Reinterpreting in Our Favour

In this post, I'll be discussing some communication issues that arose with events of the Senex Campaign of March 31, 2009.  For this post, I'll be using the original, unedited comments, since they feature a scattering of miscommunication, misunderstandings and presumptive player behaviour, all of which I will reduce or cut out of the official campaign rewrite.

[Let me pause first and say that I trust that moving chronologically forward with each one of these posts, rather than jumping from place to place and time to time in the campaign, continues to provide a satisfying experience for the reader.  That said, let's begin]

When we join the players, Tiberius and Anshelm are moving over the roofs of Dachau, which they have used to get around the town guards, who are pushing people off the streets in accordance with the declaration of martial law over the town by the town council.  It has been made clear with many references that the guards are implacable, behaving in a brutal manner towards citizens, and that the whole town is affected.

Much of what follows should be ascribed to players being players ~ that is, that certain player types tend to adopt a perception that because they are players, the circumstances that apply to NPCs don't apply to them.

After climbing down to the street, the pair, led by a guide, move along a narrow, empty alley, eight feet wide.  They have drawn their weapons.  While moving down the alley, I instructed Tiberius to roll a d6, without explaining why.  This is my standard practice.  The die in this case was to see if the party was surprised; a 1 or a 2 would have indicated this.  By keeping the reason for the die from the players, it helps build up tension.  Also, because the reason for the die has not been revealed, it is harder for the player to tell if the best result would be a high one or a low one.  Given that we are playing online, that is in my favor.  In a table game, where  often I won't visually confirm a player's roll, this also helps to encourage honesty.

Tiberius rolled a 1, indicating surprise.  I answered with this description:

DM: Tiberius is pulling up the rear (being the second one to say he's following Udo), so he is nearest to the door when it opens. Two watchmen (privately paid city guards) in uniforms come tumbling out of a door, wishing persons inside the house well before closing the door and suddenly being face to face with the fighter/mage.

They are not surprised.  Which is to say, they are surprised, as anyone would have to be, but they are not AS surprised as Tiberius and the others.

For a moment both groups stand in the swirling wind and gawk at one another.

Whereupon the guards [sic, should be watchmen] poise [sic, should be point] their weapons (they are carrying fauchards ... 8 foot polearms) and demand to know who you are and your business.

At that point you cease to be surprised.

Let's break this down, which the players did not do and which I did not think I needed to do that day; which caused me to be somewhat peevish, as will be seen.

The party [Udo the guide, Anshelm the thief and Tiberius the fighter/mage] are running down a narrow street in order.  The watchmen come out a side door, BETWEEN Tiberius and Anshelm.  Unfortunately, I said, "nearest to Tiberius" and this was not clear to the players.  I thought it was clear, because of the narrowness of the alley, and because I used the word "tumbling" to describe the watchmen coming out of the door.  Moreover, I had Tiberius roll the surprise dice, and at no time did I suggest that the watchmen were behind the party.  Still, yes, I could have been clearer.  Sometimes in the moment, as we dump a bunch of information on the party, we make simple mistakes.  We call them guards instead of watchmen, we use a word like poise to describe their weapons rather than pose or point.  Mis-speaking is everyday for a DM and it does create problems.

Note, however, that I have clearly stated that the watchmen are face-to-face with the players.  This, surprisingly, can be viewed in different ways by different people.  Some players will think this means, "We are facing each other, distance uncertain."  Others will understand, in a narrow alley, with watchmen tumbling out of a door, in a cramped space, face-to-face means within very close proximity.  I could have said nose-to-nose, but I didn't actually mean to put the two parties that close to one another.  Yet again, yes, I could have said, "You are standing three feet apart."  Remember that distances measured in numbers are always clearest.

I'll take a moment here, however, and explain that players ALWAYS interpret any vagueness in their favor.  If I were to say, I surprised my father as he came out of the bathroom and we were standing face-to-face, you would know instantly that I meant we were very close to each other.  Inside a game, however, players will reach for straws to improve their situation: "face-to-face" is reinterpreted as "facing," which is almost the same thing but really isn't.  The former is defined as, "the people involved being close together and looking directly at each other," whereas the latter is defined as, "have the face pointing in a specific direction."

Having a definite understanding of language as a DM can be a drawback; we can choose very specific words to describe specifically what we mean, but those words can be misinterpreted by casual listeners right out of our intention.  This can make clarity difficult, when the language itself is turned in favor of the player or in favor of the DM.  That is why numbers are usually best; and why running a combat, as I did with this post, is easier when everyone is represented physically by miniatures or images, then when we rely on description.

The description above ends with saying the players are no longer surprised.  It does NOT say that they are free to take an action.  I left the comment open, expecting to receive questions as the players assessed their position and possibly sought to clarify any misunderstandings.  That is not what these players did.  Instead, they assumed that the words, "You cease to be surprised" meant, "Feel free to act as you will."

Again, as a DM, I presumed that players familiar with D&D had heard of, or had some experience with, Initiative.  Who moves first has been part of role-playing games since the invention of games; it was called "initiative" in the Chain Mail rules of 1974.  However, without expressly stating that initiative is a factor in the game's behaviour, players will interpret the situation to suit themselves ~ and as a DM you have to be on top of that.

Let's look at the player's response:

Tiberius: Tiberius takes a moment to recover from his surprise before identifying himself and his companions and explaining the nature of their task. He tells the guards [sic, he calls them that because I did] that he is delivering a message to Herr Mizer, a merchant who lives in the quarter.

Anshelm: Anshelm, well aware he's not at all a charmer, holds his tongue.

Very well, Anshelm merely supposes that a parley has developed and does not actually commit to anything.  Tiberius, as I said, assumes he has initiative and begins to explain the party's intentions for being here, in this alley, in a town that is under martial law, without an armed city escort.  With his weapon drawn, and Anselm as well.

Point in fact, though we should have rolled initiative, as a DM I just went with it and let the players drive the scene.  I don't recommend it as a habit, but flexibility has its place.  In this case, I was flexible because we were playing online and ret-conning anything is a bigger hassle than it is at a table.

Chances are that both players have totally forgotten this last detail.  In real life, if you had a sword in your hand, and you met a watchman, you would be really, really conscious of the weapon.  You would sheathe it before you did anything!  Tiberius is clearly oblivious.  I was myself, for a few minutes, until I remembered.  In part, that was because we were playing by posted comments, and several hours had passed between drawing weapons and meeting the watchmen, but I've had similar things happen at a table many times.  Fact is, with everything discussed in words, sometimes players and DMs just forget.  There are a lot of details and that's an easy thing.

I'm more concerned with the nature of Tiberius' arguments and its effect on the watchmen. Everything Tiberius says is perfectly true ~ but from the watchmen's perspective, it sounds ridiculous.  If they have this message, then where is their escort?  How have they gotten this far without one?  There are city guardsmen all over the streets.  As the watchmen live around here, the party are recognizably strangers, because they don't.  So true or not, the claim is highly suspect.

As well, during a city-wide crackdown, there are always lots and lots of people who have all sorts of really, really good and special reasons for why they should not be held to the standard of everyone else!  Guards and watchmen call these people, "troublemakers," as in they make trouble for the armed forces to do their jobs.  In a time before the last century, the best way to deal with a troublemaker was to hit them until they fell silent, unconscious or dead.  In the middle of a city-wide crackdown, who's going to know who killed whom?

It can be enormously hard to get this across to a player, who thinks everything can be solved with a really strong and meaningful discussion, rather than having to resort to all the weapons we all have in our hands. I tried to do so:

DM: Eventually, Tiberius, I'm going to convince you that the powers that be do not care about your personal problems. These are merchant-paid guardsmen in the merchant's quarter who do not recognize you, not as an employee of any member of the Guild or as anyone with the right to be where you are right now.

This was ignored (perhaps because it was peevish, I don't know).  This was about the fifth example of players in the campaign assuming that they could explain their behaviour in terms of "I need this" and "I want that," and I was getting somewhat sore in the face of non-player characters who had absolutely no reason whatsoever to give a rat's ass what the player's needs were.

I recognize that for many players, and DMs, this is called "role-playing."  The idea that the player should always be entitled to talk their way past any problem ... and it is presumed by a lot of DMs that if a player does an amazing job of coming up with a great, terrific story, and spews it with really spectacular aplomb, then the DM is absolutely beholden to the player to recognize that performance and reward it with the obstacle being removed, the player's wealth or experience being increased, as that's the "game" being played at many a table across this wonderful RPG world.  Impress the other players, impress the DM, get everyone laughing or everyone applauding, and the world shall open up to thee, O Mighty Player.

Whereas I think, hm, this watchman likes his job, likes his position, doesn't know this player, does know how black the face of his supervisor gets and worse, has no actual knowledge of what actual evil these players may be pursuing.  So, yeah, no, we don't believe your story.  Especially if it's grandiose enough to make a table of players woot and cheer.

As a DM, I a real prick that way.  I don't think players should be able to talk themselves out of things, where they themselves are already talking good and loud with the decisions they've made up to now, the weapons they're carrying, the place they've decided to intrude upon and the guide they've blindly hired.

The watchmen tell them flat out:

First Guard [sic]: "Oh yeah? Then why ain't we seen you before?"

Second Guard [sic]: "Sounds like a looter to me."

DM: Tiberius, roll a d6.

Tiberius: Rolled a 3.

"Earlier today I had a chunk of plaster thrown at me. Forgive me if I'm a little cautious."

Tiberius tells that guards [sic] that he has legitimate papers, and if they will give him a moment to get them out of his pack, he will sheathe his sword and produce them with haste.

[damn it; see how you say "guard" one time when you mean watchman and the whole thing just goes straight to a dumpster?]

Again, I don't explain the purpose of the die roll.  In this case, I'm asking Tiberius to roll initiative with the watchman, who intends to attack. Again, Tiberius is oblivious.  He ignores my suggestion that no one cares; he ignores, or simply washes over, the relevance of the die roll he's just made; and he ignores the watchman's question ... and then effectively repeats his story, only now he wants something out of his backpack.

[wait a minute; what is a messenger with legitimate papers doing with an adventurer's travelling backpack?]

Look at those words: "If they will give him a moment ... he will sheathe his sword ..."

Apart from a compulsion to go off on a tear about players who insist on referring to their characters in the third person, consider the situation.  You are facing a watchman who is paid to keep the peace on the streets, with a sword in your hand, and your argument is that you will put the sword down IF they consent to letting you get "papers" out of your backpack.

How come these "legitimate papers" are not carried inside your doublet, or up your sleeve, as all messengers used to carry them?

How many people in the history of these watchmen have tried to get things out of a backpack?  In a world where magic items exist?  Of extremely powerful potential?

Imagine a cop today consenting to your holding a knife on him, with the potential that you're going to pull a gun out of your backpack.  Now replace "gun" with "item of unknown and potentially absolute power."

Tiberius was perfectly capable of imagining such a cop.  I am not.

I come back to what I was saying earlier about players reinterpreting situations in their favour.  These aren't modern cops, these are 14th century watchmen.  They're not even actual guards.  We are way, way smarter than these guys.  We can totally talk ourselves out of this.  Even if our "legitimate papers" are merely a pass that exempts us from paying tolls on roads within the Duchy of Bavaria.  These papers have no bearing on anything to do with what's going on in Dachau, or exempting anyone from the authority of watchmen or guards.  As well, Tiberius was arrested once before, and he had the papers on him then.  This is nothing more than a case of a player trying to make reality fit his preconception, as players will often try to do.

So I explained,

DM: The guards thrust at you, but you have initiative. You have three seconds...so not enough time for a spell.

And 18 minutes later received this answer:

Anshelm: is it even worth trying to get them to listen or are we engaged at this point?

