About this page: the official quest books sketch the world's history briefly: a few paragraphs of backstory, then one short introduction per quest. This page mixes those official names (Mentor, the Loretome, Zargon, Rogar, Sir Ragnar, Prince Magnus, Ulag, Grak, the Witch Lord, Barak Tor, Kaba Karn, Darkfire Pass and others) with fan elaboration. The official timeline comes first; the older, invented ages are labelled at the end.
"Each quest is a page in Mentor's book. Read them in order and a story appears: a rising darkness, a handful of heroes, and a realm that is never quite safe."
The Official Timeline
HeroQuest's history is told through play. The backstory sets the scene, and each quest's opening text moves the story on. The timeline below lists the core campaign and the Avalon Hill packs. The packs are shown in release order; most are self-contained stories rather than fixed points on one calendar.
From Rogar's age to the quest packs
The Backstory: Rogar and the Star of the West
An Earlier Age
Mentor's history begins with an earlier war. Rogar, a barbarian prince, carried the Star of the West and led the fight against Zargon's forces with three companions: Durgin the dwarf, Ladril, an elven fighter-mage from Elethorn, and Telor the wizard. Zargon's armies were driven back but not destroyed.
That is the whole of the official "ancient history", and it is enough: it explains why Mentor trusts a mixed party of barbarian, dwarf, elf and wizard, and why Zargon keeps coming back.
The Core Campaign
Quests 1–6: First Trials
The Trial sends the heroes into Fellmarg's tomb against Verag the gargoyle. They then rescue Sir Ragnar, one of the King's most powerful knights, raid the lair of Ulag the Orc Warlord, recover Prince Magnus' gold, survive Melar's Maze, and face Grak, Ulag's son, in Legacy of the Orc Warlord.
Quests 7–11: Deeper Threats
The Lost Wizard, The Fire Mage, Race Against Time and Castle of Mystery lead to Bastion of Dread. (In the classic editions this quest is Bastion of Chaos, and the European Quest 7 was The Stone Hunter.)
Quests 12–14: The Witch Lord
The titles tell the final arc: the heroes reach Barak Tor, the barrow of the Witch Lord; go in search of the Spirit Blade; then return to Barak Tor to finish what they started. Heroes who complete all 14 quests become Sovereign Knights.
After the Core Box
Kellar's Keep
In the 2021 text, the King rode with his army toward Darkfire Pass, and the army is now holed up in Kaba Karn, an ancient dwarven stronghold. The heroes must break through. A free online quest, The Forsaken Tunnels of Xor-Xel, bridges the core campaign and this pack.
Return of the Witch Lord
An undead-heavy campaign of skeletons, zombies and mummies, built around the Witch Lord's return.
The Later Packs
Each later pack tells its own story. The Frozen Horror takes the Barbarian into icy lands; The Mage of the Mirror starts the Elethorn saga, which Rise of the Dread Moon concludes; The Prophecy of Telor takes its name from Rogar's old wizard companion; Spirit Queen's Torment, Against the Ogre Horde (led by the Ogre Lord) and Jungles of Delthrak follow. In the 2026 Wizards of Morcar, the heroes face five enemy sorcerers and learn who Morcar really is. The quest pages in this guide cover each one.
Story Threads Across the Products
A few names reach across several boxes. Following them is the easiest way to give a long campaign a sense of history.
Older Ages: Fan Elaboration
The old version of this page described a deep history of dragon wars, a divine schism and a sundered empire. None of that is in the books. If you want ancient history for a custom campaign, here are two short options, invented for this guide:
The Sundering (fan)
A larger, older realm once covered the land and broke apart into the kingdoms of today. Its ruins explain the tombs, mazes and abandoned halls that the heroes keep finding underground.
The Age of Dragons (fan)
Some campaigns invent a time when dragons ruled the skies. In official products, dragons are rare: First Light includes a dragon miniature, and The Crypt of Perpetual Darkness a black dragon. Use them sparingly and they stay terrifying.
Where Next
- The Core Quest Book covers each core quest in detail.
- Lore: The Dark Forces introduces the villains behind these events.
- Lore: Mentors & Quest-Givers covers the people who send the heroes out.