TEXT: The King
  By Eli Kurtz
  of
  Knuckle
  Peak
  
  Author
  Eli Kurtz
  Cover and Page Design
  Lord Zsezse Works
  Internal Artwork
  Iron John, Brothers Grimm, 1812
  Layout
  Richard Woolcock
  All unique characters, names, and locations, The King of Knuckle Peak, the Mythic Gazetteer logo, and the
  Blackwood logo are © 2017 Mythic Gazetteer, LLC; DBA The Mythic Gazetteer. All Rights Reserved.
  The Mythic Gazetteer grants permission to print and distribute this document, in whole or in part, for personal
  use.
  For more information about this work, visit The Mythic Gazetteer at www.MythicGazetteer.com
  This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group at
  www.peginc.com. Savage Worlds and all associated logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle
  Entertainment Group. Used with permission. Pinnacle makes no representation or warranty as to the quality,
  viability, or suitability for purpose of this product.
  The King of
  Knuckle Peak
  
  A Savage Worlds One Sheet for the Blackwood
  The King of Knuckle Peak
  Begins in: Last Fork, Giant Province
  Winter, 1452
  Our story begins with a woman at the edge of her
  prime. She is in full flight, running through a snowy
  Blackwood. A deep growl freezes her where she
  stands. She looks over her shoulder, her eyes widen,
  and a mighty roar clashes with the sickening impact of
  wood on bone. The hunter flies into the air, the life
  already gone from her eyes.
  The Village of Last Fork has sought the help of our
  errant heroes. The last two hunters in the village are
  three days late from a foraging trek to the nearby
  hunting lodge. Each holding a strange wooden figure
  to their hearts, the villagers offered a middling sack of
  silver for the errants to go to the hunting lodge and
  see what story they might uncover.
  “But beware,” the village elder warned, “Rouse ye
  not the ire of the King of Knuckle Peak.”
  Chasing Thoughts
  The game begins as the errants leave the scene of
  the first hunter’s corpse. They found her pulverized
  and wedged into a crevice at the base of a boulder.
  Howler tracks blanketed the ground around he, but
  there were no bite wounds on her corpse.
  A successful Notice or Tracking roll reveals a huge,
  barefoot print in the midst of the Howler tracks. On a
  raise, they notice the figurine carried by all the
  villagers is missing from the woman's corpse. The
  Howler tracks leave northeast.
  Players should be given sufficient time to discuss
  these clues before jumping back to the present.
  Even without a successful roll, the errants can’t help
  but notice one particular item on the corpse:
  No-Fire Smoke: Crafty woodland hunters have
  learned how to capture a campfire’s smoke within fist-
  sized wicker balls. These ashen bombs explode into a
  dark, heavy cloud when thrown. Treat this effect like
  the light/obscure power with a trapping of thick smoke.
  This item is consumed when used.
  Primal Peril
  Our heroes follow the footprints to a long, narrow
  glade, tangled with fallen trees. The tracks lead to a
  small stream in the center, lit by the late afternoon
  sun. Several piles of dark, matted fur lay around a
  toppled stone ancestor shrine, a terrible omen. The
  Wood is far deadlier without its influence, and when
  night falls it will be all the worse.
  As the characters deliberate, a sense of wrongness
  slowly creeps into the glade. The heavy stench of
  animal musk drifts in on the wind. Errants should
  make a Notice check at –2 to spy a hulking, hairy
  shadow standing just beyond the treeline, watching
  them. No sooner has it been spotted than it turns and
  disappears into the wood.
  A cacophony of howls breaks the brief fugue. With
  the sun sinking lower in the sky, a pack of howlers
  (one per player) burst from the same part of the woods
  and rush to attack. When killed, the howlers rapidly
  decompose into the same smoking piles scattered
  around the broken shrine. They will fight to the last.
  The hunter’s tracks, now trailing more blood, head
  east along the stream toward the lodge. He can’t be
  much farther.
  Ruddy Road Hall
  A light is shining from within the lodge when the
  party arrives. Half a dozen elves occupied the lodge as
  as soon as the shrine was broken. The elves have eaten
  the second hunter, and then disguised themselves as
  humans to lure more victims to a similar fate. Their
  illusion is powerful, but also imperfect: the hearth fire
  doesn’t flicker quite right, the food doesn’t smell like it
  should, and the ale is thick as pond scum.
  
