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Chaosium Digest Volume 27 Number 02
Chaosium Digest Volume 27, Number 2
Date: Tuesday, December 29, 1998
Number: 2 of 4
Contents:
Shadows of Yesterday, Part One (Paul Williams) CALL OF CTHULHU
--------------------
From: Paul Williams <paulw@betanet.co.uk>
Subject: Shadows of Yesterday, Part One
System: Call of Cthulhu
SHADOWS OF YESTERDAY
SCENE 1: AN URGENT MESSAGE
The Investigators begin the adventure in the Arkham University Bridge
Club, enjoying a friendly rubber or two of bridge. As they finish a
rubber, one of the waiters approaches and hands one of the characters
(preferably a professor or an historian) an unopened telegram
envelope. The envelope has no distinguishing features on the outside,
except for the Boston Telegraph Company logo.
Inside the envelope is a telegram from an old friend of the character
(see Player Handout #1). The telegram was sent from southern France
barely five hours ago.
The character's friend, Doctor Emil White, is a professor of medieval
archaeology at Oxford University in England and the two learned men
have spent many a summer together in France working on papers and
archaeological journal reports. Over the last few years, the two
became very close and have kept in close contact through letters and
the occasional visit. The Investigator known to Doctor White knows
that he bought a small villa in the foothills of the Pyrennes many
years ago and that the Doctor must be staying there during the summer.
The telegram does not express any urgent requests of the character,
but it does indicate that the Doctor may be in some sort of trouble
with unknown persons.
SCENE 2: CAN I HAVE SOME TIME OFF?
Once the Investigators decide to take up the matter of investigating
the Doctor's telegram they will need some time off from their normal
occupations. Let each Investigator role-play the confrontation with
his superiors, resorting only to dice rolls if you are not fully
convinced by their reasons for suddenly requesting time off.
Skills like Persuade and Fast Talk are far more applicable here than
skills such as Credit Rating, as the Investigators' superiors know who
they are and what they do. Base your final decision on how the
Investigator goes about trying to get time off.
SCENE 3: A PLEASANT CRUISE TO FRANCE
The journey to the port of Marseilles on the southern coast of France
will be relatively comfortable, and will take approximately 16 days
from Boston. The journey will cost each Investigator $250 for first
class travel and $45 for steerage class via Fabre Lines. During this
time the Investigators may relax and enjoy the trip. They encounter no
Mythos-related problems.
Characters wishing to use the ship's library, assuming they are first
class passengers, may discover the notes contained in scene 4 for
themselves. No Library Use roll is required.
>From Marseilles, the Doctor's summer retreat is some 300 miles and the
Investigators will need to use the local public transport system. A
train runs from Marseilles to the small town of Arques, which lies
only a few miles from the Doctor's house. It leaves everyday at
10.00am and the journey takes only a few hours. The cost of the
journey is 50c per person. Once at the station a horse-drawn cart or a
brief walk takes the Investigators to the Doctor's summer retreat.
SCENE 4: BRIEF NOTES ON FRANCE
The French currency is the franc (F) and is actually a decimal system,
unlike the British Imperial system. Conversion rates to dollars are
shown below.
1 franc (F) $4.00 (4 dollars)
1 centeme (c) $0.04 (4 cents)
1 milleme (m) $0.004 (just under half a cent)
The climate in southern France for this time of year is warmer and
slightly wetter than the Investigators will be used to in Arkham,
although the temperature is not unbearable. The proximity of the
Pyrennes mountain range means that thunderstorms are common during the
summer months and they can last for many hours. Although not situated
in the Pyrennes proper, this area of France is extremely hilly and
much of the terrain is potentially dangerous for the unwary traveler.
There is little public transport available in the area. A train-line
runs through Arques itself, but the only means of reaching the more
remote houses and farms in either on foot or through a friendly farmer
offering a ride in his hay-cart.
SCENE 5: SOMEWHERE TO SLEEP
At some point the Investigators will wish to find a hotel or guest
house in which to stay. The town of Arques has three such
establishments. Although none of them is a luxury hotel by any means,
each is comfortable in its own way. Investigators asking where they
can find accommodation in the town will generally be directed to the
first two locations. Only if those are full, and word spreads very
quickly in such a small town, do the locals point the Investigators
towards Madame Claire's establishment.
The first is the farmhouse of Monsieur Pierre de Plantard, a local
farmer who has converted his farmhouse upper-floor into a guest
house. The rooms are spartan but warm, and the food is wholesome and
filling rather than fancy. At a push all four Investigators can fit
into the two rooms that Pierre has spare.
