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Imenthi'er
the Melniboné Dragon Cemetery

presents:
a game aid
for Elric

Image

Imenthi'er
–

a game assist from Lawrence Whitaker

translated by Kurgan

taken from Signs & Portents n° 72

correction: Gungnir, Zaoutir, Arasmo

© The Scriptorium, all rights reserved

Machine Translated by Google

— What happens when they die?

— They don't die. They are immortal, perhaps.
No dragon prince of Imrryr has yet seen a dra-gon
die (of old age).
Imenthi'er
Ceremony
The death of a Dragon is an important moment of
mourning for any Melnibonean, but particularly for
Dragon Lords - those who bear the prefix Dyvim

—So what happens when they are killed? I know

they can be killed, because several dragons were
mortally wounded in the war against the Dharzi.
- Oh yes. It's a completely different situation.
When a dragon is slain, or when it is injured and
cannot be healed by sleep, then it is brought to
Imenthi'er. But it's a secret only the Dragon Lords
know.
A discussion between Dyvim Tvar and the
young prince Elric, concerning the fate of dragons
before their name - especially for the Dragon Lord
who rode the deceased. Traditionally, the dragon
rider takes his own life, using a ceremonial blade,
carved from the claw of the dead dragon, to cut open
his belly and throat. Then his corpse, dressed in the
full war gear of a Dragon Lord, accompanies the
procession heading towards Imenthi'er. Although the
Melniboneans are not a sentimental race, the bond
between them and the dragons is powerful enough
to cause such pain in those who ride them into battle.

The dragons of Imrryr are believed to be immortal.

It is true that they live a very long time, and that they
The bodies of the dragon and rider are placed on
existed long before the Melniboneans colonized
the corresponding dais in the middle of Scale and
their island. However, dragons can be mortally
Claw Square in the northern district of Imrryr. There
wounded (as in the war against the Dharzi, a few
the nobles of Melniboné parade in solemn silence,
centuries ago); when this happens, they are then
showing their respect with a bow of the head and
transported to Imen-thi'er. Imenthi'er is a word from
scattering chrysanthemum petals at the foot of the
the High Melnibonéan idiom (High language)
remains. Once the last noble has passed the twin
designating both a ceremony and a place. The
catafalques, 12 slaves are ritually killed at the base
ceremony is the preparation and transport of the of the dragon's pedestal, then dressed in fine robes
dragon's body to its place of burial; as for the place,
2 it is the secret valley, known only to the Dragon Lords
of brocade and silk. These 12 slaves will be the
servants of the dragon and the rider in whatever
of Imrryr, where we find the immense tombs of the
afterlife exists beyond the mortal realm. The act is
dragons. This article details Imenthi'er, both ritual and
more symbolic than a true belief in any form of life
place.
after death; but be chosen

the Scriptorium - Game aid - Imenthi'er - Lawrence Whittaker

Machine Translated by Google
as one of the slaves destined to die in the
Imenthi'er ritual is considered a great honor.
Hundreds of other slaves then carry the
bodies of the dragon and rider to the port,
where, resplendent in the colors of the dragon's
livery, a specially prepared battle barge waits
to take on its cargo. The decks of the ship have
been cleared so that the body of the dragon can
be easily accommodated and the crew of the
barge forms a guard of honor while the dragon
and its rider are deposited, with respect, on the
galley in waiting.
From Imrryr, the boat sails through the maze
of a thousand gates before sailing into the
Dragon Sea, heading east, first for the first day,
then back towards the coast of the continent
north. The ship passes the Vilmir and Ilmiora,
sailing precisely for eight days, until a rocky,
misty island rises before them. This is the island
of Guladd'rin; No more than 10 kilometers wide,
but densely forested and protected by a sea
mist that hides it from view of all but the most
discerning captains.
Those who know the island stay away from it;
the mists hide powerful currents and treacherous
rocks capable of piercing the keels of boats
below the waterline. The sailors believe that
Guladd'rin is an island of ghosts and a land
where one can only perish.
the Scriptorium - Game aid - Imenthi'er - Lawrence Whittaker
However, the mortuary battle barge anchors
here, sailing around the coast until it reaches
the harbor - a long stone pier intended to
accommodate a single battle barge, and wide
Imenthi'er
enough to accommodate the body of a dragon.
Waiting on the pier is a huge cart, richly carved
and decorated with inscriptions and images of
dragons covered in gold leaf. The barge docks
and the dragon's body is transferred to the cart.
Slaves, brought to Guladd'rin for this purpose,
pull the cart inland, following the marble road
that winds through the island. The land rises all
around, until the Imenthi'er valley is reached. It
is the dragon's final resting place, the place
where it will join its parents in death.
His body is placed, with all due respect, in a
mausoleum prepared specifically for dragons.
The valley is filled with mausoleums: vast zig-
gurats that stretch in a line on either side of the
marble road for almost six kilometers, shaded
by the steep slopes of the valley. There are only
30 ziggurats because it is considered impossible
that more than 30 dragons could die. Only six of
the ziggurats are occupied and once the bodies
of the dragon and the Rider have been placed
on their catafalque, the Ziggurat is sealed (The
slaves who carried the dragon are buried with
it) from the inside. The Melniboneans then return
3
to their ship and sail home.
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The infamous Doctor Aqeer of Imrryr went

