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Chaosium Digest Volume 04 Number 11
Chaosium Digest Volume 4, Number 11
Date: Sunday, November 7, 1993
Number: 1 of 1
Contents:
France in the '20s (Alquier Laurent) CALL OF CTHULHU
Mysterious Britain: The Horn Dance (Mark Ryan) MISC
The Tale of Guigemar (Shannon Appel) PENDRAGON
Editor's Note:
This Digest is all about the folklore of Europe. Although the first
article is geared towards Call of Cthulhu, and the last towards
Pendragon, people interested in any RPG taking place in Europe will
probably want to scan this entire digest. It's full of fun ideas and
background material.
Recent Sightings:
* Call of Cthulhu - "Tea and Biscuits", a four page scenerio, by
Greg Unger, Challenge #71
--------------------
From: alquier@eerie.fr (Alquier Laurent)
Subject: France in the '20s
System: Call of Cthulhu
The following notes are especially dedicated to people outside of
France who would like to set a story in the France of the '20s without
knowing a single french word.
I don't know if keepers have the same habits everywhere; all I can do
is speak about my methods. When I have to set a story in a foreign
country, I try first to collect information about the country, the
people, the history and the geography. What frightens me are
questions from the players such as:
* "What's the weather like this time of the year?"
* "When and what do the people eat?"
* "What's the price of coffee, a ride on a taxi, a hotel room?"
I believe in details as the evidence of the work that you've done to
prepare for the player's journey through the "looking glass." I hope
the following ideas will help you in that task. They are not directly
linked with the Cthulhu Mythos, but they can be useful to trick to the
players and to create an atmosphere of superstition.
A French village in the 20s
---------------------------
The times are difficult in the France of the 20s. After four years of
war against Germany, the north and east of the country are devastated.
Northern France and parts of Central France are industrial areas,
specialized in the exploitation of coal. A cultural explosion is
located in some big cities, such as Paris or Lyons. The majority of
the country is still deeply agricultural.
Life in agricultural France is almost the same as it was a century
before. Villages are often small, with a few hundred inhabitants (one
or two thousand people is an upper limit). The houses in a village
are gathered around the two centers of the social life: the church and
the mayor's house. In the North and East of France, villages are
usually build along a road or at a crossroads, while in the south,
villages are constructed around the church or the remains of an old
castle or tower (there are lots of old buildings coming straight from
the Midlle Ages).
The important people in a village are :
* The Mayor, representing order, the laws and the Republic.
* The Priest, representing the church and faith. Religion is
very important in the life of a village.
* The Doctor and the School Master, representing knowledge.
* The Local Police (the Gendarmes), who deal with the problems
of crime. They don't really live in the village, but in little
towns and are in charge of the villages around the town.
* The Lawyer (le Notaire), who deals with the problems of property
and inheritance.
The life of the village is often troubled by arguments between some
of those respectable people.
For other people in the villages, life is based upon the rhythm of the
seasons and the work that must be done in the vineyards, wheat fields
and orchards.
Modern technology is very rare in the villages. Electricity, phone
service, central water and heating are still to come. The majority of
the country still gets news by telegraph and mail. Travelers from one
village to the other still use horses. Train are used for long
distance travel, rare are the villages with a station. Cars are known
alomst everywhere, but never used.
The folklore of France
----------------------
The difficulties in communications, and the great importance of
religion have an essential consequence: superstition is dominant
everywhere. Religion has created the fear of the devil, but there are
other fears, much older than Christianity, still alive in the
imagination.
The following are some of the beliefs held in most of the villages:
The Werewolf (le Garou)
When sheep are discovered dead, there's only one solution: wolves.
Running in groups, hunting in winter, at night, wolves are the
principal fear in the country. And, when someone is seen playing with
wolves, there's only one possibility: he is one of them. He (or she)
is a werewolf. No matter if it's true or not, people don't like those
whose live with their enemy.
The Leader of the Wolves (le meneur or le veneur)
Some say he is a werewolf, other say that he is the Devil itself.
Maybe he is both, and a sorcerer as well. This man live with a group
of wolves, hunts with them and dresses from the fur of their dead. He
is feared, but accepted by other people, in case his powers truly
exist. He is said to choose, on a dark day, a child (male or female)
to whom he tells his secret. This secret is his Gift, the power to
heal wounds from attacks of wolves by applying a mixture made of milk,
half swallowed bread and other things that are part of the secret.
