Creeping Madness! Part III

The Shanghai Club - Meeting “Ernest”

Meeting with Gascoigne and Luscombe should have blown the nature of this location right out of proportion: if the party is expecting a thorough den of iniquity (and they probably should be) they will be grossly disappointed.

At this time the Shanghai Club is a rather stuffy and pompous, self-important gentleman’s club, populated by fat, greasy taipans and their hungry, opportunistic ‘griffins’. The interior is decorated with the best in late Victorian high style, comprising the finest marble, brass fixtures and glossy wood-panelling. A feature of the establishment is its bar with plunges deep into the space, perpendicular to the Bund outside, and which is the longest service bar in the world (Noël Coward would later write that the curvature of the Earth was discernable along its length). There are a number of fiercely-maintained traditions that prevail in this locale and the party will have some difficulties in navigating them:

Firstly: women are not admitted. There can be no amelioration to this regulation and the establishment has the doormen to enforce this policy. Secondly, visitors are allowed but must sign the guest book: entry is conditional upon sighting a passport, or other paperwork, that proves the owner is either American, European, a member of the British Commonwealth (but not native Indian), or a non-native South American. Members of military forces who are commissioned officers, may automatically join the ‘Club as full members and may grant access to other male associates as ‘guests’, even those who would not normally be allowed entrance.

Once inside there are other social reefs to avoid crashing upon. The end of the bar closest to the front door is the area reserved for visitors and for the ‘griffins’, those foreigners who are employed as junior clerks in the various businesses based in Shanghai. Other members range themselves along the bar, deeper into the establishment according to their rank within the business society, with the taipans ensconced far in the back, furthest away from the hoi-polloi.

The bar serves all kinds of drinks from mineral waters sourced from myriad spas across the globe, to the rarest of wines and other liquors. Cigars and cigarettes are served and sumptuous meals offered. Pool and Billiards can be played, along with a variety of card games, from Vingt-et-Un, to Baccarat, to Chemin le Fer. The Club also has an extensive library upstairs, which is open to members but not their guests.

Female characters have things against them here but there are some facilities for them: a roped-off area on the Bund outside the Club has many tables and chairs, shading umbrellas and waiters on hand to serve coffee, tea and cake to waiting women and men who enjoy watching the world pass by on the busy waterfront. Any women in the party will be diverted here while the male members of the group plumb the depths within.

The first clue which the group should address is the Visitor’s Book. Everyone present must sign in, so if Ernest Vaughan-Sadlier is here, his name should be also. Secondly, given his friendship with Beauchamp, it is to be anticipated that he would not be situated very far within the Club: a search at the near end of the fabled bar should be enough to locate him. Those inside should proceed along these lines.

For the women outside, they have the option of sitting and waiting (whilst ordering tea) or of strolling about the Bund. All of them will notice a rather ascetic blonde-haired man sitting at one of the outside tables smoking and engrossed in a novel – a rather worn copy of Wilkie Collins’ The Black Robe (1881). This young fellow has a complexion which can only be described as greenish-grey: his skin is greasy and pale with deep shadows, while his lips, eyelids and jawline bear a noticeably yellow-green tinge. His hands shake as he deals with cigarettes and coffee and his linen suit, whilst clean, is noticeably rumpled. He squints in the sunlight and wrestles with the text, seeming to argue wordlessly with the book as he absorbs it. For those who ask, this is Ernest Vaughan-Sadlier.

Ernest is effete, fiercely intellectual and unflappable; he is also heavily addicted to opium. Depending upon how the party approaches, he may assume they are bill collectors or some other party which he may have offended: he will be prepared to deal with them charmingly and with resignation. If the characters convince him that they are not injured parties, or give him no reason to assume they are, he will at once become interested in obtaining money from them in as delicate a manner as possible (after all, he is a gentleman and they do not instigate talk of such crass matters as money). Psychology rolls to determine if Ernest is lying are all at -40%.

In the matter of Martin Beauchamp, Ernest’s first thought will be “what’s in it for me?” He has information of value to the party but will not part with anything unless he is certain of reward. This being said, he is fundamentally afraid of being harmed and will offer crumbs from his hoard to avoid such unpleasantness.

