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  Four 1920s Scenarios
  for Call of Cthulhu
  Tales of Death
  & Darkness
  
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Three Classic Era 1920’s Scenarios
  From the White Mice in the Walls
  By Oscar Rios
  The White Mice Team
  Editing: Abby Wohl
  Layout & Design: Terry Hope Romero 
  Illustrations: Gibel Attridge, John Carimando, Terry Hope Romero & John Stavropoulos
  Cover illustration:Terry Hope Romero & John Stavropoulos
  Maps: Paul Ruppert
  Character sheet design: John Carimando 
  Co Author for “Borne Into Darkness”: Walter Attridge.
  ~You Guys Rock!~
  Playtesters: Terry Hope Romero, John Stavropoulos, Abby Wohl, John Carimando, 
  Gerry Saracco, Earl Gatchalian, Joel Jackel, Walter & Gibel Attridge.
  Thanks to:  My understanding wife Mitzi, the ever supportive members of NerdNYC and James
  (Santiago) Carpio for showing me it was possible by example.
  A Special Thanks to my biggest fan who’s always excited to hear about what I’m working on. 
  From drawing the artwork in April Snow’s room to helping me decide just what is scariest, 
  there’s a piece of him in each of my scenarios. So, to my son Zakary, this book is for you.
  Table of Contents
  Introduction, The White Mice In The Walls…..………………………....II
  The Devil is in the Details……..…….………………………………………..…4
  Wherein the investigators learn that little mistake can become bigger ones 
  and the only thing more dangerous than too much knowledge is too little.
  Keys of Madness  Part One, Key West…………………..……….……..…......40
  Wherein investigators journey to Key West to meet with a discredited 
  archeologist who claims to have made an amazing discovery.
  Keys of Madness  Part Two, Caya Locura…………………..……………......61
  Wherein the investigators come to the end of the missing professor’s trail 
  and view firsthand the wonders and horrors of the past.
  Borne Into Darkness……………………………………………………….…..…..80
  Wherein investigators seek to solve the mystery of a series of vanishings 
  from a roadside motel and find that small towns often hide the largest terrors.
  
  [ II ]
  White Mice in 
  W
  here mists rise and poets dream, where dark things lurk under ancient 
  head stones, and where barriers between worlds open with a gentle push, 
  there stands a hotel.  Nestled on Turner Street, beside the harbor in the
  city of Kingsport, stands a three-story building.  This is the Harbor
  Place Hotel.  
  It’s one of the best places to stay in Kingsport with its outstanding food
  and comfortable rooms.  The dining room is a tad small but no one seems to
  mind.  In summer, the hotel is booked solid for weeks ahead of time; in the
  off-season it’s a bit easier to find a vacancy.   No matter how busy the hotel
  is, one small room always remains empty.  The management has received
  complaints about it, as it seems the room has mice.
  At first, exterminators were called in after guests complained about 
  hearing a scratching sound coming from inside the walls.  It was to no avail;
  no matter what traps or poisoned bait was used, the mice remained.  They
  were cunning little creatures, all of them white, showing themselves for the
  briefest of moments before darting away.  It was easier for the management
  to simply close off the room, than risk their fine reputation being ruined.
  One day, Adam Tuttle, the hotel’s owner, started using the spare room as 
  a storage space.  The mice seemed not to mind, but when a typewriter was
  stored inside, something odd happened.  In the darkest hours of the night,
  often between midnight and dawn, keys were heard being struck.  The sound
  always stopped when anyone got out of his or her bed.  It seemed to be 
  coming from the spare room.
  When Mr. Tuttle went into the storage room several days later, he saw a
  stack of papers piled beside the typewriter.  Curious, he went to the stack
  and began reading.  They were stories: stories of places near and far, stories
  of long ago and of the distant future.  They were stories of struggles against
  unnamable things and the heroes who defended mankind against them.
  They were tales of death and darkness.
  
  [ III ]
  Who could have written such things?  The door was locked and he had the
  only key.  He wondered if someone could have gotten in.  In the room beside
  the unused one, a family was on holiday with their son.  That afternoon, Mr.
  Tuttle asked the boy if he had seen anyone going into the room.  The boy replied that
  he hadn’t and asked him if something was the matter?
  “Well,” answered Mr. Tuttle, “it seems someone was using the typewriter in
  that room and they left a stack of stories.”
  The boy smiled and asked, “Are they scary stories?”
  Mr. Tuttle was taken aback.  “Why, yes they are.  How did you know that?”
  The boy answered, “If they’re scary stories, then the mice wrote them, the
  white mice in the walls. They have lots of stories to tell.  Usually they’re the
  scary kind“.
  Mr. Tuttle was a native of Kingsport, and had lived there all his life.  He
  believed the young boy.  That night he returned to the room with three things.
  The first was a plate with some bread, cheese and a juicy summer pear.  The
  second was a bowl of cold apple juice.  The last was a fresh stack of clean white
  typing paper.
  As he placed the paper beside the typewriter and the plate and bowl on the
  floor he could feel eyes upon him.  He heard the faint scratching of tiny claws
  within the walls.  He looked up to see a group of small white mice, perched
  upon a bookcase, watching him.  
  He nodded his head in greeting them.  As he was leaving he said, “I’ll see
  about getting the first set to a publisher.  Enjoy the food and try to keep it
  down up here”.  Mr. Tuttle then thought he’d consider the royalties from the
  stories payment for the room.  As he locked the door he smiled. In Kingsport,
  he thought, there were far worse tenants one could have than a few white mice
  in the walls.
  floor he could feel eyes upon him.  He heard the faint scratching of tiny claws
  within the walls.  He looked up to see a group of small white mice, perched
  upon a bookcase, watching him.  
  about getting the first set to a publisher.  Enjoy the food and try to keep it
  down up here”.  Mr. Tuttle then thought he’d consider the royalties from the
  stories payment for the room.  As he locked the door he smiled. In Kingsport,
  he thought, there were far worse tenants one could have than a few white mice
  in the walls.
  
  [ 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  ntroduction: It was cold on this late winter morning, but that did little to dampen our spirits. For the staff of
  Wallace's Antiques & Collectables, aka Wallace's A&C,  along with two new, recently hired consultants, 
  were off on a wonderful adventure.
  This was an adventure that could turn your small company, a seller of rare books, antiques and collectables, into a
  major player on the east coast. Not to mention, possibly net all of you a considerable bonus. It all started with the
  purchase of the Davidson summer estate.
  The Davidsons were old world money, world travelers who had once enjoyed the good life. They'd constructed a
  summer home in the Catskill Mountains. Here, the family would gather in the summer months to enjoy the mountain air
  and peaceful seclusion. It was said that they'd filled the house with fine furniture, art, rare books, and curios from
  their travels in the Middle East.   
  Then the family fortune changed dramatically: the Davidsons suffered some financial misfortunes and were hit
  hard by the 1918 influenza epidemic. By 1920, only a handful of the once influential family remained. As the family
  debt grew, they were forced to sell off many of the old family holdings.
  Their loss was Wallace's gain, who purchased the summer estate mainly because it included all of the house's con
  tents. The contract described the building as “containing many antiques and collectables, a fair number being of
  Egyptian in origin.” Your employer's plan is to appraise and catalogue the contents of the estate in order to hold a
  series of auctions. 
  That's what brings you to the town of Birch Springs in the scenic Catskill Mountains region. The six of you have
  spent several hours driving here from the Manhattan office of Wallace's A&C (you departed the city just after sunrise).
  Your instructions are to visit the town's general store and pick up an order left by your employer, Mr. Wallace.
  Once there, you're to get directions up to the Davidson estate, where you'll meet up with your employer. For the
  next week you'll be living and working in the house, working hard to appraise its contents for auction.
  Your employer promised to hire a cook and supply all of your meals once you've arrived, making this almost a
  working vacation. It should be nice to get out of the cramped Manhattan office for a week. This trip means plenty
  of overtime and a bonus of $250 each if the appraised property totals more than three times the purchase price of
  the estate.
  So, early on this cold, late February morning in 1928, you arrive at the quaint town of Birch Springs. It's a peaceful
  mountain community, a summer vacation spot seldom visited in the winter months. The Davidson estate is said to
  be about an hour's drive north of here. The six of you made the trip in two Chevrolets, provided by Mr. Wallace.
  Montgomery's General Store is easily found right in the center of Main Street. gh
  I
  The Devil is in the Details
  A 1920s Call of Cthulhu Adventure
  by Oscar Rios
  
  [ 5 ]
  Keeper's information: The last
  person to live in the estate was
  Reginald Davidson, who died there
  three years ago. Reginald was thir
  ty two years old and remembered
  the good times the family enjoyed
  during his childhood. With the
  decline of the family fortune, and
  his relatives selling most of what
  the family still owned to pay off
  debts, he became desperate.
  Reginald was certain he could
  restore the family fortune and
  make those seeking to ruin the
  family (debtors and lawyers) pay for
  the humiliations he suffered. He
  was a dabbler in magic and the
  occult, and inherited a number of
  mythos tomes that were kept in the
  family summer home. The most
  dangerous of which, being an
  extremely rare collection of 8th
  century scrolls. These scrolls make
  up the work called the Al Azif, the
  Arabic version of the book later to
  be known as the Necronomicon. 
  Reginald spent much of his remain
  ing money on constructing an elab
  orate study and laboratory in a hid
  den chamber of the house. There
  he studied the powerful text, which
  steadily eroded his sanity. He even
  tually convinced himself that he
  could use the scrolls and the spells
  within it to restore his family's
  prestige and fortune. To test his
  fledgling magical abilities, Reginald
  attempted to summon and contain
  his first entity. The problem was that
  his grasp of Arabic was rudimentary
  at best, and as a result, many of his
  translations were deeply flawed.  
  Reginald planned to summon
  something weak and relatively
  harmless, as a test of his contain
  ment runes and the circle of bind
  ing stones he had erected around
  the house. What he summoned
  seemed to be just that, a small and
  harmless entity of mist.  The crea
  ture, a Jinniyah, was actually some
  thing much more powerful than he
  had originally intended to call, and
  an entity he had no hope of control
  ling. His circle of containment, incor
  rectly created, failed. The creature
  broke free and attacked him.
  Reginald was unharmed and easily
  dispatched the creature with a sin
  gle pistol shot. What he didn't
  know, was that physical death only
  allowed the creature to ascend into
  a more powerful form. Several hours
  later, 
  the 
  reformed 
  Jinniyah
  attacked him again, only this time it
  was considerably larger and more
  dangerous. Reginald was badly hurt
  but managed to “kill” the creature
  again, emptying his pistol into it.
  He bound his wounds as best he
  could and phoned his doctor. The
  doctor informed him that he would
  be there first thing in the morning
  (as this call was made at around
  10:00pm). Before dawn the Jinniyah
  reformed yet again and became
  even more dangerous. The creature
  came upon the fledgling conjurer as
  he slept and brutally murdered him
  Concerning existing characters
  While six pre generated characters
  are provided for use, Keepers
  should feel free to allow players to
  use their own investigators. There
  are several ways to get your players'
  existing characters involved in this
  investigation. They could possibly
  be friends of Mr. Wallace (the
  owner of Wallace's Antiques &
  Collectables, aka Wallace's A&C),
  who are all invited to the Davidson
  estate during the appraisal and 
  cataloguing of its contents.
  Investigators could be hired by
  Wallace's A&C for the week if they
  possess more than 45% in any of
  the following skills: Antiques, Print
  History, Accounting, Hieroglyphics,
  Egyptology or Language: Arabic. At
  least one character MUST have
  some skill in Language: Arabic,
  because Arabic translations become
  very important towards the end of the
  investigation.
  You might also want to introduce
  a lead to the house in an earlier
  adventure. Maybe the investigators
  have learned of a rare mythos tome
  (perhaps the 1892 French book by
  linguist and archaeologist Gene
  Renoit, entitled “Forgotten
  Folklore of the Wastes”?). 
  Wishing to find this book (for
  whatever reason), the investigators
  must make Fast Talk and/or
  Persuade rolls on Mr. Wallace to
  earn spots on his appraisal team.  
  If this type of method is used, it is
  important that no hint of the more
  powerful mythos tome within the
  house (the Al Azif) be given.
  The Devil is in the Details
  
  [ 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The adventure starts outside of
  Montgomery’s General Store, in
  the town of Birch Springs. Here,
  the investigators need to pick up
  the rest of the groceries for their
  stay and obtain directions to the
  Davidson estate. Mr. Wallace is
  already at the estate, along with three
  locals and one of his girlfriends, a
  party girl named “Kitten”. The locals
  are Wilma and Irma Marshall (who
  will be doing the cooking) and Henry
  Clark (who will be maintaining the
  generator and boiler system).
  Birch Springs: A village in the
  Catskill Mountains, home to
  maybe three hundred people, this
  is the closest settlement to the
  Davidson estate. The general store
  is well stocked and has almost
  everything the investigators could
  need. The store does not carry
  firearms, alcohol or ammunition of
  any kind. There is a lunch counter
  here as well, with the smell of hot cof
  fee filling the air. Inside the store
  are four men, who can offer some
  information about the investigators’
  destination if correctly engaged 
  in conversation.
  • Benjamin Klinehoffer: The store
  owner. He’s friendly, about forty
  five years of age, portly and bald
  ing. He politely refuses to gossip
  with the investigators, saying “In
  my line of work, it’s a good idea not to
  be too interested in the goings on of
  others.”
  • Joshua Weatherly: The town’s post
  man, a weathered man of about
  forty who is picking up some milk
  and coffee. If he overhears that
  the investigators are going up to
  the Davidson estate, he will ask
  them if they are moving in. 
  He’s relieved that they are not,
  explaining that he would be bring
  ing them their mail if they were.
  “It’s my job, and I’m not one to com
  plain, but that place is out of the
  way from everything. It’s an hour
  drive from anything else and across
  Scotsman’s Bridge to boot. It’s a tricky
  ride in bad weather.”
  If a Persuade and/or Fast Talk is
  rolled, he’ll make the following
  comments: 
  • Robert North: One of two old men,
  sitting near the front window play
  ing checkers. He’s about sixty,
  retired, and spends most of his
  time hanging out at the store with
  his buddy Will Potter (see below).
  He’ll break in when he overhears
  them talking about the house, well
  used to butting in on any conversa
  tion held in the store. “Yer stayin’ up
  at that house? Hmm, well, I’m not one
  for giving advice [whereupon every
  one in the store groans and rolls their
  eyes] but I’d be locking my doors at
  night, that’s all I’m sayin’.”
  If a Persuade and/or Fast Talk is
  rolled, he’ll continue and make
  the following comments:  
  Part I
  Some things are 
  too good 
  to be true…
  “That Reggie was a queer bird, that
  one. Not one for mixing with us com
  mon working folk. He sure got a lot
  of mail, too, some of it telling me that
  maybe he should have tried getting, I
  don’t know, a job maybe? Lawyer’s
  notices, state tax notices, bank notices,
  him writing letters back and forth to
  all of the above. Sure kept me busy,
  not that I’m one to complain.”
  in his own bed. The next morning,
  Dr. Anders discovered the savaged
  corpse of Reginald Davidson.
  Since then, the Jinniyah has lived in
  this house. The circle of rune cov
  ered pillars around the house was
  correctly made, effectively contain
  ing the entity within the grounds of
  the estate. It wishes, of course, to
  be free of this imprisonment, but
  the Jinniyah is not yet strong enough
  to free itself. If killed and allowed
  to reform just three more times, it
  will be large and powerful enough
  to shatter the containment field it
  is currently imprisoned by. Once free,
  it will travel the world, using its pow
  ers to cause death and destruction to
  mankind wherever it goes.
  That is, unless, the investigators
  can find a way to stop it. Inside the
  hidden laboratory are Reginald's
  journals as well as most of the items
  the investigators will need to stop
  the Jinniyah, and a number of mythos
  texts, including the Al Azif. The
  investigators must find the lab, cor
  rectly translate passages of the Al
  Azif (the same ones that Reginald
  got wrong), and learn the ritual to
  trap the Jinniyah within an especially
  enchanted container.
  
  [ 7 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  • Will Porter: Another old retired
  man in his sixties, sitting play
  ing checkers with his friend
  Rob North, says, “There ain’t
  nothing wrong with that
  house, nothing now any
  way. Reggie was the
  only thing wrong
  with that
  bors and shot six men dead, just to
  make sure he got the one that did him
  wrong. Well, by the time the law
  caught up with him it was too late.
  He’d hung himself from that old
  Bridge that leads to the Davidson’s
  summer place. Folk say he’s still there,
  sometimes they spot an old union sol
  dier armed with a pistol, covered in
  blood with crazy eyes, up at that
  Bridge at night. Don’t go near that
  place after dark, is all I’m saying.”
  house. He didn’t like mixing with us
  commoners. Why, he had some work
  done on the house, not sure what.
  You’d think he’d hire a local builder;
  we got our share of ’em, too. Nope, he
  hires these guys outta Boston to come
  up and do the work. Probably for the
  best, not like he was one for payin’ his
  bills on time, ain’t that right Ben?”
  [To which Benjamin Klinehoffer
  makes no reply other than grunting.]
  If a Persuade and/or Fast Talk is
  rolled, Will Porter continues and
  makes the following comments:  
  The locals know little else. The
  constable is not in Birch Springs,
  being twenty miles west of here in
  the town of Harrowsburg. Dr. Anders,
  the late town doctor who originally
  found the body of Reginald Davidson,
  died two years ago of natural causes
  (he was in his eighties). The story
  about Cleopatra’s ghost is true, as
  the Jinniyah tried to lure the aged
  doctor back into the house as he
  was leaving. The story of the
  Scotsman’s ghost is a local legend
  and a red herring to this investigation. 
  The investigators are given six
  boxes of supplies to take up to the
  house. These boxes are filled with
  things like bread, eggs, bottles of
  soda, jars of pickles, fresh vegeta
  bles, butter, flour and milk. The
  directions are easy to follow and
  take about an hour to navigate.
  The roads up into the mountains
  are narrow and twisting and
  require a Drive Auto roll in bad
  weather or at night.
  “Well, they say that Reggie the snob
  didn’t have no heart attack. Why
  would he? Young snot never worked a
  real day in his life! Lumber mill, now
  there’s a job that’ll keep yer ticker
  going. 30 years in lumber and look at
  me, still going strong. Anyway, he did
  n’t have no heart attack, it was the
  ghost of Cleopatura, that’s what it
  was. Keeping all that ancient stuff up
  there and then putting up them weird
  pharah type pillars around his
  house…he was askin’ fer it.
  “Anyway, I drove the old Doc Anders
  up to the house myself, and I’m not
  sayin’ he’s a liar, God rest his soul.
  Maybe he stretched the truth a bit to
  save a family embarrassment. Now I
  didn’t see the body, I stayed in my car,
  but a heart attack doesn’t cover bed
  sheets with blood, I don’t care how
  bad it is.
  “When the constable showed up he
  searched the house for, get this, an
  Egyptian woman dressed in some sort
  of exotic costume! They never found
  her, but I hear the Doc told them
  what he saw, or thought he saw, a
  woman just like that in the house
  when he found the body.”
  “What you need to watch out for is
  the Scotsman’s Bridge. Now that place
  is haunted, that I can say. Folk here
  abouts say that the Scotsman, Danny
  O’something was his name they say,
  why he’d been gone more than a year
  and when he came back from fighting
  the secessionists, he found out his wife
  was pregnant. She tried to hide it, but
  some things you can’t hide from a hus
  band come home from the war. They
  say he took up his army pistol and did
  her in, yes sir. Then went to his neigh
  
  [ 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The Scotsman’s Bridge: This
  is a wooden bridge cross
  ing a deep gorge with a
  stream running far below
  it. It is wide enough for
  only a single car and looks
  rather old. A successful
  Spot Hidden roll will
  show a rope hanging from
  the center of the bridge
  (one of the things that
  helped build the legend of
  Scotsman’s Bridge, it actually
  has nothing to do with any
  hangings). This bridge is the
  only safe way down off the
  mountain from where the
  Davidson estate lies.
  The Davidson Estate: This Victorian
  style summer home has two floors
  and a total of nineteen rooms.
  Behind the house are overgrown
  gardens, a weed choked fountain
  and an ancient, nearly impassable
  hedgerow maze. The windows are 
  all closed, with thick drapes drawn.
  As you break out of the forest of
  bare trees and steeply winding
  roads, you come to a clearing. Here,
  hidden in the mountains about
  Birch Springs, you come to a lovely
  two story Victorian home. There is
  a large parking circle in front of the
  house, around the statue of a union
  soldier mounted upon a horse. Two
  vehicles are parked here, a two
  seater Packard Twin Six and a
  model A pick up truck. A cobble
  stone path leads around to the back
  of the house. 
  The Packard belongs to Mr.
  Wallace, the pre generated inves
  tigators’ employer, and the pick up
  truck belongs to the local handy
  man, Henry Clark. If investigators
  walk around to the back of the
  house they find a large stone foun
  tain and an overgrown hedgerow
  maze. Once around to the back of
  the house, have the investigators
  make a Spot Hidden roll. If suc
  cessful, they will just see one of the
  five stone pillars through the bare
  trees (about three hundred yards
  away from the house).
  The Stone Pillars: There are five of
  these carved rectangular shaped
  objects placed in a circle enclosing
  the grounds of the property. Only
  one (behind the hedgerow maze in
  the gardens) is visible from the
  house. The other four are further
  into the woods and cannot be seen
  unless players travel away from the
  house and into the trees. The five
  pillars are each about twenty feet
  high and made of concrete. While
  investigators might expect these
  objects to be ancient, they are actu
  ally (and appear to be) no more
  than five years old. They are carved
  with Arabic, hieroglyphs and
  mythos characters. If investigators
  make either a Language: Arabic,
  Language: Hieroglyphics or
  Cthulhu Mythos roll, they will
  learn that these figures are used for
  some sort of bind
  ing or protection. If
  the roll is made by
  more than 20%, the
  investigator will
  determine that there
  should be four other
  stones nearby. If all
  five stones are exam
  ined and partially
  translated, the inves
  tigators learn that
  these stones are
  meant to form an
  imprisonment circle.
  The House: Investigators should
  arrive at the Davidson estate any
  where between 10 11:00am, depend
  ing on how long they remained in
  Birch Springs. No one will answer
  the door, but allow one investigator
  to have had a key (if using the pre
  generated investigators, this person
  would be Ms. Newberry). Once
  inside, the investigators will feel
  that the heat is on and smell fresh
  muffins being baked. A successful
  Listen roll will have an investigator
  hear the sound of billiards being
  played and a woman’s laughter
  coming from the back of the house.
  Calls will be answered by a sum
  mons from down the hall: “Come in,
  we’re in the pool room, come on back!”
  Following the voice, the investiga
  tors find their employer, Mr.
  Wallace, playing pool in the billiards
  room. He is well dressed, portly and
  of middle years. Sitting near the
  pool table is a lovely woman of
  maybe twenty years. She’s dressed
  like a flapper, in a tight fitting dress
  and fashionable hat. Mr. Wallace
  introduces her, “This is Kitten, my
  niece.” The woman giggles when he
  
  [ 9 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  says this, knowing they are fooling
  no one. A Knowledge (KNOW) roll
  by any of the A&C employees or
  personal friends of Mr. Wallace
  reminds them that Mrs. Wallace is
  currently in Europe.
  The servants (see Wilma and Irma
  Marshall below) are called in and
  introduced to the investigators. Mr.
  Wallace will tell them to bring in the
  packages and the luggage, and then
  ask the investigators to pick out
  rooms upstairs. He says, “You should
  have time to take a quick wander around
  the place and find out which rooms each
  of you will be focusing on. We’ll get started
  after lunch.” By we he means
  them, as he intends to do noth
  ing more than relax, play pool
  and spend time with Kitten.  
  The Hired Help
  Wilma and Irma Marshall: Wilma
  Marshall is a skilled local caterer who’s
  been hired to provide meals for
  everyone staying at the Davidson
  estate for the week. This being the
  off season, with few tourists visit
  ing the Catskills, she’s happy for
  the work. Wilma is about forty
  years old, widowed and resembles
  your typical “Plain Jane”. Her
  daughter Irma, aged 18, is along to
  help her in the kitchen. Irma is very
  shy, quiet and even more of a “Plain
  Jane” than her mother.
  Henry Clark: Henry Clark is a local
  handyman.  He also worked at the
  estate from time to time for
  Reginald Davidson. Henry is quite
  familiar with the coal boiler, the
  plumbing and the gas generator.
  He’s been hired to keep the house
  heated, the pipes from freezing and
  the electricity running during the
  investigators’ stay. It’s really not
  much to do, but like Wilma, he’s
  happy for the work. There is
  n The Davidson Estatem
  1st Floor
  2nd Floor
  
  [ 1 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  enough gasoline in the back of his
  pick up to run the generator for
  three days, after which he plans to
  drive back down to Birch Springs
  to refill the gas cans. While friend
  ly, he politely tries to avoid the
  investigators, wanting only to stay
  out of the way. He’ll often be found
  reading a copy of “Weird Tales”
  magazine or doing the crossword
  puzzle in the local paper. 
  The House: Full details on the
  Davidson estate could take up an
  entire book. Keepers are encour
  aged to flesh out each room
  more fully. The house was the
  vacation home for a wealthy fam
  ily, who enjoyed collecting art,
  rare books and curios. It is taste
  fully decorated with numerous
  rooms cluttered with antiques and
  collectibles. Investigators will be
  told to focus their efforts on cat
  aloguing the contents of the
  library and the art room. They
  should not get further than those
  two rooms before strange things
  begin to happen.
  After settling in and taking a look
  around the house, a bell rings
  twice, signaling everyone to come
  down for lunch, which is served in
  the dining room for the investiga
  tors, Mr. Wallace and Kitten. It
  consists of hot soup (vegetable),
  hearty sandwiches (roast beef with
  cheddar cheese and fresh horserad
  ish), coleslaw and pickles; these are
  all served by Wilma and Irma. After
  lunch, the investigators are set for
  their assignments (appraising and
  cataloguing the library and art
  gallery). A successful Spot Hidden
  roll will inform the investigators
  that it has started to snow outside.
  During lunch, Mr. Wallace will
  speak to the investigators about
  what he would like them to focus
  The Davidson estate, 1st floor
  1) Music Room: This room has a piano, a harp, and a phonograph
  and record collection. 
  2) Play Room: There are toy boxes, child sized furniture and a
  puppet theatre. Among the items are a baseball bat, a pair of
  fencing masks (Armor: 1), gambeson vests (Armor: 2) and fencing
  foils (see Weapons in House in Part III). While most of the items in
  this room are covered with a layer of dust, one box appears less neg
  lected than the others. It is filled with toys and books, probably
  for a little boy. One book has the initials “R.D.” drawn into it
  with a red crayon.
  3) Servant Quarters: Two twin beds, a dresser, a small table, a
  lamp and an armchair.  Wilma and Irma Marshall have already
  claimed this room.
  4) Servant Quarters:Afull size bed, a dresser, a small table, a lamp
  and an armchair.  Henry Clark has already claimed this room.
  5) Dining Room: A large table with seating for twenty, a china
  closet, several paintings and a large fireplace (with a good supply
  of firewood in a chest beside it).
  6) Kitchen: A well appointed kitchen (including knives; see
  Weapons in House in Part III).
  7) Pantry: This is the storage area for the kitchen. After the inves
  tigators’ delivery of food is stowed, there will be enough food in
  the house for ten people for a week.
  8) Laundry Room: This room is mostly empty.
  9) Art Gallery: Statues, paintings and several display cases with
  curios and artifacts. It will take investigators at least thirty five
  hours of work to properly examine and appraise everything. One
  item here is a matched pair of 18th century dueling pistols. They
  are in their original case, with powder and shot for three firings.
  There is also an ornate confederate cavalry sword on display (see
  Weapons in House in Part III). 
  10) Boiler Room and Generator: This room is mostly below
  ground, at the bottom of a flight of stairs. The heating and hot
  water system is run on oil, while a gas powered generator runs
  the electricity. Both systems are touchy and maintained by
  Henry Clark.
  11) Sun Room: Here is a comfortable sitting room with many win
  
  [ 1 1 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  dows. There is a fine Persian rug and all of the furniture found
  within is circa 18th century French antique. This room was
  mainly used b y the lady of the house for having tea and for
  entertaining.
  12) Family Room: The family living room, it is furnished with
  comfortable couches and armchairs. There is a large fireplace
  here with a good supply of firewood in a nearby chest. Above
  the fireplace is an old Double Rifle .577 Nitro Express (an ele
  phant gun; see Weapons in House in Part III). Above the rifle is
  a hunting trophy, the head of an African lion with a black mane.
  The weapon is functional but not loaded. A successful Spot
  Hidden roll allows an investigator to find four cartridges for
  this rifle in the lion’s mouth (this is the only supply of ammuni
  tion for this weapon in the entire house).
  13) Bathroom: A toilet, a large deep bathtub complete with show
  er, a hamper, a shelf with six towels and a medicine cabinet
  (containing a bottle of aspirin).
  14) Billiards Room: This room was mainly used by the male mem
  bers of the Davidson family. Here can be found a dartboard, a
  pool table, a well stocked bar, and several small tables and arm
  chairs that form a smoking lounge. Mr. Wallace will certainly
  have with him a good supply of fine cigars. 
  15) Library: Here can be found a massive collection of books, both
  rare and common.  The walls are lined with bookcases, with
  several freestanding in the center of the room.  In the collec
  tions are rare gems worth great sums of money mixed in with
  dozens and dozens of commonplace books. It will take at least
  sixty hours of work to properly examine and appraise every
  thing here. A successful Spot Hidden roll in this room will allow
  an investigator to discover a secret door. The door is disguised
  as a normal bookcase and a keyhole is found within it. The lock
  is very fine and attempts to pick it must be rolled at 20%.
  Without picking the lock or finding the key, there is no way to
  open this door. The key can be found in a strongbox, hidden in
  the closet of the master bedroom (see Part II).
  16) Hidden Study: See Part III.
  The Davidson estate, 2nd Floor
  1-3) Single Bedrooms: These rooms each contain a single bed, a
  dresser, desk, chair and a wardrobe.
  4-5) Double Bedrooms:These rooms each contain a pair of single
  beds, a large dresser, small table, two armchairs and a wardrobe.
  on. If they mention the rare
  weapons to Mr. Wallace, he will
  reply with, “Those sound very
  interesting. Focus on appraising
  them first, and then bring them up
  to the master bedroom. I’d like to
  take a good look at them myself,
  maybe keep one or two as a show
  piece for the office.” A Know roll
  by anyone who works for, or is
  familiar with, Mr. Wallace will
  understand that his statement
  means he will most likely keep the
  items in his home and write the
  cost off as a business expense.   
  Getting to work: Every four hours,
  the investigators working with the
  rare books, antiques and curios will
  need to make an Antiques and/or
  Print History roll. The accountant
  and/or secretary assisting them 
  will need to make a successful
  Accounting roll to properly record
  all the data. If both rolls succeed,
  four hours of progress is made.  If
  either rolls fail, have both investi
  gators make Luck rolls. Two suc
  cesses mean there are no mistakes,
  but no progress is made. One fail
  ure and one success means that
  there are four hours of progress
  made, but the overall appraisal will
  be 5% lower than its actual value.
  Two failed rolls have both investi
  gators chasing their tails with
  regards to the actual value of some
  thing, and no progress is made dur
  ing that period.
  Keepers should describe various
  items, giving them values and histo
  ries on the spot. The lower the
  investigators’ rolls are, the greater
  the value of the item they should
  fine. As these belong to Wallace’s
  A&C, the investigators will not
  benefit financially for finding valu
  able items in the house. They
  should be given the impression that
  the value of the items within the
  
  [ 1 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  6) Master Bedroom: Mr. Wallace and Kitten will have already claimed
  this room (7 & 8, below, as well). Here is a king sized bed, a sofa, an
  armchair, a dresser, a wardrobe, a desk and chair, a bookcase, a fine
  Persian rug and several paintings. The phone (the only one working
  in the house), is also here. There is a plaque holding a German 12th
  century hand axe (see Weapons in House in Part III).
  7) Walk-in Closet: See Part II. 
  8-9) Bathrooms: Here can be found another pair of bathrooms, much
  like the one on the first floor. #8 is a private bathroom and can
  only be entered from the master bedroom. 
  10) Hallway: Along the hallway lies a man sized statue of Anubis, an
  Egyptian sarcophagus and a display case filled with papyrus scrolls
  (burial rites). They are all items the family collected while traveling
  in Egypt.
  • The Statue of Anubis: A six foot tall statue made of onyx and
  stone, this statue is a beautiful piece. It has some hieroglyphics on
  it, which identify the item as also being from the 5th Dynasty, and
  part of a temple complex. It is also of museum quality and worth
  many thousands of dollars.
  • The Sarcophagus: This is the outer stone sarcophagus, which usu
  ally holds an inner, more ornate one. It lies horizontal in this dis
  play area. The artifact is covered with hieroglyphics, which tell the
  life story of the person it was made for. The man was named
  Manket; he was a record keeper for King Unas, the last ruler of the
  Egyptian 5th Dynasty. Manket predicted a flood; this prediction
  saved the lives of many and he became a priest towards the end of
  his life. A combined STR of 30 is needed to open the sarcophagus,
  upon which the investigators find that it is empty. The artifact is
  museum quality, worth more than $1,000.
  • The Display Case: The display case for the scrolls has a brass plate
  reading “Burial Rites”. These scrolls need to be removed from their
  case before they can be read. They are in poor shape, needing a
  Hieroglyphics roll of 15% to be read and understood. They are
  from the 2nd Dynasty and contain taxation and harvest records, not
  burial rites as listed on the brass plate. This will show that the
  Davidson family had little skill with hieroglyphics or interest in seri
  ous historical study.  
  None of these three items have anything to do with the true cause of
  the horror that is about to unfold. Like the haunted Scotsman’s Bridge,
  these items serve as a good red herring.
  house is greater than what was
  expected. The investigators should
  also expect that within a few days’
  work, they’ll be assured of earning
  the extra $250 company bonus (in
  addition to their wages). Of course,
  within 24 hours, the situation in
  the Davidson summer estate will
  drastically change, making such
  concerns trivial.
  Dinner is served at around 6:00pm.
  The food will be delicious and
  plentiful (herb roasted half chick
  ens with mashed red potatoes,
  corn, dinner rolls, butter, iced tea
  and hot apple pie for dessert). Mr.
  Wallace will take several bottles of
  wine from the stocked bar in the
  billiards room and serve it to every
  one. Investigators who look outside
  or make Spot Hidden rolls will
  notice that the snow is now falling
  steadily. Mr. Wallace will ask how
  things are going so far, and ask
  everyone to work until 8:00pm.
  This will allow for two checks and
  possibly eight hours of progress on
  completing the rooms they are
  assigned to. Mr. Wallace explains
  that they didn’t really start work
  until after lunch, so pushing on a
  bit later will make for a full day. He
  explains with a smile, “Tomorrow
  we’ll all get started early and call it
  quits after dinner.”
  At about 8:00pm, Mr. Wallace
  invites the male investigators/
  employees into the billiards room
  for a nightcap. Here, he offers each
  a cigar, a glass or two of brandy and
  a game or two of $1 a ball billiards.
  He’ll break this gathering up by
  around 9:45pm, saying he’d better
  go tuck Kitten into bed, reminding
  them that tomorrow is a workday.  
  Any female employee/investigators
  are excluded from this “boys’ time”.
  If they wish to gather, Wilma and
  
  [ 1 3 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  Irma set out tea and biscuits in the
  sun room. Irma will offer to fetch
  the phonograph and some records
  from the neighboring music room,
  so that the ladies might listen to
  some music during tea. She will
  only do this if conversation seems
  to lag. When Mr. Wallace turns in
  at 9:45pm, he pops his head into the
  The Jinniyah, in the guise of
  Irma, remains with Wilma
  Marshall until the woman is safely
  asleep. It then turns into smoke
  and goes to the real Irma’s body. It
  drags the corpse into the hedgerow
  maze and buries it in the snow. The
  creature then returns to the house
  and resumes stalking those within.  
  Event II, 3:00am: Have the
  investigators attempt a Luck
  roll. The male investigator who
  has the lowest roll receives a visitor.
  The Jinniyah will only choose an
  investigator who is sleeping alone
  in one of the single bedrooms.  
  sun room, reminding them (again)
  that tomorrow is a workday with an
  early start. 
  Investigators/employees are not
  required to attend either of these
  gathering. They may turn in early if
  they wish. Male employees making
  a Know roll will realize it might be
  a bad idea to refuse their boss’
  invitation, as Mr. Wallace 
  enjoys “holding court” with 
  his employees.
  That night, two events
  unfold:
  Event I, 12:30am: During the
  night, have investigators make
  Listen rolls. Those making a
  successful roll will be awak
  ened by the sound of a scream
  coming from downstairs.
  Anyone wishing to investigate
  will find Irma in the kitchen,
  looking pale, standing on a
  table, holding a frying pan.
  She will claim that she was
  getting a glass of milk and
  saw something scurrying
  away into the dining room.
  Once rescued from her
  perch, she’ll return to
  sleep in her room,
  thanking her saviors.
  The Death of Irma
  Marshall: At this
  point, Irma Marshall
  is already dead. Her
  body is currently buried
  under a foot of snow about
  20 yards from the back door
  leading out of the kitchen.
  The thing appearing as Irma
  is actually the Jinniyah.
  It lured the girl to the
  back door in the guise
  of an Arabic woman,
  dragged her outside and
  savagely murdered her.
  You awaken slowly, smelling honey
  and hearing the ringing of soft bells.
  You open your eyes to see a 
  beautiful, exotic woman standing
  there in the corner of the room. She
  has Arabic features, thick dark hair
  and almond shaped eyes. Her eyes
  draw your attention, as they have 
  peculiar purple colored irises. The
  woman is dressed in a diaphanous
  set of silks, looking much like a
  harem girl or belly dancer. She
  beckons you with her hand, inviting
  you to come to her with a coy smile.  
  
