THE CURSE OF WHATELY MANOR
The following details a single-evening live adventure for 12 players. The game is in the spirit of the 60's Hammer horror movies, and mixes sleazy Lovecraftian references with a lot of silliness. The setting for the movie is sometime in the 60's, in an old English mansion at an occult auction. Alex Whately, the owner of the mansion, died two weeks ago. He was apparently a victim of the famous "Vampire murderer." Whately was found in the mansion drained almost entirely of blood by the morning maid. The mansion and all of its property are now owned by the Whately family in New England, who authorized the firm of March and Liddell to auction off all of the properties. The most unusual of the series of auctions which March and Liddell are running is a small auction of Whately's occult collection. This auction features a copy of Olius Wormius translation of the Necronomicon. Many dangerous groups interested in the book, as well as several figures involved in the Vampire murders have shown up at the auction.
How to run this adventure
First, read through all of the material, paying special attention to the player handouts. These contain the bulk of the plot, and you will need to know everything cold in order to run the game. It is designed to be played in a house or other private place. Because of gunshots going off, and needing to turn off your lights at one point, there is no way this game can be run in a public place.
Second, dive into the props list and start creating what props you can.
Third, organize all the props and handouts in some way, so that you can give them out to the players quickly. We have a huge box of oversize manila envelopes which we use to sort props and handouts. If you have them available, place all the needed props and money for that character along with the character sheet into a single envelope. A s your guests arrive, you can simply hand them the envelope for their character.
Most of the adventure runs itself, needing almost no help from a gamemaster. Occasionally, someone will be confused by something they read, and you will have to help sort them out. You may also wish to give a clue or push to someone who gets stuck.
Rules
This adventure does not need too many rules to work well. Combat is pretty much limited to gun combat. The first player to aim a gun in another's direction and pull the trigger kills that person. All other items in the game work with very simple logic. The effect that each item can have on the game is detailed below along with the description of the prop.
Props
Here is a list of the props which you will need to run the game. For many of these, feel free to substitute whatever you have available. You can also describe the items on index cards, and use the index cards instead. For the adventurous, there is also a description of how you might create a cooler version of the prop. A really good set of props can add a lot to a game, so go wild. You might also be able to talk the players into contributing to your props budget. Each character handout lists the props for that character, so you can use those as a final checklist.
- 4 Pistols. Go for small .38 snubnose cap pistols. You want something that makes noise.
- 3 Necronomicons. One is real and two are fakes. We covered 3 paperbacks in a similar covering, and pasted in a fake cover page. The dates on the books should read, MCCLXIIII, MCCXLIIII, and MCCLXIV. You can also just use cover pages to stand in for the books.
- 2 Secret Formulas. Buy some gelatin capsules at a local health food store. Fill one with powdered sugar, and one with brown sugar. Give them both to Dr. Price. He may also break the capsule apart quickly to dump the contents into someone's drink. The Borgias would be proud. Rule:The secret formula with the brown sugar will cause any psychic who ingests some to begin "channeling" a ghost that haunts the house. You should hand the player the character sheet for Mary Eddington when that occurs. The only two psychic character in the game are Elspeth Clewer and Madeline Lee.
- 1 Ankh on a chain. This shouldn't really be an index card.
- 1 Bottle containing Elizabeth's Soul. We used an old brown glass medicine bottle filled with a mixture of sand and glitter. An index card is all that is really needed, though. The marginal notes in the Book of the Dead handout gives a short ritual that can be used by Jonathan Varney to bring his beloved Eleanor back to life in Elizabeth's body.
- 3 Bottles of Powder of Yuggoth. We used an airbrush bottle filled with ground mint. They cost $1 at craft stores. This is used to animate zombies, and its use is described in the Scroll of Preservation handout.
- 1 Sheet of information on cult activity. You can find this in the Handouts section.
- 2 arsenic-laden sugar capsules. Gelatin capsules with powdered sugar. These will be used by Mary Eddington to kill people by poisoning food and drinks in the same manner as the secret formulas.
- 100,000 pounds in fake money. Make it up in denominations of 500, 1000, and 5000 pound notes.
- Incriminating letter from Martin Greenwood to Alex Whately. This item from the handouts section will be the final object of a scavenger hunt which is detailed below.
The items on the auction list.
All of the following can be represented by an index card. For the more adventurous, here are listed some ideas for making props for the auction.
- Moonchild. Substitute a book with a drawn paper cover or an index card.
- Elder Sign Pendant. This has no effect in the game, and we painted one onto a wooden coin purchased at a craft shop with glow in the dark paint.
- Skull of Vlad the Impaler. Most model shops carry a cool plastic skull for about $12.
- Brass Goblet, Ring, Tapestry, Medallion, Crucifix. All are fluff objects to round out the auction.
- Wooden Bullets. These can kill a vampire if "loaded" into a gun and fired at the vampire. You can make them by buying a dowel, cutting it into small pieces and sharpening with a pencil sharpener.
- Book of the Dead with Marginal notations. Take a book and insert the provided Lily Rhodes notes. These may help Jonathan bring Elizabeth back if he finds them.
- Scroll of preserving Dead Bodies. Roll the provided and tie with a fancy ribbon. Any character who performs the ritual listed in this can bring any dead character back to life as a zombie. Give the newly raised character a copy of the zombie character handout.