That, for me, is a head scratcher.  I look at that and I see a player being staggeringly obtuse.  I recognize that a lot of other DMs would see this from Anshelm's point of view:  "Why are these uniformed, armed fellows so unwilling to listen to our very legitimate story?  Why can't they see that we're just innocents here, that we're players, for heaven's sake, with the whole world revolving around us and important things to do and important places to go!  We don't have time for a wandering encounter!  Damn.  This is really, really unfair of these fellows not to talk to us like we're honest and upstanding persons of such importance."

This, I find, tends to describe many a player's perception after playing years of story campaigns, where they are indeed the protagonists.  It's very hard for such players to understand that the world possesses people who aren't part of the story, who happen to be here, who have their own narrative, and are viewing the situation strictly from their own point-of-view.  They haven't got a script.  They don't know the player's story so far.

They have no idea what the hell Tiberius is talking about when he babbles earlier, "Earlier today I had a chunk of plaster thrown at me."  Was that supposed to encourage empathy?  Because it sounds like Tiberius assumed these watchmen would know everything about the campaign so far that I know.

Let's go a little further with this, as we start the fight ~ the first honest fight of the campaign:

DM: They've pretty much decided to engage you. Can't say at this point whether or not they intend to fight to subdue yet, but that is probably their intent.

Tiberius: Tiberius will move a safe distance away with Anshelm between him and the guards [sic]. Once that course of action is taken, he will cast Charm Person at one of the guards.

[note: I don't use "subdue" any more; I've cast it out as a combat option]

Again, we're back to the dimensions of the alley, the proximity between Tiberius and the watchmen, the notion in the player's mind that "a safe distance" is something that can be obtained just by stating that they want it and the totally ridiculous notion that a watchman is going to let the fighter/mage wander up the alley so that he can turn and throw a spell.

Honestly!  These players think that everyone who has grown up in a world of magic are just dense as posts.

I want to come back to this answer from Tiberius, but first I'll quote my response from the campaign nine years ago:

DM: This is impossible in the space of three seconds. I just finished telling you that you do not have time for a spell. You are being attacked by two persons with 8' polearms. You cannot "move to a safe distance"--there's no such thing. You have time to defend yourself or be cut to pieces.

To expand a little, I was using 6 second rounds at the time, which permitted just three seconds of acting on the player's part.  You could run as far as you could expect in three seconds, or swing your sword maybe once, or shout out as many words as three seconds allowed.

In a less turn-based ideal, we can think of those three seconds as being intermeshed with the enemy's three seconds.  We can see the "turn" as merely an expression of the player's crucial split-second of effect happening moment's before that of the opponent ... so that with initiative, the combatant's crash together, both swing, and the player's swing happens to connect the tiniest bit before the opponent's swing does ... but the action, represented by the game, is utterly spontaneous.  And as the combat is resolved, the DM is tasked with the responsibility of keeping the dichotomy between game structure and perceived reality in a tandem balance.

This helps in judging if a player can skip away because they happen to have initiative.  In terms of the turn-based game play, this is represented by the player moving such a distance away, and then the enemy moves and "catches up."  In the perceived reality of game representation, however, what happens is that the player starts to flee; then the enemy starts to pursue.  Then both bodies, with the player having the initiative, turn in microsecond increments towards some distance further up the street; and then both are moving to the final destination; then the player's momentum ceases; and then the enemy's attack falls on the player.

OR, the enemy's pole arm starts to thrust, the player with the initiative starts to run, the enemy's blow comes closer to landing; the player falls back; the player gives up their initiative by choosing to run rather than fight; and the enemy rolls their attack.

And so on.  Players, however, have a tendency to think that game reality matches exactly the game's necessary turn-based structure ... which is utterly crazy on the face of it.  But again, always remember, it is in the player's interest to interpret everything that is said or presented in the player's favour, even if this means changing words, spacial relationships, ignoring NPC or DM statements, skipping over well-established rules, or anything else that balances control a little bit more against the perceived unfairness of a game setting that does not hand over everything for free.  Role-playing, in the sense of impressing a DM, or getting the other players to laugh and applaud, is just another form of doing that.  In fact, it has become THE form, since much of the game's culture has fled to that perception of the game's purpose.

Let me bring us back to Tiberius' last statement:

"Tiberius will move a safe distance away with Anshelm between him and the guards. Once that course of action is taken, he will cast Charm Person at one of the guards."

Again, it has been totally missed that the watchmen are between him and Anshelm.  That is on me.  I did not restate it, and I should have.  But in the larger point, even if he and Anshelm were standing side-by-side, it is assumed by Tiberius that this is possible.

It is a trope consistently accepted by the game community ~ but I suggest that you, dear reader, give it a try.  Take three of your friends out to a field.  Take sides, like two very short scrimmage lines ~ call it AB facing CD.  C faces A and D faces B.

Now, imagine that you're rushing for each other with the intention of wrestling or hitting each other with foam bats.  The D&D trope argues that A blocks C and D together, so that B can run behind A and have time to throw a spell.

Good luck.

Yet DMs will constantly let players do this, out of "fairness."  Mages, even when they are also fighters, shouldn't have to fight, just because they happen to be in a situation where fighting is, well, unavoidable.  In this case, the watchmen have 8 foot polearms; a weapon used because it's really good against enemies that try to run away.

But no, I'm not done yet.  Note how Tiberius assumes the course of action will be accepted; and not satisfied to tell me what he's doing this round, he decides to tell me what he's going to do next round.

As a DM, if your eyes are open, you're going to see players try to do this a lot.  It is a tactic, whether or not the player consciously knows it ~ sometimes, as humans, we do a thing repeatedly because it's worked for us in the past, without understanding why it's worked.  It is designed to get us in the head space of partially setting up the player to do exactly what they've planned.

DMs handle a lot of information coming from a lot of directions in a relatively short time.  It is human instinct to grab at things in moments of stress that seem defined, organized and determined ... and so, instinctively, we rack it into the slot in our brain that says, "problem already solved," and forget that, in fact, the player hasn't even resolved the actions of this round, much less the next one.

But that helps us resolve the actions of this round in favour of that slotted solved problem ~ and that's what makes us skip over the illogic of running behind player A, to manage player C and D alone ... we make it make sense in our heads because it makes sense in the players heads, and hell, we can't manage everything here right all the time.  So we'll just let that one go.  Sure, C & D attack A, and B can throw a spell next round.

These are all things to keep in mind.  The game is very, very fuzzy.  Try to reduce the fuzziness by resorting to numbers, not words.  Try to emphasize the players' position with relation to the enemy more than once.  Remind the players of their status, such as holding weapons or wearing armor, even if this is more and more information you need to keep in your mind.  Rely on the players NOT to help, because helping here does not serve their needs ... and recognize that, for the most part, this reinterpretation of descriptions, events, facts, reason, whatever, are natural human instinct.  We are built to ignore facts that do not fit our interpretation of events.  It's a large part of what makes it possible for us to do brave things, or carry on a war, or risk ourselves to help strangers, or a hundred other dangerous things.

Don't blame the player for this re-interpretation (though, like me, you probably will).  The more important thing is to remain conscious of it, to combat it, to make strategies that force the player to accept ALL the circumstances, not just those convenient for the player.

Paper Tigers

The scenes below occur in Part 3 of the Senex Campaign.

As I have the time to examine certain moments that occur in my online games, because the game is in text, I'm able to see things in retrospect that I would probably miss in the moment.  I might get a sense for it intuitively, but definitively enough to deconstruct those moments?  Probably not.

Below is just such a moment.  The characters are in a dark forest, at night, and they can't see anything.  Foolishly, they have not brought a light source, and have only just discovered they have no way to light a fire.  Then, I explained this:

DM: All three of you get a sudden sensation that something has approached you; it is nearby, perhaps ten or twenty feet away, and breathing regularly. But a quick scan around reveals nothing.

Josef: I drop my pack off my shoulder, and take my mace in hand, while looking around more carefully. I look specifically in the direction from which we came.

Delfig: I’m going to retreat quietly – as noiselessly as possible – away from the now-arming Josef and the noise, shaking my head.

Dark forests are scary.  Without a light, you look into the forest and see even less than what's shown, because the above contains an unnatural light source ... but I chose this picture because at night, you do get a little ambient light from the sky.  Not much.

When Josef (a cleric) senses a threat, he arms himself.  And when Delfig (a bard) becomes aware of the same threat, he gets himself away from Josef and shakes his head.  Why?

Were you and I to be in this situation, we might be overwhelmed; but remember, player characters are at least partially combat trained.  They have weapon proficiencies, so they have been trained in the use of weapons.  If you or I had a gun in this situation, or a club, or any dangerous tool, we would certainly raise it to defend ourselves.  We would not shake our heads at others doing so ~ we'd think, "Damn, that's a good idea," and we'd follow it.  The only reason we would not have protected ourselves automatically would be that we were too damn scared to move.  As well, we would NOT move away from our friends!  Our friends are our best chance of survival.  But Delfig gets away from Josef immediately.  So what's happening here?

Delfig feels safe.  He has judged the situation, he knows that he is talking to a DM, and that the DM isn't just going to kill him randomly, so there's no need to defend himself.  Josef, he thinks, is way over-reacting here ... and if whatever's out there has intelligence, they're going to take offense at Josef and Delfig doesn't want to seem aggressive; seeming aggressive, thinks Delfig, is only going to draw aggression.  So long as he keeps his hands empty, he thinks, he's fine.

Here is the actual difference between "roll-players" and "role-players."  Josef assumes he's in danger.  It's a forest, at night, in 17th century Germany, full of wolves, brigands, D&D monsters and who knows what else.  Most of these things don't care if the prey is acting aggressively or not; quite a lot of these things are damn malevolent and prepared to kill whether or not they're offended.  They don't care if you've drawn your weapon.  They only care that you're made of meat.

Delfig, however, knows there is only one thing in this forest: the Dungeon Master.

Role-playing as it has been taught in the present-gaming culture is a disease, where the structure of the story-driven campaign makes the role-player an essential element that embues the character with plot armor.  As the link says, "the rules of the world seem to bend around him.  The very fact that he's the main character protects him from death, serious wounds and generally all lasting harm," until the principles of the plot are managed and resolved.  Once this becomes known to the player ~ once the player feels certain of it ~ the player will see every apparent threat that presents itself as an integral part of the events that are to follow, no matter how they might appear.

Not the hand signal of someone about to die.

For example, if you buy a ticket for the scariest roller coaster ever, you know perfectly well that when they lock you in the seat, you are perfectly safe.  You're not going to die.  You might have your serotonin and cortisone levels boosted way higher than is normal, but unless you are already suffering from some highly irregular condition, you're going to come out unharmed at the other end.  Knowing this, you're somewhat freaked as you climb to the drop, but you're not really scared.

On the other hand, if I restrain you into a coaster that's blatantly still in construction, which you can see with your own eyes is not finished, as you climb helplessly to the drop, you really are going to be goddamn fucking scared ... pretty much out of your mind, obviously not in a good way.  Because you know you're going to die.  Actually, what you're going to be screaming all the way to the top will be, "This is a joke!  Tell me this is a joke!  Stop fucking with me man! Oh shit, please tell me this is a joke!"

A hope you'll hang onto right up until the time that the rails disappear from under the car and you realize you're in free flight.  At that point, for a second or less, you'll realize that even if this was supposed to be a joke, something has gone terribly wrong.

The question with role-playing is this: do you want your fictional character to get on the sort of roller coaster that will definitely let you out at the bottom, or are you interested in trying the option that might be a joke, or it might not?  Because that, dear friends, is the difference between "role-playing," where you're assured that every scene is meant to be there, and "roll-playing," where the dice can hit the table and yes, you're dead.  Seriously dead.

The difference IS a matter of taste.  But it is also the difference between people who consider themselves "thrill-seekers" because they ride roller coasters, and those who consider themselves "thrill-seekers" because they climb mountains with their fingertips.

