Savage Tide on Mystara Part VII: "City of Broken Idols"
by Christopher Richard DaviesWhen I wrote this, I hadn't yet read the excellent Codex Immortalis by Marco Dalmonte. Having done so, I note that it identifies Oloron as Odin. In retrospect, I do think it makes a bit more sense for all three of the powers honoured in the Olman temple to be Hierarchs of their respective spheres, so please disregard the information about "Aeolus" in the article. However, the Immortal in question was still known as Orontiuh among the ancient Olman.
Basically, the major changes to this adventure centre around the different trinity of Immortals honoured by the Olman on the Mystaran Isle of Dread. This starts with the trio of Immortals portrayed on the disc that Noltus sent back with the demon hunter. It depicts Kalaktatla (as both the Amber Serpent and in human form), Otzitiotl (in human form) and Orontiuh (also in human form).
But who, you may ask, is Orontiuh?
As you may recall from X1, Umlat, the tribal cleric of Mantru, was described as honouring a "deity" called Oloron, Lord of the Skies. This Immortal, known as Aeolus elsewhere in the Known World, was worshipped by the Olman ancestors of the people of Mantru under the name Orontiuh. (His following among other Oltec peoples, including those who were preserved in the Hollow World, died out.)
Aeolus is an Immortal of the Sphere of Thought (probably an Eternal) whose position in his sphere is analogous to that of Protius in the Sphere of Time. They are both focused on its elemental aspect (air and specifically wind, in Aeolus' case) to the exclusion of the other aspects.
The following changes should be made to the description of areas in the Taboo Temple.
Area 2: The collapsed statue of a serpent portrays Kalaktatla; the bas reliefs are of Otzitiotl (depicted with a sun) and Orontiuh (cloud).
Area 11: The three figures represent Kalaktatla (feathers), Otzitiotl (sun) and Ortontiuh (cloud). The moons, stars, and suns are unchanged. (The Olmans were into astronomy.) It should be noted that the images that appear are being generated by the room itself, a sentient artifact created to hold the bow in safekeeping, rather than being actual messages from the Immortals, who have other things on their minds. As such, the first bit of the message should probably be modified as follows. "The time when this place was holy is long gone, and there are no longer any among our children's children who recall what has been lost. So be it. Still, we can help you, strangers, in this fight that is both revenge for the past and hope for the future. Heed our words." The rest is the same.
Okay. On to Khala the Two-Headed. "Aspects" are one of the ideas of the current iteration of D&D that don't mesh well with the metaphysics of Mystara. So rather than being an Aspect of Demogorgon, the creature is a lesser fiend who is on the path to true Entropic Immortality under Demogorgon's patronage. (He may even be one of Demogorgon's spawn.) Needless to say, the players action in destroying this protégé in whom Demogorgon has invested so much time, and in the process also delaying the ritual that will cure hir little personality problem, seriously annoys Demogorgon ...