- Red felt - This is optional, but you can have a lot of fun with red felt cut into the shape of a blood splotch for gunshot victims to wear.
Preparing the Game Part II - The riddle search
This adventure includes a riddle search which you may wish to tailor to your own living quarters. At the end of the chain of riddles should be the letter incriminating Martin Greenwood, having been hidden by Alex Whately as a taunt.
Here is a sample riddle search, which you can use.
- A. You need to create something which looks like a safe. A box painted black with a dial painted on it will work fine. On the safe, put an envelope with a puzzle of some sort which must be solved before someone may look at the contents. Inside the box is the following note: "Sorry to be a thorn in your side my friend, but I knew that you would start to look. I have planted the evidence elsewhere."
- B. In plain sight is a small bud vase with a single flower, and a note carefully rolled up around it. Make it obvious, but not too obvious. This note reads: "Closer, but still too far. Perhaps you should try the top shelf of the bookshelf."
- C. Now we get cruel. The first 20 books in the top shelf of the bookshelf each have a piece of the next note. Once the players piece together the entire note and stop whatever fighting is involved, they can read: "Perhaps I can be found in the coat closet."
- D. Finally, take one of those ugly coathangers with a cardboard tube forming the bottom, and roll up the letter from Martin to Alex inside the tube.
This sounds like a really nasty thing to do to your players, but they will have the whole thing done inside of 30 minutes.
Preparing the Game Part III - Lighting
The other elaborate preparation which you will need to make is to make the entire room dark at the throw of a single switch. Keep the lights as dim as possible anyway. You can either rig several floor lamps to one power strip, or invest in a set of X-10 modules which sends commands through your house wiring to control lights. Cutting the lights is REALLY, really important to the game, and will lead to one of the most chaotic scenes you will ever witness.You should also have a table off to the side to hold the items for auction after they are auctioned. A few players will jockey for position around the table toward the end of the auction for their chance to swipe an object, so you want to make it as large and accessible as possible.
Part IV - Running the game
Here is a schedule of events which you should follow during the game. This schedule will give you a good list of things which should be happening within the game, as well as a list of things which you need to do. All of the times assume that you have told players to show up at 8:00PM, and they will be trickling in from 7:45-8:30PM.
- 7:00 Set up the riddle search, and test the lights one last time. Take all of the items for the auction and place them in a box out of sight somewhere.
- 7:45 Start greeting guests and giving out their packets and character handouts. The handouts list what props the players should receive.
- 8:00 - 9:00 Two things really need to happen before the auction begins at 9:00. Elspeth needs to convince West to wear the Ankh, and Gaston Renoir needs to notice the Ankh. So far, this has always happened, but you may need to give those players a subtle push or hint.
- 8:55 Announce that the auction will be starting in 5 minutes, and for everyone to gather around the area for the auction. Ask Gaston if he plans to shoot someone at the end of the auction. Hopefully, he will tell you that he intends to shoot Randolph West.
- 9:00 Begin the auction in the order on the player handout. You may wish to have Brandon Hall bring each item in from another room. Hold a simple open auction for each item, then place it in full view on the table after it is sold, making a note of the buyer and price. Ham the auction up, address everyone as sir or madam.
- 9:15 Right after the last item is sold, indicate that everyone should now proceed to the table to take care of their purchases. Then cut the lights (you can also arrange with Charles Price to cut the lights for you - he is supposed to be doing it anyway.)
Odds are, you will hear a lot of movement near the table, and Gaston Renoir will pull out a cap gun and fire at Randolph West. After 10-15 seconds bring up the lights, and put a blood spot on Gaston's intended victim. Whisper in their ear that they have just been shot dead and to make it look good. Call for a doctor and do the usual surprised things. Lead the victim off to another room while Brandon checks over to make sure nothing is missing from the table.
- 9:20 Announce that West is dead and that Scotland Yard wants everyone to stay in the house until they arrive to fully investigate. Give the character of William Foster to the victim to play until someone decides to make a zombie from the dead character.
- 9:20-11:00 The only two tasks you have to deal with from now on out are various actions that players will take.
Someone will eventually want to make a zombie from Randolph West. Have William Foster make up an excuse to leave, and then give that person the zombie character description.
Jonathan may also figure out how to put Elizabeth into Eleanor's body. If so, take Eleanor aside and give her the new character sheet. If you are using nametags for all of the characters, change her nametag to say Elizabeth.
You will also need to give out the Eddington character to anyone who takes Charles Price's powdered sugar formula.
- 11:00-11:30 At some point, the players will start to look slightly bored or tired, and then you want to end the game. Take on the role of Scotland Yard persona and let Brandon arrest any wrongdoers.
Then seat everyone in a circle, and have each player tell who they were, what they knew, and what they did this evening. After the howling settles, you may wish to give out an award or two for especially devious actions.
Design Notes:
The core of this was developed during a time when I was watching far too many movies and Dark Shadows episodes. It was run twice in the winter of 1992 with remarkable results. This sort of silliness seems to work well in a live game, as there is a lot of just oddness to keep things interesting.
The game was ressurrected late in 1993 for a 2-night run at the Georgia Tech Student theatre. A crew of people built a 7-room mansion with a maze and a secret passage. A full crew was on hand to handle lighting, sound, and fog effects.
