Copy Link
Add to Bookmark
Report
Chaosium Digest Volume 36 Number 02
Chaosium Digest Volume 36, Number 02
Date: Thursday, April 25, 2002
Number: 2 of 3
DER HEXENHAMMER (pt. 2)
by Mervyn Boyd - jack@ktana.freeserve.co.uk
Course of Investigation 1
If two bodies are found in close proximity, then maybe there'll be more -
especially if both share an interest in Wicca. Two avenues of investigation
open themselves to the players, a) Compiling a missing persons database, and
b) Organizing a dig - both of which are outlined below.
Compiling a missing persons database
If players do not think of this themselves, an IDEA check will. With the
discovery of two missing persons in the same burial area, it would only be
natural for police investigators to look into all the other reported
disappearances since, and maybe before 1999. In total 1330 persons have been
reported missing. 820 of them women (including both Melissa and Audrey). All
from Little Rock. All potential victims. The latest being a mere three weeks
ago (Kate Holmes, 06 May, 2000). Players might also want to express their
wishes to be made immediately aware of any new abduction attempts, either
successful or otherwise.
Reviewing each of the 820 cases takes time to sort through. NPCs can be
hauled in to help out. Investing this time as well as R/W ENGLISH, and IDEA
check for good measure collates a list of 21 individuals who are listed as
having an interest in witchcraft or new age activities.
Audrey Harrison, 03 April 1999 Melissa Blake, 14 May 1999
Claire Simpson, 22 May, 1999 Rachel Smith, 29 May, 1999
Alyssa Coccotti, 15 June, 1999 Miriama Spence, 02 July, 1999
Jo Bakewell, 14 July, 1999 Bethany Giedroyc, 23 July, 1999
Hannah Keogh, 30 August, 1999 Holly McDowall, 03 September, 1999
Faye Davies, 23 September,1999 Vivian Moore, 13 October, 1999
Stephanie Palmer, 27 October, 1999 Tamzin Ferguson, 07 January, 2000
Lisa Kipling, 18 January, 2000 Shannon Ragsdale, 23 February, 2000
Fern Cooper, 06 March, 2000 Helen Malarky, 31 March, 2000
Dee Landry, 17 April, 2000 Kate Holmes, 06 May, 2000
Julianne Peake-Reynolds, 30 January, 2000
Re-interviewing friends and families of these victims is an option, it takes
time and is but ultimately fruitless. Of the 21 listed only four have turned
up alive and well (Lisa Kipling, Faye Davies, Claire Simpson, Jo Bakewell),
the rest are still unaccounted for. As for other information such as
enemies, credit rating, places of work and leisure, while important it may
be, they unfortunately offer no clues as to what happened to them. Since
Kate Holmes is the latest victim, then it would be logical for the players
to begin their investigation there.
That said, diligent investigation can uncover a connection between six of
the missing. Vivian Moore created aromatheraputic oils, which she sold
directly and through Holly McDowall's occult shop. Vivian and Holly were
also conservationists and were involved in many a protest together. Both
also run adverts through Julianne Peake-Reynolds' magazine (SpellBinder).
Bethany Giedroyc occasionally bought Vivian's oils and other nick-naks from
Holly's shop, as did Alyssa Coccotti, and Tamzin Ferguson.
Organizing a dig
Seventeen women who share the belief are missing. Two of them are found in
close proximity in Pinnacle State Part. More might be up there waiting to be
found. Anybody who wishes to set up a small exploratory party and head off
to the hills and start digging can do so once clearance has been granted. A
task force of 30+3d10 people can be assembled from assorted departments.
Pinnacle Mountain State Park
Located approximately 12 miles west of Little Rock, Pinnacle Mountain State
Park comprises 1,800 acres of diverse natural habitat which provides
seemingly limitless encounters with its varied wildlife and array of plant
life. Surrounded by wooded hillsides, lush lowlands, and clear waterways the
cone-shaped peak of Pinnacle Mountain towers 1011 feet above the valley
below. The park also maintains a visitor's centre and museum which fulfils a
three-fold purpose of preservation, recreation, and education. Guides and
park rangers often hold interpretative and educational programs dealing with
the geology, botany, archaeology, wildlife and ecology of the park. Each
presentation helps the visitor to understand and appreciate their ecological
relationship to earth's environment. Other activities include fishing,
canoeing, and hiking along one of the many, many trails, and there's over
40 miles of trail to be explored.