God's roller coaster

Now me, I have to say neither.  But if I'm going to simulate the cortisone rush that either of these things will offer, I'm positive that I'm seeking the latter option.  I'm not interested in players who hear breathing in the bushes, in the dark, in a late medieval forest, and decide it's time to get ready for some diplomacy ~ "For heaven's sake, Josef!  Mind your manners ... we don't want to offend anybody!"

Coming back to the campaign, it happened that the player behind Josef quit immediately after this scene.  The reason given was a lack of time ... but the Josef player had been participating erratically up to this moment.  In any case, Delfig the role-player was left on his own (the other player, Kazimir, was unavailable for ten days), and so I decided to take advantage of Delfig's lack of concern, in the manner that best served the campaign.

For it happens that in the situation, Delfig was somewhat right; the entities breathing among the trees were not there to kill the party, they were there to talk.  They had been following the party for some time and the darkness was a good cover for them.  They would not have been offended at anyone drawing their weapons, however; they would have expected it, which was the reason for them remaining hidden.

I could just as easily decided that it was a good time for a night encounter with a wolf or some other creature ~ in which case Delfig would have lost precious time not pulling his weapon, which could have cost him his life.  I want to stress, therefore, that he wasn't being a "good player."  He was merely lucky that the events happened to be non-threatening.

Well, not overtly threatening.  The creatures in the wood were anything but Delfig's friends; but if you're evil, and you want something complicated from a bard, with the bard's help, you pretend to be friendly ... and if the bard already thinks that he has plot armor, well, that makes it very, very easy to seem friendly.

In the scene, one doppelganger and three skulks (nearly invisible humanoids, described in the original Deities & Demigods), are helping a few of their friends execute important members of Dachau town's ruling class, in order to put themselves in power.  This is a fairly standard science fiction plot; I think I first encountered it with 1976's Futureworld, the largely forgotten sequel to Westworld.  These creatures are constantly on the lookout for dupes ... fall guys, people to blame shit on, because if you're murdering people in alleys, its good to have a few well-meaning idiots bumbling around and drawing attention.  As well, these guys (Triskoon, Karl Ludd, Josef Mizer) are also interested in opening a gate to another plane of existence, to rain chaos on the town so they can move in.  The gate requires the blood of a bard, willingly given (stolen flat out from the Goblet of Fire), and here's Delfig, all ready to be a trusting bard.

Now, I did pull a dirty trick as a DM at this point.  Because Josef quit the game, and because I had already decided that the skulks (remember, nearly invisible) were already following the party, it made sense to just suppose that Josef had been a doppelganger from the beginning ~ as if I had said to the player, pretend to be normal and not a doppelganger, because I don't want the players to know.  Now, some might say I stepped over the line; but really, what is the difference?  I see it as verisimilitude.  Having a doppelganger as an original member of the party is perfect.  Before the campaign started, I described the players as a group of slackers who had hung out at a tavern for months ... why shouldn't a doppelganger hang out at the same tavern, get to know these guys, then accompany them as they get started adventuring?

I admit, I didn't think of the doppelganger plot at all until one of the players, Tiberius, got himself arrested, so that I needed a way out for him. Afterwards, the doppelganger idea continued to take shape in my mind as the campaign progressed.

If you remember this post, Hook, Tale and Sting, you should know already that Delfig is on the hook. He and the party earlier convinced themselves that the local merchants are evil and murderers (they're just ordinary greedy people of the 17th century) and that something ought to be done about them.  So he was ready to take the bait.  All he needed was to hear a tale.

I began with mocking him.  The creatures speak to him from out of the dark, after some build up (see the campaign rewrite for complete context):

DM: There will come the chortle of laughter from several voices around you – they are uncomfortably close, though you cannot see anything. One speaks, from somewhere in front of you.

1st Voice (npc): “Herr Kôlhupfer, you have nothing to fear from us.”

2nd Voice (npc): “We might have killed you at the farm.”

3rd Voice (npc): “It’s good that you let the Jew alone.”

Delfig: I gulp and slowly lower my arms into a non-threatening position. “I am … ahh … glad that I have pleased you enough that I’m not going to die for my mistakes. Who are you? Might I be allowed to gain shelter from the cold so that we can talk?”

For my money, the cheek here is astounding.  Meeting three, perhaps more strangers in the night, Delfig is instantly ready to believe that they mean no harm and that it's a good time to ask for favors.  There's a player who has played with soft-hearted DMs, for sure.  Thing is ... if I put myself in the mindset of a con-artist (and is there a more perfect con-artist monster in the Monster Manual than a doppelganger?), telling me what you want only gives me power.  Unless Delfig is also trying to mess with me (and he wasn't, though I've certainly messed with DMs this way as a player), he's in a lot of trouble.  As can be seen, however, he's ready to take these fellows at face value.

1st Voice: “No, we will not give you shelter. We do not rest with humans. But we will ask a question: will you continue in the employ of those snakes who seek to swallow the people of Dachau? Or will you accept our coin?”

Delfig: Who are these snakes? The merchants? And who are you?

3rd Voice: “He’s not that bright, is he?”

2nd Voice: “He thinks we mean actual snakes.”

4th Voice (npc): “And he didn’t answer the question.”

Here's a tip.  When you want to deceive your players, have the NPCs insult them.  You'll get a range of responses to these insults, for sure, but how the players respond will tell you much about what the players are thinking, and what they think you're thinking.

Look at the above, assuming we take it literally.  Right off, the 1st voice says something racist against humans; and with the very next sentence, insults the human masters of Dachau.  Then Delfig buys into it, completely unfazed by the personal, racist insult.  Whereupon he is insulted further.

We can see from Delfig's response that he's concerned he wouldn't survive a fight, so he doesn't want to start one.  He's like a kid surrounded by four bullies; when they insult the kid, the kid tries to get on the bullies side ~ and that's what Delfig's base agenda is.  Don't make this into a conflict, seek a conversation on their level, find how as much intel as possible.

He can't see them.  He doesn't know who or what they are.  He doesn't know he'd lose a fight with the four of them; he just knows he isn't going to try.  They could be two feet tall kobald children, with 1 hit point each, hiding in the dark, but he has built them up in his head and he isn't going to test his assumption.  That's why his answer is so obsequious.

Delfig: “I beg your pardons. I will answer. No, I do not wish to be a party to the merchants who would squeeze everyone dry of their wealth and then look for more. It’s the merchants who caused much of the bloodshed of recent past wars, and I have no small love for being played as a fool in a merchant’s game. I wanted to talk to Herr Meyer and find out what we’d gotten ourselves into. I count myself fortunate that Herr Meyer didn’t kill me.

“I didn’t mean actual snakes – but as I am talking to the wind and darkness, who sound as if they are opposed to the merchant, I wonder what powers the merchants may also have. As for whether I’ll accept your coin, while I am in need, I am also wary of things I cannot see, that speaks to me from the dark and asks if I will get involved in something that may leave me in the same condition as the innkeeper, with a rope around my dead neck. Before I accept any coin, I would like to know more.”

Most DMs will rate the success of role-playing upon the believability of the character's persona, the character's contribution to the overall story and the general feel of immersion the player is expected to demonstrate.  My feeling is that these are standards for an acting performance in a play or presentation, and have nothing to do with playing a game!  "Role-playing" ought to be measured by the player's ability to handle and manage the situation, overcoming the obstacles presented and providing themselves with the greatest possible number of opportunities and advantages.

On that scale, Delfig fails dismally.  He's apologizes.  He gives the enemy more information than he gets, and the information he gives is accurate, while he never considers that he's being lied to. He tells these strangers his intentions; he reveals that he's chickenhearted about disobeying the law.  In short, from the point of view of a doppelganger and his cronies, Delfig is a bitch.  Delfig is a coward.  Make him feel like a friend, and he'll eat right out of your hand.

So, the doppelganger steps out of the darkness as Josef.  Then he transforms into another acquaintance, a servant named Ells.  Then into a third person, a stranger.  He does it right in front of Delfig, as "proof" that he's being transparent with everything he says.  He's effectively saying, "See, I've revealed what I am and I've said I'm not here to harm you, trust me."  This the tale that I, the DM, want Delfig to believe.

And Delfig does.  Note his response from the campaign:  "Okay, that's just damn cool."

This is partly because, in his head, it IS the Dungeon Master selling this idea, and the Dungeon Master won't hurt him, because he has plot armor.  Right?  Yeah.  Except Delfig doesn't understand that as the DM, I'm expected to play lying, cheating, criminal, usurping, human-hating deceptive shape-changing doppelgangers accurately.  Of course, I never say this is a doppelganger.  That would be tipping my hand.  Most genre-savvy players know doppelgangers are evil (look it up, not just in the books but in German literature ~ and this campaign is in Germany).  So I don't want to name the beast, I want Delfig to make his own conclusions.

So as a DM, I pick my words carefully; Delfig is playing his character as a coward (or he is a coward as a player, it really makes no difference from my point of view or that of the doppelganger):

Josef/Ells/Other: “And now I approach you to ask you to do some small part in breaking the Merchant’s Guild in Dachau.”

Delfig: I look in astonishment as the darkness shapes into Josef, then Ells, then to the stranger in turn. “I’m sorry, Josef … or by whatever name you have for yourself. I meant no disrespect with my answers. I did not know.

“I have felt uneasy about the goings on in Dachau since I learned of the innkeeper and his wife. I did not go with my friends in service to Mizer to fulfill his wishes. I have no particular loyalty to the Merchants Guild. I live for my art.” I break off, gulp nervously, and continue. “What would you have me, a single person, do against the Guild?”

A "small part."  Small.  These words mean so much.  The Fatherland has selected you to pour this container of powder into this small hole.  It's not much.  It's just a small thing.  No big deal.

I don't point this out to show that Delfig is joyfully participating on the side of evil, but rather that evil couches its phrases into specific frames that make it possible for perfectly good people to innocently blunder into the most stupid of actions.  I didn't know that switch would cut off all the power the neighborhood and cause several helpless people do die as their AC units stopped working, I was just following orders.  I didn't know that 16-year-old girl would kill herself, I was just forwarding a tweet.  I don't know why all these black people are rioting.  I've never done anything to them.

What does Delfig emphasize as he offers to help?  That he is just one person.  That he's insignificant.  That no one should expect very much from him.  Especially considering he takes work without considering the wishes of his boss or that he has no loyalty to the town leaders.  He's innocent.  He lives for his art.

As a DM, we do best when we HEAR what the player emphasizes ... if the player is talking to someone who is good and earnestly wants what's best for the players, we can point out the flaws in the player's statements and encourage them to be steadfast, braver, more dutiful, more honorable, more of a mensch ... and when we play an NPC is who a complete rotter, we can take advantage when the player is none of those things.

Josef/Ells/Other: “You may call me Triskoon … when we are not in the company of others. In company, call me ‘Hans.’ And what I want is for you to take a journey. Not to any place in particular, except that it should be away from Dachau. If you will give me but a sample of your blood – and a single personal item – your disappearance from the town will make an excellent frame.”

This is something that Delfig can do right now, safely, and Wow!  Do we want to emphasize the safe part of this action.  What's more, once he does it, he's being asked to run away.  Seriously.  I'm asking a player who is acting like a coward to do something in the dark and then to run away after doing it.

To which Delfig seeks to get something for himself:

Delfig: I shiver in the chilling air and rub my arms. ”Forgive me, Triskoon, but the air begins to affect me poorly. I was seeking shelter in these buildings, in order to make it through the night. Could I please have some shelter before we talk further?”

Triskoon [with pity]: “Come with me.”

And, with pity and plenty of security, Triskoon takes him to a shed that he knows to be empty, which isn't his, and let's Delfig rest there and get warm.  Then he asks,

Triskoon: “If you climb down into the hay, you may pass the night more comfortably. What say you to our bargain?”

