Little Kislev booklet

Transcription

Little Kislev
A guide to the island of Duin,
part of the great city of Marienburg
Created by Dave Graﬀam and Wim van Gruisen
Published for WimCon 2014
Duin
Obligatory boring text
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the Warhammer world are either ®, ™ and/or © Copyright Games Workshop Ltd 2000-2009, variably
registered in the UK and other countries around the world. Used without permission. No challenge to their
status intended. All Rights Reserved to their respective owners.
No halflings or little children were harmed in the creation of this document. The amount of warpstone used
in the ink is almost imperceptible. Games Workshop Limited declines any responsibility for sanity loss,
bodily changes or other mutations caused by using this document.
This document is completely unofficial and in no way endorsed by Games Workshop Limited or Fantasy
Flight Games.
Contents
Foreword
2
Klein Kislev
3
Red Square, Gold Square
Sergei Kirmasov
4
5
The Temple of Ursun
Father Konstatin
Gospodin Povodny
Irina Khodorova
6
7
8
9
The Dancing Bear
Pjotr Kupchenko
Natascha Dyakova
Selba Bork
Ricardo Burtoni and Enrico Chlimane
Other regulars
10
11
12
12
14
15
The Velvet Lodge
Kara Daragoia
Helene Duchamp
Rudolf Lichthuis
16
17
18
19
The White Spirit Distillery
Aleksei and Leonid Korsakov
20
21
The Star of the North
Leonid Barzhoi
Janus Langstaart
22
22
23
The Registry
Lotte
Hendrik Waterstand
24
24
25
The Warrens
The Trident Alehouse
Shipskin
Vassily’s Emporium
Vassily Ignatieff
26
27
27
28
29
Baba Dasha
30
Arkady Gogol
32
Foreword
Marienburg is one of the best
documented cities for WFRP. It
has its own, hard to find,
sourcebook and next to that the
internet holds some impressive
resources on the city. The main
one is the unofficial Marienburg
sourcebook, a more than 200
page PFD document detailing lots
of locations and NPCs in the
watery city. Most of the locations
previously published, officially or
by fans, have been gathered here,
and more have been specifically
written for this netbook. If you’re
serious about playing in
Marienburg, download this book.
The city of Marienburg has always fascinated me. The focus on trade rather than dungeon delving, the harbour setting with its cosmopolitan population, its islands and canals, always seemd a perfect setting for adventures to me. But most of all, the city really comes alive because of the extensive source material (see the sidebar).
This booklet contributes to the setting by developing the Kislev enclave in Marienburg. You will cind interesting locations and NPCs, and a few good hooks for your scenarios. It was written for WimCon 2014. Klein Kislev is decinitely set in the city of Marienburg. So you should see this book as an appendix to other source material of that city. Characters listed here have links to the rest of the city and the text mentions characters and locations in Marienburg that are detailed in other source material
Klein Kislev is very much a part of
Next to that, Klein Kislev clearly has roots to its larger brother. I tried Marienburg. It does not stand on
to emulate that as well, using the sourcebooks for WFRP1, Something its own. Several entries mention
locations in other parts of the city, Rotten in Kislev, and for WFRP2, Realm of the Ice Queen. It allowed me which are detailed in the netbook. to add some quite foreign characters and stuff to the city. Where this happens, a short
explanation is given in a text box
with dotted lines, as below.
I’d like to thank Rob Harper, Jay Hafner (who made the conversion to WFRP3) and Lauri Maijala, who read the initial document and gave important feedback. And many thanks to Dave Graffam, who read the text and then rewrote it completely, breathing life in what up to then was a quite utilitarian text. While doing so, he added a few characters The Marienburg sourcebook on
of his own as well. And on top of that, he produced a great map of Duin. the net mentions a few Kislevites If you like this book, it’s as much thanks to Dave as to me. If you cind who may well have connections to any faults with it, I’m the one to blame.
Klein Kislev. These are:
Boris Rodzin, coffin maker at
Droevviger’s Funeral Emporium
Dmitri Hrodovski, apothecary
Huis Van den Nijmenk, one of
the Upper Ten, the ten merchant
houses that control the city. This
house has based its fortune on
trade with Kislev.
You might also search for The Ice
King of Kislev, a document by
Sami Uusitalo. It details a Kislev
merchant in the Empire; it is very
much possible that he visits
Marienburg as well.
All in all, writing this booklet was lots of fun (and cost lots of time). I hope that you have as much fun reading it and using it in your campaigns. Oh, and if you like WFRP, make sure to visit the next WimCon. It is the best, most interesting and most inspiring (next to being the only) WFRP-‐only convention on this planet.
Wim van Gruisen
Den Bosch, May 2014
-‐ 2 -‐
Klein Kislev
Duin is one of the seven small islands that together form the ward of Rijkspoort. It is popularly called 'Klein Kislev' – Little Kislev – because of the concentration of Kislevites residing here. The cirst impression is of a place that yearns to have an identity of its own but is forever caught between worlds. While the buildings here are primarily constructed in the half-‐timbered style so prevalent in Marienburg, they occasionally feature mosaicked turrets, cupolas and domes reminiscent of Kislevite architecture. In the streets one might overhear snippets of Kislevarian intermingle with Reikspiel and Norse in a single conversation.
Luccini’s Night
In the late hours of 16 Jahrdrung
2209 a fire started in the hold of
the Tilean schooner Sword of
Luccini, moored at the piers of
Duin. The blaze spread to the
docks while the town slept, and
soon engulfed other ships and the
warehouses on the shore. By
dawn, half of the island was on
fire.
At the time, Duin was on the losing
side of a competition with
Much like their dour and taciturn countrymen at home, the Suiddock harbour for the lion’s
inhabitants of Little Kislev are an insular lot that can make strangers share of Marienburg’s port activity.
feel distinctly unwelcome. The Duin community is led by two people: With more traffic passing through
every year and its
Father Konstatin, the eminent priest at the Temple of Ursun, and Baba Suiddock
services improving to meet the
Dasha, one of the few hag witches known outside of the Old Country. demand, profits drained out of
Perhaps more than anything else exported from Kislev, these spiritual Duin and the entire island suffered.
The fire hastened the process
leaders connect the people of Little Kislev with their origins and considerably, but perhaps it would
provide them with a sense of belonging.
not have been so disastrous if
there had been enough money to
pay the watchmen that night.
The southern part of the island is known as the Warrens and is covered with old warehouses, most of which have been turned into residences. It is here that the brutal and bleak truth of living abroad as a Kislevite is most evident.
The northern part, which borders the Rijksweg, is more open. While this area used to be crowded with warehouses as well, a ship cire in 2209 expanded to the docks and beyond, making a ruin of anything not built of stone. The cire was so intense that the gilded dome of the Temple of Sigmar melted. The gold ran down onto the streets, inspiring legends of greed and desperation that ensured the anniversary of the catastrophe would become a local holiday.
Most of the old warehouses were not rebuilt after the blaze. Commercial storage was concentrated in Suiddock, and even before the cire there had been decreasing demand for it in Duin. Nowadays, the northern part of Duin is built around two squares: the Gold Square and the Red Square. Many important locations can be found near them, and virtually all business and culture in Little Kislev revolve around them.
Steady rains finally quenched the
fire. The warehouses of the
northern quarter of the island had
been gutted and the docks had
collapsed into the shallows making
them worse than useless. Duin’s
role as a trading hub dwindled and
has all but disappeared.
But as it seems Marienburg abhors
a vacuum, the fire-ravaged areas,
the abandoned warehouses and
even the blackened timbers of the
old docks found new uses over the
centuries. Not long after the fire,
poor refugees from Kislev, driven
from their homes by invasions of
Chaos, moved to the island to
occupy its empty warehouses, and
over time have rebuilt damaged
quarter and provided its distinct
cultural flavour.
The inhabitants of Duin still
celebrate ‘Luccini’s Night’ on the
anniversary of the fire. At sunset of
that evening a bonfire is built in the
middle of Gold Square and
residents throw small model ships
made of paper and wood into the
flames while sharing their hopes
and great quantities of vodka.
-‐ 3 -‐
Red Square
Trade Goods
Merchants and others of an
enterprising bent will find
barrels of whale oil to be very
cheap most seasons. This is a
quality fuel and lubricant that
can be sold for a profit nearly
anywhere inland, and
particularly in middle-sized
towns of the Empire where it
commands a high price, being
an important component in
some religious rites and
industries.
Genuine goods from Kislev
are greedily bought up by the
locals, even at inflated prices.
Items of a particularly
nostalgic or sentimental
nature are especially desired,
including toys, books,
furniture, musical instruments,
paintings, tapestries and other
works of art.
Spirits
Nature spirits roam free in the
wilderness and rural areas of
Kislev, and sometimes even in
the cities. They are a part of
life in the icy country. Most
Kislevites respect these spirits
or at least realise the
consequences of crossing
them.
These spirits are also present
in Marienburg, although few
natives know that. They were
brought along by Kislev
refugees when they fled their
country, and found a way to fit
in. Domovoy help in the
house, Vazila live in stables
where they tend the horses
and kikimora look after the
poultry. All in all, these spirits
make life in Little Kislev a bit
more bearable.
The people of Dune realise
that most non-Kislevites would
not recognise spirits for what
they are, considering them
demons instead - and by
extension, regard Kislevites
as demon-worshippers.
Rather than trying to convince
them, Kislevites prefer to keep
the spirits a secret among
themselves.
The Red Square is a paved open space near the western shore of Little Kislev. Here visitors will cind cheap local crafts and expensive imports sold in soggy stalls and tents. Toothless expatriates offer palm readings, Kislev-‐style steamed breads and grey stews. Much less savoury things can be had as well.
Few remember that this communal space was originally named the Basilius Square. Today only its grisly nickname is used, drawn from the days when the square served as a cattle market. On Marktags freshly bought sheep and pigs would be slaughtered in the north end of the square until streams of blood wove through the roads. The cattle market moved elsewhere some 30 years ago but the Red Square’s name stuck, as did a superstition that the area is haunted by the lowing spirits of the countless animals that lost their lives.
Gold Square
The Gold Square is the larger of the town’s two great hearts and was once called simply the Kislev Square. This tree-‐lined plaza takes its modern name from the molten gold that ran from the old Temple of Sigmar on the night of the great cire, gold that solidicied in puddles between the cobblestones. Eventually the temple reclaimed much of the precious stuff, but scavengers made off with a fair bit of it.
While many locals know the Gold Square for the Temple of Ursun that looms over one side of it, much of what goes on here is related to maritime affairs. The Gold Square empties onto a waterfront consisting of great stone steps leading into the brackish Marienburg delta and strung with a network of piers and bridges. This would create a grand entrance for any visiting dignitary, should one deign to visit the island. Instead, river travellers drag themselves up into the square to conduct business or venture elsewhere in the ward, occasionally colliding with local zealots and choirs of the faithful. Pickpockets are a special problem here, and the wiser natives take extreme measures to secure their belongings when passing through.
Boathouses, bait shops, rope-‐makers, sail-‐makers and other maritime industries are clustered around the Gold Square. Most of the eating establishments near the square compete for the reputation of serving the best seafood, a delight for those with a daring palate.
