Duel

*"Thus, we see the contempt the Empire holds your kind in."*

This is an Encounter Card in *Hand of Fate 2.*

As the player defeats Cassius and progresses through the story Challenges, Cassius will be promoted within the Imperial Army, and he will become more difficult to duel.

In order to attain this card's Shard, the player must complete at least 20 of the story Challenges and defeat Brimstone Sir Cassius in a duel.

## Event

Before defeating Cassius:

*A careless comment in an Imperial tavern gains you some unwanted attention.*
*A soldier pushes through the throng. Though merely a corporal, you sense his eagerness to prove himself.*
**The Dealer draws a 1 of Steel.**
After defeating Corporal Cassius:

*While carousing at an Imperial tavern, you suggest that the Emperor's forehead is overly wide. The laughter is cut short by the sound of a tankard breaking on the floor.*
*A familiar soldier approaches. He clutches his shiny new captain's helmet in one hand, knuckles white with outrage.*
**The Dealer draws a Captain of Steel.**
After defeating Captain Cassius:

If the player has completed fewer than 11 Campaign Challenges:
*A drunkard claps your back in an Imperial tavern. "You're the mercenary who made that brilliant remark about the Emperor's wide forehead! What a lark!"*
*Before you can respond, he is pushed aside by the furious Captain Cassius. "You again!"*
**The Dealer draws a Captain of Steel.**
If the player has completed at least 11 Campaign Challenges:
*While enjoying a pint of Imperial ale, you smirk derisively at a portrait of the Emperor hanging over the bar.*
*You hear a piercing scream of frustration from the back of the tavern. Captain Cassius strides toward you - the colour has faded from his uniform, and his eyes burn like embers.*
**The Dealer draws a Brimstone Captain of Steel.**
After defeating Brimstone Captain Cassius:

If the player has completed fewer than 15 Campaign Challenges:
*You return to the tavern for another refreshing pint of Imperial ale. The Emperor's portrait, hung proudly over the bar, is now draped with cloth.*
*"That's right!" comes a voice from the back of the tavern. "You don't even deserve to gaze upon his magnificence!"*
**The Dealer draws a Brimstone Captain of Steel.**
If the player has completed at least 15 Campaign Challenges:
*Few would blame you for avoiding Imperial taverns at this point, and yet you find yourself once more knuckling up to a bar crowded with soldiers.*
*Before you can even order a drink, Sir Cassius has hurled his armoured gauntlet onto the ground and issued a challenge.*
**The Dealer draws a Knight of Steel.**
After defeating Sir Cassius:

If the player has completed fewer than 20 Campaign Challenges:
*Sir Cassius waits for you at the door of yet another Imperial tavern, sword drawn. "I would have words with you, knave."*
**The Dealer draws a Knight of Steel.**
If the player has completed at least 20 Campaign Challenges:
*You meet with your fellow conspirators at an inn on the fringes of the Empire. Here, between mugs of ale, you begin to plot the Emperor's downfall. As the fire burns low in the hearth, you hear a knock at the door. Sir Cassius strides into the room, armour gleaming.*
*"I cannot abide by this! You should never have smirked at the Emperor's portrait, you scoundrel!"*
**The Dealer draws a Brimstone Knight of Steel.**
After defeating Brimstone Sir Cassius:

*You hesitate for a moment at the threshold of the Imperial tavern. Surely - surely - Sir Cassius won't be waiting inside to accost you once more.*
*The knight leans casually against the bar, running whetstone along the edge of his blade. He gives you a nod and you sigh in resignation.*
**The Dealer draws a Brimstone Knight of Steel.**
*"The Empire has no place for honourless sellswords," he says loudly, sizing you up with contempt.*

*"Coin-slaves like you are little more than undisciplined thugs - nobody cares for your outrageous claims of heroism."*

If the player has at least 8 Fame:

*"I know of this mercenary!" a trader at the back of the tavern pipes up. "They say he defeated the magical shaman of a Northerner tribe!"*
*"Irrelevant," the soldier says, turning back to you.*
*"You think you know how to handle that thing, do you?" he continues, gesturing at your weapon.*

*"I am Cassius, the finest swordsman in my company - would you like to prove your mettle against a real warrior? Or are goblins and the corrupted the limit of your talents?"*

1) Accept the duel.

**The player enters Combat.**
Win the duel (if Cassius' Life falls below 50):
*"Enough!" your opponent steps back, hands raised. "I don't have time for this nonsense!"*
*The tavern crowd cheers your victory and the tales of your battle are told and retold, your prowess growing with each telling.*
If the player has completed fewer than 19 Campaign Challenges:
**The player gains 8 Fame.**
If the player has completed at least 19 Campaign Challenges:
**The player gains 12 Fame.**
If the player defeated Brimstone Sir Cassius:
**The player gains this card's Shard.**
Lose the duel (if player's Life falls below 20):
*"Never mind mercenary - you did your best. But you'd best get back to butchering goblins and leave the real fighting to professionals.*
**The player loses 2 Fame.**
2) Slink away.

*"Back to the stables with you!" the soldier declares. You leave to the sound of laughter.*
**The player loses 2 Fame.**