The Dig
Digging around will be a hit and miss affair. The shear size of the outdoors
is enormous. It'll be long, slow and laborious. You could spend a week and
not find anything, however surveying the scene while accompanied with
assorted GEOLOGY and NATURAL HISTORY rolls should be made to determine
logical places to dig. The players don't actually have to dig themselves or
be here constantly for progress to be made. Reports come in daily. The best
plan would be to take a good map of the area and plot the locations of the
first two bodies, and to concentrate on their digs in the intervening 500
yards between them, and to a lesser extent out to 500 yards radiating out.
An area of 1500 by 1000 yards would then be covered.
Digging should not be the only thing the players should be concentrating on.
They should also be concerned with the bagging and tagging of any possible
evidence that may be found laying round. These could be footprints,
discarded cigarette ends, drinks cans, bags of rubbish, whatever... Since
the location is out of the way and not traveled much they'll not be much
laying around. If they are lucky they can find 2d10 bits and pieces, 1d10
otherwise. Only on a LUCK roll can prints be lifted from some of the
detritus, and for the moment they cannot trace who they came from.
To make the most use of evidence at a crime scene, an experienced and well
trained forensic technician should be concerned with the following: Visual
& close up photographic observation; Noting body position and where the body
is in relation to the nearest roadway, path, pond, etc.; the collection of
specimens from the body and surrounding area, including directly beneath
the body. This includes soil samples, foliage matter, types and number of
insects (egg, larval, pupal, adult, larval casts and husks). Climatological
data of the location should also be noted. Once done, all samples, both live
and dead (including the corpse) should be processed as fast as possible in
the laboratory with careful observation. All this takes time to do, and when
all the data is processed it is time to make some conclusions:
Those Recovered
Body 1
Kate Holmes is discovered relatively easily. A LUCK roll coupled with a
NATURAL HISTORY check discovers her body a 2d8 hours after arrival, 4d8
hours otherwise. The vegetation at the location of her corpse appears to
have been cut back in the last month or so and is now seen to be enjoying a
spurt of growth compared to the surrounding foliage.
As the earth is carefully excavated from the shallow grave, the smell of
rotting flesh becomes overwhelming. Everybody, old grizzled veterans and new
guys alike, must succeed a CONx3 check or be repulsed by the stench (SAN
check with loss of 1/1d3). A fumbled roll results in the PC heaving their
guts out. Best to breath through the mouth or use some kind of filter. The
nude readily identifiable body of Kate is in an advanced state of
putrefaction. Mottled green/black skin, blistered, hanging loose. Adipocere
deposits are beginning to build up around the body. (This is a naturally
occurring grayish cheesy substance which forms when bodies are left in cool
wet areas.) Burrowing insect and worm infested. Greasy decomposition fluid
and barely recognizable semi-fluid, semi-solid abdominal organs pool and gel
in the pit having been forced out through the body's orifices. Seeing the
body is horrific and causes 1d2/1d3+2 sanity loss to those unaccustomed to
viewing bodies in this kind of state. Removing the corpse is tricky, the
epidermis is loose and tears easily, like a skin on a custard. Without due
care an arm might come away in hand, and what intestinal residue there is
could spill out over a characters nice new shoes. Anybody who lingers around
the body ends up being contaminated with the stench of death which isn't
easily washed off. They could try lemons though.
Autopsy results for Kate
Time of death occurred approximately on May 20, give or take a day or two -
roughly two weeks after her reported disappearance. Kate appears to have
been tortured to death. Her corpse bears extensive bruises and abrasions.
Marks of ligatures or other restraining devices are apparent on her wrists,
ankles and throat. She does not appear to have been sexually abused. No
apparent clues as to the attacker is found. No latent prints. No hair
samples. No fingernail scrapings. A toxicology report comes back clean. She
was not drugged.