This third version has had some heavier changes to remove some of the physical requirements to run the game. The original FX system included the ability to turn all of the lights to any brightness level, play digitized sounds through a stereo, and trigger strobes set in the windows. Thus, the game took place at night in a thunderstorm with flaky power, and lights that would change brightness erratically.
The riddle search for the letter also included clues given by the ghost of Alex Whately. You may be able to use an audio tape to help you build out a more interesting riddle search than the one which I have included here. The original riddle search only had three notes, but each note was incredibly difficult. Alex Whately's ghost would provide clues after a period of time, so that the riddle search could be slowed down, if needed.
Player Handouts cover the rest of the pages
Dramatis Personae
Alex Whately: The deceased and former owner of all the items up for auction. He is the most recent victim in a string of bizarre murders know as the Vampire Murders. In each case the victim was found drained of blood.
Martin Greenwood: A wealthy collector of occult artifacts and friend of Alex Whately.
Vladimir Roussinski: A minor Russian government official.
Charles Price: A British scientist, now retired from serving the Royal Navy. It is rumored that he was involved in weapons research.
Brenda Hall: In charge of security for March and Liddell Auctioneers.
Randolph West: A professor at Miskatonic and reknowned occult investigator.
Gaston Renoir: A French import/export dealer.
Elspeth Clewer: A New England mystic. She is heiress to a large shipping fortune.
Madeline Lee: Last of a line of South Carolina plantation owners.
Jonathan Varney: English author of horror fiction. His most famous book is Shadow Out Of Space.
Ann Quinn: A famous journalist and skeptic.
Eleanor Cornwall: She was the first victim of the dread Vampire Murders.
Gerald Trask: An English doctor turned priest.
William Foster: Newspaper reporter.
Martin Greenwood
As a wealthy collector of occult artifacts, you and Whately were always rivals as well as friends. When he managed to outbid you for an early translation of the Necronomicon, you were livid. Greed eventually possessed you and you murdered him. You made his death seem as if he was one of the victims of the "vampire murders." The murder was performed alone and involved several hypodermics and medical supplies.
There are only two pieces of evidence which might implicate you. One is a copy of a letter you sent to Whately, threatening him with harm if he did not give you the book. The other is that Whately had a mistress to whom he may have told a few things.
You had decided not to steal the book immediately, but instead buy it at Greenwood's estate auction. To that end, you made sure that other major occult collectors did not receive invitations to the auction.
You have also made sure that some of the other figures involved in the vampire murders are present. You have heard that a Scotland Yard official will be working undercover at the auction. That way, you have a good chance of throwing off suspicion from yourself about the murder.
Missions:
- Get the Necronomicon
- Make sure you are not implicated in the murder. Try to "help" the Scotland Yard official find the "real" murderer.
- Find those letters!
- Find out who Whately's mistress was, and find out what she knows.
Stuff:
- 1 Pistol
- 20,000 Pounds Sterling
Vladimir Roussinski
You are actually a Russian Government official. This easy job gives you lots of free time to pursue your role as a cultist of the Copper Midnight, a cult of oppressed workers trying to throw off the chains of their oppressors by bringing the Elder Gods back.Your cult has sent you on a mission to recover the copy of the Necronomicon which is on the auction block. If you are actually lucky enough to bid high enough with your limited funds, so much the better.
However, your cult has concocted a plan to steal the book. All of the items for the auction will be stored in a safe, and brought up one by one for the bidding. After the bidding has completed on each item, it will be placed on a table until the purchaser can pick up and pay for the item. So, after the last item is sold, there will be a moment of confusion as everyone rushes the table. A devious scientist, Charles Price, will arrange to cut the lights at that moment, allowing you to swap the book on the table with a counterfeit which you have in your jacket pocket. Try to make sure you are standing as close to the table as possible, so you can swap the books.
The Copper Midnight also wants you to try and help Mr. Price in any other projects he has in order to gain his confidence. He is rumored to have developed a potion which can give powerful visions to the user. Either get the formula, or obtain a sample of the potion.
Finally, The Copper Midnight would like you to obtain some documents from someone which contains the locations of several bases of a very evil, rival cult called the Order of Ithaqua. The problem is, they forgot to give you the name of your contact, but they did tell you that they promised 5000 pounds for the information.
Missions:
- Steal the Necronomicon
- Take Dr. Price's potion
- Get the information on the Order of Ithaqua
Stuff:
- Counterfeit Necronomicon
- 6,000 Pounds
- Pistol
Charles Price
Though you claim that you are here to recover the great Vampire Hunter Captain Kronos' tools of the trade, you are really here to make money. You are going to help Vladimir Roussinski steal the Necronomicon for his "superiors." They have paid you a small bit of money to arrange that the lights go out immediately after the last item is sold at the auction. Vlad will swap the book with a counterfeit that he has.
You intend to make more money by somehow obtaining the original. You have your own counterfeit that you should swap for the original at some time in the evening. Once you have the original, try to sell it for as much money as possible, or leave with it so that you can sell it later.
Of course all of the trouble you are going to is to fund your real work. THEY wouldn't give you any money because THEY didn't realize what wonderful results you could achieve. You started with a formula based on a rare South American mushroom which a well-known drug dealer, Gaston Renoir, procured for you. From this formula, you synthesized a formula of 1cc penicillin, 1 drop .0001 dilute lysergic acid in a bath of ether. You of course need to keep these ingredients secret as no one would ever think that it was the mold growing on the mushroom which had the effect of immediately and incurably driving people insane.