Delfig: I thank him gratefully as I rub my arms and legs to get warm. Then I look at him curiously. “A drop of blood and a personal item. You say those will serve as an excellent frame. How will my blood, my essence, and an item of mine, give you a ‘frame’ - the murders of the horses seem to have already gotten attention enough. A drop of my blood won’t be so unusual.”

Reading this, as an outsider, you ought to be a little ... disturbed by this.  Speaking for myself, I never imagined it would be this easy.  I was sure he would hem and haw; I hoped he would key on the word "frame."  This, too, is an old trick.  In the midst of a description, you use one word that isn't immediately clear (though you think you know what it means, you feel compelled to ask).  The mind will focus on that word, because it is uncertain ... and as it draws your attention, you forget the rest of what it said.  Right now, the reader will remember that I used to word "frame" near then end of the paragraph.  Without scrolling up, how much can you remember about the rest of what Triskoon said, immediately in relation to that word?

One reason to use odd words, or slang, is that it confuses the meaning for an outsider.  This puts the outsider in the position of having to ask, which enables YOU to control the conversation.  This is what Triskoon does.  He explains that the blood will be used to "frame" Johann Mizer, by making people think that Mizer killed Delfig.  See, we have the blood to prove it.  Delfig then responds,

Delfig: My eyes widen. “That is an audacious plan and would indeed be a serious accusation against the merchant, especially with the involvement of a cleric. You have some powerful friends. I must admit reluctance at having that much blood taken from me. I have little wish to find myself sickened from an imbalance of my humours. How will you keep Herr Mizer or his companions from simply carting me off to the jail or worse?”

DM: Triskoon will change shape again … and Herr Mizer takes your wineskin from you and has a pull.

Triskoon: “Why would Mizer need to be involved at all?”

This astounds Delfig (who has, once again, expressed his cowardice), though at no time does Delfig wonder why Triskoon doesn't just choose to look like Delfig and have someone who is disguised as Johann Mizer kill him.  Even if we assume Triskoon is the only shapechanger, it wouldn't be hard to dress someone in Mizer's clothes, add a little makeup and then be sure that a dozen people or so hear the fake Delfig call the fake Mizer by his name.  That seems an easier plan, and doesn't require Delfig at all ... which ought to be a clue that this isn't Triskoon's plan, that the whole thing is bunk and that what he really wants is a vial of Delfig's blood.  Which he has to get willingly.

Ah well, Delfig asks about money, they haggle, the money is promised and the exchange is made for Delfig's blood, which he takes from his own arm.  Mission accomplished.  And the fallout from that decision would drive a lot of the campaign afterwards, eventually causing Delfig to believe that his character needed to suicide in order to make amends.  No, I'm not kidding.

Conclusion

Suppose, for argument's sake, Delfig had refused to listen to any of this.  Suppose he had drawn his weapon with Josef, and then Josef had quit the campaign ... as a DM, what would I have done?

First, because it might have initiated a fight, I would have suspended the campaign those 10 days so that Kazimir would have been able to run, and Delfig wouldn't have been alone.  I only created the parley and let it go on despite Kazimir's absence because Delfig made it so clear he was no at all interested in fighting.

But suppose that after a few statements, after the insults, Delfig had changed his mind and had decided to offer a fight to the voices he couldn't see?  What if there had never been a Kazimir?  What would I have done then?

To my mind, any creature that lives by virtue of hiding or pretending to be someone else is, itself, a coward.  The skulks, likewise, depended on not being seen.  These were not bold, brave creatures who appeared and threatened Delfig; they were cowards who insulted him from the darkness.

If he had taken a bold stance, at any point in the conversation, they would have simply melted away.  After all, the doppelganger could simply become someone else; could think of a different way to get the blood of out Delfig; or gone after another bard. There was nothing to be gained by participating in a direct fight.  That would not have served the doppelganger's requirements at all.

Delfig's mistake was in thinking that I, as the DM, was telling him the story he needed to follow, just as thousands of DMs think it is their role to do, and tens of thousands of players willingly concede.  We make an endless series of adventures where the DM and the players participate in this silly charade, where there's no real conflict because the players trust the DM and the DM does not betray that trust.  As though the purpose of this game is to ensure that everything remain open and on the table.

It is interesting that the "stories" that get told in D&D have none of the uncertainties that exist in real stories.  Just as it is funny that players are not expected to demonstrate their moral courage, their insight, or their ability to survive, being asked to do little more than act as paper tigers who are allowed to roar only because they know they will not be torn to pieces.

Senex Campaign 3: Sedition in Dachau

Not an accurate depiction of events

Delfig having asked the question about proof of the party’s honesty, Herr Meyer shows he has no wish to have anyone in the party to prove their word. He bristles, having already asked the party to get off his land. He continues to hold two hammers by their necks, expectant that the party will follow his instructions.

The afternoon has worn on some. The sun stands past the zenith, and the temperature has risen to full summer. While it may be moderately cool under the trees, out here on the meadow one can feel the 

sun hot on one’s shoulders, and sweat rising under one’s clothes in the mild humidity.

Crickets buzz. The stream continues to bubble, the water wheel continues to roll and creak.

Anshelm Helbelinc, the Thief: I let out a sigh and look to each of my companions. “Well, friends, I believe we should do as the man asks.”

Delfig Kôlhupfer, the Bard/Thief: I nod, as I turn and pick up my weapons and wait for the rest of my companions to join me. I whisper, “I think we should leave and head a little ways into the woods, and then discuss what we’re going to do next.”

Kazimir Kropt, the Assassin: I retrieve my weapons and nod in agreement.

Tiberius, the Fighter/Mage: I nod in agreement, pick up my weapons and follow the party into the woods.

Josef Mieszko, the Cleric: I gather my weapons and join the group.

Anshelm: I bring up the rear.

Delfig: [OOC: and thus, the party slinks off. “that’s not crying, that’s hysterical laughter ...”]

DM: Retreating, you follow the cart track and make your way to the highest ford upon the stream.

Delfig: Since this place isn’t visible to the main road, Delfig will look at his companions and ask, “Now what?”

Anshelm: Out of danger, I take a greedy pinch of snuff. “Do we tell Mizer what happened? And where is Ells?”

Josef: He ran off when things went badly. But he gave me his guild patch first. Let’s get off Meyer’s property, back to the road that got us here.

Delfig: I’m curious … will we have to pay a toll to get in Dachau via the gates? When Anshelm and I went out before, we didn’t, and the only tolls you’ve mentioned were over bridges on the way to the homestead.

[To the party]: “Let’s get to the forest that lies between the main road and the hills.”

DM: Since Josef has Ells’ patch, you can get past the tolls on the road by showing the it. You were able to get back into Dachau because the gate was open; there was no entry fee.

Tiberius: I have a writ of passage. Can that be used to bypass toll bridges?

DM: Yes it will.

Josef: How many toll-bridges did we cross? How long could we follow the road east before we came to the first of them?

DM: The closest of these toll-points would be about one mile along the paved road, from where the cart track meets it. You will remember the cart track climbed onto the Meyer hill from where you passed the 5-mile marker (from Dachau) on the side of the road. You crossed three toll bridges to reach the marker.

Delfig: “Let’s split up. Anshelm and Tiberius could take the road back to Dachau. The rest of us could hide out near Dachau, say near the blockhouse that was burnt, and wait to hear word from you two on Mizer’s disposition.”

Anshelm: “Agreed. You might even find shelter with the cotter and his family.”

Tiberius: I look worried. “Then, you should probably give me the gold that Mizer gave each of you, in case he demands it back because of our failure. When will we meet again?”

Delfig: “Let’s say that if we do not hear from you by tomorrow midday, we’ll head into Dachau to find out what has become of you.”

Josef: “Let’s meet tomorrow, just inside the North Gate - in the late afternoon.” I give the merchant’s patch to Anshelm.

Anshelm [taking it, nodding]: “I only hope Mizer doesn’t hold us while determining the veracity of our claims. How about mid-day tomorrow?”

Delfig: “I would suggest we meet up OUTSIDE of Dachau … to avoid any issues. Near the blockhouse.”

Josef: “Yes, yes.” As we go, I’ll keep my sling in hand, but hang my mace at my waist.

Tiberius: “I can simply tell Herr Mizer that I already had enough gold on hand to cover for our ‘fallen’ comrade’s initial payment, even though I didn’t have enough time to loot their bodies after the incident resulting in their deaths.” I agree with the plan.

Kazimir: Confirmed.

Delfig: Those of us cutting cross-country will take efforts to avoid any contact with others. Our intention is to get close to the blockhouse and then camp out for the night, obviously without a fire.

And so, Anshelm and Tiberius continue east towards Dachau, while the rest of the party move overland to the north. The land is dominated by low hills, surrounding the upper Danube Valley. Most of these hills are some two and three hundred feet high, and are collected in clumps and groups, separated by various small river courses ~ some of these flow south to the Amper, others north to the Danube. The woods on the far side of the Amper, to the south, are thicker than they are on the north, though there are patches of tilled land seen in the forest.

Anshelm and Tiberius do experience some difficulty returning to Dachau using the road. At each of the three tolls they encounter, when Anshelm attempts to demonstrate the merchant’s guild insignia, the guards question him at length. These guards are familiar with Ells, but they do not know Anshelm at all. Nevertheless, after some hard questioning, and partly because Tiberius has a writ of passage, the pair are allowed to return to Dachau by the time the town bells ring six o’clock.

Then, as Anshelm and Tiberius are let through the town gates, well before curfew will close the gates for the night, a conversation between two town guards is overheard.

1st Town Guard (npc): Another one?

2nd Town Guard (npc): Yes. Early this morning.

1st Town Guard: And hacked to death, just like before?

2nd Town Guard: Just like before.

1st Town Guard: Who was it this time?

2nd Town Guard: Johann Mizer. The bastard.

1st Town Guard: Serves him right.

Anshelm: When out of sight of the guards, I turn to Tiberius. “Did you hear that? Perhaps we won’t have to rely on a clever tongue to get us out of this. I suppose the Merchants’ Hall is the best place to discover of what it is they speak.”

Tiberius: I agree to go to the Merchants’ hall immediately.

DM: This takes very little time, as you know the way very well. However, as it is later than five o’clock, the Hall is locked.

Tiberius: How late is The Pig open? I think we want to try finding out some information on the recent murder there.

DM: The Pig is open until 10 bells.

Anshelm: Are there other inns, taverns or places where people might gather in the evening between here and there? Is there anywhere that might serve a more upscale crowd than The Pig?

DM: You recall Hornung’s beer garden.

Anshelm: I do. If we decide to go there, is it going to take us out of our way back to The Pig?

DM: Dachau has a population of about 3,900 people. No part of Dachau is more than 1200 yards from any other part of Dachau. I urge you to remember than an ale at the beer garden costed a gold piece.

Anshelm: So noted. I knew Dachau was small, just wasn’t sure how small. To Tiberius, “While Helmunt might appreciate our presence back at The Pig, perhaps we would have a better chance of finding out what might have happened to Mizer by having an ear out at the beer garden, where we took the job. Folk there might know him better than the crowd at The Pig.”

Tiberius: “Yes, and it might be better to stick together. To the beer garden!”

And so, a change of scenery …

DM: You find the beer garden is very much like you remember from last night. The place is much more full than it was, and the fire is less stoked. You’re each served an ale from a beautiful, compelling woman with dark eyes, who takes your gold piece with a disarming smile.

Tiberius: I smile at the server while handing her a gold piece. “I was hoping to meet a friend here, and I wonder if you’ve seen him? His name is Johann Mizer.”

Anshelm: I add a silver piece to my gold. “Have you seen him around this night?”

Mina (npc): “Johann? Not tonight.”

DM: She chuckles, taking your money.