  [ 1 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  No matter what happens (an alarm is
  raised, the investigator attempts to
  go to her, the investigator attempts
  to attack, etc.) the mysterious
  woman will vanish into purple smoke
  moments later. This causes the inves
  tigator to make a Sanity Check for
  1/1d3 points. The smell of honey
  lingers in the room for about ten
  minutes, and is the only trace that
  something did in fact happen.
  Nothing further happens to awaken
  the investigators until morning.
  Part II
  It’s the little
  things that
  get you…
  Day two starts with breakfast, served
  at around 8:00am. The Jinniyah, in
  the form of Irma, will knock on
  everyone’s door at around 7:30am to
  inform him or her that breakfast will
  be ready in half an hour. The investi
  gators/ employees gather in the din
  ing room with Mr. Wallace. Wilma
  Marshall serves a fine breakfast,
  while Henry and “Irma” tend to their
  duties in the boiler room and
  kitchen. Mr. Wallace will explain that
  Kitten is sleeping in, saying she
  wasn’t feeling that well this morn
  ing. Investigators may discuss the
  appearance of “Cleopatra’s Ghost”.
  Breakfast lasts about forty minutes,
  with Mr. Wallace wanting everyone
  back to work by 9:00am. By now
  there is about eight inches of snow
  on the ground and it’s falling steadily.
  After breakfast, Mr. Wallace will go
  to the billiards room to play, and
  maybe do some reading.
  The Death of Kitten: During break
  fast the Jinniyah will move to the
  master bedroom and murder
  Kitten. The creature will then open
  the window and toss the body into
  the snow below. It will then fly
  down and carry the body off to the
  hedgerow maze, where it will be
  hidden alongside Irma’s body. The
  Jinniyah then returns to the bed
  room and writes a note for Mr.
  Wallace, leaving it on the bed.   
  After this, the Jinniyah will go to
  Henry Clark’s pick up truck. The
  Jinniyah will assume Irma’s form
  once more and drive it down the
  road. After the truck is out of sight
  from the house, within the tree line,
  the Jinniyah will roll the car into a
  ditch, making it impossible for the
  investigators to remove the vehicle
  from the ditch. Unless looking out
  side towards the front of the house,
  investigators will not immediately
  notice that the vehicle is missing.
  The Jinniyah then returns to the
  house. All of this takes just over an
  hour. The only evidence left behind
  is an open window in the master bed
  room, some blood splattered near it
  (detectible only on a Spot Hidden
  roll), and a lack of footprints leading
  up to Henry’s pick up truck. 
  Recovering the Gasoline: Investigators
  may be able to recover the gasoline
  from the back of
  the Henry’s
  truck. After
  the crash,
  there will be
  20 gallons
  left in three
  undamaged
  cans, enough
  to run the
  generators for about 48 hours.
  Investigators will first need to find
  the wreck of the truck. This
  requires them to make a Spot
  Hidden roll while 20 yards into the
  tree line along the left side of the
  main road leading away from the
  house.  They must then make two
  Climb rolls (one going down and
  one coming back up) as well as a
  Luck roll.
  Failing the Luck roll will drench
  the investigator in gasoline. There
  are several busted cans of gasoline
  in the back of the truck, and a
  clumsy investigator will slip and
  become soaked in it. If the Jinniyah
  detects a person drenched in a
  flammable liquid it may consider
  this an opportunity too good to
  pass up. It may assume human form
  (one of someone it has recently
  killed, or its own default form as
  the Arabic woman) and greet the
  returning investigators before they
  reach the house. She will, of course,
  happen to have a lit cigarette, a
  candle or a matchbook when she
  does so, and proceed with her mur
  derous intent.
  
  [ 1 5 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  W,   
  Sorry I had to take a powder like this. I needed 
  to get back to New York.  Some friends are 
  picking me up in town later. I’m having the 
  country girl drive me down to wait for them. 
  I had fun. Maybe we can meet up again soon. 
  Kitten
  Hand Out #1-Kitten’s Note
  The Jinniyah will be busy for most
  of the morning, dealing with
  Kitten and the pick up truck.
  Investigators should have four
  hours to work in the house, cata
  loguing the contents of the Library
  and Art room. At around 10:45am,
  Wilma will walk about the house,
  asking everyone she encounters if
  they’ve seen Irma.  “I don’t know
  where she could have gone off to.
  She knows I need her help getting
  lunch ready! Well, it’s a big house,
  I’m sure I’ll find her.” Mr. Wallace
  will then go ask Kitten if she
  knows where Irma is, only to find
  that his girlfriend is gone. He will
  find the Kitten’s note (Handout #1)
  left for him on the bed.
  If the players are using the pre gen
  erated characters, Mr. Wallace will
  go to find his secretary at this time.
  He’ll ask her if she saw Kitten leav
  ing with Irma this morning. Mr.
  Wallace will be upset that his girl
  friend took off: “I drove her all the
  way up here to spend the week
  with me and she does this? There
  were several others I could have
  brought along. Damn that woman!
  At least she didn’t clean out my
  wallet before she left.” He’ll want
  his secretary to keep this quiet, as
  he’s obviously rather embarrassed
  by it. He’ll be sulking in the bil
  liards room for the next few hours,
  avoiding the investigators. If
  approached by any of the male
  He will be found with his head
  nearly severed, drenched in blood,
  sitting on the rocking chair.
  Investigators finding the body must
  make a Sanity Check for 1/1d3.
  By now the Jinniyah has grown
  strong enough from its victims that
  is does not bother to hide Henry
  Clark’s body. It does, however,
  open and tip over all the remaining
  gasoline canisters. The fuel will
  cover the stone floor and slowly
  drip down into a drainage pipe in
  the lowest part of the floor. By
  4:30pm, the generator will run out
  of gasoline and shut down, plung
  ing the house into darkness.  
  The boiler is well stocked with oil
  and should provide heat for about
  24 hours. Anyone making a
  Mechanical Repair roll will be
  able to service the boiler every 24
  hours and keep the house heated.
  Otherwise, the temperature in the
  house drops to about 15 degrees
  within six hours of the boiler
  shutting off.
  After a short rest, the creature
  moves on to kill again. The
  Jinniyah will make certain to lock
  the boiler room door from the
  inside before it leaves this area.
  Unless someone enters the boiler
  room between 3 4:00pm, the body
  of Mr. Clark will remain undiscov
  ered until after a meeting with Mr.
  Wallace (see below).
  At about 3:45pm, Mr. Wallace will
  seek out his secretary (if the players
  are using the pre generated charac
  ters). He’ll appear a bit upset and
  demand, “I want to see everyone
  from the home office upstairs in the
  master bedroom in fifteen minutes.
  Leave the yokels out of this, but I want
  the professor and his assistant there. I
  need to get to the bottom of something
  investigators and
  questioned about
  Kitten, he’ll react
  angrily with,
  “Shouldn’t you be
  working? That is
  what I’m paying you
  for, isn’t it?” before
  storming off.
  Mr. Wallace will show
  Wilma the note, since
  it explains where
  her daughter has gone off to.
  Wilma will be upset that her
  daughter would do such a thing,
  claiming, “She doesn’t have her
  license yet, and in this snow? I’ll
  have a few words for that girl
  when she gets back, that’s for 
  certain!” Henry, when apprised of
  the incident, will be upset that
  Irma took his pick up truck and
  will also be eager to have a word
  with her.  
  Lunch will be served at around
  1:00pm. Wilma serves New
  England clam chowder, chicken
  salad sandwiches, pickles and
  french fries. She will be quite
  busy, not having Irma’s help. She
  will also be nervous, periodically
  checking on the falling snow and
  peaking to see if the pick up truck
  returns. After lunch is served, she’ll
  go to use the phone in Mr. Wallace’s
  room. Attempting to call into
  town to see if Irma and Kitten
  have arrived safely, she learns that
  the phone is no longer working
  due to the storm, and informs
  everyone of this.
  The Death of Henry Clark:
  After lunch, the Jinniyah will
  strike again. At around 3:00pm it
  will enter the boiler room where
  Henry Clark is. It will find him
  napping in a rocking chair near
  the boiler and silently kill him.
  
  [ 1 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  right now.”  
  If the players are not using the pre
  generated characters, Mr. Wallace
  will seek them out and ask them to
  join him in the bedroom at 4:00 pm
  to “get to the bottom of something.”
  Either way, he wishes to see every
  one (except Wilma and Henry) in
  the master bedroom.  He’ll then
  storm upstairs to wait for everyone.
  By now, there is almost two feet of
  snow on the ground with the storm
  showing no sign of slowing down.
  The Death of Mr. Wallace: 
  Mr. Wallace will be pacing back and
  forth in the master bedroom while
  the investigators enters. When
  everyone is finally there, he will ask
  the last person that enters to close
  the door. He will then start speak
  ing. As he talks, he hands the inves
  tigators Handout One (Kitten’s
  note; see above).
  The investigators must make a
  Sanity Check for seeing the
  Jinniyah (see Jinniyah at Stage
  Three below). They must also make
  a further Sanity Check for 1/1d3 for
  witnessing the grisly death of Mr.
  Wallace (their friend and/or
  employer). Mr. Wallace dies within
  seconds of falling onto the floor at
  the investigator’s feet. The Jinniyah
  will then rush towards the nearest
  investigator. While not strong
  enough to defeat them all, it has no
  intention of doing so. It will even
  stop attacking those who are grave
  ly wounded, allowing them to sur
  vive when it could press its attack.
  What the Jinniyah wishes is to be
  physically destroyed. This will start
  a reaction that will allow the crea
  ture to reform itself into a more
  powerful  incarnation. Any of the
  antique weapons that the investiga
  tors had previously handed over to
  Mr. Wallace will now be found on
  the desk in the corner of the room.
  There is also the German 12th cen
  tury hand axe hanging on the wall
  in this room (see Weapons in
  House below).
  “Okay everyone, I don’t know if any of
  you knew or not, but Kitten apparent
  ly left this morning with Irma. All she
  left behind was this note. Now, this
  isn’t uncharacteristic of her, or girls
  like her, but Wilma tells me her daugh
  ter doesn’t drive. Also, I wouldn’t
  want to drive that mountain road in
  the snow and I’m a decent driver. So
  that got me thinking that something
  doesn’t seem right. I came up here, had
  a look around, and I found this.”  
  [He reaches into the closet behind
  him, and tosses out a woman’s
  travel bag; in his hand he holds a
  flapper’s party dress.] 
  “Now, Kitten running off is nothing to
  worry about, but that skirt doesn’t go
  anywhere without her clothes. What I
  want to know is, did anyone see Kitten
  this morning, or after breakfast? Did
  anyone talk to her? Did she say any
  thing to anyone about leaving early?” 
  Suddenly, a shadow looms behind
  Mr. Wallace, like a cloud of pur
  plish smoke. Quicker than the eye
  can follow, tendrils of the misty
  mass solidify into fleshy tentacles
  tipped with knife like ivory claws.
  It moves fast, with purpose and
  deadly intent. All three of the ten
  tacles whip out; two of them near
  ly decapitating the portly New
  York businessman. The third
  slashes at the back of his ankles,
  dropping him to the floor like a
  marionette with its strings cut as
  the tendons are severed. Blood
  splatters everyone in the room as
  Mr. Wallace falls at everyone’s
  feet, his life’s blood pouring out
  onto the expensive Persian rug.
  The Jinniyah (at Stage Three)
  STR 16
  CON  20        
  SIZ  12
  INT 16     
  POW 15       
  DEX 16         
  HP
  16
  DB +1d4
  Weapons: Three claw tipped 
  tentacles  45% 1d3+db
  Armor:  3 points
  Sanity loss: 1/1d6
  
  [ 1 7 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  Weapons in House: There are a number
  of weapons available to the investiga
  tors in the house. The kitchen has a
  supply of knives both small (25%, 
  1d2 or 1d3) and large (25%, 1d6).
  Investigators may gather other impro
  vised weapons with the Keeper’s per
  mission (clubs, straight razors, fire
  place pokers, etc.; see “1920s
  Investigators Companion”, p. 101). 
  There are also the following
  weapons, some previously spotted
  during the tour of the house:
  • The .32 Caliber revolver  Reginald
  Davidson’s locked strongbox
  • The pair of fencing foils  in 
  the playroom
  • The baseball bat (as Large Club) 
  in the playroom
  • A pair of 18th century dueling pis
  tols  in the art gallery
  • A confederate cavalry sword
  in the art gallery
  • The .577 Nitro Express double
  rifle  in the family room
  • The German 12th century hand
  axe (20%, 1d6+1+db).
  The firearms all have limited
  supplies of ammunition, and
  none of the investigators will be
  especially skilled with them. This
  hardly matters because killing
  the Jinniyah only brings it back
  stronger than it was.  
  Weapon
  %
  Damage
  Range 
  #Att      Shots     HP
  .32 Revolver 
  50%
  1d8
  15yrd
  3/2
  6
  10     
  Flintlock pistol
  20%
  1d6+1
  10ft
  1
  1
  6      
  .577 Nitro Express
  15%
  3d6+6
  50yrd
  ?
  1             8
  Fencing foil
  20%
  1d6+1+db
  Touch
  1
  --
  10
  Baseball bat
  25%
  1d8+db
  Touch
  1
  --
  20
  German hand axe
  20% 
  1d6+1+db
  Touch
  1
  --
  8   
  Cavalry sword
  25%
  1d8+1+db
  Touch
  1
  --
  8
  
  [ 1 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Shortly after this encounter, the
  last of the gasoline runs out from
  the generator and the entire
  house plunges into darkness. If 
  the investigators have not yet
  found Mr. Clark’s body, they are
  sure to now go looking for him at
  this point. A successful Luck roll
  will allow an investigator to find 
  an old oil lamp, some candles, a 
  hurricane lamp or a lantern.
  Allow only one Luck roll for each
  room of the house. 
  The investigators are now able to
  search the master bedroom and its
  walk in closet.  The closet is empty
  of clothing but a successful Spot
  Hidden roll will find a hiding place
  concealed under a loose floorboard.
  Beneath the floorboard is a locked
  strongbox. The box has a handle
  and can be hauled out of its hiding
  place with ease. The lock can either
  be picked or forced open with a
  resistance check beating a STRof 8.  
  Contents of the strongbox: 
  • A .32 caliber revolver
  • A box of twenty .32 caliber
  bullets 
  • Twenty photos of nude women 
  • $340 in $20 bills 
  • A large ornate key (which opens
  the secret door in the library that
  leads to the lab)
  • A small journal. The journal is 
  a log kept by the late Reginald
  Davidson (see Handout Two,
  below). This is the personal
  research journal of Reginald
  Davidson. Entries are sporadic,
  and only the last few entries 
  offer any pertinent information
  as to what occurred here.
  Handout Two: The Journal of Reginald Davidson
  Day 187: Finished reading the Egyptian scrolls. The translation was difficult at
  times. I focused mainly on the items I would need for my plans. Many warnings
  and odd sections about powerful gods and strange races living alongside mankind.
  Not sure what to think. I am going to try this out. Tomorrow I’ll see if I can light
  a candle with the chant and my mind.
  Day 188: I chanted the words on the scroll and lit the flame with my mind! This is
  real and I know my plan will work. I will have justice, at last. I will restore my
  family’s fortune. When I am ready I will use the knowledge I have gained. With it
  I will call upon one of these beings the book speaks of and bind it to my will. I have
  so much to do; I can’t wait to get started.
  Day 193: I finished the circle in the center of the lab, it took a lot of time to draw
  and some of the ingredients were not easy to find. It’s a good thing I still know peo-
  ple from my short time in medical school. I’ve ordered the stones from Boston; it’s
  costing me a small fortune to get them delivered, but once I’m done, money will no
  longer be a problem.
  Day 220: The last of the pillars was placed today. My hands hurt from all the
  chiseling, at least the pharaohs had slaves for this part. Maybe when I’m done I’ll
  get one, too. Some rest now, and then tomorrow I’ll try calling the air
  spirit. The scrolls say it’s weak and a good first test. I’ll have my pistol with 
  me anyway.
  Day 221: Some successes, some setbacks. The scrolls said the spirit would be white,
  but it was more of a bluish purple. The scrolls said it would be harmless but I’ve
  got a cut on my hand that proves otherwise. For such a small thing it certainly was
  vicious. Also, it shouldn’t have been able to cross the lines on the circle, for all the
  time I took in drawing it; the imprisonment circle was totally useless. The
  wretched thing rushed me the moment the chanting was over, 
  swinging its little claw. A single shot sent it back to whatever place I called 
  it from. I’ll start checking my notes tomorrow.
  Day 222: I’ve called Dr. Anders, he can’t get here fast enough. I’m sure I’ll need
  numerous stitches to close some of these wounds. The thing, whatever it was,
  attacked me again. It appeared out of nowhere. Only now it had two of those claws
  and was twice its original size. Thank goodness I still had my pistol and have a
  steady hand with it. It took three shots to put down this time. I 
  saw it die yesterday, how can it be back? I’m going to lie down and wait for 
  the Doctor. He should be here in the morning. How I’m going to explain my 
  injuries I’ll figure out in the morning. Right now I feel a bit lightheaded.  
  
  [ 1 9 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  At this point, the investigators 
  may wish to gather light sources
  and arm themselves. If they have
  found the strongbox in the Master
  Bedroom, they will have the journal
  and the key to the locked secret
  door leading to the lab. They may
  also try to find Henry Clark (see
  above) and Wilma Marshall.  
  The Snow: For the remainder of the
  adventure, snow will fall at a rate 
  of one foot per five hours until the
  Jinniyah is imprisoned. While the
  Jinniyah is reforming, the snowfall
  will slow to only about an inch per
  hour. During the last hour of the
  creature’s reformation, the snow 
  will begin falling faster and heavier.
  When the Jinniyah is fully reformed,
  the snow will fall at a rate of five
  inches per hour.
  Wilma Marshall: The first place 
  she goes after the lights go out is
  the door to the boiler room, to 
  ask Henry what’s wrong with the
  power. She finds this door to be
  locked. Growing afraid, she goes to
  the kitchen and gets a lantern and a
  butcher knife. Wilma will then go
  to the bottom of the stairs, with a
  lit lantern in one hand and the
  knife in the other, and start calling
  out for someone. By now she is
  very afraid and desperate to find
  someone else in the dark house.
  Just how involved Wilma is with
  the investigators is up to them and
  the Keeper. She’ll stay close to the
  investigators for the remainder of
  the adventure. Her mental state is
  not a strong one (having only 45
  Sanity points). Repeated Sanity
  Checks for seeing any of the bodies
  (1/1d3), for being told that Wallace
  and Clark are dead (1/1d2), for 
  realizing her daughter and Kitten
  are most likely dead (1d4/1d6)
  and/or for possibly seeing the
  Jinniyah at some point, may all well
  drive the fragile woman insane.
  Until then, she will try to be help
  ful to the investigators, feeding
  them as a way to calm herself.  
  Keepers may use her as a hindrance
  (screaming uncontrollably, rushing
  into their line of fire in a panic,
  etc.), as a savior (rushing in to save
  an investigator while swinging her
  butcher knife with deadly effect) or
  for effect (having her murdered by
  the Jinniyah as the investigators
  watch or later stumble upon her
  body). Wilma is a variable to be 
  utilized by the Keeper; allow her to
  fill whatever role seems most effec
  tive in the scenario at this point.
  Part III
  Never summon 
  anything bigger
  than your head…
  Wilma Marshall
  “caterer in the wrong place at 
  the wrong time”
  STR
  11      
  CON   12      
  SIZ    
  11
  INT
  12     
  DEX
  14
  POW
  9      
  APP
  13      
  EDU   13      
  SAN  
  45
  HP
  13   
  DB
  N/A
  Weapons: Butcher Knife 
  (50%, 1d6+db)
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Cooking (65%), Knife
  (50%), Listen (45%), Dies dramat
  ically at Keepers’ whim (90%)
  The Jinniyah’s Plan: At this point,
  the Jinniyah’s plan is to kill every
  one in the house or die trying.
  Either way will serve its aims just
  fine. The creature’s goal is to
  escape the ring of containment 
  pillars imprisoning it on the
  grounds of the Davidson estate.
  Once it ascends into its sixth stage,
  the Jinniyah will have the strength
  to topple one of the stones. Once
  that happens, it will be free to leave
  the area and wreck havoc wherever
  it goes.  Unless the investigators
  can stop it, the creature will cause
  the death of countless thousands 
  of innocent people. If the creature
  manages to begin multiplying, it
  could well be tens or even hundreds
  of thousands.  
  At the start of Part IV, it will be
  reforming into a stage four
  Jinniyah. In 4d8 hours, the creature
  will reform itself and begin stalking
  the investigators once again. If
  killed again, it will then begin
  reforming into a stage five Jinniyah,
  taking 5d8 hours. Once reformed 
  to stage five, the Jinniyah will only
  need to go through one more
  ascension of form to escape its
  prison. If killed by the investigators
  a third time, the creature will
  reform into a stage six Jinniyah,
  taking it 6d8 hours to achieve.
  Once this happens, it will have 
  the ability to leave the area. If it
  escapes out into the world, the
  investigation ends in failure.
  The Lab: Once past the locked
  secret door (see Library, Part I) the
  investigators will have access to
  Reginald Davidson’s lab. Using the
  key found in Reginald Davidson’s
  strongbox will open this door easily.
  1) The Door: A thick oak door with
  a fine lock ( 20% for locksmith
  attempts) and a stout oaken
  
  [ 2 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  brace that can be lowered into
  place to reinforce the door. The
  door has a resistance of 30 
  STR if the brace is lowered into 
  place. Such precautions are 
  useless against the Jinniyah.
  2) The Lab: The floor, ceiling and
  walls of this room are all stone.
  There are bookcases and shelves
  lining every wall. Some hold
  books on the occult, witchcraft
  and folklore. Among these books
  are two mythos tomes (see Other
  Books below). These two books
  hold important information 
  that will give the investigators
  Handout Eight and Nine, and
  enable them to possibly find 
  The shelves here hold hundreds of
  jars and bottles filled with strange
  powders, fluids, minerals and other
  alchemic items. A successful Spot
  Hidden roll in this area brings a box
  labeled “Martin Calbecci” to the
  investigator’s attention. Asuccessful
  KNOW roll reminds the investiga
  tors that this is the same name of a
  mob hit man who was killed by the
  police in 1924. Inside the box is a
  mummified human hand with a 
  single finger missing.  
  There are also three tables here,
  one is covered with what looks like
  a chemistry set of glass beakers,
  burners, mortar and pestle, glass
  tubing and a scale. The second
  table holds a large case, which
  holds a group of twelve large 
  scrolls (see Al Azif) written in 8th 
  century Arabic. The case is locked,
  but beating a Resistance roll 
  of 10 forces it open with ease. 
  The last table is a work area and 
  upon it is another journal, entitled
  “Translations of the Al Azif” by
  Reginald Davidson.
  On the floor of the lab there is a
  cleared space with an elaborately
  painted circular symbol on the
  floor. It’s about six feet in diameter
  with a brazier in the center. The
  bowl is filled with a burnt purple
  Al-Azif Passage I, the Direct Arabic Text:
  “Now that all is prepared one must take care in choosing the sort of spirit to summon.  Great caution should be taken in not calling forth a spirit more
  powerful than the summoner can hope to control. For the first summoning, one should never call up a being of great size or strength. A mist spirit is
  ideal, as it has no physical form and is easily destroyed by a strong wind should a summoner’s binding circle be improperly drawn.
  “For this being the following items must be ground up by mortar and pestle:  a black pearl of medium size, the knucklebone of a jackal, three handfuls of
  dried honeysuckle flowers,  the skull of a bat, the tooth of a murdered man, one pinch of mustard seed.  
  “Mix all of these with seven drops of bee venom, nine drops of the summoners’ fresh blood and a mouthful of wine. Put this in a brazier within the 
  summoning circle, and place a fire to it. 
  “If done correctly, it will burn well, filling the summoning circle with pale white mist.  The mist spirit will be trapped within the circle and should
  obey simple commands. The spirit is so weak as to be almost without use to a summoner, other than as a test of one’s containment runes and as a
  way to build one’s skills.”
  [This is essentially a summoning spell.]
  Summon Mist Spirit  
  Range:   
  5 feet    
  Duration: 
  3 rounds
  Cost:      
  2 MP
  Sanity:   
  1        
  Resistance Table:  
  No
  Handout Three: On Summoning
  Handout Ten.
  
  [ 2 1 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  sludge and there are the ashes of
  coals beneath it. A successful Spot
  Hidden roll in this area will reveal
  a bullet imbedded in the wall
  behind the circle.
  The Al-Azif: Researching this 
  text will take some time. While
  reading the entire collection of
  scrolls would take over a year
  (much more time than the investi
  gators have left), it can be skimmed
  for important facts. A successful
  Spot Hidden roll shows that 
  three scrolls seem to have been
  read much more than the others.
  A successful Library Use roll 
  on each of these scrolls finds the 
  following three passages, Handouts
  Three, Four and Five. Finding 
  each of these passages takes an
  hour to translate and four hours 
  to read them.
  Handout Four: On Summoning Circles
  Al-Azif Passage II, the Direct Arabic Text: 
  “The drawing of a summoning circle must be done with the utmost care and preparation.  Countless summoners have
  died because of sloppiness, carelessness or trusting in skills they did not possess. DO NOT attempt this unless you
  are willing to stake your immortal soul on having done this correctly, for that is exactly what one is doing.  
  [The text goes on to explains, with elaborate diagrams, how the figure is to be drawn.]
  “Great care must also be taken with the ink used in drawing the circle. Mix four coals with every cup of water, then
  add six drops of mercury, nine crushed olive hearts, seven hairs from an ox and a single fish eye. Mix together and
  bring to a boil. When the steam turns a dark shade, allow mixture to cool. Use the ink within four hours for best
  results. If the ink is not used within ten hours, discard it, as it is useless. 
  “Once drawn, the figure will maintain its power until the image is marred or interrupted.  DO NOT allow any-
  thing near the figure that could possibly fall onto it and break the continuality of the lines. This will disrupt the magic
  of it and allow whatever is trapped within to escape.”
  Handout Five: The Master of All Knowledge, Arabic Translation
  Al-Azif Passage III, the Direct Arabic Text:
  “Many, if not all summoners are at one time or another tempted to call the master of all
  knowledge. The reasons for this are many, for the promise of an answer or solution to any
  question is what the Black Pharaoh provides. This dark force is easy to call and has the
  power to grant the summoner’s every desire; in fact that is his most deadly poison. You
  must never give in to such temptation, for treating with him is the doorway to ruin, mad-
  ness and death.”
  [Then lists the instructions for summoning the entity.]
  
  [ 2 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The Journal of Reginald Davidson: 
  This book is in English and its
  entries are haphazard and disorgan
  ized. A successful Psychology roll
  will allow investigators to realize
  that the writer was probably 
  skimming the scrolls and translat
  ing only the parts he felt necessary.
  There are two important passages
  that can be found with a single
  Library Use roll, or by spending 
  16 hours reading the entire 
  disjointed text. These handouts are
  important, because they show the 
  mistakes Reginald Davidson made
  in his first and only attempt 
  at summoning.
  The other books: There are two
  other mythos tomes here, each
  with a single bit of information.
  The first of these is the Testament of
  Carnamagos, a 12th century Greek
  tome, which contains Handout
  Eight (more information on this
  book can be found in the Call of
  Cthulhu rulebook). To find this
  information, an investigator read
  ing this book must make a success
  ful Library Use roll, and already be
  aware of the mistakes Reginald
  Davidson made in his summoning
  spell. Finding this passage takes
  four hours and translating it takes
  another two hours per attempt.
  A successful History roll will 
  allow an investigator to recall 
  that the Caliph Muhammad Ilbin
  Assem ruled over a territory in
  western Egypt sometime in the
  late 7th century.
  The second mythos tome is
  Forgotten Folklore of the Wastes, a
  French text written in 1892 by 
  linguist and archaeologist Gene
  Renoit (eight weeks to study,
  1d2/1d4, +4 Cthulhu Mythos). 
  This is a book on ancient folklore
  allegedly proven by archeological
  Handout Six: On Summoning, English Translation
  Al-Azif passage I, the Translation of Reginald Davidson: 
  “If all is prepared, one needs to take care in choosing which sort of spirit to call. Great
  care can be grabbed in not calling forth a spirit as powerful as the summoner will hope
  to rule. For the first calling, one should not call up a being of great size or bulk. A mist
  spirit is good, as it has no flesh and is easily smashed by a wind should a summoner’s
  binding circle be mistakenly colored.
  “For this thing these items must be ground up by mortar and pestle: 
  - a black pearl
  - the knucklebone of a jackal
  - three clumps of dried honeysuckle flowers
  - the skull of a bird
  - the finger of a murderer and 
  - one pinch of mustard.  
  “Mix these with seven drops of bee venom, nine drops of summoners’ blood and a cupful
  of wine. Put this in a brazier, within the summoning circle, and place a fire to it.   
  “If done, it will burn well, filling the circle with pale mist. The mist spirit will be
  enslaved within the circle and will obey any commands. The spirit is very weak, it is
  almost without use to a caller, unless as a test of your containment runes and as a way
  to test one’s skills.”
  [This is essentially a summoning spell, Summon Spirit.]
  Summon Spirit  
  Range:   
  5 feet      
  Duration: 
  6 rounds
  Cost:     
  10 MP
  Sanity:     
  1d4        
  Resistance Table:  No
  
  [ 2 3 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  research by the author. It also con
  tains the translation of runes and
  hieroglyphics found upon ruins
  throughout the Middle East. A suc
  cessful History or Archaeology
  roll will allow the investigator to
  recall that Dr. Renoit was profes
  sionally ruined by the publication
  of this work, of which only a hand
  ful of copies were printed. They
  will also recall that Dr. Renoit is
  rumored to have committed suicide in
  1901, while on a dig in Yemen.
  There is another important piece
  of information within this book,
  that being Handout Nine. Finding
  this passage requires a successful
  Library Use roll. Locating the
  passage takes four hours and 
  translating it takes another two.
  Handout Nine can only be found
  after Handout Eight is obtained, as
  the passage also mentions the ruins
  of Had’Raddia.
  Handout Seven: On Summoning Circles, English Translation
  Al-Azif Passage II, The Translation of Reginald Davidson: 
  “The drawing of a summoning circle must be done with care and planning. Many summoners have died because of badness
  (?), lack of care, or trusting in things they didn’t have. Don’t try this unless you are sure of what you’re doing [long warn-
  ing here].  
  “[Goes on to explain how the figure is to be drawn with elaborate diagrams.]
  “Be careful making the ink used in creating the circle. Mix four coals with every cup of water, and then add six drops of
  mercury, nine crushed date hearts, seven hairs from an ox and a single eye from a fish. Mix together and boil. When the
  steam turns black, let it cool. Use the ink within six hours for best results. If the ink is not used within twelve hours, throw
  it out. 
  “Once drawn, the figure will work until the image is made ugly (?) or broken. DO NOT allow things close to the picture that
  can fall onto it and break the lines. This will stop the magic of it and let whatever is inside to get out.
  “Can this hold the master of knowledge?”
  Handout Eight: The Jinniyah
  Testament of Carnamagos, the Direct Greek Text:
  “Of all the dangerous spirits that might be conjured from
  the abyss of Hades, the Jinniyah is one of the foulest. They
  are not that challenging to summon; the hardest part is
  obtaining the key ingredient: the finger of a murderer. Small
  seeming at first, they appear as a cloud of purple smoke 
  festooned with claw-tipped tendrils. While easily dispatched,
  they are deathless, turning to smoke and reforming more
  powerfully each time. They are able to take the form of those
  they have killed for short times, shift into a shadow form,
  and hunger for the souls of those they delight in slaying.
  When enough souls were drained, or the largest of their
  kind was killed it would, like a phoenix, be reborn into seven
  more Jinniyah!
  It is said the kingdom of Had’Raddia was destroyed trying
  to contain an infestation of these spirits. Their wizards,
  however, managed to capture all of them, entrapping them
  with enchanted containers and sealing them within using
  star adorned stoppers. One of these beings was released in
  Arabia during the reign of the Caliph Muhammad Ilbin Assem,
  when an unwitting nobleman who received the ancient item
  as a gift removed a bottle’s stopper. His royal vizier was able
  to return the malignant spirit to its prison before it 
  managed to cause an infestation.”
  