However, the insanity caused by this drug makes people see things which seem to have a pattern. It is as if invisible beings are living alongside us in our world. But the only people who show this pattern are those with some history of being psychically sensitive. So, for the best results, you need to find someone who seems to have psychic abilities.
You have already chosen Elspeth Clewer as being the perfect subject to try a dose of you latest formula. You have two doses, one with the formula, and one filled with powdered sugar. Your assistant mixed the two, so you have no idea which is real. Choose a second likely candidate and administer both potions to these people and take notes on what happens. Whether you slip the powder into someone's drink, or convince them to take it is up to you, but please let your gamemaster know as soon as you can.
Missions:
- Sell Original Necronomicon
- Test Experimental Serum #x41.
Stuff:
- Counterfeit Necronomicon
- Formula #x41-1 and #x41-2.
- 3000 pounds
Brandon Hall
Your cover is head of security for March and Liddell Auctioneers. You are charged with making sure that none of the items get stolen, and that everyone pays properly for all of the items at the auction.
Your real purpose for being at the auction is that you are a detective for Scotland Yard. You are investigating the well-known Vampire Murders. In each murder, the victim was found entirely drained of blood, through seemingly unknown means. No needle marks were found anywhere on the bodies. There are, however, a few unknown toxins in the bodies. While the toxins are organic, forensics has not a clue as to what they are.
The murders started in England, and new bodies appeared around Europe. There was even one in the US exactly six months ago. The victims came from all walks of life. The Yard has put together a profile of the murderer as very tidy, incredibly strong, and possibly working with an accomplice. The most recent murder, that of Alex Whately, was somewhat different. Needle marks were discovered under the hairline, and the organic toxins were not found in this body. Forensics is exhuming the other bodies to search again for similar marks, but this may be a copycat murder. Anyway, you hope to find out more about Mr. Whately and perhaps speak with Madeline Lee, a former lover of Mr. Whately.
Missions:
- Protect valuables
- Uphold the Law
- Find the Vampire Murderer
Stuff:
- Pistol
- 500 Pounds Sterling
Randolph West
You are a professor at Miskatonic University who has been sent here to collect items for sale for the university museum. Not that Miskatonic actually gave you much money to spend. The items which they really want you to buy are:
1) The copy of the Necronomicon. (very doubtful-bidding will be very high.)
2) The skull of Vlad the Impaler.
3) Anything else that looks good.Most of all, enjoy yourself. You are glad to know that Elspeth Clewer will be attending the auction. She is one of the few New England mystics who actually seems not to be a charlatan. You have in fact used her skills at sensing occult influences in the past to help you with a few field trips.
Also in case you actually get the Necronomicon, you will want to know if it is authentic. Because the authentication is a thing based on your years of occult knowledge, you will not be able to tell this secret to anyone else, but the way to tell is it is a true Olius Wormius writing is that the date will appear exactly as follows:
MCCLXIIII MCCLXIIII. Note the L before the X and the common medieval usage of 4-I's after the X instead of the more modern Roman IV.
You also have a personal goal to fulfill, which is why you convinced your peers at Miskatonic U. to let you come to this particular auction. You were enamored of the first victim of the vampire murders, Elizabeth Cornwall. You had gotten up enough courage to propose to her when she suddenly dumped you. You heard nothing from her for 3 weeks, until you saw the reports of her murder. Perhaps you can find her murderer and make sure that he comes to justice. You suspect that perhaps her new boyfriend at the time may have been responsible.
Missions:
- Buy stuff.
- Find Elizabeth's Murderer.
Stuff:
- 10000 Pounds
Elspeth Clewer
Unlike many of the other fortune-tellers in New England, you seem to actually have mystical powers. You are able to sense spirit presences and in very rare cases actually cause them to manifest themselves on this plane.
Take this house, for instance. As you enter the door, you sense anger. Whether this is directed at you, you are not sure--but there is a definite spiritual presence in this house.
Of course, you are not the only person in New England with real occult powers. Several years back you joined a group of like minds who are dedicated servants of the only true god, Ithaqua. He is opposed to other evil gods like Cthulhu and Nyarlathotep, and you have helped to destroy many members of other cults. In fact, one of these rival cults is supposed to be here tonight to kill you.
Fortunately, they do not know who you are. And in fact their only chance of knowing who you are is by your cult symbol-an Ankh. It is believed that members of your cult are required to wear this pendant at all times. Your cult encourages this belief-since at times it may be useful. So, if you simply make sure that someone else is wearing the pendant, all of your problems will go away. (Remember-any sacrifice that someone else makes is good for your cause.)
Of course you have another problem in that Randolph West is getting too close to your cult. Since you know that he will expose the cult of Ithaqua as soon as he discovers anything about you, you will need to do something about him. You have helped him on a couple of his cases and found him to be a tedious, annoying old man. You have no qualms about killing him.
If you could get someone else to do it, so much the better. Perhaps pawning the Ankh off as a charm of protection, you could get him to wear it. Certainly, you must not ever let yourself be associated with the cult.
