Harlequin Campaign questions Options

[treehugger]

Hi all,
I am currently running Harlequin and had a few questions that might fin answers here :)

[ Spoiler ]

The next act is the one in Munchmaussen in Germany.
My problem is that there is no reference to this place in both Germany sourcebook or shadows of europe.
In my groups i have two characters coming from germany : an elven merc from the Duchy of Pomerany and a troll sam from the Black Forest Kingdom.
They'll ask me some information about this place.
From the story, Munchmaussen is in Bavaria.
The problem is that south germany is openly racist and have legal segregation agaisnt metahumans.
How could a troll reign there ?
Since the Troll Kingdom is next to Bavaria (and to the Alps) is Munchmaussen in the Black Forest ?
Any datas on the geography (or geopolitical datas) would be apreciated.

Next, the players are required to get an old medieval codex on Asmodeus the devil.
The troll lord believes that trolls lived before in those lands. The GM section in the campaign clearly states that the books proves it.
It seems written in latin (as the title shows) but this poses another problem : one of my players, a dwarven mage, is a former scholar of the university of prague and actualy is doing shadowruns to finance archelogical researches. (i agreed to this concept before reading harlequin or even knowing the story).
Of course she knows latin and will most certainly read the book.
The book is not described in the campaign, there is allmost no mention of its content.
Any ideas of what could be the contents ?

Thanks in advance for any answers :)

Edit : include spoiler html :)

[Chibu]

First of all, I advise taking a look at http://www.chibu.net/shadowland/?sec=7 In there (the middle file on the page), is a book called harlequin review/walkthrough. It points out some of the complications and inconsistancies in the book and should help alot in making the runs go smoother.

Secondly, if you think the location is problematic, feel free to move it to the black forest. It shouldn't cause much of a problem really.

As for the book... I wonder if Ancient History is lurking around here anywhere, he'd probably have a good idea, or at least could make up something cool, of what's in the book. On first thought though, I would assume it to contain some kind of information that Harley doesn't want the public to get ahold of. Possibly mentions of 4th world history or societies, possibly some controversial magic, or stories of horrors or something.

I dunno, I'll try to think back to what happened when we ran it.

[djinni]

[Kagetenshi]

Just in case any of my players are reading this thread, please don't read the above review/walkthrough. Actually, probably better to skip this thread for a while.

~J

[pbangarth]

[treehugger]

Sorry, i just added the spoiler flags in the original post.

My answers in the spoiler flags

[ Spoiler ]

Chibu, your review of harlequin is great :)
Now, i doubt the book talks about the 4th age, since it was written in the medieval age.
Troll spike baby perhaps ? (is it possible for goblinised people ?)

Copying the book shouldnt be a problem with a basic scanner, it'd take a couple hours and the travel back to Seatle will be more than enought.

Now that i've thought a bit more about it, i think the book might have been written by Erhan in the middle ages. Some kind of esoteric/philosophical crap like the book the players had to steal in the first adventure ...
Maybe someone with good knowledge skills could realise it is the same writing style ? :)

What do you guys think ?

[Abstruse]

You could always throw a requirement from the Johnson that, aside from basic verification that it is the correct document, that no one should look at or copy the material and doing so will raise the ire of his employer. Just like the "we'll know if you did" from the first run, Laughing Man might be using some sort of ancient magic to watch the runners to make sure everything's going to plan. If he catches them cheating, he can punish them in various ways. He could also swoop down and kidnap the offending archaeologist before proceeding to wipe his memory. Or you could simply change the language it's written in to Or'zet, which has not yet been discovered and won't be until 2057 when the great Dunkelzahn kicks it and leaves the ork Rosetta stone to the guy in San Fran.

I would put this is spoiler tags, but I can't figure out exactly how on here ^_^

The Abstruse One

[treehugger]

For spoilers add the '[' 'spoiler' ']' banners.

[ Spoiler ]

The players will read it, and probably even more if they are warned not to (i know them well enought to know ^^)
Besides Harlequin could warn them but really dont care that anyone learns stuff from the past : he's not a powermonger like Erhan, he believes in free will in some way.

As to the book being written in Or'zet, i dont think it would be logical : the book is not from the 4th age, but from the medieval era. Since it proves in the eyes of the Baron the existance of Trolls before the awakening, I dont see how it could be written in such a language that the baron couldnt read.

This leads me to a new question : do you think there is a link between the black forest kingdom, that barony and the earthdawn troll kingdom ? (Sky Point no ?)
I dont know much about ED, so any clues would be welcomed :)

[kigmatzomat]

[ Spoiler ]

Troll spike babies could exist as a local phenomena. The mana cycle isn't completely uniform; part of the ED storyline was that Horrors survived in pockets of high magic even though the overall mana level was much reduced. There's also the option that an old magical device or caer could be uncovered and raise the mana level temporarily, causing spikes. Heck, Asmodus could have been a weak horror.