Vaughan-Sadlier knows the following things:

Ernest met Martin after the latter had moved from the Astor House Hotel into the cheaper accommodation possibilities of the YMCA; spotting a kindred spirit, Ernest offered Martin a room in his ‘digs’ in the International Settlement for awhile. It was Ernest who convinced Martin to work as a translator, “on the side”, to supplement his income;

Ernest was later aware that Martin had ditched his job with the Insurance Company, but saw no particular issue with it;

Ernest introduced Martin to Professor Gascoigne;

Ernest also introduced Martin to opium;

Ernest admits that they both had been stealing articles and translations from the Alexander Wylie Bequest and had been selling this information to...“a rival organisation”. Gascoigne had found out however and, while unable to prove Ernest was the culprit, was suspicious enough to cut him loose. Ernest regrets having been discovered as the scam was quite lucrative;

Once while at an opium den in the Old Chinese Quarter, Beauchamp had discovered an old Chinese text in a wheelbarrow market. He had become obsessed with it thereafter and had moved out of Ernest’s place to the lilong to concentrate on translating it. Ernest had glanced at the piece but didn’t think much of it, apart from it being dense, poetic and allegorical;

Beauchamp had contacted Ernest and asked to see some of his contacts in the translation scam because “he needed help with his text”. Ernest had given him a name, but only with great reluctance: he felt that the opium was affecting Beauchamp adversely;

Some months later, Ernest had been stopped in the street by some “bad Chinks” armed with sickles who wanted to know where Martin was: fortunately, some police officers saw him and came to his aid before they could get nasty. He has heard of this gang – they are based in Hongkew, at the House of the Black Fan, which he knows only by its evil reputation as a bad fan-tan establishment. He was surprised that Martin would embroil himself in such bad company. He does not know where the fan tan house is exactly.

This is as much as Ernest will give away, in exchange for a cash reward, without being unduly pressed. If pressed (or paid) further he can reveal these additional points:

The name of the translator which he gave to Martin was Dr Ambrose Pelletier at the Jesuit Compound in Siccawei. He makes it very clear that this is not the man to whom he sold the items from the Bequest; just another – interested – acquirer of old things.

Ernest had run into Martin shortly after the attack in the street: Martin was dazed and uncomprehending, badly dressed and careering wildly eastwards down Foochow Road, much to the delight of the Chinese population. Ernest had questioned him closely only to be told that Martin had “found what he was looking for, the answer to everything”. He had given Ernest a book (the one that Ernest has with him now) and told him that “he wouldn’t need it anymore, not where he was going”. Ernest had watched him careen away into the distance; that was the last he’d seen of him.

Ernest offers to sell the book to the party if they ask him about it; he states that “it’s just a silly old romance” but it may be of some value to them. He asks for S$5.00. The book itself is fairly innocuous, but tucked behind the rear pastedown are several defaced photographs of famous Shanghai courtesans and there is a slip of paper which Ernest was using as a page marker. These scraps should give the party some misgivings about their quarry’s state of mind.

“Frenchtown”

The French Concession is green and leafy with wide streets and an abundance of Parisian cafes and Russian tearooms, gold and silversmiths, and bookstores. During the day the area is pleasant enough and the party will have little difficulty finding their way; at night however, the region is perilous, with Green and Red Gang goons roaming freely and prostitutes and their guardians lurking in the shadows. The Keeper may devise various encounters to spice up their tale if the party comes here after dark. For instance:

A Bridge On Yangjing Creek

As the party approaches this crossing into the French Concession, gunshots ring out behind them. People scream and a raised voice shouting unintelligibly in a Chinese dialect is heard. To one side, a noodle seller’s cart explodes in a shower of hot water and pasta as bullets burst his cooking pot. A voice cries in English “Stop that man!”