The Ziggurats
Imenthi'er
of Imenthi'er
Each ziggurat is a tiered pyramid with many
steps, made of a shiny white marble found on
the island. Each stone is richly carved with
leering faces or draconic motifs and on the top
of the pyramid, a marble representation of the
dragon that the ziggurat contains or is intended
to contain. Although the ziggurats have a similar knowledge had completely shredded his mind.
appearance, their carvings and arrangement are Doctor Aqeer strangled himself with his own hands 10 day
unique.
That the ziggurats are of Melnibonean design
is obvious to any Melnibonean, or to any other
character passing a Knowledge (World) test.
However, Melni-boné did not prepare the valley
of Imenthi'er for the dragons, but it was clearly upper surface can be reached using a series of
taught that if a dragon were to die, this is where very wide steps on the east side of the base.
it should be brought. The race that built
Imenthi'er may well have been the one that
forged Mournblade and Stormbringer, and the
runes that decorate the carved walls of the
ziggurats bear some resemblance to those
carved on the treacherous runeswords. Other
than that, the architects of Imenthi'er remain a
4 mystery. The Dragon Lords of Imrryr believe
that the Emperors of Melniboné possess a
special dream quest involving Imen-thi'er, but
as the nature of such a quest is known only to
the Emperors, no one can be sure.
A typical mausoleum is 60 meters high and 50 (haiku) summarizing his actions.
meters wide at the base. A single set of doors is
integrated into the structure at ground level,
measuring 10 meters high and 5 meters
wide. If a ziggurat is occupied, then
the door is sealed with a massive
slab of carved marble. The
sculptures are faces with evil looks and
swirling runes which, while reminiscent
of those of the High Language of Mel-
niboné, constitute a completely
different language. The runes express
the dragon's true and full name, a
name unpronounceable to
humans; whatever his strength
of mind, he who begins to
study them is likely to go
mad.
alone to Imenthi'er, to study the sculptures. He
was found again about ten years later,
completely berserk: he had torn out his
fingernails and toenails as well as all his teeth,
he could only communicate in a sort of
gibberish. incomprehensible. When the Imrryr
doctors had finished observing him, they
concluded that he had succeeded in deciphering
the true name of a single dragon and that this
It is possible to walk within an unoccupied zig-
gurat. Slits strategically cut into the stone of the
upper tiers of the building allow light to enter,
illuminating the catafalque reserved for the
body of the dragon. This base is made of an
even more beautiful gold-inlaid marble and its
The catafalque is 10 meters high and at its base
there is a simple stone door which can be
opened by passing an Athletics (Brute Strength)
test. Inside is a bedroom occupying the entire
length of the cata-falque; it is completely empty
in an unoccupied ziggou-rat, but if a dragon has
been buried there, the room contains the saddle,
spurs, spear and other regalia of the dragon
rider. The rider is also buried here, in a stone
sarcophagus located at the front of the
catafalque. On this sarcophagus is inscribed, in
the high language of Melni-boné, the name of
the Dragon Lord and a small Imryrian poem
Around the catafalque are statues of dragons.
Each ziggurat has precisely 12 statues and
each is a representation of the dragon at
different stages of its life, from egg to death.
Intricate, perfectly crafted, the statues sit
several meters high and are exquisitely
beautiful. Some collectors would be willing
to pay hundreds of thousands of silver
coins for a single statue: the value of the
entire collection is completely
inestimable. Such sta-tues would be
extremely popular in Hwamgaarl and
the courts of some great nobles,
where Mel-nibonean artifacts
are both revered and hated,
and where draconic
imagery is most prized.