As for the book, no single source proves anything to an archaeologist. Even a troll skeleton that carbon dates to the 9th century wouldn't be definitive proof as there are known ways that carbon dating can go wrong. The book is just *a* source that could be a jumping off platform.

Use it, don't hide it. The player will make a copy (yay digital cameras) and you can leverage it as motivation. They'll need cash try to find other texts referenced in the book, genealogical research to find descendants, etc, etc. Instant motivation.

[treehugger]

[ Spoiler ]

I really like your idea Kigmatzomat, but i fail to see how i can relate it to Harlequin's vendetta.
He steals the book, to later plant in in Erhan's room in the Yet Headquarters after exposing them as hackers.
So the book must relate to Erhan in some way.
I like the idea that the book was written by him, but that does not answer the question about the contents.

Of course this wouldnt be a proof in the scientific sense, but nonetheless could prove valuable for an historian.

This could be a nice story :
The barony's mountain is actualy built on the ruins of an old troll moot from the 4th age.
Asmodeus, as described in the book, was a troll spike baby that lived during the middle ages.
The books relates to the lord that lived in the mountain and built the castle, he was asmodeus a "demon" lord etc ...
Description is the exact same as a troll and the lord was first human but went through a massive physical change.
The current baron realises its the same thing that happened to him and in some way gives "logic" to his story : former jet set member, he undergone a goblenisation in a country enforcing anti metahuman laws (bavaria).
The book was written by Erhan and was an essay to fuel a good preparation for anti troll feelings : everything that is un-elven is unclean according to erhan's views ...
So using the book while framing Erhan is a good irony : the book was written against trolls but is used in some way to legitimate a troll's power :)

Would it be an acceptable background addition ?

[kigmatzomat]

Ahh, content. I misunderstood.

[ Spoiler ]

Ehran wrote the book, that's supposed to be the link to Ehran's past. However, knowing the ego of Ehran the Scribe, he probably plays a key part of the story. At the very least, he is the Dr. Watson, transcribing the events while providing running commentary. He probably doesn't use the name "Ehran the Scribe" but odds are it could be identified as a "relative" of his current identity. And, of course, the handwriting will be the same.

I'd more imagine the story is about a very weak long-lost horror named Asmodus. The horror's magic aura causes spike babies in the area, including at least one troll. It eats children, gives people power in return for sacrifices, creates terror, the whole spiel.

The noble hero Aron arrives in town, recognizes the threat, and recruits the "least useless" citizens to hunt down Asmodus. The troll probably plays a key part of the story. More than likely, Ehran, er Aron, used him as a living body shield while using the available magic to kill the Horror.

Ehran likely described the troll as "twice as tall as a well proportioned being, and four times as broad. Remenesent of a bull, with a leathery hide and horns upon a heavy brow. Boar's tusks extend from the jaw and accentuate the tiny, piggish eyes. He was uneducated, and dull, but not noticeably moreso than any other low-born individual. His one redeeming feature was a willingness to fight.
"He was a throwback to the savage creatures that once wandered the desolate mountains. I (Aron) knew of them well. My noble forebears had conquered the mountains in lost antiquity. They were still spoken of from time to time, along with the other great beasts of the land that had died out; the mammoths and the lions."

[treehugger]

Thanks Kigmat :)
That was a really great story :)
I think i'm going to use it (with your permission of course)

[tisoz]

I would guess Harlequin came out before the Germany sourcebook. If you do not think the schloss belongs where it is described, change it to a place that makes sense.

[ Spoiler ]

The Tome is described as ancient and delicate and should be delivered in as pristine condition as possible. If the PCs start reading/copying it, I would have the first page they open come out in their hand (like old SR books) maybe the next page they turn is so brittle it falls apart as it is turned. If they do not get the hint to leave well enough alone, have some random violence befall them whenever the book gets opened. When they go to get paid, dock it for the book being damaged.

I thought it was stated somewhere that the Baron's theory is wrong and the tome does not verify his theory.

As far as that goes, you could have the tome full of incorrect information so it does not matter if it is read.

[ Spoiler ]

[kigmatzomat]

[coolgrafix]

First of all, I advise taking a look at http://www.chibu.net/shadowland/?sec=7 In there (the middle file on the page), is a book called harlequin review/walkthrough. It points out some of the complications and inconsistancies in the book and should help alot in making the runs go smoother.

Chibu, are you by chance the author of that review/walkthrough? If not, do you know who is?

[Stahlseele]

Last Post by Ancient History on this Board is from July 2013.
So no, i guess he sadly is not lurking around here anymore.

2013 was the year when shadowrun/catalyst basically went to shit.

[Iduno]

AH also hasn't posted anything Shadowrun-related to his story website in 3 years. I'm guessing he's out.

[Stahlseele]

Well, here at least. Yes. Sadly.
Thanks CGL. Fine job there. . .

[sk8bcn]

I really likd Ancient History's job too. That guy was great.

[Stahlseele]

I think he was the guy who knew most of the fluff/background.
And Frank, as much of an abrasive asshole as he may be, was always the numbers guy.