-‐ 4 -‐
Sergei Kirmasov
Greedy dockmaster
“I’ve had better-‐maintained boats impounded for less. Tell me why I should let you keep this rotting heap.”
At the water’s edge is the Dockmaster’s Tower. The building is topped with a signal cire and a bell to assist vessels navigating through the night and the fog. Dockmaster Sergei Kirmasov takes a piece of everything that arrives on Little Kislev’s wharves and readily accepts bribes to overlook major and minor shipping crimes. He is a lanky and energetic man fond of wearing furs; he thinks his silver badge of ofcice looks best against rich dark sable.
When a boat ties up to the docks, Kirmasov, from the high vantage point of his tower ofcice, is often the cirst to notice. He will personally march down to greet the newcomers, bringing along two or three watchmen stationed at the wharf. After a cursory greeting and examination of the craft, its cargo and passengers, he’ll conjure up a few convenient reasons for them to put silver in his hand, openly asking for a bribe. The watchmen standing witness will get their share, and that makes them ready to cight for it if necessary.
Sergei Kirmasov
Toll keeper (ex-rogue)
WS
BS
S
T
40
38
38
34
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
42
37
33
54
A
W
Mag
IP
1
13
-
-
Skills
Blather
Charm
Common Knowl. (M’burg)
Dodge Blow
Evaluate +10
Haggle +10
Gossip +20
Perception +10
Performer (Actor)
Read/Write
Search
Speak Kislevarian +10
Speak Reikspiel
Talents
Excellent Vision
Public Speaking
Sixth Sense
Streetwise
Strong-Minded
Suave*
Trappings
Sword
Leather jerkin
Mail shirt
Book of regulations
Fur coat
Fur hat
Impressive moustache
Strongbox
2d3 Town guards under his
command
-‐ 5 -‐
The Temple of Ursun
On the southern edge of the Kislev enclave, bordering the water and the Gold Square, stands the Temple of
Ursun. A square stone building two stories high and topped with a golden dome, the design is in stark
contrast to the Ursun temples in Kislev. That is because this building was once dedicated to the worship of
Sigmar. As the Sigmarite congregation dwindled, services ended and the temple was eventually abandoned.
The new inhabitants of Duin then raised enough money to purchase it from the Church of Sigmar. There
were many protests from all sides against the take-over. Purists from Kislev did not approve using a secondhand temple for the worship of their beloved Ursun, while Marienburgers resented the influx of foreigners
and most especially their foreign gods, Sigmar included, and Sigmarites protested against what they saw as
the defilement of their temple. But the sale went through nevertheless and the rededicated temple became
central to life in Little Kislev. Worship and prayer services are held regularly, although the sermons take
forms that are no more orthodox than the building itself. But the small space and spartan decorations give
the sanctuary a sense of deep peace.
Master of the temple and head of the congregation is Father Konstatin, a jingoist Kislevite who was the
driving force behind the campaign to buy the temple and convert it to Ursun. In his youth he used to give
fiery sermons from the pulpit, but lately he has withdrawn within the temple, given over to studying and
contemplating the holy texts.
Pious locals may stop into the temple at some point every day, so that the pews are never empty. On very
cold nights beggars and vagrants take refuge here. Kislevite sailors stop in to pay tithes and pray before
returning to their ships, but will come away seeing how the compromises necessary to adapt to Little Kislev
only underline its distance from the homeland.
A great secret lurks in the temple’s cellar, unknown to all but the senior temple staff. Behind locked doors
and secret passages a voydanoi makes its home. This Kislevite water spirit is a curious evil, its interests tied
to the health of the temple, its congregation, pious Kislevites of Duin and beyond. The voydanoi fattens the
catches in the fishermen’s nets and sends drowning men a bit of flotsam to clutch onto until rescued. As
nearly everything in Marienburg has some relationship to water, the spirit in the temple cellar finds many
ways to aid the faithful.
Father Konstatin
Priest of Ursun, torn by grief
As an idealistic priest fresh from the sea, Konstatin's sole purpose in life was to improve the fates of his
countrymen, who he considers favoured by the gods. Today, as the leader of a temple and the single most
influential man in Little Kislev, Father Konstatin exists in a complex world of politics, finance and faith. But
he has help from an unexpected corner, one that binds him in a private despair.
The priest spent years travelling the world as a missionary. After settling in Marienburg he witnessed his
countrymen treated as second-class citizens by more wealthy Wastelanders and resolved to act against it. He
filled his street-corner sermons with nationalist pride, touching a nerve with the displaced labourers and
sailors of Kislev. A natural talker, Konstatin tirelessly organised prayer meetings and revivals until his
passion attracted funding from the Church of Ursun in the homeland.
-‐ 6 -‐
As his congregation grew and his responsibilities became those of a temple
leader, Konstatin made connections with Kislevite ship captains and traders,
adding further to his wealth. In time he offered the Church of Sigmar enough
to purchase their derelict temple in Duin and transform it into a temple
devoted to Ursun and the other gods of Kislev. As it often goes, blackmail
and bribery were required to complete the purchase of the temple. Unknown
to the priest the Rainbow Flames, a Tzeentchian cult, discreetly pulled
strings in his favour, expecting that this new church would shake the
foundations of Marienburg society.
For the last few years Konstatin has been in the throes of a crisis of faith.
Guilt wrestles with the zeal he has for his church and country, opening the
door for doubt – not in his gods, but in his own worth to represent and
communicate with them. Several years ago, he brought back a vodyanoi
from the Kislev Oblast and made a deal with him. But the conditions of that
deal - and especially the sacrifices that are part of it - are haunting him.
Supplicating the water spirit with young woman has not proven difficult in
any real sense, as lonely girls are easily found in the vast city and their
disappearances go unnoticed. Nobody takes notice of the odd corpse floating
in the water, weeks after someone has disappeared, either. For the most part
Father Konstatin has no active part in the sacrifices. He leaves the
abductions to be carried out by sell-swords and the rest to be handled by his
assistant Irina. Still, the guilt tears at his soul.
Some of his followers have noted his gradual withdrawal from public life.
He gives sermons and makes appearances only during the most important
events and holidays. Lesser clergy handle the functions he once considered
too important to delegate. It is thought he spends much of his time reading
and writing in solitude, but no one is close enough to him to learn what he is
studying or recording. Even in seclusion his presence is felt throughout Little
Kislev, as he guides the temple and its followers as surely as ever, although
more often through written notes and occasional brief statements to his
priests where once he spoke directly to the assemblage with fire in his lungs
and holy tome in hand.
Father Konstatin
Demagogue (ex-lay priest, exfriar)
WS
BS
S
T
48
38
34
39
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
44
47
55
66
A
W
Mag
IP
2
17
-
5
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Theology) +30
Ac. Knowl. (History) +10
Animal Care
Charm +20
Comm. Knowl. (Kislev) +20
Comm. Knowl. (M’burg) +10
Gossip +10
Haggle
Heal +10
Intimidate +10
Magical Sense
Outdoor Survival
Perception +20
Read/Write +10
Speak Classical +10
Speak Reikspiel
Swim
Talents
Coolheaded
Etiquette
Hardy
Mater Orator
Public Speaking
Resistance to Magic
Seasoned Traveller
Special Weapon Group - Flail
Streetwise
Trappings
Prayer book
Priest’s robe
Silver amulet of Ursun
Insanity
Depression
-‐ 7 -‐
Gospodin Podvodny
Malevolent Water Spirit
"How dare you enter here and disturb me? You must be reckless to challenge me in my domain."
Gospodin Podvodny
(Lord Deepwater)
Vodyanoi
WS
BS
S
T
66
28
58
Ag
Int
62
62
WP
Fel
62
72
57
45
A
W
Mag
IP
1
21
2
-
Skills
Concealment
Intimidate
Magical Sense
Silent Move (+20 in water)
Speak Kislevarian
Swim +20
Talents
Menacing
Natural Weapons
Orientation
Schemer
Unsettling
Trappings
none
In the cellar of the temple, behind locked doors and secret passages, a vodyanoi makes its home. This Kislevite water spirit is a curious evil, its interests tied to the health of the temple and its congregation. In its domain, which includes the waters all in and around Marienburg, the voydanoi fattens the catches in the cishermen’s nets and sends drowning men a bit of clotsam to clutch onto until rescued. As nearly everything in Marienburg has some relationship to water, the spirit in the temple cellar cinds many ways to aid the faithful.
Several years ago Konstatin made a voyage home to Kislev, where, deep in the Oblast, he made a deal with a vodyanoi who called itself Gospodin Podvodny – Lord Deepwater. Through some threat or promise – Konstatin and Podvodny are the only ones who know the exact terms of their arrangement – the spirit agreed to come to Marienburg and spread good fortune to the Kislevites there. And every three months, Konstatin would offer a young woman to the water spirit.
This vodyanoi, who looks like a cross between a toad and the bloated corpse of a drowned man, is capricious, arrogant and cruel, a supernatural being made of water and capable of moulding its properties on a whim. But it is also generous and even merciful to those who worship at the Temple of Ursun. Its presence spreads good fortune to those whose tithes help maintain its watery home underneath. Such is the disposition of one with immense power and few reasons to worry. Podvodny is completely assured that it can master any human, or any group of humans, and has no fear of any who might come to test it. It takes pleasure in playing tricks on its visitors, a sadistic child and its toys, giving no care if its playthings break or bleed.
Podvodny dwells in one of the large stone-‐lined rooms in the cellar beneath the temple. The room has a single door and it is locked and barred from the outside. A few torches light the damp room, its slimy walls growing clusters of molluscs, a scum of seaweed cloating in a broad pool of briny water in the centre. The place is decorated with a strange assortment of items found under the water – parts of sunken ships, discarded furniture, lost cargoes, rusting anchors, tools dropped overboard. There is a rough iron cage in the corner holding the latest sacricice. Podvodny never locks this cage, however, as his prisoners cannot escape the cellar in any case. These sacricices satisfy his darker impulses, without which this immortal spirit might become an uncontrollable monster.
The pool is connected by plumbing to the Marienburg delta. The cellars being several yards below water level, Gospodin Podvodny uses magical means to lower the level of the pool. It travels from the pool to the greater waters with ease, but should it ever be destroyed or forced to abandon Little Kislev the entire room would cill the spirit’s lair and clood the rest of the cellar as high as the staircase up to the ground cloor. And if Podvodny were ever forced to leave the protection of the cellar, it would cease to be a boon to the temple congregation and would clee into Marienburg’s canals where it might become a great danger as a free spirit, its lethal desires unchecked.
-‐ 8 -‐
Irina Khodorova
Ambitious acolyte
Irina has been serving Father Konstatin as an acolyte since she was a twelve
years old orphan living in the ruins of collapsed warehouses in the Warrens.
Now she is nearing thirty, a bear of a woman with short brown hair, a large
mouth and narrow eyes, and still serving Father Konstatin. When he became
more withdrawn, by and by she has taken over ever more tasks of running
the temple and holding sermons. When Father Konstatin writes down
missives to members of his congregation, Irina delivers them, reading them
to the receivers if they cannot read themselves, embelleshing the message
when she feels like it.