You also have brought along a small quantity of the Powder of Yuggoth which is fairly rare and difficult to find. See if you can sell it for money. It is worth a couple hundred pounds per dose and you have three jars.
Missions:
- Stay alive.
- Make Randolph West incapable of any further investigation of your cult.
- Sell Powder of Yuggoth
Stuff:
- Ankh
- 5000 Pounds
- 3 jars of Powder of Yuggoth
Gaston Renoir
Your cover as an importer of rare items is very thin indeed. In fact, you do a much better business selling illegal and rare substances through your network of contacts. You are good, and can obtain just about anything, given enough time, and the right price. In fact, one of your customers is here this eve. The failed scientist Charles Price bought a batch of rare hallucinogenic mushrooms from you awhile back. You may wish to investigate exactly what he is up to.
That is why the Death Knights of Nyarlathotep took over your mind to make you a tool in whatever their plans are. You provide them with many items for the cult's rituals, as well as other services. Together, you are a group dedicated to bringing Nyarlathotep to the earth to cleanse humanity of evil influences, and take care of the servants of evil gods like Cthulhu and Ithaqua. You are here tonight on such a service. You were sent to kill a member of a rival cult called the Enlightened Order of Ithaqua. You will be able to recognize your target by the symbol of that cult-an ankh. To help you, a member of another cult, the Hermetic Order of the Copper Midnight, has arranged for a distraction right at the end of the auction. The lights will be cut out right as the bidding concludes, and you will be able to simply pull out your pistol and blow away the target under the cover of darkness. Please tell your gamemaster before the auction who you wish to shoot. Your superiors have also sent you with some money to buy up as many of the Olius Wormius artifacts as you can. The Necronomicon is a nice choice, but odds are, you will be outbid for it. Try and grab several of the small artifacts.
Missions:
- Buy several of Olius Wormius artifacts.
- Kill the member of the Logical Order of Nodens.
- Find out what Mr. Price is up to.
Stuff:
- Pistol
- 7000 Pounds Sterling
Madeline Lee
You were raised as a proper Southern Belle. Of course your nanny also taught you more useful things like how to make dolls which make people flinch when you stick pins through them and how to make men love you by the creative use of chicken blood and a few herbs.
You have used both of these talents to keep your aging Southern Plantation house alive after your inheritance ran out. You still have enough money to live fairly well, so that you can continue to learn more about the voodoo.
You've come to this auction in your quest for knowledge about making zombies. You figure with a good army of wailing dead servants, you could keep the small town near your plantation firmly under your control. This evening try to find out how to make zombies and if the opportunity should arise, make sure that you test the spell.
But you need to find information on how to preserve and reanimate the dead, first.
You are also very interested in the Vampire Murders. You have no doubt that vampires exist, since your nanny told you that it was so. Of course, you would like to find if these were caused by a real vampire and convince him or her to make you into one as well. To some extent, you suspect Elspeth Clewer might know something about vampirism since you have often seen her wearing a neat pendant shaped like an Ankh. Perhaps the Ankh is a symbol favored by vampires as a symbol of their eternal life.
Also. You were an ex-lover of Alex Whately. You learned a fair bit of the occult from him. You suspect that if he was slain by a vampire, he may rise out of his coffin soon. See if you can find out many of the details of his "murder." In fact, all that you know is that he wrote you a letter stating that he was being threatened by someone to give up the Necronomicon. His letter didn't state from who.
Missions:
- Make a zombie.
- Find out how to become a vampire.
- Find out about Alex' death.
Stuff:
- 7000 pounds
Jonathan Varney
You are a very famous horror writer. When you wanted to become a writer, you were told to "write what you knew." So you wrote about vampires-which you knew lots about since you have been one since 1920. Mercifully, your most famous book is not about vampires, but a sequel to a story of some 1920's hack writer.
Your reasons for being at this party are many and varied. First of all, you want to know more about the latest vampire murder. The rest are your fault, mostly due to carelessness and just a bit of bravado on your part. Your assistant should be able to attend to most of the investigation.
Yes, you have an assistant. You have managed to take control of a skeptic named Anne Quinn. Unfortunately, she is madly in love with you which has made her control very easy. You have continued this charade because she is very useful in your affairs.
The main reason you are really here is to obtain a skull. HIS skull. Rumor has it that Vlad the Impaler was the first of your line. Mayhap there will be some clue as to your existence. The problem with buying the skull outright is that if there is a vampire hunter here, he or she might try and track the purchaser of the skull.
You also have a plan to regain the lost love of your life. Many years ago, you were in love with Elizabeth Cornwall (about 2 years actually) You were going to offer her eternal life, but she called you a freak and tried to kill you by shooting you. You went into an uncontrollable rage and killed her, making her the first victim of the Vampire Murders. Perhaps your reaction to this event is why you have grown careless in your feeding.
She steadfastly refused to drink of your blood as she died. As her spirit slipped away, you used a spell that your sire taught you to capture her soul in a small bottle, which you have carried around with you ever since.
You have learned that Lily Rhodes may have found a way to put a disembodied soul back into another body. Try to find out anything you can on this topic amongst these occult minds.
How Vampires work: As a thoroughly modern vampire, you are immune to crosses, garlic and all of that rot. The only real way to tell if you are a vampire is to shoot you. Unless someone uses wooden bullets or a stake, you cannot be harmed. Forget the mirrors and running water as well. Those were just rumors encouraged by your kind to help throw off suspicion.
