Dwarf Public Quests: Chapter 5

---

style="margin: 10px; float: right; "
border="1">

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/46170/preview"
width="300" border="0">

Durrig Olfrinson sized up the group of Engineers who had just arrived at the camp.

"Fresh recruits from Ekrund, is it? You're in the bog now, lads. If the stink doesn’t do ye in, the bloody greenskins will be trying to! We've got plenty of work for ye here. There's a road needs fixin' an ' when that's done, a mine that needs workin'."

Olfrinson wiped the sweat from his brow. The Marshes of Madness was the last place any sensible Dwarf would want to pass his time, but only here could be found oathgold, a rare gold of surpassing purity and brightness. The Dwarfs would need several cartloads of it for the forging of the mighty Doomstrikers, and so they had come here.

The Dwarfs had found the gold, and then the Black Skull Orcs had found them. The Orcs and Goblins weren't the only dangers in the swamp, however. Ancient, unliving creatures dwelt here, remnants of a lost empire of men that had fallen into darkness, corrupted by the taint of Chaos in ages past.

Suddenly one of the sentries shouted a warning.

"What do ye see, Rolun?"

"Bog Zombies are gatherin' in numbers to the south, sir!"

Olfrinnson scowled. "Load the Organ Guns! Get Thunderers up on the high ground! They're slow, and they'll make easy targets."

The Dwarf leader pulled a weathered map from his pocket and unrolled the parchment. The oathgold mines were farther into the swamp, and the ancient road that joined them - the very road he was here to put back in working order - snaked throughout the bog before eventually winding its way north into the Badlands. He held the map up so that the crew of Engineers could see it.



"Here's your task, lads. No rest for the weary nor the wicked in the Marshes of Madness. Ye best set about gettin' that road repaired, for there's no time to waste!"

Durrig's point was punctuated by several loud blasts from the nearby Organ Gun. Gazing out toward the swamp, he could see several dozen Zombies shambling slowly toward the camp. The Organ Gun barrage had dropped a few of them, but many more were still coming.

Durrig took his hammer in hand and called out to the Organ Gun's crew.

"Hold your fire, lads! Let's save that ammunition for somethin' it won't be wasted on. We'll handle this the old-fashioned way."

All round Durrig, the Dwarfs drew their weapons and prepared for the battle to come.

---

Chapter 5: Bogged Down

Rally Master: Odarik Rorkisson

Influence Rewards:
-Basic: Health, Action Points, Heal over Time or Damage Absorbing Potions
-Advanced: Chest Armor or Gloves.
-Elite: Feet or Weapon.

 

Axerust Peak:

Location: Western portion of Marshes of Madness

border="1"
style="margin: 10px; float: right; ">

src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/47152/preview"
width="178" border="0">

Stage I: Free 30 Captured Dwarves and Kill 90 Axerust Greenskins. Some silly Dwarfs have managed to get themselves captured by a mob of Greenskins at Axerust Peak and it's up to you and your groupmates to bail them out. This PQ area is actually pretty large and you'll find the dwarves tied up in various places around 3 different camp areas along the trail. Killing 90 Axerust Greenskins does sound like a lot but there are so many milling around while you are releasing Dwarfs, this will probably go very quickly for you.

Stage III: Destroy 5 Axerust Altars Now that dozens of Green skins have paid the price for kidnapping allies, it's time to hit them where it hurts. There are large altars which are impossible to miss that need to be destroyed. They'll have a few token shaman standing around to try and stop you but they should be no match. There are two at the base of the peak and the remaining three are at camps as you climb up the mountain trail. Destroying the fifth will allow you to proceed to Stage III.

Stage III: Kill Great Shaman Nibbitz and 4 Crazed Axerust Stabba's You have reached the top of the mountain and it's time for the final showdown between you and the boss of this Public Quest. While it's usually a good idea to tank the boss while killing the adds, keep in mind this is a healer with some nasty nukes. A level 11 hero with his four friends can provide a challenge to a smaller group if they decide to come after the hero. Play it by ear but definitely keep someone on the Shaman during the entire fight. Once he is defeated there is nothing left to do but wait for the roll, grab your loot, and get down the path before the entire hill decides to respawn on top of you.

 

The Foul Ruins:

Location: Western Portion of Marshes of Madness

Stage I: Kill 125 Bog Zombies. Yup that is right, you need to kill an entire 125 Bog Zombies to pass this Stage in the PQ. You'll find these guys all over the area in front of Axerust mountain in the swamp water. Bring friends with AoE's if you want to speed up the process, otherwise kill them as quick as you can.

Stage II: Destroy 8 Pillars Now that you've killed a paltry number of Zombies, you need to help kill their source, a series of pillars in the area. They are of course guarded by four creatures each, but if you manage to take out the pillar it will kill them. Be sure to check both sides of the road to find all 8.

Stage III: Fausus Von Diehl This is where the PQ begins to get a little tricky. There will be two skeletons who are going to walk around and try to revive the pillars and you have to stop them. Focusing on one at a time is recommended as there is no bonus for how many pillars remain when you are done. But wait! There is more! A 12 Hero and 3 Champions are actually the primary objective of this stage. So you will need to split your time between the objectives in order to effectively stop the skeletons and the named group. Once you are done, it's time for an unusual Stage IV of a PQ

Stage IV: Fausus the Liche, Garith The Fleshrinder, Sarhakot the Ancient This is where the PQ begins it's epic conclusion in a fight against the Lich himself and a few friends. All 3 of these are 13 Hero cons so pull them separately but work quickly, you only have a few minutes. All 3 appear to have knockback and at least small AoE's. Once you've managed to kill all three, pat yourself on the back. This is certainly one of the hardest PQ's you'll have faced up to this point.

 

Oathgold Burrow:

Location: Western Portion of Marshes of Madness in a Cave

Stage I: Identify Oathgold Deposits and Kill 80 Burrow Verming. This is a fairly simple task which invloves finding 10 ore locations in the mine and killing tons and tons of bats. The only complication you might find yourself up against is the inevitable choke points provided by caves which lead to unexpected respawn. It's best to continue moving forward so you aren't caught off guard. The ore is in various locations throughout the cave system so you should get a good number of your bat kills finding them unless you just stand around and wait for them to respawn.

Stage III: Protect the Oathguard Miners You've exterminated the bats and identified the ore so now a bunch of greedy Dwarfs are coming to help collect it. It's your job to protect them any and everything that wants to eliminate them. There are dozens of them so it's ok to lose a few but if you don't pitch in they will surely lose and fail the PQ.

Stage III: Kill Blurk and Whitenose The last battle is in motion and two Hero class trolls will emerge from the depths. You'll probably want at least two groups to try and take on this encounter if you are the appropriate level. Neither troll appears to be more challenging in the other from our experience so kill them in whichever order seems easiest. When they both have perished, collect your goods and escape the tunnel before it's filled with bats again.

.