Kate has burn marks on face, neck and torso. They seem consistent with high
voltage electrocution. Her eyes were taped open, with the tape going under
eyelids and stretched up to forehead. An intermittent circular scorch mark
six inches in diameter on the her belly indicates an application of heat,
but ultimately she died from massive hemorrhaging from the abdomen and
internal organs. From the surviving flesh, evidence that it was gnawed by
mice when the victim was alive is just detectable and no more. Several mice
hairs were collected from inside the cavity, as were droppings. It seems the
mice burrowed down through her belly, into her abdomen, through her torso,
to emerged just under the left rib cage. Kate was subjected to "the bowl".
Body 2
1d3+2 days later they unearth Vivian Moore. Putrefaction gave way to
decomposition a long time ago, and what remains is a dirty blackened largely
skeletonised corpse covered in the greasy cheesy Adipocere substance. There
is no sanity loss. Identification can only be accomplished by dental records
or DNA sampling.
Autopsy results for Vivian
Several of Vivian's ribs are broken on both sides of the cage. The breaks
and fractures occur far back as through they were subjected to great deal of
pressure or weight. Time of death occurred approximately on October/November
1999, give or take a week. The exact cause of death is indeterminate. From
the emaciated corpse it appears that Vivian too has been restrained by
ligature marks on her wrists, ankles, and throat. The state of the epidermis
shows some kind of bruising trauma before death. Both of Vivian's arms are
dislocated and shoulder ligaments are torn. These wounds seem consistent
with the fact that Vivian may have been tethered by her wrists to some kind
of pulley mechanism, then hoisted and dropped several times. No clues as to
the attacker is found. No latent prints. No hair samples. No fingernail
scrapings. A toxicology report comes back clean.
Body 3
1d4 days later somebody finds Bethany Giedroyc. She resembles Vivian's
corpse only with three months head start, which means there's even less
biological matter to deal with - so no sanity is lost. Several of her
fingers (1d3+2) have been snipped off at the knuckle, but they can be easily
found in the grave. That same day (1d12 hours later) a SPOT HIDDEN recovers
a partial skull fragment consisting of the cranium, eye socket and cheek
bone. Nothing more. The rest of the body cannot be found. The use of BIOLOGY
or FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY identifies the bone to be female with an 80%
certainty. Looking at the bone, an IDEA check suggests that the bone has
been gnawed, possibly by a bear. Unfortunately no useable DNA can be
extracted, and no other bits of this corpse can be found.
Autopsy results for Bethany
Time of death occurred approximately on July/August, give or take a week or
two. ID by DNA sampling or dental records only. The cause of death is
indeterminate. There is too little surviving matter remaining to make any
kind of judgment, and no clues as to the attacker is found. A toxicology
report comes back clean.
Body 4
1D3+1 days later the skeletonised corpse of Miriama Spence is found. Again
ID is only done by dental records or DNA sampling. In with the body, the
investigators recover a carelessly disposed of white plastic bin bag filled
with trash (empty food cans, crushed Marlboro lights cigarette packs,
cigarette ends, cigarette ash, chocolate wrappers, a crumpled receipt and a
few squat sturdy cardboard tubes). An IDEA roll identifies the cardboard
tubes as the type you get gaffer tape on. Those with the presence of mind
might want to turn the rubbish over for forensic analysis. Who knows, with a
little luck maybe our killer has left us a little clue.
If the players want to analyze this stuff themselves, then they should make
the appropriate FORENSIC check. A failed roll means the player was unable to
recover any clues, though somebody else could try. A fumbled roll results
precious evidence being destroyed or cross-contaminated. Use your judgment
in this matter.
After a thorough testing the results come back: The white plastic bag itself
is a common household pedal-bin variety and can be bought from any grocery.
Its contents were very well preserved. Numerous finger prints and differing
kinds were recovered from everything. The brand of cigarette is far to
common to make any kind of trace. Saliva samples were extracted from the
cigarette ends. All cigarettes were smoked by the same person. A male
suspect with a blood typing of O negative. The receipt imparts the following
information: Store Name, Phone Number & Address: Wal-mart (North Little
Rock); Date: Friday 16 July, 1999; Time: 14:23; Items Bought: Gaffer Tape,
Canned Foods; Cash Tendered: $16.36; Till Operator Name: Joyce Sutherland.