  [ 2 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Handout Nine: The Fate of Had’Raddia
  Forgotten Folklore of the Wastes, the Direct French Text:
  “So the old man told me that the bottle was from the kingdom of
  Had’Raddia and that I should return it to the sands where I found
  it. I had heard of Had’Raddia before, from other shamans and mys-
  tics who dwelled in the wastelands. It was said to have been a
  kingdom of wizards that throve in the distant past. He told me the
  bottle contained an evil spirit, a genie, and that if released it would
  be a hunter of souls and a bringer of storms. This surprised me, for
  some sort of enormous sandstorm had in fact buried the ruins I
  had found the bottle in. Many of the inscriptions within the ruins
  spoke of evil beings that appeared as men and women, but were
  in fact demons, or evil spirits of some sort. These genies, it seems,
  destroyed the kingdom by summoning a sandstorm that lasted for
  more than a year.
  “I looked over the bottle more closely, removing some of the sand
  from the stopper, when I saw the elder sign carved into it. This was
  a symbol I was familiar with from other studies! Something was
  within the bottle, something evil and dangerous, of this I was now
  sure. I reburied the thing the next day and had the entire excava-
  tion site filled in. I then burned all records of the site’s location. I
  pray that it never be found and that whatever was trapped inside
  the bottle never finds its way out.”
  [Then there are instructions on the creation of an Elder Sign, CoC
  RB 5.6.1, p. 205.]
  Elder Sign  
  Range:
  0
  Duration:
  Permanent
  Cost:
  Sacrifice 2 points of POW
  Sanity:
  0
  Resistance Table:
  No
  Once the investigators have the
  information found in Handouts
  Eight and Nine, they can return to
  the Al Azif to do further research.
  They can research any of the new
  information they have gathered
  from other sources (enchanted bot
  tles, Jinniyah, Had’Raddia, Elder
  Sign, etc.). With an additional 
  successful Library Use roll (which
  takes four hours plus another hour
  to translate) an investigator will
  find Handout #10.
  Summary of Handouts: The inves
  tigators need to find a fair number
  of facts scattered about the lab to
  be able to successfully complete
  this adventure. Time is their great
  est enemy! The Jinniyah will seek
  to disrupt their efforts, claim 
  their lives and force them to again
  destroy its mortal form. Each
  Library Use roll will take four
  hours to attempt; a failed roll gains
  no information. There are four
  items in the Al Azif, three of them
  being vital. The last of these can
  only be researched after the hand
  outs from Forgotten Folklore of the
  Wastes or Testament of Carnamagos
  have been gained. 
  If multiple investigators are
  researching and reading at the 
  same time, all of these facts can be
  put together in as little as ten hours
  (four simultaneous successful
  Library Use rolls, followed by one
  hour of study; then one additional
  Library Use roll and additional
  hour of study). It could, and proba
  bly will, take them much longer
  than that. Even once the research
  is 100% complete, there will be
  several hours worth of brewing,
  redrawing and enchanting to 
  complete the necessary rituals to
  imprison the Jinniyah (see Part V).
  Fleeing the Area: If the investiga
  tors attempt to brave the storm
  and flee the area, they will eventu
  ally be forced back to the house.
  The remaining cars outside will be
  completely snowed in at this point.
  Even if investigators get into 
  the vehicles, they will be totally
  swamped in the deep snow, wheels
  spinning without purchase. 
  The other alternative is walking.
  After more than two hours walking
  down the road in several feet of
  snow, they will discover that the
  Scotsman’s Bridge is out. Weakened
  by tons of snow and ice piled 
  onto it, the Bridge collapsed.
  Investigators who persist in trying
  to escape the area on foot will not
  survive. An Idea roll will allow
  them to realize climbing down off
  the mountain during a blizzard is
  both a futile and perhaps fatal
  course of action. How much time
  this wastes is up to the investiga
  tors, but every hour that passes
  
  [ 2 5 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  HandoutTen: 
  On the Permanent Containment of Jinniyah
  Al-Azif Passage IV, The Direct Arabic Text:  
  “When the deathless Jinniyah came to Had’Raddia, it grew strong and bred itself on the souls of those it had slain. Many
  were killed by the warriors of the city, but that only made the spirits more powerful and numerous. It was the wizards, the same
  wizards who foolishly called the first of these creatures to our world, who were responsible for saving mankind.
  “They learned that by attempting to summon one of these creatures into a proper binding circle they could hold it for some time. The
  Jinniyah would turn to mist and seep through the smallest of cracks and pores too small for the human eye to see. The spirit called
  would be the closest one to the circle; it would not bring a new Jinniyah to our world. Only the first casting did that, as the being was a
  stranger to this dimension. The wizards knew they could compel one to appear, and they knew they could hold one for some few hours,
  but they wished to imprison one for all eternity.
  “The answer was glass. Somehow the spirits were unable to pass through enchanted glass. The stopper was the only place where a spirit
  might escape, so they constructed seals engraved with an enchanted Elder Sign. When one of these bottles was placed in a proper
  imprisonment circle and the summon spell cast, the nearest Jinniyah would be compelled to appear in the circle. Then a great vortex
  would draw the malignant spirit into the bottle. Before the creature could escape the stopper needed to be slammed shut. This was the
  deadliest moment, for if the wizard was slow or clumsy the enraged and panicked Jinniyah might summon all its strength to lash out at
  the wizard before the door to its prison was slammed shut.  
  “Once entrapped the Jinniyah would not be able to free itself. If the stopper was removed, or the glass broken, the spirit would be free once
  again. Also, if a summoning spell was cast for a Jinniyah, and an imprisoned Jinniyah was closer than a free one, the imprisoned
  Jinniyah would be called forth from its prison. As such, once filled these bottles would be taken far away into the wastelands and hidden.
  “In the end, the wizards of Had’Raddia won the war they had in their pride and ignorance started. Every Jinniyah upon the earth was
  imprisoned, and the wizards hid three thousand bottles in the forgotten corners of the known world. For their people, it was too late. Fed
  upon like cattle by the creatures, hunted and slaughtered, plagued by the droughts and sandstorms these creatures brought and the fear
  and mistrust their shape-changing ways caused Had’Raddia was collapsed upon itself. Nothing of their people remains, other than in
  the memory of mystics and wizards, and bottles buried in far off places holding thing both dark and deadly.”
  [After which details the creation of an enchanted Jinniyah bottle.)
  Enchant Jinniyah Bottle  
  Range:   
  0
  Duration: 
  Permanent 
  Cost:     
  Sacrifice 4 points of POW
  Sanity:     
  1d4        
  Resistance Table:  
  No
  
  [ 2 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  puts them at greater danger. The
  Jinniyah can also move about much
  of the grounds of the estate and
  will not hesitate to attack someone
  waist deep in snow.
  The Second Attack: It is very
  unlikely that the investigators can
  finish all the necessary research and
  preparation before the Jinniyah is
  reformed a fourth (and possibly
  fifth) time. For its next attack, it
  may try to lure someone away from
  the group, possibly using the form
  of one of its recent victims. The
  Jinniyah will spy on the investiga
  tors, flitting about incorporeal and
  invisible, before it commits itself to
  any action. If the investigators stay
  together and seem to be working
  hard on imprisoning the creature,
  it will be forced to make a direct
  attack on them in the lab.
  The Jinniyah then waits for the
  investigators to reply. If they move
  to attack her, she attacks (see
  below). If investigators question
  her in any way other than to
  explain her statement, she coyly
  smiles and repeats herself. If the
  investigators ask her to explain
  these choices she continues:
  The Jinniyah (at Stage Four)
  STR 20       
  CON  24        
  SIZ  16
  INT 16  
  POW 15       
  DEX 16         
  HP
  20
  DB +1d6 
  Weapons: Four claw tipped 
  tentacles 55% 1d3+db
  Armor:  3 points
  Sanity loss: 1d2/1d8
  Suddenly a purple mist erupts
  from the brick wall. In seconds,
  mist has coalesced into a solid
  form. As the smoke clears, you
  see a beautiful woman with flow
  ing black hair. Her clothing is
  made of sheer silk, showing her
  curvaceous body beneath it. Her
  skin is tan and her eyes almond
  shaped with startling purple 
  irises. The figure does not move;
  it only stands there staring at you
  all. She slowly smiles, bows her
  head in greeting and begins
  speaking in Arabic: “We can do
  this the simple way, or we can do
  this the difficult way.” 
  The woman answers, her smile
  wide and her eyes twinkling with
  pleasure. “The simple way is for
  all of you to lay down your arms. 
  I will kill you quickly and without
  suffering, for I am not without
  mercy. The difficult way is that 
  I kill you while you attempt to
  resist.  If you resist your destiny, 
  I will make certain that each of
  you die as painfully as your frail
  bodies can endure. 
  Make your choice.”
  As investigators are surely unwill
  ing to accept her offer of a quick
  death, the Jinniyah will attack. 
  She will rush at the investigators,
  instantly changing into her semi
  corporeal form, slashing with all
  four tentacles tipped with ivory
  knife like claws. Investigators will
  have to make a Sanity Check
  before they can take action once
  she shifts into this form.
  
  [ 2 7 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  The investigators should hopefully
  by now have a good idea of just
  what happened here three years
  ago. The investigators should also
  have all sufficient information to
  successfully make an attempt to
  imprison the Jinniyah. These key
  facts they should have uncovered
  are as follows:
  • The ink used in Reginald
  Davidson’s imprisonment circle
  was not properly created
  • The spirit summoned by Reginald
  Davidson was not the harmless
  mist spirit that he intended but a
  deadly and dangerous Jinniyah
  • Physically killing the Jinniyah
  only makes the creature more
  dangerous and possibly more
  numerous
  • The Jinniyah is causing the snow
  storm
  • The Jinniyah can mimic those it
  has slain for short periods of time.
  The investigators should now have
  access to a number of magical
  spells and mystical formulas. Their
  only hope now is to reenact the
  ceremony created by the wizards
  of ancient Had’Raddia; they must
  entrap a Jinniyah. 
  With the arcane knowledge con
  tained in Reginald Davidson’s jour
  nal (the Summon Jinniyah spell),
  the Al Azif (the correct formula for
  the ink used in the imprisonment
  circle and the Enchant Jinniyah
  Bottle spell) and Forgotten
  Folklore of the Wastes (create
  Elder Sign spell), they have all 
  the tools they need to do just that. 
  The problem is that it isn’t an easy
  thing putting a genie back in its
  bottle. The Jinniyah will stop at
  nothing to prevent the investiga
  tors from performing the required
  rituals and castings. 
  The Ritual: After finding and 
  translating the three spells and the 
  formula for correctly brewing the
  ink, the investigators are ready to 
  confront the Jinniyah on their own
  terms. To entrap the creature 
  successfully (and safely) the investi
  gators must follow these steps:
  1) Brew the ink correctly
  2) Redraw the imprisonment circle
  3) Enchant a glass bottle
  4) Create an Elder Sign
  5) Affix the Elder Sign to the
  bottle stopper
  6) Place the enchanted bottle in
  the imprisonment circle
  7) Cast the Summon Jinniyah spell
  8) Place the stopper on 
  the bottle.
  1) Brew the ink: Once the correct
  formula for brewing the ink is
  found, deciphered work can
  begin. The process takes an
  investigator between two to four
  hours (1d3+1).  Anyone with more
  than 20% in the Chemistry skill
  automatically creates the ink
  successfully. Investigators unfa
  miliar with chemistry attempting
  to brew the ink correctly must
  make an INT roll times four.
  Keepers should roll this secretly
  and not inform the players of the
  outcome.
  2) Redraw the imprisonment 
  circle: Reginald Davidson cor
  rectly drew the imprisonment
  circle, but he failed because of
  the ink content. An investigator
  may simply trace the existing cir
  cle with new (hopefully correctly
  brewed) ink. Retracing the circle
  takes one to two hours and
  requires an investigator to make
  a DEX roll times five. Drawing
  an entirely new imprisonment
  circle takes three to five hours
  and requires an investigator to
  make a DEX roll times four.
  3) Enchant a glass bottle:
  Enchanting the bottle will take
  two to five hours (1d4+1) of
  preparation time, ending in the
  casting of the Enchant Jinniyah
  Bottle Spell (which also requires
  the sacrifice of four MP). Any
  glass bottle able to hold a stop
  per is suitable for enchantment.
  Allow any investigator specifical
  ly looking for a sturdy glass bot
  tle to attempt an Idea roll. If
  successful the investigator will
  recall that all of the wine bottles
  served at dinner were a bit over
  sized, with thick glass and a stop
  per. These bottles will be in the
  kitchen trashcan and none of them
  has a chance of breaking during the
  ritual (see Part H below).  
  4) Create Elder Sign: This requires
  the successful casting of the
  Elder Sign spell. Creating the
  Elder Sign takes an investigator one
  to two hours, while enchanting
  the finished stone takes between
  two to three hours. There are
  numerous things the Elder Sign
  can be created from in the
  house, so long as they can be
  combined with the stopper (see
  Part E below). 
  E) Affix the Elder Sign to the
  bottle stopper: While a simple
  step involving no magic, it is
  nonetheless a very important
  Part IV
  Putting the genie
  back in 
  the bottle...
  
  [ 2 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  part of the process. The investi
  gators must improvise a way to
  firmly secure the Elder Sign to
  the stopper. This takes as long as
  the investigator wishes to invest
  in it. The Keeper decides exact
  ly how successfully this is done.
  If the Keeper feels there is a
  chance of the Elder Sign coming
  loose, then the investigator 
  who secured it must make a
  LUCK roll. If this roll fails, the
  Elder Sign comes loose. If this
  roll fails by more than 20%, the
  Elder Sign comes loose during
  the final moments of the 
  imprisonment ritual.
  F) Place the enchanted bottle in
  the imprisonment circle: This
  is also a simple step that has the
  possibility of ending in disaster.
  If the circle’s intricate runes 
  are marred in any way during 
  the placement of the bottle, the
  imprisonment circle will fail.
  The investigator placing the
  bottle can try a Luck roll if they
  clumsily damage the runes while
  placing the bottle within it.
  G) Cast the Summon Jinniyah
  Spell: Upon casting this spell,
  the nearest Jinniyah will be
  summoned into the burning
  smoke and forced to take
  form there. Even if it chooses
  to remain incorporeal, it will
  appear as an outline within 
  the vapors.
  Once summoned into the circle,
  the Jinniyah will spend several
  moments appearing in its semi
  corporeal form. It will hurl itself
  about the circle, screeching and
  howling insanely as it slashes and
  claws at the edges of the circle. If
  the circle is properly drawn, sparks
  will appear wherever the creature
  touches an area directly above the
  containment runes. Investigators
  viewing this are required to make 
  a Sanity Check for seeing the
  Jinniyah (at whatever stage it 
  currently is).
  If the circle is effective in trapping
  the creature, the Jinniyah will then
  shift into human form. It may
  appear as Mr. Wallace or Irma
  Marshall, begging for someone to
  help it, while exclaiming that this is
  all a mistake. If  Wilma Marshall
  views the creature changing into
  the form of her daughter, it will
  permanently unhinge her already
  shaky mind. She instantly goes
  insane, crying out “I’m here baby,
  momma’s coming!” rushing toward
  the circle and her “daughter”. The
  investigators must prevent Wilma
  from interrupting the lines of the
  circle and freeing the Jinniyah.
  If the imprisonment circle was 
  correctly drawn and remains
  unbroken, the Jinniyah will be
  imprisoned within it for at least
  6d6 hours. After that time, it will
  have managed to seep through 
  the tiniest of imperfections in the
  paint and stone. 
  If an Enchanted Jinniyah Bottle 
  is within the imprisonment circle
  when the Jinniyah is summoned it
  slowly begins to glow. The bottle’s
  magic activates 1d4 rounds after
  the Jinniyah appears. It will begin
  to vibrate and a slowly turning 
  vortex will appear at the bottle’s
  opening. When this happens, the
  creature reacts even more violently,
  clawing and screaming in an
  enraged panic. The vortex grows 
  in size and speed until after several
  minutes the Jinniyah is almost
  completely drawn into the
  enchanted bottle. Each round after
  this, one of the creature’s tentacles
  whips out, clawing wildly. These
  desperate actions on the part of the
  Jinniyah will cause the bottle to be
  tossed about inside the circle. The
  bottle, if containing the creature,
  cannot exit the circle until it has
  been sealed with the stopper
  adorned with the Elder Sign.
  If a bottle other than one of the
  oversized ones served at dinner 
  (see Part C above) is used, there is a
  chance that all of this jerking and
  thrashing about causes the bottle
  to shatter. For every round that the
  bottle is allowed to bounce about,
  Keepers should roll a Resistance
  roll (STR 10 for the Jinniyah’s fran
  tic efforts to break the bottle and
  STR 10 for the bottle).
  Investigators can take steps to fur
  ther protect a normal bottle (wrap
  ping it in cloth, dipping it in wax,
  Summon Jinniyah
  Range:
  5 feet      
  Duration: 
  6 rounds
  Cost:     
  10 MP
  Sanity:
  1d4        
  Resistance 
  Table:  
  No 
  
  [ 2 9 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  securing it firmly to the floor
  before the casting began) for a
  bonus of between 1 6 STR points
  to the bottle (Keeper’s judgment
  on how much of a bonus their
  efforts warrant.). If one of the
  oversized/thick bottles is used,
  there is no chance of it being 
  broken from the Jinniyah’s efforts.
  The final part of the imprisonment
  ritual is to close the bottle with the
  specially prepared stopper adorned
  with an Elder Sign. One or more
  investigators must enter the circle
  and physically place the stopper
  onto the bottle. The bottle will be
  moving about wildly inside the 
  circle and an investigator will need
  to grab it. An investigator must
  make a DEX times four roll to grab
  the bottle, and then another to ram
  the stopper correctly into place.
  Only one investigator may attempt
  to do either of these actions per
  round. While doing so, one of the
  Jinniyah’s clawed tentacles will
  attempt to attack a random investi
  gator once per round. An investiga
  tor cannot attempt to dodge and
  make a DEX times four roll to
  either grab or stopper the bottle 
  in the same round.
  Once the stopper is securely in
  place, the Jinniyah is rendered pow
  erless to free itself and the adven
  ture is over. The bottle ceases all
  movement and the glowing fades
  until the bottle appears to be noth
  ing more than a normal glass con
  tainer. Once the Jinniyah is trapped
  inside, the glass becomes darkly
  colored and opaque. The bottle can
  now be moved outside of the 
  summoning/imprisonment circle
  and beyond the ring of standing
  stones around the house.  
  Just what the investigators do with
  the bottle is up to them. If the bot
  tle is ever opened or somehow
  broken, the Jinniyah will be freed.
  If a Summon Jinniyah pell is cast
  and this particular Jinniyah is 
  the closest to the caster, this
  Jinniyah will be released from
  its bottle. It will then appear
  before the next spell caster, its
  new “prospective” master.
  The investigators may have a few
  Fast Talk and/or Persuade rolls
  to make to authorities to account
  for the deaths of “Kitten”, Henry
  Clark, Mr. Wallace, Irma Marshall
  and possibly others.
  Outside, the freak blizzard quickly
  blows itself out in less than an hour.
  Warmer temperatures quickly melt
  much of the snow, and within three
  days, the investigators may attempt
  to reach Birch Springs. 
  ~ The End ~
  Sanity Awards
  For defeating the Stage Three Jinniyah
  1d3
  For defeating the Stage Four Jinniyah
  1d6
  For creating an Elder Sign
  1d3
  For Enchanting a Jinniyah Bottle
  1d3
  For successfully imprisoning the Jinniyah
  1d10
  If the Jinniyah escapes
  -1d10
  
  [ 3 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Jinniyah 
  Greater Independent Race
  The name of these beings comes
  from Arabic folklore describing a
  powerful supernatural spirit 
  associated with the destructive
  forces of nature. A feminine form
  of Jinni (or Genie), the Jinniyah 
  is a powerful mythos entity. 
  These beings delight in spreading 
  destruction and hunger for the
  fleeing life energy of those whose
  death it causes. A Jinniyah feeds by
  absorbing the Magic Points of a
  being it has killed.
  The Three Faces of a Jinniyah
  The Jinniyah has three forms,
  which it can shift among at will. 
  Its natural state is non corporeal
  and invisible; a true spirit entity. 
  In this way, it cannot normally be
  detected (unless by a spell, magical
  item or a person with psychic sensi
  tivity) or harmed (unless by a spell).
  In this form it can travel through
  matter but cannot affect its 
  environment in any way.
  Its second form is its most danger
  ous.  It can appear as a semi corpo
  real ball of smoke like mist that has
  fleshy tentacles tipped with ivory
  like blades hanging from it. The
  Jinniyah can shift into and out of
  this form quickly, appearing sud
  denly to attack and then vanishing
  almost instantly. It is vulnerable to
  physical attacks while in a vanished
  form. The number of tentacles it
  possesses depends on which of its
  life stages it’s in (see below).  
  The third Jinniyah form is only
  available after it has reached its
  third stage of development (see
  below): that of a human being. A
  Jinniyah can perfectly mimic any
  being it has recently murdered and
  absorbed life force from. The 
  creature has all of the memories
  and mannerisms of the person
  whose form it mimics. This ability
  lasts only one day per Magic Point
  the slain individual possessed. (i.e. 
  a Jinniyah murders an investigator
  who had 11 MP. For 11 hours 
  following the murder, the Jinniyah
  can perfectly mimic the deceased
  investigator.). 
  Other than mimicking those it has
  slain, each Jinniyah has a default
  human form. This is the form of
  the very first person who’s life
  force it had absorbed. Its default
  form could well be someone it 
  had murdered hundreds or even 
  thousands of years ago, as Jinniyah
  are essentially immortal unless
  destroyed. These forms are often
  dressed in the costumes of far off
  lands and distant ages, as these
  creatures are unable to alter their
  default form in any way. As with its
  semi corporeal form, the Jinniyah
  is vulnerable to physical attacks
  while in a human guise.
  The Seven Stages of a Jinniyah
  When first summoned from its
  native dimension, a Jinniyah is
  small and weak. In semi corporeal
  form, it is barely the size and
  strength of a rat. Unfortunately,
  they seldom stay this way for long,
  as this is only its first stage. If a
  Jinniyah manages adsorb enough
  life force, it undergoes a physical
  change and grows larger and
  stronger. Over time, a Jinniyah can
  do this six times, each stage more
  dangerous and powerful than the
  last. At the seventh attempt to
  physically change, the Jinniyah
  does not increase in power, but
  rather it bursts apart, forming
  seven new stage one Jinniyah.  
  There are two ways for a Jinniyah
  to ascend to its next most powerful
  stage. The first is to absorb 100
  Magic Points worth of life force
  per stage (i.e. a stage two Jinniyah
  must absorb 200 MPs worth of life
  force to become a stage three
  Jinniyah). The other way is the easi
  est to achieve, but much less desir
  able to the Jinniyah.  If a Jinniyah is
  physically destroyed while in our
  plane of existence, it turns into a
  thin purple mist and vanishes.  This
  does not destroy the creature, yet it
  enables it to reform onto the next
  stage at the rate of 1d8 hours per
  stage (i.e. a stage three Jinniyah is
  destroyed while in human form,
  turning into purple mist and van
  ishing.  Incorporeal, it lingers in
  the area reforming. The Keeper
  rolls 4d8 for the number of hours
  the Jinniyah will be reforming. Say
  he/she rolls a total of 14. Thus, in 
  14 hours the creature will manage
  to reform itself, but this time it 
  will be a stage four Jinniyah).
  Jinniyah try to avoid this if possi
  ble, as being destroyed and forced
  to reform is a painful and unpleas
  ant experience for them. Doing it
  willingly would be much like a 
  person allowing him or herself to
  drown; while possible, it is not
  preferred, much less done easily.
  The Power of a Jinniyah
  The Jinniyah earned their reputa
  tion for being destructive forces of
  nature. Within our plane of exis
  tence, these creatures possess the
  ability to cause extreme changes in
  weather pattern. A Jinniyah can
  drastically alter the weather within
  a two mile radius per life stage, for
  a total of one day per life stage (i.e.
  a stage two Jinniyah can affect the
  weather in a four mile radius for
  two days straight). These weather
  extremes can be changes in 
  
  [ 3 1 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  temperature of up to forty degrees,
  causing crippling cold spells or 
  heat waves, or with precipitation,
  causing killer storms, blizzards or
  droughts. The Jinniyah delight in
  using this power to cause death 
  and destruction.
  The History of the 
  Jinniyah on Earth
  An ancient sorcerer summoned 
  the first Jinniyah to Earth many
  thousands of years ago.  Unable to
  enslave the dangerous and defiant
  being, the sorcerer destroyed it,
  starting its cycle of growth. The
  Jinniyah discovered that being
  summoned to Earth gave it great
  power and a fertile hunting ground
  for life energy.  Before long that
  single Jinniyah had become many,
  spreading death across the 
  sorcerer’s city.  
  Desperate, a band of great sorcer
  ers found a way to capture and
  imprison these beings, as destroy
  ing them only allowed them to
  grow more powerful and eventually
  more numerous. For decades,
  human sorcerers hunted and
  trapped the Jinniyah, while they
  stealthily avoided capture, feeding
  on life forces and spreading
  destruction. By the time the 
  last of the Jinniyah were impris
  oned, and an entire nation had
  been destroyed. The summoning
  of such destructive spirits was 
  then strictly forbidden.
  Eventually, these creatures were
  forgotten until 680 AD, when 
  one was accidentally released 
  from imprisonment in Egypt. After
  much bloodshed and destruction,
  the Jinniyah was returned to its
  prison. Details of this incident
  were recorded in a book on sum
  moning and imprisonment spells.
  The name of this work is unknown,
  but in 718 AD this book came into
  the possession of an astronomer
  and student of magic while he was
  traveling near Babylon. That man
  was Abdul Al Hazred. In 730 AD,
  he would compose the Kitab Al
  Azif, which would be translated
  into Greek 220 years later. The
  Greek version of this work became
  known as the Necronomicon.
  
  [ 3 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Jinniyah, “malignant beings from another dimension”
  Stage One
  Stage Two                              Stage Three
  Char
  Averages
  Averages
  Averages
  STR
  3
  7
  16
  CON
  3
  10
  20
  SIZ
  2
  6
  12
  INT
  16
  16
  16
  POW
  15
  15
  15
  DEX
  16
  16
  16 
  Move 
  18 / 14
  18 / 14
  18 / 14 / 12
  (Incorporeal/
  Semi corporeal/
  Human)
  HP                                     1
  5
  16 
  Av. Damage Bonus:
  None
  None
  +1d4
  Weapons
  (Tentacle blade):
  25%
  35%
  45%
  Armor:                            
  1                                    
  2                                 
  2
  Spells:   
  None                            
  None
  None
  Sanity Loss: 
  None
  0/1d3
  1/1d6
  Stage Four
  Stage Five
  Stage Six
  Char.
  Averages
  Averages
  Averages
  STR
  20
  7
  16
  CON
  24
  10
  20
  SIZ  
  16
  6
  12
  INT
  16
  16
  16
  POW
  15
  15
  15
  DEX
  16
  16                                
  16 
  Move
  18 / 14 / 12
  18 / 14 / 12  
  18 / 14 / 12
  (Incorporeal/
  Semi corporeal/ 
  Human)
  HP                                     20                               
  25
  35 
  Av. Damage Bonus:       +1d6
  +2d6
  +3d6
  Weapons
  (Tentacle blade):
  55%
  65%
  75%
  Armor:                              3
  3                                
  4
  Spells:   
  None                            
  None
  None
  Sanity Loss: 
  1d2/1d8
  1d3/1d10
  1d4/1d12
  NOTE ON WEAPON: Jinnayah forms One blade tipped tentacle per stage; Damage bonus: 1d3+db
  
  [ 3 3 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  
  [ 3 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  
  [ 3 5 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  
  [ 3 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  NAME: Paul Doucet 
  SEX: MALE
  OCCUPATION: Antique Dealer
  SCHOOLING:
  BIRTHPLACE: Buffalo, NY, 29 years old
  MENTAL DISORDERS:
  Dead  -2 
  -1 
  0 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  8 
  9 
  10 
  11 
  12 
  13 
  14 
  15 
  16 
  17 18 19 
  20 
  21 
  22 
  23 
  24 
  25 
  26 
  27 28 29 
  30 
  31 
  32 
  33 
  34 
  35 
  36 
  37 38 39 
  40 
  41 
  42 
  43 
  44 
  45 
  46
  Unconscious 
  0 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  6 
  7 
  8 
  9 
  10 
  11 
  12 
  13 
  14 
  15 
  16 
  17 18 19 
  20 
  21 
  22 
  23 
  24 
  25 
  26 
  27 28 29 
  30 
  31 
  32 
  33 
  34 
  35 
  36 
  37 38 39 
  40 
  41 
  42 
  43 
  44 
  45 
  46
  HIT POINTS: 13
  STR: 11 
  DEX: 12 
  INT: 16 
  Idea: 80
  CON: 12 APP: 11 
  POW: 12 Luck: 60
  SIZ: 13 
  SAN: 65 EDU: 15 
  Know: 75
  Cthulhu Mythos:_______
  Damage Bonus:_______
  Move:_______
  Armor:_______
  SANITY POINTS:
  INVESTIGATOR SKILLS
  COMBAT SKILLS
  POSSESSIONS
  MAGIC POINTS: 12
  Insane 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47
  48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97
  [ ] Accounting (10%) 
  50%
  [ ] Anthropology (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Art (05%) 
  ____
  [ ] Astronomy (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Bargain (05%) 
  70%
  [ ] Biology (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Chemistry (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Climb (40%) 
  ____
  [ ] Conceal (15%) 
  ____
  [ ] Craft (05%) 
  ____
  [ ] Credit Rating (15%) 
  35%
   
  Cthulhu Mythos (0%) 
  ____
  [ ] Disguise (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Dodge (DEXx2%) 
  ____
  [ ] Drive Auto (20%) 
  ____
  [ ] Electrical Repair (10%) ____
  [ ] English (85%) 
  75%
  [ ] Fast Talk (05%) 
  15%
  [ ] First Aid (30%) 
  45%
  [ ] Geology (01%) 
  40%
  [ ] Hide (10%) 
  ____
  [ ] History (20%) 
  70%
  [ ] Jump (25%) 
  ____
   
  melee 
  % 
  damage 
  hand 
  range 
  #attack 
  HP
  [ ] FIST 
  50% 
  1d3 
  1 
  touch 
  1 
  n/a
  [ ] GRAPPLE 
  25% 
  special 
  2 
  touch 
  1 
  n/a
  [ ] HEAD 
  10% 
  1d4 
  0 
  touch 
  1 
  n/a
  [ ] KICK 
  25% 
  1d6 
  0 
  touch 
  1 
  n/a
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ ______
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ ______
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ ______
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ ______
   
  ranged 
  % 
  damage 
  malf 
  range 
  #attack shots HP
  [ ] HANDGUN 
  40% 
  ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  [ ] _____________ ____ ________ ____ _________ ____ __ ___
  INVESTIGATOR HISTORY: 
  A New York native, you’ve been with Wallace’s A&C for several 
  years. With the constant travel and late hours, it doesnít leave 
  you much time for a social life. Since you often travel alone with 
  cash and valuables for the company, you sometimes carry a 
  handgun. Not this time, of course; you’re only going to the 
  Catskills.  As an expert in fine antiques, your skills have earned 
  the company quite a bit of money.  You hope to earn enough on 
  overtime and bonuses from this trip to open your own small 
  shop. Then you could make your own hours, be your own boss 
  and maybe, finally have time to meet a nice girl.
  [ ] Law (05%) 
  ____
  [ ] Library Use (25%) 
  55%
  [ ] Pharmacy (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Photography (10%) 
  ____
  [ ] Physics (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Pilot (01%) 
  ____
  [ ] Psychoanalysis (01%) ____
  [ ] Psychology (05%) 
  ____
  [ ] Ride (05%) 
  ____
  [ ] Sneak (10%) 
  ____
  [ ] Spot Hidden (25%) 
  55%
  [ ] Swim (25%) 
  ____
  [ ] Throw (25%) 
  ____
  [ ] Track (10%) 
  ____
  [ ] Languages, French 
  40%
  [ ] Natural History 
  20%
  [ ] Navigate  
  30%
  [ ] Occult 
  20%
  [ ] Persuade  
  60%
  [ ] Antiques 
  70%
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] Club (25%) 
  ____
  [ ] Fist/Punch (50%) 
  ____
  [ ] Handgun (20%) 
  40%
  [ ] Kick (25%) 
  ____
  [ ] Knife (25%) 
  ____
  [ ] Machine Gun (15%) 
  ____
  [ ] Rifle (25%) 
  ____
  [ ] Shotgun (30%) 
  ____
  [ ] Submachine Gun (15%) ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  [ ] ____________ ____
  ITEM 
  CST/QT
  Travel bag 
  ____
  toiletries 
  ____
  four fine suits 
  ____
  shoes 
  ____
  fedora 
  ____
  six reference books 
  ____
  antique appraisal tools (brush, magnifier, etc.) ____
  wallet 
  ____
  watch 
  ____
  pack of cigarettes 
  ____
  Zippo lighter 
  ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  _____________________ ____
  
  [ 3 7 ]
  The Devil is in the Details
  
  [ 3 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  
  [ 3 9 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  I
  ntroduction: The sun danced upon the waves below you as pelicans turned and dove into the glittering ocean.   
  High above the water your train speeds south in comfort. For the hundredth time you marvel at this feat of |
  |    engineering. The Florida East Coast Railroad had worked for seven years creating the many bridges linking
  the island chain together like a string of pearls. Opened in 1912, it was now possible to travel by rail from the
  mainland all the way to Key West.
  The link with the rest of America did little to steal the island chain’s unique identity.  Once belonging to both
  Spain and Great Britain (who traded the islands back and forth for hundreds of years), the Florida Keys were
  like no other place on Earth. The deep water port of Key West enjoyed much success from shipping, coupled
  with being a destination for rich vacationers. This made the city one of the richest in the United States. Long
  had the islands attracted adventurers and pirates, runaway slaves, seamen and dreamers, and eventually,
  Professor Timm himself.
  Professor Rudolf Timm was quite a character in academic circles. Once a respected Austrian archeologist, he’d
  gone down to the Keys six years ago to investigate a hunch.  He never returned. His reputation was ruined
  shortly thereafter for two reasons: the first being his publication of papers proclaiming that the lost civilization
  of Atlantis was located somewhere in the Caribbean. The other was his newfound companion whom you knew
  only as Rita. Rumor told of her being a dark skinned woman nearly half his age. It was said that the two were
  inseparable, with Rita working alongside the Professor since he moved to the Keys.
  The pair spent their days searching the Florida Keys, looking for evidence of lost Atlantis. What they did find
  from time to time were lost shipwrecks and the occasional caches of pirate loot. These discoveries both infuri
  ated the professional treasure hunters and helped to fund their continued search for the ancient empire. Many
  in the academic community considered Professor Timm a kook whose career was over, and whose direction in
  life had brought him horrible shame. Looking out of the train window at the beautiful islands, enjoying the
  warm Caribbean sun and the sound of the gulls, you can think of worse ways to “ruin” one’s reputation. The
  Professor never made any excuses or apologies and always seemed quite happy with the state of his affairs.
  You were surprised by his telegram, even more so by his generous offer to pay for your travel expenses down to
  Key West and put you up in the new and exclusive La Concha hotel. His cryptic message hinted at much but
  actually gave few details. That he wished to speak face to face was obvious. It seemed he was putting a team
  together, but for what purpose was unclear. His hinting at “the biggest archeological discovery of our time” 
  certainly captured the imagination, and you were eager to hear what he had to say.  
  Soon the train moved back over land from one of the dozens of bridges over the ocean.  You arrive on the
  island of Key West well rested as your train pulls into the station, the conductor announcing, “Last stop!”
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  A 1920s Call of Cthulhu Adventure
  by Oscar Rios
  