The task of dealing with Gospodin Podvodny, and of delivering the
sacrifices to the water spirit, have fallen to Irina as well. But unlike Father
Konstatin she feels no qualm about delivering the kidnapped girls to a final
month of misery and then a grisly death. It’s a dog-eat-dog world, she
learned that in her childhood, and the little compassion that she has to spare,
is reserved for her own people. Besides, she enjoys the talks she has with the
vodyanoi. She has been visiting the creature more often lately, not only when
she had to deliver sacrifices or on other business.
With more and more tasks falling to her, Irina’s status and power have
grown. And she is comfortable with that. In fact, she is quite certain that she
could lead the temple and the congregation on her own. She often muses that
she is doing that already in practice - Father Konstatin only leads the
congregation in name. And he has gotten so withdrawn from, and out of
contact with, the community, and he has become so old and frail … more
and more often Irina catches herself thinking that he should step aside, or
pushed aside if he doesn’t go on his own.
Irina is as ambitious as she is naive. The acolyte would be surprised to find
out that these seditious thoughts are not her own, but ideas that the vodyanoi
has been feeding her, drop by poisonous drop. That, with Father Konstatin
out of the way, he will not be bound by his vows to the old man anymore and
free to do as he likes, and that Irina will likely be left head of a temple
without followers.
-‐ 9 -‐
Irina Khodorova
Zealot (ex-initiate)
WS
BS
S
T
55
27
46
41
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
28
35
49
44
A
W
Mag
IP
1
13
-
3
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (History)
Ac. Knowl. (Theology) +10
Charm +10
Comm. Knowl. (Kislev)
Comm. Knowl. (Wasteland)
Gossip
Heal
Intimidate
Perception
Read/Write
Speak Classical
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Reikspiel
Talents
Coolheaded*
Hardy*
Public Speaking
Resistance to Poison
Very Strong*
Warrior Born*
Trappings
Prayer book
Priest’s garb
Key to the cellar
The Dancing Bear
Kislevian food
The Dancing Bear serves
proper Kislev fare. Some items
on the menu:
Okroshka, a cold soup based
on sour milk. The main
ingredients are two types of
vegetables that can be mixed
with cold boiled meat or fish in
a 1:1 proportion. Thus
vegetable, meat, poultry, and
fish varieties of okroshka are
common.
Shchi (cabbage soup): the
predominant first course in
Kislevian cuisine for over a
thousand years. The unique
taste of this cabbage soup is
from the fact that after cooking
it is left to draw (stew) in a
stove. The ‘spirit of shchi’ is
inseparable from the Kislevite
soul.
Kholodets: Jellied chopped
pieces of pork or veal with
added spices (pepper, parsley,
garlic, bay leaf) and minor
amounts of vegetables
(carrots, onions). The meat is
boiled in large pieces for long
periods of time, then chopped,
boiled a few times again and
finally chilled for 3–4 hours,
forming a jelly mass. Gelatine
is not needed because calves'
feet, pigs' heads and other
such offal is gelatinous enough
on its own. It is served with
horseradish, mustard, or
ground garlic with smetana.
Pelmeni:a traditional Kislevite
dish of minced meat filling,
wrapped in thin dough.
Pirozhki: small stuffed buns
made of yeast dough or short
pastry. They are filled with one
of many different fillings and
are either baked or shallowfried . One feature of pirozhki
that sets them apart from, for
example, English pies is that
the fillings used are almost
invariably fully cooked.
"Feeling homesick, comrade? Come with me to the Dancing Bear. You'll feel
like you're back in the Old Country. Yes, the inn takes its name from the
drinking song. Do you know it? Then sing with me!"
In the center of Duin, between the Gold Square and the Red Square, one can
find the Dancing Bear. The size of this inn is legendary. Over the centuries
its owners have expanded the original Dancing Bear by buying up
neighbouring houses and constructing bridges and extensions between them,
breaking down inner walls until the establishment occupied an entire block.
The complex has grown to be a labyrinth of pubs, restaurants, a brothel
named the Velvet Lodge, kitchens, guest rooms, storage closets and parlours
connected by narrow passages, twisted stairs and low-ceilinged corridors
leading to lofts, cellars, attics, inner gardens and stranger places. The
Dancing Bear proper is the largest inn in the block.
The Dancing Bear (the inn proper) serves food and drink familiar to any
Kislevite and is decorated in a homely style. The atmosphere is often
melancholic, fuelled by copious amounts of vodka and bleak spurious poetry.
The Bear’s owner – ‘One-Eye’ Pjotr Kupchenko – sometimes personally
lightens the mood with his balalaika playing, crude as it is. And it is hard not
to smile in the company of Natascha Dyakova, the waitress who cheerfully
ensures that no customer goes hungry or thirsty.
Not surprisingly, nearly all of the patrons are expatriates and most of the
Dancing Bear’s rooms are booked by travellers from the Old Country. But
the inn is so vast that there is always a vacancy. Non-Kislevites will be made
to feel unwanted, however. Upon entering a room, strangers will be greeted
coldly. Service will be sloppy and unfriendly, and locals will have nothing
kind to say. Musicians will stop playing, conversations will grind to a halt,
and there may be harsh words and worse (outsiders suffer -20% to any
Fellowship-related activities). Once a foreigner manages to break the ice,
however, Kislevite friendships can become close indeed.
The Dancing Bear (the whole jumbled complex) is full of tales. There are
endless stories of guests getting lost in the building and only a few of the
staff know all of its rooms, or think they do. The odd creak or knock will be
blamed on the ghosts of people who have never found their ways out of the
maze. And it is rumoured that the treasure of a former owner is hidden in the
walls, perhaps in some bricked-up basement; One-Eye Pjotr’s uncle Stefan
Kupchenko was a retired ship’s captain who ran the Dancing Bear for more
than a decade, but some who remember him say he had been a pirate and
amassed a fortune – enough to buy all of Little Kislev and more.
-‐ 10 -‐
Pjotr Kupchenko
Owner of the Dancing Bear
Pjotr was born into a family of entertainers, and in his youth he tamed bears
and performed tricks with them as part of a travelling troupe. After losing an
eye, he moved out of the bear ring and became a barker and ticket-seller for
much of his time with the company. That is where Pjotr might have stayed
for the rest of his days but last year he was surprised to learn that he was the
sole inheritor of his uncle Stefan Kupchenko’s property in Little Kislev – the
sprawling inn called the Dancing Bear.
Pjotr was by then a burly man in his fifties, balding with a long ash-blond
ponytail and a patch over one eye. A boisterous and confident speaker, he
could get a crowd’s attention with his voice and assumed that he could apply
this to running a tavern. And if the Dancing Bear were any ordinary
establishment, perhaps he would have been right.
After moving to Marienburg and finding that he now possessed not just a
pub or a cosy hotel but an entire city block of fused buildings of several
types, Pjotr was overwhelmed. Though he would never admit it, he would
have run the business right into the ground without the serving staff that had
once worked for his uncle Stefan. After all, they had managed the inn during
the transition between owners without disruption, and not for the first time.
Pjotr has learned much about inn keeping from them in his first year as the
Dancing Bear’s owner, but he is quite content to leave the management of
the inn to those who know it best.
Ever in pursuit of wealth, Pjotr applied his talents for drawing in new
clientele. In his life as a circus barker in Kislev he had met people of all
stripes, not all of them interested in the rule of law. When sailors from Kislev
heard of Pjotr’s new pub, some of them began to make a habit of visiting the
Dancing Bear whenever they docked in Marienburg. With them came a new
kind of business, as some smugglers and ship captains were eager to offload
their cargoes before reaching the city’s customs inspections. The Dancing
Bear, being such a huge structure with so many hidden chambers, proved
excellent for hiding contraband.
Pjotr has swiftly become rich beyond his dreams and knows which palms to
grease to continue on that course, most notably Dockmaster Kirmasov.
While the inn runs smoothly without his constant attention, Pjotr busies
himself with fencing stolen goods and expanding his network of connections
in Little Kislev. As such he is rarely found at the Dancing Bear or even in his
new house on the northern shore of Duin. Instead he spends much of his time
travelling between meetings near and abroad.
-‐ 11 -‐
Pjotr Kupchenko
Fence (ex-bear tamer, exburgher)
WS
BS
S
T
48
34
45
39
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
41
43
39
42
A
W
Mag
IP
2
15
-
-
Skills
Animal Care
Animal Training
Charm Animal
Consume Alcohol +10
Drive
Evaluate +10
Gamble
Gossip +20
Haggle +10
Intimidate
Perception +20
Performer (singer)
Sleight of Hand
Speak Reikspiel
Talents
Dealmaker
Public Speaking
Streetwise
Suave
Supernumerate
Very Strong*
Wrestling
Natascha Dyakova
Natascha Dyakova
Innkeeper (ex-servant)
Perky waitress
WS
BS
S
T
40
34
31
42
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
60
41
49
55
A
W
Mag
IP
1
17
-
-
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Spirits)
Blather +10
Dodge blow
Drive
Evaluate
Gossip +20
Haggle +10
Lip reading
Perception +10
Search
Sleight of hand +10
Speak Reikspiel
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Breton
Trade (Cook) +10
Talents
Acute hearing
Dealmaker
Hardy*
Lightning reflexes*
Night vision
Streetwise
Helping hands
Like so many other places on
Dune, the inn holds a number
of household spirits. While
staying out of sight of the
customers, they help with the
daily chores. Domovoy clean
the place, a bannik in the bath
house gives the staff hints
about the future. Natascha
Dyakova takes care to treat
the little helpers like she treats
her guests. She knows how
much harder her job would be
without their help.
Astute observers may notice
small offerings to the fair folk:
bowls with milk or tasty treats
in corners or under tables,
fresh flowers in the windows.
Only cive feet tall, black-‐haired and bright-‐eyed Natascha is the life and soul of the Dancing Bear. As one of the inn’s waitresses she serves customers with friendly efciciency and attention that seems genuine enough, and has a smile that can defuse a brawl. She has an uncanny gift for remembering names and even sometimes guessing them, and is a trustworthy accountant who can run nearly every aspect of the Dancing Bear’s legitimate operations.
Natascha began working at the Dancing Bear when she was thirteen years old and has outlasted cive owners; she sees Pjotr as just the most recent in the long list. Even though she doesn’t hold a title, in most respects the inn belongs to her and it runs according to her direction. She likes the new Kupchenko since he does not interfere and never pries into her books, although he would cind nothing out of the ordinary if he did. It is much preferable to the way his uncle Stefan ran things, as Natascha felt that he meddled too often and she resented that he gambled away the inn’s then-‐meagre procits.
Natascha hardly has a life outside of the inn and she knows the place as well as anyone, from the ancient forgotten tower room to the secret doors that connect the basements to the underground canals. She is not above using that knowledge to pocket a few coins for the inn. Travellers can be convinced that a storage closet is just a very small room for rent, and smugglers and fugitives will sometimes pay for a temporary hiding place.
She has a girlish infatuation with the dark and handsome Enrico Chlimane, one of the inn’s regular guests. Unusual for the lively and self-‐
assured person she presents in ‘her’ inn, when Natascha sees Chlimane all she can do is stammer and cidget. But he never seems to notice her.