The one who has the Gift is meant to become the next Leader.
The Sorcerer or the Witch (le guerisseur or le rebouteux)
A man or, more often, woman, living alone in the woods with small
animals (cats, sheeps or pigs). She offers her services to heal or to
curse. Some of her famous tricks are the puppet made in the image of
a victim, the poisons and the public curses. She is often seen near
the cemetery and said to be the devil's whore.
The Cat
One of the beloved animals of witches. Cats, especially black ones,
are supposed to bring bad luck and curses with them. They are the
servants, the eyes and sometimes the incarnation of evil people.
The Owl
Another beloved animal of witches. Crucifying an owl with nails on
your door will protect you from the evil influences.
The Fool (l'idiot or le bossu)
Ugly, dirty and completely crazy, the fool is let to do anything he
wants untill he becomes really dangerous. That's part of an old
belief that said the fools were touched by the hand of God. Often
feared because of his ugliness.
The Carved Stones (les Dolmens or les Menhirs)
These are the remains of ancient sacred places, especially prominent
in the North and Western parts of the country (Bretagne, Normandie,
etc). They are huge dressed stones, grouped in alignment with the
stars, or as a table of a giant. Some are called faerie stones
(roches-aux-fees), and are said to be a place for sacrifices, ghosts
and sabbaths.
The Little People
The Faeries have the same origin as the old Celtic and Irish legends.
Trolls, elves, goblins, gremlins and leprechauns, they are spirits of
nature. They are related to wood, earth, air and the seasons. They
play tricks in houses and strand people in the woods. Beware of the
circles of mushrooms: they are said to be their favorite place.
The Beast of Gevaudan
The beast is a frightening monster which appears now and then in
central France. It is described as a huge dog or a terrible wolf,
well known for its hunger. It is highly dangerous, but never caught
by humans. Some say it could be a primal spirit of nature.
The Drac
A spirit of the waters, found especially in the area of Avignon, south
of France. He lives in the Rhone River. Half man, half fish, he is
well known for drowning people after promises of wonders.
Other Spirits of the Water
Spirits of the water are very important. Many sacred places are
linked to a spring or waterfall. Even chuches were built on old
sacred places with a source.
L'Ankou
A famous character of legends in Bretagne, L'Ankou walks at night with
a horse and cart. He represents the past. He is the keeper of the
traditions and the servant of Death. He comes to take away the dead,
those who belong to the past. If you ever encounter a stranger, late
at night, with a long black coat and a large black hat, be careful,
Death is not far away.
The Wyvern
A spirit, half woman, half serpent, the wyvern is a bewitching beauty,
living in swamps and said to attract men to her. These men were never
to be seen again...
The Wreckers
A group of men living from the supplies of the ships that they manage
to wreck on the shore with their burning fires. At night, with bad
weather, these fires look like the signal of a port, attracted the
boats to dangerous shores and making them crash on the rocks.
I hope you found interesting ideas reading this list. Those of you
who are french, or know french culture and lore, will probably scream
with what I had written. Of course, this is a simplification! Of
course, there are cliches! But, cliches and simplifications are
better than nothing else. From now on, you'll have no excuse if your
french villages don't look real...
For those of you who have access to french books and would like to
know more about the subject, here are some suggestions for reading...
Role Playing Games:
Les annees folles, Call of Cthulhu, Jeu Descartes. French sourcebook
and scenarios in France during the 20s.
Malefices RPG
Literary sources:
Claude Seygnolles, stories about witchcraft, wolves, and superstitions
in the french villages of the beginning of the century.
Servais (French comics), beautiful drawings of nymphs, wolves and
devil stories.
Anne Rice, The Witching Hour, the difficult life of a witch.
(it's not in France, but it can help)
Have good nightmares, and see you next week.
Enigmatically yours, Brother U'Jan.
--------------------
From: Mark Ryan
Subject: Mysterious Britain: The Horn Dance
System: Call of Cthulhu
[This article, which describes a little bit of the Folklore of
Britain, originally appeared in Timeout #5, which was a subsection of
the Green Goblin fanzine]
Although many of us have seen Morris dancers "doing their thing", so
to speak, another pagan dance with far more sinister undertones still
exists in Britain today.