  [ 4 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Involving the Investigators: If your players are using the pre generated characters, simply start them out on the
  Florida East Coast Railroad train going to Key West, in possession of Handout One. Any Investigators making a
  successful Luck roll will meet up on the same train during their voyage. Otherwise, Investigators meet up on the
  platform once they arrive in Key West. All pre generated characters are associates of Professor Rudolf Von Timm.  
  If players are using their own Investigators, Keepers should have at least one of them know Professor Rudolf 
  Von Timm personally. They could be friends of the Professor, professional colleagues (Professor Timm was only 
  discredited professionally four years ago), or know one another through reputation only. The Professor is more than 
  happy to invite those he does not know down to Key West as well, if someone he’s familiar with recommends them.
  Investigators with more than 50% in Archeology, Anthropology, History, Pilot Boat, or any Diving experience would
  be prime candidates for Professor Timm to contact.
  Keeper’s information
  The Distant Past: Long ago, in
  Earth’s pre history, the alien Elder
  Things built great cities and creat
  ed a race of beings to serve them.
  Over time the created a slave race,
  the Shoggoths, grew more and
  more intelligent and eventually
  rebelled against their masters.
  Early on, the Elder Things tried 
  to find a solution to the rebellious
  nature of their slaves. They cap
  tured six of the most cunning and
  rebellious Shoggoths for study. The
  Elder Things then transported
  them to a specially designed facili
  ty, a secret underwater prison and
  laboratory. Here they planned to
  research and hopefully find a “solu
  tion” to the Shoggoth “problem”.
  Eventually there was an incident at
  the facility resulting in the death of
  the entire Elder Thing staff. The
  location of the facility was so
  secret, that after the incident the
  Elder Things lost track of its loca
  tion. In the middle of a full blown
  war (this time with the Mi Go), the
  Elder Things never returned to the
  prison. The site, located underwa
  ter near present day Key West,
  remained hidden for hundreds of
  thousands of years.
  At the end of the Ice Age, when
  humans first moved into the area,
  the site was discovered by a group
  of fishermen. The tribal mystics
  and shamans were curiously drawn
  to the site (led by their dreams) 
  and they managed to dive down to
  and enter the facility. The shamans
  studied the strange writing on the
  walls and began speaking to the
  horrifying creatures they found
  imprisoned there. The Shoggoths,
  who were selected for their intelli
  gence, created organs that enabled
  them to speak, and soon mastered
  the human’s language.   
  Within a short time, the shamans
  became convinced that these 
  creatures, which asked to be
  released, were unclean spirits. They
  also realized the dreams which led
  them to this place did so for a dark
  purpose. They chose to ignore
  these strange dreams and resealed
  the site, declaring the strange bay
  where the creatures were impris
  oned to be taboo.  Eventually, the
  tale of the strange creatures and their
  underwater prison faded into myth.
  Only the Shamans, who passed down
  their knowledge from generation to
  generation, knew the truth.
  The Past: With the coming of the
  Spaniards, things changed drasti
  cally. While open warfare raged
  between the native Caloose tribes
  and the European newcomers, it
  became obvious that the invaders
  could not be defeated. Desperate, a
  Caloose medicine man dove down
  to the prison and met with the
  strange creatures within. After
  speaking with the Shoggoths, the
  shaman cast a spell binding one of
  the Shoggoths to his will. He then
  freed the creature and sent it into
  battle against the Spaniards.
  For weeks, the Shoggoth preyed
  upon the Europeans, hunting them
  along the shores, snatching them
  from the decks of their boats,
  always staying just out of reach and
  driving insane those who survived
  its attacks. Weapons seemed use
  less against this strange horror
  from the depth. It is for this reason
  that the Spaniards named the
  island chain “Los Martires” (the
  Martyrs), and the last island in 
  the chain “Cayo Hueso” (Island of
  Bones).  All was going well for the
  Caloose tribe, until the ever rebel
  lious Shoggoth managed to break
  free of the spell controlling it. 
  Soon the loathsome, yet cunning
  creature was preying upon both
  Caloose and Spaniard alike.
  Desperate for the horrors to stop,
  
  [ 4 1 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  both sides declared a truce. An Old
  Spanish priest, Father Juan Miguel,
  had learned of such creatures in his
  youth. His family had long been
  involved with the Inquisition 
  and possessed several rare books
  (mythos tomes) taken from witches
  and warlocks who had been burned
  at the stake. Combining their
  forces, a plan to destroy the crea
  ture was formed. Both sides signed
  a treaty stating that the Spaniards
  would leave the islands in peace in
  return for the Caloose tribe’s help
  in destroying the inhuman horror.
  A great battle took place with 
  the Caloose warriors and the
  Spanish soldiers fighting side by
  side against the Shoggoth. Father
  Juan Miguel and the Caloose holy
  men cast a powerful spell to
  destroy the creature once and for
  all. The dead were buried and both
  sides feasted their victory upon the
  shores of Caya Hueso. Within days,
  the Spaniards launched a major 
  offensive against the Caloose. 
  This time, the Spaniards were 
  more thorough in their destruc
  tion. Father Juan Miguel made it
  known that it was the Indians who 
  summoned the demonic creature.
  The Spanish Crown and the
  Vatican both declared the Caloose
  heretics and worshippers of Satan.
  Within a short time the Caloose
  were completely annihilated.
  The Recent Past: Several weeks ago
  Professor Timm, a discredited
  archeologist searching for Atlantis,
  made a startling discovery. He had
  been conducting searches on Caya
  Locura (Isle of Madness), a small
  island about ninety miles west of
  Key West. What Professor Timm
  unearthed on the beach was an
  unusual golden disk inscribed with
  strange runes. This was an Elder
  Thing artifact, an identification
  pass to a secret underwater facility
  (see “Item One: The Amulet” in
  Part II).
  As he had also been “called” here
  by his dreams, Professor Timm
  became convinced that there must
  be further artifacts at the bottom
  of the bay, located at an inlet to 
  the Island. With his girlfriend Rita
  assisting him, Professor Timm made
  several dives into the bay. There he
  discovered the Elder Thing site and
  became convinced he’d found an
  intact Atlantean structure. In spite
  of the public’s opinion of him,
  Professor Timm was a responsible
  scientist and had no wish to disturb
  the site without a proper research
  team to back him up.
  Over the next week, Professor
  Timm and Rita began gathering
  funds for a major exploration of 
  the site. The pair sold off many of
  the valuable items they’d found and
  collected over the years. Once they
  had enough capital to finance the
  project, cryptic invitations were
  sent to several people he could trust
  (enter the Investigators). With the
  invitations were pre paid tickets
  for travel to Key West. He also
  arranged for pre paid reservations
  for everyone to stay at the La Concha
  hotel, where he planned to reveal
  what he’d discovered, show his 
  evidence and propose that they join
  him in further exploring the site.
  Unfortunately, selling so many 
  valuable items at once drew the
  attention of local thugs.  Two 
  separate gangs (“The Eastsiders”
  and “The Snakes”) began following
  Professor Timm and Rita, hoping
  to be led to the source of the
  “treasure”. Noticing that he was
  being followed, Professor Timm
  removed the last 20 pages of his
  research casebook, gave them to a
  close friend (a local bartender; see
  “Earl Stevens” in Part II) and left a
  clue leading to the bar in his home.
  Before Professor Timm and Rita
  could check into the hotel them
  selves, The Eastsiders gang made
  its move.  
  The pair were captured and brutal
  ly interrogated. Professor Timm
  told the thugs about the “ruins of
  lost Atlantis” he’d discovered. The
  gang sailed out to Caya Locura,
  taking Professor Timm and Rita
  with them. Half of the bandits,
  experienced in salvage operations,
  dove down to the ruins and forced
  their way inside. Both Rita and
  Professor Timm were murdered
  shortly thereafter.
  Once inside the Elder Thing
  prison, the gang began a hasty
  search, smashing open doors 
  while looking for “treasure”. One
  of the things they smashed was 
  an Elder Sign imprisoning one of
  the remaining Shoggoths. Freed, 
  the creature quickly devoured 
  its unknowing  liberators. The
  Shoggoth then attacked the boat
  anchored above and killed everyone
  onboard. Afterwards, it pulled the
  craft under the waves, sinking it.
  Recently, the Shoggoth has been
  enjoying its newfound freedom. It’s
  been hunting in the area, roaming
  out at night and returning to the
  prison, or a local shipwreck, before
  morning to hide. The Shoggoth is a
  cautious one, making every effort
  to stay hidden during the day.
  Being one of the smartest Shoggoths
  of its time, the creature has a few
  tricks. At night, while close to the
  surface, it will form its body into
  the shape of a schooner it had pre
  viously observed. At night and from
  
  [ 4 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  a distance, the disguise works very well (65%).  Authorities are now looking for “a black sailed schooner, thought to be
  connected to a number of kidnappings, possibly by white slavers”.
  It also kidnapped an eight year old boy, whose family lived on Caya Locura. Keeping him alive and fed, it sealed him
  into a breathable chamber of the prison. While observing the boy and listening to him speak (mainly insane babble),
  the Shoggoth developed a working knowledge of the English language.  
  The Shoggoth has no long term plans as of yet. It also has no interest in freeing its fellow Shoggoths. Finding a way
  to destroy the Elder Signs upon their door is not something it wishes to occupy its time with. Enjoying freedom for
  the first time in millions of years, the Shoggoth plans to keep itself free and well fed. 
  
  [ 4 3 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  The adventure really starts when
  the Investigators receive Handout
  One, a letter from Professor Rudolf
  Von Timm.
  Some brief notes and history on
  Key West: In the 1920s, Key West
  had a population of approximately
  20,000 people, sometimes making
  it the largest city in the state of
  Florida.  It was a bustling urban
  center with all the infrastructure of
  any major American city of its day.
  By 1927, Key West was thriving on
  the tourist trade, with the old
  industry staples of wrecking (sal
  vaging of shipwrecks), cigars and
  sponge harvesting slowly fading
  into a secondary role. At this time,
  Key West can be reached by the
  Florida East Coast Railroad, which
  opened in January of 1912 (service
  would end when 40 miles of track
  are destroyed by a massive hurri
  cane in 1933). The U.S. Navy oper
  ated a major training facility (for
  Naval aircraft, destroyers and by
  1932, submarines as well) on the
  island at this time.
  Before the last Ice Age, all of 
  Key West was a coral forest on the
  ocean floor. As sea levels dropped,
  the island chain was created. By
  1000 AD, the Caloose Indians had
  settled into the area, having built 
  a sophisticated culture. In 1513, 
  the island chain was discovered by
  Ponce de Leon who named them
  “Los Martires” (The Martyrs), and
  Key West “Cayo Hueso” (Isle of
  Bones). The Caloose greeted the
  Europeans with shell tipped arrows
  but within 300 years all native pop
  ulations were gone.
  Los Martires were traded back 
  Handout One: Professor Timm’s letter
  To my longtime friend and colleague,
  I hope this letter finds you well. As I send it, I’m better than 
  I have ever been before. What I am about to hint at you must keep to
  yourself. I have discovered something. Something so unique it could 
  possibly be the biggest archeological discovery of our time. I dare not say
  more right now, except that I need your help. Rita and I are putting a
  team together and I want you to be a part of it. I will explain everything
  in person if you’ll accept my invitation. 
  I have enclosed in this letter tickets for you to join me in Key West on
  the 23rd of July. If you drop whatever you’re doing and leave within a
  day or so, this should be plenty of time. Trust me my friend, you will
  not be disappointed. 
  I’ve reserved a room for you at the La Concha Hotel. Rita and I will
  meet you at the train; we’ll be waiting on the platform. Then we’ll go
  to the hotel, have dinner, and then I’ll tell you everything. Bring a few
  changes of clothes and whatever professional items you think you might
  need, just in case. If you accept my proposal, you’ll be spending a few
  weeks here working on a very exciting project. One that, if I’m right,
  will have people re-writing history books for the next 50 years!
  PLEASE COME!
  Rudolf
  [Enclosed are rail tickets and possibly trans 
  Atlantic Ocean liner tickets.]
  Part I
  La Concha Hotel,
  Key West
  
  [ 4 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  and forth between Spain and Great
  Britain several times until becom
  ing an American territory in 1821.
  The origins of the name “Key
  West” are unclear but were widely
  used by this time. Florida became a
  state in 1845, seceded during the
  Civil War and was quickly taken 
  by Union forces in 1861. By the
  1920s, Key West had a large Cuban
  American population (which 
  created a cigar industry that throve
  until the upswing in the popularity
  of cigarettes). A deep water port
  and port of entry to the United
  States, Key West has long been 
  tied to the ocean.
  Key West Train Station: This
  bustling transportation hub is the
  last stop on the Florida East Coast
  Railroad. Here can be found 
  people from all over the world.
  Many wealthy vacationers will be
  exiting the train, eager to enjoy the
  sun and local casinos. Neither Rita
  nor Professor Timm is waiting to
  meet the Investigators when they
  disembark. If the Investigators
  have not yet met, or don’t already
  know one another, now is an ideal
  time for them to meet.  
  The Investigators will not have 
  a phone number or address for
  Professor Timm. The return
  address on the invitation letter is 
  to a P.O. box. Calls placed to the 
  La Concha hotel will inform 
  them that:
  • Professor Timm is also a registered
  guest but has not yet checked in
  • Their rooms are ready and they
  can check in whenever they like
  • Everything has been paid for
  in advance
  • If they wish, a car (or several cars)
  can be sent to pick them up from
  the station.
  Taxis are easy to find if they wish 
  to make their way to the hotel on
  their own.  
  Possible Taxi Ride: If the Investigators
  take a taxi to the hotel, they will
  meet John Blackbear, a local
  Seminole Indian working in Key
  West. He’s about 25, friendly and
  tells them he knows every corner of
  the island. He’s a fixture on the
  island and his cab is never too diffi
  cult to find (dependent on a suc
  cessful Luck roll combined with a
  successful Spot Hidden roll any
  time between 7:00am and 7:00pm,
  in the heart of Key West).
  John Blackbear 
  Local Seminole Cab Driver
  STR 14      
  CON   14      
  SIZ    13 
  INT 13    
  POW 12      
  DEX 13        
  APP 14      
  EDU   11      
  SAN  55 
  HP
  14      
  DB +1d4 
  Weapons:  Fist (60%, 1d3+db)
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Drive Auto (65%),
  Psychology (40%)
  Local Rumors and Newspapers: With
  a successful Luck roll combined
  with a Listen roll, an Investigator
  will overhear conversations about
  the “white slavers”.
  Sometime yesterday, a yacht was
  found adrift two miles offshore.
  When searched, there was no 
  one aboard and all of the family’s
  belongings remained. There
  seemed to be nothing structurally
  wrong with the vessel. There is 
  talk of a white slaver’s ship hunting
  these waters, snatching folks and
  taking them down to Haiti for
  some voodoo rituals or to the
  Middle East to be locked away in
  some sultan’s harem.
  Keepers can dole out this story one
  bit at a time as the Investigators
  ask the locals about the event.
  Some rumors will contradict, while
  others seem to grow as the days
  pass. That morning, The Citizen, 
  a local Key West paper, also covers
  the story.
  
  [ 4 5 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  Authorities are investigat-
  ing the apparent disappear-
  ance of New York industri-
  alist Edward Horn and his
  family. Mr. Horn, his wife
  Valerie and their three
  children never returned to
  port after spending the day
  out on the family’s yacht.
  The ship, called “Petty
  Crimes”, a 28-foot Bertram
  convertible, was found
  adrift yesterday, 20 miles
  northeast of the Key West
  Naval Station. A training
  crew from the USS Valiant
  destroyer boarded the ship
  The La Concha hotel: This new (1924)
  luxury hotel, opened on Duval
  Street, has seven floors and over 
  75 rooms. It is also the tallest 
  structure in the area and offers a
  panoramic view of the city from 
  its roof. There is an attached
  restaurant, room service, and a
  helpful, attentive staff. Geared for
  the tourist trade, the staff at the 
  La Concha hotel work hard to keep
  their guests happy.
  Checking into the hotel is done
  quickly as the Investigators are
  expected. Bellboys whisk baggage
  up to very comfortable rooms.
  Each room has a vase of fresh trop
  ical flowers, a box of one dozen fine
  cigars, a copy of the morning paper
  (see Handout Two above) and an
  impressive view of the Gulf of
  Mexico. All the rooms are pre paid
  for two months with a $10 per day
  stipend for room service meals.  
  Investigators asking the staff about
  Professor Timm’s whereabouts will
  be told he has not yet checked in.
  The staff will explain, “I’m sure
  he’ll be joining you for dinner.
  Professor Timm was very specific
  about the arrangements. Dinner
  will be at 7:30pm in the private 
  dining room.” If they push for
  more details they’ll learn that the
  Professor and his companion were
  due to check in yesterday but have
  not yet done so.
  If nervous Investigators call the
  police, they’ll politely explain that
  without any evidence of a crime, or
  an address they can visit, there isn’t
  much they can do. They’ll promise
  “To look into this”, but successful
  Psychology rolls will tell the
  Investigators that they won’t.
  Dinner comes and goes without
  Professor Timm or Rita showing
  up. The staff will serve a magnifi
  cent feast for the Investigators,
  offering items like conch soup, 
  turtle, shellfish and ethnic Cuban
  dishes. After dinner, dessert is
  served with coffee.  
  Enter “Rita”: Sometime after 
  dinner a woman claiming to be
  Professor Timm’s companion Rita,
  approaches the Investigators.
  “Rita” is a light skinned black
  woman, very attractive and about
  25 years old. She’s dressed in a
  white skirt and blouse, her hair
  pulled back with a bandana and her
  arm in a sling and cast.
  The woman’s actual name is
  Colette Navarre and she is a con
  artist from New Orleans.  Colette
  is working for the Snakes gang and
  is trying to locate the missing
  Professor Timm in hopes of hijack
  ing whatever new “treasures” he’s
  discovered. The Snakes lost track
  of Professor Timm the night he 
  and the real Rita were kidnapped.
  So far they’ve searched his home,
  located a hidden bit of treasure
  (the amulet) and his journals (which
  they can’t read because he kept his
  notes in German). Stuck and des
  perate, they hired Colette.
  Colette is operating from her boat
  only to find it apparently
  abandoned. There was no
  sign of a struggle or appar-
  ent mechanical or structur-
  al problems with the vessel.
  It appeared that no proper-
  ty was removed from the
  yacht and all emergency
  equipment remained in
  place. No sign of Mr. Horn,
  an experienced seaman, or
  his family could be found
  and a search is currently
  underway. A spokesman for
  Mayor Leslie Curry firmly
  denies rumors of a kidnap-
  ping or a supposed group of
  “white slavers” operating in
  the area, pending an inves-
  tigation. The Navy could not
  be reached for comment. 
  [From The Citizen, July
  24th 1927]
  Handout Two: The Citizen article
  
  [ 4 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  (“La Donna Maria” a 20’ cabin
  cruiser), reporting in by phone to
  the leader of the Snakes gang. She’s
  been promised 20% of the take,
  but will look out for herself first. If
  she can grab the treasure herself,
  she won’t hesitate in not contacting
  the gang. If she thinks her cover
  has been blown, or that she might
  be in danger, she’ll return to
  Louisiana.
  Colette Navarre, aka “Rita”, 
  Con Artist Working For 
  Local Thugs
  STR 11
  CON   12      
  SIZ    11
  INT 14     
  POW 14     
  DEX 14        
  APP 15      
  EDU   12      
  SAN   70
  HP
  13 
  DB     
  Weapons:  Savage M1917 semiauto
  matic pistol (60%, 1d8, ten .32
  rounds per magazine, 3 magazines,
  rate of 2), Throwing Knife (70%,
  1d4+1), Armor: None
  Skills:  Fast Talk (80%), Persuade
  (65%), Psychology (70%), Knife
  (70%), Throw (70%), Listen (45%),
  Spot Hidden (60%), Handgun
  (60%), Pilot Boat (65%), Dodge
  (50%), Accounting (50%), Hide
  (55%), Sneak (55%), Locksmith
  (50%), Pickpocket (50%)
  “Rita” will try to make contact with
  the group sometime after their 
  dinner. She will not have her pistol
  with her, but will have her knife
  hidden away. “Rita” will try to hide
  outside the Investigators’ rooms
  hoping to catch them when they
  return. Her goal is to use the
  Investigators to lead her to either
  the “treasure” or to Professor
  Timm, calling on the thugs for 
  help if need be. She has Professor
  Timm’s journal and the Elder 
  Thing amulet to help establish 
  her credibility.
  “Rita’s” cover story: Rudolf Von
  Timm, her long time lover, was
  working on one of the outer islands
  searching for Atlantis. She hadn’t
  accompanied him because of her
  broken her arm (which she explains
  happened when she hooked a mar
  lin while they were fishing). They
  were supposed to meet the next
  day but he never showed. She got
  nervous after two days passed so
  she visited his home, which had
  been ransacked. She managed to
  recover his journal, which the
  intruders missed. He’d previously
  left the amulet with her for safe
  keeping. She thinks someone might
  be following her and although she
  can’t prove it, she is convinced the
  local authorities are involved. She’ll
  explain how Rudy and she have
  been followed and harassed by the
  local police: “They want to snatch
  up whatever we might find, you
  know, and keep it for themselves.
  They’ve even tried to lock us up to
  intimidate us!”
  With her high Psychology score,
  coupled with Fast Talk and
  Persuade skills, she should be able
  to pass her story off. She’ll ask for
  their help in finding “Rudy”. She’ll
  explain, “He was excited, close to find
  ing something big, something really spe
  cial. He might have gotten hurt while
  exploring alone, or someone maybe
  grabbed him, I don’t know. I do know
  that he trusted you all, or he wouldn’t
  have asked you to come help him. I
  guess I need to trust you all, too. Will
  you help me find him? There’s no one
  else I can turn to.”   
  If the Investigators agree, she’ll
  show them the journal and the
  amulet and she’ll lead them to
  Professor Timm’s home.
  
  [ 4 7 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  If “Rita” gives the Investigators the
  journal, they’ll see it has no dates in
  it and was written in German. The
  last few pages were hastily torn out.
  She’ll also show them the amulet
  but will not allow them to take it.
  She’ll argue that, “Rudy gave this to
  me and told me to protect it with
  my life. I’m holding onto it until he
  tells me otherwise.”
  Anyone making a successful
  Geology roll will learn that the
  metal is not gold. The metal is
  light, very strong and impossible 
  to identify. The writing on it is
  unidentifiable unless someone
  makes a Cthulhu Mythos roll. If
  successful, the Investigator learns
  that they are similar to markings
  found in “The Eltdown Shards” 
  and “The G’Harne Fragments”.
  Professor Timm’s home: On the out
  skirts of Key West is a modest four
  room bungalow, home to Professor
  Rudolf Timm. The Snakes gang
  turned the rooms upside down.
  There are several items they didn’t
  find, which could prove helpful to
  the Investigators. The front door is
  open, its lock being broken when it
  was clumsily picked open.
  “Rita” will accompany the
  Investigators to the house and
  assist them in searching. She wishes
  to know just what the Investigators
  might turn up.
  • The Kitchen and Dining Room:
  There are dirty dishes in the sink
  and the milk in the refrigerator is
  starting to spoil. There are no
  clues to be found here.
  • The Bedroom: Here is a bed, 
  dresser, closet, nightstand and
  chest. A successful Spot Hidden
  roll allows an Investigator to 
  find the Professor’s kit of excava
  tion tools. (AKnow roll informs
  Investigators that he would not
  have gone to work on something
  without taking these.) A second
  successful Spot Hidden roll finds
  a note he wrote on the back of a
  business card among some debris
  (See Handout Four: Madame
  Lilia’s business card).
  • Living Room: Here the room 
  has been ransacked, with items 
  obviously stolen.  Display cases
  are smashed open, items taken off
  the walls and the furniture ripped
  open with a knife. There is a set
  of receipts in the garbage here,
  found with a successful Spot
  Hidden roll (CLUE ONE). 
  They are as follows: 
  • Purchase of fuel for a boat
  • Purchase of an air pump and
  four diving suits (with various
  gear), an old diving bell and a
  wench. Delivery to Westgate
  Marina, Berth 281, with instilla
  tion of pump and wench on ship
  called “Queen of Atlantis”
  • Purchase for two new suits,
  including a tuxedo. 
  • The Study: Here are many
  books on history, folklore,
  archeology and the occult.
  Bookcases have been over
  turned and papers are scattered
  everywhere. With a successful
  Spot Hidden roll, Investigators
  will find a flyer to a local bar
  called Morgan’s (CLUE TWO).
  There is an enigmatic note 
  Part II
  Paper
  Chase
  Handout Three: Journal of Professor Rudolf Von Timm 
  “Had to sell the gold cross from last year’s find, cash will pay for bills and gas for the boat. Searched 
  northern island, it isn’t the one. Thank goodness Rita believes in me, I doubt myself at times. Am I 
  mad to follow a dream?
  “Did some fishing with Rita, day too nice to go digging in the sand. Found two more small islands not on the
  common chart. Will look into them soon.
  “Circled the new islands I found, located them on older charts. Looks promising.
  “Rita hurt her arm fishing, will check a few things while she recovers.”
  [The back of the journal has the last few pages torn out]
  
  [ 4 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  written on the back of the flyer.
  It says, “Earl Matthew chvii v7”.
  Investigators checking the bible, or
  making a successful Know roll, will
  learn that Matthew, Chapter VII,
  Verse 7 is: 
  “Ask, and it shall be given you;
  Seek, and ye shall find;
  Knock, and it shall be 
  opened unto you.”
  The “Earl” listed in the note is not
  a title, but refers to Earl Stevens,
  the bartender at Morgan’s, a local
  dive bar. This clue will lead to the
  missing journal pages.
  Westgate Marina: Security at the
  Westgate Marina has gotten tighter
  recently. Investigators acting suspi
  ciously while in the area should
  expect to be stopped by a security
  guard. Anyone claiming to be a friend
  of Professor Timm and makes a suc
  cessful Fast Talk or Persuade roll can
  get past security and onto his boat.
  They will need to show ownership
  papers to be allowed to take the boat
  out of the marina. “Rita” has a copy
  of these papers, which she obtained
  from the gang of thugs who ran
  sacked Professor Timm’s home.
  Professor Timm’s boat, “Queen of
  Atlantis”, is currently moored at
  berth 281, Westgate Marina. She’s a
  25’ converted sport fishing boat, fully
  fueled and loaded with enough sup
  plies onboard to feed a crew of
  eight for a week. The ship has a
  radio, compass, flare gun with six
  emergency flares, life jackets (for
  eight), a sport fishing chair with
  two sets of fishing gear and a diving
  winch system (recently modified to
  lift and lower up to five divers at a
  time). The ship has recently under
  gone some modifications:
  • A large diving air delivery system
  pump, able to deliver air to five
  diving suits at once
  • A new salvage winch system with
  a large metal salvage basket (able
  to lift up to 1,000 pounds to the
  surface)
  • Two new diving suits and two
  refurbished ones, all fully
  equipped (a fifth suit, Professor
  Timm’s, can also be found here).
  In her hull there are some unusual
  supplies. Stored carefully is a full
  set of brand new camping gear
  (three large tents, a collapsible
  table, eight folding cots with mos
  quito netting, eight folding chairs,
  cooking gear, and a bottle of 35 year
  old champagne wrapped in a cloth).
  There is also canned food here that
  could last 10 people 15 days.
  Onboard there are only standard
  charts. No records of any of the
  small islands not on the common
  charts can be found. Professor
  Timm did not write these things
  down, as he was paranoid about
  protecting his discoveries.
  Morgan’s: This local bar is a bit of a
  dive, a favorite of local eccentrics.
  The door to this place is locked 
  at all times. Entry is gained after
  Franco, a large Cuban man, looks
  over all prospective patrons. The
  drink of choice here is rum, but 
  the bar is fairly well stocked. On
  Friday nights they have a Cuban
  band playing Spanish music and on
  Saturday nights they have a band
  playing Jazz in English. The bar
  tender and owner is Earl Stevens, a
  native of Key West and a friend of
  Professor Timm.
  “Rita” won’t go to Morgan’s saying,
  “That’ll be one of the first places
  they’ll look for me.” The real 
  reason is that the regulars would
  instantly know that she is not the
  real Rita. Instead, she’ll stay behind
  and call the Snakes gang. She’ll tell
  them they need to recover the
  missing pages of the journal. 
  Handout Four: Madame Lilia’s business card
  Madame Lilia
  Glimpses into the future!
  Mystic card reading for discriminating ladies and gentleman
  By appointment only
  Contact Casa Marina hotel to schedule a session
  [On the back of the card is a hand-written note:]
  See her about Windrop translations
  Item One: The Amulet
  A golden colored metallic disk
  about ten inches in diameter, there
  are three sets of runes on it, like
  dot formed hieroglyphs, in three
  concentric circles. Many of the
  characters are worn nearly smooth
  with time. There is a set of seven
  holes in the center of the object.  
  
  [ 4 9 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  Earl Morgan, the bartender, has 
  the missing journal pages. He was
  told, “If some book smart college
  types come in with a flyer looking
  for these papers, hand them over.
  They’ll be friends of mine.” That’s
  exactly what he’ll do. The papers
  are currently stashed in a back 
  storage room (see Handout Five:
  Lost Journal Pages).
  Shortly after arriving in the bar,
  another group will enter. The five
  men, all rough looking Cubans, will
  try to spot the Investigators (They
  have a description from “Rita”).
  They’ll watch the Investigators,
  trying to see whom they talk to. 
  If they see the pages handed over,
  or get impatient, one of them 
  will attempt to pick a fight with a 
  random Investigator. No matter
  what happens, the thugs have 
  every intention of beating up the
  Investigators and taking the pages
  from them.
  Franco, 
  Local Bouncer
  STR 16      
  CON   15      
  SIZ    15    
  INT 12      
  POW 11      
  DEX 13        
  APP 11      
  EDU   12      
  SAN  55 
  HP
  15      
  DB +1d4
  Weapons:  
  Punch (75%,
  1d3+db), Grapple (50%)
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Psychology (50%), Spot
  Hidden (50%)
  Earl Stevens 
  Local Bartender
  STR 15      
  CON   15      
  SIZ    14    
  INT 14      
  POW 14      
  DEX 13        
  APP 13      
  EDU   13      
  SAN   70 
  HP
  15      
  DB +1d4
  Weapons: Eight gauge sawed off
  double barrel shotgun (60%, 1d4+2,
  2 rounds of 8 gauge rock salt shells,
  six spare shells in drawer), Punch
  (70%, 1d3+db), Grapple (50%)
  Armor:  None
  Skills:Psychology (60%), Persuade
  (55%), Listen (45%), Spot Hidden
  (50%), Bargain (60%), Accounting
  (60%), Fast Talk (40%)
  Encounter #1: Bar Fight at Morgan’s (five thugs)
  Thug #1     
  Thug #2     
  Thug #3      
  Thug #4       
  Thug #5
  STR
  14           
  15               
  14                
  16                
  16                      
  CON           
  13              
  12               
  12                
  14                
  14                         
  SIZ              
  14              
  15               
  14                
  15                
  14                       
  INT
  9              
  10                
  11                 
  9               
  10                         
  POW
  10              
  11               
  12                
  10                
  11                       
  DEX
  14              
  13               
  12                
  12                
  12                  
  HP
  14              
  14               
  13                
  14                
  14   
  Damage Bonus: 1d4
  Weapons: Punch 65%, 1d3+db; Head 30%, 1d4+db; Kick 35%, 1d6+db; 
  Armor: None
  Chair 35% 1d6+db; Throw 50% (mug, bottle, etc.), 1d3+db
  
  [ 5 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The Papers Arrive: If the journal
  entries were lost to the Snakes gang,
  they’ll be returned a few hours later.
  The next morning, one of the
  Investigators finds that the missing
  papers have been inserted into the
  newspaper that’s delivered each
  morning to their room.  There’ll be
  no explanation as to how they got
  there or why they were returned.
  One of the gang members, who
  wasn’t part of the previous night’s
  attack, simply paid a bellboy $5 to
  make sure a certain newspaper got
  delivered to a certain room. “Rita”
  will show up later to make sure the
  papers are noticed, acting surprised
  and confused by this turn of events.
  The Morning Citizen: There is
  another news item in the morning
  paper that might draw the
  Investigators’ eye. Any Investigator
  handling the newspaper, or rolling a
  successful Spot Hidden or Luck
  roll while near a copy of The Citizen
  notices the story. If they don’t read
  about it, someone will mention it
  within earshot, as it will be the
  “hot gossip topic” of the day about
  Key West.
  Part III
  Gathering 
  Clues
  The thugs won’t draw any weapons,
  confident that they can handle 
  the Investigators with just physical
  force. If the battle seems to be
  going against them, they’ll resort 
  to using chairs and bottles as
  improvised weapons. The patrons
  and staff will not interfere, not 
  recognizing either group and not
  wanting to get involved. 
  If any Investigator should draw a
  weapon, especially a firearm, it 
  will be a gross violation of local 
  etiquette. A bar fight is one thing; 
  a knife or gunfight is another.
  Suddenly there’ll be a deafening
  shotgun blast into the air. The blast
  comes from Earl Morgan, who
  keeps a sawed off double barrel
  shotgun loaded with rock salt
  under the bar. He’ll order everyone
  involved to get the hell out of his
  bar, and shout for Mona (the waitress)
  to call the cops. If Investigators
  haven’t already gotten the papers at
  this point, getting Earl to hand
  them over will be much more diffi
  cult. Once outside, the thugs run
  off before the police arrive, and if
  the Investigators don’t act in a sim
  ilar manner they’re apprehended.
  The Police Arrive: Anyone ques
  tioned by police will be searched
  for weapons.  Handguns will be
  confiscated, as will any knives. 
  Just how the Investigators interact
  with the police decides how this
  encounter ends. Investigators 
  could end with some tickets to pay, 
  their weapons confiscated or even
  be arrested for causing a public 
  disturbance, and/or carrying a 
  concealed weapon, etc. Offering 
  of bribes is a bad idea, but only
  because a weapon is involved.
  These offers will be met with hand
  cuffs and a night in the city jail.
  Typical Key West Police Officer 
  STR 15      
  CON   15      
  SIZ    15    
  INT 11      
  POW 13      
  DEX 10        
  APP 12      
  EDU   10      
  SAN  60 
  HP
  15 
  DB +1d4    
  Weapons: Fist/Punch (65%,
  1d3+db), Grapple (45% Damage
  special), Head Butt (40%, 1d4+db),
  .45 revolver (45%, 1d10+2),
  Nightstick (55% 1d6+db)
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Psychology (40%), Sneak
  (30%), Spot Hidden (40%),
  Persuade (35%), Law (40%), First
  Aid (30%), Listen (30%), Swim
  (40%), Drive Auto (50%)
  The Gang gets away: If the thugs
  gain the journal entries they’ll scat
  ter into the night.  One of them
  will hide the papers under his shirt.
  Knowing the local streets and alley
  ways, it should be simple for them
  to escape pursuit. If there is a foot
  chase, the Investigators have a one
  in five chance of pursuing the cor
  rect thug (unless they split up and
  chase several). If the Investigators
  regain the papers after a chase, this
  encounter ends.
  If the thugs escape with the papers
  they’ll learn nothing. The notes are
  in German, without any sort of
  map they can follow. The gang then
  contacts Colette, who suggests giv
  ing them back to the Investigators
  and letting them do the work. 
  They can still rush in and snatch
  the treasure from the Investigators
  once they’ve led the gang to it. (See
  Part III  Gathering Clues).
  
  [ 5 1 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  Handout Five: Lost Journal Pages
  -Found name for the west island on Old Spanish records. It’s called Caya 
  Locura, interesting. Check into.
  -Original Indians avoided island, something about dark spirits. Check into.
  -Went to the west island without Rita, spotted a few locals living there, rough
  looking bunch, didn’t talk to them.  
  -My heart stopped when I saw the bay. Its call “Devil’s Bay” on the map. I 
  dreamt of this place! Did a few passes in the shallow surf on foot when I found 
  the artifact. Beautiful gold disk, with some kind of dot writing on it.  It had the
  remnants of some sort of binding, maybe a cord for hanging.  The material was 
  decorated with stone beads and shells, beautiful Caloose Indian craft, but it fell
  apart as I tried to remove artifact from water. 
  -It’s out there I know it. I’m going to risk making a few dives into the bay.
  -Strange fish, ugly. Should catch a few and send them in for study.
  -Today is the happiest day of my life! I found it. It’s there. In 60 feet of water
  near the center of the bay, a building, completely intact!! It was like nothing I
  ever saw before. The marking on the door matched those on the gold disk. I wanted
  to enter but mustn’t ruin discovery with haste.
  -Need lots of cash, sold last fourteen pieces from Gallon wreck. 
  -Sent out letters to colleagues; will need a competent team whose reputation isn’t
  ruined like mine. Must not have the find found discredited because of me. They’ll
  arrive soon. The secrets of Atlantis are so close.
  -Found reference to similar writing as found on disk! Some on shards from
  England, others on tablets found in Africa. Evidence for Atlantis being global
  empire! Calling book dealer to try and find Windrop’s Monograph, translation of
  African fragments.
  -Got replies, team on its way. Dealer called, copy of book in Key West already. I’ll
  try to borrow it, but need suit. Think someone is following me.
  -Someone IS following me. Need to leave these with someone I can trust. Will check
  into hotel two days early with Rita for safety.
  