Selba Bork
Retired Spy
Few would guess that this old woman, who spends most evenings sipping
spiced wine by a window in a corner of the Dancing Bear’s drinking hall,
was at one time among Kislev’s most effective torturers and spies. Before
coming to Marienburg she had long been in the service of Tzar Radii Bokha.
When his daughter Katarin took his position, Bork began to think the politics
of the nation were changing too quickly. She relocated to Little Kislev after
declaring to the new Tzar that she had outlived her use and would
respectfully retire.
She does nothing to draw attention to herself. Tall and wiry, with long white
hair tied in a bun, her gaze seems to drift uninterestedly. Her many years of
-‐ 12 -‐
espionage have made her an expert in disguising her striking appearance and
occasionally she still has a need to blend in, as even her retirement is meant
to deceive others.
Bork has numerous contacts in the spy community of Marienburg as well as
the embassies of Bretonnia, the Estalian Kingdoms, Tilea, the Empire and
naturally Kislev. She also regularly visits the Fog Walkers. While her age is
showing and her wits are not as sharp as they were in her youth, she is still
more than capable of keeping tabs on what she considers to be ‘her’
Kislevite community. She even reports to the Kislev secret service from time
to time. Bork has warned them about the possibility of sinister acts at the
Temple of Ursun, believing that whatever is happening there might have a
devastating effect on Kislev-Marienburg relations, though an investigation
has yet to be conducted.
Bork is full of secrets about the great movers of society and has made
enemies of individuals and organisations in several nations. But she is a
methodical and careful spy. She has made it plain to those who might try to
harm her that such an act would only bring them misery, for she has arranged
to have damning documents released in the event of her untimely demise or
disappearance. Should anyone attempt to sabotage her, religious
headquarters and governments throughout the Old World would receive
specific and detailed evidence about the crimes of important people and
institutions, crimes so heinous that they could incite wars and worse if they
were to become widely known.
Of course this just brings her unwanted attention and she is surrounded by
spies from the various cults, powerful merchants, great houses, governments
and others touched by her ‘former’ profession. The spies are watching Bork
in case her actions betray the arrangements she has made for the delivery of
the damning letters, but they are also watching over her, ready to protect her
from anyone foolish enough to attempt to silence her. The spies know that
she is dangerous as long as the letters remain hidden, but cannot afford to let
them fall into other hands. They want the letters so they can protect their
employers, and because they are sure to contain dirt on other organisations.
In fact Bork has prepared eight dossiers and stored them separately in
libraries and with trusted agents all over Marienburg. Each dossier is
incomplete but every piece of information is duplicated in at least three of
the files. In that way, if one dossier were to be destroyed or become lost the
complete file would still be available by compiling the remaining dossiers,
and if one dossier were to be revealed before the proper time the damage
would be relatively minor as much information would be missing.
An extremely diligent and lucky agent might be able to learn the locations of
each dossier: one each in a secret closet in the library of Baron Henryk’s
College, the Cathedral of Verena, with Anders Vesalion, the Shallyan asylum
at Heiligdom, with a civil servant in the New Palace who owes his career to
her, at Tilman’s, in the basement of Harupz’s Tobacco Shop, and with the
captain of the Rose of Erengrad sailing the Sea of Claws.
-‐ 13 -‐
Selba Bork
Spy (ex-interrogator, excheckist)
WS
BS
S
T
46
39
26
29
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
32
71
55
54
A
W
Mag
IP
2
15
-
-
Skills
Academic Knowl. (Law)
Charm +10
Command
Comm. Knowl. (Empire)
Concealment
Disguise
Dodge Blow
Follow Trail
Gossip +20
Heal
Intimidate
Lip Reading
Perception
Perform (Actor)
Search
Secr. Lang. (Thieves’ Tongue)
Shadowing
Silent Move
Sleight of Hand
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Reikspiel
Speak Tilean
Torture
Talents
Acute hearing
Disarm
Flee!
Linguistics
Menacing
Resistance to Magic
Schemer
Strike to Stun
Suave
The Fog Walkers form the
secret service of Marienburg.
The locations where the
dossiers are hidden are
detailed in the unofficial
Marienburg sourcebook.
Ricardo Burtoni and Enrico Chlimane
Furtive treasure hunters
Burtoni and Chlimane have been partners in burglary for several years, claiming to specialise in the
acquisition of rare and fabled treasures from under the noses of people who would rather not part with them.
To date they have only managed to plunder a few widows’ houses, though, as they travelled around the great
beak of the Old World from Tilea to Marienburg – and they only stopped here because they heard a rumour
about an actual hidden treasure.
This pair of Tilean fortune seekers has been renting one of the upstairs rooms in the Dancing Bear complex
for the past four months. Keeping to themselves and ignoring the occasional hostile word and stare, they
stand out like sore thumbs among the Kislevites. They rarely leave the hotel, which has only contributed to
the suspicions about them. Natascha Dyakova learned from Enrico that they are preparing for an expedition
‘in the East’ and that those preparations would take some more time. She has not inquired further.
The two are convinced that Stefan Kupchenko hid a pirate’s treasure somewhere in the Dancing Bear before
he died. Every night for the past four months they’ve come into action, sneaking down cobwebbed halls in
the lesser-known parts of the building. Bit by bit they carefully searched the inn for Stefan’s gold, drawing
maps the whole way, trying to maintain silence and secrecy. The noises from these on-going nightly
activities have renewed the belief in ghosts haunting the Dancing Bear. If they ever get discovered, they’ve
prepared an excuse; they will claim to have gotten lost on the way back to their room after drinking late.
The treasure hunters have been secretly searching quite a bit of the inn by now, but the building is bigger
and more complex than they thought, and opportunities for undisturbed treasure-hunting fewer than they
counted on. They didn’t think that they’d have to stay this long in the inn; their funds are getting low by
now, and the pressure makes the duo prepared to take more drastic measures.
Ricardo Burtoni
Enrico Chlimane
Tomb robber (ex-rogue,
ex-grave robber)
WS
BS
S
T
45
41
39
40
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
40
44
51
41
A
W
Mag
IP
1
14
-
-
Skills
Blather
Charm
Comm. Knowl. (Tilea) +10
Concealment
Drive
Evaluate +10
Gamble
Gossip +20
Perception +20
Performer (Storyteller)
Pick Lock
Read/Write
Scale Sheer Surface +10
Search +20
Secret Signs - Thief
Silent move
Speak Reikspiel
Speak Tilean
Talents
Flee!
Luck
Resistance to Disease
Savvy*
Strongminded*
Streetwise
Trapfinder
Trappings
Leather Jerkin
Lockpick tools
Sword
Dagger
Lucky rabbit’s foot
Tomb robber (exdillettante)
WS
BS
S
T
44
33
34
33
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
37
46
39
34
A
W
Mag
IP
1
14
-
-
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (History)
Blather
Comm. Knowl. (Tilea)
Comm. Knowl. (Emp.) +10
Comm. Knowl. (Bretonnia)
Concealment
Evaluate
Gossip
Navigation
-‐ 14 -‐
Perception +10
Pick Lock
Read/Write +10
Scale Sheer Surface
Search
Silent Move
Speak Breton
Speak Classical +10
Speak Reikspiel +10
Speak Tilean
Trade (Cartographer)
Talents
Coolheaded*
Etiquette
Sixth Sense
Supernumerate
Tunnel Rat
Trappings
Woolen mantle
Two classical books
A purported diary of
Stefan Kupchenko (false,
but Chlimane hasn’t found
that out yet)
Dagger
Other regulars
Vladimir Mozarov (ragman -‐ see bone picker)
A small, rodent-‐like man with large ears and a long nose, Vladi lives in the Warrens. In the course of the day he travels large areas of the city, hoping to cind the odd trinket in rich people’s trash heaps that he could sell to poorer folk or to second-‐hand shops. It doesn’t happen often, though, but if he makes some money, he will spend it in the Dancing Bear.
He usually drinks alone, though. Rummaging through trash has its rewards, but also brings a peculiar, quite distinctive smell that does not wash away easily -‐ even if Vladimir would be a regular user of water and soap, which he isn’t. People who brave the smell will cind that Vladimir knows a lot of what is going on in the northern quarters of the city -‐ all except Elftown.
Aleksei Ekk (Marine sergeant)
Aleksei is usually at sea. Ship captains hire him and his mercenary crew to keep their ships safe from pirates and sea monsters. Or else they join a pirate crew to rob a ship that has declined protection. When not at sea, though, he lives in Marienburg -‐ in the district of Winkelmarkt, for Ekk has married a Wastelander woman who doesn’t feel welcome in Duin. When he gets homesick, though, he crosses the river and goes to the Dancing Bear. The food, the music and the company make him feel like he is back in Kislev again. Fanya Daletsky (Gambler and pickpocket)
A tall, slender redhead with eyes as green as the sea on a stormy day, Fanya decinitely draws attention wherever she goes. And she knows it. She uses her good looks to draw sailors and other travellers, inviting them to a game of cards or dice -‐ „just for the fun of it, nothing serious“. Many a sailor has left the Dancing Bear with good, alcohol-‐clouded memories of a great night at the bar, and only realises when he wakes up with a hell of a hangover how that pretty girl that laughed at his jokes and joined him in his drinks, has all but cleeced him while doing so.
Kira Pasunin (Scribe)
A large woman with white-‐blond hair, Kira has her usual table in the back of the Dancing Bear. And everyone in Little Kislev knows it. Anyone who needs to have a letter or newspaper read, or wants to have a letter written, comes to Kira. As a result, she knows a lot of what goes on in Duin. People know, however that the scribe can be trusted not to gossip about it. They would be surprised to hear that, during her regular visits to the temple, she briefs Father Konstatin about all that she hears.
Kira and Natascha Dyakova are good friends. The waitress lets her use her table at the inn as her ‘ofcice’ and often gives her something to drink or eat ‘on the house’. In return Kira helps Natascha with the bookkeeping of the inn.
Viktor and Georgy Zamyatov (Fishermen)
During the week Viktor and Georgy work hard on their boat, catching cish in the Manaanspoort sea to sell it on the markets in Marienburg. At Marktag and Angestag they sell their cish in the Red Square, and after the market closes they go to the Dancing Bear to have a bite to eat. On Angestag they stay a while longer, since they don’t work on Festag and so won’t have to get up early. Uncharacteristic for Kislevites, the two brothers are open and friendly to foreigners. They have become acquainted with the Burtoni and Chlimane, but the Tileans have since kept to themselves.
Viktor occasionally plays a few games with Fanya Daletsky if she doesn’t have ‘customers’ and surprisingly, can hold his own against her. While Fanya usually wins, it isn’t by much. Viktor is quite proud about it, but Georgy suspects that Fanya makes deliberate mistakes when playing with his brother.
-‐ 15 -‐
The Velvet Lodge
“We’re going to the Bumps, lads! They won’t treat us like we’ve got fleas there just because we’re not
Kislevites. They’ll make us so welcome we’ll never want to leave. Frankly it’s the only reason to visit
Kislevierswijk.”