The Horn Dance, which has its origins far back in pre-Christian times,
was not performed as a celebration, but as an annual ritual to protect
the hunters of the area from The Wild Hunt, the Huntsman (also known
as Herne the Hunter) and his pack. This mythical figure would
reputedly appear at the site of the best kill in a designated area,
take the slain animal and also add the hunter's own head to his
collection, whilst giving the body to his ever-hungry hounds.
Over the years, the Horn Dance has obviously changed (mainly due to
Christian beliefs) to now include depictions of Maid Marion, Robin
Hood, and the "Hobby Horse" (another pagan figure steeped in legend).
Except, that is, in Windsor, Berkshire, where the full unabridged
version of the dance is still carried out annually on the first Monday
after the 4th of September, in the grounds of Windsor Park.
Of course it is only coincidence that Windsor Park is said to be
haunted by a "wild, spectral object, possessing a clear resemblance to
a human being, clad in the skin of a deer and wearing on its head a
sort of helmet, formed of a skull of a stag, from which branched a
large pair of antlers. The whole apparition was surrounded by a blue
phosphoric light."
Does somebody know something we don't?
--------------------
From: appel@erzo.berkeley.edu (Shannon Appel)
Subject: A Folk Tale of France
System: Pendragon
I've always found that faerie tales and similar pieces of folklore
provide some of the best ideas for stories in role-playing games.
_Italian Folktales_, _English Myths and Legends_, Lang's Fairy Books
and _Stories of Romance from the Age of Chivalry_ are just some of the
books from my shelves which I use for this purpose.
Here, I've given a synopsis of a story from _The Lais of Marie de
France_, and provided some story ideas for it. You might also want to
consult Chaosium's book, _The Spectre King_, which contains The
Adventure of the Werewolf, also drawn from the Lais.
The Tale of Guigemar
While hunting in the woods, the knight Guigemar comes across a
completely white hind, with the antlers of a deer. Guigemar slays the
beast, but the arrow rebounds off her breastbound and wounds him
greatly in the thigh. The dying hind curses Guigemar, saying that the
wound will never be healed except by a woman who feels pain and grief
for him greater than any woman has ever felt before.
Wandering afterwards, Guigemar comes across a magnificant boat, with
deck rails of ebony, and furniture of cypress and ivory, inlaid with
gold. The boat contains items of magic, such as the pillow, which
protects the head of one who rests upon it from ever having a white
hair.
After travelling upon the sea, Guigemar finally comes to a city ruled
by an ancient man who has a beautiful wife. The wife is hidden away
in a tower, surrounded on all side by high walls of green marble. At
the entrance to wife's chamber is a chapel dedicated to the goddess
Venus, and the art of love. Guigemar falls in love with the wife, and
secretly stays with her for a year and a half. She cures the wound
which he got while hunting.
Finally though, Guigemar is discovered, and forced to leave. Before
he does so, however, his lady ties a knot in his shirt tail, and he
tightens a belt about her waist. Each promises to love no other but
the one that can undo it.
Several years pass, and finally Guigemar's lady escapes from
captivity. Going out to the sea, she finds the same magic boat.
Boarding it, she is carried to the land of the Lord Meriaduc. He is
entranced by her beauty, but is unable to undo her belt. Many men
come from all about his land, but they all fail as well. Finally,
Guigemar comes to the land, and recognises the woman as his love, when
she is able to untie his shirt tail. Meriaduc is unwilling to give
her up, and thus a war is fought over the woman, which Guigemar
eventually wins.
Story Ideas
* Sir Guigemar could make an interesting NPC for a Pendragon game.
Wandering Britain, promising his love to only the woman who can undo
his shirt tail, he definitely makes for a fun character. Perhaps the
player knights might agree to help him, scouring Britain for his lost
love. Alternatively, perhaps they might be asked by the Lord Meriaduc
to fight for him in the climatic battle over Guigemar's lady. What
will the players do when they realize that Meriaduc is the unjust
oppressor, and that his foe is simply questing for love?
* Perhaps the players could come to the prison of the beautiful wife.
What will they do when one of them falls deeply in love with the lady
there?
* The idea of curses is also an interesting one. By hunting some
magical beast of the woods, a player knight might find himself forced
upon some quest. Perhaps he must do some good deed for the denizens
of the forest, or find some druidic artifact lost long ago.
Alternatively, a seemingly impossible task might lie before him.
Perhaps he might need to stop the flow of some huge river, or move an
unmovable rock.
Shannon
--------------------
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