HD3 The City of the Spider-God - Hyborian Age - Xoth

THE CAVES OF THE KEZANKIAN HILLMEN
The Kezankian Mountains trends north to
south along the eastern borders of Zamora
and Koth. The hill people here are hostile
to strangers. A temple dedicated to a
divinity known simply as “the Bloodstained
God” is reputed to lie somewhere between
its forbidding peaks. The Nezvaya
River runs through the northern part of the
range. This Hyperborean river is fed from
runoff from the Graaskal Mountains. It
turns eastward at the Zamoran border and
empties into the Vilayet Sea after piercing
the Kezankian Range. The Turanian city of
Yaralet lies on the Nezvaya’s northern
bank, east of the Kezankians.
If the random encounter tables or other
circumstances lead the player characters
into contact with the hillmen, use the
below description of their cave-homes as
the basis for further development.
In a cave complex somewhere in the
mountains east of Yezud dwells four large
bands of Kezankian hillmen. Several
guards (5-8) are always on watch. There
are two small cave mouths on each flank
of a gaping cavern opening in the
mountainside; numbering from west to
east these contain:
1) A long cave which has many small
protrusions houses 21 male hillmen and a
subchief with a bardiche. There are 16
females and 18 young. Each hillman has 5-
20 sp, the leader has 1 sp per hit point,
plus 1-4 base 50 sp gems. There are only
rude furnishings in this (and all other)
cave(s).
2) Two caves in a figure eight shape, the
larger being the one further from the
entrance. This place houses 19 hillmen
and a subchief. There are 21 females and
15 young here. Treasure is the same as 1)
above.
3) Six hillmen stand guard at the entrance
— these are male warriors typical of all the
others in this place. A large cavern, about
70 feet wide and 135 feet long to the
south is the special assembly place for all
the Kezankian hillmen in the area. To the
west and east in the forepart are several
spur passages used to house the warriors
and 20 females and 16 young. At the
deepest part of the cavern is a limey
deposit in a chairlike formation which is
used by Kariman, the Chieftain. This
massive man is clad in pieces of chain
mail and plate and has a huge curved
saber which he wields two-handed. The
Chieftain has a gold earring with a 300 sp
topaz, and eight more of these stones (50
sp value each) are set in his broad belt.
Always nearby are 12 hand-picked guards
(as subchiefs, above) armored and armed
as normal hillmen, but each equipped
with a heavy crossbow and 6 bolts. Behind
the Chieftain’s seat is a locked iron chest
holding 242 gp, 4,123 sp, and a leather
pouch with 19 base 10 sp gems.
4) This cave is almost identical to 1) above,
but it is somewhat longer, and it houses 24
hillmen, 19 females, and 15 young. The
subchief is armed with two large war
hammers, one of which he will hurl before
closing. Treasure and furnishings are as in
1) above.
5) Four small caves radiate from a roughly
circular entry cave to house 22 hillmen, 18
females, and 16 young. The subchief has a
two-handed sword. Furnishings and
treasure are as stated in 1) above.
Loud noise in any one of these caves will
draw hillmen from all other locations. If a
random encounter is indicated near this
area it will be Kezankians coming to or
leaving the caves 75% of the time.
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HD3: The City of the Spider-God