The rear-most Investigator is barrelled into by a running figure (Luck Roll to avoid falling over), a desperate Chinese man in a blue qipao with a long queue. He holds a hand to his side from beneath which a spreading red stain can be seen. He carries a bulging hessian sack tied to his back by a length of rope and he wields a pistol. Seeing his access to the bridge ahead impeded by foot traffic (including the party members), he shrieks ad fires his gun upwards into the air. The locals scurry to exit the vicinity; the party may do as they wish.

Behind the fugitive, a band of rifle-carrying red-jacketed Municipal Police officers appears, mostly European with three Sikh officers. At the sound of the Chinaman’s gun, they pause and send shots volleying towards their prey. Since they kneel first to shoot, the party can have a Spot Hidden Roll to see what’s about to happen and then attempt to Dodge, otherwise they can make individual Luck Rolls to avoid being hit (Martini Henry Rifles: 1d8+1d6+3). The fugitive screams and several balls of raw opium fall from his sack to break on the cobblestones like clods of damp earth. Staggering, he claws his way to the bridge trying to reach the mid-point. The party now sees several Chinese men on the far side of the bridge urging him onwards, although they do not move forward to assist him.

The party can do as they see fit: if they apprehend the escapee, the Municipal forces will take him into custody; if they don’t, the Chinaman will be accosted by his comrades after he passes the bridge’s midpoint. It will be noted that, once they have crossed this imaginary line, the Municipal officers will simply shrug, shoulder their weapons and turn away, even though their quarry is scant metres away and in no particular hurry to hide; in fact, his colleagues are openly treating his wounds and relieving him of his burden in the street just beyond.

If any party members have been hurt in the altercation, the troopers will see to their wellbeing, summoning jinrickshas and taking them to the Municipal Council Compound to be treated by a medic, after which they will be returned to the Astor House Hotel.

Anyone asking the troopers why they didn’t just cross the bridge and collect their prey will be told that they have no jurisdiction in the French Concession: once the man crossed the bridge’s midpoint over the boundary creek, he was protected by French law and there was little that they could do without causing an international incident. This should highlight to the party the finely strung web of legalities that drifts across the city.

(Keepers should be aware that dire situations lie in the party’s future and try to limit the damage that this scene inflicts: the party members will need all the hit points that they can muster by the time they reach the House of the Black Fan!)

The Jesuit Mission Compound at Siccawei

The Jesuits were among the earliest foreign visitors to China and, due largely to their dedication to educating, and learning from, the Chinese, they have been by far the most successful missionary organisations in the country throughout its history. In Shanghai, they have established a base in Siccawei, at the south-western end of the French Concession and continue their good works. This mission compound contains a library, an orphanage, a natural history museum and schools for both clerics and the laity. By 1903, the organisation will have transformed into the Jesuit Aurora University and the modest chapel will have been replaced by St. Ignatius’ Cathedral.

The party may come here in order to visit Dr Ambrose Pelletier. They may choose to ring ahead or drop in unannounced: either tactic will involve some questions by administrative staff as to who they are and who they represent, but this interrogation will be mostly borne out of idle curiosity rather than from any procedural motives (Psychology Rolls). In a relatively short period of time, they will be led to the rooms of the good doctor and he will invite them in to talk; he will warn them though that he has a class in the following hour and may have to terminate their discussion abruptly.

Doctor Pelletier is a tall and spare Frenchman with calm blue-grey eyes and a trim moustache. He wears a light-coloured suit with slippers and a close-fitting fez (he will lose these items while preparing to go to his class, putting on shoes and talking as he ties his laces). His hair is greying at the temples and he generates an air of ennui that might almost be called dissolution but for his carefully controlled manner.

Pelletier is a self-contained sort of character and radiates very little in the way of intention and emotion: whilst not a ‘cold fish’, he just plays things very close to the chest (Psychology rolls are all at -20%). In stark contrast to the florid Gascoigne, Pelletier is reserved and controlled. His rooms are light and airy and contain a minimum of furnishings: everything is particularly neat and tidy. His books are neatly arranged according to height, and there are no piles of paper to cause clutter. The walls are hung with many fine examples of Chinese calligraphy and, while Pelletier is happy to receive praise for this collection and to talk of them in general terms, he will not be drawn on their content or translation. He offers the party coffee which, when it arrives, is served black in tiny cups.

