Flame PrincesS white text
Adventures black text
Lamenotf thae tionS
Flame PrincesS
Adventures
Lamenotf thae tionS
Flame PrincesS
Adventures
KELVIN GREEN
of the white text
black text
Flame PrincesS
Adventures
Lamenotf thae tionS
Flame PrincesS
Adventures
by Kelvin Green
Printed for the first time in English for James Edward Raggi IV and to be sold at his shop
in Helsinki, Finland, at the signe of the Duvan’Ku.
Text and Art © 2021 Kelvin Green
Issued Under Exclusive License
First Edition, First Printing 2021
Published by Lamentations of the Flame Princess
www.lotfp.com
Printed in Finland by Otava Book Printing Ltd., Keuruu
First Printing: 2000 Copies
ISBN 978-952-7238-49-3 (Print) / 978-952-7238-50-9 (PDF)
1
Table of Contents
Author’s Introduction................................................................................ 4
How to Run This Adventure..................................................................................... 4
CSI: Paris 1630..............................................................................................................6
THE DEMON TAILOR and the Grand Plan................................................8
Cardinal Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu.......10
The Day of the Dupes.............................................................................................13
The Huguenots..................................................................................................... 14
Welcome to the City of Lights................................................................... 16
Paris 1630 (Referee Map)......................................................................................20-21
Paris Map Key.......................................................................................................... 22
THe Unrest Die..................................................................................................... 24
City Encounters................................................................................................ 26
Taxi!............................................................................................................................... 28
Taxi Insignia............................................................................................................. 29
TIMELINE of TERROR..............................................................................................31
How the Characters Get Involved....................................................32
The First Letter.................................................................................................. 34
Crazy Taxi!..............................................................................................................36
The Victims...............................................................................................................38
Victim #1: Claire Mollet..........................................................................................39
Victim #2: Rene Belleau..........................................................................................40
Victim #3: Henri Penand......................................................................................... 41
Victim #4: Julien Pascal.......................................................................................... 42
Victim #5: Bernard Rousseau................................................................................. 43
Victim #6: Blaise Bourgarit.....................................................................................57
Victim #7a: Baptiste Galonnier.............................................................................. 60
Victim #7b: Henriette............................................................................................... 61
Victim #8: Jean Dupont........................................................................................... 61
2
Table of Contents (cont.)
The Wizard.............................................................................................................44
The Wizard’s Tower(ing townhouse).............................................. 46
New Spell:Unveil the Presence of the
Dread Vampyre (Detect Vampire)......................................................... 49
The Survivor...........................................................................................................52
The Werewolf of Paris..............................................................................................53
The Barrel...............................................................................................................56
The Second Letter.............................................................................................58
The Final LEtter................................................................................................. 62
Barricades and Checkpoints.................................................................... 64
BLUE CLOAKS.............................................................................................................65
THE COURT OF MIRACLES................................................................................... 66
The Crimson Carriage of the Sun........................................................... 68
The (Demon) Tailor’s (Demon) Hideout........................................... 72
The (Demon) Tailor’s (Demon) SHOP.....................................................73
MY BROTHER’s KEEPER....................................................................................... 76
Rumbled! (or, The Jig is Up!)....................................................................... 77
AFTERMATH............................................................................................................... 78
Appendices
Appendix 1: La Perfide Angleterre......................................................................... 80
Appendix 2: The Grand Châtelet........................................................................... 82
Appendix 3: Musketeers.......................................................................................... 87
Appendix 4: Comment t’appelles-tu?................................................................... 89
Wrting, Art, and Cartography: Kelvin Green
Layout and Design: Alex Mayo
Editing: Tom Cadorette
3
A sliver of pretentious How to run this garbled
game fiction like what we mess adventure
had in the Nineties
Terror in the Streets is a hunt for a serial
One day, many years ago, James Raggi killer in Paris, during the year 1630. There
emerged from a brimstone portal and, is no direct path from A to B to C, but
as a thousand tortured angels wailed in there is a timeline of expected events,
unison, the Great Beast of Role-Playing some locations, and a few clues. Perhaps
opened the maw that had devoured a your players will find lots of clues, make
million worlds. “Write me a book with lots of clever connections, and find the
a title that makes the acronym TITS,” he killer on the second day. Maybe they
intoned, every syllable like the pounding will get distracted by some minor detail,
of a risen corpse against the inside of a and the killer will escape. They might
basalt coffin, “It will make me laugh when even cock up massively and get burned
I look at my accounts.” at the stake as Cardinal Richelieu looks
“Uh, okay,” I said, as infernal flames on, smiling over steepled fingers, one
lashed out, burning my eyebrows to ash. eyebrow raised as he…
Satisfied with my answer, the Dread Lord Anyway. The point is, the idea is that I’ve
returned to the eighty-seventh layer of presented you with a sequence of events
Heck and continued the eternal task of and a bunch of clues to throw at your
castigating the souls of the unworthy. players, and it is up to them to sort it out
I went away and wrote a dreadful and solve the mystery. As such, it is well
high-concept yet embarrassing- worth reading through the book in some
ly-on-the-nose thing about what happens detail before running it; I know every
when the lights go out ((c) Five, 1998), adventure ever written says that, but you
which was rejected, probably for the best. will have to run a lot of things on the fly
Then the Dark Overlord returned and as you play this one, so it’s worth doing.
asked for “Jack the Ripper, but 250 years I have tried to present things in a practi-
early” and so here we are. cal and sensible order to make running
the adventure as easy as possible, and,
A Note on Rewards although the mystery itself is relatively
As written, this adventure does not offer much simple, there are a lot of moving parts to
in the way of experience or loot, but there bear in mind.
are plenty of opportunities to make powerful Some players of old-school role-playing
friends and gain influence; see Aftermath games expect monsters and treasure in
(page 78 for more on that). It’s a quite deliber- their adventures, and the relative absence
ate part of the design process, and indeed was of both in this one may be a problem, so I
part of the original brief, so that’s why we have thought it best to acknowledge it upfront.
done it this way. To handle the investigation, I suggest
splitting the game day into four-hour
chunks and allow the players to follow
4
one lead per chunk. I’m not saying it will take four hours
to go and ask the parents of Julien Pascal (page 42) what
happened to their son—although I suppose it depends
on how dense your players are—and I admit the four-
hour thing is a contrivance of convenience rather than
accuracy. It takes into account preparation, delays along
the way (page 26), getting lost—Paris in 1630 had no
street signs and house numbers were disorganised and
rare—and so on.
The four-hour-chunking is arbitrary, but it helps
structure the investigation. I have run Call of
Cthulhu (TM) adventures using the format
since 1996 and it’s worked well.
There’s no requirement that all the char-
acters stick together in one blob as they
go about their business. This is one
case where it may be more sensible to
split the party so more clues can be
gathered more quickly. After
all, they are trying to solve the
mystery before more children
go missing.
5
CSI: Paris 1630 explain that their characters would not
know about this sort of thing, so they
We have been conditioned by over a cen- should try to avoid thinking in such
tury of detective fiction and true crime terms. But if you’re happy with them
documentaries to understand how the inventing modern forensic techniques
centuries early, that’s fine. It’s your game.
a gathering of clues works. We know about
blood types, fingerprints, DNA, and all
of that good stuff, and we are familiar
enough with the concepts that it could be All that said, one special resource charac-
difficult to put ourselves in the mindset of ters in LotFP’s 1630 have that we do not,
seventeenth-century investigators. even today, is magic.
Of course, no one in 1630 had access to (Well, I don’t have access to magic. Alan
DNA databases, but it’s not just about Moore says he’s a wizard, and I probably
technology—it’s also about knowhow. believe him, but I doubt he’s reading this.
The unique nature of fingerprints, for If he is, then crikey! Hullo, Alan!)
example, was known in the ancient world, Magic rituals and spells could ruin the
and was used for identification by the investigation if not handled well, so it is
Babylonians and Chinese, among others, a good idea to have a look at the spells
but no one, in Europe at least, thought to available to your players and think about
use them for criminal investigation until how they could interact with the adven-
the nineteenth-century. Even something ture. You don’t want to be unfair about
that seems obvious to us, like checking things, but you also don’t want a spell
an alibi, was not a common investigative to torpedo the entire adventure because
procedure until after the 1750s. Many that’s no fun for anyone. So Speak With
modern criminal investigation techniques Animals just unlocks a witness, one that
were technically possible in 1630, but the may be no more reliable than a human.
concepts just had not occurred to anyone. Commune will probably be more useful,
The primacy of evidence is also a modern but it depends on the questions asked. Be
invention. Trials in 1630 are often less tight, but don’t be a bastard.
about evidence and more about testi- A note on historical
mony, and not necessarily eyewitness Accuracy
testimony. You could be convicted or Believe it or not, I have, in fact, done
acquitted on the basis of character, class, some research! Where possible, I have
nationality, religion, or whoever your dad presented seventeenth-century Paris as it
was. This seems ridiculous to our modern was, or at least a playable facsimile there-
eyes—or not; satire! —but it is the way of. The Demon Tailor and his crimes are
things tend to work in the seventeenth real, but occurred sometime in the late
century. 1500s, and he was caught and executed in
How you want to handle this role-playing December 1598. He was not, as far as we
challenge is up to you. My suggestion are aware, related to Cardinal Richelieu.