Mina: “That poor bubbie works too hard.”

DM: With that, she’ll spin delightfully and return to her duties.

Anshelm: “Perhaps mixing with our present company will yield better results?” I rise and tries to look nonchalant, moving near the fire and making a show of warming my hands, while looking around. I make a circuit of the garden. He’s trying to pick out any conversation that might concern violence, murders, Mizer … or us! I’ll try to find someone who looks relatively well-to-do and speak with them.

Tiberius: I guess I will do the same, except I’ll concentrate more on the ladies.

DM: As you try to listen, you hear nothing of interest, except the goodness of the beer, some irrational humor among the patrons, the teasing of the barmaids, shouting, laughing and so on. Like any place of drinking.

Tiberius: I go up to one of the many beautiful women in the beer garden and strike up a conversation, mostly about harmless, everyday topics.

DM: One of the barmaids, Marras, will fall into a conversation with you. She seems familiar with Johann Mizer.

Tiberius: I’ll ask a question about his being murdered.

Marras (npc) [laughing]: “Murdered!? He wasn’t murdered! One of his horses was butchered in his stable, was all! There’s been someone in Dachau killing the poor beasts for weeks. Where have you been?”

Tiberius: I join the barmaid with a roar of laughter. “I must have misheard! That’s what I get for listening to gossip on the street!”

Anshelm, unable to start a conversation, overhears this and chooses to join Tiberius and Marras.

Anshelm: “Ah, thank goodness. We were very worried for our friend.” Feigning compassion, I continue, “The poor beast! Has anyone got an idea of who’s doing these awful things?

Marras [her expression darkening]: “No one knows anything! Whoever’s doing it, they’re invisible.”

DM: At that point you hear the deep male voice of a barkeep calling out.

Barkeep (npc): “Marras, where are you?”

DM: The barmaid will hear this and immediately skip away.

Anshelm: I wait a moment before saying, “Invisible attackers!” to no one in particular, but loud enough for someone at one of the nearer tables to hear. “Seems a bit fanciful, no? Someone should get to the bottom of it!” I make my way back toward the table Tiberius and I shared, swaying a bit to feign drunkenness. Does anyone seem to be watching?

DM: Not that you can tell.

Tiberius: I will approach another barmaid and try to start another conversation, meaning to learn something about Johann Mizer’s character, business and so forth.

DM: The barkeep will see Tiberius doing so, and will approach to ask if he intends to drink or to accost the maids.

Tiberius: I apologize and let the maid get back to work. I’ll rejoin Anshelm. 

That very same day, Delfig, Kazimir and Josef have more than a little trouble crossing the countryside to the north side of Dachau. They discover that it is impossible to travel through this part of Bavaria without drawing notice – the country is thick with farmers, herders, woodcutters and laborers, tending fields and building rock walls and the like. Still, the party realizes these villeins have little interest in them. Thankfully, the party does not encounter is a patrol, or a gamekeeper or any other person with authority.

The ground is soggy from yesterday’s rain, and more than once, the party takes a leap over a wall, only to land up to their ankles in sodden ground. Often they are forced to pick their way around the mucky edges of a deep-water pond, to reach solid ground again. When entering a wood, to avoid some keep or blockhouse they can see, they end up being lost, what with crossing gullies or following gullies, until reaching the open again to regain their bearings.

At last twilight arrives. The party is still some goodly distance from their destination, and uncertain about how far. As the sun sets, the temperature turns cool at first, then quite brisk with full dark. In spite of having no desire to starting a fire, it soon becomes apparent that without one, the group will freeze to death – what with their wet feet and having too little clothing to comfort them.

DM: Has anyone the means to light a fire?

Delfig: Okay … time to make a duff bed of some sort; a mound of leaves, even wet, will give us some protection from the ground. We should accept that we’ll need to sleep against each other.

Kazimir: I don’t have a way to light a fire. Are there any farms nearby? We’ve seen plenty of people living out here. I say to Delfig, “Perhaps we could give a few coins to a farmer if he’d let us sleep in his barn. Hay and dung would still be better than this.”

Delfig: “Perhaps we can try.”

DM: Any significant farms will be clustered around mills at the base of a castle or keep, as that is typical in this feudal land. Isolated homesteads like that belonging to Meyer are quite rare, as the country was not generally safe. Meyer being a free person paying rent is also fairly unusual. Keep in mind, entering a hamlet near a keep would risk encountering the local Reeve.

Without any means of starting a fire, I will have to start rolling health effects.

Josef: I have no means to make a fire. But I have a compass and a tent!

Delfig: What would we know about the possible ill effects of “encountering the local Reeve?”

DM: A Reeve would wonder why you’re there, what’s your purpose, why are you not on the road, how much money might you have in your pockets, how are you at repairing roofs since the keep needs some work done ... things like that.

Delfig: So, not instant death or dismemberment. Is there a keep or hamlet that we can see, or that we remember passing just before the sun set?

Kazimir: Would a fire attract a Reeve where we are?

DM: Extraordinarily unlikely. A Reeve would be no more anxious to investigate a strange fire in the back country than you would be – to the Reeve, you might be bandits. Any one would be sure to collect a strong group of combatants before digging out what might just be a random cotter caught after dark.

To answer Delfig’s question, there is a hamlet perhaps a half mile away.

Kazimir: “Well, what say you?”

DM: As you talk, it’s getting awfully cold. Kazimir has spent so many years sleeping on the street in cold weather, he can endure it fine, but Delfig is a little soft to such things. The bard is probably wishing for a few moments, at least, to have the bed in his father’s house tonight. So far, the members of the party have experienced no poor effects, but your fingers do feel a bit numb, which is worrying.

Delfig: “Kazimir, Josef - let’s go back to the hamlet we saw a little way back. The worst case is that we’re turned away, and we’re no worse off. We might be able to earn a corner out of the elements in exchange for work or a song.” I will turn around and head back in the direction that I remember seeing the hamlet.

Kazimir: I nod in agreement and gather my things.

So, the party makes their way back, until they are following a narrow track between fields, now long after dark. Ahead is a cluster of small buildings, perhaps thirty in number, showing you haven’t found a hamlet, but rather a small village. A running stream about twelve feet across flows alongside the houses. There is a flour mill at the front of the village. A wheel is turning with a weak movement, driven by a slow stream of water. In quality, it is far less than the wheel the party lately saw at the Meyer Homestead.

DM: You see not a light showing in the village. On a hill, a quarter mile away, you can dimly see a tower surrounded by a curtain wall, and the dim twinkle of torches burning atop it.

Josef: Will we have to go among the buildings to see if any are of better construction than the others? Are the all shacks? Is there a church? A common green or a well? Do watch out for dogs.

DM: You hear no dogs. The houses are built into the side of the hill next to the stream. Each house has a turf roof, which extends out of the hillside and over the house walls. All look equal to one another; no house is poor, or a shack – yet they are hovels, in that they are built of low-cost materials, and are small in size.

All three of you get a sudden sensation that something has approached you; it is nearby, perhaps ten or twenty feet away, and breathing regularly. But a quick scan around reveals nothing.

Josef: I drop my pack off my shoulder, and take my mace in hand, while looking around more carefully. I look specifically in the direction from which we came.

Delfig: I’m going to retreat quietly – as noiselessly as possible – away from the now-arming Josef and the noise, shaking my head.

As the group in the country set themselves to meet some new encounter, let us return again to Anshelm and Tiberius, as the evening departs from Dachau. The temperature grows brisk at the beer garden, too, and the fires are stokes to keep the garden warm. The barmaids eyes are falling uncomfortably upon Anshelm and Tiberius, suggesting it might be time for the two adventurers to stop nursing their ales and order a second one.

As well, some of the patrons are growing uncomfortable with these road-dusted strangers, who seem too anxious to make friends. A fellow approaches the table and addresses Anshelm and Tiberius.

Stranger (npc): “You were here last night, with Johann, were you not?”

Anshelm: I signal for another beer. I speak in a carefully neutral voice, not to be hostile; “Who might you be, friend?”

Tiberius: I will also order another beer.

Stranger: “Karl Ludd … and you are?”

Tiberius: “I am Tiberius. How do you know Herr Mizer, if you don’t mind my asking?”

Anshelm: I settle back in my chair and watch the crowd for now.

DM: He waves his hand, signalling the answer to Tiberius’ question isn’t important.

Karl Ludd: “I know him only in passing. I am the architect who rebuilt his house last year.”

Tiberius: “Herr Mizer helped me out of some legal trouble only a few days ago. Ah, where are my manners? Come, sit down, share a drink with us!”

Anshelm: “I’m sorry to hear of Johann’s recent misfortune, though my friend Tiberius and I are glad that we first heard the news wrong. We thought he was dead.”

DM: Karl grins.

Karl Ludd [to Tiberius]: “I don’t drink.” [then to Anshelm] “You don’t fool me. I saw your pleasure at the news when you heard it at the West Gate.”

DM: He leans in and speaks quietly.

Karl Ludd: “Would you like to know truly why horses are being killed?”

Tiberius: I’m puzzled by Karl’s tone.

Anshelm: I stop mid-swallow at Ludd’s response.

Tiberius: “Do you know something, friend?”

Anshelm: “We’d very much like to know.”

Karl Ludd: “It is a wind. “Those who have been struck at know this. It is not merely the killing of horses. These are messages, warnings to those who have grown fat and presumptive. And you, friends, have been watched. Your interests are known.”

DM: He looks directly at Anshelm.

Karl Ludd: “You did not see the innkeeper’s corpse hanging from its scaffold with much pleasure. True enough?”

Anshelm: I take a pull from my mug. “To be honest, I did not think it good or ill until I learned of the reason for innkeeper’s execution.” I take another drink. “Truth for a truth, Herr Ludd. How long have you been watching us? And might we know why?”

Tiberius: I look at Karl uncertainly, and wait for him to answer Anshelm’s questions.

Karl Ludd: “I have not been watching you. One other that I know has been; he has known you since you first arrived in Dachau. He is an associate of yours. What think you, then, of the hanged innkeeper? Does his death not put us all at risk?”

Anshelm: An associate of ours!?

“I think what was done to the innkeeper, if the tale I was told was true, is a grave injustice. It seems to bode ill for the residents of Dachau. But who, exactly, do you mean by ‘us?’ “

Karl Ludd: “All who are not in the guild, of course. The guild freely threatens every other person in the town.”

Anshelm [nodding]: “Of course. What happened to Jan and his family could happen to anyone at the mercy of those in power. It is a most egregious situation, and one that does not sit well with me.”

Tiberius [worriedly]: “I think you both need to control your tongues with a little more wisdom. This hardly seems the appropriate place to discuss these matters.”

Karl Ludd [looking about him]: “These patrons are too full of drink to understand us, and we already speak quietly, dear sir. But if you will be more comfortable elsewhere to speak freely, tell of the place and we will go there.”

Tiberius [with a measured look]: “Fine. If you are comfortable where you are, then so am I. I have nothing to hide.” I lean in closer. “What happened to the innkeeper is a tragedy, I will admit. I would not wish it upon my worst enemy. However, you have us at a disadvantage, sir. You know more about us than we do of you. Why don’t you tell us what you want from us?”

Anshelm: I raise my hand. “I don’t think we need to retire from this place. We’ve nowhere to go this late at night save The Pig, which is just as much in public view. However, Tiberius’ words have wisdom. We’ve been rather free with our words to you, but how do we know you’re not in league with the very merchants of whom you speak so lowly?”

Karl Ludd [nodding]: “What you say has merit. Let us not speak, then, until you have better reason to trust me. And I think it might be better if you and your other companions have a private opportunity to speak. In the meantime, I will give you this as a mark of my good will, and shall prove to me yours. Tonight, Johann Mizer’s stable will find another horse dead. It will happen after the tenth bell, and before the eleventh. You may choose to warn him, or you may choose to let him lose an animal worth more than a thousand gold coin. I leave the matter to you.”