The next is actually in the heart of town and is a guesthouse run by
Monsieur Louis Gilbert and his family. They have ran the guest house
for almost six years and have a good reputation in the local
area. There are six rooms at the house, all of which share a common
bathroom, are well-decorated and have large bay windows which allow
plenty of sunlight to filter in. The food is a mixture of local
cuisine and more "traditional" French dishes.
Lastly there is the house of Madame Claire Alvar, a known woman of ill
repute. She only has a single room available but the service is very
personal. Food tends to be basic dishes, but then again Madame Claire
does not expect her guest to be spending much time eating!
SCENE 6: THE PROFESSOR'S HOME
At first glance the house seems to be deserted. The doors are closed
and the window shutters are in place, even though it is a fine, sunny
day. Use of the doorbell or calling out salutations elicits no
response. Anyone thinking to try the front door finds it unlocked. If
no one tries this method of entry, Doctor White's friend may make an
Idea roll to remember that the Doctor always kept a spare key in a
flower pot on the front porch. Sure enough, the key will be in place
if the Investigators look.
Once inside, a brief search reveals that no one is in the house, nor
are there any signs of recent habitation. For instance, there are no
dirty dishes, nor is there any food left out as if someone had
prepared a meal, and the fireplace is unlit (and has been for some
time).
Investigators who wish fully to search the house may make Spot Hidden
checks, with each such check consuming an hour of time. If successful,
an Investigator discovers one of the following clues, each of which is
detailed separately below. The clues that can be found are: a business
card (7), copies of the Mythos artwork (10), and the Doctor's diary
(11). Of the archaeological finds the Doctor mentions in his telegram,
there is no sign.
SCENE 7: THE BUSINESS CARD
The business card is discovered down the side of one of the sofa
cushions, and belongs to Arcanum Books, a local shop selling old and
rare books. The address of the shop is on the card (see Player Handout
#2).
The shop is run by a little old lady, Madame Edith, who inherited it
from her mother, who in turn inherited it from her mother. Madame
Edith has no children and knows that when she dies the collection is
likely to be sold off cheaply to pay for her funeral costs. Madame
Edith is in her early sixties, has white hair which she keeps up in a
tight bun, uses pince-nez glasses which rest on her long, straight
nose, and always wears an embroidered shawl around her shoulders.
The shop is only a small building and the available area is crammed
full of books dating from as far back as the Middle Ages. Whilst many
of the books are on bookshelves, a fair few are merely piled on the
floor. They are not arranged in any particular order, although Madame
Edith can find any book she has a copy of within a few minutes. The
hours of the shop are between 8.00 a.m. and 7.00 p.m., Monday through
Saturday. The shop is closed for lunch between noon and 2.00
p.m. every day and Madame Edith can normally be found eating her lunch
outside of the village church.
Madame Edith knew the Doctor quite well, and the two became friends
nearly ten years ago when the Doctor first started visiting the
area. She and the Doctor talked about the history of the area for
hours at a time, Madame Edith's family having lived in the area for
six generations, and the Doctor borrowed many of her books from time
to time as part of his research.
SCENE 8: THE ARCANUM BOOKSHOP
When the Investigators visit the shop, Madame Edith is standing behind
the counter, reading an old book of poetry. She will be friendly
towards the Investigators but only speaks French. If she fails to
communicate with the Investigators she will go into a back room for a
few minutes and emerge with a tray of tea and home-made biscuits to
make her visitors welcome.
If the Investigators can communicate with Madame Edith, she invites
them to look her around her shop at their leisure. She will happily
talk about the Doctor, but has not seen him recently, maybe for a
fortnight or so. The last time she saw the Doctor he had just
uncovered several artifacts from his dig site, at the old church
higher up the mountain, and had ordered a book to help with his
research. He has yet to come and collect it and she has been too busy
to deliver it herself.
If she is told that the Doctor is missing, she will be quite upset
and, as she tries to sit down, she falls to the ground. Investigators
making a Psychology roll can determine that Madame Edith is genuinely
distressed by the news of the Doctor's strange disappearance.
If Madame Edith can communicate with the Investigators she informs
them that the book the Doctor wanted is available to them, if they
think that it might be useful in their quest to find him. The book is
entitled "The True History of the Poor Knights of Christ and the
Temple of Solomon", and is written in Latin. If Madame Edith cannot
communicate with the Investigators she offers them the book anyway,
hoping that they can put two and two together for themselves.
SCENE 9: THE BOOK ON THE TEMPLARS
The book that Madame Edith hands the Investigators is a late medieval
treatise on the Templars and it does not cast them in a good
light. The book is well aged and the ink is fading in places. The
cramped handwriting can be hard to read at times. Skimming through the
book will take approximately six hours, assuming that a successful
Other Language (Latin) roll is made first.