would be to talk to your players and Jean Grenier was also real, but he was
active about thirty years earlier than the
6
setting of the adventure. The Court of Ain’t Nothin’ a
Miracles was real—although I have made Dogs, and bloodhounds in particular, are
up some details—as is the thing about the excellent tools for investigation. Bloodhounds
checkpoints between districts. can acquire a scent from an object that has
On that subject, before the French Revo- been touched by the quarry, even something
lution, Paris was divided into a series of like a footprint, and can track that scent for
districts, but sources differ on how many hours, even days after the contact was made,
areas there were and what their boundar- and over great distances.
ies were, so I’ve more or less made them As it happens, bloodhounds are probably
up. Paris had taxis from 1612, 1637, 1640, French in origin, which is a nice coincidence,
or 1645 depending on who you ask; I’ve although they were never popular in France—
included them because they were in the too English, probably—until after they had
playtest version of the adventure, and I died out in the nineteenth century, at which
liked them too much to take out. I hope point English bloodhounds were imported to
that potential inconsistency won’t bother resurrect the breed. For game purposes, we
too many people. The French franc was will assume they are the same and hope that
a silver coin in 1630, so I have equated it no dog nerds start flaming LotFP HQ over a
to the LotFP silver piece for convenience, minor historical point.
and I know that’s also not quite right and Given the bloodhound’s special skills and
je suis désolé. relative rarity—several pairs were given as gifts
Oh, and all the handouts are in English to the French royal family each year—let’s say
because the book is in English. I under- that a trained animal costs ten times the price
stand that this less harms verisimilitude of a normal dog, so 10sp in the city, and 20sp
and more takes it into a dark alley and in the countryside, plus food. Bastard Referees
breaks its legs, but I only got a C in GCSE may also want to insist that the dog requires a
French twenty-plus years ago, and there’s trained handler; treat this as the animal han-
only so much I can do. dler on Rules & Magic, pages 47-48.
BLOODHOUND, snoopin’ ‘round your
door: Armour 14, Move 150’, 1 Hit Dice,
6hp, bite 1d4, Morale 8. Bloodhounds
acquire and follow a scent on a 1d6 roll of
4+. Roll again each time something happens
that might confuse or disrupt the trail, such
as crossing a body of water.
7
The Demon Tailor and
the Grand Plan
There Is No God
The Demon Tailor is Claude Marchand, As written, Claude is suffering a temporary
the illegitimate older half-brother of Car- delusion, there was no message from God,
and there was no chance of an earthquake
a dinal Richelieu (page 10), a connection devastating Paris, but there is nothing prevent-
that should cause complications later in ing you from deciding that he is operating ac-
the adventure, and complications mean cording to the instructions of a higher power
prizes! Or something.
As a boy, Claude apprenticed with a calling itself “God,” and that disruption of the
Plan will indeed bring disaster to the city. See
butcher before training to become a tailor. Catastrophe! (page 78).
He is quite successful and talented in the
latter profession and has earned a number
of high-profile commissions—including
making the distinctive blue uniforms for At the start of the adventure, Claude has
the royal house (page 65)—without any killed four of the eight and will select and
intervention from his powerful brother. kill the remainder over the next few days
(page 38). Once all eight are dead, the
tailor will wait a couple of days and, con-
Claude and Richelieu have very little con- tent that the earthquake has been averted,
tact; the Cardinal will sometimes meet disappear into history.
with his brother in secret when the tailor
has business at the royal palace, and he
has signed a document that allows Claude All that said, Julien Pascal (page 42) was
free passage through the city’s check- destined to be an Apocalypse Child, but
points (page 64). Their relationship is Marchand doesn’t know that, nor does
not well known. Despite having different “God.”
mothers, they look enough alike so as to Claude tortures his victims by flaying
confuse some people (page 41). them alive. After they have died of blood
Claude believes he has had a message loss or shock, he then cooks and eats their
from God. He believes that eleven days flesh so that he can consume their “light,”
after the start of the adventure, an earth- then uses their skin to construct a suit
quake will destroy much of Paris, killing with which he can commune with God.
thousands. The only way to prevent this The tailor believes the suits make him
cataclysm is to kill the eight demons that invincible, and has made two of them as
hide in the forms of young people. the adventure begins.
The bones of Marchand’s victims are
sealed in barrels and stored in his court-
yard. Well, one barrel goes a bit missing,
as we see on page 56.
8
CLAUDE MARCHAND, the Demon a
Tailor: Armour 12 (none) or 16 (boost-
ed skinsuit), Move 120’, 0 Level Tailor, The Skinsuits
4hp, razor-sharp scissors 1d4, Morale The adventure assumes that there are no
12. supernatural elements involved in the tailor’s
activities, but if you want to throw a nasty
Blue cloak; good quality but plain magic item at the players, read on.
clothing; satchel containing a letter of A skinsuit acts like leather armour because
passage signed and sealed by Richelieu, it sort of is. It exudes an aura of disgust and
a ring of keys, scissors, 6sp and 80cp; terror that forces normal human opponents
skinsuit (worn under clothes). to make a Morale test at the beginning of
combat; those that fail recoil for a Round and
Playing the Demon Tailor: You are those that fail on a double flee. There is a 3%
an intelligent and dedicated man, and chance per day at midnight of a vision sent
you have made a good living, but you’ll from an entity portraying itself as “God.” This
never be as successful as your brother. being encourages the wearer of the suit to kill
You have an opportunity to do a great and skin humans; in return, it will increase the
thing and save the world, but to do so Armour of the suit to 16 for a week following
you have to commit terrible crimes. the sacrifice. The number of humans needed
You are trying to balance all this but to be killed to gain the bonus increases by one
have ended up tearing yourself to piec- each time; the first time it will be one victim,
es. You are distracted and distant except the next two, and so on.
when you are talking about the Great
Work, when you become agitated but
focused, but always there is the sense
that you are not quite good enough.
Speak quickly, ramble, ask vague ques-
tions that seem to have no relevance
to the subject at hand. Call yourself
“bad” or “stupid” and slap your head
or the table, then switch to a calm and
firm voice when you are focused on the
Grand Plan.
9
Cardinal Armand Jean du RICHELIEU’S MAN, keen and loyal:
Plessis, Duke of Richelieu Armour 13 (buff coat), Move 120’,
1st Level Fighter, 8hp, rapier 1d8 and
The crimson-clad arch-manipulator! pistols 1d8 (x2), Morale 10
Richelieu is not—surprise!—the villain
a of the adventure, but as the de facto head
of state in France in 1630, his presence I suggest that this young, enthusiastic
looms large nonetheless. captain of the guard be named Clouseau
or Picard, depending on how competent
you want to play him. He is not a spy—
And his brother is the villain. Richelieu wants the disappearances to be
Aside from being a Cardinal, Richelieu solved—but he does report back to the
is an academic, a patron of the arts and Cardinal each day. He is loyal to Richelieu
education, and a military general, with first and the characters second; he will
an eye for an advantageous situation and help them and follow them into danger
a willingness to interfere. Lest we admire only if he believes it will help his master
him too much, he was also an authori- in some way. He knows Paris well.
tarian, known for strict suppression of Richelieu is a powerful man and would
criticism of “his” government, and he make a good ally, but would also be a
operated a network of spies and foreign dangerous enemy. He can open doors for
agents. He is a complicated man who the characters, but he can also bring the
persecutes Protestants at home (page 14), full force of the state against them should
but allies with them abroad as part of the they push him too far.
Thirty Years’ War.
As the chief minister of the French gov- It seems perverse that LotFP-Richelieu
ernment, Richelieu is a busy man, and it isn’t a Cleric but by all accounts—some of
would be difficult for the average charac- which are, admittedly, fictional—he was
ter to secure a meeting. Leaning on the more interested in religion as a path to
Cardinal’s connection to the Tailor would political power, so that’s why he’s his own
do it. Richelieu will take an independent special thing.
personal interest in the disappearances If you must have Richelieu as a classed char-
once the Unrest Die reaches 5 or higher acter, then he is a 10th Level Cleric with 42hp
and will assign one of his own guards to who spams Augury and Divination.
assist and observe the characters.
10
a
I was going to draw Richelieu, but how could I possibly top this painting of him as a
seventeenth-century Doctor Doom?
(Henri Motte, 1881)
11
CARDINAL RICHELIEU, did it accounted for it: you have the resources
thirty-five minutes ago: Armour 12, available to mitigate whatever they do,
Move 120’, 0 Level Political Genius, 6hp, or their actions are irrelevant to your
Fourth Dimensional Chess, Morale plans. You are in control of everything.