  [ 5 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  A ship was found run
  aground on the north shore
  of Key West early this morn-
  ing, with no sign of the crew
  to be found. At about 3:00am
  this morning, officials report-
  ed that they received a dis-
  tress call from “The
  Mermaid”, a local fishing
  boat. Radio contact was
  almost immediately lost and
  a search for the vessel began
  a short time later. Just after
  dawn the ship was found
  beached with some mild
  damage to her hull. Her crew
  of six was not on board and
  no sign of them could be
  found. Unconfirmed reports
  state that a mysterious ves-
  sel, perhaps a schooner, was
  seen leaving the area. This is
  the second such maritime
  disappearance this week,
  fueling rumors that a ring of
  white slavers might somehow
  be involved.
  [From The Citizen, July 25th
  1927]
  White Slavers Strike Again
  Handout Six: Another Citizen article
  After obtaining Handouts Four 
  and Five, and examining the Elder
  Thing amulet, the Investigators
  should have several leads to
  research. These are:
  • The Spanish records about Caya
  Locura and Devil’s Bay
  •The old Caloose Indian legends
  about “Dark Spirits” inhabiting
  the island
  • Borrowing the “Windrop’s
  Monograph” from “Madame
  Lilia”, who lives in the Casa
  Marina hotel.
  The Library: The May Hill Russell
  Public Library, founded in 1892,
  contains many historical artifacts,
  government records and rare 
  manuscripts. The library is open
  between the hours of 8:00am and
  4:30pm, closing at noon for half an
  hour. The local librarian on duty is
  Rosa Molina, a middle aged Cuban
  woman who speaks with a slight
  Spanish accent. She is well educated
  and very protective of her 
  position and the collection she
  oversees.
  The library houses a collection of
  16th century Spanish records,
  which Ms. Molina will not allow
  anyone to examine without the
  proper academic credentials.
  Investigators with a History score
  greater than 60% or a Credit
  Rating score greater than 50% 
  are granted access, but sternly
  warned against over handling the
  documents. Those without the
  proper credentials or skills may 
  still attempt to gain access to these
  records by making a successful 
  Fast Talk or Persuade roll. Using
  Professor Timm’s name gains no
  bonuses, as she’s well aware what
  his professional reputation is.
  While she did allow him access to
  whatever records he wished (he
  was, after all, a professor of arche
  ology) she did not hold him in the
  highest of regards.
  The Spanish Collection is housed
  in a back room, under lock and key
  (with Ms. Molina having the only
  key). In it are several diaries, cap
  tains’ logs, missionary records, his
  torical accounts and a few prized
  16th century maps. The records in
  this collection are NOT allowed
  out of the building under any 
  circumstances. Any attempts to
  remove them will have Ms. Molina
  promptly calling the police.
  Investigators may research these
  records for items about Devil’s Bay,
  the Caloose Indians or mysterious
  maritime disappearances around
  Cayo Hueso (Key West). One suc
  cessful Library Use roll is needed to
  locate the Old Spanish sea charts.
  The chart shows the route to Caya
  Locura (Isle of Madness) and any
  one viewing them who makes a suc
  cessful Navigate roll will under
  stand them well enough to make
  the trip themselves.   Investigators
  may attempt to make a copy of the
  map with a successful Art roll.
  A second successful Library Use
  roll allows an Investigator to 
  discover the diary of Santiago
  Delgado, a Spanish conquistador.
  Santiago was part of the Spanish
  force that helped wipe out the
  Caloose Indians but not part of the
  group that fought the Shoggoth.
  He sailed out from Spain after the
  Vatican and the Spanish Crown
  labeled the Caloose Satan 
  worshipers.  The diary is, of course,
  written in Spanish.
  
  [ 5 3 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  –Handout Seven: The Diary of Santiago Delgado–
  “I found myself deeply troubled after the battle and sought confession for my actions.
  I had seen many of my compatriots killed by the shell-tipped arrows of the savages,
  so dispensing the lord’s judgment upon them affected me not at all. The last battle
  was quite different.
  “We came upon a heretic village and we burned it to the ground. There were few war-
  riors there, mostly women, children and old men. The veterans did not hesitate to fire
  their weapons or to pitch torches into the dwellings where women and children were
  cowering. Their screams, the smell of the burning flesh, and some of them crying out
  for mercy in Spanish haunted me. I prayed, and I told myself that I was doing God’s
  will, reminding myself that the Pope had declared these people servants of Satan. It
  brought me no comfort. I went to the flagship and asked to be given confession.
  “When I poured my soul out in the darkened room, the priest grabbed my arm and
  angrily pulled me out into the light. It was Father Juan Miguel! The very man who
  brought the charges of the savage’s heresy to the Vatican, a man whose family had ties
  to the Inquisition. Although he was very old, he was still quite strong. He slapped me,
  calling me a weak fool. I was put into a boat with Father Miguel and taken to Caya
  Locura, a place strictly forbidden to common soldiers.
  “Father Miguel spoke to me long and hard, making me feel as a child. He told me how
  these savages had unleashed a mighty demon from the underworld and set it against
  my countrymen. He showed me a long list of names written in his bible, names of 
  the men the demon had killed, or who had vanished without a trace from their ships.
  Father Miguel said that after releasing the demon, the heretics had begged us to help
  them stop it, for being a creature of Satan, it had turned on them as well.
  “Father Miguel explained that the savages led him to the creature’s lair, where by the
  power of Christ and the loss of many men, they were able to destroy it. Some who
  survived the battle were driven insane from what they saw. We then came to the
  island and I found that the garrison was also a hospital…for the insane. Fifteen men
  were cared for here, all of them screaming, weeping, tied down so they couldn’t hurt
  themselves. Father Miguel told me they’d been like this since the moment they saw
  the demon. He explained the heretics could still unleash more of these creatures,
  which they had done once and would do again if given the chance.
  “Father Miguel said that the Pope himself had decreed that they never be allowed 
  that chance. He then asked me if I would help. The aged priest asked if I would help
  avenge those who had been devoured alive by the creature. He asked if I would
  avenge these men, pointing to the poor wretches, whose minds had been shattered
  by the horror they’d so bravely faced. I cried, falling to my knees, begging for his 
  forgiveness, which he gave. I returned to my unit the next morning, my resolve
  restored and strong.
  Santiago Delgado – October 28th 1582
  
  [ 5 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Attempts to locate a copy of Father
  Miguel’s bible are futile. There are
  no other records connected to the
  adventure to be found here. If
  asked about the contents of the
  diary, Ms. Molina will dismiss them
  as “sailor stories and fantasies”.
  Seminole Indian Legends: The
  Seminole Indians who now live in
  this part of Florida are newcomers,
  settling here after the Caloose
  tribes were wiped out. They inher
  ited some of the earlier tribe’s folk
  lore. There is only one person on
  Key West who has knowledge of
  these ancient Caloose legends. His
  name is David Redshell.
  Finding David Redshell: David
  Redshell is not an easy man to 
  find, but among the Seminole 
  population he’s fairly well known.
  Investigators questioning local
  Seminoles need to make a success
  ful Fast Talk or a Persuade Roll
  at 15% to learn about David
  Redshell, and an additional roll to
  learn where he can be found. If
  both checks are successful, along
  with a successful Luck roll, the
  person will be willing to guide 
  the Investigators to David
  Redshell’s boat. A bribe of 
  between $5 and $10 dollars will
  eliminate the 15% penalties. 
  The Investigators can locate local
  Seminoles in several places around
  town. Several sell handicrafts on
  the roadside outside of town, 
  while others can be found working
  at the docks. The easiest to locate 
  is John Blackbear, the taxi 
  driver who Investigators may have
  encountered in Part I. If the
  Investigators have had dealings
  with John Blackbear, they can 
  make the Fast Talk or Persuade
  rolls without penalty.
  David Redshell: This elderly (82
  years old) Seminole Indian lives 
  on his boat. It’s usually anchored
  about three miles north of the 
  city, always about 100 yards off 
  the beach. He makes his living 
  by fishing, making nets and 
  handicrafts that are sold by various
  younger relatives around Key West.
  If Investigators go here without 
  a guide they’ll have to get his 
  attention from shore, or swim 
  out to the boat.
  A Spot Hidden roll will have the
  Investigators find a bell concealed
  in a bush beside a small camp 
  partially hidden by some trees.
  Ringing the bell will get David
  Redshell to pilot his boat onto the
  shore. Any local Seminole guide
  will ring the bell straight away.
  Once off the boat the old man will
  go to his small camp, inviting the
  Investigators to sit with him.
  While talking, David Redshell 
  will try to bum a cigar from the
  Investigators, smoking one of his
  own if need be. He’s happy to 
  chat and share the ancient tales he
  knows, but hints that an audience
  sometimes pays such storytellers.
  He won’t share what he knows
  unless given $20, using his Bargain
  skill to get as much as he can. He’ll
  claim, “The things I know and the
  tales I can tell are known by no
  one but me. I am the elder of my 
  people, it’s my duty to keep such
  knowledge alive.” If given $20 
  he’ll smile, lean back, and tell the
  Investigators any ancient tales
  they’d like to know. If asked about
  “Devil’s Bay”, “Caya Locura” or
  “Dark Spirits” he’ll relate the 
  following tale:
  “When the world was new and people
  first came to this land, dreams led a
  wise man to the bay on that lonely
  island. The wise man dove down into
  the water and there he met the Black
  Jellyfish. The Great Spirit of the Ocean
  had locked the Black Jellyfish in a mag
  ical oyster shell, and it couldn’t get out.
  It begged the wise man to let it out, but
  the wise man said “No. If the Great
  Spirit of the Ocean put you in there,
  well, then maybe that’s where you
  should be.” And the wise man left the
  Black Jellyfish in the shell, and told his
  people to ignore the dreams and never
  go to that island.
  “Later, when the white man came, a
  foolish man believed he was a wise
  man. This man thought he could bar
  gain with the Black Jellyfish, whose
  skin was as dark as its heart.  He asked
  the Jellyfish to drive away the white
  man, and the Jellyfish said, “Free me,
  oh wise man, and I will help you.” So
  the man freed the Jellyfish, who then
  stung the white man only…at first.
  Soon the Black Jellyfish betrayed his
  word and began to sting both the white
  man and the native people. The fool
  said, “Why do you do this? You made 
  a deal with me.” But the Jellyfish
  laughed and again stung the man 
  who had freed him.
  “So the people and the white man 
  came together and they killed the Black
  Jellyfish. The white man had promised
  to leave these lands in peace, but feared
  the people who knew how to call upon
  the spirits of the Black Jellyfish. They
  did not leave, but returned in greater
  numbers, and the native people were
  washed away like sand in a storm. 
  The moral of this story is this: the
  words from a black heart are worthless,
  be they from a jellyfish or a man. A
  wise man listens to the wisdom of 
  his forefathers.”
  
  [ 5 5 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  If questioned about the story, the
  old man explains that it’s been
  passed down for generations. He’ll
  warn Investigators that he believes
  the story to be true, saying that
  there is something evil about
  Devil’s Bay. “The fish there are
  sickly looking, tainted by the Black
  Jellyfish spirits. Sometimes people
  are drawn there too, the lost, the
  dreamers.  The Black Jellyfish still
  wants to be free.” If someone says
  that in the story the Black Jellyfish
  is killed, he’ll smirk and reply, “Yes,
  I know, I told the story, didn’t I?
  But when did you ever see just one
  Jellyfish?” He knows many other
  stories, typical Native American
  folklore, but none of it pertains to
  this investigation.
  David Redshell
  Local Seminole Elder
  STR
  8      
  CON   10      
  SIZ      8 
  INT 15      
  POW 14      
  DEX
  9        
  APP
  7      
  EDU   15      
  SAN   75 
  HP
  15 
  DB +1d4 
  Weapons:  None
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Psychology (60%), Persuade
  (55%), Listen (45%), Pilot Boat
  (40%), History (50%), Indian Lore
  (60%), Cthulhu Mythos (7%)
  Casa Marina hotel: The card found
  in Professor Timm’s home
  (Handout Four) and notes about
  looking for a book (Handout Five)
  should lead Investigators to seek
  out Madame Lilia at the Casa
  Marina hotel. The hotel houses a
  casino, a club with live nightly
  music and a fine restaurant. There
  is a security staff here that makes
  sure guests are safe and things 
  impeccably dressed. While a
  “friend” with the local mob, he isn’t
  involved with organized crime,
  other than passing on a betting tip
  now and then. He adores his wife
  and is very protective of her. He
  thinks her psychic abilities and
  occult interests are silly, but he’d
  never tell her that. She brings in
  good money doing what she does,
  so he sees no reason not to help her
  indulge her interests.
  Peter “The Greek” Papastavimos
  Professional Gambler
  STR 13      
  CON   15      
  SIZ     13    
  INT
  15   
  POW 16      
  DEX 15        
  APP 14      
  EDU   13      
  SAN   80 
  HP
  14  
  DB     
  Weapons: .22 revolver (45%, 1d6)
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Fast Talk (70%), Bargain
  (50%), Psychology (60%), Persuade
  (55%), Listen (45%), Spot Hidden
  (60%), Languages: English and
  Greek (75%), Dodge (40%),
  Accounting (60%), Gambling
  (65%), Predict outcome of sporting
  events (65%)
  Bruno West: A former boxer who ran
  afoul of the mob, his debts were
  paid off by Mr. Papastavimos 
  (saving his life). The gambler
  offered him a full time job watch
  ing his back as a way of paying off
  what he owed. Bruno happily took
  the job and has been with Peter
  “The Greek” for almost 10 years.
  After the considerable debt was
  paid off, Bruno stayed on. The two
  are actually quite good friends.
  Bruno West would take a bullet for
  either Mr. or Mrs. Papastavimos
  (he’s actually been shot twice over
  the years protecting Peter).  He’s
  well paid and very loyal to his
  go smoothly. Guests here are 
  typically well dressed and wealthy;
  those Investigators not “fitting in” 
  (with low credit ratings, not 
  wearing the latest fashion, etc.) 
  will be approached discretely by
  security and questioned (“You look
  a little lost. Can we help you find
  something?”).
  Casa Marina Hotel Security Staff
  STR 15      
  CON   15      
  SIZ    15 
  INT 11      
  POW 13     
  DEX 10        
  APP 12      
  EDU   10      
  SAN  60 
  HP
  15 
  DB +1d4
  Weapons: Fist/Punch (65%,
  1d3+db), Grapple (45% Damage
  special), Head Butt (40%, 1d4+db),
  Blackjack (55% 1d6+db)
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Psychology (40%), Sneak
  (30%), Spot Hidden (40%),
  Persuade (35%), Listen (30%)
  The Papastavimos’: Margery
  Papastavimos (Madame Lilia) 
  lives in the Casa Marina hotel 
  with her husband, a professional
  gambler named Peter “The Greek”
  Papastavimos. The couple keep a
  bodyguard, Bruno West, close by 
  at all times. Peter and Madame
  Lilia live in a suite of rooms on 
  the upper floors of the hotel and
  Bruno lives in the single room 
  next to theirs.
  Peter “The Greek” Papastavimos:
  This professional gambler makes a
  very good living playing poker, bet
  ting on horses and sporting events.
  He runs a high roller, by invitation
  only, poker table in the casino. He
  can be found there with Bruno
  most nights. Peter “The Greek” is
  always friendly, charming and
  
  [ 5 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  employer. Bruno is a large, power
  ful man who is quite discrete and
  observant of his surroundings.  
  Bruno West
  Bodyguard
  STR 16      
  CON   15     
  SIZ    16
  INT 12 
  POW 14      
  DEX 14        
  APP 11      
  EDU   10      
  SAN  60 
  HP
  16 
  DB +1d6    
  Weapons:  
  Fist/Punch (75%,
  1d3+db), Head Butt (40%, 1d4+db),
  .45 Revolver Automatic (55%,
  1d10+2)
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Psychology (45%), Sneak
  (50%), Spot Hidden (65%), Listen
  (30%)
  Madame Lilia: A fortuneteller by
  trade, Madame Lilia is very beauti
  ful and quite eccentric. She is
  always very colorfully dressed in
  the latest fashions and seldom seen
  without her trademark Bindi dot
  and turban. She caters to wealthy
  vacationers, reading cards and
  telling fortunes to those who can
  afford her high prices. It’s rumored
  she will conduct nude séances if the
  price is right. She charges a mini
  mum of $100 an hour for her time,
  and is usually booked a week in
  advance. Madame Lilia conducts
  her business in a specially prepared
  room in her apartment. When 
  seeing male clients, Bruno usually
  camps out in the living room, 
  just outside of Madame Lilia’s
  office door.
  Madame Lilia actually does have
  some psychic sensitivity. Like
  Professor Timm, she came to the
  Keys following a recurring dream.
  She’s read both “The Eltdown
  Shards” and “The G’Harne
  Fragments” several times, driving
  her mildly insane.
  Madame Lilia (aka Margery
  Papastavimos)
  Local Society Fortuneteller 
  STR 10     
  CON   13      
  SIZ     14
  INT 13 
  POW 15      
  DEX 14         
  APP 16      
  EDU   13      
  SAN   50 
  HP
  14 
  DB     
  Weapons:  
  None
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Persuade (60%), Fast Talk
  (60%), Occult (50%), Cthulhu
  Mythos (11%), Elder Thing Cipher
  (25%)
  The Madness of Madame Lilia:
  Madame Lilia has been insane for
  several years, yet functions quite
  successfully in society. Her mad
  ness takes the form of a very
  detailed delusion, which she firmly
  believes in. This delusion formed
  after being driven insane by repeat
  edly reading the two mythos tomes
  she owns, her mind’s way of dealing
  with the horrors she learned.
  Madame Lilia believes that a race
  of benevolent alien beings, which
  she calls “The Star People”, lived
  on earth thousands of years before
  mankind. She’ll describe them as
  beautiful looking humans who are
  really beings of pure energy with
  incredible psychic powers. They’re
  a peaceful enlightened race that
  will some day return to Earth when
  mankind is “ready”. “The Star
  People” will then transport the
  human race to a utopia planet 
  hidden behind Jupiter. She doesn’t
  believe there is any connection
  between “The Star People” and 
  the lost civilization of Atlantis.
  Anyone making a successful
  Psychology roll while watching her
  speak of “The Star People” will
  determine that she is delusional.
  They will also know that it’s a
  rather harmless one that doesn’t
  seem to be having any negative
  impact on her life. Both she, 
  Bruno and her husband Peter “The
  Greek” will react angrily to any sug
  gestion that she’s unwell in any way.
  Meeting Madame Lilia isn’t that
  difficult. If Investigators can get
  past security and into the casino
  they’ll be able to find Bruno and
  Peter at the poker tables. Anyone
  making a successful Credit Rating
  roll will be welcome to play a few
  hands. The stakes are high, hands
  going from between $50 to $250.
  Chatting while playing cards is a
  good way to try a Persuade or Fast
  Talk roll on Peter to introduce the
  Investigators to his wife. If asked
  about certain books, he’ll shrug and
  explain, “Oh, she’s got books, lots
  of them. She’s even writing a new
  one. Occult stuff, not my cup of tea
  but it keeps her out of trouble.”
  Another way Investigators can gain
  an audience is to simply make an
  appointment for a card reading or a
  séance. Bookings are done through
  the hotel, with callbacks made to
  confirm the time and date. Anyone
  showing up for an appointment is
  admitted to the floor where the
  Papastavimos’ live (if they can get
  past security). Bruno and/or Peter
  will then screen Investigators before
  allowing them into the apartment.
  The Books: If asked about her occult
  books in general or a book of trans
  lations by Windrop (Handout Five)
  she’ll become animated and start
  talking about “The Star People”. If
  any Investigator has an Appearance
  greater than 14 she’ll look them 
  
  [ 5 7 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act I–Key West
  in the eyes and touch their fore
  head while holding their hand for a
  moment.  She’ll then release them
  with a smile saying, “No, you’re
  only human. Sorry.”
  She’ll admit to owning “The
  Eltdown Shards” and “The
  G’Harne Fragments”, as well as the
  first draft of the book she’s work
  ing on, “Runes of the Star People”.
  Madame Lilia will explain that
  these books can translate the writ
  ings of the Star People and prove
  that they exist. She’s protective of
  these books and will refuse to lend
  them out, sell them, or even let 
  the Investigators handle them. If
  Investigators are overly pushy, she’ll
  have Bruno throw them out, calling
  security if they resist.  
  If Investigators explain that they
  have an item with similar runes, she
  gets very excited.  She’ll ask to see
  the amulet, refusing to deal with
  them further until it’s produced.
  She’ll allow the books to be han
  dled if shown the amulet, but still
  won’t let any of them out of her
  sight. When shown the amulet, she
  easily reads the writing on it,
  explaining that it’s an identification
  of some sort, “Like a driver’s
  license, this person was a chief life
  researcher. I wonder what that is?”
  She’ll offer to buy the artifact at
  once, offering as much as $1,000.
  If Investigators refuse, Madame
  Lilia will call in her husband, who
  will then offer the Investigators
  $3,000 for “the trinket” his
  wife wants.  
  Madame Lilia will trade both 
  the “The Eltdown Shards” and
  “The G’Harne Fragments” for 
  the amulet, and even allow
  Investigators to borrow her hand
  written first draft of “Runes of the
  Star People” for a week or two. She
  will mention that she’ll purchase
  any “Star People” artifacts the
  Investigators might discover.
  ~ The End ~
  Sanity Awards
  Investigators win the bar fight at
  Morgan’s: 1d4. 
  Obtaining a mythos tome: 1d2 per
  book
  
  [ 5 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  
  [ 5 9 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  Once finding Professor Timm’s boat, and learning the location of Caya Locura, the Investigators
  should be ready to travel there.  If they’ve obtained any of the Mythos Tomes from Madame Lilia,
  they may wish to spend time reading them before setting out.  “Rita” won’t be happy about this,
  explaining that every day that goes by is one more day that Rudy is out there, lost and needing
  help.  She’s impatient to get this job done and wants her share of the treasure.  If the
  Investigators seem intent on remaining in Key West to learn what they can from the books, she
  lets up on her protests and agrees to the delay.  She will tearfully mention, “He’s probably already
  dead” and “I just want my Rudy to get credit for discovering whatever’s out there, it means so
  much to him”, using sympathy to help maintain her credibility.
  The Eltdown Shards, The Winters-Hall Translation: Sanity Loss 1d4/1d8; Cthulhu Mythos +11%, six weeks to
  study, 12 hours to skim. There are no spells in this version, but study grants the reader a skill check in Occult and
  Mythos Language: Elder Thing Cipher (1d6+1%).
  The G’Harne Fragments, Windrop’s Monograph (from The Journal of the Royal Antiquities Society 1912): Sanity
  Loss 1d2/1d4; Cthulhu Mythos +4%, two weeks to study, four hours to skim. There are no spells in this version, but
  study grants the reader a skill check in Occult and Mythos Language: Elder Thing Cipher (1d6+1%).
  Runes of the Star People: Sanity Loss 1d2/1d4; Cthulhu Mythos +2%, one week to study, two hours to skim. There
  are no spells in this version, but study grants the reader a skill check in Occult and Mythos Language: Elder Thing
  Cipher (1d6+1%).
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  A 1920s Call of Cthulhu Adventure
  by Oscar Rios
  
  [ 6 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The Trip to the Island:  Investigators
  taking “Queen of Atlantis” out to
  Caya Locura will have a three hour
  boat ride ahead of them.  The
  island is northwest of Key West
  and not located on any of the com
  mon charts.  Even with knowledge
  of the 16th century Spanish charts
  (or a copy of them), Investigators
  must make a successful Navigation
  roll to locate the island.  
  The USS Valiant: This Naval
  Destroyer will radio “Queen of
  Atlantis” about halfway through
  the voyage.  They are conducting a
  search of the area, supposedly look
  ing for anything suspicious.  While
  the US Navy doesn’t believe in the
  wild stories of “White Slavers”, the
  local government has nevertheless
  asked them to “investigate the mat
  ter”.  Captain Harris, commanding
  the Valiant with a mostly trainee
  crew, sees this as an excellent train
  ing opportunity.  He’s using this
  search as an exercise in anti subma
  rine patrols and search and rescue
  operations.
  The radio call will ask “Queen of
  Atlantis” to identify herself, and
  then to cut her engines and allow
  “Valiant” to come alongside. If
  Investigators comply, the destroyer
  appears on the horizon moments
  later and pulls alongside shortly
  there after; a young naval lieu
  tenant will ask for permission to
  come aboard the “Queen”.  Lt.
  James will ask to see everyone’s
  identification and the ship’s paper
  work.  He asks what their purpose
  is in these waters and what all the
  salvage equipment is for.  It will 
  be clear that he’s following a 
  checklist and that he seems a bit
  nervous.  Investigators watching
  the destroyer and making a 
  successful Spot Hidden roll will
  notice an older man watching the
  Lt. James through a pair of binocu
  lars.  Anyone making a successful
  Psychology roll will learn that Lt.
  James is still in training and his 
  performance is being evaluated.
  After the search and questioning,
  Lt. James will ask the Investigators
  to be on the lookout for a dark
  sailed Schooner. “If you spot any
  ship matching that description,
  radio us immediately.  We’ll be in
  this area for some time.” If asked
  why, Lt. James will simply reply,
  “We’d like to speak with her 
  crew” which is true. The “Valiant”
  attempted to intercept such a 
  ship but lost her in the dark. 
  The trainees were blamed for the 
  evasion and they are eager to
  redeem themselves.  After this 
  incident, the destroyer pulls away,
  it’s captain radioing down “This is
  Captain Harris of the USS Valiant,
  thank you for your cooperation
  “Queen of Atlantis” and have a
  pleasant day.”
  Final approach: Once the small
  island is spotted, the Investigator
  at the wheel will be forced to 
  suddenly avoid some dangerous
  coral reefs.  If the Investigator 
  fails a Pilot-Boat roll, “Queen 
  of Atlantis” hits the reef hard, 
  damaging her propeller.  Loud 
  noises will be heard as the engine
  runs. So long as Investigators cut
  the engines at once and make a
  Mechanical Repair roll on the
  propeller, no lasting damage
  occurs.  If these repairs are not
  made, the propeller system on
  “Queen of Atlantis” destroys itself
  in about an hour and will require a
  week in dry dock to repair.  If this
  happens, a distress call will sum
  mon the Valiant, which will tow the
  crippled ship back to Key West.
  Caya Locura: The island is small,
  maybe three miles across at its
  widest point.  It’s covered with
  palm trees and seems picturesque.
  It has wide beaches and a single
  deep bay on its eastern face. Rats,
  birds and insects live on this tiny
  island with little else.  The fish
  around the eastern side of the
  island are all sickly and mildly
  mutated (see below).  Evidence of
  the Old Spanish garrison is impos
  sible to find, as the buildings were
  intentionally burned down and cov
  ered by the Spaniards long ago.
  Fishermen’s camp: If Investigators 
  circle the island and make a suc
  cessful Spot Hidden roll, they dis
  cover a set of huts along the west
  ern shore of the island.  If they go
  ashore, they’ll find five huts with
  hammocks, cooking gear, children’s
  toys, nets, rotting food and old
  clothing.  There is no one here. A
  search of the huts finds money 
  (a total of $12) and a box of 15 12
  gauge buckshot shotgun shells with
  a successful Spot Hidden roll.  
  Investigators searching around the
  huts and making a successful Spot
  Hidden roll find three rowboats
  filled with fishing gear. They are
  pulled up beside the huts and 
  concealed by branches. It appears
  there are hiding places for four
  boats with one appearing to be
  missing. The families who lived 
  in this tiny fishing camp were
  all killed and devoured by the
  Shoggoth, except for two. 
  If Investigators search the area,
  they’ll need to make two Spot
  Hidden rolls.  The first allows
  them to find a discarded double
  barrel shot gun, it’s breach open for
  reloading and two spent shells still
  inside of it.  The second successful
  roll finds a partially digested body.
  hammocks, cooking gear, children’s
  gauge buckshot shotgun shells with
  
  [ 6 1 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  Clouds of green flies lift like a
  smoke off of the object, carrying
  up a wave of stench in their wake.
  Looking down you find the partial
  remains of a man, bloated with
  maggots and beetles.  The arms
  appear to be wrapped around the
  trunk of a palm, it’s mouth hanging
  open, the tongue thick and black.
  The remains of perhaps a vest or
  shirt can be seen nearly grafted to
  the spongy rotting flesh.  Below the
  corpse’s chest, from the open body
  cavity, there lies the remains of a
  spine.  The pelvis and both legs of
  the corpse are missing.
  Anyone viewing this must make a
  Sanity check for 1/d3.  Investigators
  making a successful Medical roll will
  find no evidence of the body being
  “bitten” in any way.  It appears that
  the lower half of the body either rot
  ted or dissolved away.  
  Devil’s Bay: This wide bay is nearly
  a mile across with beautiful
  palm trees growing all around
  it. The water is smooth and
  dark, the beach peaceful and
  seemingly undisturbed.  
  There is a path leading to a clearing
  from the sandy beach.  In the clear
  ing it appears that several logs have
  been dragged around and a couple
  of trees cut down.  The ground has
  mostly been cleared of leaves and
  other debris, with a fairly new 
  rake, axe and shovel leaning against
  a rock.  This is a campsite that
  Professor Timm had been working
  on.  He hoped to use this site as 
  a base for his expedition, as there
  isn’t room for more than two peo
  ple to sleep on his boat at a time.
  
  [ 6 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Caya Locura sea life: While the
  waters around the island support
  normal populations of sea life, the
  waters of Devil’s Bay are quite dif
  ferent.  Hazardous material has
  been slowly leaking from the Elder
  Thing ruins for hundreds of thou
  sands of years causing the bay to
  become contaminated.  The effects
  of the contamination on sea life are
  evidenced by random mutations.
  The bulk of these mutations are
  fatal and there is little sea life in
  the bay.  Animals that do survive
  are usually freakishly mutated and
  occasionally dangerous.   
  There are two such animals living
  in the bay now, a mutated Green
  Moray Eel and a mutated
  Loggerhead Sea Turtle.  They hide
  when the Shoggoth is active (any
  time after nightfall), but attack
  anyone swimming or diving in the
  bay 25% of the time.  The Shoggoth
  has eaten all of the fish stocks that
  they usually prey upon in the bay
  and both predators are desperate
  for food.  
  Mutated Green Moray Eel
  STR 16       CON  15        SIZ  15    
  INT
  5       POW
  8       DEX 14       
  HP
  15       DB +1d4     
  Weapons: Bite 50% 1d8+db
  Armor: Two points of patchy shell
  plates
  Skills: Hide (50%), Sneak (50%)
  Description: This eel has a sickly
  dark green color.  It has large com
  pound eyes, teeth that have elon
  gated into fangs and a long (three
  foot) whip like prehensile tail. The
  creature’s body has random patches
  of hard crab like shell, giving it two
  points of armor.
  Mutated Loggerhead Sea Turtle
  STR 16       CON  16        SIZ  18    
  INT
  5       POW
  9       DEX 11        
  Some Notes on Diving
  The Queen of Atlantis is equipped to support a team of up to four divers at a
  time.  A single person must operate the motorized air compressor (pump)
  and the lifting/lowering winch for the divers.  
  Skill: Diving (00%) This skill gives an Investigator the basic knowledge of
  diving equipment and its use.  In calm situations, Keepers may allow checks
  to be made at 2x 4x modifiers.  A check is routinely made for descending,
  ascending and once per each half hour on the bottom.  A failed check
  means a minor problem (i.e.: tripping, a snagged line, bumping into some
  thing), while a critical failure (96% and higher) causes a serious problem
  (i.e.: ruptured air line, leaking helmet, ascending or descending too rapidly).
  The bottom of Devil’s Bay is 60 feet, roughly two atmospheres.  To safely
  avoid decompression sickness, divers should pause for five minutes at 30
  feet before surfacing.  Investigators not doing so will suffer 1d6 points of
  damage twice their Constitution in minutes (i.e.: a 15 Constitution means
  that Investigators suffer 1d6 points of damage every 30 minutes). 
  The Diving Suit: A diving suit consists of a three major pieces:
  1) The Diving Dress: a multi layered waterproof twill suit with a mid layer
  of rubber.
  2) The Breastplate: rests on the shoulders securing and spreading the
  weight of the helmet.
  3) The Helmet: secures to the breastplate and links the suit with the air
  pipe and lifeline (for lowering and raising the diver).  It is usually 
  copper, heavy and has several windows.
  The suit must be weighted to achieve negative buoyancy.  Heavy boots
  (about 16 pounds each) and chest weights (from 35 50 pounds) are required
  to keep from floating.  In emergencies, the chest weights can be released 
  to cause the diver to rapidly ascend.  This in itself can be dangerous (see
  Decompression Sickness above). Sound conducts through the helmets, so
  divers pressing helmets together can speak to one another.  Other commu
  nication can be done via hand signals and tugs upon the diver’s lifeline.
  The bulky suit and the underwater environment hamper most skills, so
  Keepers should impose whatever penalties seem
  appropriate. 
  (Note: These rules above are taken from the
  adventure “Crash Dive” by Steve Hatherly, from
  the book “Fearful Passages”.  What appears here
  has been greatly condensed from the original
  source.)
  