Autopsy results for Miriama
Time of death occurred approximately on July 1999, give or take a week or
two. ID by DNA sampling or dental records only. The cause of death is
indeterminate. There is too little surviving matter remaining to make any
kind of judgment. No clues as to the attacker is found save for what's in
the bin bag. A toxicology report comes back clean.
Body 5
Three days later Julianne Peake-Reynolds is found. Skeletonisation of the
body has taken hold and the body is covered in thick adipocere deposits.
With a LUCK roll there is just enough surviving tissue to make some kind of
examination, otherwise nothing much can be said. Success, shows that
Julianne was bound like the other bodies.
Autopsy results for Julianne
Time of death occurred some time in Late January/February 2000. ID by DNA
sampling or dental records only. The cause of death is indeterminate. No
clues as to the attacker is found. A toxicology report comes back clean. On
another sad note at seems Julianne was one month pregnant at the time of her
death.
Body 6
The body of Claire Simpson can be found whenever the keeper wants. Maybe two
corpses can be found on the same day. The skeletonisation process is
complete. There is nothing but bone and tendons left, with the exception of
matted clumps of hair still adhering to the skull. ID through DNA sampling
or dental records.
Autopsy results for Claire
Time of death occurred some time in June 1999. The cause of death is
indeterminate. There is too little surviving matter remaining to make any
kind of judgment. No clues as to the attacker is found. A toxicology report
comes back clean.
After this time the prospect of finding more bodies become increasingly more
difficult. Sprenger didn't bury all his victims in the one spot. After 14
days of digging nobody else is found, and the order comes from department
heads to cease digging. If players believe there are more to be found, then
they can attempt to extend the dig by only one week by successfully making
ONE PERSUADE roll, after which the search will terminate if nothing else is
found. Only with dogged determination and a POWx1 check will another, and
this time final, corpse be uncovered. The keeper is free to choose somebody
at random. After this nobody else is found. Period.
Course of Investigation 2
Running the prints and DNA through AFIS and CODIS (Automatic Fingerprint
Identification System and Combined DNA Index System) databases is met with
success. Matches are found in both instances. They are associated with a
suspect wanted in connection with the abduction, torture and murder of
women. Only one city, Illinois, has a photo-fit posted of the suspects
likeness, see Wanted Bulletin. A reward of 35,000 dollars is on offer for
the capture of Sprenger. Estelle DiMarco, if shown a range of pictures will
positively identify Sprenger from the spread. The likeness was supplied by
one of Spenger's more fortunate victims, Sabrina Wells, who was attacked
three years ago. The players, if they want, can interview her by either
visiting her personally or talking over the phone.
Sabrina remembers the night vividly. She's got a photographic memory, that's
why the E-fit is so perfect a likeness. Anyway, Sabrina is the proprietor of
an occult shop, and on the 2nd December 1997, she had just locked up for the
evening and was on her way home just a few blocks away. Sprenger came from a
dark alleyway and grabbed her and tried to bundle her into his van. She
managed to knee him in the groin and wrestle free and spray mace into his
face before escaping.
An Impaled LUCK roll when accessing AFIS (NOT CODIS) might uncover more
information that should've been removed from the system some time ago. The
prints from the trash are apparently a 93% match to those from a man
imprisoned in Corpus Christi, Texas in 1978 for the abduction, torture and
murder of 13 so-called witches over a year and a half. The name given is
Ignatius Sprenger. Following this up, and talking to local authorities, it
may be a surprise to learn that Sprenger was executed by electrocution in
1988 and buried in an unmarked state grave. A photo can be faxed through,
but it'll take time to dig through the archives. What else? Maybe an insight
as to how he was caught and where Sprenger was operating from. Well, an
elaborate surveillance operation was put into place and he was followed to a
disused warehouse. Oh, his supposed grave is empty for those who can get it
exhumed.
