TGDB.net - Game news, cheats, solutions, walkthroughs, trainers, saved games and much more!

in shambles.
King Leoric, deep within the throes of madness,  went into a rage when he learned that his son was missing.  After scouring the village  with the few guards that remained  within  at the monastery, Leoric had decided that the townsfolk had abducted his son and hidden him somewhere.
Although the townsfolk denied  any knowledge of Prince Albrecht's whereabouts,  Leoric insisted that  they had crafted  a conspiracy  against him,  and that they would pay the price  for such treachery.
The mysterious disappearance of the  Arch-Bishop Lazarus left no one in Tristram with whom the King  would take council. Overcome by grief and dementia,  Leoric had many of the townsfolk executed for the crime of high treason.
As Lachdanan and his fellow survivors returned to confront their King, Leoric sent his few remaining guards against them.  Believing that  Lachdanan  was  somehow part of the townsfolk's conspiracy. Leoric decreed that he and his party were to die. Lachdanan, finally realizing that
Leoric was beyond salvation,  ordered his men to defend themselves.  The ensuing battle carried them down  into the very halls of the darkened Monastery,  bringing  a final desecration to the once holy sanctum of the Horadrim.  Lachdanan won a bittersweet victory  as his men were forced to kill all of Leoric's  deceived protectors.  They cornered  the ravenous King  within his own sanctuary  and begged him to explain the atrocities he had committed.  Leoric only spat at them and cursed them for traitors against both his crown and the Light.
Lachdanan walked slowly towards his King and sorrowfully drew his sword. Full of grief and rage,  all honor  having been cast  to the winds,  Lachdanan  ran  his blade  through  Leoric's shriveled,  blackened heart.  The once noble King  screamed an unearthly  death-cry, and as his madness  finally overtook him,  he brought down  a curse upon those  who had  so  betrayed him.
Calling upon  the forces  of Darkness  that  he had  spent  his entire life  combating,  Leoric condemned Lachdanan and the others to eternal damnation.  In that last,  fleeting moment within the heart  of the Monastery,  all that was ever virtuous  or  honorable about  the  stewards of
Khanduras was shattered forever.

THE REIGN OF DIABLO
The Black King  lay dead,  slain  at the hands  of his own  Priests and Knights. The young
Prince Albrecht  was still missing,  and  the proud defenders  of Khanduras  were no more.  The people  of Tristram  looked about  their lifeless town  and  were  greatly dismayed.  Awash  in feelings  of both relief and remorse,  they soon realize that  their troubles had merely begun.
Strange, eerie lights  appeared in the darkened windows of the Monastery.  Misshapen, leathery- skinned creatures were seen venturing forth from the shadows of the church.  Horrible,  wounded cries  seemed to linger  on the wind, emanating from deep underground.  It became apparent that something quite unnatural had infested the once holy sight...
Travelers on the roads surrounding Tristram were accosted by cloaked riders that seemed to now constantly roam the deserted countryside. Many villagers fled Tristram, making their way to other towns  or  kingdoms,  fearing some  unnamed evil  that seemed to wait in the shadows  all around them.  Those few chose to remain seldom ventured out at night, and never tread foot upon the grounds of the cursed Monastery.  Whispered rumors of poor,  innocent people being abducted in the night by wicked,  nightmarish creatures filled the halls of the local inn. With no King, no law, and no army left to defend them, many of the townsfolk began to fear an attack from the things that now dwelt beneath their town.
The Arch-Bishop Lazarus, frayed and disheveled,  returned from his absence and assured the townsfolk that  he too  had been ravaged  by the  growing evil  of the  Monastery.  With  their desperate need for reassurance clouding  their good judgement,  Lazarus whipped the townspeople into a  frenzied mob.  Reminding them  that  Prince Albrecht  was  still  unaccounted  for,  he persuaded many of the men to follow him into the depths of the Monastery to search for the boy.
They gathered torches  and soon the night air  glowed with  the flickering light of hope.  They armed themselves  with shovels,  picks and  scythes and  so  prepared, they boldly followed the treacherous Arch-Bishop straight into the fiery man of Hell itself...
The few  who survived  the horrible fate  that  awaited  them  returned  to  Tristram  and recounted what they could of the ordeal. Their wounds were terrible, and even the skills of the healer  could not save  some of them.  As the stories of demons and devils spread,  a stifling, primal Terror  began to consume the hearts of all the town's inhabitants.  It was a Terror that none of them had ever known...
Deep beneath the foundations of the ruined Monastery, Diablo gorged himself upon the fears of the mortals above him.  He slowly  sank back into the welcoming shadows and began to harness his depleted power.
He smiled to himself  in the sheltering darkness,  for he knew that  the time of his final victory was fast approaching...

==========================================================================================
11.  I T E M S
==========================================================================================

SWORDS
The sword  is the epitome of the warrior's weapon.  Forged in fire and tempered to a fine edge, a good blade can cut through armor or a demon's thick hide with equal case.  Some warrior clans of Khanduras go so far as to forsake any other weapon  besides a sword,  and abandon the use of a shield in favor of greatswords that stand the full height of a man.