DM: He stands up, and calls out a cheerful farewell to you and to those at the nearest tables, who wave in acknowledgement. Then, he does not give you time to speak with him again as he departs.

Tiberius: I look soberly at Anshelm. “Shall we go back to The Pig?”

Anshelm: “I could use a bed after the day we’ve had. I only hope our companions are faring well in the countryside.”

Tiberius: What time is it now?

DM: It isn’t quite ten bells.

Tiberius: I think we were planning on letting whatever comes to pass with the slaughter of the horse come to pass. None of us know where to contact Herr Mizer, or even where he lives, if we wanted to warn him.

Anshelm: Yeah, that’s the plan. We return to The Pig.

Meanwhile, back in a dark Bavarian wood …

[OOC: At this point, the player behind Josef chose to leave the campaign. At the same time, Kazimir explained privately that he would be unavailable for at least a week. This meant either suspending the campaign, both for Delfig and the others, or else somehow make the isolation of Delfig work somehow; I decided to repurpose Josef’s character, and temporarily remove Kazimir from the scene … as shown below]

DM: In light of the threat that is concealed in the dark, Josef suddenly turn and runs off, without explanation. Delfig barely has time to recover from this surprise, when Kazimir begins to back away. He has his own crisis of doubt, and he runs off as well.

In the inky blackness, Delfig senses more than ever that he has not been left entirely alone …

Delfig: I back away from the thing, as quickly as I can, reaching for the lyre strapped to my back.

DM: Backing away in which direction? While there is definitely something out there, you’re not certain where. It seems to be moving in a circle around you.

Delfig: I’m backing away towards the houses and the hill.

DM: A stone will thump on the ground and lightly bump the back of your heel. There is a paper wrapped around the stone.

Delfig: Do I still feel like something is there?

DM: Yes.

Delfig: I’ll reach over and pick up the stone if it doesn’t seem like I’m about to be attacked …

DM: The note reads, “Behind You.”

Delfig: Oh man, I am so being played with … I’ll groan, take three steps forward, then spin around. I still have my (now useless) lyre in my hand.

“Hello?”

DM: There will come the chortle of laughter from several voices around you – they are uncomfortably close, though you cannot see anything. One speaks, from somewhere in front of you.

1st Voice (npc): “Herr Kôlhupfer, you have nothing to fear from us.”

2nd Voice (npc): “We might have killed you at the farm.”

3rd Voice (npc): “It’s good that you let the Jew alone.”

Delfig: I gulp and slowly lower my arms into a non-threatening position. “I am … ahh … glad that I have pleased you enough that I’m not going to die for my mistakes. Who are you? Might I be allowed to gain shelter from the cold so that we can talk?”

1st Voice: “No, we will not give you shelter. We do not rest with humans. But we will ask a question: will you continue in the employ of those snakes who seek to swallow the people of Dachau? Or will you accept our coin?”

Delfig: Who are these snakes? The merchants? And who are you?

3rd Voice: “He’s not that bright, is he?”

2nd Voice: “He thinks we mean actual snakes.”

4th Voice (npc): “And he didn’t answer the question.”

Delfig: “I beg your pardons. I will answer. No, I do not wish to be a party to the merchants who would squeeze everyone dry of their wealth and then look for more. It’s the merchants who caused much of the bloodshed of recent past wars, and I have no small love for being played as a fool in a merchant’s game. I wanted to talk to Herr Meyer and find out what we’d gotten ourselves into. I count myself fortunate that Herr Meyer didn’t kill me.

I didn’t mean actual snakes – but as I am talking to the wind and darkness, who sound as if they are opposed to the merchant, I wonder what powers the merchants may also have. As for whether I’ll accept your coin, while I am in need, I am also wary of things I cannot see, that speaks to me from the dark and asks if I will get involved in something that may leave me in the same condition as the innkeeper, with a rope around my dead neck. Before I accept any coin, I would like to know more.”

DM: As an answer to your speech, you will see Josef reappear from the darkness. He has tossed away his weapons and his hands are empty.

Josef [as an npc]: “Do not concern yourself with the powers they have. Nor with the consequences that might await you. None can know their future. Forgive us for our distrust. It is not to threaten you that we remain hidden, but because we must protect ourselves.

DM: Saying this, Josef’s face will begin to transform, while his body will visibly shorten. Watching, you are quite mesmerized – and probably too stunned to make a move. In less than the count of twelve, Josef has transformed into Ells.

Josef/Ells: “I killed the dogsbody and left him in the underbrush. And I inspired your friends to change their minds about trusting Johann Mizer.”

DM: His visage shifts again, this time to a face you do not recognize. It is pleasant and unthreatening.

Josef/Ells/Other: “And now I approach you to ask you to do some small part in breaking the Merchant’s Guild in Dachau.”

Delfig: [OOC: Okay, that’s just damn cool]

I look in astonishment as the darkness shapes into Josef, then Ells, then to the stranger in turn. “I’m sorry, Josef … or by whatever name you have for yourself. I meant no disrespect with my answers. I did not know.

“I have felt uneasy about the goings on in Dachau since I learned of the innkeeper and his wife. I did not go with my friends in service to Mizer to fulfill his wishes. I have no particular loyalty to the Merchants Guild. I live for my art.” I break off, gulp nervously, and continue. “What would you have me, a single person, do against the Guild?”

Josef/Ells/Other: “You may call me Triskoon … when we are not in the company of others. In company, call me ‘Hans.’ And what I want is for you to take a journey. Not to any place in particular, except that it should be away from Dachau. If you will give me but a sample of your blood – and a single personal item – your disappearance from the town will make an excellent frame.”

Delfig: I shiver in the chilling air and rub my arms. ”Forgive me, Triskoon, but the air begins to affect me poorly. I was seeking shelter in these buildings, in order to make it through the night. Could I please have some shelter before we talk further?”

Triskoon [with pity]: “Come with me.”

DM: He leads you to a shed, a quarter mile from the village, where dry hay is stored. As you enter the shed, the two of you seem to be alone now.

Triskoon: “If you climb down into the hay, you may pass the night more comfortably. What say you to our bargain?”

Delfig: I thank him gratefully as I rub my arms and legs to get warm. Then I look at him curiously. “A drop of blood and a personal item. You say those will serve as an excellent frame. How will my blood, my essence, and an item of mine, give you a ‘frame’ - the murders of the horses seem to have already gotten attention enough. A drop of my blood won’t be so unusual.”

Believing myself warmed for now, I will slowly remove my pack from my back. Opening it, I remove my wineskin and some of my hardtack, and offer a share to Triskoon.

Triskoon [declining the offer]: “More than a drop – a small bottle I think. Identified by a cleric as blood spilled in violence, associated with Herr Mizer in the proper manner, so that he will be found guilty of your murder. We must bring the two of you face to face again, and we must raise Herr Mizer’s temper in public. Then we shall manage the rest.”

Delfig: My eyes widen. “That is an audacious plan and would indeed be a serious accusation against the merchant, especially with the involvement of a cleric. You have some powerful friends. I must admit reluctance at having that much blood taken from me. I have little wish to find myself sickened from an imbalance of my humours. How will you keep Herr Mizer or his companions from simply carting me off to the jail or worse?”

DM: Triskoon will change shape again … and Herr Mizer takes your wineskin from you and has a pull.

Triskoon: “Why would Mizer need to be involved at all?”

Delfig: I resist the urge to involuntarily make the sign of the Cross. I chew noisily on my hard tack instead. “Your point is well made, Triskoon. But as you, or one of the voices you created, stated outside, you haven’t answered all the questions … you mentioned coin?”

Triskoon: “It will be enough.”

Delfig: “I want to speak with my companions first. If you agree to that, I’ll meet with you to provide the blood.”

Triskoon: “I confess, I am somewhat squeamish. I would prefer if you would do the bloodletting yourself. More than that, it must happen soon, to be of any use to us. I have friends in town acting on a schedule. First thing in the morning would be the best possible time to set up Johann Mizer … otherwise the window will be missed.”

Delfig: “You seem to have avoided talking about the promise of payment. I would like to know what we will earn from this venture and when we’ll be paid.”

Triskoon: “Oh, I had not meant to avoid the payment. Will 100 gold be sufficient?”

DM: He will demonstrate a large belt pouch that jingles.

Delfig: I nod and take the small vial from Triskoon. I make a small incision in my arm and allow the blood to fill the bottle. Once full, I’ll stopper the bottle and wait expectantly for the gold.

DM: Triskoon will happily pay you.

Delfig: Then I inquire about remaining in the warm hay until prior to sunup, so I can leave without being harassed.

Triskoon consents to this and takes his leave. Once Triskoon has departed, Kazimir chances upon the same shack and enters, to find Delfig there.

When morning comes, we find the party in two places.

Delfig and Kazimir awake first, as the sun breaks the horizon on a bright, promising day. They quickly accomplish their ablutions and head towards Dachau’s North Gate, as arranged, hoping to be there in time. Feet damp from dew, they find now there are mostly fields to cross, with the forest behind them. All about, farmers and herders are moving out into their fields and pastures. These wave kindly to Delfig and Kazimir as they pass.

Sometime later, Anshelm and Tiberius awake in their rooms at The Pig Tavern, finding the inn to be entirely their own. This is nothing unusual for the middle of the week. Helmunt has their breakfast ready, and as each takes their turn in the dung closet out back of the building, the city has gotten itself awake.

Anshelm and Tiberius take their breakfast on the front porch. Inside, Helmunt is bleaching the barroom floor. A group of patron arrive and settle into a table near our pair, talking gossip. Another horse was killed last night. This one, again, belonging to the stables of Johann Mizer. Something must be done, they say. This is the seventh horse that has been brutally slaughtered.

As if in response, there suddenly comes the clanging of armor. In minutes, some hundred heavy and light infantry fill the square in front of the cathedral. They form ranks, standing at attention, as the Captain of the City Guard, Hans Frinkel, reads a proclamation. It continues for some time, but the key words of interest are,

Hans Frinkel (npc): “Until the perpetrators of this sinful act are caught and executed for their crimes, the town of Dachau has been placed under marshal law. Citizens and foreigners may continue to be about their business, but to leave or enter the town shall now require the signed seal of the Mayor’s office …”

Anshelm: I turn to Tiberius. “Well, I suppose this means Karl was telling the truth, eh?” I sigh as I watch the military assemblage in the town square. “Of course, now we need to contrive a way to find our companions again.”

Tiberius: “We didn’t meet with Herr Mizer last night, because the guild hall was locked. Shouldn’t we take the time to do that now?”

Anshelm: I nod at a suggestion. “We should make good use of our time.”

Tiberius: “That doesn’t mean I’m going to trust the man. I’d like to keep my head, after all.” I look at the guards gathered in the town square. “Come, our companions can wait a little longer. We still have yet to meet with Herr Mizer. I can’t imagine he’ll be in a good mood after this, and with the news we have …”

Anshelm: I grin at Tiberius’ words. “Perhaps it’ll mean our failure won’t be seen in such a bad light, comparatively,” I say as I follow. “Probably not, but this at least keeps our hope alive.”

DM: You may try to meet with Mizer if you wish. But no specific time and place was specified for the meeting. At best, you can try to contact him by presenting yourself at the Hall.

Tiberius: That was how I was going to do it.

DM: Quite out of expectation, you find that the Market Hall is still closed – but now, a dozen guards are posted at the massive main entrance, a giant double door. The guards will tell you politely, as they tell others who have also approached, that the members of the Hall are having an “emergency session” of the Merchant’s Guild. This has taken up most of the morning, at least two hours. The guards don’t believe the session will end before the sun sets.

This news elicits much discontent among the others who hear it.

