I have written up this (very draft-y) draft of an adventure I want to give to my PCs. All comments and criticisms are welcome.
PLOT
The city of Erlangen has prospered in recent years. It has become a hub of culture, technology and trade. However, this success has been met with jealousy by the local nobility. Erlangen had previously been under the jurisdiction of the Von Heuvan family, but bought it’s freedom fifty years ago. Baron Von Heuvan is a devout Sigmarite and sees the taint of Chaos everywhere. He is also desperate to reassert his control of the city. He has been able to bribe or intimidate two of the city council into his pocket. The PCs arrive in Erlangen to find one of the councilmen murdered, and must attempt to unmask the perpetrators before the city is retaken.
TIMELINE OF EVENTS
1. PCs have to secure travel to town from Ubersreik.
2. PCs arrive, go to inn, find out about murders
3. Initiate murdered
4. PCs invited to dinner with noble
5. Incident in church
6. Pinnacle
CHARACTERS
Hans Olfusson. Magistrate. Grey hair, early fifties. Relatively soft-spoken, but direct. Brought up in town, father was magistrate. Very concerned with maintaining law and order, enjoys seeing the people in the town being full of life.
Emmet Triennen. Merchant, secret agent of noble. Dashing early thirties, shaved head (some cuts on his head) and a strong jaw. Dressed in a fine brown cloak and a black waistcoat with a white shirt. Quick thinking.
Angela Grober. Head of Shallya cult. Elderly lady in her sixties. Grey hair and frail, but motherly towards anyone who treats her with respect.
Leyla Munst. Mother of murdered boy. Poor, never been shown much interest. Has four sons, all left except this one.
Anna Heillman. Flutist. Young, blonde, mid twenties. Very attractive. Clothed in pink and purple cloths, gold sequins and hair flowing down by her sides. Plays in bar every evening.
Baron Von Heuven. Local noble. Haughty but genial, fought in a war against Chaos marauders, has a grizzly scar down his right cheek underneath the eye.
Ernst Able. Bodyman to murdered councilman Adolf Zeist. Late twenties, dressed relatively fine. Brooding. Talks about how Adolf had employed him all his life, taken him all over the Empire, kept him well. Will talk about plans to set up a small hall for music and entertainment, improved roads and waterway.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
IN UBERSREIK
PCs start in Ubersreik at the Red Moon inn. Lit only by a couple of anaemic candles, cobwebs in the deep corners. A thin mongrel dog lies silently by the bar. The barkeep has a thick brown moustache and a gruff voice. He wears a brownish apron.
The crowd:
Jean Pierre, Bretonnian “noble”. He wears noble clothes. On a
Average (2d) Observation test
they will notice that the clothes are threadbare and haven’t been replaced. Anyone with knowledge of Bretonnia takes a fortune dice. He asks to gamble with them.
If the PCs wish to gamble:
- Roll 2D6, add their INT score.
- Pierre will start cheating after the second game. He received +4 on his rolls.
- If the players suspect anything they can make a
Average (2d) Observation test
to notice he is cheating. In a fight he is a ‘Townsfolk’ character. He will protest his innocence and then make a rapid exit. He is carrying 3D6 silver coins.
Nigel Farrar, explorer and adventurer. Has a strong upper British accent with a small moustache and goatee. Has just returned from an expedition to Araby. He will regale characters with stories of sleeping under the stars, eating exquisite spiced foods. Fighting undead constructs. Asks the PCs if they will take a package to Adolf Zeist, provided they can convince Farrar that they are trustworthy. Make an
Easy (1d) Charm test
or an
Opposed (WP 4) Guile test
. It contains an amulet that can, once per session, add two black fortune dice to an attacking roll. It is two golden pythons around a green emerald and a gold chain. It is worth 2 gold. Farrar’s wife will pay 10 silver for its safe return. It exudes a magical aura that can be seen by magic sight. Farrar will pay 5 silver, plus a premium of D3 silver per boon rolled on any test. Deduct D3 silver per bane. Add a fortune dice if the players buy him a beer, and another if they are able to tell a good story of adventure.
Kangavello receives a message from a courier. It is from Adolf Zeist who he had previously done some investigation for in Ubersreik. It asks for protection. Offers 7s a day, and expenses. Meet in the greedy goblin inn in Ubersreik.
The characters will be able to procure travel to Erlangen via a coach, which will cost them 10s, or alternatively if they find the docks they will find a Kislevian (Captain Pietre) merchantman sailing which will take them for free if they help (provided they can pass an
Opposed Guile test (WP3))
if they have no relevant skills. Either way, it is around a day’s travel. If the characters decide to walk it will take two days. In that case they will not be able to examine the body of the Shallyan initiate.