This cheap brothel is a three-story wooden section of the Dancing Bear complex, drawing in locals and
foreign soldiers in about equal amounts. Its faded wooden sign hangs crookedly from its post, and no one
calls the place by its traditional name anyway; ‘the Bumps’ is how it is known. It is operated by Kara
Dorogoia, who also rents a neighbouring tavern and a number of rooms from Pjotr Kupchenko. A two-story
tower rising above the Velvet Lodge is inhabited by the wizard Rudolf Lichthuis.
Many of Dorogoia’s working girls hail from various corners of the Empire and Bretonnia, while only a few
are natives or Kislevites. Most are young women who fled the droll prospect of spending their lives in a
staid village for the excitement of Marienburg, but the future they found here is dimmer than they imagined.
Dorogoia provides them with means and for making a little money in an uncaring city, but there is no
escaping the unpleasant realities of brothel life: unwanted children, disease, jealousies, scandals. The Velvet
Lodge has its fair share of them all.
The atmosphere is neither lusty nor glamorous as the brothels one might find in a Bretonnian port, but is
instead rather business-like and straightforward. There is no music or perfume in smoky parlours, no lace
and sheer underthings, and indeed no velvet to be found. Patrons are treated like cattle moved through a
slaughterhouse, with nothing superfluous to distract them from what they have come to do and no invitation
to linger.
-‐ 16 -‐
Kara Dorogoia
Madam of the Velvet Lodge
A former prostitute of the Velvet Lodge, Kara Dorogoia became hardened by
the life, losing all empathy and respect for others. She saw her way up as her
way out. In her own ambitious way she rose through the ranks of the
brothel’s operations and eventually murdered the madam. No one challenged
her when she took the job for her own and no one has dared to question her
since.
Today Dorogoia is the powdered tyrant of the Velvet Lodge, a dark-haired
beauty ready to offer a smile to customers just as easily as threaten her girls
with some wretched punishment, and those threats are not idle. Dorogoia has
a pact with Father Konstatin so that any girl who disobeys or rebels against
her, or tries to escape the brothel, will be turned over to the temple. Not for
an ascetic life of piety, though, but as an offering to Gospodin Podvodny.
She knows nothing of the vodyanoi, only that troublemakers never return
from the temple.
Dorogoia met Father Konstatin years ago when he visited the brothel in an
attempt to convert the girls. She would have none of it and sent him straight
back out at knifepoint. After his voyage to Kislev, Konstatin returned with a
different offer, one that would handily solve any of Dorogoia’s discipline
issues. Naturally, the conspirators cannot be seen together and so
communicate through intermediaries. Some are beginning to suspect a love
affair between them, which would explain Konstatin’s withdrawal from
public life, but no one has guessed that they are involved in anything as
sinister as conspiracy to kidnap, torture and murder.
Kara Dorogoia
Innkeeper (ex-servant, excamp follower)
WS
BS
S
T
47
29
33
45
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
52
38
48
46
A
W
Mag
IP
1
15
-
-
Skills
Blather +10
Charm
Comm. Knowl. (Marienburg)
Consume Alcohol
Dodge Blow
Drive
Evaluate +20
Gossip
Haggle +20
Intimidate +10
Perception +10
Search
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Reikspiel
Sleight of Hand +20
Trade (Merchant)
Talents
Dealmaker
Flee!
Fleet Footed
Hardy*
Sixth Sense
Streetwise
Very Resilient*
-‐ 17 -‐
Helene Duchamp
Desperate Prostitute
Helene Duchamp
Camp follower (ex-peasant)
WS
BS
S
T
35
31
31
46
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
43
43
40
53
A
W
Mag
IP
1
14
-
2
Skills
Animal Care +10
Charm
Charm Animal
Concealment
Drive
Gossip +10
Haggle
Outdoor Survival
Perception
Performer (Dancer)
Row
Search
Silent Move
Sleight of Hand
Speak Breton
Speak Reikspiel
Swim
Trade (Herbalist)
Talents
Dealmaker
Flee!
Resistance to Magic
Rover
Sixth Sense
Streetwise
Suave*
Trappings
Sharp knife
At the insistence of her boyfriend Pierre, sixteen year-old Helene ran away
from her family farm in Bretonnia to start a new life with him in
Marienburg. Their arrival in the big city was a disappointment as they came
to understand that the streets are not paved with mithril and that finding
decent work is next to impossible without guild membership. Having a poor
grasp of Reikspiel and no money of their own, Helene and Pierre learned
that they counted for nothing in Marienburg. They survived on the streets for
about a year when Pierre fell severely ill. Seeing no other solution, Helene
joined the corps of prostitutes at the Velvet Lodge in order to help her
beloved.
But there were meagre profits for Helene after madam Dorogoia took her
cut. She left barely enough for food let alone Pierre’s treatments. By that
time he seemed near death, having trusted in some charlatan’s powder that
only made him sicker. Desperately, Helene smuggled him into the brothel
and hid him in a dusty room that had been forgotten in the labyrinth of the
Dancing Bear complex.
It was meant to be a temporary arrangement, as every waking moment she
lived in fear that his coughing or moaning would be overheard. Half a year
later, Pierre’s health has only declined. He is often delirious and sometimes
cannot recognize Helene when she administers new medicines for his
mysterious disease. To their horror his hands have curled into claws, the
nails thick and long. His skin flakes off in large sections and underneath are
strange scales like those on a bird’s legs.
Helene accepts that Pierre is no longer the boy he was, but she does not
understand what he is turning into and continues to test new treatments on
him. At the worst of times he emits a piercing whistle or whine like no
human should be capable of. It is some miracle that this has not drawn more
attention. Pierre vomits black fluid when the pain is at its worst, and his eyes
– Helene cannot bear to look into those reptilian eyes. She dare not risk
taking him out of the Velvet Lodge, nor can she face the wrath of Dorogoia
by telling her the truth or asking for help. So another desperate plan is
beginning to form in her mind. She is preparing to rob a stranger, perhaps a
patron of the brothel, or perhaps that wizard that always looks at her in his
funny way, and use his coin to escape the city with Pierre. It has never
occurred to her that a kind soul might be willing to do so without pay.
-‐ 18 -‐
Rudolf Lichthuis
Lecturer at Baron Henryk’s College
Rudolf Lichthuis works as a lecturer at Baron Henryk’s College of
Navigation and Sea Magicks in Tempelwijk, on the other side of the city. As
a wizard, he could easily manage to live nearly anywhere in Marienburg, but
he chose Duin because of the ‘Night of Luccini’, the great fire that reshaped
the island. Lichthuis sees the new Duin as a monument to the transformative
qualities of fire and is convinced that the place still draws the red winds of
magic for that reason. The wizard has found that the region near the brothel
is particularly good for magical study. The winds of Aqshy are concentrated
around it, presumably because of the passions generated there. In the winds
he has seen traces of an alluring strange-coloured wind of magic, a breeze of
magical energy he has yet to identify. What he does not know is that this
magical wind emanates from the vodyanoi living under the Temple of Ursun.
Rudolf Lichthuis
While he has no strong interest in the services offered, Lichthuis is friendly
with some of the Velvet Lodge’s girls and they sometimes tease him as he
uses their stairways to reach his flat. He chooses to ignore their misery and
tries to stay well clear of Dorogoia, who charges him a guilder each month
for the privilege of passing through her brothel. Despite himself, lately
Lichthuis has become fond of one of Dorogoia’s girls: fair-haired slender
Helene Duchamp. He suspects there may be Elven blood in her veins. The
wizard is thinking about ways to help her escape the desolate conditions of
the brothel but has not yet figured a way to do so without risking his own
reputation and career. He doesn’t know about Helene’s boyfriend either, a
situation that will certainly complicate his efforts in this direction.
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Magic)
Channeling +10
Comm. Knowl. (Empire)
Comm. Knowl. (Marienburg)
Gossip
Intimidate
Magical Sense +10
Perception
Read/Write
Search
Speak Classical
Speak Reikspiel
Swim
Elves are a topic of special interest to Lichthuis, to the point that he grooms
and dresses himself in the fashions of Marienburg Elves and speaks phrases
in Elthárin. His lectures, no matter the subject, always meander toward
Elven history or culture in some way and his home is full of artefacts and
artworks associated with that fair race.
He visits Vassily’s Emporium at least once a week, ever in the hunt for
enchanted objects and Elven goods. So far his most interesting find has been
a ring of white metal, which be believes to be of Elven design, that gives the
wearer a slight shock when he points north. Lichthaus is sure the ring houses
even more powers but his research and experiments have been fruitless.
Lichthuis commutes to Baron Henryk’s College of Navigation and Sea
Magicks with the Star of the North.
-‐ 19 -‐
Journeyman wizard (exapprentice wizard)
WS
BS
S
T
34
35
26
43
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
38
61
63
36
A
W
Mag
IP
1
15
2
-
Talents
Aethyric Attunement
Arcane Lore (Fire)
Meditation
Mimic
Petty Magic (Arcane)
Savvy*
Very Resilient*
Trappings
Elven Ring of Navigation
Grimoire
Writing Kit
Spells
Glowing Light (petty magic)
Sleep (petty magic)
The Lore of Aqshy - the
elemental spell list (those in
the rulebook)
The White Spirit Distillery
Aleksei Korsakov
“Wonderful taste, that. I daresay this may be better than what they make
back home. Can you believe it was produced here in our very own Klein
Kislev?”
Merchant (ex-rogue, extradesman)
WS
BS
S
T
40
33
33
39
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
38
60
51
61
A
W
Mag
IP
1
15
-
-
Skills
Blather
Charm +10
Comm. Knowl. (The Empire)
Evaluate +10
Gamble
Gossip +20
Haggle +20
Perception +10
Read/Write
Ride
Search
Secr. Lang. (Guild Tongue) +10
Speak Reikspiel +10
Trade (Distiller)
Trade (Merchant) +10
Talents
Ambidextrous
Dealmaker
Luck
Public Speaking
Streetwise
Suave*
Super Numerate
“What they’re doing in there is dangerous. One of these days they’re going
to blow up half the island with their alchemy.”
“Saw the label and couldn’t help myself, milord. I know you got to lock me
up in the stocks now for what I done, but I still say it was worth it. Best and
drunkest week of my life.”
The brothers Aleksei and Leonid Korsakov established the only vodka
distillery in Marienburg, and the only one on this side of the Empire, just
about twenty years ago. Not only is their vodka good, it is among the best
and the reason is not just the brothers’ attention to craftsmanship. Behind the
barred gates of the distillery serving sprites – poleviki, domovoy and others
– toiling away at the furnaces and copper boilers to produce a libation some
consider perfect. White Spirit vodka is one of the jewels in Marienburg’s
crown, a drink of choice among its high society and an export in high
demand. It is joked that noblemen in Altdorf and Talabheim will sell their
cousins for a barrel of White Spirit.
The distillery occupies a point of land on Duin’s northwest corner, the site of
the former slaughterhouse overlooking the Red Square. The old cattle yard is
now a garden that yields rare Lustrian potatoes and other ingredients
specially selected by the Korsakovs and their spirit workers. Not
surprisingly, only the brothers and a handful of trusted employees are ever
seen on the property and visitors are invariably turned away. The secret of
White Spirit’s success remains hidden for now.