Gentleman (npc): “It is unbearable that business should be run this way, over the question of a few horses! Must the whole town sacrifice its livelihood for men who can’t post a guard or two at their stables?”

Old Hag (npc) [wagging her finger]: “A few horses, do you say? A few horses! Seven horses, I say! Do you not know the meaning of Seven dead horses!?”

Anshelm: I say to Tiberius, “Well, it looks as if Herr Mizer’s other bad news will be delayed. All the better for him.” Turning to the old hag, I say, “I have an idea, lady, but pray tell, what do the seven horses mean to you?”

Old Hag [raising an eyebrow]: “Did your precious mother tell you no tales?” [Then, with great import] “And the earth boiled, and rose there the witch, and her chariot was pulled by seven horses; and with her she had seven dogs, and in her seven hands she held seven swords …”

Anshelm: I raise an eyebrow. “I know little of these tales. What could they possibly tell us about this situation? What, pray tell, do you think this portends?”

Old Hag [shrieking at Anshelm and others]: “Do you not remember!? The horses are gathered now! What will it be next? What will it be?”

DM: She asks the questions as though she knows the answers. But others begin to poke at her, raising their voices at her.

1st Man (npc): “Shut up woman!”

2nd Man (npc): “Push off, hag!”

DM: Using their canes, they drive her away from the doors and out into the square. Finally, she shuffles off towards the Cathedral.

Anshelm: I chuckle, spit, then turns to Tiberius. “Ha! Seven swords and seven dogs ... I’ve enough snuff for seven days; perhaps that’s what brought this ill wind upon us.” Looking around at the folk milling in front of the Market Hall, I continue. “Well, there’s not much more we can do here. P’raps we could see if there’s really no way out of Dachau without the mayoral seal.”

Tiberius [agreeing]: “I would prefer not to stir up any trouble. If we can obtain the means to leave Dachau legally, then we should try.” I follow Anshelm.

Anshelm: “To the mayor’s office!”

It is not long before word of this proclamation reaches the ears of the peasants outside of town, and as Delfig and Kazimir hove in sight of the front gates, from the proposed meeting place by the burnt out Inn, they see thirty soldiers posted there.

Delfig: I speak little to Kazimir about his flight into the dark, the night before. “It was a night to not remember and to not be believed.”

Kazimir: I eye the guards warily and say to Delfig “Now I don’t like the look of this, not one bit.”

Delfig: I suggest that we take some shelter in the groves that I had formerly explored, but avoiding the cotters. We will keep checking throughout the day for signs of our companions, or to see if the guards are continuing to stay at the gates. We’ll avoid any contact with anyone passing in or out of Dachau.

DM: Midday arrives.

Delfig: “Kazimir, the guards have not lessened and I am worried about our friends. I think that we should find out what is going on. I think it best that you simply ask if you may gain entrance to the city. If you do not return, or you gain entrance, I’ll wait another couple of hours, then I may confer with some associates that I know in these parts.”

Kazimir: “And where be these associates, should I need to find you later?”

Delfig: “They are some cotters in the groves near the blockhouse. Be warned, they are suspicious at first. You might want to return to this place, so I can look for you later. I will return here if and when I’m done speaking to the cotters.”

Kazimir: I head for the city gates.

As Kazimir approaches the gates, Anshelm and Tiberius will cover the distance to The Rathaus, the town hall of Dachau. This faces a small square called the Marktplatz, opposite the city fortress. The square is but sixty feet on a side, a widening of the principal road, the Mittermayer Strasse, as it passes beside the Fortress. The party enters the platz along the Rosster Strasse. There are two small lanes, each ten feet wide, that lead into the platz: Lane Brucker and Lane Krankenhaus. Two large buildings, besides The Rathaus and the prominent gate of the Fortress, appear to be warehouses.

At present, the platz is full of citizens, at least two hundred, many of them angry. The town guard and members of the private mayoralty guard, plus some sixty glittering plate armored soldiers of the duchy, are holding the crowd under control. The situation is dire.

Clearly, much of the crowd is seeking to gain access to The Rathaus – after a few minutes of watching, you can see that the guards are letting a few enter from the crowd. Then you chance to see one of the guards strike a man with his mace; the man seemed to have been dressed in travelling clothes, and might have been a Pole, judging from the way he was dressed. You don’t know why he was struck.

Anshelm: I push through the crowd toward the doors of The Rathaus.

Tiberius: I follow Anshelm.

DM: It is hard work moving through the crowd. You are both jostled and battered, but you do make steady progress. Eventually you push your way near the front.

Tiberius: I present my writ of passage to the guards, in hopes that it will get me through the door.

DM: One of the mayor’s private guards allows Tiberius forward … but he puts his glaive in front of Anshelm to deny his following his friend.

Anshelm: I tell them that me and Tiberius are seeking permission to pass the town gates.

DM: You don’t get an answer, Anshelm. The crowd has swelled to some three hundred, and although the guards are trying to pull the people apart and find the most aggressive, as they strike these people with gauntlet or mace or club, it is only antagonizing the crowd. While at the moment the objects being thrown are only large enough to bounce off the guard’s armor or helmets, there are signs of escalation. Anshelm will see someone pick up a large crockery pot, smash it on the street, then pick out a piece the size of his fist and prepare to throw it, before being pulled down and beaten by three guards.

Anshelm: Yikes! I retreat back into the crowd.

Tiberius: “I’ll meet you at the gasthaus!” I shout at Anshelm. Turning to the guard, I ask were to go to obtain the Mayor’s signed seal, to enable us to leave Dachau.

DM: The guard tells Tiberius to stand where he is and wait. There are eight other men pressed against the outer wall, near the door of The Rathaus, keeping as far back from the crowd as possible. Several members of the crowd are throwing small stones now, or bits of plaster and lumps of broken roof tiles, at the guards or those waiting by the door.

Anshelm: I retreat to the nearest side street and watch events unfold from the crowd’s edge, doing my best to remain unnoticed. I try to see if there’s a familiar face in the crowd, especially Karl’s.

Tiberius: Ducking any passing stones, I wait as patiently as I can for my turn to come up.

DM: Tiberius is struck with a lump of plaster the size of a plum, and a fair-sized piece of brick breaks against the wall near his head. The guards begin to move Tiberius and the others who are waiting into The Rathaus.

Anshelm, you note a close group of a dozen unarmored men, in cloaks tied with yellow ropes, moving along the Lane Krankenhaus. Upon entering into the square, they spread out, speaking oddly and making distinctive motions with their hands and bodies.

Anshelm: I’m taking that by their uniforms that these newcomers are members of a group. Do I know who they are?

DM: You’ve possibly noticed one such person dressed in like fashion, and known them to be a mage … but it has never entered your mind that it might be an Order. Do you take any action? They are within a few feet of you.

Anshelm: This smells of sorcery. I retreat a short way down the lane and watch what happens.

DM: The crowd sees the Order and some hurl rocks. One apple-sized stone strikes one of the spellcasters, spoiling his spell and tumbling his body at Anshelm’s feet. Anshelm can see a sizeable gash on the mage’s forehead.

Seconds after, the first of the spells is discharged. At once some forty people collapse into sleep. Three exploding puffs of smoke – stinking cloud spells – break out over various parts of the crowd. A fog bank abruptly rises from the stones of the platz and obscures a great part of the mob. The effect is profound. The crowd disperses, screaming, flooding in every direction away from the spellcasters. The distinct odor of the stinking clouds induces many of the crowd into vomiting, while stumbling and tripping over the prone bodies in the platz. Then one of the mages transforms into the shape of a hill giant, bearing a massive club. The giant roars for the square to be cleared. Nearby, one mage appears to have cast a spell and is now holding it, a crackling lightning ball sizzling between his fingers.

What does Anshelm do?

Anshelm: Is the unconscious caster close enough to grab? If so, I take a quick look around to see if any guards or mages are looking his way, then drag the body into a convenient alley. Please say there’s a convenient alley nearby …

DM: In the chaos, it is impossible to tell if someone might have seen you, but you do not catch anyone’s eye. There is no alley, but a glance indicates a door well leading into a warehouse, twelve feet away from you and the body.

Anshelm: I jump to the door and test it, to see if it is open before dragging the body.

DM: The door is locked, but with a fairly rusted padlock and chain. Your chance to open the lock is double, and will take you six seconds.

Anshelm: I’ll roll to open. d6? If it’s a normal open doors roll, just to move it along: I rolled a 2!

DM: Sadly, that doesn’t work. Remember that open locks is a percentage; your chance at 1st level is normally 35%. Double that makes 70%. This time, however, I will accept your roll, since a 2 in 6 is a 33% chance, less than the number you need. The lock opens, the door is accessible.

Anshelm: I drag the unconscious mage into the warehouse and shut the door behind me, leaving just enough for a sliver of light.

DM: As you look out through the slit, you see no one outside moving towards the door. Action?

Anshelm: I pat the guy down, looking for any valuables, papers, weapons, etc.

DM: The mage is a young man, 25 years old, a bit of a pudding in his shape and musculature, with a bit of a baby face. You’ll notice a large belt pouch with at least 70 coins in it, a 3-inch copper holy symbol, a pair of low leather boots, a embroidered woolen doublet with lace cuffs and collar, a silver ring, a meerschaum pipe and a small pouch with what appears to be opium. He had a staff; it’s fair to say you grabbed that, too, as you took him from the street.

The mage will groan, not quite gaining consciousness.

Anshelm: I grab the ring, pipe and pouch. I have rope listed in my gear. Are we assumed to be walking about with it?

DM: I’m judging that you have your backpack, so yes, you have your rope. It isn’t heavy waxed rope, like you see in films; the rope is a soft twisted hemp, like horse rope.

You find 37 g.p., 29 s.p. and 17 c.p. in the pouch.

Anshelm: I tie up the mage and kick the staff across the floor of the warehouse, out of reach.

DM: Presuming you’re not going to get it back, scratch the rope from your equipment list. Consider him tied up.

Anshelm: Keeping my back to the light, to hide my features, I slap the young mage to wake him. I try to alter my voice to something deeper and more gravelly than my normal speaking voice. “Who do you work for?”

DM: The mage wakes groggily; he’s in negative hit points. In something less than good shape. After some confused replies, and presuming Anshelm makes repeated inquiries, the mage eventually answers coherently.

Mage (npc): “Who … who do I work for? I’m part of the Mage’s Guild.”

Anshelm: I’ll mutter under my breath, “Useless flunky. This’ll go nowhere.” I shake the mage and say, “You may want to re-think your allegiance.” I gag the mage and blindfold him with strips torn from his clothing.

DM: Done.

Anshelm: I take a look outside to make sure no one is watching the door, then as nonchalantly as possible, I join the crowd and make my way back to The Pig.

And so, as Anshelm has completed his business, we follow Tiberius into The Rathaus with the others, as the door to the outside is slammed closed.

Tiberius: I look at the other men herded in with me to see if I might recognize one. Otherwise, I stay where I am inside The Rathaus, until I’m called upon.

DM: You don’t recognize anyone. The others speak of what’s happened and begin making predictions that this is only the beginning. Clearly the people of the town are quite unhappy.

An official approaches, announcing that everyone here may remain inside and safe until the crowd is dispersed, but that the Burghermeister will not be granting any permissions to leave the town of Dachau until the following day. There is much grumbling at this.

Tiberius: I wait.

DM: Let’s presume you’re free to step out now. You find the square almost empty, except for a few stragglers. Some who have been injured are being loaded onto two carts, but even that matter has nearly finished and the carts ready to leave the square. Aside from this, Tiberius finds that Karl is waiting for him.

Karl (npc): “My friend. Did you have any luck escaping the walls of our fair town?”

Tiberius: I view Karl with some suspicion. “No. No one can leave until tomorrow.” I gesture at the injured men. “Is this what you had in mind, when you went about whatever it is you’re doing? Civil disorder, crazed mobs, martial law?”