Course of Investigation 3
Due to the location if the dig site, it would be an idea to spread their
search to include the local towns of Pinnacle and Natural Steps (both of
which have roughly 1000 inhabitants), and talk to the local authorities. In
the course of the ensuing investigation it emerges that nothing untoward has
occurred in either of the towns, and there has been no reports of anybody
acting suspiciously over the last six months. However, Sheriff Ross of
Natural Steps does remember seeing a black Toyota van pull away from a fire
hydrant three days ago. He remembers this because he was going to speak to
the driver about being illegally parked. If shown a picture of Sprenger,
Sheriff Ross can positively ID him. He can also supply details of the van's
license plate. If the players want to know where he was parked, in what
direction, what held his interest and what he was doing, then Ross can take
them to the hydrant in question. It was in the centre of town, facing east
towards the church. He wasn't doing much. Just sitting there. Other than
this, both Sheriffs say they will watch out for this guy should he return.
Course of Investigation 4
As bodies mount, players may want to check out known local rapists,
kidnappers, and serial killers. A local and state wide search will be
lengthy and time consuming - even more so if surrounding states are checked.
Either way what suspects there are can all account for there whereabouts at
the time of incident. Most are serving their time in prison. Using whatever
contacts they have out on the streets to see if anyone has seen or heard
anything similarly comes back blank. No one knows anything about who might
be the murderer.
To aid in their investigation it would be prudent to check other states for
similar occult-based or ritual crimes in which involved the slaying of
female new-agers or self-proclaimed witches. A LIBRARY USE or COMPUTER USE
check obtains files for a slew of murders ranging across the length and
breadth of America - particularly over the last decade or so. Following the
trail for the last 10 years we find 26 dead in Columbus. Georgia; 10 in
Rapid City, South Dakota; 7 in Minot & Fargo, North Dakota; 14 in Seattle &
Tacoma, Oregon; 16 in Worcester, Massachusetts, 10 in Chicago, Illinois; and
now 17 in Little Rock, Arkansas. All are pretty much similar with women
disappearing then being discovered later in grave sites in remote locations.
All police departments, including the FBI have wanted bulletins posted for
information relating to these murders, but no names or faces are given for
their suspect, except for Illinois who has the only E-fit available.
Specifically taking the search back further, the players find assorted
ritualistic murder reports reaching as far back as the early 1900s, but why
would they check this far back? An extremely broad-based search dredges up
the odd ritualistic murder case from when the first police forces were
created in New York City way back in 1845. Witch killing obviously goes as
far back as merry old Salem in Massachusetts, a hotbed of witch activity in
the 1690s. Unceasing research and an impaled roll might uncover an account
dating as far back as the first European colony settled in Continental
America - Jamestown, Virginia, 1607, when Agnes Boathy was burnt at the
stake. Her crime: sneezing three times in church. Despite these many, many
killings not all were done by Sprenger. Looking at witch killers of the
time, the players find amongst the most notable those being Cotton Mather
and Increase Mather (a father and son team of 1660s Boston), and Ignatius
Sprenger (German Immigrant to America in the 1690s who went by the name Der
Hexenhammer). Sprenger's history is readily documented in any good occult
volume until the time when his corpse disappears from the gallows.
News & Media
As the dig progresses and more bodies are recovered the media are sure to
get wind of it from whatever source, including departmental leaks. TV crews
and journalists, hungry for news, flock to LRPD HQ for reports and
statements. If the characters are involved in the dig they'll be targeted
for questioning. Similarly journalists and TV crews will eventually descend
on the dig itself for on-the-spot reporting - grabbing who they can for
comment.
An IDEA check suggests to investigating players that it would probably be in
their best interests to keep reporting to a minimum. To control speculation
and media creativity whoever is in charge of the investigation should hold
daily meetings. They should also appeal to the media to keep any reporting
discreet to prevent hysteria and out-of-context reporting. Another reason is
that we don't want to scare the killer away, or force his/her hand
unnecessarily. A PERSUADE roll is all that is required to keep the media in
check, otherwise banner headlines like: "MODERN-DAY WITCH KILLER ON THE
LOOSE" or "17 WITCHES SLAIN BY KILLER - ARE YOU NEXT?" to the more
melodramatic: "10 WAYS TO SPOT IF YOUR NEIGHBOR IS A WITCH" are plastered on
the front page.
Failing to keep the media in line results in Sprenger's face being featured
prominently on the TV and front pages. Who knows how they got his image.
