in
which he was doomed to fail Nurgles victory when inevitable rejection plunged him into
the depths of despair.
Riding away to fight in the Storm of Chaos, Reinhardt attempted to lose himself in the pursuit
of martial perfection, rising rapidly through the ranks of the Knights. Towards the closing
days of the war, his troops march brought them close to the north of Hohlesbruck the
familiar terrain roused old memories in his breast, and Reinhardt sank deeper into depression
than ever before.
The knights were alerted by the locals to what they assumed were beastman troop movements
preparing for a night assault, they tracked the beasts to an ancient barrow in the forest. The
monsters had gathered to worship the tomb taking the opportunity, the knights attacked,
using the element of surprise and their superior training to meet their enemies superior
numbers on an even footing. The beastmen fought back with shocking ferocity when the
din of battle cleared, only Reinhardt and the beasts shaman remained standing.

The mutant sorcerer fled inside the barrow, Reinhardt pursuing inside the ancient tomb, he
found the beast with its back to an open stone sarcophagus, braying a warning to him to stay
back. Having little care for his own life, Reinhardt attacked instead defending its
blasphemous shrine with an unholy fury, the monster bested him, knocking his sword away
into the shadows. Falling across the open coffin, Reinhardt saw the withered skeleton of the
man within it held a sword before the beastmans stave could crush his skull, he seized it
up, driving it up to the hilt in his enemys chest.
It was as he removed the sword from the beastmans body that the first waves of sorrow
washed over him he had lost his company, lost his commander. If he returned as the sole
survivor, it would not be in glory but in shame. Then, the thoughts of Esther, sitting safely at
home so few miles to the south, began to overwhelm him unaware that the rising tide of
despair was flowing from his contact with the sword, he broke down and wept, his soul
opened to the dreadful emptiness of the world he perceived. In that moment, he saw that to
feel was to suffer, that the only solace was in embracing the futility and bleakness of life
and that that message was Nurgles kindness, comforting his children on their long road to
the grave.
Turning the sword on himself, he cut out his heart, that he might feel no more animated by
Nurgles power, he did not die, but rose a new man. Nurgle had given him freedom from
pain, freedom from suffering and freedom from desire and in return, taken his potential for
happiness, the remains of his love, and his soul. Such things were finite and futile, in any
case. He was driven now by a new purpose, one that invigorated rather than drained him
bringing Nurgles message of acceptance of the inevitable to the rest of the world.
A fragment of his old personality lingered, however it asked his new Father for one boon,
and Nurgle indulged it. He prayed to be allowed to show Nurgles truth to Esther Verloren
and to bring the reality of suffering to the thoughtless pleasures of Ricard Talberg. For this
reason, he has returned to Hohlesbruck, and become the shadowy architect of the events of
The Lord of Lost Heart.
Reinhardt appears as an armoured knight, his tarnished armour dull and devoid of insignia
he wears a tattered, black cloak and cowl over the top of his armour, and his chest is wrapped
with dirty bandages, both under and over his breastplate. They conceal a jagged rent in the
metal, beneath which is the open wound leading into his ribcage: the heart is missing, the
other organs shrivelled and clinging to the sides of the hollow cavity, which swarms with fatbodied flies and their larvae. Should the bandages be pierced or torn aside, the flies will
swarm out, blinding and choking his assailants.

Maps and Handouts

Map of Hohlesbruck

Reifennens Letter

Ribaults Insurance