the Scriptorium - Game aid - Imenthi'er - Lawrence Whittaker

Machine Translated by Google
If a ziggurat is sealed, we find within it the
bodies of the slaves who transported the dragon
on its last journey and who placed it and its rider
inside the ca-tafalque. The slaves' final act is to
activate the large stone levers that control the
closing of the slab, locking them in the
catafalque for eternity. These slaves will die of
hunger and thirst, and while some lie down
accepting their fate, others, parched by the dry
air inside the ziggurat, may be found in terribly
contorted positions. , having suffered all the
agonies of agony.
Who would
rob the grave
of a dragon?
Few know the secrets of Imenthi'er, and few
human ship captains would dare approach the
island. But some can, and rumors persist of this
dragon graveyard somewhere outside Imrryr.
Fanatical collectors, curious wizards or avid
grave robbers will eventually drive people to
explore the Imenthi'er Valley.
the Scriptorium - Game aid - Imenthi'er - Lawrence Whittaker
Imenthi'er
The empty ziggurats
The unsealed Ziggurats contain the dragon
statues that may one day stand in the
mausoleum. Each statue weighs around 24,000
kg, making them difficult, but not impossible, to
move. Moving a statue triggers a random effect
- part of the ziggurat's builders' pre-established
5
plan to deter theft.
Roll on the following table to determine what
happens if one of the statues is moved even a
fraction of an inch from its resting place.
1D6 Traps
The Ziggurat closing slab is slowly closing. The
1–2 people inside have 2D4 rounds to get out before
being walled in alive.
A block of rock anchored eight meters above the
3–4 ground becomes dislodged and falls on the
characters, causing 6D6 points of damage to those
who fail an Athletics check to avoid it.
The ground beneath the statue suddenly shifts, those
in the area must pass an Athletics check or fall into
a 10 meter deep pit taking damage from the fall. The
5-6 statue tips back into its original position, trapping the
unlucky ones below.
It requires a combined STR of 100 to be able to tilt
the stone and rescue the prisoners.
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Dragon dream
If a statue is removed from the ziggurat and brought
back to the Young Kingdoms, it can easily pocket 1D6
Imenthi'er x 100,000 Bronzes, if sold to the right collector (which
can include a certain number of cults serving the Law
or Chaos). However, with the statue also comes the
curse of its creators. Anyone who owns a dragon
statue stays well for 1D6 months - the time it takes for
their soul to awaken the attention of the sleeping
dragons of Imrryr.
Little by little, the dreams of the owner are sucked into
the dreams of the dragons and the collector is trapped
in the dream world of the dragons - the equivalent of
the seventh, unnamed land of the Dream Realm. The
Dragon Dream has an intensity of 7D4, making it a
very risky challenge for even the most powerful
Dreamstealers.
Inside, the dreamer is caught in the whirlwind of a
hellish dragonworld, where the great Wyrms dominate
and the lower races of the multiverse are only toys or
prey subject to the unsympathetic and inhuman whims
of the dragons. Dragons create micro-realities to
torment the lesser races, which dissolve and reform at
will, and in fact, dragons are in these places just as
powerful as lords of Law and Chaos (so powerful, in
6 fact, even the Lords of Chaos dare not enter the
Dragon Dream Realm).
Any human spirit imprisoned for a number of days
greater than its non-dedicated POU becomes
permanently insane (even if it can be saved). If the
spirit remains in the dream for a number of days
greater than twice this value, then the dreamer will die
and his soul will be devoured by the dragons sleeping
in the caves of Imrryr. Once the dragon dream has
been activated, there is no way to stop it. Even the
return of the stolen statue to its ziggurat will not stop
the nightmare: only a powerful and experienced Dream
Thief will have the hope of saving the imprisoned soul.
the Scriptorium - Game aid - Imenthi'er - Lawrence Whittaker
The sealed ziggurats
Breaking into a closed ziggurat is not an easy task.
The huge marble slabs blocking the entrance must be
moved by sorcery or with a combined STR of 300 or