Karl [chuckling]: “Is that so bad? The merchants are off-balance, the measures being taken do nothing for their business, and our plan is fully in place.”

Tiberius [still skeptical]: “Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out. What do you need us for?”

DM: Karl stares at Tiberius for an uncomfortably long time.

Karl [tilting his head]: “Perhaps we don’t. Good luck.”

DM: He begins to walk away.

Tiberius: I follow doggedly after the man. “That’s it? How does your plan even keep the tragedy of the innkeeper from repeating? It seems to me that you’re only making things worse.”

Karl: “You think in such flawed terms, magician. Good. Bad. We do not make means to bring about happiness for innkeepers and the rabbling crowd. We will clean Dachau of the poison that possesses it, by amputation if need be.”

Tiberius: “Good, bad, that doesn’t matter to me. But who will pick up the pieces after you’ve spread your chaos? What comes after your day of judgment?”

Karl [waving his hand dismissively]: “What, do you fear change?”

Tiberius: “I do not fear change, but disorder. If you cut the purse strings, how will this town survive? Who will pay for the food? Who will pay the guards? Will you cut them free to feed on the countryside like parasites as brigands?”

Karl: “BAH! I don’t talk to Old Women!”

DM: Again, he turns on his heel.

Tiberius: “Wait!” I follow after him. “If change must come, why can it not come in another way?”

DM: Karl refuses to speak any further. He avoids you, getting away.

Tiberius: I will go my own way, back to the gasthaus to meet with Anshelm.

Let us return to Delfig and Kazimir, as the latter approaches the town gates, to learn what might be learned.

Kazimir: I slowly approach the guards, doing my best to look confused, waiting to be stopped, or for them to assume a threatening stance.

Guard at the Gate (npc): “Ho there. Be known the city of Dachau has been placed under martial law and entrance is not permitted.”

Kazimir: “Good sir, what is the cause of this martial law? I have walked the streets of Dachau recently and the streets seemed untroubled!”

Guard at the Gate: “A gang of murderers, sir, and rumours that deeper matters are afoot. It is said the gates will be opened at noon tomorrow.”

Kazimir: I nod and go to find Delfig.

Delfig: I am stunned by the news. I finger a recent wound on my arm absent-mindedly. “Well, I suppose we might try the cotters I met recently. They may know more than some simple guards with orders. Or not. Either way, we shouldn’t be loafing about around the woods.” I lead Kazimir towards the cotters.

DM: You make their way through the apple orchard, seeking the company of cotters. As you come in sight of the shanties, you hear a blood curdling scream--a scream that is distinctly not human.

Driven by a human compulsion, you rush forward, until you reach the clearing surrounding the small cotter settlement. Once there, you hear the scream repeated – and are able to locate it as coming from inside one of the shanty houses.

Delfig: Picking our jaws off the floor, figuring out what the hell to do … I wait for Kazimir’s response. Are there any cotters about in the fields or orchards that would have heard the scream, only to mistake us for the source?

I assume we have our weapons.

DM: You see no one else in the apple orchard, or indeed anywhere around.

Kazimir: I look to Delfig and heft my club and shield. “These friends of yours … you want to risk your neck for them?”

Delfig: I pull my crossbow off my back and load a bolt. “Do I want to die for them? No. Do I want to possibly help? If we can. Do I think we’re in the mess here now, and better to face one’s opponent rather than flee and be chased? Most definitely.”

I will shrug off my pack and lyre as quietly and quickly as I can and sneak and move quietly, and hide as best he can as I move upon the shack, listening. I’ll motion to Kazimir to wait.

DM: Inside the shack, you can hear voices talking. Then someone asks a question, with a deep, booming voice you haven’t heard before. There’s silence. Then suddenly there’s another scream. Let me emphasize again: it is definitely not a human scream.

Delfig: Is there any chance that this shack is shabby enough I can peek through a crack and see inside?

DM: No. The weather is too poor in southern Germany to allow open holes in the walls in the winter time. Holes would be filled with plaster, mud, bits of whatever could be found.

Delfig: Where is the door to the shack in relationship to where I’m at? Can I make out what is being said, if I’m right next to the shack?

DM: The nearest you can tell regarding what is being said is that apparently someone is being interrogated.

Delfig: I’ll wave Kazimir over to me, and put my finger to my lips to indicate he should be quiet.

Kazimir: I will move as quietly as I can toward Delfig. I will keep an eye out for anyone that might be approaching from our sides or rear.

Delfig: Aside from the deep voice and the screaming, you mentioned voices. Do I have a clue as to how many different voices? I’m trying to determine odds.

DM: There are maybe three people you can hear.

Delfig: And again, where are we in relationship to the door? Can we assume we’re opposite the door, or that we’re on the side of the shack with the door?

DM: You have time to be as near to the door as you wish.

Delfig: We are on the wall opposite the door. I’m going to hold up three fingers to Kazimir to indicate how many inside. I’m going to quietly lay my crossbow down after removing the bolt and draw my long sword. I’ll indicate to him, using hands, no voice, that we’re going to go around opposite sides of the shack to the door.

We’ll pick it up when you tell me if the door is closed and if we’ve made it that far without raising any noise.

[OOC: And I’ve been assuming I’m going to die since we burst out on those cotters. It’s a healthy way to look at a first level character, living in a world I’m not used to as a player]

DM: The door is closed. You raise no alarm.

For reference, the shanty hovel is about 15 feet square, so there’s enough combat room for about nine hexes. Assuming you both burst in the front door, normal reaction time would allow both of you to get into the interior. There would only be space for a maximum of four attackers against you. Presuming that the voices you hear talking all sound human, and the screaming is non-human, it is reasonable to assume that anyone you would have to fight would be human. The cotters are certain to be unarmored and their club-like weapons would do 1-6 at best. While conceivably they might have a weapon or two, they would be unlikely to have a strength or dexterity bonus. Finally, they know Delfig … and they like him.

[OOC: So while I appreciate the SWAT argument, it kind of assumes that someone other that the cotters would be inside and waiting for you. I can’t think of what I’ve said that would suggest that is the case]

Delfig: [OOC: My thoughts were that these are the Baron’s lands, he could be mixed up in whatever is going on, and there’s nothing to indicate that the cotters are the humans inside. You’re right, I have no basis for assumption, aside from wild speculation]

I’m assuming that the non-human voice might also be Triskoon or one of his compatriots, which I’m in for blood money with. I’m also figuring that we’re going to use the door as a choke point if we have to, let them come to us, if need be. It’s not a perfect plan, but it’s the best I have at the moment.

I take a deep breath and glance at Kazimir, who has been following me and is now on the other side of the door. I think, “What a strange place to be in right now …” and glance down at my wound. I listen one more time, to see if I can recognize the voices, and then I kick the door open to see the scene inside.

DM: Everyone inside is surprised. There are four men in the room, three of whom you recognize: Emmanuel and two others, whom you’ve met and we’ll name Igen and Heinke. The last man is a rotund, spartanly dressed friar, his robe tied with a belt and a large rosary of 168 greenstone beads. He is clean-shaven, with workman’s hands, a slightly balding pate and bright blue eyes.

These men surround a table, four feet long and two feet wide. The table has rope wrapped round and round itself and the body of – something – that seems to be tied to it. The body is difficult to see. I don’t mean that it is hard to look at, or ugly … I mean that it is virtually invisible. It is something of a man’s shape, but you find that some trick of the light makes it appear as though the rope is wrapped around nothing at all. You have to keep adjusting the position of your head a bit to catch a glimpse of the humanoid form, and then it is lost again. Now it appears as a part the table, now it appears as part of the ropes binding it in place.

No one here is holding weapons, but Igen’s hands are wrapped around where the creature’s throat ought to be. He’s not putting pressure on his forearms, but seems ready to do so.

Emmanuel (npc) [surprised]: “Delfig?”

Delfig: I fill the door with my bulk, keeping my eyes on the friar as I speak, sword held at the ready. “What in God’s name is that noise and what are you doing?! Who is dying in here?! We heard the most awful sound and feared the Devil himself was in this place!”

Kazimir: I lower my club and shield and stare in confusion at the semi-invisible form on the table.

Friar (npc): “It might well be the devil.”

Emmanuel: “We’ve caught something, that’s for sure. We’ve been learning things, friend, that would turn your heart to ice. Lower your sword – we’re not your enemy.”

Kazimir: “What in the blazes is going on?”

Friar [with much hushed fear]: “Dweomercraft.”

Delfig: I lower my sword, but I keep my eyes on the friar. At the first sign that he’s going to toss a spell at us and not the thing on the table, I’ll attack to do non-lethal damage to disrupt the spell. “What is that thing? Does it have something to do with the city being closed? And who are you, Friar?”

Emmanuel: “This is Father Jan. He is a close friend. We called him to help us – we caught this thing last night, and have held it fast since that time. It had been stealing food … we only chanced to trap it in the granary, and then only because we could see the impression its feet left.”

Father Jan (the friar): “It is a skulk. Sometimes they act alone, but not always. I suspected something when I was asked to come – and now I see that all our troubles begin with this loathsome thing.”

Kazimir [to Father Jan]: “It’s a devil, then? Some kind of spirit?”

Father Jan: “No, a humanoid … but an odd one. Alone, they are thieves. We have discovered that this one is not alone, but that it serves another master.”

Delfig: I listen to the friar and nod gravely. “What troubles, friar? Are you referring to the horse murders in Dachau? Do these things have a lair or some sort of place that they inhabit?”

Father Jan: “Yes, it is connected with the events in town. We have learned that something is being called upon, something which will be gated into the town tonight. We don’t know if the gate will remain open or not – but if it is …”

Emmanuel [blessing himself]: “Father! You raise the very hackles on my neck. You don’t believe that this thing can happen!”

Father Jan: “You have heard the creature speak, my son.”

DM: The father gestures to Igen, then speaks to Delfig, addressing the bard’s question about the horse murders.

Father Jan: “Hear it for yourself.”

DM: Igen will close his hands upon the creature’s throat, and the creature will let out an unnatural scream. Then it speaks, like a wind whispering through a hollow.

Skulk (npc): “The mounts have been found for Reekhova … The blood has been willingly given …”

Father Jan: “That is all it will say.”

Delfig: “What does it mean, Reekhova? What do you mean by a gate?”

[OOC: And thus, we now turn the screws on Delfig]

Father Jan: “Reekhova must be the name of the creature to be gated.”

Delfig: “Friar, do you know if this thing has a lair or home?

Father Jan: “I have not heard of the thing Reekhova before this day.

Delfig: Have you learned anything of that? And has it spoke about any particular person … perhaps named Triskoon?”

Father Jan: I do not know of any Triskoon that has been mentioned. Who is this person? Why do you think he might be mentioned?”

Delfig: I sigh a deep sigh. I drop my sword to the ground and push back the sleeve on my arm. “Forgive me Father, I think I have sinned and have been tricked by the Master of this creature here. I was assailed by a group of invisible creatures last night. I feared for my life. Their power seemed too great and they tempted me with gold and freedom. Fearing that they would kill me, I gave them my blood. They threaten to up-end the merchants. They are particularly interested in protecting a Herr Meyer – the silversmith a few hours travel from Dachau.

“The person who spoke to me, who could change his very shape and seemed unnatural in nature was named Triskoon. This very creature here might be one of those who were with him last night. He, or they, seem to be able to take many different shapes.

“Their plot seems centered around causing trouble to the merchants, and they seem intent on Herr Mizer, as my blood is to be used in a plot to cause Herr Mizer to be implicated in a murder he did not commit.”

“I fear that I am a fool and that my blood is to be used to summon this creature. What shall I do to make this right, Father?”

I fall to my knees upon finishing that explanation.

Continued in Part 4 …