Missions:
- Get Vlad's skull.
- Find out how to restore Elizabeth back to life so that you can try again to persuade her to join you.
Stuff:
- 10000 pounds
- Bottle with Elizabeth's Soul.
Anne Quinn
You are a famous skeptic of the occult. You used to write columns about how fake all occult phenomena were. That is until you met Jonathan Varney. He seemed to be determined to break your skepticism and did a pretty good job when he showed you his fangs.
Jonathan is a vampire. And you have become his faithful servant and lover.
You have still had to keep up appearances of being a skeptic, lest someone suspect that something is horribly wrong. Your love for Jonathan has of late been tested quite a bit because he caused the vampire murders.
However, Jonathan did not cause the latest death, that of Alex Whately. You are here at the party to protect Jonathan from harm as well as to find out as much as you can about this latest murder. It would be even nicer if you could expose the murderer and pin the other murders on him as well.
You have heard rumors that a Scotland Yard detective has been assigned to the case and will be here at the auction tonight. Needless to say, this person should be fed as much false information as possible, and if at all possible, "taken care of".
Also, something seems to be bothering Jonathan. Your worst fear is that he is chasing another woman, something which you could not bear. Find out exactly what has been bothering him, and take appropriate actions.
Lastly, you are quite interested in other forms of undead. See if you can find out anything about how zombies are made.
Missions:
- Implicate someone else in Vampire murders.
- Solve the riddle of Jonathan.
- Make some zombies.
Stuff:
- 3000 pounds
Eleanor Cornwall
As the sister of Elizabeth Cornwall, the first victim of the vampire murders, you have been slightly obsessed with her murder. That is why you accepted this unusual invitation to attend this auction. This occult stuff doesn't interest you terribly, but you'll make the best of the situation by finding out something about your sister.
You do know that your sister had been seeing someone shortly before she died those two years ago. It is odd that the man she was seeing never showed up at the funeral. No one ever found out who he was.
You are also very bothered by a dream you had the night before the body of Alex Whately was found drained of blood. You saw an image of Mr. Whately with his life's blood draining out of his nose and his mouth beckoning you to help him. You freaked when you saw the picture of the same man on the cover of the paper the next morning. Of course, the dream may have been the result of some really bad food the previous night, coupled with a vivid imagination....
When a friend found out that you were going to be at the auction, he offered you a way to make some spare money by selling some information which he had found out. Apparently, he used to be a member of a group called the Enlightened Order of Ithaqua. Anyway, there will be a member of a rival group called the Order of the Copper Midnight at the auction tonight who will pay you 5000 pounds for information on where the Ithaqua people's bases are located.
Mission:
- Uncover more about your sister's murder
- Find out more about Alex Whately's murder and your dream.
- Sell the plans for the bases to the person from the Copper Midnight.
Stuff:
- 3500 pounds
Gerald Trask
You aren't very sure exactly why you are a priest, but it seemed the logical course to follow after your medical practice was ruined. You didn't become a doctor for the money, but rather to help people. Unfortunately, one of your patients went incurably insane on the same day as you gave him a slightly unorthodox prescription. The cause of his insanity was linked to some rare South American mushrooms which you found in the patient's bedroom. When you touched the mushrooms you fell into the state of a raving lunatic for several hours. So you still have your medical license, but were pretty much forced to move to the States because of the British Press's attention. You still have no idea where the drugs came from. You would very much like to see the man who s old him the drugs brought to justice.
Or, even better, you could get him committed. You really haven't gotten over that experience with the mushrooms. In fact, you've picked up a sadistic streak which is taking a toll on the patients at the psychiatric hospital you now run. So you are out looking for more recruits. It doesn't matter if they are sane. If they sign the forms, you can collect them later. You have two forms. The one for voluntary committing only requires the signature of the person who is being committed. The other requires the signature of a next of kin as well as a member of either a police force, or preferably a judge.
Lastly, you should have a talk with Jonathon Varney. You attended a convention in L.A. last April, to see him lecture about how insanity is portrayed in horror. Some of the details in one of his books reminds you an awful lot of the things which have happened at your asylum.
Missions:
- Find the drug dealer. See if you can find any evidence to convict him.
- Talk to Mr. Varney about his horror books.
- Get people to sign the release forms.
Stuff:
- 3000 pounds
Zombie
Guess what? You are now a happy-go-lucky member of the undead. Unfortunately, you have very little free will. You must follow any commands of the person who made you, and may not work directly against them. But you CAN try and convince other people to do nasty things to them, unless your owner specifically forbids you to do something.
Your original goals are still valid, but you have to drop them if your master has a task for you. You know that your body is starting to decompose, but hide that fact as much as possible. Still, you might wish to walk a bit stiffly, and act more dead as the night progresses.
Missions:
- Whatever your master says.
- Revenge on your master.
Stuff:
- One decomposing animated corpse.
Elizabeth Collins
You are a very prim, proper young lady. And you had led a very normal life-style, save that the man you were going to marry was somewhat older than you. Randolph West was a kind if somewhat strange man, but he had a bit of money and would have cared for you. However, three weeks ago you fell in love with a man named Jonathan Varney. You felt as if you were under a spell in his presence, and dumped Randolph. You saw him just about every night for those three weeks until last night, when he asked you to become a vampire. At first you laughed at his silly joke.