-‐ 20 -‐
Aleksei Korsakov
Vodka Salesman
Portly Aleksei is the natural salesman of the family. All of the innkeepers,
tavern- and alehouse owners of Marienburg know him well. His round
sweating face is always smiling, his fat fingers are quick to hand over
gratuities and pick up cakes, and his belly often shakes with laughter at some
lewd story he is telling. His overflowing charm has paved the way for
lucrative arrangements where others have failed to even get in the door. It
certainly helps that the product he represents is of unrivalled quality, but
Aleksei so relishes the art of the deal that he typically waits until the end of a
long spiel before revealing that White Star is his brand.
What happens after the handshake is of no concern to him, as he is only
interested in celebrating to excess. He gets up to all the usual trouble – rich
foods, intoxicants of all kinds, foreign women never mind their marriage
status. This leaves brother Leonid to attend to the dull details and paperwork,
and he does not approve of Aleksei’s irresponsible whoring at all. It is a
constant source of nagging and arguments between the two but neither of
them expects a change in habit any time soon.
Leonid ‘Long Len’ Korsakov
Vodka Distiller
Long Len stands fully seven feet tall and has lean features, in sharp contrast
to his rotund brother Aleksei. He hides behind an unruly mop of hair and
wears spectacles, and has a gentle and soft-spoken manner, also quite unlike
his brother. Kind-hearted and generous, he relies on Aleksei’s forceful
personality to score new contracts while he gladly sees to the bookkeeping
and meeting the needs of the magical beings in the distillery. As a buyer,
however, he is less than shrewd. Even Aleksei has berated him for buying
wheat and pure water for far too high a price.
The rituals he performs and the offerings he makes to the vodka-loving
spirits were taught to him by Baba Dasha to whom he pays a handsome fee
and visits regularly for advice. She warns Leonid that his brother’s
recklessness clashes with the Ancient Way. It has the potential to disrupt the
nature spirits, compromising the quality of the vodka and their entire
enterprise.
-‐ 21 -‐
Leonid Korsakov
Artisan (ex-tradesman, exburgher)
WS
BS
S
T
30
27
48
46
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
57
51
49
36
A
W
Mag
IP
1
13
-
-
Skills
Animal Care
Drive
Evaluate +10
Gossip
Haggle
Perception +20
Read/Write +10
Search
Secr. Lang. (Guild Tongue) +10
Speak Reikspiel +10
Trade (Distiller) +20
Talents
Artistic
Dealmaker
Savvy*
Strongminded*
Very Strong*
Leonid Barzhoi
“Steady as the North Star” – Marienburg idiom for something tardy and
unreliable
Ferryman (ex-seaman)
WS
BS
S
T
42
40
43
42
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
46
32
32
26
A
W
Mag
IP
1
13
-
-
Skills
Comm. Knowl. (Sea of Claws)
Consume Alcohol
Dodge Blow
Gossip +10
Haggle
Perception
Row
Sail
Scale Sheer Surface
Secr. Lang. (Sailors’ Cant)
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Norse
Speak Reikspiel
Swim
Talents
Hardy*
Marksman*
Resistance to Poison
Seasoned Traveller
Strike Mighty Blow
Street Fighting
Very Resilient*
Trappings
Wooden amulet to ward off
bad luck
Peg leg
Information on the stops of the
Star of the North can be found
in both the official and the
unofficial Marienburg
sourcebooks.
Doodkanaal is a run-down
quarter of Marienburg.
The Star of the North is a flat-bottomed barge that keeps an irregular ferry
service along the Rijksweg, the main stream of the Reik that divides the city
into two parts. The ten-meter boat can hold a dozen passengers comfortably,
but is more likely to be crammed with twice that number on deck, not
including the two-man crew.
The captain and oarsman is ‘One-Leg Len’ Leonid Barzhoi, a grizzled
boatman with a reputation for being late. Janus Langstaart sees to the
passengers and other chores on board and handles the sails when necessary.
One-Leg Len usually follows a route from Rijkspoort heading north via the
Mariusplein in Paleisbuurt to Frederick's Square in Guilderveld. There the
barge crosses the Reik to Tempelwijk and returns back to Little Kislev
making stops in the Suiddock, Winkelmarkt and Tarnopol's Clock Tower in
Kruiersmuur. The schedule changes with the tides and weather, or when
passengers pay Len extra to deliver them to locations off the normal course.
Bidding wars sometimes break out on the deck of the ship if different
passengers are in a hurry to go to widely separated destinations. This all
makes for an unreliable and sometimes expensive service.
Passengers would have abandoned the Star of the North for better-run ferries
if there were any real competitors. However, accidents always seem to befall
other ferrymen and their boats. One-Leg Len shrugs off accusations of foul
play, blaming ‘their poor steering’ for everything from irreparable leaks to
food poisoning to surprise inspections by Dockmaster Kirmasov during peak
traffic hours.
Leonid ‘One-Leg Len’ Barzhoi
Captain of the Star of the North
“Next stop: Frederick’s Square. That is, unless anyone is in a hurry to get
somewhere else.”
“Doodkanaal is a ward full of mutants, every last one of them. They should
burn the whole place down and anyone who tries to escape should be thrown
back into the fire. The only reason Doodkanaal still exists is because the
Upper Ten get rich from it. Did you know they sacrifice little mutant children
to their god Handrich on an altar in a secret cellar under the temple?”
-‐ 22 -‐
Maimed in battle against pirates, Barzhoi settled in Little Kislev and sank his
injury compensation payment into one failing business after another. Long
years on the sea had not prepared him for the complexities of commerce, try
as he might. He was convinced that Marienburgers, unable to tolerate a
Kislevite enjoying success of any kind, conspired against them. Desperate
and down to his last handful of pennies, Barzhoi found himself praying
tearfully at the Temple of Ursun. Others were to blame for his misfortune, he
was sure, and he merely needed to tell the True Gods – those of Kislev of
course – why he deserved better. Father Konstatin took notice of him, as did
Gospodin Podvodny, and the sailor’s luck seemed to change almost at once.
Money that he had invested in White Spirit vodka was suddenly paying huge
dividends, more than enough to purchase the barge Star of the North and set
him back on his one remaining foot, so to speak. But his newfound fortune
has not put an end to his boorish seafarer’s manner and constant paranoid
soliloquys on all facets of life. Customers are treated rudely and made
uncomfortable by his rants, and he pretends not to hear their complaints
about rough boat handling, delays and detours. All of this should have put
him out of business again by this time, but the gods have blessed him with
success by way of a dearth of competition, all victims of accidents he has no
part in but is happy to reap the benefits from.
Janus Langstaart
Boatman
WS
BS
S
T
38
31
34
41
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
51
43
33
30
A
W
Mag
IP
1
13
-
-
Skills
Gossip
Navigation
Perception
Row
Sail
Scale Sheer Surface
Secret Lang. (Sailors’ Cant)
Speak Reikspiel
Swim +10
Talents
Excellent Vision
Lightning Reflexes*
Orientation
Water Rat (as tunnel rat or
alley cat, but in/on the water)
Janus Langstaart
Deckhand on the Star of the North
Young Janus Langstaart was raised in the Orphanage of St. Rutha’s, a fact he
has never revealed to his employer One-Leg Len. Indeed, it would not be
easy to convey this information, as Langstaart is both illiterate and mute. He
communicates with whistles and gestures well enough to perform his duties
aboard the Star of the North, and anyway Len talks enough for the both of
them and then some. As the barge’s sail-handler, Langstaart is obedient and
knowledgeable, but Len most appreciates the fact that he never complains
about the low wages. The passengers consider him a sweet boy and pity him,
but above all he seeks to fit in, something he knows he can never do.
Langstaart is very sensitive to the behaviour of the boat and has a good sense
of the wind and currents, being ‘born to the sea’ as some might say. Only
Hendrik Waterstand, the clerk at the Registry, knows that this trait is more
than simply natural talent – secretly Langstaart is a mutant with flipper-like
feet and an extraordinary swimmer. He has perfected the tricky act of
climbing the barge’s mast while wearing shoes and goes to other lengths to
hide his deformity.
-‐ 23 -‐
The Orphanage of St. Rutha’s
is located on the island of
Luydenhoek, in Suiddock. It is
led by Sister Marianne, a
Shallyan priestess who
secretly hides mutant children
in the basement of the
building.
The Registry
Lotte
Cat burglar (ex-thief, exscribe)
WS
BS
S
T
41
40
34
39
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
60
49
43
43
A
W
Mag
IP
1
16
-
-
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Maritime)
Charm
Concealment +10
Evaluate +10
Gossip
Haggle
Perception +20
Pick Lock +10
Read/Write +10
Search +10
Scale Sheer Surface +10
Secr. Lang. (Guild Tongue)
Secret Signs (Thief)
Silent Move +10
Sleight of Hand
Speak Breton
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Reikspiel
Trade (Calligrapher)
Talents
Acute Hearing
Alley Cat
Night Vision
Linguistics
Super Numerate
Trapfinder
Van den Nijmenk's Ships Register Office, better known as The Registry, is a
large stone building a short distance from the Gold Square. Here the captains
of the fleet of House Van den Nijmenk, and all ships chartered by the house,
must report when arriving or departing from Marienburg. The clerks record
the important details of the ships, their schedules and cargo manifests, and
keep careful accounts of where cargoes are warehoused and for how long.
The ground floor of the Registry is the counter office where captains must
make their reports in large ledgers. A blackboard against one wall displays a
list of all of the vessels of the fleet and their status. A small office at the back
is reserved for the Registry’s three clerks and the current books, which are
brought out only for a short time to make changes and then put back for
safekeeping.
Upstairs is the office of Hendrik Waterstand who manages the Registry and
oversees its three full-time clerks. There are also two locked rooms: the large
library where the ledgers from years past are archived, and the small treasury
room. Waterstand is the only person on site who holds keys and he has
special permission to carry a loaded pistol to better protect them.
Lotte
Clerk by day, Cat Burglar by night
Lotte is a tall and spindly eighteen year old with an almost unnatural
numeracy and a vast and agile memory. The latter traits serve her well in her
position as junior clerk at the Registry; the former play a large part in her
success as a thief in the night.
It was Hendrik Waterstand who recognized her gifts when she was still one
of the orphans living at Saint Rutha’s. He found her a room to rent at a
sailors’ hostel in Duin and secured her a job at his office, where she has
excelled with his guidance. She has become an invaluable member of his
staff, often able to recall the exact page and line of any given ship’s record
from the past few years.
But Lotte leads a double life, one that Waterstrand would be shocked to
discover. He knows that she is a mutant possessing a second pair of clawed
limber arms that she hides under her clothes and has canine teeth that grow
into fangs if she does not file them regularly. At night she throws off her
disguise and travels by rooftop and balcony through the city, picking out
easy targets for burglarising. Though still a novice at the criminal’s trade, she
has become a successful cat burglar, frequently supplying Pjotr Kupchenko
of the Dancing Bear Inn with stolen goods to fence.