12, Intelligence 18, Wisdom 18. Do things the characters won’t expect
or even understand; you are running
a Fourth-Dimensional Chess: Riche- a hundred schemes at once, most of
lieu plans for almost every eventuality, which have nothing to do with the
which is represented by a 90% chance, unwashed adventurers wasting your
or 3+ on 1d20, of avoiding or exploiting time. If ever there is a time to steeple
any character action against him. If your fingers while playing a non-player
they try to steal from him, he has put character, now is it.
extra guards in place, or the thing they
steal is a fake. If they try to assassinate
him, they kill a double. That sort of
thing. Your players will probably hate
him, which is sort of the point. If your
players end up hating you, feel free to
blame me, because I’m the one who was
paid to do this to them.
Extravagant clothing, signet ring, vari-
ous fancy bits of jewellery worth 64sp.
For the purposes of player agency
and general fun, we are assuming that
Richelieu has failed his Fourth Dimen-
sional Chess roll regarding the events of
the adventure. He has no idea about his
brother’s involvement in the killings,
and, as the adventure begins, he is bare-
ly aware of them; they are a local matter
and he has a nation to run. What this
means is that if the characters get into
a position in which they can exploit
Richelieu’s connection to the killings,
and they think it’s worth the risk, he’s
not prepared for it. Bear in mind that
“not prepared” does not mean that he
won’t hunt them down and eviscerate
them afterwards.
Playing Richelieu: Listen to every-
thing, watch everything. Remain
calm whatever the characters do and
say because you have predicted and
12
The Day of the Dupes about some missing peasant children. In a
this case, Richelieu doesn’t take an active
Richelieu doesn’t always get things his role in trying to solve the disappearances
own way. On the 10th of November 1630, until the Unrest Die reaches 6.
the king’s mother Marie de’ Medici, for- Between the 10th and 12th, the Unrest
mer queen and regent during Louis XIII’s Die increases by one step as the chaos at
youth, issues an ultimatum: the king must the top rung trickles down to an already
choose between her and the Cardinal. shifty society. With Richelieu confirmed
Marie and Richelieu were allies during as the king’s most trusted adviser, things
her regency, and the Cardinal even settle down, and the Unrest Die decreases
advocated for her after she and her allies by one step.
attempted a revolt in 1619, but their The fact that the killer is the Cardinal’s
relationship soured as Richelieu grew in brother is something of great interest and
power and influence, culminating in the value to Marie and her allies, and will al-
ultimatum. most certainly send the adventure lurch-
In response, the king withdraws to ing into Turtledove Mode as Richelieu
Versailles. Richelieu believes he is for the is deposed, disgraced, and perhaps even
chop—perhaps literally!—while Marie de’ killed. Anyone bringing that information
Medici thinks she has ascended to power to Marie de’ Medici will be rewarded with
once more. While Marie and her entou- big bags of coin, property, or minor titles,
rage celebrate, Richelieu travels to Ver- whatever will make them go away.
sailles, and on the 12th, the king declares
his support for the Cardinal.
Marie goes into exile in Compiègne, Turtledove Mode
44 miles north-east of Paris, then flees Marie lacks Richelieu’s skill in politics and
to Brussels in 1631 and to Amsterdam warfare, and without the Cardinal, Louis prob-
in 1638. From there she travels to the ably makes a right dog’s dinner of the Thirty
Counter-Earth and becomes queen of the Years’ War. France likely allies with the Holy
Gamma Wildlings. No, I’m just checking Roman Empire and Habsburg supremacy in
that you’re still paying attention. Europe continues longer and stronger than it
How to use all these did in our reality. Spain maybe doesn’t fall, the
stupid Rich People Having Dutch and Portuguese have to wait longer to
Stupid Arguments in a become independent, and France doesn’t fill
Game the power vacuum left by the Habsburgs.
The adventure is written with the assump- Maybe. You could go anywhere with this, and
tion that the Day of the Dupes is going on an alternate Thirty Years’ War is well beyond
in the background. Richelieu is going to the scope of this book. I imagine someone has
be distracted and difficult to access as he written it, though.
tries to outmanoeuvre the former queen;
for her part, Marie doesn’t give a toss
13
The HuguenotsIt will come as no surprise that religion is take the throne, so his mother Marie de’
Medici (page 13) rules as regent. Hugue-
a matter of great importance in the sev- not nobles launch numerous rebellions
enteenth century. After all, it provides an over the course of the 1620s, and the
excellent rationale for people to kill each Catholics push back, despite the Edict of
Nantes. Although their political power is
a other over which god is the best. Plus ça smashed, religious freedom for Hugue-
change, and all that. nots is protected up until 1685, but that’s
Ongoing religious strife is an important beyond the scope of the adventure.
background element in TitS, in particular The Huguenots in TitS
the tension between the Catholic majority The group finds itself in an interesting,
and the small but influential Huguenot in the Chinese sense, position. They are
population, so it’s probably a good idea to tolerated but distrusted and barred from
explain who(guenot) they are. positions of power. The Demon Tailor
The Huguenots are a group of Calvin- takes advantage of this by implying a link
ist Protestants that, in 1630, comprise between his crimes and the Huguenot
around 8% of the population, centred community. It is easy for the Catholic
in the south and west of the country. In majority to believe the Huguenots are
Paris, the population is much smaller, at to blame for the disappearance of their
around 2%. children, even if two of the kids (page 39,
60) are themselves of that sect, and it is
convenient for the Tailor to have attention
As well as the usual, um, disagreement focussed elsewhere.
between Catholic and Protestant groups,
the added wrinkle with the Huguenots
is that they become quite powerful and
influential, which rubs the traditional
Catholic power structures the wrong way.
Violence between the groups is common,
culminating in thousands of Huguenots
being killed in the St. Bartholomew’s Day
Massacre in 1572. Tensions continue,
and in 1589, the Edict of Nantes is issued
by Henry IV, which gives the Hugue-
nots considerable religious and political
freedom, which was intended to settle the
matter.
Can you guess what happens next, girls
and boys?
With the death of Henry, everything goes
to crap. Louis XIII is not old enough to
14
Other Religions Are attempts to drive them from France, and a
Available most live in the countryside, where they
It is unlikely to make much impact on the are less visible.
adventure, but for the sake of complete- France has a history of good relations
ness: with the Ottoman Empire, and there is a
Jews have been persecuted for centuries, considerable Ottoman influence on arts,
resulting in a small population in France culture, and fashion. Even so, practising
in 1630 and about a dozen Jewish families Muslims are rare and, for the most part,
in Paris. Christians are forbidden to in the south of the country, far from Paris.
converse with or shelter Jews. Anabaptist
groups are also persecuted, with multiple
Margot the Chicken
15
Welcome to the City of Lights (Except
it’s not called that yet)
a * The Provost of the Merchants is
the one who runs the day-to-day
Here is a brief but I hope comprehensive business of the city, from the Hôtel
guide to Paris in 1630, good enough, de Ville, which is also where public
again I hope, to allow you to make the executions (page 23) take place.
city feel real at the table. Extensive, la- The Provost of the Merchants and
boured prose is a waste of your time and his four deputies are elected by the
mine, so bullet points it is! bourgeois every even-numbered
year, on the 16th of August.
Who is in charge?
* The king, Louis XIII, rules from the * The bourgeois are those Parisians
who own property, pay taxes, are
Louvre or from his hunting lodge at long-term residents of the city,
Versailles, about 12 miles southwest and are engaged in an honourable
of the city. If you are setting the profession. Such professions include
adventure around the Day of the city officials—that seems fair and
Dupes (page 13), then Thirteen, not at all open to abuse—lawyers,
as he is not known to his mates, is and merchants, except those who
based at Versailles. supplied food.
* The king’s adviser, Cardinal Riche-
lieu (page 10), is charismatic, clever, * The Provost and his deputies elect a
and wields considerable influence council of 24 members.
over the young king, which effec-
tively puts him in charge of every- * Numerous other official roles exist,
thing. including a governor of the clock
* The king’s representative and tower, guardians of the city gates,
ostensible governor is the Provost a Master of Bridges, and gover-
of Paris, who runs things from the nors—each with deputies!—for each
Grand Châtelet (page 82), which of Paris’ 16 districts. All of these
also serves as a municipal court and positions are bought with big bags
prison. I say “ostensible” because… of coin and most are held for life.
All of which seems very fair.
* Basically, if you want there to be
a Master of the Docks, then there
probably is one, and he is almost
certainly corrupt.
16
* The main streets are blocked off at a
night, and during times of unrest,
Je Suis La Loi! by chains anchored by barrels filled
with broken masonry and loose
* There is a city watch consisting of cobblestones (page 64). This is
300 men on foot and 200 horsemen. where we get the word “barricade.”
The watch is run by the Chevalier
du Guet, who, in turn, reports to * Minor crimes include theft, forgery,
the Provost of Paris. The watch is and “harlotry.” These are punished
known as the “Royal Watch” or “the by a public flogging or a few days
Archers,” as seventeenth-century in the stocks, with more severe
Parisians love long-running radio instances—or if the magistrate hates
dramas. you—resulting in imprisonment for
between a month and a decade!