JOURNEY TO ERLANGEN
The characters will share a coach with two ladies, one of whom is the daughter of Baron Von Heuven. She will at first politely answer questions, but if pressed will complain about her father’s austere ways, and tell how much she enjoys shopping and socialising in Erlangen. She will know a little of the political situation in Erlangen, but no more. She will state that her father is also suffering from a stomach disorder Also in the coach will be a farmer named Franz, and he will blather about his giant pumpkins to the party.
REACHING ERLANGEN
When the PCs reach Erlangen they will arrive in the town square. They will easily find where the Greedy Goblin inn is.
When they arrive in the Greedy Goblin they will not recognise anyone. The inn is brightly lit and clean, with a flutist playing happy tunes in the corner. The beer glasses are clean, and the beer is cooled and delicious.
If they make enquiries, they will meet Ernst Able. He is drinking heavily, but isn’t drunk yet.
What Ernst knows:
- Adolf Zeist was his employer for twenty years. He had taken Ernst all over the Empire on trading missions. He mostly dealt with fineries such as silk and spices which he imported from the far east
- Adolf had taken a seat on the city council four years ago. Adolf’s family was born in Erlangen.
- Adolf was a patron of the arts and also of science. He had planned to open a new arts centre
- Adolf had had a huge row with someone the night before he died
- Adolf was stabbed to death on his way home from the inn the night before. Ernst couldn’t catch up with him. One of the thugs’ hood fell down, Ernst saw a shock of brown hair
- IF THE PC’s BUY HIM BEER, he will reveal that there were rumours swirling that Adolf was in league with Chaos
- If the PCs ask to see Adolf’s house, Ernst will protest that the wife and child are grieving and should be respected. If they attempt to break in they will find nothing of interest, but will risk being arrested.
Emmet Triennen will approach the PCs with a big smile. He has a refined accent. He will enquire what the PCs are up to. He will appear to be helpful. He will tell them about a wandering mage who was killed by a mob in a local village. He will then lament the excesses of the Erlangen. He will lower his voice and tell them of his suspicions regarding Chaos influences. He will then raise the tone and slap the PCs on the back, and tell the PCs that he will be in the inn for the next couple of nights.
Anna Heillman is a flutist. She was born in Marienburg, and was taught from a young age. She travels with a small band playing in inns. She has a disarming smile. She is very interested in music and the arts, and will tell the PCs of the pleasure she gets from playing. She will ask if any of the PCs want to join her to play. She is used to the attention of men, and will take an
Average (2d) Seduction Test
to take her to bed.
Either way, at around ten pm the PCs will hear a screaming wherever they are (provided they didn’t walk to Erlangen). It is coming from the Shallyan temple. They will find the body of an initiate on the steps, with a grieving Angela Grober. Angela will be too distressed to talk that night, but will invite the PCs to return tomorrow. She won’t object to the PCs investigating the crime scene. The clues:
- Doors weren’t forced open.
- Stabbed in the front (she knew Emmet very well)
- PCs may want to try and track the assailant. If they ask one of the city people surrounding the body, they will point in the direction they saw someone running. PCs won’t be able to find the assailant. Witnesses will say that the
- If PCs check the body, they will find a poultice recipe for something. They will recognise it on a
Hard (3d) Intelligence Test
or a
Average (2d) Medecine check
. Alternatively they can ask Angela the next morning – she will tell them that it is a cure for vomiting and stomach sickness. (The initiate had been treating the noble - she asked about the boy she had treated).
The town guard will quickly arrive with magistrate Hans Olfusson. He will ask what happened. He will attempt to engage the PCs to come to the bottom of it, since his investigators have had little luck in apprehending previous murders. He will confide that he isn’t sure they are doing their best and wants outside help. He will offer them 10s a day.
The next day Angela will tell the PCs that the last person the initiate saw was Layla Munst, whose son was dying. Layla lives in the rough part of town. She will weep and tell the PCs about her son who served with Von Heuven. The initiate took her son’s confession before he died. The son had been one of Von Heuven’s heavies, but had baulked at being asked to commit violence. He had been utterly healthy until two days previous, when he had come down with something bad. The noble had sent him home and sent a surgeon with him who said it was nothing. He had been poisoned. The initiate kept medical records in the temple, and the PCs will be able to find them if they look. The initiate suspected poisoning.
TRIP TO THE NOBLE HOUSE
Emmet will meet the PCs the next morning, and ask what they are up to. He will invite them to dine with the noble the next night. He will talk about the opportunities for hunting during the day and the excellent food. If the PCs accept, they will take a coach to the castle.