Then he showed you his fangs and tried to bite you.
You raced away from him into the next room, and grabbed a pistol to defend yourself. You shot Jonathan as he appeared in the door to your bedroom, but the shot did not appear to harm him. He screamed furiously, grabbed you and sank his teeth in your neck.
That was last night. You have been unconscious since then. One thing you know for certain. You need to kill Jonathan before his evil spreads to more people. Although Randolph probably hates you, maybe if you explain things to him, maybe he will help you in this endeavor.
Mission:
- Kill the Vampire.
Stuff:
- Whatever you had before.
Mary Constance Eddington
You are not very sure why you are at this party with all of these adults. And since you are only.....well at least ten-you tend to forget, you really wish that there were someone to play ball with. Maybe some of the grown ups will play with you.
You should also introduce as many people as possible to dlllleeerpicet, your friend. He's not very good at playing ball, but seems to like most people. He doesn't seem to like Jonathan and only growls at him. Make sure to point this out, loudly and as many times as possible. If you make sure to let a gamemaster know, you can probably even arrange for a growl to emanate from somewhere.
You were born in 1848. You do remember that well. You also remember that you killed your father and mother because they told you to stop playing with dlllleeerpicet. It was very easy, since your parents ALWAYS put sugar on their blackberries, when you never did. And you were sleeping quite peacefully when somebody woke you up to go to this stupid party. If you find out who woke you, kill them. You even have some sugar left over.
Missions:
- Play ball with people and introduce them to dlllleeerpicet.
- Try to find out who brought you here, and ask them if they like blackberries. If they don't, try to find out what they do like and bring it to them. And make sure not to tell them about the extra sugar on top.
- If anyone tries to keep you from having fun, they are probably BAD PEOPLE. You know what to do with bad people.
Stuff:
- Small ball
- Photo of dlllleeerpicet (Would you believe a photocopy of the Zoog from S.Peterson's Guide to the Dreamlands?)
- 2 capsules of sugar laced with arsenic.
Note: You will alternate between this character and your normal character for the rest of the night. Change personalities whenever a gamemaster tells you to.....or when you get bored.
Whately Estate Auction to be held by March and Liddell Auctioneers at the estate of the late Alex Whately.
Auction Catalog
- Moonchild, A first edition novel autographed by the author, Alester Crowley. c. 1923 #1000.
- Pendant. Modified pentagram with flaming eye in the center carved into black rock. c. unknown #2000.
- Skull. Believed to be that of Vladimir Dracula. Has been carbon dated. c. 1300 #2000. 4. Brass Goblet. Style of 13th century. Blood stains in cup. Owned previously by Olius Wormius. c.1200 #1500.
- Wooden bullets (4). Originally crafted by Charles Kronos, famed occult investigator. c. 1880 #500.
- Ring. Gold with amber stone. Property of Olius Wormius. c. 1200 #2000.
- Ceremonial Knife: 13th century kris. Owned by Olius Wormius. c. 1200 #1500.
- Egyptian Book Of The Dead. English Translation with marginal notations by Lily Rhodes. c.1920 #500.
- Crucifix. 3 inch wooden with silver fittings. Owned by Charles Kronos. c. 1800 #1000
- Scroll. Parchment. Short treatise on preserving bodies. Author: Olius Wormius. c.1200 #1000.
- Tapestry. Depicts same pentagram as #2. Found in wreckage of the Boston Hermetic Order of the Silver Twilight headquarters. c. 1900 #1000.
- Necronomicon. Latin translation from the Arabic by Olius Wormius. One of two copies known to exist. c. 1200 #5000.
- Medallion. Depiction of a mounted knight in gold. c. 1400 #1500.
Values are requested starting bids.
The scroll by Olius Wormius
Text of Preservyng a corpse Beyonde its normal Keeping Tyme
Olius Wormius
If ye wishe to preserve a corpse for a tyme so that it may be used in a magickal ritual, must ye start with the corpse of a bodie what died by violent means. Then must ye place in his left hand a jar containing Powder of Yuggoth.
Then must ye chant mystical words above the corpse appropriate to the ryte whic ye will later perform on his bodie. If ye have no particular ryte prepared, ye may chant "Yog Sothoth Neblod Zin," thrice.
At this point the bodie is prepared. Note that the use of this spell spoils the flesh for consuming, so if your ryte requires that ye should think of using spices to preserve the body.
Another use I have found for this short ryte is to animate the corpse to use as a messenger. Unfortunately the corpse will continue to decompose when this ryte is spoken after the Powder of Yuggoth is used. This does, however make the newly created zombie perfect for delivering messages, particularly if the zombie is taught the magickal word "Kan- dee-gram."
Ye must place water in the Powder and then splash it on the Zombie. Thus, the zombie will recognize you as its master. Then intone the magick words "Poolo si Bagumbah." The zombie should rise and obey your commands.
The threat letter from Martin to Alex
Alex,
I cannot understand why you wish to keep the writings of the Necronomicon from my eyes. I understand how badly you want it given the strength of your collection of items from the life of Olius Wormius, but you have no right not to let me at least peruse it.