* 4,000 Swiss guards and 6,000 French
soldiers are stationed in or near the * Major crimes include arson, assault,
city, including the King’s Muske- murder, and heresy. Arson, assault,
teers. You may have heard of the or rape carry a penalty of public
latter. Aside from a cadre of guards maiming, and execution or life
around the king and his family imprisonment for repeat offenders.
and closest advisers, most of these Heresy gets you burned at the stake
troops are kept outside the city. while murder gets you hanged if
you’re poor, or beheaded if you’re
* Records are kept not only of who well-to-do.
lives in each district but also of who
travels between them and when. * Treason is the best one because you
These records are the responsibility get broken on the wheel! Wheeeeee!
of the district governors.
* Very rich and important people get
a chance to “self-exile,” which usu-
ally means running off to another
country to plot your eventual return
and revenge.
* Trials tend to be swift. Waiting for a
trial can take months or even years.
Most “trials” consist of a single mag-
istrate passing quick and severe sen-
tences; more important defendants
may merit a number of magistrates
who at least pretend to hear the
case. Fancy-pants upper-class types
will stand before the Minister of Jus-
tice or even the king.
17
Getting Around Things to Do
* The city comprises an area of about * Parisians love fashion. Those who
two square miles. You can walk end can afford it wear bright and co-
to end in about an hour if condi- lourful clothing with lots of ribbons
tions are good, which is almost and lace. Women wear long, bustly
dresses, and nearly everyone sports
a never, because the streets are busy an ostentatious hat. Those with less
and cramped and full of filth. Any- money and status tend to wear lots
one who can afford it travels by any of functional things made of brown
method other than walking, such as stuff.
horseback, sedan chairs, or carriages
(page 28). * Masks are popular when out and
* Around 400,000 people are about, to protect the face from the
crammed into this relatively tiny depredations of the sun and wind.
space. Many houses have around Most cover the upper face, but some
20 people squeezed into four or five perambulators prefer a full mask.
floors. The fancier the better, of course.
* There are no street signs and house
numbers are uncommon and incon- * Gambling is popular. The upper
sistent even when used. Maps are classes prefer cards, while the lower
mere suggestions and map-sellers classes enjoy cockfighting or dice.
do not offer refunds.
* There are no street lights until 1667, * The nobility adore the sport of real
the source of the “City of Lights” tennis, to the extent that tennis
moniker. player is one of the aforementioned
* There are tolls everywhere. Char- “honourable professions” and is
acters should expect to pay every supported by a royal charter. Fenc-
time they pass a gate, cross a bridge, ing is also popular.
enter a park, and so on. Depending
on where they are going, the toll can * What we recognise as popular en-
vary from 1cp to 1sp per person. tertainment becomes, um, popular
Bridges are closed to all but essen- around this time, and the middle
tial travellers once the Unrest Die and upper classes enjoy going out
(page 24) reaches 5. to watch comedy and concerts. This
sort of thing gets closed down when
the Unrest Die (page 24) gets to 4+.
The lower classes do not often have
the money or time for entertain-
ment beyond the old, reliable stand-
bys of drinking and shagging.
18
* Parisians of all social levels like * The nobles. Those without profes- a
their wine, meat—beef is the new sion and important only because of
fad—and bread. A famine struck who their parents are or who they
the city in 1629, so Bastard Referees married. The highest-ranked are
may want to reflect the recovering those with titles, like the barons
food markets by adding 10% to the and dukes. Next are the landowning
food prices listed in Rules & Magic, knights, and those with functional
page 29. titles such as judges. Then we get the
lesser functional nobles, and last of
* The city prides itself as a centre all the foreign nobility, and holders
of arts and learning and hosts the of ancient, defunct, or brand new
Sorbonne, one of the oldest univer- titles.
sities in the world. Despite this, the
literacy rate is around 29% for men * The notables. Lesser officials that
and 14% for women, where “litera- work in finance, law, or medicine.
cy” is defined at this time as being Successful artists or important arti-
able to write one’s name. Short of sans may also reach this class.
acquiring a patron or lucking into
money, such education is difficult * The bourgeoisie. A new class
to access for the working class and increasing in power and influence,
poor of the city. hence the importance of the Provost
of Merchants, for example. These
* There are many variants of French are those in the so-called honour-
spoken at the time in Paris but for able professions, such as lawyers
ease we will assume One French to and notaries, or successful artisans
Rule Them All. Latin is spoken by and merchants who often have tens
the pretentious students of the Latin of employees and own their shops.
Quarter (page 23), and the crimi- Below these come those who have
nal classes have their own complex completed apprenticeships but have
slang. not yet entered business for them-
selves, often living in and working
from single rooms. The lowest tier
of the bourgeoisie includes those
People of Paristoonshire near poverty, like domestic servants,
labourers, prostitutes, and street
Is that reference too inside baseball? vendors.
Probably. Seventeenth-century France has
a... um… detailed class system. There are * Everyone else. Casual workers, beg-
four basic social classes, each divided into gars, and the unemployed poor. At
ranks: least 40,000 citizens of Paris fall into
this category.
19
a
PARIS MAP
20
a
PARIS MAP
21
Paris map key X - Court of Miracles
Where the lame can walk and the blind
Now we’re going to run through the loca- can see, but the dead don’t talk so you
tions marked on the map of Paris. These won’t be around to reveal what you’ve
are all places that feature in the adventure, found. Described on page 66.
a or are important landmarks if the charac-
ters want to do that tourist thing. Y - Wizard
The home of Alain de la Mare, as de-
scribed on page 44.
All notes refer to the Referee’s map as
some locations will not appear on the
map you give to your players. D - Place Royale
Planned as what we would now recognise
as a working-class housing estate by Louis
Numbers 1 to 8 on the map refer to the XIII’s father, it was instead completed as
Tailor’s victims (page 38), and more
details of those locations appear on those an exclusive residential square for the fan-
pages. cy-pants set. Richelieu (page 10) has his
private residence here which is described
on (page 90). Not to be confused with the
A- Red Wing
The headquarters of the Red Wing Car- Palais-Royal, where Richelieu also lived
riage Company. See page 28 for details. for a time.
W - Tailor’s Hideout E - Yellow Sun
Described on page 72, the Tailor flees The headquarters of the Sunshine Car-
here if he is discovered. riage Company. See page 28 for details.
7 - Le Chien et le Bâtard F - The Bastille
A rustic tavern with a selection of decent A fortress and prison, the Bastille be-
beers and wines, its own tavern brawl comes much more important later on be-
team, and the location of one of the dis- cause of some minor political disturbance
appearances (page 60). or something.
B - White Arrow G - The Louvre
The headquarters of the Speedy Carriage The primary city residence of the king,
Company. See page 28 for details. started as a fortress and then expanded
C - Les Halles and rebuilt bit by bit by each successive
The main produce market of the city. monarch into a grand patchwork thing.
Thousands of people are packed into a H - Pont Neuf
place not designed for thousands of peo- A fairly new bridge boasting some clever
ple, so the market is always busy, noisy, design innovations such as pavements for
and cramped. Claire Mollet, the Tailor’s pedestrians—gosh!—and, unlike most of
first victim (page 39), is snatched from the bridges in Pairs, no buildings upon its
here. span—gasp!—so travellers could have an
uninterrupted view of the Louvre.
22
I - Palais P - The Sorbonne a
Also known as the Palace of Justice and Perhaps the most famous of Paris’ many
the headquarters of the Justice League educational establishments, and the heart
French parliament. of the Latin Quarter. Richelieu is a nota-
J - Grand Châtelet ble patron.
The headquarters of the Provost of Paris, Z - Tailor’s Shop
a courthouse, and a prison, this old The shop and home of Claude Marchand,
fortress is where the Demon Tailor will the Demon Tailor. See page 73 for more.
be jailed, if he is caught. The fortress is in Q - Red Sun
the middle of the slaughterhouse district, The headquarters of the Red Sun Carriage
so everything stinks of blood and death. Company. See page 28 and page 68 for
Which is nice. The Châtelet is detailed on details.
page 82, should it become relevant.
K - White Diamond R - The Salpetriere
The headquarters of the Diamond Car- A factory for the production of gunpow-
riage Company. See page 28 for details. der. I cannot imagine what players could
L - Hôtel de Ville possibly want there.
The headquarters of the Provost of Mer- S - Palais du Luxembourg
chants and the plutocracy that more or The residence of the king’s mother, Marie
less runs the city. Public executions occur de’ Medici (page 13). Begun in 1615 and
in the picturesque square out front. occupied from 1625, but unfinished at the
M - Hôtel-Dieu time Marie legs it in 1631.
Seventeenth-century Paris has a free pub- Versailles
lic healthcare system, so the US. is only The king’s country palace. About 12 miles
400 years behind. This is the main public southwest of the city, so not, in fact, on
hospital, in theory run by the Church but the map. Sorry about that.
organised by a council of governors that Werewolf
includes the Provost of Merchants. The location of the attacks by the “Were-
N - Notre-Dame wolf of Paris” (page 53), who is not, in
Paris’ main cathedral and centre of Cath- fact, an actual werewolf and does not, in
olic power in the city. The parvis out front fact, live in Paris. Also not on the map.
has a fountain intended for use by the I’m so, so sorry.
locals as a source of clean(ish) drinking
water. There’s probably a metaphor of
some sort there somewhere.
