Background:
*Rthu-Albk was the original leader of the seven centuar tribes, back in the days of old. During his fifty-year reign, civil war shattered the alliance and the tribes each branched out into seven seperate ones. This haunted Rthu until his death.

*Prior to the wars, the tribes had been unified under an ancient code that they should follow the one who had the Shield of the Warrior-Horse. Once that code was broken, the shield was buried with Rthu and forgotten.

Enter the PC's:
*Time has come that Rthu-Albk will appear to a great leader. It is the 300 year anniversary of his death, but he has never truly been at rest. (In my game the PC's were already allies with a centuar-king. Perhaps this could happen from a prior adventure or encounter in the area, so that the leader will seek the PC's aid when he begins to see Rthu.)
In these visions, the ruler (mine was called Dahkeya, a peaceful young centuar new to his throne) is promised the Shield if he can reunite the tribes. But there is a catch, as always...Rthu cannot allow the shield to fall into any hands. He has a test for Dahkeya. That is where the PC's come in.

Silver Song:
Perhaps the most infamous blade in Centuar lore. This sword was crafted by Lotheu-Gi for his king in the early days of the Centuar alliance. Lotheu-Gi was a beautiful craftsmen and singer, who was commisioned all over the realm to write songs for hand-fastings, births, and wars. The Silver Song was the most famous of these, written for the Lady Jenarth-Kyr's hand-fast. After it was composed the people fell in love with the beautiful song.
This sword is said to fight with the fierceness of the Silver Song's beauty and all the Lady's love. The sword is also the only record of the song, which has fallen out of use. Lotheu had many apprentices, but none could match his talent and the song died with him.
During his lifetime, Silver Song was given to the leader of the fourth tribe. They lost it in a raid and were never able to recover it. It changed hands many times in the following centuries, but never reaching back to the Centuarian people. Now it lies in the hands of Narktruht, a warrior who lives in Dragon Wolf Valley.

The Quest:
*Rthu wants Dahkeya to find the sword, and he in turn asks the PC's for help. He has need only for the shield, and promises them the sword after Rthu has seen it.
Once he has filled them in on it's history, their interest should be peaked. Unfortunatly, the only clue provided by Rthu—
'An ancient race, an ancient place,
Through the fertile, past the wise,
To where the ground is safer than the skies.'
This place is Dragon Wolf Valley, a few weeks south, which should be a long journey across the plains. On the way, there are hostile centuars as well as scores of other creatures. (It's best for the PC's to figure out the clue themselves, so it helps if they know the region or perhaps bought a map in the last port city. If they are completely stumped, Dahkeya can help.)

Dragon Wolf Valley:
Not any easy place to break into and make demands. Going down into the Valley is certain doom, because the wolves can do aerial attacks. Scaling the outward cliffs is the best option. There are many caverns and tunnels weaving through the cliff faces, and this is the easiest way in.
However, the chance of meeting a dragon wolf is 35% every 5 minutes. These caves house 2000 of them. Luckily the caves are vast. Any rolls of 99-00 mean the PC's have found treasure of some variety (I have a chart I use for this purpose.)
Encounters::
01-04% 1d6 wolves
05-10% a lone wolf
11-14% a nest with 1 adult and 1d4 pups
15-20% 2d4 wolves
21-25% a mated pair of wolves
26-30% 3d6 wolves!
31-35% 1d4 wolves

The Shield of the Warrior-King:
*Assuming that the PC's get the sword, Rthu will give the shield to Dahkeya. Still a new king, he would like help with the diplomacy. The seven tribes must all be convinced that uniting is in their best interest and called to counsil to swear to obey the Codes. Plenty of roleplaying opportunites for the DM to create all sorts of rulers that the PC's must bargain with....(evil DM smile).

Future Plot Hooks:
*What will the human nomads do when they hear of this alliance that they are not invited to take part in?
*Will all the leaders be able to put aside their conflicts, or might the PC's stir up bad feelings and cause another war?
*Perhaps they will not accept Dahkeya as their leader? He is still young, younger than most of the other leaders. Perhaps the shield will be stolen from him?
*Revenge of the Dragon Wolfs? Espically if they lost a lot of treasure...good way to remind your PC's not to be too greedy.

Notes:
I tried not to make things system specific. I don't play DnD, if there is no equivalent to a dragon wolf, just think: wolf with wings. Greedy and selfish tendancies, but smart and crafty. Don't like humans.
I also left out the sword stats because mine are for PFRPG. When creating it, just think beautiful, average damage, but more to supernatural and undead.

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