-‐ 24 -‐
Hendrik Waterstand
Senior Clerk at the Registry
“Captain, you say that you sailed directly from Erengrad a month ago with a
shipment of snowhides and amber. But the records show that your ship can
hold twice the cargo that you claim to have unloaded here, and the route to
Erengrad takes no more than three weeks in poor weather. So, would you
care to tell me what really happened?”
Small, plump, balding and well into his fifties, Hendrik Waterstand is the
model of a desk-bound bureaucrat. He is an efficient bookkeeper, literate and
numerate, gifted at organization and possessing a phenomenal memory. He
devised and implemented the system used by House Van den Nijmenk that
ensures the Registry has all of the pertinent information about ships and
shipments close at hand. Perhaps that is the reason Waterstand does not feel
any particular guilt about the small percentage that skims from the trade.
He is in the ideal position for a little embezzling, but he is not motivated by
greed. Instead, he donates the ill-gotten profits to the Orphanage of Saint
Rutha’s. Waterstand is one of the few individuals who know that Sister
Marijke hides and protects mutant children in the orphanage. He learned this
when his six-year old niece Klaasje lost her parents in a violent mugging.
The family had taken great pains to conceal the third eye peeking from the
back of Klaasje’s head, and while Waterstand did not have the time or
patience to care for her himself, good friends steered him toward Saint
Rutha’s. He visits Klaasje at least once a week and he always has a gift for
her and sweets to share with the other children.
Money that he had been pocketing from the Registry no longer seemed
important to him after the tragedy. He now helps the orphanage in whatever
way he can, usually by donating cash but his position also helps him find
work for orphans with minor and easy-to-hide mutations when they grow old
enough to look after themselves. Lotte, one of the clerks at the Registry, is
one such person, and Janus Langstaart of the Star of the North is another.
Trouble has found Waterstand, however. Spies and insiders from the Guild
We’ve Never Heard Of have uncovered the senior clerk’s embezzling and
have resorted to blackmailing him, threatening to expose his fraud to Van
den Nijmenk unless he pays the Guild a share. He has made a couple of
payments to them but their agents are now demanding more. Waterstand has
been using all of his bookkeeping ingenuity and improvisation to hide his
fraud, but he knows it cannot go on much longer before his superiors
become suspicious. The looming risk of discovery has made him anxious of
late as he is quickly running out of ideas.
-‐ 25 -‐
Hendrik Waterstand
Scribe (ex-burgher)
WS
BS
S
T
35
28
31
33
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
43
51
42
37
A
W
Mag
IP
1
12
-
-
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Maritime)
Evaluate
Gossip
Haggle
Perception
Read/Write +10
Search
Secret Lang. (Guild tongue)
Speak Classical
Speak Reikspiel +20
Talents
Dealmaker
Linguistics
Savvy*
Super Numerate
The Warrens
The eastern stretch of Little Kislev is dominated by buildings three or four stories tall, their overhanging
upper stories casting a permanent gloom onto the broad avenues and web of narrow roads. Huts, market
stalls and ramshackle dwellings spill out into the streets; many are too cluttered for carts and wagons to slip
through.
The Warrens were once a maze of warehouses, but most have been converted and subdivided into homes for
the downtrodden. A couple of the old storehouses have gained new lives as sailors’ hostels. Many are
disused and in danger of collapsing, some leaning perilously on their neighbours. A handful of muddy open
lots in the Warrens are all that remain of some ruined buildings, their wood and stone reclaimed for fresh
purposes elsewhere, although in some cases the foundations and cellars remain.
Visitors may notice that vermin are rare in the Warrens, contrary to its general appearance. The place teems
with stray cats, which are their own sort of nuisance, but they keep the mice and rats out of sight. One is
wise to ask no questions about the skewered roasted meats or goulash that can be bought on the street.
-‐ 26 -‐
The Trident Alehouse
“Of course it’s still moving. That’s how you know it’s fresh!”
“Get out. Don’t ask why. If you knew why, you wouldn’t be getting thrown
out.”
On any given night the Trident will be the most crowded drinking hall in the
Warrens, full of the vulgar jokes and laughter of boatmen and sailors. The
walls display dozens of detailed scale model ships, and the beverage
selection is second to none. Every day of the week there is a different
‘forbidden act’ and no posting or announcement is made about it, but
breaking the daily rule usually results in severe abuse, if not a long-term
banishment from the premises. Locals quickly learn the routine: no gambling
today, no wine the next, no dancing, no cursing except in Kislevian, red hats
or no hats, and so on.
The Trident is also one of the island’s best eateries. Shipskin is fanatical
about food ingredients and enjoys spending his mornings at market. Baked
fish, smoked oysters and onion soup are always on the menu, but Skipskin
delights in creating meals to test the most iron of stomachs such as his
infamous weekly special of thrice-peppered lambs’ brains in cold honey
jelly.
Shipskin
Owner of the Trident Alehouse
“Oh, you want to substitute toast in place of the soup? Get out.”
The Trident’s owner, known only as Shipskin, is a beastly large man with a
distinctly Kislevite manner and speech patterns. Many would be surprised to
learn that he was born in the Warrens. He took to the sea at a very young age,
travelled the Old World as a ship’s cook and enjoyed every moment of it. He
sought land only when his knees could no longer handle the constant rocking
of the waves, but he yearns to be back on the water. Shipskin speaks five
languages fluently and seems to know the name of every alcoholic beverage
no matter how obscure. He is an encyclopaedia of ship and boat types as
well and can recite the names of the capitals of every province he has visited.
Without any hired help at the Trident, he is hands-on in all aspects of the
tavern’s operations whether it is cooking, taking orders, cleaning the privy or
pigpen, breaking up fights or removing unwanted customers. This leaves a
lot of blind spots for dangerous and unlawful acts under his roof, which is
one of the reasons he has instituted the ‘forbidden acts’ policy – he believes
the alehouse patrons watch each other more closely that way.
-‐ 27 -‐
Shipskin
Tradesman (ex-seaman)
WS
BS
S
T
47
32
49
41
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
45
46
39
26
A
W
Mag
IP
2
15
-
4
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Geography)
Ac. Knowl. (Ship
Identification)
Animal Care
Comm. Knowl. (The Empire)
Comm. Knowl. (Norsca)
Comm. Knowl. (Tilea)
Consume Alcohol
Dodge Blow
Drive
Evaluate
Haggle
Perception
Read/Write
Row
Sail
Scale Sheer Surface
Speak Breton
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Norse
Speak Reikspiel
Speak Tilean
Swim
Trade (innkeeper)
Trade (Cook)
Talents
Savvy*
Seasoned Traveller
Street Fighting
Strike Mighty Blow
Vassily’s Emporium
“Exclusive, exquisite rarities from overseas. Satisfaction guaranteed. Well, not literally.”
“Don’t throw that junk away. Sell it to Vassily. Tell him you got it from an Arabyan trader years ago. The
more details you give him, the better the price. Make up something good.”
This curiosity-and-pawn shop in the Warrens was once a warehouse, and aside from a simple wooden sign
its drab exterior still gives no hint at the treasures inside. But Vassily’s Emporium is famous (and infamous)
throughout Marienburg, one of the premier dealers of rare and exotic goods from abroad, as well as
worthless junk deposited by locals. Lovers browsing for memorable gifts, wealthy burghers with esoteric
tastes and wizards hunting for bizarre spell ingredients all gravitate toward Vassily’s.
Vassily Ignatieff, the shop’s owner, is a legend in the maritime community along the Old World’s northern
coasts. Sailors and captains know that he pays well for unusual objects from distant harbours and
occasionally he offers them commissions to locate specific items that customers have requested specially.
Much of his income comes from his role as pawnbroker for the ward. He also offers loans, though no one
would call his interest rates reasonable.
Like any busy curio shop the selection changes daily. Provenance is impossible establish for most of the
oddities and Ignatieff makes no special effort to learn their histories or establish authenticity. This he leaves
to the customer to determine, although he has a gift for pointing out and heightening aspects of his wares
that make them seem more valuable than they probably are. Whether it is a silver-plated dagger from the
Estalian Kingdoms, a warding amulet from Tilea, a headdress wrought by Lizardmen in faraway Lustria, a
jar of spice from Ind or just an heirloom ring of no worldly significance, Vassily will talk about it as though
it were the greatest find in history.
-‐ 28 -‐
Vassily Ignatieff
Owner of Vassily's Emporium
While the origins of his wares may be questionable, Ignatieff is a Kislevite
through and through. He is tall and broad-shouldered, with a great red beard
and long hair kept in a braid. He has a rolling Kislev accent and slips back
into his native tongue when excited – but he is such a masterful storyteller
that listeners hang on his every word anyway. Visitors to Vassily’s Emporium
can get Ignatieff to retell his adventures as a young mariner on the Sea of
Claws, where he served aboard merchant barks, a pirate ship and an arctic
explorer. He can name the brothels of every port on that coast and enrapt
listeners when describing some of the monsters that lurk in the sea.
There is one story he has never told, however – the story of his last voyage.
He is still troubled by the series of events that led to him being chained to the
mast, watching helplessly as the captain and first mate ritually sacrificed the
crew. They were chanting as they slaughtered the deckhands one by one, an
act designed to awaken some nameless horror from the depths of the ocean.
Ignatieff could only scream and struggle against his bindings as a crustacean
monstrosity arose from the water, surprising even the two men who had
summoned it. Its great claws smashed the ship to pieces. The mast was
shattered and Ignatieff was knocked into the swell. He can remember nothing
else until days later after he was discovered floating alive and brought aboard
an Elven trader en route to Marienburg. He stepped off in that port and vowed
to never return to the sea.
Starting a new life in the city was easier than Ignatieff expected. Properties in
Little Kislev were cheap at the time and he used his maritime contacts to start
a collection of odds and ends. Through strength of personality he secured a
steady clientele and gradually offered a wider selection of goods and services.
It has made him among the most successful businesses on the island.
Vassily Ignatieff
Tradesman (ex-marine, exsmuggler)
WS
BS
S
T
45
41
42
41
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
39
45
41
50
A
W
Mag
IP
2
14
-
4
Skills
Comm. Knowl. (M’burg)
Comm. Knowl. (Sea of Claws)
Consume Alcohol
Dodge Blow
Evaluate +10
Gossip +20
Haggle +10
Intimidate
Perception +10
Read/Write
Row +20
Search
Secr. Lang. (Thieves’ Tongue)
Secr. Lang. (Sailors’ Cant)
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Reikspiel
Swim
Trade (shopkeeper)
Talents
Dealmaker
He may never forget his brush with destiny on the Sea of Claws, nor the faces Disarm
Savvy*
and markings on the warlocks who brought the daemon up from the brine.
The markings were especially distinctive, a scrolling pattern that he has seen Streetwise
Strike Mighty Blow
tattooed on the arms of many other sailors over the years. It chills him to think Strike to Stun
Suave
that there is an entire cult of seafaring daemon-worshippers. It is a secret he
keeps with them, as he never wants to give them a reason to use their powers
in his presence again. One cultist who attempted to recruit him met with a
quick end and now rests in a watery grave, but Ignatieff worries that this may
not be the last time he deals with such evil.