O - Green Diamond
The headquarters of the Emerald Carriage
Company. See page 28 for details.
23
The Unrest Die Unrest Die Modifiers:
I have borrowed this idea from 13th Age .(TM) +1 per child snatched after the adventure
Well, to tell the truth, I saw the idea on an begins.
old-school blog a couple of years before
13th Age came out, but I can’t find it now, +1 if the Huguenot symbol on the first
and everyone is going to say I took it letter (page 34) is made public.
from 13th Age anyway so whatever.
Find the biggest d6 you can and plonk it +1 if the connection between Richelieu
and Claude Marchand is made public.
-2 if Claude Marchand, the Demon
Tailor, is caught and executed.
in the middle of your table where every- -1 if Jean Grenier’s crimes and capture
one can see it, with 3 as the uppermost (page 53) are made public.
side. This is the Unrest Die. +1 if Jean Grenier is revealed to be uncon-
nected to the disappearances.
c
Depending on what happens during the +1 if the Day of the Dupes (page 13)
characters’ investigation into the disap- occurs.
pearances, turn the Unrest Die so the
value showing on the top face changes. -1 if the Day of the Dupes results in
Richelieu’s reinstatement.
Guidelines for possible amendments can
be seen in the table elsewhere on this -1 if the characters give 100sp or more to
page; this should give you a rough frame- the poor as they explore the city.
work for determining the results of events
in your own version of the adventure.
The Unrest Die affects various elements
of the adventure; these will be highlighted
and explained as they come up.
Bastard Referees may wish to subtract
the Unrest Die from any Reaction rolls
involving the city watch.
24
Unrest Die Effects: c
4: The royal palace at the Louvre
King’s Musketeer
is locked down. The home of wizard
Alain de la Mare (page 44) is burned
to the ground by a mob. Chains and
checkpoints (page 64) are used during
daylight hours. Popular entertainments
are closed down. The characters may be
contacted by “W” (page 80).
5: Carriages (page 28) stop oper-
ating. City offices are shut down. The
city’s many bridges are closed to all but
essential travellers. The Provost takes
charge of the investigation. Richelieu
takes a personal interest in the disap-
pearances, if he is not otherwise
occupied with the Day of the
Dupes (page 13). The carriage
driver Remy Poullain (page
70) is killed by a mob. Finding
specific members of the watch
is impossible as they are too
busy. If he is caught, the
Tailor’s money is divided
up amongst the families of
his victims.
6: French soldiers are brought
into the city to quell strife. No
one may pass checkpoints (page
64) without permission. If
Richelieu is distracted by the
Day of the Dupes (page 13), he
nonetheless gets involved in
the investigation into the dis-
appearances at this point. If he
is not involved in that event,
Richelieu takes charge
of the investigation.
Dogs and cats start
living together.
25
City Encounters
Each time the characters go out and about in Paris, roll 1d20 and add the value of the
Unrest Die to the result to see what the group encounters; if the party splits up, roll for
each group. Some results will DELAY the characters, and if you are splitting the days
up into four-hour chunks as suggested (page 4), then a delay means that chunk is wast-
ed. I have noted the ones I think are most likely to slow the characters down, but any
of the results could detain your players depending on how they handle the encounter. I
will have to leave that up to you.
Some results can be repeated, some you should probably delete and replace with some-
thing new, unless you’re going for some sort of post-modern statement on how we are
c all living in fictional worlds or something, you pretentious sod.
City Encounters Table (1d20+Unrest Die):
Can you spare a coin? Keep track of how The characters almost trip over a corpse,
much money, if any, the characters give to face down and half-buried in the mud.
beggars. If the total reaches 100sp then -1 Either no one else has spotted the body,
2-3 to the Unrest Die. If it gets to 200sp then or it has simply been ignored. This is an
9 excellent opportunity to seed a future
add +2 to all Reaction rolls involving the
Court of Miracles (page 66). adventure, or you can just use your favour-
ite “What’s on the body?” table to plant
Look out below! Characters must save ver- something interesting in their pocket.
sus Breath Weapon to avoid being doused
in the contents of a bedpan. Getting clean Stop, thief! A small boy steals from a
4-5 will DELAY the characters, or they can go nearby shop or stall and almost bundles
about their business with a -2 penalty to 10 into the characters. If they apprehend him,
Reaction rolls until they have a wash.
the merchant will reward them with 3cp.
The street is blocked by a religious proces- The boy looks like he is starving.
sion, holding aloft some sort of relic. The
hip bone of a saint or something. Use your A short, tubby fellow named Antoine
favourite hit location or critical hit chart Joubert approaches the characters and
pleads for their help in finding his prize
6 to determine the body part that everyone chicken, Margot. He promises a reward of
10sp if they find her, asking the characters
is genuflecting towards. The procession to come to his nearby home. There it is
is slow and vast enough to DELAY the discovered that Margot’s coop—inside the
characters whether they wait for it to pass house, much to his wife Sibilla’s disgust—
or try to go around the long way. is unlatched. Antoine is certain he locked
A runaway carriage rumbles down the it but remembers that his arch-rival in
street. Characters must save versus Breath chicken fancying, Conrad Arceneaux, vis-
Weapon or be run over for 2d4 damage. 11
Should the characters wish to apply for
7 ited the house the day before. Arceneaux
pleads his innocence but cannot hide his
compensation, you can determine the amusement over Joubert’s plight. Joubert
relevant carriage company on page 28.
probably tries to kill the much larger and
Torrential rain clears the streets and every- stronger Arceneaux. It turns out that
one runs for cover as the already muddy Sibilla, sick of the petty rivalry between
8 ground turns into a quagmire. Slogging the two men, cooked Margot and fed her
through the sludge forces a DELAY. to some beggars. This whole farce results
in a DELAY.
26
Duelling was made illegal in 1626, but A spotty youth—imagine Rik from The
here comes some irritating aristo who Young Ones—stands on a box and agitates
thinks he’s above the law. Jamet Aveline for (1d4): 1- Crushing the Huguenots! 2
has mistaken one of the characters for a
12 rival and challenges them to a duel. His 20 - Joining the war against the Holy Roman
honour must be satisfied! This won’t cause Empire! 3 - Joining the war against the
an immediate DELAY as the duel will be Protestant Union! 4 - Ousting Richelieu
set for the next dawn. from office!
A citizen in great distress asks for help A large brawl breaks out between groups
finding their missing dog. There is a dog of Catholics and Huguenots, with no
13 sitting at their side. If this is pointed out, 21 watch present. If the players intervene,
they smile, say “Oh yes, there he is!” then they will face a DELAY but may win some
the pair walk off. friends.
A small mob is smashing up a carpet-
Do I have a business opportunity for you? maker’s workshop. They shout something
Marc Medloc, a greasy-looking individual 22 along the lines of “Huguenots out!” now c
in loud and ill-fitting clothing, offers the
characters a once-in-a-lifetime investment and then.
14 opportunity in New France. The venture is 23 A mob is beating a man to death. City
guards stand by, doing nothing.
(1d12) stable on a 1, risky on 2-3, wild on
4-6, and non-existent charlatanry on 7-12. A group of masked vigilantes—think
See Rules & Magic, page 54, for rules on bandits rather than Spider-Man—target
investments. the characters as being “unknown” and
“suspicious.” There is one vigilante for each
One player should roll 1d6. On a 3+. their character, plus one more for luck. Have
character notices they have been robbed
and that a small girl more or less like Newt 24 some statistics!
in Aliens is disappearing into the crowd.
VIGILANTE, for great justice:
15 The character has lost the equivalent of Armour 12, Move 120’, 0 Level Thug,
4hp, clubs and sticks and that 1d4,
2d6sp or, if you are a Bastard Referee, Morale 7.
whatever item would be most annoying
to lose. The thief runs off to the Court of An angry mob is burning down a house
Miracles (page 66).
25 for the usual illogical reasons mobs do
Two neighbours are having a punch up
things.
16 over Brexit the authorities’ handling of the
Riot! All travel is blocked for the rest of
disappearances. the day as the authorities go around arrest-
A scraggly looking doomsday preacher, ing/beating/killing people until the whole
er, preaches about, um, doomsday. If you
are going with the earthquake climax to thing calms down. A character who insists
on going out on foot into the anarchy
17 the adventure (page 78), then feel free 26 without some sort of super clever plan
to have him hint towards it. Advanced
Refereeing techniques like this will make must save versus Poison or be bashed and
thumped to 0 Hit Points. Bastard Referees
you look very clever and your players will may decide to also increase the Unrest
thank you.
Die by 1.
A pair of city guards are attempting to
18 break up a brawl. They are failing.
Over-zealous watchmen conduct a ran-
dom on-the-spot search, which could lead
19 to a DELAY, if the characters are lugging
around a lot of stuff.