  [ 6 3 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  HP
  17       DB +1d6     
  Weapons: Bite 50% 1d8+db
  Armor: Three points of leathery
  skin and shell
  Skills: Sneak (50%), Hide (50%)
  Description: This animal has six
  pairs of crawling legs, like a lobster,
  jutting out from the bottom of its
  shell.  This allows it to move about
  on land quite well, which it may do
  if hungry enough.  Its neck has
  elongated quite a bit and its jaws
  and beak are fearsomely oversized.
  The Search: Investigators making
  dives into Devil’s Bay have a 20%
  of finding the Elder Thing building
  and/or the sunken wreck of “Lucky
  Runner”.  If Investigators plan out
  a careful, systematic search for the
  site there is a +10% cumulative
  bonus per dive for the chance to
  locate objects on the bottom of the
  bay (i.e.: the fifth dive in the search
  would have a 60% chance of find
  ing the site).
  Investigators have a 20% chance of
  stumbling upon another Elder
  Thing artifact while searching the
  bottom of Devil’s Bay.  Keepers
  should roll this secretly and then
  have Investigators make a Spot
  Hidden roll.  If the roll is success
  ful, the Investigators find one of
  the following artifacts: 
  1) A golden key disk, similar to the
  one found by Professor Timm
  2) A stone tablet covered in Elder
  Thing Ciphers
  3) A 10 foot long by four foot high
  section of wall, with Elder Thing
  Ciphers on it.
  4) A box (4 foot long, 3 feet wide, 2
  feet deep), it holds six empty
  metallic cylinders; both the box
  and cylinders have Elder Thing
  Ciphers on them.
  (Note: None of the Elder Thing
  Ciphers are helpful to the
  Investigators in any way. If the
  writing is translated, Keepers are
  encouraged to make up something
  cryptic.)
  Recently sunken ship: The “Lucky
  Runner” was the ship used by the
  gang of thugs who kidnapped
  Professor Timm and Rita.  She’s a
  26 foot cabin cruiser lying on her
  side in about 60 feet of water on
  the bottom of the bay.  The
  Shoggoth sank the vessel after it
  devoured everyone on deck. There
  will be no visible reason for the
  ship sinking, as it is apparently
  undamaged.  The ship was
  equipped to support four divers,
  much like “Queen of Atlantis”.
  Once inside, Investigators will not
  find much of use or value.  
  The only bodies found inside are
  those of Professor Rudolf Von
  Timm and the real Rita, the
  corpses holding one another and
  still tied up.  Deformed fish and
  crustaceans have already found the
  bodies and scurry about the pair
  feeding.  Investigators witnessing
  this must roll a Sanity Check for
  1/1d3.  A successful Medicine or
  Spot Hidden roll will allow
  Investigators to determine that the
  pair didn’t drown but were shot in
  the head at close range.  
  About fifty yards east of here can
  be found the Elder Thing prison.
  Investigators who successfully roll
  their percentage to find the site
  first find the ship.  The ship is
  much easier to find, as it’s new and
  stands out against the sand.  The
  Elder Thing site is a bit harder to
  spot but Keepers should allow
  Investigators to find them both on
  the same dive.
  The Elder Thing Prison (outside):
  The structure appears as a group 
  of three smooth stone domes sur
  rounding a larger central dome.
  From the outside, the complex
  looks quite large.  When viewed up
  close, Investigators can see the
  structure looks new; free from any
  coral growth.
  Black liquid drips slowly out from 
  a crack in the large central dome,
  like teardrops floating towards the
  surface.  The liquid dissolves into
  the seawater before it reaches the
  surface.  This is the contaminant
  that has been causing the local sea
  life to mutate for eons.  There is
  almost no sea life anywhere near
  the structure.
  The smallest of the four domes 
  is damaged, with signs of an explo
  sion having recently gone off.
  There is a gaping hole where a 
  large round door once stood:
  Investigators can enter the com
  plex through this breach.  The
  thugs caused this damage when
  they grew frustrated while trying to
  open the door and resorted to
  using dynamite.  If they had the
  Elder Thing Key (the gold disk that
  Professor Timm discovered) they
  could have opened the door with
  ease.  Investigators searching the
  area around the damage and mak
  ing a successful Spot Hidden roll
  find several discarded salvage tools
  (i.e.: pry bars, picks, hook poles,
  etc.).The interior of the structure is
  described in Part II.
  The Schooner: The Shoggoth has
  been traveling further and further
  from the prison, exploring the sur
  rounding area.  It still returns to
  the prison to feed its captive and
  rest in a familiar place.  At some
  time when the Investigators are
  anchored in Devil’s Bay, Keepers
  
  [ 6 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  may wish to have the Shoggoth
  return.  
  When the Shoggoth detects a ship
  in the bay it will try to get a better
  look.  It will form its body into the
  shape of a ship, a schooner it
  observed once it was freed.  It will
  ONLY do this at night.  In this
  shape it can peer out over the sur
  face of the water.  From a distance
  and in the dark, the boat appears as
  a black silhouette in the shape of a
  boat.  There are no lights on the
  “ship”, of course.  The Shoggoth
  has used this trick several times
  while hunting.  This is the direct
  cause of all the “White Slaver”
  rumors circulating about the Keys
  at this time.
  The Shoggoth will “sail” past the
  bay, observing “Queen of Atlantis”.
  It will then head around to the
  north side of the island.
  Once out of direct sight,
  it will resume its
  natural formless
  shape and sub
  merge itself.  
  Investigators who attempt to 
  pursue the “Schooner” around 
  the northern tip of the island 
  will find that the mysterious ship
  has vanished.
  The building is air filled with a
  breathable atmosphere, well lit
  (just where the light emanates from
  cannot be determined) and a com
  fortable temperature.  The func
  tion of this site was the study and
  containment of six dangerous rebel
  Shoggoths.  Here, the Elder Things
  researched ways to modify
  Shoggoth behaviors (the rebellious
  kind) or otherwise “correct” the
  problem.
  Investigators will
  find carvings on the
  walls of Elder
  Things and
  Shoggoths, usually
  beside Cipher mes
  sages.  They should
  slowly begin to piece
  together just who made
  this structure and what its
  purpose is.  Investigators
  spending more than two
  hours exploring this site gain
  +4% to their Cthulhu Mythos.
  A wing 1, The Entrance: Here is
  much rubble from the blast.
  Beyond there is a shimmering bar
  rier in the water.  On the other side
  of the barrier, which can be easily
  passed through, is air.  There are
  piles of equipment here (diving
  suits, weapons, tools and a row
  Part II
  The 
  Prison
  Inside the Elder Thing Site: This
  ancient building holds ten cham
  bers.  They are divided into A wing
  (1 2), B wing (1 2), C wing (1 2), and
  the Main Area (1 4).  Passage to
  upper levels is done via a hole 20
  feet up in the ceiling; Elder
  Things simply
  flew up and
  down
  between
  levels.
  Investigators
  will need to find
  other means of 
  traveling between levels.
  Translating Elder Thing Ciphers: Investigators who have read “The
  Eltdown Shards”, “The G’Harne Fragments” and/or “Runes of the Star
  People” will have gained 1d6+1% points per book in the skill Mythos
  Language: Elder Thing Cipher.  If this skill is rolled successfully an
  Investigator will completely understand a particular passage.
  If no one manages to successfully roll this skill, Keepers may wish to allow
  Investigators to use the three tomes directly.  Using the three books as a
  reference while translating an inscription will require a Library Use roll and
  1d10 minutes per word.  Translating a long passage this way could take a
  considerable amount of time.  
  
  [ 6 5 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  boat), all intentionally destroyed.
  All of the items, except the row
  boat, belonged to the gang who
  dynamited the door.  There are
  some Elder Thing Ciphers here,
  which can be read with a successful
  Elder Thing Cipher roll: “Testing
  and detention facility Alpha One.
  Unauthorized personal are strictly
  forbidden.  Proceed with Caution.
  Undestroyed feral units housed
  within.”  
  A wing 2, Prototype Storage: There
  is a large piece of equipment here,
  weighing about 500 pounds.  It is
  powered by a clear, glowing crystal
  and is completely alien in design.
  The machine was damaged by the
  door blast.   This is a piece of emer
  gency equipment, stored here by
  the Elder Things.   There are exten
  sive Elder Thing Ciphers carved on
  the walls here, which explain the
  function of the devise.  
  In addition to this machine is a
  Gold Key/Identification disk,
  much like the one originally found
  by Professor Timm.  Investigators
  can locate the disk with a success
  ful Spot Hidden roll.  This will
  allow them access to the restricted
  areas in the event another Gold
  Key/Identification disk was not
  discovered while diving in the bay.
  Main Area 1, Prison Level: Here are
  six stout magical prisons.  Four of
  them house Shoggoths, securely
  imprisoned behind large Elder
  Signs and thick stone doors.  If the
  Elder Sign is broken, the Shoggoth
  inside will force down the door to
  its cell in 2 4 rounds.  
  There are Elder Thing Ciphers
  over each door, which read “Rebel
  One” through “Rebel Six”.  Each
  door has a shuttered crystal win
  dow.  The shutters can be opened
  Elder Thing Device:  Harmonic Cohesion Disrupter:
  This device emits harmonic waves in a 60 foot radius.  The machine has
  enough power in its crystal battery for 20 hours of use.  The waves travel 
  at a range below human hearing.  The harmonic frequency is harmful to
  Shoggoth anatomy.  Any Shoggoth caught in this area will begin to vibrate
  violently and have difficulty controlling its motion.  The creature’s move
  ment and attacks are effectively halved while in the field.  The Shoggoth
  will NOT enter an area affected by the Disrupter and may retreat from it.
  Repairing the Disruptor: The alien machine can be fixed with a successful
  Mechanical Repair roll with a 20% penalty.  A critical failure while
  attempting to repair the machine irreparably damages the unit and causes it
  to emit a high energy microwave pulse.  This pulse causes 4d6 points of
  burning damage to all organic matter in a 30 foot radius.  Learning to acti
  vate and deactivate the device requires Investigators to make a successful
  Operate Heavy Machinery roll.  A second Mechanical Repair roll is
  required to remove the unit from the Elder Thing Prison.  Transporting the
  heavy machine from its 2nd level chamber down to the 1st level, outside
  and then up to the “Queen of Atlantis” is possible.  This will require consid
  erable planning and teamwork by the Investigators.  
  by following the instructions writ
  ten in Elder Thing Ciphers under
  each window, “Push in, then up”.
  Investigators can figure this out
  without reading the instructions by
  making a successful Idea roll.
  None of the windows are currently
  un shuttered.
  Investigators peaking inside the
  cells will see the Shoggoth impris
  oned within and be forced to make
  a Sanity Check for 1d6/1d20.
  Shoggoths within their cramped
  cells will rush towards the win
  dows, forming eyes and mouths.
  The Shoggoths will begin calling
  out to the Investigators, speaking
  in ancient Caloose Indian.  If
  Investigators can somehow under
  stand this language, then they
  understand the Shoggoths, who are
  begging to be released.
  Two of the cells, three and four, do
  not have Shoggoths in them.  Cell
  three is empty and shows signs of
  being used recently (it’s damp and
  strewn with bones and bits of undi
  gested personal items).  The door
  has been blown apart with dyna
  mite, its Elder Sign seal broken into
  pieces.  Cell four’s door is intact;
  the Elder Sign is missing, and con
  tains an 8 year old boy named
  Fernando Diaz.
  
  [ 6 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Fernando Diaz: The Shoggoth
  brought the child here after
  devouring his family at the fishing
  camp on the other side of the
  island.  It transported him here in
  an overturned rowboat from the
  camp and sealed him in the cell.
  The Shoggoth used the boy’s ram
  blings and babbling to learn both
  English and Spanish in a few days.
  It now knows both languages and
  has a better understanding of the
  outside world in this era. The
  Shoggoth has been bringing
  Fernando fruit, raw fish, some
  canned goods and beverages (most
  ly bottles of soda).  These are items
  the Shoggoth has taken off boats it
  recently attacked.  
  The Shoggoth, in an effort to bet
  ter control the boy’s movements,
  removed his legs below the knee by
  devouring and digesting them.
  Ugly, slowly healing acid burned
  skin tops on his stumps and
  signs of infection are obvious.
  Investigators making suc
  cessful Medicine rolls can
  determine that the boy’s
  overall health is poor,
  with signs of dehydra
  tion, malnutrition
  and a high fever
  from a massive
  system wide infection.  There is lit
  tle Investigators can do for the boy,
  as he requires lengthy medical
  treatment to recover.  
  The boy is filthy and insane.  He’ll
  latch onto the first human he sees,
  hugging and holding their hand
  without easily letting go of an
  Investigator.  He’ll babble on and
  on about shapes: “Circles, then tri
  angles, then squares, then more cir
  cles, and then rectangles.
  Rectangles!”  Fernando requires
  Investigators to calm him with suc
  cessful rolls of Psychology, and even
  then can convey very little informa
  tion that is useful.
  Getting him back to the surface
  will take some ingenuity (as no div
  ing suit will fit him). Allow stuck
  Investigators to remember that the
  “Queen of Atlantis” is equipped
  with a diving bell.  As soon as
  Fernando gets
  back to the sur
  face, he calms
  and gets a
  very peace
  ful look
  on his
  face.
  He
  cries, “It’s over, it’s really over!
  Thank you, I love you all!”
  Suddenly his eyes roll back in his
  head, he collapses and dies
  moments later.
  Fernando Diaz
  Insane captive of the Shoggoth
  STR 7      CON   11       SIZ      7    
  INT
  8      POW 10      DEX 10       
  APP 9      EDU     7      SAN   20 
  HP
  9        DB     
  Weapons:  None
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Cthulhu Mythos (8%), Hold
  hand and cling (70%), Babble about
  shapes (85%)
  Main Area 2, Shoggoth Testing Lab:
  This area is a large testing lab.  The
  equipment here was all recently
  smashed and destroyed.  Most of
  the smashed items are unidentifi
  able, being of alien design.  An
  Elder Sign didn’t seal off the pas
  sage to this area, so the Shoggoth
  was able to enter and destroy
  everything within.
  There are many metal slabs (three
  foot square and weighing about
  three pounds) with Elder Thing
  Ciphers on them scattered around
  the room.  Investigators attempting
  to translate some will discover they
  were research notes.  The notes
  detail attempts to chemically or
  genetically lower the free will
  and intelligence of creatures
  called “Shoggoths”.  Most
  notes end in the words
  “Results show negative
  effect”.
  Main Area 3, Anti
  Shoggoth Weapon
  Research Lab:
  This is another
  destroyed
  Elder Thing
  laboratory.  Like the one below it,
  this lab has many partially broken
  metal slabs containing Ciphers.
  Translating some of these will give
  Investigators scattered information
  about experimental anti Shoggoth
  weaponry the Elder Things were
  developing.   They will find notes
  on a “Harmonic Cohesion Disrupter”
  (see above), a “Contact Disintegrator”
  and an “Enzyme Caster”.  These three
  sets of notes will typically end in
  “Results promising”, “prototype ready
  for testing” and “good results.”
  
  [ 6 7 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  Main Area 4, Anti Shoggoth Research
  Lab: This lab, like the two below it,
  is also in shambles.  Investigators
  exploring here will find that it was
  an advanced medical lab.   Here are
  more notes, detailing an Elder
  Thing project to create yet another
  form of life, an Anti Shoggoth.
  These creatures would be similar to
  Shoggoths using the same creation
  process.  This new version would
  be designed to seek out the original
  strain of Shoggoth as a food source.  
  The Elder Thing Cipher notes will
  detail the project as follows:
  “Partially successful, Anti
  Shoggoths prey upon parent
  strain.  Unfortunately the project
  runs into the same problems
  with obedience and control.
  Anti Shoggoths tend to rebel
  faster and even more violently
  than parent strain.
  Behavioral coding needs
  correcting before full
  scale Anti Shoggoth be
  produced.  Miniature
  prototype destroyed
  by disintegration.”
  Locked Doors:
  The doors
  leading into
  B wing and
  C wing are locked and protected by
  an Elder Sign.  As the Shoggoth
  was unable to enter these areas,
  they are perfectly intact, exactly as
  the Elder Things left them.  These
  doors cannot be opened without a
  Gold Key disk.  Additional Gold
  Key/Identification disks can be
  found in the bay and in A wing,
  chamber 2.  If Investigators do not
  currently have a Gold Key/
  Identification disk they can 
  force the doors open by beating
  Resistance roll verses Strength of 30.    
  B wing 1, Elder Thing Quarters: This
  room housed the six Elder Things
  who manned this facility.  The walls
  are covered with Elder Thing
  Ciphers giving a brief account of
  their history.  Investigators will
  need to make six successful Elder
  Thing Cipher rolls over the course
  of six weeks to read the entire thing.
  Elder Thing
  Quarters
  Inscription:
  Sanity Loss
  1d4/1d10;
  Cthulhu
  Mythos +12%, six weeks to study, 24
  hours to skim. There are no spells
  in the text.  Details the Elder
  Things’ journey to Earth, establish
  ing their civilization here, creating
  life and having that life suddenly
  turn against them.  No details of
  the fall of their civilization are list
  ed because the text was written
  before those events had occurred.  
  B wing 2, The War Room: This room
  has a table with a scale model of
  the Earth’s surface as it was in the
  Devonian Era, roughly 400 million
  years ago.   Investigators making a
  successful Geology roll will realize
  that the model is of the Earth in
  the distant past.  During this time
  the first sharks appeared, life start
  ed moving onto land and the Elder
  Things living on Earth were
  involved in a war on two fronts.
  On the map there are 12 objects
  that look like models of structures,
  each with Elder Thing Ciphers
  identifying it with an unpronounce
  able name.  These represent cities;
  many appearing to have been
  underwater. There are tiny red fig
  ures resembling Shoggoths pushed
  against three of the structures and
  an insect like figure pushed against
  another two.   These figures repre
  sent Shoggoth uprisings and recent
  Mi Go attacks.  The walls here are
  covered with pictographs and Elder
  Thing Ciphers detailing the cur
  rent military conflicts.
  Elder Thing War Room Inscription:
  Sanity Loss 1d4/1d10; Cthulhu
  Mythos +9%, four weeks to
  study, 18 hours to skim.
  There are no spells in the
  text.  Details an Elder
  Thing war against the
  Mi Go and a string
  of Shoggoth upris
  ings during the
  Devonian era.
  C wing 1, Chemical Weapons Lab:
  Within this chamber are several
  tables, all covered with strange
  alien items. Many of the objects are
  containers covered with Elder
  Thing Ciphers.  Investigators mak
  ing a successful Idea or Chemistry
  roll will determine that this is an
  advanced biochemical lab.
  In the corner of this room is a shelf
  with a pair of odd alien machines.
  They look like a cross between bel
  lows and a medieval crossbow.
  
  [ 6 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  They have no handles or triggers
  that would fit in human hands and
  although awkward to handle, they
  can be operated by Investigators.
  On the walls there are a set of
  Elder Thing Ciphers that detail
  what these items are and how they
  can be used. 
  C wing 2, Energy Weapons Lab: Here
  is another military laboratory.  This
  chamber has tables and shelves
  covered with tools along with some
  partially assembled machines.
  There are two pole like objects
  with egg shaped bulbs on the end.
  Both are hanging from a pair of
  pegs on the wall.  There are a set of
  Elder Thing Ciphers carved on the
  wall beside the objects, which
  explain what these items are and
  how they work.  
  The Shoggoth: There is a 40%
  chance the Shoggoth will attempt
  to return to the prison between the
  hours of 4:00am and 6:00am.  If it
  detects a ship anchored near the
  site, or that people have visited the
  structure, it will leave the immedi
  ate area.  It’ll observe the
  Investigators while formulating a
  plan.  After a few hours it departs
  the bay.  It’s goal: kill the
  Investigators, sink their boat and
  destroy any Elder Thing technology
  they might possess.
  “Rita” makes her move: Unless
  already discovered by the
  Investigators, the con artist
  Colette, posing as “Rita” will still
  be with the Investigators.  She
  claims she doesn’t know how to
  dive; always staying with the boat
  while Professor Rudolf did the
  underwater work.  At least daily
  she’ll attempt to radio the gang
  who hired her, keeping them
  informed of the “Queen of
  Atlantis” location.  As soon as the
  Investigators claim to have found
  either the wrecked ship or the
  ruins, “Rita” will make her move.  
  When the time seems best (when
  the Investigators are sleeping
  ashore or getting into or out of
  their diving suits) “Rita” will fire a
  signal flare into the air.  She’ll claim
  this to be an accident, using her
  Fast Talk skill, if need be.  If the
  Investigators believe her, she’ll
  move below deck to “get something”
  and wait for her cohorts’ attack.
  If the situation seems tense, or the
  Investigators don’t buy her story,
  she’ll act.  “Rita” will draw her pis
  tol, which is hidden in her fake cast
  and sling.   She’ll try to hold the
  Investigators at bay until help arrives.
  If they rush her, or make any sudden
  moves, she starts shooting.
  The Return of the Black Snake Gang:
  Four rounds after the flare is
  released, another boat speeds into
  the bay, bearing down on “Queen of
  Atlantis”.  The boat is about the
  same size as “Queen of Atlantis”
  but without any of her heavy 
  salvage or diving equipment.  She’s
  called “Lazy Eight” and sports an
  oversized engine giving the ship a
  lot of speed for her size.   
  Onboard “Lazy Eight” are six men,
  five of which the Investigators may
  recognize from the bar fight at
  Morgan’s (see Act One: Key West;
  Part II).  This time they’re well
  armed.  Five of them start to fire
  on the Investigators a round after
  entering the bay, the sixth piloting
  the boat.  The “Lazy Eight” will
  pull alongside the “Queen of
  Atlantis” in six rounds.  At that
  point the thugs will attempt to
  grapple the two ships together and
  take the “Queen” as a prize.   The
  gang needs “Queen of Atlantis”
  with her salvage and diving equip
  ment to bring up the “Treasure”.
  As their aim is to claim the discov
  ery (and all the valuables within),
  the gang won’t be taking any pris
  oners.  If Investigators kill more
  then half of their numbers, the
  thugs will retreat, abandoning their
  spy.  If driven off, the Black Snake
  Gang will give up chasing this
  treasure and head back to Key
  West, licking their wounds.  If
  Investigators think to radio for
  help, the USS Destroyer “Valiant”
  will catch up with the thugs on the
  open sea.   The thugs are then easi
  ly captured by the Navy and turned
  over to local authorities.  Keepers
  may wish to have “Lazy Eight” fire
  upon the Destroyer and attempt to
  flee, where upon she is sunk by
  naval artillery.
  Enzyme Caster: This weapon mixes and launches thick gobs of a specially
  created enzyme.  This substance is quite harmless until it comes into contact
  with a Shoggoth.  To a Shoggoth’s cellular structure, the enzyme is highly cor
  rosive, dissolving whatever it’s exposed to.  Each Enzyme Caster has enough
  “ammunition” for seven shots.  If the last shot remains unfired, the enzymes
  reproduce, reloading the weapon at a rate of one shot per day.  
  Weapon      Rate        Damage      Malf         Range       #Att      Shots     HP
  Enzyme          25%        3d6+2         
  97          30 yards              1          7            12       
  Caster
  
  [ 6 9 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  Contact Disintegrator: Basically, a very strong eight foot pole with an egg
  shaped bulb on one end and a glowing crystal on the other.  When the bulb is
  thrust against an object, a sensor within analyzes what the material is.  If what
  it’s touching is a Shoggoth there’ll be a flash, as the bulb unleashes a pulse of
  energy into the creature.  Otherwise, the weapon will not “fire”.  This energy
  breaks down atomic bonds and causes the immediate area to disintegrate, leav
  ing behind black flakes of dust.  The pole must be held for the bulb to dis
  charge, the weapon will not discharge if thrown.  Attempts to disassemble a
  Contact Disintegrator triggers a fail safe which causes the weapon to self
  destruct, disintegrating itself.  The crystal carried enough energy for each
  weapon to discharge nine times.
  Weapon       Rate        Damage      Malf         Range       #Att      Shots     HP
  Contact           25%        2d6+2            98             Short            1                9          30      
  Disintegrator
  Once the site has been explored, its
  secrets learned, “Rita” unmasked
  and the gang of thugs defeated,
  only one thing remains to be done.
  The Investigators must now con
  front the liberated Shoggoth.  The
  Shoggoth by now will know that
  the Investigators are on to it and
  will likewise be planning to deal
  with them.
  Encounter #2 – The crew of “Lazy Eight”, six thugs.
  #1              #2                #3               #4               #5               #6 
  STR
  14              15               14                16                16              
  14        
  CON   
  13              12               
  12                14                14               15         
  SIZ 
  14              15               
  14                15                14               14        
  INT
  9              10                11                 9                 10               15         
  POW
  10              11               12                10                11              
  14         
  DEX
  14              13               12                12                12              
  10  
  HP
  14              14               13                14                14              
  14    
  Damage Bonus: 1d4
  Weapons:  
  #1 and #2: Colt .32 revolvers (40%, 1 per round, 1d8, 6 rounds, 6 extra) 
  #3: Colt .45 semiautomatic pistol (42%, one per round, 1d10+2, seven rounds,
  one spare magazine)
  #4 and #5: Winchester 30 06 lever action rifle (48%, one per round, 2d6+4,
  six rounds, six extra)
  #6: Remington Model 10A Shotgun (52%, one per round, 4d6, five rounds,
  five extra)
  Note: Thugs #5 and #6 also have Colt .32 revolvers w/handgun skills of 45%
  All: Knife 50%, 1d4+db; Punch 65%, 1d3+db; Head 30%, 1d4+db; Kick 35%,
  1d6+db              
  Armor: None
  
  [ 7 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Part III
  The Black
  Jellyfish
  Involving the Navy: If the
  Investigators call on the “Valiant”
  for help with the Shoggoth before
  facing the creature, things could
  quickly spiral out of control.  If the
  Valiant was contacted to intercept
  the “Lazy Eight” it may take them a
  day or more to find her.  If the
  Valiant takes the crew of “Lazy
  Eight” into custody, they’ll be head
  ed back to Key West to drop them
  off.  Once there, the ship will spend
  a day picking up fuel and supplies
  before setting back out to Caya
  Locura.  From the time the
  Investigators call the Valiant until
  the ship actually arrives may be sev
  eral days.   Keepers may wish to
  have the Shoggoth move against
  the Investigators before the
  Destroyer arrives.
  If the USS Valiant does not have
  the crew of “Lazy Eight” in custody
  they could possibly arrive sooner
  (in as little as two days).  If the
  Investigators have explored and
  obtained the Anti Shoggoth Elder
  Thing artifacts, the Shoggoth puts
  its plan into motion before the
  Destroyer arrives.  
  The Shoggoth Attacks: When the
  time is right, the Shoggoth enacts
  its plan.  It has removed a radio and
  a flare gun from the last ship it
  attacked, placing them in a small
  rowboat.  At dusk, it pulls the row
  boat out to sea, about three miles
  from the “Queen of Atlantis”.   The
  creature will pull itself into the
  shape of a cabin cruiser, concealing
  the rowboat with its body.  The
  Shoggoth then launches a signal
  flare into the darkening sky, and
  gets on the radio.  With an organ
  created to achieve human speech it
  broadcasts, “Mayday! Mayday!
  Mayday! This is Copper Penny.
  Any ship within range of this, we
  are declaring an emergency.  We
  have been attacked by an unknown
  vessel and are taking on water.  We
  have just launched a flare; we do
  not know our position.  Please, we
  need immediate assistance; we have
  women and children onboard.
  Please help us, we’re” 
   then the
  message cuts out.
  Investigators looking towards the
  flare will see the outline of a cabin
  cruiser in the distance, about three
  miles from their position.  The
  Shoggoth will not answer any radio
  messages sent to it.  If the
  Investigators make no move to
  approach the “vessel” it will launch
  another flare several minutes later.
  Unwilling Investigators: Some Investigators may choose not to explore
  the Elder Thing Site.  They could choose to call in the military, allowing
  them to take over.  Should this happen, Keepers should have the
  Investigators overhear radio messages from various vessels as the Shoggoth
  attacks them.  The Destroyer responds to these calls but never arrives in
  time.  Hopefully the Investigators will surmise that the Navy is not able to
  properly deal with the situation and that exploring the site might offer
  insights.  If this fails to get Investigators exploring the Elder Thing site
  Keepers still have several options:  
  Option One: The Cuban Crisis: As Investigators are waiting for the
  Destroyer to arrive, they are contacted by the USS Valiant.  The Valiant
  reports that they are being ordered into service to deal with a crisis in
  Cuba.  They will be unable to render assistance at this time and due to the
  crisis cannot say when ANY help might arrive.  This will hopefully get
  Investigators interested in exploring the site themselves.
  Option Two: The Crank Call: After hearing the Investigators contact the
  Destroyer, the Shoggoth begins making calls of its own.  The Shoggoth
  already possesses a radio and has learned how to use it.  It will contact the
  Destroyer claiming to be anything from a downed aircraft to a ship
  attacked by pirates.   It will use several names, generally trying to make the
  Investigators call for help to be one of several crank calls into the
  Destroyer.   The result will be that the “Valiant” ignores these reports and
  does not respond to the Investigators’ call for assistance until after they’ve
  explored the site.
  Options Three: The Navy arrives: If for some reason the Investigators can
  not be motivated to investigate the site under ANY circumstances, the USS
  Valiant eventually does arrive.  The Destroyer sends a few teams of officers
  and a dive team into Devil’s Bay.  Once they’ve proven to Captain Harris
  that there is in fact an ancient alien building at the bottom of the bay, he
  contacts Washington.  He is immediately ordered to detain the
  Investigators and to confiscate all of their equipment, notes, photos and
  anything they might have removed from the site.  The next day a seaplane
  lands and a group of four men in white suits get out.  See “The Men From
  Washington”.
  
  [ 7 1 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  After the Battle: At the close of
  combat, Captain Harris of the USS
  Valiant will ask the Investigators to
  come onboard and explain, “Just
  what in the hell is going on?”
  While talk of alien ruins, monsters
  and death rays might seem like
  crazy talk on any other day, after
  witnessing the battle against the
  Shoggoth, he’s willing to believe
  almost anything.   He’s also likely to
  detect if Investigators are lying to
  him (due to a high Psychology roll),
  which will cause him to grow angry.  
  The next morning, Captain Harris
  sends his own diver to the bottom
  of Devil’s Bay.  Once his divers veri
  fy that there are in fact alien ruins
  there, he’ll immediately contact the
  War Department in Washington.
  Captain Harris will be ordered to
  detain the Investigators and to con
  fiscate all of their equipment,
  notes, photos and anything they’ve
  removed from the site.  The next
  day a seaplane lands and a group of
  four men in white suits get out.  
  The Men From Washington: These
  men question the Investigators,
  giving their names as “Mr. Apple”,
  “Professor Green”, “Doctor Brown”
  and “Deacon Plum”.  Any
  Investigator with more than 60%
  in Archeology, Anthropology or
  History who makes a successful
  Know roll will recognize “Professor
  Green” as Professor Ernest Jacoby.
  Professor Jacoby was a famous field
  researcher who led expeditions into
  the Amazon until his “reported”
  death two years ago.  Anyone with
  Biology or Medicine scores above
  60% who makes a successful Know
  roll will recognize “Doctor Brown”
  as Dr. Phillip Severn.  Dr. Severn
  was a noted biologist and medical
  researcher until he “reportedly”
  suffered a heart attack and died
  five years ago.
  At this point another message
  comes over the radio.  “Copper
  Penny, this is the USS Valiant.  We
  have seen your flare and are on
  course to get to you.  Hold on, help
  is on the way.  Are there any injured
  onboard?  Can you turn to heading
  mark three one five? Are you receiv
  ing this? Over.”  The Investigators
  will not have to work fast, if they
  are to save the crew of the
  Destroyer from the cunning
  Shoggoth.  If the Investigators have
  not obtained any of the Elder
  Thing artifacts, or already possess
  items or spells allowing them a
  chance of defeating the Shoggoth,
  then crews of both the Valiant and
  “Queen of Atlantis” are doomed.
  If the Investigators set out at once,
  the Shoggoth allows them to get
  close enough to see it clearly, hop
  ing the sight drives Investigators
  insane.  It then drops the disguise,
  assuming a shapeless form and
  moves to attack the Investigators.
  The Shoggoth will then grab 
  onto the underside of “Queen of
  Atlantis” and attack with a pseudo
  pod each round, attempting to
  devour everyone onboard.  
  Investigators may or may not fall for
  the Shoggoth’s shape mimicking
  trick.  Either way, if they’ve
  explored the Elder Thing site, they
  should now be well prepared for this
  encounter.  If they’ve armed them
  selves with the Elder Thing
  weapons, 
  and 
  activated 
  the
  Harmonic Disruptor, they have a
  good chance of defeating the
  Shoggoth.  Investigators can also
  use other means to combat the
  Shoggoth, but such creatures have
  good immunities to many mundane
  attacks.  The battle will be a notice
  able one, with the Enzyme Caster
  and the Contact Disintegrator
  flashing brightly in the night sky.
  The Shoggoth will also be quite
  vocal, especially when confronted
  by the hated Elder Thing technology.
  Investigators may destroy the crea
  ture just as the Destroyer is arriv
  ing, with the bulk of its crew wit
  nessing the battle.  They may also
  arrive just as the creature is attacking
  the Destroyer, thereby saving the
  crew.  If the Shoggoth has the upper
  hand against the Investigators,
  Keepers may wish to have the Valiant
  drive the creature off, or even deliver
  the coup de gras.  
  Prisoner Four 
  Escaped Rebel Leader and Shoggoth 
  STR
  63       CON   42        SIZ  70    
  INT
  14       POW 11       DEX 4      
  HP
  56       DB +6d6 
  Weapons: Crush 70%, damage is db
  Armor: None, but (1) fire and elec
  trical attacks do only half damage;
  (2) physical weapons such as
  firearms do only one point of damage,
  impaling or not; and (3) a Shoggoth
  regenerates two points per round
  Spells: None
  Sanity Loss: 1d6/1d20 to see a
  Shoggoth
  Description: Prisoner four is much
  like any other Shoggoth except for
  being below average in size and
  above average in intelligence.  It is
  very cunning, able to solve complex
  problems and form detailed solu
  tions. This is what made it a leader
  in the Shoggoth Rebellion against
  the Elder Things.  It is also the
  reason it wasn’t destroyed but 
  captured and imprisoned by
  the Elder Things for study.
  
