SECRET CITY - BATTLE MAPS#1 | SECRET CITY p2 [FREE] (Patreon)

SECRET CITY HISTORY

The city found by the heroes and their opponents has a thousand-year history, which the heroes can learn gradually by discovering ancient runes on the walls, scrolls with scraps of information, examining the local architecture.

A sacred place. The civilization that used to live here left this place for a reason. The Ancient Spirits did not agree with the construction of a great city on their territory. They sent diseases and curses, but it could not stop the people who were greedy to mightiness. The Ark dynasty wanted to build the richest city in the world, populated by the best creators and philosophers.

The madness. The spirits retreated for a hundred years, but only to return with incomparable power. This power drove people and animals crazy, making them see terrifying pictures from the non-existent worlds, fear every rustle, rush at each other with weapons, and flee away from these places. The locals tried to use this power, to guide it in their direction but did not have time to accomplish what they had planned. Powerful energy can still be felt in every stone in this land. And the heroes will have the opportunity to harness it.

The great king. Only one man has not left the city. This is the last king Ark, whose great ancestors built such a beautiful but cursed city. He refused to leave the city because it was he who led it to greatness in the darkest times. Ark still sits on his throne as a hostage of the ancient spirits, mocking at his fate every day. They use the power of his dynasty's blood to hide the city from the eyes of the destructive civilizations that occupy the lands around it.

If the king, the last of his great dynasty, falls, the city will fall too.

ANCIENT SPIRITS

Supernatural and unknown forces pierce every space of the city and its surroundings,

Poisoning the reality. The spirits are immortal and almighty, but they can only influence the lands under their control. The Secret city and the forest around it are their fiefdom. Slowly but steadily, they poison tissue of the reality, replacing it with their own, outside of their domain. Even if it takes a million years to seize all the lands, the spirits are in no hurry - they don't worry about the time.

The territory of the spirits is inhabited only by those creatures that are allowed to live here. Strangers are not welcome here, even if they are known for their righteous and good deeds for thousands of miles around.

Means of defense. The spirits themselves are unable to cause physical harm to unwanted guests in their territory. But they can find intermediaries, filling them, like a vessel, with poisonous power and forcing them to fight back the invaders.

MEANS OF FIGHTING AGAINST THE STRANGERS
1. Poison the wind for some time that will bring diseases to the enemies.
2. Fill the dead bodies of creatures with power and lead them to protect their lands.
3. Send a storm to the territory, depriving everyone who is caught by it of strength.
4. Send a dense fog to the city in which those who are weak in spirit will see their own fears and go mad.
5. Raise the undead from the bowels of the earth at night and don't give the strangers a single hour of rest.
6. Use the territory captured by the wild forest, which prevents the enemy from advancing - bring down stones on them; deprive them of the ground under their feet; use birds, insects, and rodents to slow down the enemy.

Regularly change the tactics of the spirits, not letting the heroes relax. At some moments, it can seriously complicate the life of the heroes, and at some points, it can be a happy rescue from a difficult situation.

UNDER THE ORDER'S CONTROL

The Order arrived in the Secret city before the heroes. In a hurry, under the guidance of their leader, they are trying to find a great reward in the city, not fully aware of how dangerous it can be.

Watchful soldiers. Barely entering the city, the heroes will find their enemies patrolling territories. The Order knows that the enemy is about to arrive and is ready to meet the heroes.

Scouting the area. The Order does not want to stay for a single day here, so it has dispersed throughout the city, looking for a way to get to the Great Palace (8), where the main mystery of the Secret city is hidden.

Careless searches. Fulfilling the Order's goal, the soldiers use blunt and dirty ways. They invade the sanctuaries, scatter ancient books and writings, and destroy the doors and chests they can't open. The ancient spirits benefit from such thoughtless interventions, so they start a hunt for the Order.

CITY TERRITORY

The Secret City is less and less able to resist the wildlife around it, so many places are almost completely swallowed up by vegetation and forest, where the ancient spirits are especially powerful. The inhabitants, leaving their native places, wanted to preserve the wealth left by them and set many traps in the city.

SEARCHING FOR THE KEY

The main task of the Order and the heroes is to find a way to enter the palace through a large gate, protected by magical energy. They will need to collect a key that can be anything - the real name of the last king, scraps of a spell, or a shining crystal.

GM can show the heroes the entire city, hiding the fragments of the "key" until the heroes visit all required locations. Alternatively, GM can hide the "key" fragments in certain locations. In this case, the heroes should be rewarded for visiting the places where the required fragments were not found.

SPECIAL AWARDS FOR THE SEARCH
1. A spearhead causing additional damage to the spirits' creatures.
2. A quiver with arrows that ignore the magical weather effects sent by the spirits (for example, do not change their trajectory during the storm).
3. A handful of magical coins that attract the attention of the spirits' creatures when thrown.
4. A coat made of special fabric that ignores the magical effects of the spirits.
5. A vessel with water that removes the effects of poisoning and weakness.
6. Scrolls with spells that allow using the spirits' power for instant levitation, high jump, leap forward, teleportation. They can be used only once.