27
Taxi! If the Unrest Die is at 5+ then no car-
riages are operating, although the own-
Well, no one would say “Taxi!” in 1630 ers may be convinced to allow a one-off
because it’s a modern word, but anyway. special charter for a seriously inflated
The streets of Paris are full of all sorts of price. Treat this like hiring a coachman
filth, so no one sensible—and solvent—is as per Rules & Magic, pages 47-51, and
going to walk. The good news is that the seriously inflate the price.
industrious capitalists of the city have
come up with a solution: the fiacre!
(Named after Saint Fiacre, because the When encountering a carriage in the
first major carriage company in Paris street use the following table to determine
its company and logo (1d12):
c operated from an inn, the Hôtel de Saint
Fiacre, but no one seems to agree on
when that happened so you may want to 1-4 Sunshine - A bright yellow disc with
just refer to them as “carriages.” Hackney multiple sunbeams.
carriages operated in London from about
5-6 Red Sun - A crimson disc.
1621 so you could call them that if it’s any 7-8 Red Wing - A stylised single crim-
better, which it probably isn’t.) son wing.
These are four-wheeled carriages seating 9-10 Diamond - A simple white diamond
shape.
between two and four people, pulled by 11 Emerald - A simple green diamond
two horses. The carriages can be open, shape.
but most have a soft canopy or roof. They 12 Speedy - A white arrow.
cost 5+1d4cp per hour, or 5+1d8cp per
hour after dark. If you like, you can use the standard
reaction chart in Rules & Magic, page
Each of Paris’s carriage companies (which 56 to generate the driver’s disposition at
I made up) has a base or depot (also the time of hailing. Hostile cabbies won’t
made up), and these are marked on the be murderous psychopaths—we have
map. Each company has an evocative logo enough of those in the adventure already
and name, and of course, I made those up with the Tailor and, most probably, the
too. Carriages can be rented from their players—but more along the lines of ob-
base, or passing carriages can be hailed in noxious racists or something like that.
the street.
Carriage drivers are an excellent source of
Roll 1d8; a carriage is passing on a 6+ rumours, if you like to use rumour tables.
during the day or on an 8 at night. Other-
wise, there are either no carriages passing,
or those that are around are full.
28
Sunshine Taxi Insignia Red Sun Taxi Insignia
c
Red Wing Taxi Insignia Diamond Taxi Insignia
Emerald Taxi Insignia Speedy Taxi Insignia
29
c
30
Timeline of terror! * 10th of November (+3 days): The c
barrel (page 56) containing the
The default setting for TitS is in Novem- remains of Claire Mollet, Rene Bel-
ber 1630 and assumes that the Day of the leau, and Henri Penand is discov-
Dupes (page 13) will occur during the ered. The disappearance of Blaise
adventure. Assuming the characters don’t Bourgarit (page 57). The Day of
do something stupid like cast Summon in the Dupes begins: Marie de’ Medici
the middle of Paris, this is how the events confronts Louis XIII, who then
of TitS should unfold: retires to Versailles (page 13).
* 10th October (-28 days): The disap- * 11th November (+4 days): The
pearance of Claire Mollet (page 39). second letter (page 58).
* 13th October (-25 days): The disap- * 12th November (+5 days): The
pearance of Rene Belleau (page 40). disappearance of Baptiste Galonnier
The killing of Jeanne Garboriaut or “Henriette” (page 60). Richelieu
(page 53). Full moon. travels to Versailles. Louis XIII gives
the Cardinal his assent.
* 29th October (-9 days): The dis-
appearance of Henri Penand (page * 13th November (+6 days): The
41). Cardinal Richelieu leaves Paris disappearance of Jean Dupont (page
to meet Pascal Pinon. 61).
* 30th October (-8 days): Richelieu * 14th November (+7 days): The final
returns to Paris. letter (page 62).
* 2nd November (-5 days): The * 18th November (+11 days): The
disappearance of Julien Pascal (page earthquake (page 78), which proba-
42). bly won’t happen.
* 3rd November (-4 days): The first
letter (page 34). The next few pages are arranged in this
order, because it seems sensible and I am
* 7th November (+0 days): The always sensible. Ha.
disappearance of Bernard Rousseau
(page 43). The adventure begins!
* 8th November (+1 day): The wizard
(page 44) contacts the Provost’s
office.
* 9th November (+2 days): The
attack on Marguerite Poirier (page
52). Full moon.
31
How the Characters Get Involved
The most natural way to get the charac-
ters involved is if they already know the * Four children have gone missing
family of one of the missing children. so far. Sauval can provide the
Henri Penand (page 41) or Julien Pascal names and addresses of the missing
(page 42) work best, in terms of timing. youngsters.
* People go missing all the time in
Paris, and the missing children
It may be that the characters have made were not connected at first. Sauval
a name for themselves as reliable and expresses regret the association was
successful investigators in previous ad- not discovered sooner.
ventures—I know, I can’t keep a straight
c face either—and so are summoned by the * A letter arrived at the Grand
authorities based on their reputation. Châtelet four days beforehand;
this is what made the authorities
Perhaps the characters have an employer connect the disappearances.
or patron who moves in similar circles to * The city is becoming restless over
the Provost and his deputies, and directs the disappearances, and the watch
the party towards the adventure that
way. If you decide there is a supernatu- is busy keeping the peace, hence the
request for outside help.
ral element to the adventure (page 78),
perhaps that advocate is concerned with * He can authorise daily expenses of
dealing with uncanny threats and gets the 15sp per person per day, which can
characters involved that way. “I sense a be negotiated up to 20sp. Sauval
disturbance in the France” or somesuch. expects a report to be made each
day at noon, and he will hand over
the next day’s payment then.
If all else fails, Paris is a major city, so
there are plenty of incidental reasons to If the characters agree, Sauval gives each
be there. Then you can do something of them their first payment, a letter allow-
subtle like have one of them get in a bar ing them to pass the city’s checkpoints,
brawl and have their head smashed into a and will show them the first letter (page
wall upon which is a government poster 34). He can spare some time to answer
asking for aid. Or something. questions about Paris, but he knows noth-
However you arrange it, the characters ing more about the disappearances, and
will be directed to the Hôtel de Ville to he is keen for them to get going.
speak to Deputy Provost Rene Sauval. Sauval can furnish the characters with ba-
There they will be met by his assistant sic equipment; anything more exotic will
Armand who will keep them waiting for take 1d4 days, or he can suggest places in
2d12 minutes before ushering them into the city where those things can be found.
Sauval’s office. There they are told the Sauval expects the characters to pay for
following: any gear they request.
32
RENE SAUVAL, c
DEPUTY PROVOST, compassionate
and dedicated: Armour 13 (buff coat),
Move 120’, 1st Level Fighter, 6hp, rapier
1d8 and pistol 1d8, Morale 8,
Charisma 16.
Buff coat, bundles of papers, nor-
mal clothing, pistol, rapier, ring with
personal seal.
Sauval is in his early forties but is in
good shape. He has short grey hair and
a neat beard and is a bit of a silver fox.
He is very tired.
33
The First Letter
Show the letter on the facing page to your
players. If they have trouble reading the
scraggly handwriting of a psychopath,
this is what it says:
“My Dear Provost,
Four I have taken and four more I will
take.
Their light fills me and makes me strong for
the work I must do.
c I wish to God that I did not have to hurt
them but my work is ugly.
You will understand soon enough.
Your Friend.”
Then there is a symbol and the forenames
of the four missing children.
KEY CLUE
The killer is literate, which narrows down
the suspects. A Cleric or any character who
rolls below their Intelligence on a d20 will
recognise the symbol as a rough approxi-
mation of the Huguenot cross (page 14).
34
c
35
Crazy Taxi! the two drivers get into a fight and beat
each other senseless until the watch turns
up (in about half an hour) to break up the
Wherever the characters go next, they fight and rescue the trapped passenger.
stumble upon the following scene, or
rather the following scene crashes into
them. It’s a bit Quantum Ogre, I know, If the characters stop the brawl, then the
but I hope you’ll let me off. drivers won’t thank them for it, but the
company owners will, offering them a
small cash reward (1sp each) for their
c As the characters approach a junction efforts. If the characters somehow manage
or turning, there is a cacophonous crash to pin the blame on one company over
followed by screaming as two of the city’s the other, then the owners of the “inno-
carriages collide. Bastard Referees may cent” party will give them free travel for
want to call for saves versus Breath Weap- the next couple of days. In truth, both
on to avoid being crushed between the drivers were to blame.
vehicles for 4d4 damage, but even I think
that’s a bit much for the first session of an
adventure. The trapped passenger is (1d6):
The two carriages are from the Red Wing
and Diamond companies, as shown by 1 A member of Richelieu’s personal staff
their distinctive symbols (page 29), but (page 10).
now they are more or less smooshed to-
gether into one big heap of broken metal 2 A merchant working for the Court of
Miracles (page 66).
3 One of the officers in charge of the city’s
tolls.
and wood. Two horses are dead, and one 4 The sister of a city magistrate.
is just about alive but with broken legs 5 A sergeant from the Grand Châtelet
and its guts spilling out into the street. (page 82).