  The elves will tell a string of secrets to entice the
  party closer to the ambush waiting at the hearth fire:
  the Howler King’s rage at any human who enters the
  Wood, and of the villagers blind worship of him. The
  elves will even tell secrets about the errants (award a
  Benny to any player who fabricates an especially good
  secret). The characters must win a Knowledge (Lore)
  Dramatic Task at –2 to invent an apology to the elves,
  excuse themselves, and escape unharmed. The elves
  will attack if the errants fail.
  Dusk at the Howling Court
  Outside the cursed lodge, a keening howl will point
  the characters toward Knuckle Peak. If nothing else,
  perhaps the Howler King has a shelter they can take
  over before nightfall.
  It’s a two-hour hike to the Howler King’s court at
  the edge of the treeline, still a few hundred feet below
  the peak. If the errants push themselves hard, they can
  make it in one hour, but they must make a Vigor roll
  at –2 or suffer a level of fatigue. The throne is a slab of
  crude stone at the base of a rocky cliff, surrounded by
  the ruined columns of an ancient structure. A long
  pile of gravel stretches out behind the throne at the
  base of the cliff, and many boulders are precariously
  perched at the top.
  A number of howlers (two per player) attend the
  Howler King. Enraged at the mere presence of the
  humans, the King leaps to attack any errant he sees.
  He and his howlers use the standing stones and the
  rest of the terrain to their advantage, and will fight to
  the bitter end. If dislodged, the clifftop boulders could
  bury the whole court.
  Aftermath
  The rubble at the base of the cliff partially obscures a
  door. Inside, the players find a shelter large enough to
  house them for the night, along with a hoard of
  jewelry and valuables worth 500 silver pieces. Upon
  their return to Last Fork, they are paid 50 silver apiece
  for their trouble and sent on their way. If they share
  the news of the Howler King’s death, the village will
  lament this new calamity, and wonder how they will
  survive the months to come. It will take a long time
  for the superstition to fall from their eyes, and to see
  the danger has passed.
  WILD SCEPTER (MAGIC ITEM)
  The owner of this magical quarterstaff can change
  its size at will. It can be as small as a toothpick, as
  big as a fallen tree, or anywhere in between. The
  staff has 10 Power Points, which the wielder can use
  to cast burst (Trunk Smash), using Spirit as the
  arcane skill.
  CHANGELING ELVES
  Even disguised as humans, the elves can’t
  totally hide their strangeness. The smiles are
  just barely too intense, the movements too alien. Their
  true forms on the other hand, are grotesque mockeries
  of humanity and truly terrible avatars of nature.
  Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, Strength
  d4, Vigor d8
  Skills:Fighting d6, Notice d8, Taunt d8, Throwing d8
  Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 6
  Edges: Arcane Background (Elves; Spirit arcane skill)
  Powers: Burrow (Melting Hop), confusion (Lullaby
  Gaze), disguise (However Ye Please), 20 PP
  Gear: Leaf Darts x15 (Range 3/6/12; Str+d4; RoF 3)
  HOWLERS
  As large and sturdy as a wolf but with limbs and a
  visage like unto an ape, howlers are highly territorial
  beasts. They leap down from the tree branches in
  packs, and are at their deadliest when ganging up on
  their targets.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A), Spirit d6,
  Strength d6, Vigor d6
  Skills: Climbing d10, Fighting d6, Intimidation d6,
  Notice d6
  Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 4
  Special Abilities
  • Acrobat: +2 to Agility-based maneuvers; +1 Parry
  • Bite: Str+d4
  • Size –1: Howlers are about the same size as a wolf
  • Go for the Throat: Hit least armored location on a
  raise.
  • Wall Walker: Can climb at normal Pace.
  HOWLER KING
  This hulking monster towers over eight feet
  tall, its shoulders nearly half as wide. Cruel
  cunning burns in its too-human eyes as it wields a tree
  trunk like a staff. A mantle of thick fur protects the
  Howler King as it fights with ruthless ferocity.
  Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, Strength
  d12, Vigor d12
  Skills: Climbing d6, Fighting d10, Intimidation d12,
  Notice d10
  Pace: 8; Parry: 9; Toughness: 11 (1)
  Edges: Nerves of Steel, Howler Mantle (1d4 Howlers
  sprout from hairs for each Wound suffered)
  Gear: Wild Scepter (Str+d6; +1 Parry; Reach; 2 hands;
  10 Power Points that can be used to cast burst (Trunk
  Smash) using Spirit as the arcane skill)
  Special Abilities
  • Acrobat: +2 to Agility-based maneuvers; +1 Parry
  • Armor +1: Thick Hide
  • Fear: Any who see the king must make a Fear check.
  • Size +2: The howler king is over eight feet tall
  • Wall Walker: Can climb at normal Pace.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Savage Worlds System (SWADE) [multi]/Blackwood/Savage Worlds - Blackwood - The King of Knuckle Peak.pdf