1. OBELISK OF THE ARK DYNASTY

A long and wrecked bridge leads to a small square with an obelisk. The structure is dedicated to the Ark dynasty and mentions all its dead members - the great rulers, architects, craftsmen, scientists. Only the last king who ruled the city in the last days of its life is not on this list yet.

- The area is intensely patrolled and observed by the Order in the daytime and when the ancient spirits do not send attacks on the city that worsening the visibility and vigilance of the guards.

- The Order takes the looted items here, sealing them in boxes and preparing to load them into their carts for a soon departure.

2. WESTERN CITY

Crossing the bridge on the left hand, the heroes get to the Western city, the city of watchers - a place of commoners. Dense houses and multiple intersecting streets are gradually captured by the surrounding vegetation.

- The Order tries to patrol and watch the area, but the attacks of the ancient spirits and the traps left by the locals make it difficult to search for the valuable items.

3. ARENA

To the south of the Western city, the arena that used to serve as the main entertainment for the city residents is located. Not only fights but also performances and even lectures were held there.

- Now a camp of the Order occupies the arena's territory. The most valuable findings can be found deep into the arena and are strictly guarded.

4. TEMPLE OF MANY GODS

A huge semi-collapsed temple, the ruins of which hide a dark dungeon for sacrifices.

- Warriors of the Order have already descended inside the dungeon, but many of them got wounded or fell ill because of the cursed items and traps inside. Now they are arguing about whose group will have to go down there again.

5. EASTERN CITY

The city of creators. It was home to those who brought former glory to the great city. Architects, craftsmen, merchants, scientists, poets, philosophers - the city absorbed only the best.

- It temporarily hosted the best squads of the Order and their commanders.

- As in other parts of the Secret City, beautiful architecture is inseparable from the predatory feats of the wild forest that sprouts through any obstacles.

6. ACADEMY

In the old days, it was the only educational institution for hundreds of miles. The main library was taken out of the city, but interesting records about the history and the ways to counteract the ancient spirits can be still found here.

- Several squads of the Order view the city from this location, while the others search many secret rooms of the academy that contain useful things.

7. ASSEMBLY SQUARE

This is a square for assemblies in case of important news and announcements, surrounded by many watchtowers.

- All towers of the square are occupied by the Order scouts, who look for the enemy and warn the others of the danger by lighting up the fire at the tops of the towers.

8. GREAT PALACE

The Great Palace keeps the main secret of the city. This is what the heroes and the Order have come all this way for. But this secret can belong only to one of them.

- Huge gates to the palace are locked and can be opened by collecting the "key". The Order searches for options to get inside, trying to find the hidden meanings in the books and scrolls.

THE GATE OPENS

Having collected the necessary fragments of the "key", the heroes can open the gate to the palace and remove the magical barrier. The passage will be opened not only for them - the Order will gather the best warriors on the square, led by the head of the Order, to enter the palace and take what they want.

THRONE ROOM OF THE KING ARK

In the spacious and dark throne room, the last King of the Secret city King Ark sits. An exhausted and blind old man is surrounded by huge roots of trees that grew through the palace. The thing behind the roots, held in the hands of the king is the object the heroes are searching for.

- The high point of the heroes' adventures begins here. In the throne room, 3 sides will have to fight - the heroes themselves, the head of the Order with it's best warriors, and the ancient spirits that give strength to the fallen creatures in the palace.

- Having taken what they want from the hands of the king, the heroes will hear the king's appeal to end his suffering. The spirits can continue to torture him forever and use the power of his blood to hide this sacred place.

OPTION I. The heroes take the life of the last king of the Secret city, giving him freedom.

THE ESCAPE

The withered body that once ruled the great city will quietly say "Thank you." The blood of the Ark dynasty is no longer under the control of the ancient spirits. The last barrier that protected the city from destruction has collapsed.

The heroes and survived members of the Order have to leave the rapidly collapsing city. There are no more opposing parties here; everyone has only one task - to survive at any cost. The city is covered with cracks, the streets go underground, the towers collapse, and the ground under the heroes' feet breaks down.

The heroes have to break through the members of the Order running from the city to the exit and try not to be absorbed by the collapsing city. The magical objects and treasures they have found will be of great help to them.

OPTION II. The heroes leave the last king of the Secret City for eternal torment by the ancient spirits.

A large army of hundreds of creatures raised from the underground will flood the city from the south. The ancient spirits decided to finally purge the city from strangers. The Order's commanders will lose control of their subordinates, who will try to leave the city and take as many treasures as possible.

The heroes will have to break through the crowds of enemies to get out. The magical objects and treasures they have found will be of great help to them.