The fourth horse has managed to free it-
self and is chewing on some weeds nearby 6 Boderique, the wizard’s manservant
(page 45).
as if nothing has happened. A couple of
battered and dazed passengers stumble They are more dazed than hurt and
about, and there are anguished moans just need some help getting out of the
from within the devastated Diamond wreckage. It takes about half an hour to
carriage. The two drivers tussle in front of untangle the debris. The passenger will be
the wreckage, each blaming the other for genuinely grateful and will give the char-
the crash. acters a reward of 24sp or grant them a
reasonable favour, whichever they prefer.
A third carriage, this one from the Em-
erald company, slows down enough for The third horse can’t offer any sort of re-
the driver to chuckle at the scene before it ward, but if the characters put it out of its
rushes off. misery or heal it using magic—it is well
beyond the help of surgery—they will
If the characters do nothing, then the have the warm glow of knowing they did
third horse dies a long and painful death, the right thing.
36
c
37
The Victims
Each of the Tailor’s victims is presented
with some basic family details because
during playtesting it was found that play-
ers love to draw false conclusions from all
sorts of irrelevant facts.
After that, there is some information on
the victim’s disappearance, and then the
Key Clue (there may be more than one)
is highlighted. This is the bit of evidence
that is not only relevant but links to
c another part of the mystery. The idea is
that by focussing on the Key Clues, the
characters will be able cross-reference the
data collected and track down the killer,
just like on TV.
The Key Clues should be easy to find and
shouldn’t be hidden behind dice rolls.
If the characters are in the appropriate
location and are at least halfway alert
they should get the information. If they
forget to write it down or fail to realise its
significance then that’s a different issue; I
am inclined to give them gentle remind-
ers of anything they have overlooked,
but Bastard Referees may have a different
opinion.
After the Key Clues, other information
is presented that is perhaps not relevant
to the investigation but is relevant to the
adventure, because everything written
here is relevant to the adventure.
Even the thing with the missing chicken.
No, you shut up!
38
Victim #1 - Claire Mollet c
Name: Claire Mollet.
Age: 8.
Taken: 10th of October, or 28 days before
the adventure begins.
Family: Father Charles, sisters Celine
(10) and Lise (6), father’s cousin Antoine.
Religion: Huguenot.
Social Standing: Middle class, mercan-
tile.
The Disappearance: Claire was working
at the market, selling flowers for Antoine.
She did not return home at the end of
the day. She was seen talking to lots of
people—it is a market after all! At one
point during the day, she was seen walk-
ing away from the market with a tall man
wearing a fine blue cloak, and no one
remembers seeing her after that. She was
not struggling.
KEY CLUE
The blue cloak (page 65). Asking about
such cloaks will reveal that they tend to be
worn by members of the royal household
staff. It is possible that the cloaks can be
traced back to the Tailor, but that con-
nection will probably only be revealed by
following the royal household connection
first.
Roll Out the Barrel: Although dead,
Claire does perhaps have more to contrib-
ute, as bits of her turn up in a barrel later
on (page 56).
39
Victim #2 - Rene Belleau Jeanne Garboriaut
Jeanne was attacked and killed by the Were-
Name: Rene Belleau. wolf of Paris (page 53) on this day, but the
Age: 10. killing is misattributed to a wild animal and is
Taken: 13th of October, or 25 days before not reported until later.
the adventure begins, on the night of a
full moon.
Family: Mother Caterina, father Gerart,
brother Pierre (9).
Religion: Catholic.
Social Standing: Lower class.
The Disappearance: Rene sneaked out
c at night, through the bedroom window.
His brother woke, but Rene told him that
he was going out for a short time and to
go back to sleep. He had not returned by
morning and did not go to his job at the
river, where he and his friends did odd
jobs on the barges.
Earlier that day, at work, Rene was seen
talking to a tall man with dark hair and
a large nose. He wasn’t one of the barge-
men, and none of the boys recognised
him.
KEY CLUE
The tall man matches to a certain extent
with the man in blue that snatched Claire
Mollet (page 39), suggesting that they are
the same man. Which they are.
KEY CLUE
Footprints in the mud outside Rene’s bed-
room window suggest good quality boots,
better quality than any owned by anyone
in the household, and a different size too.
They will, of course, match Claude March-
and (page 8). The footprints get lost in the
general traffic of the main street.
40
Victim #3 - Henri Penand KEY CLUE c
The mother is terrified of something. So
Name: Henri Penand. terrified that even threatening her won’t get
Age: 7. her to talk, but magic probably will.
Taken: 29th of October, or nine days
before the adventure begins. She did in fact witness her son’s abduction.
Family: Mother Anabelle, brother Luc A man took Henri away, but promised
(6), sisters Amanda (3) and Yda (4); the Anabelle that her boy would be safe in his
girls have a different father to the boys, hands. She trusted the man at his word
and neither father is present; the girls’ because she recognised him as Cardinal
father died of the plague. Richelieu! He was wearing a blue cloak
Religion: Catholic. (page 65) rather than his Cardinal’s robes,
Social Standing: Lower class. but she saw him in a parade once and it
The Disappearance: One moment Henri looked like the same man. It was, of course,
was playing in the street outside his the Cardinal’s brother, but Anabelle doesn’t
mother’s hovel; the next, he was gone. know that.
Anabelle claims she saw nothing, but it is
clear she is holding something back. She is confused and scared because she
is worried about her son, but as a good
Word has got out that Anabelle perhaps Catholic doesn’t want to cause any trouble
knows what happened to her son, and for the Cardinal.
perhaps by extension, the other missing
children, and a mob has formed outside If checked, Richelieu was out of town the
her home, demanding that she talks. day of Henri’s disappearance meeting a
The size of the mob depends on the val- nobleman called Pascal Pinon. Pinon lives
ue of the die, +1 if the connection with about four hours outside Paris, and can
Richelieu is public knowledge: confirm that he was with Richelieu all day.
1-2: five aggrieved peasants
3-4: ten aggrieved peasants
5: fifteen aggrieved peasants
6+: twenty-five aggrieved peasants
AGGRIEVED PEASANT, wants to
know where the children are: Armour
12, Move 120’, 0 Level Thug, 4hp,
improvised club or broken bottle or
something like that 1d4, Morale 7.
41
Victim #4 - Julien Pascal You’re Not My Father! Julien is not the
natural child of Manon and Gustave. He
Name: Julien Pascal. was found in the river as a baby, half-
Age: 10. drowned, and the couple adopted him as
Taken: 2nd of November, or five days their own. This is known to their close
before the adventure begins. friends and neighbours, but no one vol-
Family: Mother Manon, father Gustave. unteers the information as no one thinks
Religion: Catholic. it relevant; Julien has been a Pascal all his
Social Standing: Middle class, textile life, and everyone accepts that.
merchants.
c The Disappearance: Julien went off to As it happens, Julien was an Apocalypse
his first day of his new job as a tailor’s Child and would have brought devasta-
apprentice but never came back. Neither tion and ruin to France in a year or two,
parent had met the new employer, be- so the Demon Tailor has done everyone
cause Gustave refused to meet him, angry a favour, although he doesn’t know it.
over his son’s rejection of the family’s Someone call Alanis on the Irony Phone!
textile business in favour of a different
trade. Gustave is uncommunicative, torn
between anguish and fury as the last
conversation he had with his son was an
argument. Manon is more composed and
recalls that Julien was excited to start as
his new employer was apparently quite
successful.
KEY CLUE
There are a few successful tailors in Paris,
but they are counted in tens rather than
hundreds, but combined with other clues,
this can point towards Claude Marchand.
42
Victim #5 - Bernard c
Rousseau
Name: Bernard Rousseau.
Age: 4.
Taken: 7th of November, or the day the
adventure begins.
Family: Mother Clara.
Religion: Catholic.
Social Standing: Lower class.
The Disappearance: Bernard was last
seen heading to the river to play, but his
friends lost track of him. It was assumed
that he had fallen into the river, until a
message was found painted on the wall
near where the boy was playing: THREE
MORE.
One bright boy called “Beanpole” by the
others remembers seeing a carriage with
a red badge (page 68) waiting nearby in
the morning, but it was gone sometime
around when Bernard wandered off.
KEY CLUE
The fact that the message makes sense in
a city in which no more than 30% of the
population can read suggests that the killer
is literate, which narrows down the pool of
suspects. Not by much, but it helps.
KEY CLUE
Only two carriage companies in Paris have
red logos. See page 28 and page 68 for more
on that.
43
The Wizard De la Mare is considered creepy and
weird at the best of times, and the anx-
On the 8th of November, if you are iety caused by the disappearances only
using the suggested dates, or a day after exacerbates that. If the Unrest Die is
the adventure begins if you are not, the at 4+ then the characters will arrive to
characters will receive a message from find Alain’s house burning. Alain and
Provost Sauval’s office. This may be via a Boderique have fled to the countryside
direct summons from Sauval, a meeting and, oddly enough, have not left a for-
to update him on their progress—if they warding address with the pyromaniacal
are doing that, which they probably aren’t, peasants.
because players are dicks—or it may be
delivered by a subordinate.
c However it is delivered, the message Alain doesn’t know anything about
states that a local has come forward with the disappearances but is certain that
information about the disappearances, vampires are involved. He can offer no
and Sauval would like the characters to specific evidence for his theory but can
investigate. feel it in his waters.
