Deathstalker, Daniel Bernhardt, a former knight, scours a blood-soaked battlefield for loot and pockets a gleaming golden amulet after lifting it from a dying man. Later, in a dim tavern at the edge of ruins, a two-headed troll attacks him in search of the amulet. He fightingly defeats the creature and, defying his own impulse to rid himself of the burden, tries to toss the amulet into a river—only for it to slip back into his pocket. Repeatedly failing to shed the talisman, he seeks help from the witch Toralva, Tanya Saari.
In Toralva’s hut, she cannot decipher the amulet’s writing, but warns that the artifact is bound to him until his death and that he must find a wizard who can interpret it. She also senses a looming and great evil that Deathstalker refuses to take seriously. With Toralva’s directions in mind, he enters a labyrinthine cave system in search of the fabled wizard.
Inside the caverns, Deathstalker battles man-eating serpents and escapes with a chest containing the imprisoned wizard, Doodad, Patton Oswalt. Releasing Doodad, the pair decide to work together. The wizard cannot read the amulet either, but agrees to help and proposes they raid the crypt of a dead wizard to recover a scroll that might unlock the inscription.
On the way, they learn that an ancient necromancer, a rising threat, has returned and is pursuing the amulet. They are attacked by dreadites, the necromancer’s minions, and their commander is revealed to be Jotak, Deathstalker’s old friend who Deathstalker believed had perished. In a brutal clash, Deathstalker severs Jotak’s arm and they flee.
When they reach the crypt, they discover Necronemnon’s minions have beaten them to the prize. Disguised among the dead, Deathstalker and Doodad slip in and cross paths with Brisbayne, Christina Orjalo, who joins their ranks. Together they escape with the scroll needed to translate the amulet’s riddle.
That night, the group camps in the Moaning Woods and endures an assault from a stone titan and, later, a blade-wielding mummy. Deathstalker is badly injured, and Doodad finally breaks the amulet’s bond to him. The wizard then reveals a prophecy hidden in the amulet, telling of a magical sword capable of defeating the ancient threat.
While asleep, Brisbayne betrays them and they are captured by the thief queen Grendul, who intends to sell the amulet back to the prince. Interrogating their captives, Grendul accidentally awakens swamp monsters who threaten her people. Doodad tames the creatures with music, enabling Deathstalker to escape.
Deathstalker takes Grendul’s place at a tense meeting with Prince Baldur, Conor Sweeney, and agrees to sell him the amulet. Baldur double-crosses him, and the Dreadites strike, slaying the prince’s knights. As Deathstalker flees, Jotak ambushes him again, his arm now replaced with a monstrous prosthetic. Brisbayne returns to help, but Jotak prevails and kills both Deathstalker and Baldur, seizing the amulet.
The swamp monsters heal Deathstalker, and he heads to Necronemnon’s fortress to rescue his friends. He frees Doodad, and together they confront the necromancer and Jotak in a climactic duel. A rock fall, triggered by Doodad, injures the necromancer, but Brisbayne is transformed into a vessel for the demon Citor.
In a final turn, Deathstalker retrieves the prophesied sword and, with it, defeats Citor and resurrects Brisbayne, sealing victory over the Dreadites. Yet afterward, he contemplates destroying the sword, believing its power too dangerous for any mortal to wield, while Doodad’s imperfect aim adds a touch of dark humor to the finale.