Successfully skimming through the book reveals that the Templars
apparently worshipped a strange god, often portrayed as just a severed
head, and to whom they referred as "The Opener", as well as by the
more commonly known name of Baphomet (which transliterates into Greek
as "wisdom.") More importantly, it actually mentions that a ritual to
call forth a dark god was enacted in the area in which the
Investigators are now standing. It also reveal the names of the
spells, which are chapter headings and are labeled as Templar
rites. Other details in the book make mention of two Templar families
who lived in the area: the Blanchefort and de Hautpoul families.
SCENE 10: THE MYTHOS PICTURES
Hidden under a carpet are the Doctor's sketches of the paintings and
murals that he discovered in the cellar of the ruined church that he
was excavating. The pictures show scenes of human sacrifice, of
grotesque monsters being worshipped by humans, and a picture of a
large collection of blobs radiating beams of light that seems to be
absorbing humans by the dozen. Seeing the artwork costs the
Investigators a Sanity Point unless they make a successful Sanity
check.
The pictures also depict the scenery in the background of the original
artwork rather than just concentrating on the central theme.
Investigators making a successful Idea roll at half their normal
chance of success notice that the background in the paintings matches
the background of the actual landscape! Certain features, like the
church and tower, can easily be made out in the picture and the real
landscape. Other features, such as mountains, are harder to spot due
to artistic license and centuries of weathering, but they are there.
None of the pictures are signed, but the notes scribbled on them can
be recognized as the Doctor's writing, either by the Doctor's friend
or by comparing them to the diary, assuming it has been found.
SCENE 11: THE DOCTOR'S DIARY
Hidden inside one of the kitchen drawers is the Doctor's private
journal (see Player handout #3 for an edited version). The journal
describes in scant detail the Doctor's recent finds at the church, his
theories on what the artwork means, and his fears that someone or
something is stalking him. The head referred to in the Doctor's diary
cannot be seen anywhere, no matter how hard the Investigators search
the villa.
The book takes only an hour to fully read and the Investigators gain
no occult or Mythos knowledge from it.
SCENE 12: VISITING THE POLICE
Once the Investigators have thoroughly searched the house, they may
decide to contact the local police to discuss the disappearance of
Doctor White. The local police station is easy to find and is staffed
by only five full-time officers.
The police take down statements from each of the Investigators, but
state that they cannot do a lot due to a shortage of
manpower. However, they do agree to telegraph the other towns nearby
to get them to keep an eye out for the missing Doctor. The
Investigators will need to leave a contact address with the local
police.
The police do know of Doctor White and they respect his work, for
every find he makes increases tourism in the area and therefore brings
wealth to the rather poor area. Every year the Doctor would let the
police know that he was in the area in case they saw lights on at his
house.
If the Investigators mention the Doctor's diary and his brush with the
mystery man, the police show the Investigators the report made by the
Doctor and admit that upon investigating the area around the villa
they did discover footprints, but no other clues. The Doctor stopped
calling them about a week ago and they assumed that he had returned to
England. They have been to the house a few times in the last week as a
routine matter but there was nobody home.
Investigators making a nuisance of themselves (rude behavior, making
unreasonable demands, etc.) are likely to be arrested on a minor
charges, just to teach them a lesson. They will be kept in the cells
for a few days and then released with a warning. A successful Law roll
reveals that although the police have no legal right to imprison the
Investigators for these "crimes", by the time the Investigators could
contact a higher authority they would be released.
SCENE 13: THE LOCAL MUSEUM
The town of Arques has a small museum just off of the main square,
which is run by the town historian, Michel DuPont. The museum is
actually his house, but over the years he has converted it into a
museum covering the area in and around Arques. The museum is open 7
days a week, between the hours of 9.00 a.m. and 5.00 p.m. During the
period of noon to 1.00 a.m. Monsieur DuPont has his lunch and, whilst
the museum stays open to the public, he does not give tours.
Although there is no entry fee, visitors are encouraged to leave a
donation on exiting the museum. A small gift shop sells postcards and
photographs of some of the artifacts, as well as books and replica
items of the smaller items, such as coins and necklaces.
The museum is one of the only ones in the area and displays include
artifacts from the Prehistoric, Roman, Visigothic, and Middle Ages
eras. Many of the items should really be in a larger museum with
decent security but the French authorities do not seem particularly
bothered by the "trinkets" kept in Arques. Indeed, security is so lax
that the Investigators are easily able to pocket smaller items if they
are so inclined. Investigators who are caught will be reported to the
police and jailed, waiting for state police to arrive and take the
offenders away.