The local is Alain de la Mare, a schol- Although he is useless as a witness, Alain
ar and alleged alchemist. He lives in a may become a handy ally if the characters
four-storey townhouse in one of the nicer keep him on side by indulging his obses-
bits of Paris, paid for by substantial inher- sions. He often works with the Court of
ited funds that he has largely squandered. Miracles (page 66), buying corpses from
Neighbours consider him to be a bit of a them – for scientific study, you pervert
weirdo but mostly harmless. – and selling poisons and potions back.
These meetings take place at the back
door. No, that’s not a euphemism. Pervert.
44
c
ALAIN DE LA MARE, classic mad BODERIQUE, dejected manservant:
wizard: Armour 12, Move 120’, 5th Armour 13, Move 120’, 2nd Level Fight-
Level Magic-User, 23hp, sharpened bit er, 9hp, club 1d4, Morale 12 as long as
of hawthorn 1d4, Morale 9, Constitu- Alain is alive, 7 otherwise, Strength 14.
tion 14, Intelligence 16, Wisdom 6.
Buff coat, club, hexagonal wooden
Hawthorn stake, hexagonal wooden token, purse with 4sp.
token, necklace of garlic bulbs, note-
book filled with messy notes, pencil Boderique is a tall, stocky man,
(behind left ear), ragged robes. almost like a cube of muscle, with a
countenance best described as exis-
Spells Prepared (if expecting trou- tentially glum. He thinks Alain has
ble): Charm Person, Light, Invisibility, gone insane, is worried about him,
Web but doesn’t know what to do about it
all. Plus being a manservant to a mad
Spellbook: Charm Person, Identify, wizard pays relatively well, so…
Invisibility, Knock, Light, Read Magic,
Speak With Dead, Unveil the Presence of
the Dread Vampyre, Web, Wizard Lock
Alain is bitter and cantankerous,
because he believes vampires are taking
over the world, but no one is taking
him seriously. He is obsessed with
hunting vampires and is dismissive of
most of seventeenth-century society,
considering it backwards and foolish.
Despite all this, he cares about humani-
ty and wants to save it.
45
The Wizard’s Tower(ing townhouse)
Alain and Boderique live in a somewhat Ground Floor
decent house in a somewhat decent bit of A. Reception room. Alain is not in
the city. The king wouldn’t stay the night general an ostentatious man but one
there, probably, but the characters would of his few luxuries is his fancy pad-
have to kick in a lot of doors and steal a ded “sitting and thinking” chair, an
lot of stuff to afford such a place. Oversized item worth about 75sp. On
a small stool next to the chair is a thin
Doors and windows. book with a bright green spine and en-
The external doors are locked at most titled The Sorcerer of Lava Peak; all the
times, and always at night—a set of keys pages seem to be in the wrong order.
c is held by each of Alain and Boderique— B. Kitchen. A spare set of house keys
and all windows have wooden shutters. hangs on a nail by the back door. 1d6-1
Each of the shutters and external doors cats lurk near the back door, waiting for
is also held shut with a unique version scraps.
of the Wizard Lock spell; this can be
bypassed in the normal ways, but can be First Floor
ignored by anyone holding a special en- A. Alain’s bedroom. There are strings
chanted token. Alain and Boderique each of garlic all around the bed and a total
have a token, and there are spares within of seventeen wooden holy symbols
the house. scattered around the room. Hidden
under the bed is a small wooden coffer
There are strings of garlic above every containing 1,500sp in French coins
entrance into the house, including the and another 60sp in various European
fireplaces. currencies.
B. Alain’s study. The chests are
packed full of books and scrolls. Most
are works of demonology and the
occult, with a particular focus on vam-
pires and other blood-drinking spirits.
The collection is worth around 900sp to
a collector. There is also a map of Paris
with thirty-five locations marked; three
of them match the first three of the De-
mon Tailor’s abductions. This is Alain’s
map of possible (in his mind, certain)
vampire attacks.
Second Floor
A. Alain’s laboratory and workshop.
The door is locked at all times. Bundles
of flowers, garlic, and herbs all around
46
B
Ground A
Floor
First A c
Floor AC
A B
Second
Floor B
B
Third B
Floor
47
the room just about mask the smell C. Hidden shrine. On a small wood-
wafting from the corpse on the table. en table stands what appears to be a
The corpse has a wooden stake rammed serpent, but made of dried pasta. If
into its heart, but don’t worry, it’s not a asked, Alain explains “The very idea of
vampire, it’s an experiment!
B. These bedrooms are intended for a deity creating this unthinking universe
is absurd. This effigy serves to remind
visitors, but as Alain is an irascible sort, me to never fall prey to the absurdity
they haven’t been used in ages. of religion.” This kind of thinking is, in
general, not considered acceptable in
A smaller table is covered in B-Movie seventeenth-century France.
bottles and glasses containing a variety of
noxious liquids. In some games there may Alain also keeps his spellbook in this
be some useful potions here, but as this is room. The book contains the spells
c LotFP, they are almost all poisons. Charm Person, Identify, Invisibility, Knock,
Light, Read Magic, Speak With Dead,
Unveil the Presence of the Dread Vampyre,
Roll 1d4:
1. This poison looks like honey and is in- Web, Wizard Lock
tended for use on weapons. If a character
is wounded by a poisoned weapon, they Third Floor
must save versus Poison or die in 1d6 A. Boderique’s room. In one chest
hours. is a set of good quality leather armour
2. This liquid has the look and consis- and a rapier of fine craftsmanship, both
tency of milk and, if consumed, will put relics of Boderique’s former life as a
a character to sleep for 1d8 hours if they soldier. The rapier is worth 30sp. In an-
fail a saving throw versus Poison. other chest is a pouch containing 60sp
3. This bitter orange liquid can be con- and a Wizard Lock token.
sumed or applied to a weapon. The victim B. Another spare bedroom. A
must save versus Poison or suffer an effect telescope is set up next to the window,
akin to the Confusion spell (Rules & Mag- pointed towards the Hyades star cluster,
ic, page 96) for 1d4 Rounds. where dread Carcosa lies.
4. A purple powder that if consumed—a
taste is enough—causes immediate death
if a save versus Poison is failed.
There are six useful bottles on the table.
Also on the table is one of Alain’s Wizard
Lock tokens.
The laboratory and its contents are worth
about 2,000sp; see Rules & Magic, page
83.
A panel in the wall slides to the left to Wizard Lock
reveal Alain’s secret shrine. Token
48
New Spell The spell fails and the caster is
4 followed everywhere by a cloud of
Unveil the Presence of the Dread
Vampyre (Detect Vampire) mosquitoes for the next 2d6 days.
Magic-User Level 1
Duration: 5 Rounds/Level The spell succeeds but the caster no
Range: 10’/Level longer casts a reflection. Remove Curse
5 may fix this, but it may not, depending
The caster knows the general location on how much you want to annoy that
and number of any vampires within player.
range. If the vampire(s) are within line
of sight, they are outlined in a blood red The spell fails, the caster is turned into
light that only the caster can see. At the a vampire, and no longer drinks…
Referee’s discretion, the spell can also 6 wine. Choose or roll two powers and
detect vampire variants like the jiangshi, three vulnerabilities from the nearby
strigoi, vircolac, and so on. The author lists.
wholeheartedly encourages the Referee to
introduce Chinese hopping vampires to 7+ Refer to Miscast Table, Vaginas Are c
their campaign, because they are brilliant. Magic!
The spell also highlights those being The spell was created by wizards of the
charmed by a vampire, and those who Old Assyrian Empire in 1787 BCE,
have been fed upon by a vampire, includ- during a minor vampire infestation (see
ing those who have died as a result of the The Sanguisuges of Shubat-Enlil). A Gaul-
feeding. These individuals are outlined in ish druid miscast it in 657 BCE, summon-
a dimmer, pinkish light. ing Christophe, who was in the middle of
important vampire business and was a bit
If you are using the alternate magic sys- annoyed to be torn away, so he butchered
tem detailed in Vaginas Are Magic!, then his summoner then began the very long
you can use the following table for when walk home.
the spell goes wrong:
In the many centuries since, every time
Unveil the Presence of the Dread that particular miscast event has oc-
curred, Christophe appears. The first few
Vampyre Miscast Table (1d12): times he would go on murderous rampag-
es against the spellcasters, and when that
The spell fails and any vampires within stopped being fun and interesting, he
1 a hundred miles become aware of the spent decades trying to eliminate every
copy of the spell, but somehow it would
caster’s location. always survive. He has spent most of his
existence not knowing if and when he is
2 In a puff of theatric smoke, a disgrun- going to be whisked away from whatever
tled vampire appears next to the caster. he’s doing and end up in Qelong, Carcosa,
or worse, Wales, stuck in someone else’s
The spell succeeds… sort of. Every- adventure until he can get home. By 1630,
thing detects as a vampire. Vampires, he has become quite jaded by the whole
3 normal humans, other members of the thing.
party, dogs, trees, buckets, road signs.
Everything.
49
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