Quest 18: The Arena
Quest 18: The Arena
Introduction
"As you stand back to back with weapons in hand, you can't help but think this is all Greigory's fault. 'Well, naturally it's probably a trap,' he said with a shrug. 'But it's also a chance to snuff one of Zach's right hand men, isn't it?' So, you packed your things and followed his scout's reports right up the slopes of Mount Surtur in pursuit of Belthir, the dragon-hybrid.
You expected a trap. You didn't expect some sort of demented supernatural arena, which is where you appear to find yourself.
'Welcome!' booms a voice halfway between a carnival barker and an elder god. 'Prove your worth by defeating the other contenders and I may let you proceed to the final, championship round! Strength! Honor! BLOOD!' The roar of an unseen crowd tears the air as foul monsters approach. Behind the masses, you see that some of the monsters are bearing what appear to be championship medals—those must be the contenders the voice told you to defeat. 'To arms!' shouts the voice, and the fight is on!"
Monsters
- 1 open group per hero. If a group contains no master monsters, promote one of the minions to a master.
Setup
Place search tokens based on the number of heroes.
Place 1 monster group on each of the Library, Reliquary, Spider Den, and Laboratory. If there are fewer than 4 heroes, place monster groups only on tiles that have a search token.
Special Rules
Time Limit
At the end of each Overlord turn, place 1 fatigue token in the Overlord's play area. If the Overlord ever has 8 fatigue tokens, the encounter ends—refer to the "Victory" section.
Trophies
When a master monster is defeated, place 1 red objective token in the heroes' play area.
When a hero is defeated, the Overlord places 1 blue objective token in his play area.
Both the heroes and the Overlord keep their objective tokens for Encounter 2, regardless of who wins Encounter 1.
The Waves
Monster groups cannot be activated or have cards or effects played on them until the door leading to their room has been opened for the first time. At the start of each Overlord turn, he may open 1 door on the map for free.
Heroes may open these doors normally.
Reinforcements
None.
Victory
Hero Victory
If the heroes have collected a number of red objective tokens equal to the number of heroes, read the following aloud:
"You fight well for mortals," booms the voice as the unseen crowd roars with approval. Some impulse makes you claim your trophies from your fallen foes and hold them aloft—the crowd's roar swells even louder! "Prepare for the championship round!"
The heroes win this encounter!
Overlord Victory
If the Overlord has collected a number of blue objective tokens equal to the number of heroes, read the following aloud:
"A disappointing performance," rumbles the voice, "but what else can we expect from a handful of mortals?" The arena shakes, dust and small stones falling from the ceiling. "You'll have to do better in the championship round if you intend to leave alive!"
The Overlord wins this encounter!
No Result
If the Overlord ever has 8 fatigue tokens, read the following aloud:
A loud bell clangs. The powerful voice growls in frustration: "Too slow! Time is up! We must have a champion!" The roaring crowd seems hungry and frustrated, more like wild beasts than a hidden audience.
Encounter 1 is over. There is no winner.