Dozens of calls come in from people, all saying they've seen Sprenger. All
incidents must be investigated and will take a great many man-hours to
complete. Essentially all are dead ends or mistaken identities, maybe one or
two ring true where Sprenger was spotted in a car park, store or wherever.
With media saturation, it's only a matter of time before Sprenger becomes
alerted. Should he become alerted he follows what has become his standard
operating procedure. Return to where he operates from if possible, collect
his things, burn the rest then move on to pastures anew. Should this happen
the scenario can be deemed a failure. It'll be up to the individual keeper
to decide where Sprenger goes and what he does once he gets there, and
whether the players can go after him.
Reading up on witchcraft
To learn more about what motivates witch-killers the players can either
bring in an occult specialist or do their own research. Since we all have
our own preconceptions on the topic of Witchcraft, Wicca, Mojo, call it what
you want, the players will probably go on their own assumptions. Research
uncovers two main ideologies.
1) Traditional doctrine states a witch is the cult of persons, who by means
of Satanic worship are enabled to practice black magic, generally to the
detriment of others. In return, Satan has complete dominion over them. They
often are found in league with evil spirits or familiars who act as spies,
or lend assistance when conversing with Lucifer. Sacrifices of animals and
even humans are prevalent with this form of practice, as is the burning of
black candles. As a result of their belief, many people were imprisoned or
executed during the Inquisition.
2) Today, the term witchcraft has fallen into disuse and is more popularly
referred to as Wicca (said to be an early Anglo-Saxon word for witchcraft).
It encompasses not only spell use but also reflects upon the sensual
earthiness of nature and is based on books such as Charles Leland's Aradia:
The Gospel of the Witches (1899), Dr. Margaret Murray's The Witch-Cult in
Western Europe (1921), Robert Graves's The White Goddess (1948), and Gerald
Gardner's Witchcraft Today (1954) since such books gave inspiration to some
people seeking spiritual alternatives. With the coming of the 1960s and it's
counter-cultural mood these alternative practices grew rapidly during that
decade and soon incorporated aromatherapy, kitchen pharmacology, crystal
use, spoken mantras or incantations and a whole host of other things. From
this, new age alternative medicines was born. Modern witchcraft is entirely
different from Satanism of the diabolical witchcraft imagined by the
persecutors of past centuries. Major Wiccan themes include love of nature,
equality of male and female, appreciation of the ceremonial, a sense of
wonder and belief in magic. It can be argued that nearly every single person
performs at least one magical rite every year when they blow the candles out
on their birthday cake and make a wish. As research nears completion
characters can make the discovery that black candles, while associated with
evil actually stands for banishing, deflecting negativity or life changes.
Even the common white candle (a moon symbol) when burnt in a ceremony
signifies purification, transformation, divinity, blessings and peace. Would
it therefore be so wrong to burn a black candle in church?
Of all the volumes looked at in their research, one book seems to stick out
for some reason. This large volume entitled the Hammer of Witches was
initially published in Germany (under the title Malleus Maleficarum) at the
end of the fifteenth century (1486). It was written by two inquisitors
(Jacob Sprenger and Heinrich Kramer) under the papal bull (Summis
Desiderantes) of Pope Innocent VIII against witchcraft. The book can be
broken down in two parts, the first debating the much-disputed question of
the nature of witchcraft and demons. Sprenger and Kramer set forth the
causes which lead demons to seduce men, and show why women are most prone to
listening to their proposals. They also investigate not only the methods
employed to effect various kinds of mischief, but also counter charms and
exorcisms that may be used against demons. Sprenger and Kramer also give
accounts of their own experience when faced with witchcraft. The second part
details minute directions for the mode in which to identify witches, their
capture, treatment, and the means to be used to force confessions. The book
sent an estimated 9 million people to their death. Sanity Loss: None. Occult
+3%. Spells: None. Is it by mere coincidence that our killer is called
Sprenger? Yeah, probably.
(continued)
--
To unsubscribe from the chaos-digest ML, send an "unsubscribe" command
to chaos-digest-request@chaosium.com. Chaosium Inc., Call of Cthulhu, and
Nephilim are Registered Trademarks of Chaosium Inc. Elric! and Pendragon
are Trademarks of Chaosium Inc. All articles remain copyright their
original authors unless otherwise noted.