AXES
Axes are favored  by those who are willing to sacrifice defense for power. In addition to being slower  than other weapons,  even the smallest combat axe  requires two hands be free  to wield properly,  precluding the use of a shield.  However, no other mundane item can match the damage of a good axe. Legends speak of enchanted axes capable of slicing through flesh and steel as if through butter.

MACES AND CLUBS
Sometimes the simplest tools are the best. Whether it be a stout piece of wood or a spiked mace a good clubbing weapon can be deadly in the hands of a strong warrior.  The minions of Mephisto -the undead- are said  to have  an especially difficult time  resisting  the effects  of broken bones and shattered limbs.

STAVES
The art of staff fighting  has never  gained  much acceptance  in Khanduras,  but long ago  the
Brotherhood of Vizjerei discovered ways to use a simple wooden staff as a container for focused magical energy.  The process  of creating  a spell staff  is very time consuming,  but  even an apprentice Vizjerei  can recharge a stafff  by channeling magical energy into it.  Spell staves may be used  to cast spells  that the wielder  does not yet know,  and that  do no require  the expenditure of mana. The staff must be wielded in order to use the spell it contains.
Oddly enough, the act of infusing a staff with sorceries seems to grant the staff a will of its own. Only those skilled in the arts of magic can hope to control very powerful spell staves. It is also possible to find staves that have been further enchanted to make them more effective in combat or to grant other abilities to the wielder.

BOWS
Bows are excellent weapons for those who to prefer to strike at their foes from a distance. The greatest archers in the world are the Sisters of the Sightless Eye. They are trained in the use of every instrument of archery,  from the short bows used by the Horsemen of the Kataan Steppes to the great war bows of the Northern Tribes.  Even  the most skilled of the Sisters,  however, knows that a bow is no match for a sword or other weapon if the fighting should come to close quarters.

LIGHT ARMOR
Light armor ranges from simple clothing,  such as robes and cloaks,  to hardened leather armor.
Even tossed aside rags will provide some protection. Although armor of this type offers minimal protection from most attacks, it is very lightweight and inexpensive to repair.

MEDIUM ARMOR
This category includes basic metal armor,  such as chainmail and ring mail.  In general, armors of this type  provide good protection  from physical attacks,  but  are heavy enough  that only athletic characters can wear them comfortably.

HEAVY ARMOR
Most  heavy armor  consists of solid metal plates  over a chain mesh.  The extent  of the plate coverage  determines the exact type of armor.  Field plate, for instance, covers only the torso and arms  with solid plates  to provide  maximum mobility.  Only the strongest heroes  can wear heavy armor,and it is very expensive to repair. Plate armor does provide the highest protection possible  from  physical  attacks,  and  enchanted  plate  armor  can  make  a  warrior  nearly unstoppable.

HELMETS
Even a simple leather cap  can spell  the difference  between life and death,  and it is a good idea  to use  the best helmet that you can afford.  Many members of the Horadrim wore crowns of unearthly metals  to reflect  their status,  and often these crowns were enchanted for superior protection.

SHIELDS
Shields are extremely popular  as both a means of defense  and decoration.  Your character will automatically  attempt to block  any  incoming blows  with his or her shield,  and in times  of desperation  it can even be used  as a bashing weapon. Bows, axes, staves, and other two-handed weapons cannot be used in conjunction with a shield.

POTIONS
One form of magic  that is still strong in the West  is the brewing of elixirs  that can have a variety  of beneficial effect s on the imbiber.  By far  the most common of these draughts  are healing potions,  which can instantly mend torn flesh  and knit broken bone back together. Mana potions  are infused  with raw magical energy  to restore  the abilities of spell casters  that have expended  their power.  The old church  is sure  to have a strong supply  of both types of potions,  as the clergy used them to care for the sick and wounded. Locals skilled in herbcraft may also be able  to supply your character with potions,  for the right price.  It's known that the greatest of the Horadrim alchemists  created strange concoctions  that permanently affected the drinker.

SCROLLS
By carefully preparing special parchment with magical inks,  a focus for spells can be created.
Such magical scrolls provide the reader with the ability to cast a spell that they normally may not know,  without expending any mana.  Very powerful spells  cannot be used  by the untrained, however,  for the cryptic symbols upon them are difficult to comprehend. The act of casting the spell  drains the scroll  of all  magical power  and  causes the parchment  to crumble  to dust instantly.

BOOKS
More valuable than gold to any sorcerer,  books may contain clues to quests, spell formulas, or other pieces of knowledge.  The time of the Horadrim  is considered to be  the greatest age  of magic,  when untold discoveries in the arcane arts were made. These powerful mystics used every ounce of power  at their command  to preserve humanity.  Although  the Eastern mage-clans  keep watch over vast libraries of magical tomes, it is suspected that a great part of this knowledge was lost  when the last of the Horadrim died.  There may be  lost works beneath the church that could bring some of these ancient magics to light...