For a few extra francs, Monsieur DuPont is happy to escort visitors
around the museum and give a tour of the artifacts. He is a very
knowledgeable man, but does not put much faith in talk of the
supernatural and the worship of pagan gods. He has no Mythos
knowledge, but some of the artifacts in the museum have dubious links
to the strange gods of the Mythos.
Aside from the areas detailed below (14 and 15), other exhibits
include flint tools and pot shards from the Celtic period, as well as
coins, pieces of mosaic, pot shards and small pieces of jewelry from
the Roman era. During the Roman period of history, the area around
Arques was famed for its silver mines and therapeutic hot springs.
SCENE 14: THE VISIGOTHIC EXHIBITS
During the Visigothic era, the town of Arques was actually a city of
some 30,000 inhabitants and was the capital of the area. In 410AD the
Visigoths sacked the city of Rome and carried away many priceless
treasures, including, it is said, treasures from the Temple of Solomon
which the Romans stole in the later part of the 1st century AD. The
enemies of the Visigoths accused them of many foul acts, including the
worship of dark and inhuman gods who needed blood sacrifices to
appease them.
Ancient documents that have survived the ages show that a great
Visigothic treasury was once housed in the area surrounding Arques and
to this day many rumors abound about a vast treasure hoarde hidden
beneath the landscape. Many locals have spent hours digging holes to
try and find the treasure but not have gained so much as a single
coin.
In the museum, the exhibits include shards of pottery, coins--both
Visigothic and Roman--a broken iron sword and a collection of
scrolls. None of the items show any signs of being Mythos related
under casual inspection, but those Investigators spending a few
moments examining the finds may make a Spot Hidden roll. Those who
succeed notice that on one of the coins, labeled as a Visigothic coin
minted in the area, there is a strange shape, resembling a collection
of circles that intersect each other in seemingly random
patterns. Investigators who succeed in a Cthulhu Mythos roll can
determine that the shape resembles a pattern seen in Mythos works,
although they are unlikely to be able to tell exactly what the shape
represents.
SCENE 15: THE TEMPLAR EXHIBITS
During the early Middle Ages the area was home to a great many of the
Knights Templar, a powerful brotherhood of warrior-monks. Many of the
castles built in the area belonged to the Templars or their families,
including the chateau of Arques, which was built by the Blanchefort
family. The Templars were disbanded by the Pope in 1307, and many of
their members were tortured and accused of crimes such as sodomy,
worshipping a cat, and participating in secret rituals.
Another event that shaped this area of France during the Middle Ages
was the Albigensian Crusade, in which the armies of northern France
descended upon the area like a pack of ravenous wolves, hell bent on
removing the Albigensian heresy from the face of the Earth. Tens of
thousands of innocent men, women, and children were slaughtered out of
hand. Arques survived the Crusade but the population was decimated by
plague in 1360. Shortly afterwards, a band of roving Catalan bandits
burnt the town to the ground.
Many legends exist about Templar treasure that was buried to avoid it
being captured by the Church after their main Commanderies were raided
by French military forces. As with the Visigothic treasure, hundreds
of hours of digging have proven fruitless.
Amongst the exhibits from the Middle Ages are pieces of armor, a
collection of swords and maces, bronze and silver coins covering a two
hundred year period, pieces of pottery and a few fragments of scrolls
bearing such mundane facts as accounts and legal documents. One of the
scrolls actually has an Elder Sign drawn on it, although an
Investigator must pass a successful Spot Hidden roll to notice this
strange pentagram design.
The scroll upon which the Elder Sign is drawn is actually a letter
between Sir Jean Blanchefort and a Templar colleague, Sir Ricard de
Hautpoul which discusses a "forthcoming ceremony." The scroll is in
Latin, and to read it the Investigators must either take it from its
glass case or use a Credit Rating or Persuade roll to convince
Monsieur DuPont to let them view it.
SCENE 16: AN INTERRUPTED DINNER
During the Investigator's first evening meal at their hotel, or at
Doctor White's villa if they have told police that they are staying
there, they will be approached by two policemen from the local
station. They apologize for interrupting the Investigators' meal but
ask if they can take a moment of their time to have a private word
with them.
Once the Investigators are away from any other guests, the police
explain to them that they have received a telegram from police in
Marseilles within the last hour informing them that a body they
believe to be that of Doctor White was discovered hanging from his
hotel room ceiling, a noose made from his belt was tied around his
neck. The body has been identified by papers found on the dead
person's body, but they would like someone who knew the Doctor to go
and identify the body as soon as possible.
The local police know no other details about the death but the police
in Marseilles believe that the good Doctor hung himself for reasons
unknown.
--
