"Blackmoor is beset!" On every side storm clouds gather. To South and East, the Great Empire of Thonia plots to end Blackmoor's independence and reclaim its lost province. To the West, the implacable Afridhi are on the move. To the North, the evil Egg of Coot prepares to cross the thundering sea and once again bring fire and sword into the heart of the small kingdom. Beyond the realm of the Egg, the hated Skandaharian Raiders are building longships and preparing to fall upon Blackmoor's unprotected coast while its tiny army turns to meet these otehr threats.

Into this time of black despair, there steps a band of adventruers who clutch strange swords and wear the most curious armor - and who claim that Blackmoor sank beneath the ice 3,000 years ago!