more. Inside, grave robbers will find the corpses of the
slaves, the body of the dragon and, in the catafalque,
the body of the rider - along with the rich ornaments of
the Dragon Lord, which again can be sold to a collector
for 1D6 x 10,000 Bronzes.
The Dragon Lord's sarcophagus is of Melnibonean
design, it is protected by the rune of perplexity, which
is charged with 10 magic points and affects the five
senses. If the sarcophagus is opened, the person
responsible will have their five senses scrambled and
will instantly forget where and who they are.
His memory will only return when he leaves the
island, but he will retain an irrepressible fear of what
the island contains. Under no circumstances will he be
able to return there, having acquired a deep paranoia
of the ghosts who inhabit it. If the dragon's remains
are disturbed, there will be no immediate repercussions.
However, if any part of the remains – the scales, skin
or bones – are removed from the ziggurat, the person
responsible will suffer the punishment of the Dragon's
Dream, as previously stated.
The Dragons must rest in peace; desecrating their
remains provokes the magical wrath of all the other
dragons still alive.
Those in
Quest of Imenthi'er
The location of Imenthi'er is a closely guarded secret,
but secrets always come to light and the Dragon
Graveyard is no exception. The following individuals
have some information on Imenthi'er and are willing to
go looking for him.
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- Captain Bryagan Goldtooth of the Purple
Cities stumbled upon the misty isle of Gu-ladd'rin
six years ago; he has since planned a return trip
to study it. His investigations revealed that several
battle barges ventured in the direction of this
island in the distant past; Bryagan suspects the
existence of a Melnibonean treasure. An arrogant
and greedy moron, Bryagan is ready to hire
adventurers for this quest and when he finds the
valley of Imen-thi'er, he will only see it as a way
to make millions by plundering the treasures of
the unsealed ziggurats. His obsession with
pillaging the island will grow and not content with
taking what he can easily steal, he will want to
pillage the sealed ziggurats. He will therefore
condemn everyone to the dire fate of the dragon
dream.
- Aloysius Gann, a wizard who devoted half his
soul to Mabelode, saw the necropolis in his
dreams. He wishes to possess the wing bones of
a particular dragon - known in the Low language
as Triumphant Wing Gyre - in order to craft a
sword that will allow him to "harvest" the souls of
his many enemies.
The frail and paranoid Gann needs adventurers
to locate Imenthi'er precisely, perhaps by stealing
information from the city of Imrryr itself, then
taking him to the island to recover the bones. But
that's without counting on Jarrulph the Valiant, a
knight of the cult of Aubec, who is
the Scriptorium - Game aid - Imenthi'er - Lawrence Whittaker
Gann's sworn enemy since he murdered his
bride. He too has dreamed of Imenthi'er and he
knows its location, but not what it contains. When
the adventurers serving Gann finally reach the
Imenthi'er
island, they will find the vindictive knight of Aubec,
eager for revenge...
- The cult of the Spellstealers seeks to build a
chaotic machine from the bones and stones of
the ziggurats of Imenthi'er. The machine,
designed by Cran Liret himself, will call upon the
mystical energy of the dreams of the architects of
the ziggurats as well as that of the sleeping
dragons of Imrryr, with the aim of creating a
dragon of pure energy infested by the madness
of Cran Liret. The agents of this cult will then be
able to direct this dragon of pure magic against
the very real dragons of Imrryr, destroying them
while they sleep and growing stronger with each
death (because the ziggurats of Imenthi'er will be
deprived of the bodies which must one day
occupy them). The cult brings together many
slaves, collected from the four corners of the
Young Kingdoms, to transport them to the island
of Guladd'rin and begin, according to the plans of
Cran Liret, the construction of the machine of
chaos. The architects of the machine - priests and
followers of the cult - are ready to risk death or
madness to achieve their goals: the creation of 7
the Energy Wyrm, a creature full of hatred and wishing to slay all r
Can she be stopped?