''Skarda's Mirror'' is an

adventure module An adventure is a playable scenario in a tabletop role-playing game. These can be constructed by gamemasters for their players, and are also released by game publishers as pre-made adventure modules. Different types of designs exist, including ...

for the ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (T ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and drama ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...

. It was published by TSR in 1987, and designed by

Aaron Allston Aaron Dale Allston (December 8, 1960 – February 27, 2014) was an American game designer and author of many science fiction books, notably ''Star Wars'' novels. His works as a game designer include game supplements for role-playing games, severa ...

. Its cover art is by Tim Hildebrandt with interior art by Al Williamson and

Jeff Easley Jeff Easley (born 1954) is an oil painter who creates fantasy artwork for role-playing games, comics, and magazines, as well as non-fantasy commercial art. Early life Easley was born in Nicholasville, Kentucky in 1954. He spent time drawing as ...

, and cartography by Dave S. LaForce, Dennis Kauth, and David C. Sutherland III.. The module's associated code is X12 and its TSR product code is TSR 9188. This module was developed and intended for use with the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' '' Expert Set'' and '' Companion Set'' rules.

Plot summary

''Skarda's Mirror'' is an adventure scenario in which the

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

s enter another dimension through a magical mirror to rescue those who are trapped within. The wizard Skarda and his band of raiders once terrorized the rural settlements of the Grand Duchy of

Karameikos Mystara is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role playing game. It was the default setting for the "Basic" version of the game throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Most adventures published for the "Basic" edition of ''D&D'' ...

, kidnapping everyone and taking their treasure. By chance, he was discovered by famous adventurer Lord Retameron in Specularum. In the aftermath of the raid, Skarda (alias Mallek) was left trapped in his burning house. A search of the wreckage found papers describing his role in the raids and outlining a coup against the Duke, and a magical mirror of great power. Retameron kept the mirror and brought it to his tower. One night, both he and his wife Halia gazed into the mirror and disappeared, and in their place appeared large baboon-like creatures with huge teeth that attacked everyone in sight. So far, no one has come out of the tower alive. Retameron's father finds the

s and pleads with them to enter the tower and rescue his son.

Publication history

X12 ''Skarda's Mirror'' was written by

, with a cover by

Tim Hildebrandt Greg and Tim Hildebrandt, known as the Brothers Hildebrandt (born January 23, 1939), are American twin brothers who worked collaboratively as fantasy and science fiction artists for many years. They produced illustrations for comic books, movie p ...

and interior illustrations by

Al Williamson Alfonso Williamson (March 21, 1931 – June 12, 2010) was an American cartoonist, comic book artist and illustrator specializing in adventure, Western, science fiction and fantasy. Born in New York City, he spent much of his early childhood in ...

, and was published by TSR in 1987 as a 48-page booklet with an outer folder.

Reception

References

Dungeons & Dragons modules Mystara Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1987 {{D&D-stub