Riding on board the zeppelin IFS Zephyr, you feel a calm sense of tranquility as you approach your destination. Suddenly however, that peace is broken by the sound of gun fire. Looking out the window, you see two strange, mechanical flying attack craft zooming towards you, firing away. Stranger still, the crafts are being piloted by ogres, well known for their inaptitude with anything requiring thinking skills. The result - The ogres manage to get themselves killed, while the IFS Zephyr crashes in a fiery ball of fire close to the Shrouded Hills, leaving you as the sole survivor of the crash. However, a gnome nearby beckons to you, and bids you to return his signet ring to a boy who will know what to do with it. He also mentions that something is about to happen, before he takes his last breath and dies. After searching the wreckage for anything salvageable, a strange man approaches you, believing you to be the reincarnation of an elven deity in the Panarii religion, prophesized to arrive on the wings of fire, and known as the Living One. After battling through the denizens of the wild with your new found companion, you arrive at the shrine prophesizing your return. You also meet a strange elven stranger, who immediately attacks you after being told you are the sole survivor of the crash. Later, you find yourself in the village of Shrouded Hill. Here, you learn that the ring you received was crafted by the well respected firm of P. Schuyler & Sons in the city of Tarant. However, the only bridge leading out of the village is being blockaded by a band of brigands. And so begins your mysterious adventures in the land of Arcanum...