  [ 7 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  These men deny any claims as to
  their true identities, instead 
  focusing on questioning the
  Investigators.  They wish to know,
  in full detail, the events that led
  them to the site and especially
  what occurred within.  After several
  hours of debriefing, the men thank
  the Investigators.  Investigators are
  then taken to the seaplane (by
  force if necessary) and land at the
  Naval base in Key West a short
  time later.  
  Investigators are well fed and well
  treated while detained at the naval
  base.  If the Investigators have
  already destroyed the Shoggoth
  they are only held for four days.  If
  the Navy and the team from
  Washington explored the site, and
  the Shoggoth is still at large, the
  Investigators are held for two weeks.
  At the end of this period, Mr.
  Wilcox, a representative of the US
  War Department, visits the
  Investigators.   He is a well dressed
  man of about 40 who speaks with
  confidence and authority.  Although
  not in uniform, the military per
  sonnel at the base treat him with
  deference.   If the Investigators
  didn’t themselves destroy the
  Shoggoth and ask about it, Mr.
  Wilcox will reply, “It’s been taken
  care of.  Everything is under con
  trol and back to the way it should
  be.  Your government has people to
  deal with this sort of thing.  Top
  minds, experts; you have nothing
  further to worry about.” 
  He goes on to explain that they’ve
  done their country a great service
  by discovering the site, but that all
  evidence of it is now classified.
  “Top Secret, you are not to talk
  about it to anyone, not even each
  other, ever again.  As far as the
  world outside of this room is con
  The Elder Thing Prison Complex
  
  [ 7 3 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  doing a detailed study of the Elder
  Thing Prison and we could use
  some help.  Are you interested?”  
  If the Investigators are interested
  they are offered a position with
  Section 15 of the Department of
  Agriculture.  Section 15 is a secret
  government program researching
  Mythos related phenomenon.  Any
  items, which still haven’t been
  returned to the Investigators, will
  be given back to those joining
  Section 15.  The one drawback of
  joining Section 15 is that
  Investigators must agree to assume
  a new identity.  The government
  also arranges to fake their deaths
  and forbids Section 15 members
  from contacting former friends and
  family.  Individual Keepers can use
  this as a springboard into limitless
  future investigations.
  cerned, you spent a few weeks in
  Key West enjoying the sun.”  He
  then pushes envelopes toward the
  Investigators, each containing
  $5,000 in cash.
  If the Investigators offer objections
  he mildly threatens them with,
  “Speaking publicly about a matter
  of national security would be con
  sidered treason.  That’s an offence
  punishable by death or so I’m told.”
  Investigators who refuse to keep
  quiet or accept the money won’t be
  allowed to leave the base.  Those
  who offer vigorous objections will
  find themselves in a military peni
  tentiary, without trial, lost in the
  system for years.
  Investigators accepting the money
  will be allowed to leave. A car will
  return them to the La Concha
  Hotel.  All of their equipment will
  be waiting for them in their rooms,
  with the exception of any records
  or items connected to the Elder
  Thing site. The government has
  arranged an additional two week all
  expenses paid stay for each
  Investigator.
  The Offer: At the Keeper’s discre
  tion, the Investigators that were
  released are invited to dinner.   It
  will be held in the same private din
  ing room where they were sup
  posed to meet Professor Timm.
  One of the four men who debriefed
  them (one whom they recognized if
  possible) will have extended the
  invitation and be waiting for them.  
  At dinner, Investigators will be
  offered positions in an exclusive
  research program.  “Really cutting
  edge stuff.  We’re doing work that
  the public doesn’t, and shouldn’t,
  know about.  Things like what you
  saw at the bottom of Devil’s Bay.
  I’m not allowed to say more.  We’re
  ~ The End ~
  Sanity Awards:
  Investigators defeat attacks by 
  mutant sea turtle and/or moray eel: 
  1d4 each 
  Investigators discover and defeat “Rita”: 
  1d4 
  Investigators drive off/defeat thugs 
  onboard “Lazy Eight”: 
  1d6
  Investigators defeat the Shoggoth: 
  1d20
  
  [ 7 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  
  [ 7 5 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  
  [ 7 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  
  [ 7 7 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  
  [ 7 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  
  [ 7 9 ]
  Keys of Madness: Act II–Caya Locura
  
  [ 8 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Pre Introduction I: Stumbling into
  the darkness: Last night’s thunder
  storm is a distant memory as the
  morning breaks to a clear and
  sunny day.  After a quiet evening at
  the “Restful Nights” roadside
  motel, you notice some people
  moving about outside of your win
  dow.  In a moment they are gone,
  moving down the row of rooms to
  the end.  Peaking outside you see a
  police car parked right outside the
  main office.  Two men are walking
  towards Suite 14, one being the
  motel’s owner and the other wear
  ing the uniform of the local sheriff. 
  Pre Introduction II: Seeking out the
  darkness: Last night’s thunder
  storm is a distant memory as the
  morning breaks to clear and sunny
  day.  After a pleasant drive through
  the countryside you see a sign that
  reads “Restful Nights Roadside
  Motel, 1 mile”.  It was from here
  that [insert name of missing NPC]
  vanished almost three weeks ago.
  Local police have not managed to
  turn up any clues in all that time,
  making you fearful that this mys
  tery might never be solved.  
  You arrive at the motel, a long row
  of connected bungalows besides a
  larger office building at about
  10:00am.  As you pull up to the
  Getting started: This adventure centers on a number of disappearances
  from the “Restful Nights” roadside motel and can be begun in one of two
  ways:  The Investigators can stumble into this mystery by simply being
  guests at the motel on the night of Fred Tanner’s disappearance.  In the
  morning, as they are getting ready to leave, they see the sheriff’s car parked
  out front, and being curious Investigators, they try to find out what’s going
  on.  The local sheriff, bewildered at yet another vanishing, will welcome any
  discrete assistance.  If this method is chosen, Keepers should begin the
  adventure with Pre introduction one.
  The other way for Investigators to become involved is to be connected to,
  or hired by, the family of the last abducted person before Fred Tanner.
  Perhaps the Investigators are looking into the disappearance of a NPC
  already known to them (or possibly a family member).  In this way the
  Investigators arrive several weeks later, on the morning after Fred Tanner’s
  disappearance.  If this method is used, Keepers should place some personal
  effect of the individual that the Investigators are looking for at the pawn
  shop (see Part III).  Keepers could also have some of the lost person’s
  remains found in the family cavern (see Part IV).  When using this method,
  Keepers should start the adventure with Pre Introduction II.
  The motel can be located anywhere, so long as it is placed in a small town
  several miles from a larger town or city.  For the purposes of this adventure
  the investigation takes place in the town of Litchfield (pop. 215) and the
  city of Nashua (pop. 28,000), both in New Hampshire.  The location of the
  adventure can be easily changed by the Keeper to suit the needs of his or
  her own campaign.   
  Borne Into Darkness
  A 1920s Call of Cthulhu Adventure
  by Oscar Rios
  
  [ 8 1 ]
  Born into Darkness
  office, you notice a police car
  parked out front.  Two men are
  walking towards one of the suites,
  one looking about nervously and
  the other wearing the uniform of
  the local sheriff.
  Merrin.  John was a very abusive
  man, who beat his wife and daugh
  ter often.  Lisa took her own life
  when Katie was just eight years old.
  As part of a legal search after Lisa’s
  death, John and Katie inherited the
  land where the old Birch family home
  had once stood.  John built a house
  there and moved into it with his
  daughter in 1923; it was around this
  time he started molesting the girl.
  The original branch of the Birch
  family was not totally wiped out by
  the fire.  A small number of them,
  the most deformed and inhuman,
  had been hiding in the cellar and
  tunnels below the house.  During
  the last 84 years, the Birch’s have
  lived almost completely below
  ground, finding their way into the
  natural limestone caverns that hon
  eycomb the area.  Coming to the
  surface only on the darkest nights,
  the pygmy sized creatures live off
  rodents, stolen livestock and the
  occasional discarded turkey carcass
  tossed into an area sinkhole.
  During thunderstorms the family,
  now completely inhuman, grow
  bold enough to venture out and
  hunt.  On their hunts they attempt
  to kill and devour a lone traveler,
  wandering hobo or guest who was
  staying in Suite 14 of the “Restful
  Nights” motel.  The creatures
  became very interested in the new
  house built almost atop their sub
  terranean lair.
  One night, after John Merrin had
  just beaten and raped his daughter,
  the creatures that made up the
  Birch family crept into his home.
  They swarmed over him, savagely
  attacking him until he was dead.
  The creatures then crept into
  Katie’s room (who had been crying
  and did not hear the attack on her
  father) intent on killing her as well.
  Then the creatures noticed her
  Main Introduction: “I’m telling you
  Willie, it’s just like last time.  He
  should have checked out yesterday,
  but when I opened up the room
  the feller was gone,” explains the
  nervous looking owner.
  The man in uniform glances about
  and asks, “This his car?” He points
  to a Ford Model A, and continues,
  “and all his stuff still here? Like last
  time and the damned time before
  that?” 
  The owner nods, looking nervously
  at his feet.  
  The sheriff shakes his head and opens
  the door, muttering in frustration.
  From inside the room you hear him
  call, “I guess you didn’t hear or see
  anything this time either?”
  “No sir, not a thing.  He just skipped
  out,” answers the motel owner.
  It seems like the sheriff has another
  mystery on his hands.
  Keepers Information: Back in colonial
  times, the Birch family owned
  much of the land in this area.  The
  family dabbled in dark magic as
  well as occasionally practicing can
  nibalism.  The Birch’s also firmly
  believed in inbreeding and with
  each generation they degenerated
  further and further.  The family had
  always been slight but slowly grew
  to become dwarflike.  They were,
  of course, shunned and avoided by
  their neighbors who long suspected
  them as the cause of local disap
  pearances.  
  In 1843, one of the least degenerat
  ed members of the family broke
  away.  Her name was Margaret
  Birch and at the age of 13 (when she
  had been deemed ready to breed)
  escaped her family’s clutches.  She
  reported to the local authorities all
  the unspeakable things her family
  had done and soon an angry mob
  rose up.  The Birch’s were rounded
  up and hung; those who attempted
  escape or resisted were shot.  The
  Birch family home was burned to
  the ground, as many of the most
  horribly degenerated members hid
  within.  Margaret Birch, horrified
  by what transpired, fled the area in
  the confusion and was never seen
  in Litchfield again.  The locals cov
  ered up all evidence of what hap
  pened and those involved swore
  oaths of secrecy.  By the 1890s the
  incident was totally forgotten.
  Margaret Birch lived a full life,
  finding a place at a traveling carni
  val (as a “Beast Girl of Sumatra” in
  the freak show).  She married and
  had children.  Slowly the taint of
  the Birch family bloodline faded,
  until around 1900 the descendents
  of Margaret Birch looked fairly
  normal. In 1915, a direct descendent
  of Margaret was born to Lisa and
  John Merrin.  Her name was Katie
  
  Part I
  Restful Nights 
  Roadside Motel
  [ 8 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  scent, her very familiar scent.  
  She was one of them! Somehow the
  girl was family.  They moved
  towards her, putting their bloody
  claws on her, to stroke and comfort
  her.   Katie, her mental state dam
  aged by her father’s abuse and so
  desperate for unconditional love,
  went insane at the sight of her long
  lost kin.  She accepted them, the
  way they had accepted her.  Her
  bond to the creatures became even
  stronger when she discovered
  they’d murdered her hated father.
  Since that night, a little over a year
  ago, Katie has lived in the house
  alone.  She visits with her extended
  “family” daily.  The creatures give
  her the money and valuables they
  find on their victims.  She sells prop
  erty to a fence in nearby Nashua,
  making the long trip (six miles) back
  and forth on her bicycle.  
  The creatures have begun to share
  their “special” meals with her and
  Katie has resumed the Birch tradi
  tion of cannibalism.  They also give
  her a family heirloom, a mythos tome
  which none of the degenerate fiends
  could read.  Young Katie reads it and
  in the past year has become quite
  skilled at the art of voodoo.  She and
  her extended family are quite happy
  with the state of things, until the
  Investigators arrive.  The year is 1926.
  Investigators begin by dealing with
  the local sheriff, either being ques
  tioned by him or approaching him
  first.  Sheriff Benton will start by
  searching Suite 14, then Fred Tanner’s
  car and the immediate area.  He’ll
  then move on to question the guests
  and finish up by searching the main
  office (which is also owner Clarence
  Wilson’s home).
  If Investigators approach the sher
  iff offering assistance, he’ll accept
  it with a successful Fast Talk or
  Persuade roll.  This is the fourth
  time in a year someone has van
  ished from this room and he hasn’t
  solved those cases either.  If the
  Investigators don’t approach the
  sheriff first, he’ll interview them in
  the course of his investigation (as
  they were either guests the night
  before or arrived here investigating
  the previous disappearance).  The
  sheriff will interview everyone who
  stayed at the Motel last night to see
  if the saw or heard anything.
  If Investigators explain that they’re
  looking into an earlier disappear
  ance, he’ll ask if they’d be interest
  ed in assisting him in the official
  investigation.  While a good and
  honest man, the sheriff is terribly
  out of his element investigating a
  missing persons case.  He’ll warn
  them against investigating the mat
  ter on their own, claiming that any
  evidence they find would likely be
  thrown out of court as inadmissible
  and he’d like to build a case against
  those responsible.  Keepers should
  have Sheriff Benton make a
  Persuade roll if Investigators
  seem unwilling to work with him.
  Willie Benton 
  local sheriff
  STR 14
  CON   16          
  SIZ   14
  INT
  11  
  POW 10
  DEX 12          
  APP 12
  EDU   10         
  SAN  50
  HP
  15   
  DB   +1d4 
  Weapons:   Fist/Punch (65%,
  1d3+db), Grapple (45%. Damage
  special), .45 Revolver (45%, 1d10+2),
  Nightstick (55%. 1d6+db)
  Armor:  None
  Skills:   Psychology (40%), Sneak
  (30%), Spot Hidden (40%),
  Persuade (55%), Law (40%), First
  Aid (30%), Listen (30%), Track
  (20%), Drive Auto (50%)
  Background: The sheriff of
  Litchfield, New Hampshire (pop.
  213) is about 35 and unmarried.  He
  has hopes of being a success at his
  profession but is well aware that
  most people in town think little of
  his abilities.  Sheriff Benton
  believes his only chance of proving
  himself is to solve the four missing
  persons cases he’s investigating.
  Unfortunately no one in Litchfield
  is really concerned with the disap
  pearances (none of the people were
  locals) and all requests to the coun
  ty sheriff for additional deputies
  have been denied.  He strongly sus
  pects that Clarence Wilson is hid
  ing something but repeated searches
  of his home have turned up nothing.
  Sheriff Benton is desperate, frustrated
  in his attempts to solve the mystery
  and is willing to take any help that
  might be offered.
  Once the Investigators and Sheriff
  Benton come to an agreement, he’ll
  allow them to search the area with
  him or on their own.  A search of
  Fred Tanner’s car turns up nothing.
  Fred Tanner is (was) a 34 year old
  
  [ 8 3 ]
  Born into Darkness
  traveling salesman, married and a
  father of two. 
  Suite 14:This room, like all the others,
  has a single bed, table, chair, dresser,
  night table and a small bathroom.  It
  is the last one of a row of seven suites
  (eight through 14). Investigators
  searching Suite 14 should roll three
  Spot Hidden rolls to find the fol
  lowing three clues: 
  • Some areas of the carpet have
  been carefully washed and are still
  damp.  They form a path from the
  bathroom to the back window.
  • The lock to the back window has
  been unscrewed and disabled.  It
  will appear to be locked but can
  easily be opened.
  • A search of Fred Tanner’s personal
  effects shows that the only thing
  apparently taken was the straight
  razor from his toiletry set.
  The Surrounding Area: Investigators
  making a search of the surrounding
  area should again roll two Spot
  Hidden rolls.  Those succeeding
  find the following behind the motel
  in the area around Suite 14’s rear
  window:
  • Outside and above the window, a
  coat hook has been screwed into
  the building.  The Birch family
  uses this hook as a pulley, allowing
  them to haul bodies out of the
  window with rope.
  • About ten yards away from the
  back window of Suite 14,
  Investigators find a large wooden
  board covering a small sinkhole.
  The board is covered with dirt
  and has some grass growing on it
  already, so it’s difficult to spot.
  Under the board is a small, 
  narrow sinkhole.  
  The Sinkhole: Investigators will have
  a hard time investigating the sink
  hole.  It is too narrow for anyone
  larger than a SIZ 5 to enter, being
  only about three feet across.  The
  sinkhole goes down about a dozen
  feet, before hitting a 45 degree
  down slope and entering a series of
  natural caverns.  Locals will vouch
  for the area being riddled with such
  small sinkholes.  It’s common
  knowledge to residents that a natu
  ral cavern system runs under much
  of Litchfield.
  Investigators making a successful
  Spot Hidden roll will find a scrap
  of fabric here.  It will be a dark
  patch of wool, possibly from a
  man’s jacket.  Excavating and
  exploring the sinkhole is impossi
  ble.  The hole is simply too small
  and the soil too unstable.  The
  most Investigators can accomplish
  is to cave it in.  Intentionally sealing it
  up is only a temporary solution, as the
  Birch family will tunnel out of an exit
  from another area sinkhole.
  Questioning Clarence Wilson:
  When questioned about strange
  goings on, or the missing persons,
  Keepers should allow Investigators
  to make a Spot Hidden Roll.  If
  successful, they’ll notice that
  Clarence attempts to avoid eye
  contact and develops a nervous
  twitch while discussing the topic.
  As questioning continues these
  physical manifestations intensify.  
  If asked about where these missing
  people are, he’ll claim, “I don’t
  know where they go.  They check
  in and come morning they’re gone.
  There isn’t anything out of the
  ordinary about it.  They just skip
  out on the bill, that’s all”.
  If asked why the property and vehi
  cles remain, he’ll simply shrug and
  reply, “You can ask them when they
  show up.”  
  If accused of any wrongdoing, he’ll
  answer, “If I was going to off some
  one, do you think I’d do it here?
  Would I leave all their stuff in the
  room and their cars parked out
  front?  Look, I’m the one who
  called in the Sheriff.”    
  Investigators who make a Psychology
  roll to detect if he is lying will find
  all of his statements to be truthful
  ly made. Investigators making a
  successful Psychology roll after
  noticing his twitch will suspect
  that the man might be mentally
  disturbed (see below). 
  The Madness of Clarence Wilson: One
  night about a year ago, Judy was
  loudly barking during a thunder
  storm.  Clarence, thinking it might
  be a burglar, went outside with an
  umbrella and a lantern to investi
  gate.  What he witnessed was a
  number of the Birch family, drag
  ging a dead body out of the back
  window of Suite 14. Luckily for
  him, the creatures, busy in their
  dark task, never knew he was there.
  The horror of it shattered his
  mind, which erased any memory of
  the event.  He simply went back
  inside without any memory of what
  he saw but the fear unfortunately
  remained.  On any night where
  there is any chance of rain he’ll be
  locked inside his home, with the
  radio turned up and Judy close by.
  Clarence Wilson’s mind will not
  accept anything other than what it
  firmly believes, which is that these
  people simply leave of their own
  accord.  This delusion is the cause
  of his uncontrollable facial tick
  while talking about the motel’s dis
  appearances.  If repeatedly ques
  tioned and accused he will become
  
  [ 8 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  more and more agitated.  He’ll
  eventually begin to slip, saying
  things like “I don’t remember see
  ing anything”, and “You can’t make
  me remember!”  At this point he’ll
  be sweating and panting, his eyes
  wide with near panic.  
  If questioned any further, Clarence
  Wilson collapses, having a seizure.
  This is the first part of a total nerv
  ous breakdown, as his mind accepts
  what it has seen.  Clarence will be
  taken to the hospital in Nashua for
  several weeks, and then transferred
  to a psychiatric facility.  From the
  point of his collapses until the end
  of the investigation he’ll be in a
  near catatonic state and no source of
  further information.  If Investigators
  question his doctor at the psychi
  atric facility, the prognosis will be
  “total nervous breakdown due to
  repressed traumatic memory”.
  Clarence Wilson’s home: A search of
  this home turns up little.  Investigators
  making two successful Spot
  Hidden rolls find the following
  strange items:
  • The drapes on all of his windows
  are pinned closed.  The windows
  are also all nailed shut. 
  • There is an interior room with no
  windows in it with an armchair
  and some pillows and blankets on
  it (he spends the night here).  In
  the waste paper basket there is an
  empty bottle of Canadian brandy.
  There is also a radio here with the
  volume fully turned up.
  Clarence Wilson 
  motel owner
  STR
  9     
  CON  13     
  SIZ      9     
  INT 10   
  POW 9     
  DEX 10        
  APP 12      
  EDU  13     
  SAN  15      
  HP
  11 
  DB  +0         
  Weapons:   None
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Accounting (55%), Persuade
  (40%), Deny Truth (95%), Repress
  Memory (80%) 
  Background: Clarence Wilson is
  unmarried and the mild mannered
  owner of the motel.  He’s about 45,
  slightly built and balding.  Clarence
  doesn’t want stories about the van
  ishings getting out, so he bribes the
  local newspaper reporter to not
  report on them.  He keeps a large
  guard dog with him named “Judy”,
  who seems friendly to most people.  
  other.  I’m sure there is a logical
  explanation to the entire busi
  ness.  I don’t have an opinion on
  the matter, to be honest.  I’m not
  the sort who starts rumors from
  idle speculation.”
  Even with Investigators making
  successful Persuade and/or Fast
  Talk rolls, Ms. Laudrey will not
  speak more on the matter. If she is
  asked about her neighbor Katie
  Merrin, she’ll have this to say:  “It’s
  a shame really.  The girl moved here
  with her father three years ago.
  She missed a lot of school that first
  year, even more the next.  This year
  she just stopped coming.  I blame
  the Father.  A child her age should
  be in school and better tended to
  than she obviously was.”
  She won’t comment further on the
  matter regardless of Investigators
  making successful Persuade and/or
  Fast Talk rolls.  She’ll politely
  explain, “I was taught that if I did
  n’t have anything nice to say, not to
  say anything at all.   You’ll under
  stand why I’d rather not speak on
  this matter.”
  Patricia Laudrey 
  local teacher
  STR
  7         
  CON   13
  SIZ    12
  INT 16         
  POW 13         
  DEX
  9         
  APP 13        
  EDU    19         
  SAN    65 
  HP
  12   
  DB  +0  
  Weapons:   None
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Credit Rating (50%), English
  (85%), Library Use (50%), History
  (45%), Accounting (35%), Art:
  Gardening (60%)
  The Goodwin Home: This house is
  larger than most in the area, freshly
  painted with a well tended white
  Part II
  The Neighborhood
  Once Investigators have fully
  searched the “Restful Night” motel
  (and possibly pushed the owner to
  a nervous breakdown) they may
  turn their attentions to the sur
  rounding area.   The motel is on a
  road skirting a group of hills.
  There are five other residences
  along this road and Investigators
  may wish to visit each of these.  
  The Laudrey Home: A lovely home
  with a well tended flower garden,
  this is the home of the widow
  Patricia Laudrey.  She is a kind, yet
  firm woman who serves Litchfield
  as the only teacher to its small
  school.  She lives here alone, her
  two sons away at college and her
  husband dead almost ten years now.
  If Investigators visit she’ll offer
  tea in her living room or lemon
  ade in the garden, depending on
  the time of day.  
  If asked what she thinks about the
  disappearances from the “Restful
  Nights” roadside motel, her reply
  will be as follows: “Well, I haven’t
  heard much about it one way or the
  
  [ 8 5 ]
  Born into Darkness
  Sylvester Goodwin 
  local minister
  STR
  8         
  CON   15          
  SIZ    14 
  INT 14     
  POW 13         
  DEX 10         
  APP
  9          
  EDU   10         
  SAN   65 
  HP 15    
  DB  +0  
  Weapons: None
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Credit Rating (60%),
  Persuade (70%), Fast Talk (55%),
  Theology (75%)
  The Anderson Home: This house is
  small, cluttered and very rustic.  A
  sign at the front gate reads “Mitch
  Anderson, stuffed animals for sale,
  ring bell”. There is a rope to pull,
  but the bell is missing.  Inside
  Mitch, age 40, lives alone with six
  hunting dogs.  His home is filled
  with stuffed animals; raccoons,
  possum, fox, squirrels, as well as
  deer, moose and bear trophies.
  Numerous ugly looking traps can
  be seen hanging on the side of his
  house as well.  Mitch will be
  dressed in a flannel shirt, boots and
  denim overalls.  Most people in
  Litchfield consider him a bit odd
  and avoid him; he’s often blamed
  for missing household pets.  He’ll
  try to sell Investigators one of his
  stuffed animals or a jug of moon
  shine that he gets his hands on
  from friends in town.
  If asked about the disappearances
  Mitch will have much to say: “Well
  I think that shifty Clarence Wilson
  done them all in, that’s what I’m
  thinking.  I think he owed them
  money, from gambling debts or
  something, ‘cause all those people
  that disappeared weren’t from
  around here.  If anyone took a
  shovel to his basement I’m sure
  they’d find every last one of those
  fence around its property.  This is the
  home of local minister Sylvester
  Goodwin and his wife Edith.  The
  Goodwins are well respected in
  Litchfield and are both in their
  early 40s.  Edith is an almost mute
  ly quiet woman, plainly dressed
  with a nearly constant sour look on
  her severe face.  Sylvester on the
  other hand is quite vocal, eager to
  hear the sound of his own authori
  tative voice.  The couple has a
  maid, a 35 year old black woman
  named Ruth, who does a good job
  of staying out of the way.
  If asked about the disappearances
  Sylvester will have this to say: “It’s a
  terrible thing, that place.  Those who
  stop there do so only out of the desire
  to commit sin and practice ungodly
  acts.  Whatever ill befalls such hedo
  nistic scoundrels is God’s will, and not
  for you or I to judge.”
  If asked about the Merrin family,
  Sylvester will make the following
  comments: “I’ve been meaning to
  call on that man and his little girl.
  It’s well known the man is much
  taken to the bottle and his daugh
  ter hasn’t been to church in several
  years.  There is only so much you
  can do when you have an entire
  flock to watch over. “
  missing folk”.  Investigators who
  searched Clarence Wilson’s home
  and make an Idea roll will remem
  ber that there was no basement on
  the property.  
  If asked about the Merrin family,
  he’ll reply, “That man, John
  Merrin’s his name, he’s not from
  around here.  That land came to
  him from his dead wife, her family
  lived in Litchfield way back.  He
  moved here after she died and built
  that house on the hill.  Mean son of
  a bitch.  I saw that poor girl with a
  black eye a few years back; she
  couldn’t have been ten years old at
  the time.  Bastard hasn’t shown his
  face in town for a while now, good
  thing too.  Any man that would put
  that sort of a beating, or worse, on
  his own daughter needs to get his
  ass whooped.”
  Mitch Anderson 
  taxidermist
  STR 15         
  CON   17         
  SIZ    15 
  INT 10      
  POW 12        
  DEX 14         
  APP
  9         
  EDU    10        
  SAN  60 
  HP
  16 
  DB  +1d4  
  Weapons:  Winchester 30 06 lever
  action rifle (48%, 1 per round,
  2d6+4, 6 rounds), Knife (70%)
  1d4+db, Fist/Punch (70%, 1d3+db)
  Armor:  None
  Skills:   Tracking (60%), Taxidermy
  (60%), Set Traps (50%), Sneak
  (40%), Hide (40%)
  The Macintyre Farm: This large
  house has an even larger outer
  building where turkeys are raised.
  Preston Macintyre (age 45), along
  with his wife (Maureen, age 36) and
  five children (aged eight to 17) live
  here.  The farm has been in the
  family for four generations and the
  
  [ 8 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Macintyres know all there is to
  know about raising turkey.
  Although the work is hard and the
  hours are long, the Farm turns a
  profit every year.  Everyone in the
  Macintyre family works the farm,
  the children finding time to help
  before and after school.  The family
  is friendly, well dressed and the farm is
  well equipped.  Preston and Maureen
  Macintyre will take a break from
  tending the hundreds of turkeys and
  invite the Investigators to sit down.
  Investigators will be offered glasses
  of iced tea and a slice of apple pie.
  If asked about the disappearances,
  Preston and his wife ask what the
  Investigators are talking about.   This
  will be the first they have heard about
  it.  They will be shocked and men
  tion, “We’ll be keeping a closer eye on
  their children, in case something odd
  is going on.”  If pushed to offer a
  theory as to what is going on, the
  pair will look puzzled, think a
  moment and reply, “You know, I
  wouldn’t have the first idea.  It’s
  mighty odd business.”
  If asked about the Merrin family,
  Preston will have this to say: “We
  really don’t know much about
  them, to be honest.  It’s a shame
  really as we’re neighbors and their
  little girl is near in age to two of
  our own.  We tried to make them
  feel welcome when they moved
  into the area, but well, some sorts
  don’t take warmly to friendly ges
  tures.” Maureen will add, “A man
  raising a young girl should have
  remarried after his wife died even if
  only for the child’s sake.  The two
  of them all alone in a big house and
  him known to take too many a
  drink.” She shakes her head, and
  takes a breath to continue but her
  husband puts a hand on her arm,
  whispering to her.  Investigators
  making a successful Listen roll will
  hear him saying, “Maureen, that’s
  enough.  Mind your tongue girl.”
  Maureen Preston will have nothing
  further to add.
  Preston Macintyre 
  turkey farmer
  STR 14          
  CON   14          
  SIZ   14 
  INT
  12         
  POW 10         
  DEX 12          
  APP 11          
  EDU   13        
  SAN   50 
  HP
  14  
  DB +1d4   
  Weapons: Double Barrel 10 Gauge
  Shotgun (50%, 1 or 2 per round,
  4d6+2/2d6+1/1d6, 2 rounds, 18 extra)
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Biology (30%), First Aid
  (50%), Accounting (30%), Raising
  
  [ 8 7 ]
  Born into Darkness
  Turkeys (85%)
  Investigators spending time on the
  Macintyre farm should attempt a
  Luck roll.  If the roll succeeds, one
  of the younger members of the
  family will be moving to dispose of
  two dead turkeys.  Investigators
  then making a Spot Hidden roll
  will notice a teenaged boy pushing
  a wheel barrel towards the edge of
  the property.  The wheel barrel
  contains two dead turkeys and a
  shovel.  Those who continue to
  watch will see the boy stop at the
  edge of a fence and then fling the
  two carcasses over the fence with
  the shovel.  He’ll then return to
  other chores.  Investigators asking
  what this is all about have it
  explained to them (see below).
  The Sinkhole: On the edge of the
  Macintyre property there lies one
  of the many sinkholes that dot the
  area.  The Macintyres own the
  property the sinkhole is on but
  built the fence eight feet before
  their property line.  This was done
  to prevent anyone from accidental
  ly falling into it.  The fence is a
  clear five feet before the edge of
  the sinkhole.
  This hole is 12 feet across and
  drops 30 feet down to a round nat
  ural cavern.  This chamber is about
  25 feet across, with the floor com
  pletely covered with a layer of turkey
  bones and partially decomposing
  turkeys.  Anyone standing near the
  hole can detect the stench.  There is
  no way to climb into or out of the
  hole without a rope or ladder. 
  Investigators who wish to explore
  the bottom of the sinkhole must
  make a CONx3 check for the first
  three rounds to resist the stench.
  If successful Investigators grow
  accustomed to the sickening odor,
  they are no longer affected.  Those
  failing their CON checks begin to
  swoon, cough and vomit until they
  leave the chamber.  Any action sick
  Investigators attempt should be
  rolled at a severe penalty.
  At the bottom of the sinkhole there is
  a layer of turkey bones three feet
  deep.  There is an abundance of bee
  tles and maggots crawling around the
  bones. Investigators searching this
  area should attempt two Spot
  Hidden rolls and must make a
  Sanity Check 0/1d2.  Investigators
  making successful Spot Hidden
  rolls will find the following: 
  • Many of the turkey carcasses
  seem to have had the feathers
  removed and the flesh bitten
  away.  The bones also show signs
  of gnaw marks. 
  • A narrow tunnel, which is inacces
  sible to anything greater than SIZ
  5.  It leads away into darkness and
  curves after ten feet.  The first
  Investigators shining a light down
  the tunnel can make an additional
  Spot Hidden roll.  If successful the
  Investigator sees the light reflect
  back from a pair of eyes. Then what
  ever it is in the tunnel scurrying
  quickly away from the light.
  The Merrin Home: This house
  sits on a hill and is in disrepair.
  The yard is overgrown, the paint is
  pealing, and the floorboards on the
  front porch are warped.  Investigators
  going to the front door must make a
  Luck roll; if they fail, they get a deep
  splinter which draws blood but causes
  no damage.  All the shutters on the
  house are closed and drapes are
  drawn.  Katie Merrin will be watching
  the Investigators and anyone attempt
  ing to snoop around will bring her to
  the front door with a call of “Excuse
  me, but this is private property.”
  Katie is 11 years old and avoids
  making eye contact.  She appears
  pale and afraid, wearing a patched
  and much faded dress that appears
  too large for her.  She’ll tell
  Investigators: “I’m not allowed to let
  anyone inside.  Please be quiet, my
  dad is asleep and he’s…he’s not well.
  He’ll get really mad if I wake him.”
  What Katie says about the disappear
  ances: “I don’t know anything about
  it. I don’t leave the house much.  I
  don’t think my dad knows anything
  either.  We…we don’t know any
  people around here.”
  Katie will not allow anyone inside
  her home and keeps her answers
  brief.  She will use her father as an
  excuse to get rid of the Investigators
  as quickly as possible. She’ll say
  things like, “Please, if my daddy
  finds out I’ve been talking to peo
  ple he’ll give me a whipping” or
  “You’ll have to leave now.  My
  daddy usually gets up around now
  and I need to have dinner [or lunch
  or breakfast] ready when he wakes
  up.  I’m sorry, you need to go now.”
  Notes on The Merrin Home and
  the grounds around it can be found
  in Part IV.  Notes on Katie Merrin
  herself can be found in Part V.
  Investigators trying to force Katie
  to do something against her will or
  search the grounds and house after
  being asked to leave are stopped by
  Sheriff Benton.  He’ll remind the
  Investigators that they are on pri
  vate property, without a search war
  rant and are asked to leave. He’ll
  explain that anything they might find
  wouldn’t be admissible in court. 
  If Sheriff Benton is pushed to inter
  vene because of the abuse Katie
  seems to be suffering from, he’ll
  reply, “It’s a shame, I know, but I
  don’t know how much I can do.
  