The castle is a large, gothic building with a ten foot outer wall and a four storey keep. It is kept in good condition, with the walls patrolled. The PCs will enter into a courtyard where they will be met by the local gamekeeper. He will take them hunting, if they like. Otherwise there are extensive grounds outside the main wall to explore, as well as a library. If any of the PCs manage to slip their tail and visit the main barracks area, they will spot a large number of soldiers and a cache of weapons.
At dinner the noble will be present, as will Emmet, the game keeper and one or two other dignataries. The noble will eat gustily, and anyone passing a Simple (1d) Observation test will notice that the noble is emaciated and appears to not have been eating. He will regale the PCs with stories of his wars against the Chaos hordes. He will talk darkly about ‘looming threats’ and the need for ‘preventative action’. If the PCs ask about the initiate, he will claim never to have met her. However he hasn’t expunged records of her visiting, and if the PCs ask around they may well say that they saw someone matching the initiate’s description attending to the baron.
LEAVING THE NOBLE HOUSE
When it gets slightly later into the evening the noble will retire, and his staff will insist that the PCs leave. They will state that all of the guest rooms are under renovation and that the PCs would be terribly uncomfortable. They also state that the coachman has taken ill, and they will have to walk. The PCs can take an
Opposed Intuition (WP 3) Test
to detect that the servants are lying. They may also spot the coachman by taking an
Average (2d) Observation test
if they stop by the stables before they leave.
The road back is dark, and the group is tailed by a group of shady characters. They can make an Opposed Observation (AG 3) to spot the tail. If they do spot it the tail starts at medium range. Otherwise the rogues get the jump. One ‘soldier’ NPC and a number of soldier henchmen equivalent to the number of PCs. The leader has a note on his person with a picture of one/more of the PCs. If they manage to capture one of the rogue’s after making an
Opposed Intimidate (WP 3)
test (to convince them to surrender) then the rogue can either be bribed or interrogated into giving up the description of Emmet, short of the loss of hair. They will also reveal that they have been hired to kill someone else. The note will show a picture of the magistrate.
BACK IN ERLANGEN
Emmet will meet the PCs and reveal that he has found the location of the chaos cult’s temple. He talks about the need to cleanse it with fire, and asks the PCs to do it. He will offer them up to 15s to do it if asked, no test required. He tells the PCs of the location, which is in a basement accessible from the road. Surprisingly, it is on a busy thoroughfare.
If they do go, they will find a ‘temple’. Characters making a
Hard (3d) Folklore test (Average (2d) if the characters have been in a Chaos temple before
) will notice that there are several things wrong with the temple. It appears to be just a basement with blood everywhere. There is a smell of animal in there. Anyone with knowledge of livestock can make an
Easy (1d) Folklore test
to recognise the blood. After around two minutes ask the characters to make an
Average (2d) Perception test
. Emmet is locking the entrance behind them. If the PCs left a guard, then Emmet will be spotted if the PC makes a Average (2d) Observation test. This will be Easy (1d) if the guard has made efforts to conceal himself. If the tests are failed, Emmet notices the guard before the guard notices him.
If Emmet makes it to the door, the PCs will be locked in. Emmet will throw in a burning torch before he locks it. He will then attempt to murder the magistrate. It will take him half an hour to reach the magistrate.
If the PCs have been able to warn the magistrates that someone is trying to kill him, Emmet will be unable to complete his act, and he will flee the city. He will first go to gather his things from the Greedy Goblin. In his chamber he has left a prayer book of Sigmar, several knives that he used to kill his victims and some barbers scissors. It will take him half an hour to escape. If the PCs are able to catch him he fights as a soldier with +1 strength and +1 toughness. He will, of course, first try to talk his way out of it.
CLIMAX
If the magistrate has been murdered, the new magistrate will appoint the swing vote on the council, and the council will be tipped towards the noble. The PCs will be subject to trumped up criminal charges and will be run out of the city.
If the magistrate is not murdered then Von Heuven will march the next day at the head of 200 men demanding that the city council turn themselves in for worshipping Chaos. The magistrate will note that the army has no siege weapons, and the city has large food supplies. If the PCs immediately rush to the gate house, they will face a number of well armed soldiers at the gatehouse equal to the number of PCs in the party + 2. If they delay, add one soldier for every extra clue the magistrate feeds them. (IE the only way in is the gatehouse, there is no way the army could storm the city and the baron knows it well). If Emmet escapes, add him into the fray. The PCs must prevent the soldiers from reaching the gatehouse mechanism. If the baron’s army make it into the city the PCs will be arrested (if they surrender) or attacked.
If the attack on the gatehouse is foiled, the Baron’s army will make camp outside the city. The army will disperse if the PCs are able to get a message to Ubersreik regarding the baron’s transgressions.