GOLD
During the long reign of peace  that existed in Khanduras  most towns and cities  agreed upon a standard gold coin  to use in trade.  The Church of Zakarum  has tried to have its own currency accepted as the new standard,  but so far  it has gained little acceptance.  Although  it would seem that  the minions of the Three would have no use for gold coins, many demons hoard all the wealth that they can find.

==========================================================================================
12.  M A G I C
==========================================================================================

FIREBOLT
The true essence  of Fire  lies at the edge  of Energy and Matter.  It is  therefore,  a fairly simple matter  to shape Mana  into a magical flame. Controlling a bolt of this fire as it flies towards  its target  is another matter  entirely.  As experience and knowledge  with this spell grows,  both  the intensity of the flame  and the speed of the bolt  can be increased  with the caster feeling less exertion.

INFERNO
Inferno sacrifices the mobility of a Firebolt  for pure damaging power.  Rather than attempting to control the path and cohesiveness of a single bolt, the caster conjures forth an individual, focused  stream of flame.  Although it dissipates  beyond more than a few paces, with a greater understanding of the forces  at work the stream of fire  can not only be extended a significant amount,  but also  can be maintained  for a few moments more.  The heat  of an Inferno  is more intense than that of a Firebolt as more Mana is being converted into essential energy.

WALL OF FIRE
Magical fire feeds upon no earthly souce,  being fueled instead by the mystic energies known as
Mana. While the heat of conjured flames may cause normal matter to combust and burn on its own, the flames themselves  will burn as long they have Mana to draw upon.  By carefully controlling the flow of Mana  to a magical fire,  its  life-span  can be  extended  well  beyond  that of a
Firebolt  or an  Inferno. T he Horadrim were skilled enough to create torches that burn with an eternal flame,  but those abilities  have been long lost. With this spell, the caster creates a wall of eldritch flame  that will burn  until the Mana in that area  has been exhausted. As the knowledge  of this spell  increases,  the rate  at which  Mana must be  consumed  can be better controlled and the Wall of Fire can be made to burn longer.

CHARGED BOLT
The true essence of Electromagnetism  exists on the threshold  of the Ethereal and the Physical
Realms.  While it is very efficient  to transform Mana into electrical energy,  it is extremely difficult to control.  This spell calls into being  multiple pockets of lightning which seem to have  a will of their own.  The caster  is able to  shield  himself  from  the effects of these charges,  but any creature - friend or foe - may be struck. Greater understanding of this spell allows more of these Charged Bolts to be formed,  and their existence will be  maintained for a longer period of time.  The physical toll on the caster,  however, increases as well, requiring more Mana to be spent.

LIGHTNING
The caster of this spell seeks to control  the discharge of electrical energy by focusing it in single stream of lightning.  The effects  of channeling this powerful force  of nature  onto an unprotected creature  are awesome indeed.  With  experience,  these  bolts of lightning  may be maintained for a longer period ot time while requiring less Mana to be used.

FLASH
The Flash spell  was created  to fight the servants of Baal,  whose minions  prefer to surround their enemies and attack from all sides silmutaneously. To properly form most incantations, the caster  must be able  to concentrate long enough  to complete  the  necessary  invocations  and gestures.  With this spell, the caster draws in as much Mana as possible as quickly as possible from the surrounding area  and concentrates it into single point within his own body. This Mana is then released  in a single burst of  raw energy  that  dissipates  very  rapidly - and  very violently.  While this spell  is usable only in close combat,  it is extremely potent  and will strike creatures on all sides of the caster.

HOLY BOLT
While the Horadrim were the greatest mortal spell casters ever known,  not all of the followers of the Light  were as proficient in magic  as they were.  During  the quest  to  bind Mephisto, common soldiers  were hard pressed  to combat  the seemingly endless tides  of the undead  that guarded  the First Brother.  During this time,  Cathan,  a devout priest  who was also a fierce warrior,  found that by invoking the powers of the High Heavens and then infusing them with the essence of Fire,  a bolt of  great speed  and  intensity  could be created  and  used  by those otherwise  untrained in the use of magic.  This Holy Bolt  harms only the undead, making it far safer to use while on a chaotic battlefield.

HEALING
The art of self healing is an invaluable ability, and it is for this reason that this spell has been preserved  throughout  the ages.  When cast,  Mana courses  through  the  body,  instantly knitting broken bone, replacing torn tissue and reducing the effects of shock and fatigue. With time,  this spell can be developed to the point that it can instantly restore even those on the brink of death.  The ability to heal others is much rarer, and those that can do so are greatly respected.

RESURRECT
During the assault  upon Mephisto's Fortress of Bone,  the army led by the Horadrim  was nearly overwhelmed  by the legions of the damned. As soon as one of the crusaders was slain in combat, his body  would rise again  as an undead warrior to fight against his former companions. On the