  [ 8 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The girl has no family I could send
  her to; she’d end up in some state
  orphanage. As bad as things are for
  the girl that would possibly be even
  worse. Besides, I’d also need a
  court order to remove her, which I
  won’t get because her father doesn’t
  have a criminal record.  I’ll do some
  asking around, see if the girl has
  out of state family I can contact.
  Anything quick fix I try will likely
  win that girl another beating, and
  that’s the last thing anyone wants
  to happen.” 
  Part II
  Litchfield 
  and Nashua.
  Litchfield: Investigators may wish to
  find records of the area where the
  disappearances occurred.  This is
  difficult, as Litchfield has no
  library or town hall of its own.
  Such records are kept in the city of
  Nashua, which is six miles away.
  Litchfield does have a local news
  paper, which prints twice a week
  (Sunday and Wednesday) called
  “The Crier”.  Another source of
  information Investigators should
  examine are the police records kept
  by Sheriff Benton.  Sheriff Benton
  works out of his home, living there
  with his older sister Eunice.  
  “The Crier” office: On the second
  floor above the local barbershop
  are the offices of the local paper,
  “The Crier”.  There are only two
  employees, a high school student
  named Doug Jennings (who runs
  the tiny press, mans the phones
  and does heavy lifting part time
  after school) and owner Calvin
  Brice.  The office is open between
  10:30am and 5:00pm, every day
  except Monday and Thursday.  
  Mr. Notter is about 50, portly and
  aloof.  He both manages and writes
  the paper, focusing mainly on local
  stories.  News dealing with places
  other than Litchfield is usually
  about a week old.  If the office is
  open, Mr. Notter will be there, as
  will Doug Jennings if Investigators
  visit after 2:30pm. 
  Investigators asking to do research
  of back issues will be asked what
  they are looking for.  While “The
  Crier” does have copies of back
  issues on file, Mr. Notter will not
  allow the Investigators to handle
  the collection personally.  He’ll
  order Doug to find what the
  Investigators are looking for, charg
  ing them a fee of $2 for the service.
  If Investigators request issues with
  articles on the wave of vanishings
  during the past year they’ll be told
  that there aren’t any.  
  Mr. Notter has not reported any of
  the four disappearances from the
  “Restful Nights” motel during the
  past year.  He’s accepted a bribe
  from his friend Clarence Wilson to
  keep the incidents quiet so as not
  to drive away business.  If ques
  tioned about why he hasn’t report
  ed on the story he’ll claim, “People
  wandering off and ditching their
  bill isn’t really newsworthy.  There
  isn’t any evidence of a crime.  We’re
  a small community here, we don’t
  run sensational stories to rile every
  one up and sell papers.”  Investigators
  making a successful Psychology roll
  can tell that he’s not being totally
  truthful and is hiding something. 
  If the disappearances are discussed
  openly while Doug is in the office,
  it’ll be clear that the teenager is
  hearing about the vanishing for the
  first time.  He’ll go so far as asking
  a couple of questions while getting
  a notepad ready to take down facts.
  Before Investigators can answer,
  Mr. Notter loudly coughs drawing
  Doug’s attention.  He’ll scowl Doug
  into silence and promptly send him
  out to get coffee.
  If Investigators question Mr.
  Notter on withholding the story
  from the public, he’ll be evasive
  and deny any wrongdoing.  He’ll
  grow offended quickly and ask the
  Investigators to leave his office.
  Insistent Investigators who make a
  Fast Talk and/or Persuade roll will
  get Mr. Notter to admit to with
  holding the story because Clarence
  Wilson asked him not to report it.
  He’ll explain that there was no evi
  dence of wrongdoing and that
  Clarence was afraid his business
  would suffer from the story going
  public.   Investigators making suc
  cessful Psychology rolls will find
  this statement to be truthful, but
  that Mr. Notter is still holding
  something back.  A further success
  ful Fast Talk and/or Persuade roll
  will get him to admit that Clarence
  gave him $50 to keep the story out
  of the paper.
  If Clarence Wilson was earlier
  pushed into a nervous breakdown
  by the Investigators things go
  much differently.  If Mr. Notter
  realizes that the Investigators were
  involved in the incident he treats
  them with hostility.  After ranting
  at them for “pushing a good man
  off his nut” and being “meddling
  outsiders poking their nose where
  it doesn’t belong, stirring up trou
  ble were there isn’t any!” he’ll then
  
  [ 8 9 ]
  Born into Darkness
  refuse to talk with the Investigators,
  ordering them off his premises. 
  Calvin Brice
  crooked reporter
  STR
  9         
  CON   10           
  SIZ    14 
  INT 14        
  POW 12         
  DEX
  9         
  APP 10        
  EDU    15         
  SAN    65 
  HP
  12  
  DB  +0  
  Weapons:   None
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Persuade (50%), Accounting
  (40%), Art: Writing (75%), English
  (90%), Psychology (35%), Fast Talk
  (45%)
  The Benton Home: Sheriff
  Benton’s home is well maintained
  and one of the nicest in town.  This
  is due to the efforts of his older sis
  ter Eunice Benton.  She’s 42 with
  graying hair and good manners.
  She’s unmarried and starting to
  accept the fact that she’ll most like
  ly end up an old maid.  She’ll wel
  come the Investigators, engaging
  them in conversation and offering
  to fix them meals.  Eunice will also
  ask where they are staying in
  Litchfield and invite them to stay
  at the house in one of two guest
  rooms.  Male Investigators who are
  unmarried and over 30 with an
  EDU greater than 13 catch her eye
  and receive special attention.
  Without throwing herself at any
  one, she will make subtle efforts 
  to show her best qualities to a
  prospective suitor.
  Eunice Benton 
  unwilling old maid
  STR 13        
  CON   13           
  SIZ    11 
  INT 13        
  POW 11         
  DEX
  12         
  APP 13        
  EDU    14         
  SAN    55 
  HP
  13  
  DB  +1d4  
  Weapons:  Fist/Punch (60%, taught
  by her younger brother to throw a
  proper punch) 
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Art: Cooking (60%), Art:
  Gardening (50%), History (40%)
  The garage of the Benton home
  serves as the local police station.
  Sheriff Benton has converted this
  area into an office and installed a
  pair of small holding cells.  He
  keeps prisoners here until taking
  them to Nashua for their court
  appearances, where he turns the
  cases over to Nashua police depart
  ment.  Eunice prepares meals for
  any prisoners her brother locks up.
  Currently there is a single prisoner
  here, Bobby Monahan (see below).
  The sheriff has a file cabinet where
  he keeps all of his paperwork; the
  bottom draw holding “Open” cases.
  Investigators asking to see his files
  will gladly be allowed to review
  them.  Investigators making three
  successful Library Use rolls find
  the following information: 
  • There have been four people who
  have vanished in the past year.
  They are Mike Gannon, David
  Wellborn, Norbert Hart and Fred
  Tanner.  (If Investigators are investi
  gating a missing NPC, as detailed in
  Pre Introduction II, the total num
  ber is five).  Each has their own
  report, with dates listed on them.
  On the Mike Gannon and Norbert
  Hart reports, there are comments
  about thunderstorms.  Investigators
  making a successful Idea roll will
  remember there was a thunder
  storm the night Fred Tanner van
  ished.  If the dates are checked,
  Investigators learn there was a
  storm on the night of each disap
  pearance.  Eunice records when it
  rains on her calendar as she raises
  flowers for the county fair.
  • There have been five complaints
  of wandering hobos in the area
  near the “Restful Night” motel
  over the past seven years.  These
  cases are listed as open because
  the vagrants were never found.
  On the notes for one of these case
  files, there is a comment about a
  thunderstorm.
  • The most current file is the arrest
  of a man trying to steal a car from
  local resident Harrison Katz.
  There is a large envelope with his
  property in the file. Among the
  items removed from him is a gold
  pocket watch with the inscription,
  “To N. Hart, for 30 years of diligent
  service.  Your grateful employer,
  Redrock, Brickworks & Co.”
  The Pocket watch: It should be clear
  to Investigators that the watch
  taken off the car thief belonged to
  one of the missing persons.
  Investigators failing a Library use
  roll may roll a Spot Hidden roll to
  spot the watch in the files.  Failing
  that, Keepers should allow
  Investigators to make a Luck roll,
  having the gold pocket watch sim
  ply tumble out of the envelope
  while they are handling the files.
  Whatever way Keepers manage it,
  the watch needs to find its way into
  the Investigators’ hands.
  When questioned about the watch,
  Bobby Monahan will say that he
  purchased that watch from a pawn
  shop in Nashua.  If Investigators
  accuse him of having a hand in the
  disappearances he’ll reply, “Look, I
  might have stolen a car or two, but
  I never hurt anybody.  I’m a thief,
  
  [ 9 0 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  not a murderer.  Your not pinning a
  murder rap on me.  Check my wal
  let if you want, I saved the receipt
  in case the watch stopped working,
  it came with a 60 day guarantee.”
  Successful Psychology rolls will tell
  Investigators that Bobby is telling
  the truth.  Checks of his wallet do
  turn up a receipt for several items,
  including the gold pocket watch,
  from Lenny’s Pawnshop in Nashua.
  If questioned further about this,
  Bobby will try to make the most of
  his information.  He’ll attempt Fast
  Talk rolls to trade his story for his
  release, or at least a good word
  with the judge.  In truth, there is
  nothing more he can add other
  than a description of the owner and
  that Lenny is a well known area
  fence of stolen goods.
  Bobby Monahan
  nabbed car thief
  STR 14         
  CON   15           
  SIZ    13 
  INT 14      
  POW 10         
  DEX
  13         
  APP 10        
  EDU      8         
  SAN    50 
  HP
  14   
  DB  +1d4  
  Weapons:  Fist/Punch (65%), 
  Kick (40%), Club (favors crowbars:
  45%, 1d6+1+db)
  Armor: None
  Skills: Sneak (50%), Listen (50%),
  Fast Talk (65%), Locksmith (50%),
  Drive Auto (55%), Mechanical
  Repair (45%)
  Nashua: This city is home to about
  28,000 and is roughly six miles
  south of Litchfield. It’s a modern
  New England city for its time, with
  most things Investigators might
  expect.  Places Investigators might
  visit for clues are The Nashua
  Public Library, Town Hall and
  Lenny’s Pawnshop (see below).
  Katie Merrin Birch has visited
  Nashua seven times in the past
  year.  There are rail tracks from
  Nashua that pass near Litchfield,
  but the small town doesn’t boast a
  stop.  This is the route she uses,
  riding alongside the rail tracks as
  she moves back and forth on her
  bike.  In this way she hasn’t been
  seen on the main roads.  On each
  trip she has visited Lenny’s
  Pawnshop to trade items the Birch
  family has given her in exchange
  for cash and the occasional odds
  and end (like yarn, fabric and
  straight razors).
  Nashua Public Library: Open
  Monday through Friday from
  10:00am until 6:00pm and
  Saturdays from 10:00am until
  3:00pm, the Nashua Public Library
  holds two bits of historical infor
  mation.  Investigators visiting here
  meet with local librarian Felicia
  Brown.  Ms. Brown will be able to
  direct Investigators to what they
  might be looking for.  The older
  records are stored in the basement
  and Investigators will need to show
  press or academic credentials, or
  make a successful Persuade and/or
  Fast Talk roll to gain admittance.
  Once Investigators have access to
  these records, Keepers should have
  them attempt two Library Use
  rolls with successes allowing them
  to find the handouts 1, 2, and 3.
  Nashua Town Hall: This building has
  the mayor’s office, the hall of
  records and the Nashua court
  Fire 
  destroyed 
  the 
  Birch
  home in the nearby village of
  Litchfield.  Authorities report
  that all members of that fam-
  ily were killed in the blaze.
  While 
  there 
  were 
  some
  rumors of a mob setting the
  blaze and other claims that
  members of the Birch family
  were lynched and even shot
  by angry residents, an inves-
  tigation 
  has 
  ruled 
  these
  reports to be false and noth-
  ing more than wild stories.
  While the Birch family was
  not well liked, being accused
  of stealing livestock and pos-
  sibly being connected to the
  disappearance of several area
  residents, the fire has been
  ruled 
  an 
  unfortunate 
  accident. 
  Initially, Gustav Brest, a resi-
  dent of Litchfield, made a
  claim that one of the Birch’s
  admitted to authorities her
  family’s involvement in the
  disappearance of his son just
  before the fire.  But he has
  since changed his story,
  claiming the boy had instead
  fallen into a sinkhole while
  gathering berries near the
  Brest home. 
  From The Nashua Illuminator,
  August 2nd 1843
  Handout One: The Nashua Illuminator
  
  [ 9 1 ]
  Born into Darkness
  house.  If Investigators visit here
  with Sheriff Benton, he’ll use the
  opportunity to turn over his pris
  oner, car thief Bobby Monahan.
  Investigators wishing to gain entry
  into the Nashua archives must first
  deal with Luke Crane, the town
  clerk who oversees the collection.
  Mr. Crane is a thin, balding man
  with a ready smile and friendly atti
  tude.  He is, however, protective of
  the documents entrusted to him.
  Unless Investigators have press or
  academic credentials, gaining
  access to the archives requires a
  successful Persuade and/or Fast
  Talk roll.  Mr. Crane will not allow
  any documents to be removed from
  the collection.
  Investigators looking for records
  concerning the fire of 1843 in the
  area around the “Restful Nights”
  motel should make a Library Use
  roll.  Success finds a set of docu
  ments concerning the property the
  Merrin house now sits on.  One
  document concerns a legal transfer
  of deed to the land as filed by the
  Watts & Watts law firm in Boston.
  Several others provide genealogical
  documentation tracing ownership
  of this land down to Linda Merrin’s
  estate.  These documents show
  that between 1843 and 1923 the land
  was unused with the owners appar
  ently unaware of the property’s
  existence.  The land is now legally
  owned by Katie Merrin, who will
  take control of it from her father
  when she turns 21.  The genealogy
  list of previous owners to the land
  is presented in Handout #3.
  Boston patrons to the
  Nightshade 
  Traveling
  Carnival received a spe
  cial treat Sunday.  There
  was a wedding between
  two of the performers
  with guests and well
  wishers each receiving a
  glass of beer or a pepper
  mint stick as well as a
  free pass to the carnival
  for the following day.
  Father Simon of Boston’s
  Holy Child Jesus church
  performed the service for
  the most unusual pair.
  Goliath the Strong Man
  and the Beast Girl of
  Sumatra were married
  under their real names of
  Johan 
  Herrick 
  and
  Margaret Birch.  The
  proud groom had this to
  say of his rather unique
  and happy bride: “If you
  could know her heart
  you’d see she was the
  most lovely girl in all the
  world”.  This proves it
  folks; beauty is in the
  eye of the beholder.  We
  wish the happy couple
  nothing but the best.
  From 
  The Nashua Illuminator,
  August 2nd 1848
  Handout Two: The Nashua Illuminator
  
  [ 9 2 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Lenny’s Pawnshop: Investigators find
  Lenny’s Pawnshop in a bad part of
  Nashua, not far from the train
  tracks.  The shop opens at 5:00pm
  and closes at 1:00am. Unsavory
  types such as thieves, pickpockets
  and hobos riding the rails frequent
  the shop. Those who come here are
  people who are either down on
  their luck or those looking to find a
  bargain. Leonard Oberman is the
  owner; he’s about 30, thin, wearing
  a heavy coat, hat and gloves with
  the fingers cut off. He keeps a small
  revolver in his jacket for protection
  but has never had to use it.  Lenny,
  as he’s known, is shrewd but fair and
  doesn’t ask questions about where the
  items he purchases come from.  He
  does however refuse to deal in guns,
  booze or other risky items.
  If questioned he’ll deny ever having
  seen Bobby Monahan, deny having
  sold him the watch and even deny
  the receipt that clearly comes from
  his store.  He’ll attempt to use his
  Psychology skill to lie convincing
  ly.  If Investigators explain that
  they aren’t here to arrest him and
  only want to know who sold him
  the watch, he’ll relax and tell them
  everything he knows.  Otherwise
  Investigators must make a success
  ful Persuade roll to get him to
  open up. Threatening him with
  arrest also loosens his tongue, as
  he’s uninterested in protecting any
  one other than himself.
  About the Watch: Lenny will
  explain that a pickpocket sold him
  the watch.  He’ll describe her as “a
  girl, maybe 13 or 14, in a hooded
  coat.  I don’t know her name, you
  don’t ask names in my business.
  She rides her bike here, brings it
  into the store with her so it doesn’t
  get stolen. She brings in things,
  watches, rings, and a couple of gold
  fillings once.  I buy them from her,
  paying cash, but now and then she
  trades for things.”
  If asked to further describe her,
  Lenny does. Investigators who have
  already met Katie Merrin will find
  it could easily match her descrip
  tion.  Investigators asking what she
  trades for in the shop will learn:
  “Oh, weird stuff.  Yarn, fabric, knit
  ting needles, buttons.  I guess she
  makes her own clothes.  I wouldn’t
  know ‘cause she’s always in that
  black coat and hood when she’s in
  here.  Yea, mostly that stuff…and
  straight razors.”
  If Investigators ask why he thinks
  she’s a pickpocket, Lenny says that
  many pickpockets carry straight
  razors to open bags and pockets up.
  He thinks this is the reason she
  buys every straight razor he has,
  even asking him to put aside any he
  might come across. Lenny explains
  that pickpockets toss the blades
  before they get nabbed, so he
  thinks she always needs replace
  ments.  He’ll also explain this if
  Investigators ask him why he
  thinks she purchases so many
  straight razors. 
  Leonard Oberman
  pawnshop owner and fence
  STR
  8         
  CON   12           
  SIZ    11 
  INT 13        
  POW 14         
  DEX
  11         
  APP
  9        
  EDU    11         
  SAN    70 
  HP
  12
  DB  +0  
  Weapons:  .32 revolver 
  (40%, 3 per round, 1d8, 6 rounds)
  Armor:  1 point armor from over
  thick coat.
  Skills: Credit Rating (50%), Fast
  Talk (65%), Spot Hidden (50%),
  Psychology (40%), Accounting
  (45%), Sneak (40%), Hide (40%),
  Bargain (70%)
  Handout Three: Genealogy List 
  -Property passed to
  Margaret Birch in 1843, 
  as only living Birch heir.
  -Property passed to Joshua
  Herrick in 1870 as the 
  eldest son of Margaret
  Birch Herrick at the 
  time of her death.
  -Property passed to
  Samantha Herrick Bullard
  in 1894 as only daughter of
  Joshua Herrickatthe time 
  of his death.
  -Property passed to Linda
  Bullard Merrin in 1911 as
  daughter of Samantha
  Bullard at the time of 
  her death.
  -Property passed to John
  Merrin (as guardian of
  legal heir Katie Merrin) 
  in 1923 as only child of
  Linda Merrin at the 
  time of her death.
  
  Part II
  The Little Girl 
  on the Hill
  [ 9 3 ]
  Born into Darkness
  Once Investigators connect Norbert
  Hart’s gold pocket watch to Katie
  Merrin, their next step should be to
  pay her a visit.  Sheriff Benton will be
  very eager to visit the Merrin house,
  angrily denouncing John Merrin for
  getting an innocent child involved in
  his handiwork. He’ll say: “Bastard
  must be hiding the bodies in his base
  ment, or burying them on his proper
  ty.  Then he sends his daughter into
  Nashua to trade in the valuables for
  cash.  It’s time to close this case.  You
  folks feel up to backing me up?”  
  If Sheriff Benton is questioned
  about the small tunnels, the odd
  stories about the Birch family or
  anything seen moving around in
  the sinkhole on the McIntyre
  turkey farm, he’ll pause for a
  moment in thought.  Then he’ll
  shrug and say “We’ll tie up all the
  loose ends after he starts talking.
  Once he’s facing four counts of
  murder he’ll be begging to tell us
  everything.”  
  If the Investigators suggest gather
  ing additional law enforcement per
  sonnel, Sheriff Benton will politely
  refuse.  “This is my case.  Nobody
  thought I could solve it.  If I call
  for help now, people will say I had
  nothing to do with cracking the
  case.  Beside, we’ve been doing
  great up until now.  Don’t worry, I’ll
  make sure people know how much
  help you’ve been.” 
  The Merrin Home: Before the
  Investigators reach the house
  on the hill, Katie will know they
  are coming.  The Birch family’s
  main lair is under the house and
  they’ll warn her visitors are on the
  
  [ 9 4 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  way.  By the time anyone arrives at
  the house they’ll find no one home.
  Katie’s plan: Katie will hide from the
  Investigators until they find their
  way down into the Family Lair (see
  Part V).  She’ll hide on the roof of
  her house (climbing out of her win
  dow and shutting it behind her) or
  she’ll take her bike and ride out
  into the woods behind her house.
  In a pinch, Katie can scurry down
  from the roof and run into the woods
  with a single successful Climb roll.
  She’ll try to keep an eye on the
  Investigators, either listening to
  them moving about from the roof
  or watching them from the woods.
  Once they uncover the well behind
  the house and enter it, she’ll follow
  them down.
  The 1st Floor: There are three large
  rooms on the first floor.  All win
  dows are closed and locked, with
  shutters shut and curtains drawn.
  The house appears clean and neat.
  Living room: There is a fireplace, a
  couch, two armchairs and a coffee
  table here.  There is an old oil
  lantern on the table here, as well as
  some candles.  Anyone trying to
  turn on the electricity finds that it’s
  been shut off.  There is a large
  bookcase here and a pile of books
  neatly stacked beside it.  All the
  books look as if they’ve seen much
  use.  The books in the pile look
  very worn, many of them with torn
  pages and covers missing. There is
  nothing out of the ordinary here.
  Dining room: This room has a table,
  four chairs and a china closet.  All
  of the dishes, glasses and mugs are
  washed and neatly stacked inside
  it.  There is nothing out of the
  ordinary here. 
  Kitchen: Here there is one dirty
  plate and one dirty glass in the
  sink.  The icebox is empty and only
  non perishable food is kept here.
  The stove is wood burning, with a
  pile of crudely chopped wood in a
  pale beside it.  The stove is cleaned
  of ashes.  There is a rear door to the
  backyard here as well as a trap door
  leading to the basement. There is
  nothing out of the ordinary here.
  The Basement: This small basement
  is cluttered with lots of stored
  items, unopened boxes, tools, a
  workbench and bits of unused fur
  niture.  Many items that require
  electricity, such as a vacuum and
  radio are stored down here.  There
  are no passages leading out of here
  and nothing out of the ordinary.  
  The 2nd Floor: This level of the
  house has three rooms, all of which
  are windows to the horror of little
  Katie’s life.  Each room on this
  floor has dozens of candles and at
  least one old lantern.  None of the
  lanterns has oil inside of them.
  The Stairwell: The stairs to this
  level are trapped.  Without electric
  lights and with all the shutters
  closed the stairwell is very dark.
  One set half way up the stairs is
  covered with upward pointing
  nails. Unless using a light source,
  the first Investigator up the stairs
  steps onto the nails and takes 1d4
  points of damage. That Investigator
  will also move at half movement rate
  until medically treated and spending
  one day per point of damage suf
  fered off of their feet.  The banister
  is also trapped with small bits of
  razor blade. Investigators using the
  stairwell and failing a Luck roll
  gash their palm for one point of
  damage.  Katie has done this for
  the same reason she has the front
  porch covered with splinters; she
  requires a drop of blood to activate
  her voodoo dolls (see Part V).
  John Merrin’s room: In this room
  there is a bed, a dresser, a night
  stand and a trunk.  The trunk
  and dresser hold old musty cloth
  ing.  The nightstand has unpaid
  bills, utility shut off notices and
  an unused bible.  
  On top of the nightstand is a
  stature of a Virgin Mary, but it has
  been painted a dusky color, with
  make up painted on it and a knitted
  feathered hat placed on its head.
  At its feet is a glass of lemonade
  and an offering bowl filled with
  dried flowers and a gold heart
  charm.  Investigators making a 
  successful Occult roll identify this
  as a shrine to the Voodoo Loa 
  (spirit) Ezili Freda Dahome.
  On the bed is the skeleton of John
  Merrin, fully dressed in a dusty suit
  and lying posed on the bed.  The
  bones are cleaned of all flesh. There
  is a strip of barbed wire wrapped
  around the skull over the eyes.  On
  the headboard there is a natural
  slate slab with the word “Fucker” writ
  ten on it in white paint.  Investigators
  viewing this must make a Sanity
  Check for 0/1d3 points.
  Guest room: In this room there is
  another shrine to Ezili Freda
  Dahome, more elaborate than the
  one in John Merrin’s room.  The
  furniture is pushed against the wall
  leaving much floor space.  There
  are intricate symbols painted all
  over the wall and floor in white
  paint here.  Investigators making a
  Cthulhu Mythos and/or Occult
  roll will find that these are all
  involved with voodoo worship of
  Ezili Freda Dahome and mythos
  worship of the Great Old One
  Yibb Tstll.  There are also 20 small
  objects in the room (rocks, doll
  
  [ 9 5 ]
  Born into Darkness
  chairs, toddler chairs, foot stools)
  as if a large group of two year olds
  gathered here to sit.  There is a sin
  gle normal sized chair here.
  Katie’s room: This room has a bed, a
  dresser and a nightstand with yet
  another voodoo shrine in it.  In the
  dresser are lots of clothes that
  seem too small for Katie.  There
  are four half made rag dolls here,
  three knitted vests with pockets,
  one of them holding a straight
  razor.  Investigators making a
  successful Spot Hidden roll find
  a book hidden between the girl’s
  mattresses.  
  The backyard: Here there are several
  fruit trees (there is no fruit on the
  ground), a garbage pail (empty) and
  a clothesline.  Much of the clothing
  hanging here is second hand women’s
  clothing, too large for Katie to com
  fortably wear.  Keepers should have
  Investigators making a careful search
  of the back yard make a Spot Hidden
  roll.  If successful, the searching
  Investigator finds a makeshift 
  trap door.
  The Door to Darkness:This is a board
  covered with roughly chopped fire
  wood.  Under the board is an ancient
  brick lined well, descending into dark
  ness.  Investigators shining a light
  down it will see that a crude ladder
  has been placed within it.  The bot
  tom of the well is 20 feet down and
  ends in a three foot deep layer of
  stinking black mud.  There’s a set
  of four stepping stones that allow a
  person to cross the mud without
  sinking into it.  It leads from the
  ladder to a filthy rub hanging on
  the wall.  The rug is held up by a
  pair of railroad spikes driven
  through two corners of the rug 
  into the bricks.
  Behind the rug is a larger passage,
  just five feet high and four feet
  wide.  The passage is narrow and
  short but useable by Investigators
  with only a little trouble. Investigators
  of greater than SIZ 7 must hunch
  over and can only move single file.
  This passage leads to the main lair
  of the Birch family.
  Lookouts and Automobiles:
  Anyone who stays outside while
  their companions investigate the
  house or the well are in for a rough
  time.  If it’s daytime, Katie will try
  to deal with them. If she’s managed
  to get a drop of the lookout’s
  blood, she’ll use one of her voodoo
  dolls.  If not, she’ll use her Mind
  Blast spell.  If this is taking place at
  night a band of Birch kin will
  attack, trying to kill quickly and
  drag the body into their under
  ground lair before help arrives.
  Unattended automobiles are in for
  a similar rough time.  If this hap
  pens at night, the Birch kin will
  slash any car tires, hoses, and fill
  the gas tanks with clumps of mud.
  Within just a few moments cars
  will be rendered inoperable.  
  The Birch family book: This
  book is thick (about 700 pages),
  has no title and a Medicine roll
  determines the cover to be made of
  human skin.  The skin cover has a
  tattoo of a strange symbol that
  Investigators making a Cthulhu
  Mythos and/or Occult roll will
  know to be a combination of runes
  representing both the Voodoo Loa
  Ezili Freda Dahome and the Great
  Old One Yibb Tstll.  The book
  details various voodoo practices,
  mythos worship and the Birch fam
  ily tradition of practicing incest
  and cannibalism as a way of attain
  ing spiritual and physical purity. 
  Eight weeks to study, 1d2/1d4, +5%
  Cthulhu Mythos, +12% Occult.
  Contains the following spells:
  Contact Deity Loa, Mind Blast,
  Enchant Object: Doll (variant; see
  below) and Sending of the Dead.
  
  [ 9 6 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  The underground domain of the
  Birch kin combines the natural cav
  erns with the tunnels the creatures
  have dug.  After nearly eighty years
  living underground the size of their
  realm is vast.  Eighty percent of
  these tunnels are too small for a
  human being to move about in,
  which is part of their survival strat
  egy.  The other 20% are the areas
  under the Merrin house.  The Birch
  kin have enlarged these tunnels to
  allow Katie to participate in Birch
  family events (namely cannibal
  fests).  The caverns and tunnels are,
  of course, pitch dark.
  While the Investigators move
  along the dug earthen tunnel they
  can see things scurry away before
  whatever source of light they carry.
  The unseen creatures will dart
  down tiny side tunnels, too small
  for Investigators to follow.  Such
  tunnels make sharp turns after
  about four feet, thwarting both
  curious eyes and hostile gun
  fire.  The creatures will try to wait
  until Katie joins them to launch
  an attack on the Investigators.
  The dug earthen tunnel has a
  downward slope, twisting and turn
  ing for about half a mile.  It then
  opens into a large natural cavern.
  The Main Lair: Here is a large open
  natural cavern.  Among the stalac
  tites and stalagmites are piles of
  bones and small creatures trying to
  stay out of sight. Investigators won’t
  have time to search the area before
  the Birch kin launch themselves at
  the intruder.  Keepers should have
  between two to four (1d3+1) kin
  attacking per Investigator and
  NPC present.  The total number of
  Birch kin dwelling under Litchfield
  is left up to the Keeper.
  Birch kin
  STR 11      CON   11        SIZ      7    
  INT 7       POW 11       DEX 13      
  HP
  8       DB   0
  Weapons: Straight razor 70%, 1d3
  (25% chance of wielding one in
  each hand), Stone 50% (1d3, equal
  chance to hit if thrown or held)
  Armor: None.
  Sanity loss: 0/1d6
  If possible, Katie Merrin joins her
  family in the attack, employing her
  voodoo skills.  Katie is small enough
  to use some of the side tunnels, so
  Keepers may have her waiting in
  the main lair once the Investigators
  arrive.  She may also appear behind
  them to block a possible escape, or
  simply remain hidden while work
  ing her magic.
  Katie Merrin Birch
  little girl keeping dark secrets
  STR
  5       
  CON
  13        
  SIZ
  7 
  INT
  15       
  POW
  15     
  DEX
  12         
  APP
  11        
  EDU
  5      
  SAN
  0 
  HP
  10  
  DB    0        
  Weapons:   Knitting needle (60%,
  1d2), Straight razor (60%, 1d3) 
  Armor:  None
  Skills:  Art: Sewing (50%), Fast Talk
  (50%), Hide (70%), Sneak (50%),
  Climb (70%), Psychology (65%),
  Persuade (40%), First Aid (40%)
  Spells: Contact Deity: Loa,
  Contact Deity: Yibb Tstll, Mind
  Blast, Sending of the Dead, Enchant
  Object: Doll (blood variant)
  (Full stats on page 98)
  The aftermath: If Investigators are
  successful in defeating the Birch
  kin and Katie they can then search
  the lair.  The bone pile has the
  bones of countless turkeys, rats,
  raccoons as well as the scattered
  human remains of 14 people.  Most
  of the valuables from their victims
  were given to Katie, so personal
  effects are few.  Identifying just
  whose remains are whose will be
  difficult, but the skeletal remains of
  the four missing persons are here.
  The other ten people were hobos,
  drifters, travelers and hitchhikers
  who just happened to be in or
  around Litchfield during a thunder
  storm.  These are by no means the
  only people the Birch kin have
  killed and eaten over the years;
  these are just the ones whose
  remains can be found here.
  If Sheriff Benton survives the attack
  (and remains sane) he’ll try to remove
  all human remains for identification.
  In his report he’ll blame the deaths
  on John and Katie Merrin, not daring
  to make mention of the horrors lurk
  ing below Litchfield.  Over the next
  month he’ll petition the state to
  begin closing off all the sinkholes in
  the area in the name of public safety.
  Lastly, Sheriff Benton sells his home,
  moving with his sister out of New
  Hampshire (or wherever the Keeper
  set the adventure) entirely.  
  If Katie is taken alive her mind
  completely snaps.  She’ll go from
  moments of a near catatonic state
  to swings of violent aggression.
  The loss of the Birch kin, in her
  mind the only living things who
  showed her kindness and compassion,
  will be something she’ll never
  recover from.  She’ll eventually be
  turned over to The Sisters of Mercy
  hospital, a facility treating the
  criminally insane.
  Sheriff Willie Benton will be very
  Part V
  One Big 
  Happy Family
  
  [ 9 7 ]
  Born into Darkness
  grateful for the Investigators’ help
  and will possibly remain an ally to
  them on future investigations.
  Keepers could also use Willie Benton
  as a hook for involving Investigators
  in new cases (“Hi, it’s me, Willie
  Benton.  Remember that stuff we saw
  in the caves under Litchfield?  Well
  I’ve got something just as weird going
  on, do you think you could come
  down and have a look?”).
  Whether Keepers wish to have all
  of the Birch kin destroyed in the
  battle is up to them to decide.
  They could have been so enraged at
  people harming Katie that all of
  them joined in the attacked and
  were killed.  Keepers can also have
  the horrors continue, as unaccount
  ed for member of the hideous
  Birch family continue creeping out
  of their caverns and burrows on
  nights when thunderstorms rage.
  -The End-
  Sanity Awards
  For defeating the Birch kin  1d6
  For defeating Katie Merrin 
  (resulting in her death)   1d3
  For defeating Katie Merrin 
  (resulting in her capture)   1d6
  For recovering the remains of 
  the missing persons  1d6
  
  [ 9 8 ]
  Tales of Death & Darkness
  Katie Merrin Birch
  little girl keeping dark secrets
  STR
  5       
  CON
  13        
  SIZ
  7 
  INT
  15       
  POW
  15     
  DEX
  12         
  APP
  11        
  EDU
  5      
  SAN
  0 
  HP
  10  
  DB    0        
  Weapons:   Knitting needle (60%, 1d2), Straight razor (60%, 1d3) 
  Armor:  None
  Skills: Art: Sewing (50%), Fast Talk (50%), Hide (70%), Sneak (50%), Climb (70%), Psychology (65%), Persuade
  (40%), First Aid (40%)
  Spells: Contact Deity: Loa, Contact Deity: Yibb Tstll, Mind Blast, Sending of the Dead, Enchant Object: Doll 
  (blood variant)
  Background: A decedent of the Birch family, Katie returned to them by accident.  After her mother died she 
  suffered years of physical abuse by her depraved and drunken father.  When the Birch family killed her father and
  offered her a place among them, she took it.  Katie is now completely insane, a gifted voodoo priestess and leader of
  the diminutive horrors that are what’s left of the Birch family line.
  In Combat: Katie’s favored attack will be driving knitting needles into voodoo dolls dedicated to her opponents.
  Such attacks cause victims intense pain, effectively halving all of their skills checks unless they make a
  CONx1 check.  If she has multiple dolls, she’ll impale one with a needle and bend the back at a right angle.  She’ll
  then toss it away and move onto another doll.  She’ll carry her dolls in a knit bag slung across her body.
  If an opponent appears particularly dangerous she’ll cast a Mind Blast on them.  If someone gets close to her, or
  appears near death, Katie will draw one of her trusty straight razors (she has three of them) and attack.  If things
  look dire for her she’ll flee, attempting to employ the soil for her sending of the dead spell.
  NEW SPELL
  Enchant Object: Doll (Blood Variant); voodoo
  Range:   20 miles    
  Duration: five days
  Cost:       2 MP
  Sanity:    1d4+1 
  Resistance Table:  D100 roll against CON for half effects
  This spell is much like a standard Enchant Doll spell with some important differences.  The POW and Sanity
  costs are higher with the range and duration of the doll’s power limited.  This version of the spell requires a
  drop of the victim’s blood, as opposed to pubic hair in the standard version.
  Casters can still cause intense pain, nausea, vertigo, and all manner of other effects on the person the doll is
  enchanted to harm.   In this version victims must make a POW vs. POW check against the holder of the doll
  for each attack.  If they fail that check they receive 1d2 points of damage for each attack made to the doll.  As
  soon as the doll is no longer in trauma, this damage miraculously heals.  No visible sign of violence will be
  found on the victims.
  
  [ 9 9 ]
  Born into Darkness
  NEW CREATURE
  Birch kin 
  lesser independent race
  The Birch clan of New Hampshire
  followed a path of degeneration
  similar to the Martense family of
  New York.  The long held family
  traditions of inbreeding and cannibal
  ism as a way of attaining purity along
  with their deep involvement with the
  darkest sides of the Voodoo religion
  and veneration to the Great Old
  One Yibb Tstll, had a profoundly
  negative effect on the family.  They
  degenerated, becoming shorter and
  more grotesque with each passing
  generation.  
  By 1843, much of the clan was so
  grotesque looking that they were
  kept locked away in the basement
  of the Birch Family estate, while
  the rest of the family appeared only
  ugly and dwarflike.  When local res
  idents learned the truth about the
  Birch family, a mob rose up and
  took action.  All members of the
  family who weren’t locked in the
  basement of the family home were
  either shot or hung, save for the
  one who escaped after betraying
  her clan.  Those members of the
  family who were locked away
  underground survived, tunneling
  into the area’s natural cavern sys
  tem as the family’s ancient home
  burned down above them.  They
  continued their family traditions in
  the darkness, degenerating even
  further until they reached their
  current monstrous appearance.
  They recently discovered a family
  member who somehow appears
  totally human, Katie Merrin.  Katie
  has helped her family in many ways
  during the last year, slowly becom
  ing their de facto leader.
  Appearance: Birch kin appear as
  hideous hairless pygmies, with pale
  bluish skins and black shark like
  eyes.  They have long claws on their
  hands and feet (for digging), sharp
  teeth and enlarged ears and
  upturned noses, like bats, which
  enables them to see perfectly well
  in total darkness. Birch kin can also
  grasp and hold using their feet and
  are able to support their own
  weight this way.  All of them now
  wear knitted vests, each with a sin
  gle pocket containing a straight razor
  or two (gifts from their queen, Katie
  Merrin).
  In combat: Birch kin are quite
  skilled with small bladed weapons,
  and favor the straight razor.  Some
  wield one of the small weapons in
  each hand.  Birch kin can also hurl
  or bludgeon opponents with stones
  and are skilled at hiding and sneak
  ing (60% in each). 
  Birch kin 
  degenerate cave dwelling sub humans
  Char. Averages Rolls
  STR
  2d6+2
  11
  CON    3d6
  10 11
  SIZ       1d6+2 
  6
  INT
  2d6 
  7
  POW
  3d6       
  10 11
  DEX
  4d6                  
  13
  Move   12
  HP 8
  Av. Damage Bonus: 0
  Weapons: Straight razor 70%, 1d3
  (25% chance of wielding one in
  each hand), Stone 50% (1d3, equal
  chance to hit if thrown or held)
  Armor: None.
  Spells: None.
  Sanity Loss: 0/1d6 Sanity points to
  see a Birch kin
  
  Find other treasures at
  www.chaosium.com
  TALES OF DEATH & DARKNESS
  •••
  Three multi-session 1920’s scenarios challenge your investigators as 
  they encounter the forces of the mythos. The investigators learn that 
  small mistakes can become bigger ones, and the only thing more 
  dangerous than too much knowledge is too little.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Call of Cthulhu (CoC) (BRP) [multi]/Cthulhu 1920s/Monograph #321 - Miskatonic University - Tales of Death and Darkness (.pdf