He no longer pays his respects to the sea-gods, for how could they be of any
use against monsters like those he has seen. As long as he is on land, however,
he will pray to Ursun and attend the local temple regularly. He has a sense
that the powers vested in Konstatin’s temple are actively protecting him from
his enemies and the horrors that haunt him, but could not possibly know that
this is more than just faith.
-‐ 29 -‐
Insanity
Paranoia
Baba Dasha
Dislocated Hag Witch
Baba Dasha
Hag witch (ex-wise woman)
WS
BS
S
T
30
31
30
41
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
32
54
56
41
A
W
Mag
IP
1
15
2
4
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Spirits) +10
Charm
Comm. Knowl. (Troll Country)
Command +10
Consume Alcohol
Gossip +10
Heal +10
Intimidate +10
Magical Sense +10
Perception
Prepare Poison +10
Speak Arc. Lang. (Magick)
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Ungol
Trade (Herbalist) +10
Talents
Coolheaded*
Fast Hands
Meditation
Strongminded
Trappings
A curved dagger
Bone amulets to placate spirits
Assorted herbs
Magic
Petty Magic (hag lore)
Lesser magic spells:
* Move
* Magic Lock
* Silence
"I have made a potion from your urine together with a drop of nightshade, goat's blood and fermented juniper berries. Drink this every night before bed and I assure you that you won't be troubled by your dreams again."
"After my communing with the poltergeists, you’ll be glad to know they have consented to leave your house – but only if you stop beating that poor grandchild of yours. And let me add that if you lay another Jinger on her, not only will the noisy spirits come back but I will personally see to it that they are joined by nastier brethren of many kinds. Understand?”
Frail and elderly Baba Dasha is a rare cigure, a hag witch that lives outside the icy wastes of Kislev. She is fully dedicated to the community of Little Kislev and feels that they are as much her clock as any priest would feel toward their congregation. In return, she expects moral behaviour and a faithful attempt to adhere to the Ancient Ways. To this end she and Father Konstatin meet occasionally and discuss the best path forward for the inhabitants of Duin. Together they translate the old laws of the steppes as they apply to everyday life in the modern metropolis and mutually agree to punishments for infractions.
Her powers as a witch have been put to good use in Little Kislev. The nature spirits of Duin have been tamed and bound to the island through her magic. It was she who placed the domovoy in the White Spirit Distillery, and there are others around Duin that she keeps in check.
Like any witch with real authority she can be overbearing and tends to assert her wisdom without listening to the concerns of detractors. She believes that her point of view is always correct and will repeat her arguments ever more shrilly until the opposition backs down. Konstatin has learned to nod silently and accept her judgments in most cases.
But Dasha does not know about the wicked spirit Gospodin Podvodny or the sacricices being made to it, and if she did she would likely take sides against it and anyone aiding it. Such a rift between Konstatin and Baba Dasha – and their followers – could potentially bring ruin to the island again should the temple ever lose its moral high ground. She has guessed that the priest is hiding something but assumes it is a mundane failing such as a romantic affair, and does plan to address it at some point and set things right.
Dasha makes her home in a converted warehouse in the Warrens and uses it as a refuge and treatment centre for those who seek her help and guidance. The house contains a motley assortment of knickknacks, the furniture covered by patchwork spreads in clashing colours. A cauldron full of some malodourous brew hangs over an undying cire that cills the house with a haze of blue smoke. One wall is crowded with baskets of fragrant herbs and spices, and next to these is a cupboard overloaded with jars of various powders, poultices and stranger things such as -‐ 30 -‐
chicken legs and eyes pickled in vinegar – Dasha insists that they are merely goat eyes, but anyone who examines them closely will conclude that they are most likely human.
Dasha longs to return to Kislev but cannot, so she remains in Little Kislev because it reminds her of home. Her path to becoming a witch began when she lost her daughter Catharina at age twelve, taken by a lingering sickness for which there was no known cure. Dasha had learned just enough of the witching ways to attempt to revive Catharina from the brink of death, with only partial success. What she raised from that deathbed was a body with none of the life and personality of her daughter. It was a husk, a ghoulish thing, a walking corpse. It took all of Dasha’s strength to contain the abomination. Unsummoning was impossible, and killing the thing outright was unthinkable – it still looked so much like Catharina. The corpse-‐girl followed Dasha’s movements, mimicked her and copied her gestures, and had a semblance of life but was nothing more than a puppet made animate by dark forces. It was as torturous time and Dasha eventually cled from one village to the next, only to be followed by what was once her daughter.
In desperation, Dasha cled Kislev by ship and made her way to Marienburg. The relocation seems to have done the trick, as the shell that was once her daughter has not pursued her. At least, she has not yet found Dasha. In her bones, the witch feels that the walking-‐dead is still roaming the earth, perhaps crossing the mainland to be reunited with her, as if their connection cannot be severed by any distance.
-‐ 31 -‐
Arkady Gogol
Ghost Hunter
Arkady Gogol
Exorcist (ex-priest, exflagellant, ex-zealot)
WS
BS
S
T
39
39
48
45
Ag
Int
WP
Fel
44
57
72
44
A
W
Mag
IP
2
17
2
8
Skills
Ac. Knowl. (Ghosts) +20
Channelling +10
Charm
Command (Ghosts)
Gossip +10
Heal
Intimidate +20
Magical Sense +10
Perception +10
Read/Write +10
Speak Arc. Lang. (Magick) +10
Speak Kislevarian
Speak Reikspiel
Swim
Talents
Coolheaded*
Fearless
Hardy
Menacing
Night Vision
Stout-Hearted
Spells
Exorcism (T.N. 11)
Dispel (T.N. 13)
Trappings
Empty bottle for trapping
ghosts
Amulet (+2 to Exorcism spell)
Insanity
Hatred of ghosts
Rudolf Aasenberg is the owner
of The Prince’s Rest in
Goudberg, Marienburg’s most
luxurious, most expensive inn.
One would never suppose by looking at Arkady Gogol that he was raised on
the Ungol steppes and developed a knack for hunting ghosts there. He is a
scrawny man with a crooked face and unkempt silver hair, with yellow eyes
that peek out under bushy eyebrows and a wispy excuse for a beard dangling
from his chin. But there is a twinkle in those eyes, and his mouth seems
caught in a perpetual snarl. A ragged black surcoat is thrown over his
hunched back and he leans on an ebony walking stick covered in filigreed
arcane symbols – all clues to his true profession as a ghost hunter.
Though many Marienburgers think themselves too rational to believe in
spirits and poltergeists, they might reconsider when they experience a string
of bad luck or inexplicable knocks under the floorboards. When they want to
change their luck or shoo away the evil spirits, inevitably they will be
directed to Gogol. Some hold that he is a worthless charlatan and they would
not be entirely wrong.
But Gogol really does know a great deal about the supernatural and has on
occasion broken magical curses, banished real ghosts and once exorcised an
actual daemon. How he does this is a mystery even to him, and some
whisper behind his back that it is his legendary ugliness that chases away
eldritch trouble. With guttural noises, ridiculous gestures and silly props,
Gogol can neutralise a malicious ghost and trap it within a physical vessel.
But most the time, what his clients describe as curses or ghosts have entirely
ordinary causes, though he would be bankrupt if he left it at that. To ensure
that clients are satisfied, he carries out the charade of creating ethereal
barriers by placing candles or amulets around the ‘haunted’ location or
person and leaving instructions to sprinkle water at certain times of night, to
avoid eating white breads for a month, and so on.
Gogol lives in a damp cellar apartment in an alley in the Warrens, a room
where the sun never shines. Thick black curtains block what feeble light
might slip through the narrow windows set at street level, high on the rotting
plastered walls. The home is illuminated only by rows of glass jars and
bottles crowding the cabinets and shelves; they glow in sinister greens,
yellows and violets. These are the ghosts Gogol has trapped throughout his
career. He taunts and mocks them, for he knows that they cannot escape their
tiny prisons, and he delights as the angered ghosts flare more brightly.
One of Gogol’s recent clients is Rudolf Aasenberg of the Prince’s Rest.
Aasenberg is noticeably displeased with the ghost hunter’s services,
however. Gogol always seems in need of a bath and his stink and generally
odd appearance offended guests almost as much as the strange events that
have plagued that place. The costly ritual and spiel left Aasenberg fuming,
and after all of that the hauntings have not gone away.
-‐ 32 -‐
Conversion table to WFRP3
ST
TO
AG
Int
WP
Fel
Da
m
Soa
k
Def
A/C/E
Wnd
Trsh
Stan
ce
Thr
Career
Sergei
Kirmasov
3
3w
3
3w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/1
12
C2
1
Boatman,
Burgher
Father
Konstatin
3
3
3
3
4w
4w
3
1
0
3/3/1
12
C1
1
Initiate,
Demagogue
Gospodin
Podvodny
4w
3
4
1
3
1
7
3
2
5/0/2
13
R1
4
Irina
Khodorova
3
3
3
3
4w
4w
3
1
0
3/3/1
12
C1
1
Initiate,
Zealot
Pjotr
Kupchenko
3
3w
3
3w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C2
1
Performer,
Burgher
Natascha
Dyakova
3
3w
3
3
3w
3
3
4w
0
4/3/0
10
R1
1
Servant
Selba Bork
3
3w
3
3w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C2
1
Agent,
Bailiff
Ricardo
Burtoni
3w
3
3w
2
3
2
3
1
0
3/3/1
14
R2
2
Grave Robber
Enrico
Chlimane
4
1
3w
2
3
2
3
1
0
3/3/1
14
R2
2
Grave Robber
Kara
Dorogoia
2
3
3
3w
3w
4w
3
1
0
0/5/3
11
C2
1
Servant,
Merchant
Helene
Duchamp
3
3
3
3
3w
3w
3
1
0
4/3/0
10
R1
1
Servant
Rudolf
Lichthuis
3
3
3
3
3w
3w
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
R1
2
Wizard,
Acolyte
Pierre
3w
4
4
4
2
3
2
1
0
4/2/1
14
R1
2
Commoner
(mutant)
Aleksei
Korsakov
2
3
3
3w
3w
4w
3
1
0
0/5/3
11
C2
1
Burgher,
Pedlar
Leonid
Korsakov
3
3w
3
3
3w
3
3
1
0
4/3/0
10
R1
1
Burgher
Leonid
Barzhoi
3
3w
3
3w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C2
1
Boatman
Janus
Langstaart
3w
3
3w
2
3
2
3
1
0
3/3/1
14
R2
2
Boatman
Lotte
3
3w
4w
3w
3
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C2
1
Scribe, Thief,
Master Thief
Hendrik
Waterstand
3
3
3
3w
3w
3
3
1
0
4/3/0
10
R1
1
Scribe
Burgher
Shipskin
3
3w
3
3w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C2
1
Boatman
Burgher
Vassily
Ignatieff
3w
3w
3
3
3
3
4
2
1
5/2/1
15
C1
2
Boatman,
Thief, Burgher
Baba
Dasha
3
3
3
4w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C1
2
Mystic, Seer,
Witch
Arkady
Gogol
3
3w
3
3w
4w
3
3
1
0
3/3/2
12
C2
1
Grave
Warden

Little Kislev booklet

Transcription

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