The Ancient Lost Kingdom

In our original Dungeons and Dragons campaign back in the 1980’s, the player characters followed a series of clues until they discovered the land was once civilized under the rule of Castle Starnor, and Arthur, the White Stag King.  The wizard Merlini revealed to the heroes that the Raggedy Prince whose army of monsters they defeated was actually descended from the White Stag King, which was strange because people believed the myth that Arthur had actually been a spirit stag, a ghost deer with arcane powers.  The prince was cast into the dungeon in the city of Balindale, the city they had liberated from his monstrous army.  The wizard Merlini was able to study the prince up close and learn more.  

During the Black Wizard Crisis, the heroes captured the Black Wizard’s right-hand witch and cast her into the same dungeon where the Raggedy Prince dwelt.  The two villains fell in love.  Their child, young Sarris, was determined by Merlini to be the rightful heir of Starnor.  He possessed magic from the time of Arthur which turned him into a werebear, suggesting that there was truth to the tale of Arthur’s ability to transform into a stag.  Merlini removed the baby from the dungeon and raised him personally, aided by his young apprentice Pip.  For years they groomed the boy to rule as the heroes searched for the ruins of mighty Starnor.

It was discovered that the southern section of the kingdom of Starnor was still ruled by the Lich King Frakkus, known widely as Nightmare.  Frakkus had been the Necromantic adviser to Arthur and may have had a hand in Arthur’s ultimate demise.  From Frakkus the heroes learned that Starnor could be magically revived by defeating the demon who had carried it off to another dimension.  They also learned that the only way to succeed was to make an alliance with Frakkus.  The Lich King would remain in control of the South and the fortress of Rau’s Bones.  So, instead of slaying the evil necromancer, the heroes helped him defeat and imprison the demon.  Starnor was revived.  Sarris was placed on the throne and was given the most trustworthy of advisers, including the Grizzled Wizard Gristhane.  Sarris, in the form of a bear, would rule Castle Starnor benevolently, potentially forever.