My occult research has come to a complete standstill until I have it. Therefore, Alex, I will stop at nothing to see that book.
Do you understand Alex? Nothing! I would hate to see such a dear friend as yourself fall prey to the Vampire Murderer which has caused so many deaths.
I eagerly await your reply.
Sincerely,
Martin Greenwood
Marginal Notes in the Book of the Dead
-Wallis told us yesterday that Herbie did not really die, but that his soul was somehow trapped inside the mirror. Maybe we can get him out somehow.
-No luck with this first formula. Wallis says that this would never work, and that I need to try something with Mandrake in it.
Tanna leaves failed to call Herbie's soul out of the mirror.
Actually got a flicker in the mirror by using Powder of Yuggoth as suggested here. The ritual should REALLY be done by speaking Nyarlothotep's name over and over while walking around the mirror 3 times counter-clockwise. Wallis was very nervous about "the messenger guy showing up."
This seems to imply that I'll need a relative of Herbie's to get his soul out. And I should walk around him while he is holding the mirror. Since the trees don't seem to be watching closely of late, I'll sneak out and try and find a relative tomorrow.
Admission form #243532 License from State of California #3464326457-47561
Name ______________________________________________________________________ Address ______________________________ Age ____ Sex ____ ______________________________ Occupation ______________________ Birthday ___________
Note: Supplemental Information form #JX2325/2 should be fastened to this form when submitted to the State of California. Signer understands that he/she will be placed in the care of the facility until released. At that time, the patient and doctor should submit a form #JX3436464/4 to the State of California for permission to release the patient. --------------------------------------------------------- For Office Use only
Facility Code __________________ Insurer ________________________________________ Reason Code______________________________________________________________________ Contact ______________________________________________________________________
Facility Manager's Signature x___________________________________________________ Date __________________ Patient's Signature
x___________________________________________________ Date __________________
Admission form #243532/B License from State of California #3464326457-47564
Name ______________________________________________________________________ Address ______________________________ Age ____ Sex ______________________________ Occupation ______________________ Birthday ___________
Note: Supplemental Information form #JX2325/2B should be fastened to this form when submitted to the State of California. Signer understands that he/she will be placed in the care of the facility until released. At that time, the patient and doctor should submit a form #JX3436464/4B to the State of California for permission to release the patient. --------------------------------------------------------- For Office Use only
Facility Code __________________ Insurer ________________________________________
Reason Code__________________________________________________________________ Contact ______________________________________________________________________
Arresting Officer or Authorized judge's signature
x____________________________________________________Date __________________
Facility Manager's Signature x____________________________________________________Date __________________
Next of Kin's Signature x____________________________________________________Date __________________
William Foster
Curse all of the rain. You were hoping to be at the auction on time to see who bought what, since you have to report it for the London Times. Not that they respect the talent of such a star reporter as yourself. But with the piece you are doing on cult activity around the world, you'll set yourself up for several awards.
You are writing a piece to expose the presence of several cults around the world. The three which you know of are the Death Knights of Nyarlathotep, the Enlightened Order of Ithaqua, and the Order of the Copper Midnight. All except the Order of Ithaqua are base criminals who should be exposed to the world.
But why not the Ithaqua group? Because you are a member of course. That is the beauty of your article. You know that the symbol of your order is an ankh. And that you work against groups of people called the Elder Gods.
You are here for two reasons, to discover what members of what cults might be here, and which cults they belong to. You have also heard that an ex-member of the Order of Ithaqua will be here trying to sell plans for your bases to one of the other cults. Make sure to stop him.
Missions:
- Expose members of other cults.
- Stop plans of secret bases from being sold.
Resources:
- 2000 Pounds
Note: This character may have to leave at any time. If a gamemaster tells you that it is time to leave, kindly use the excuse that you have another story to cover and then follow that gamemaster off to another room.
Secret document on the Order of Ithaqua
The bases for the members of the Order of Ithaqua are scattered about the globe in various places. Almost always these bases are hidden rooms and places near famous landmarks, so they can easily be found by members who have been heavily drugged. Entrances to bases include the third stall from the end in the Men's washroom next to the Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island, the basement of the old Rhodes' mansion in Boston, through the trunk of Elvis last cadillac at Old Car City USA in Georgia. Through the Iron Maiden on the RIGHT in the Ripley Museum in St. Augustine Florida. (DO NOT go through the left one. That is for another order.) Of course the members of the Logical Order of Ithaqua have better things to do than merely make creative bases for themselves. The are rumored to be the motivating force behind Tupperware parties and the reinstatement of red MandM's. They have lately expanded to try and stop other cults from summoning the Elder Gods back from the Great Elder God Retirement Home (rumored to be in Fort Lauderdale Florida.) You can always tell a member of the Order by the symbol of an ankh. The meaning of this symbol is known only to those higher up in the order, but I believe that it has something to do with the fact that it was the only distinctive piece of jewelry that Sandi has which seemed to fit as a symbol. The Order of Ithaqua is also absolutely amazed that anyone in their right mind at a party would decide to read through this mess of tiny type, when they should have more important things to do. Besides, there is a member of the Death Knights of Nyarlathotep sneaking up on you at this very moment with a large knife preparing to stab you. And of course no good rant about the Logical Order of Ithaqua would be complete without their motto, so we'll leave it out of this one.