Pelletier will admit that he knows Ernest, referring to him as a gifted translator but with no application to the work; he says that Ernest worked for him in the past but that he had to let him go over some “procedural errors”. If the party shows Pelletier the torn image of the Chinese woman, he will consider it deeply and then remove a book from his shelf: opening it, he shows them another image of “T’a Ki”, but one significantly different to the one carried by the party. Pelletier will point out the differences between the images: obviously, the evil courtesan is draped in sickles and bearing a black fan in one picture while in the other she bears none of these things; the Doctor will also point out the weasel in his image (above the courtesan’s head) which is an emblem of evil and death, noting its absence in the group’s picture. He will say that the discrepancies are interesting and may well be worth investigating but will not be drawn on their interpretation.

If the party asks if Pelletier knows Martin Beauchamp, he at once becomes defensive. He does not immediately admit to knowing him but will seek to know why the party is interested in him. If the party is less than unequivocal about their reasons, Pelletier will abruptly terminate the proceedings; if they are honest about why they are seeking the young man, he will reluctantly admit to the acquaintance. If the party asks why Beauchamp wanted to see him, Pelletier will say that he came to him with a translation problem – he now becomes very cagey about the ‘problem’ and the party will need to press him to gain further insights.

Pelletier feels that Beauchamp has unknowingly stumbled upon a piece of text from a book which Pelletier has always felt to be completely legendary – The Tale of Priest Kwan. Beauchamp visited the doctor in his rooms with an old scrap of paper and his working notes which were in hopeless disarray. Pelletier spotted the ravages of opium and felt that he could use this to gain more information about where Beauchamp found the fragment and perhaps convince him to obtain more pieces. Pelletier was hoping to make a groundbreaking discovery off Beauchamp’s back but Martin seemed very protective of his find and only doled out the information sparingly. Pelletier has a few lines which he cribbed together from the work notes; he will offer this to the party.

If the group enquires further about the Tale of Priest Kwan, Pelletier will describe it as a ‘lost’ text, a selection of poetry supposedly dating from the Warring States period, attributed to an author named Liu Chan-fang, about whom nothing is known apart from his name. The title of the text appears occasionally on lists of books targeted for burning in the Ch’in and Han periods and also in the Sung Dynasty, and this is the sole reason that the text is known at all. Pelletier explains that finding it would be an academic coup; he excuses his actions in regard to Martin by saying that he had little reason to expect that Beauchamp actually had the work in his possession, but that he was willing to lead him on in an effort to see if he was being truthful about it. For all he knew, this could have been a scam; and with his experience of Ernest and his friends, can you blame him? Pelletier heads off to his class, offering his best wishes for the group and its quest.

As the party leaves, a Spot Hidden roll will detect the form of a tall white-haired priest in black observing them from a distance. If they seek to encounter him, he will swiftly slip away into the surrounding throng and disappear. An Idea roll will connect this figure to the one seen at the Door of Hope.

Locating The House

Having heard of this low place, the party must figure out how to locate it. They know that it’s in Hongkew but they may have already had bad experiences in that locale and may not be willing to re-enter the deadly maze. If they have already met the redoubtable Fergus MacLean, they can enlist his aid to assist them; alternatively, if they have not been to Hongkew yet, run them through the section entitled ‘Bamboo-Town’ above, and they will soon meet up with Fergus. Otherwise they can make their way to Fergus’ bar on their own.

When he learns of the party’s intentions he is astounded: no-one willingly goes into that hell-hole he states, not if they mean to come out again in one piece. He does know of the place, he reveals, but he himself has never been inside. He has been told that it is a fan tan parlour, and he is sure that games of chance do operate there; however, he is just as certain that there is something else going on inside that might be better left alone. He suspects that there is some kind of secret society based there which is linked to the Blue Gang, even if it only pays for them to look the other way. He knows definitely that there are people who have gone inside and who have never come back out. Still, he does know the way there.

Initially the party may well decide that the first move should be to approach the establishment with some polite questions (Fergus does not think that answers will be forthcoming and will declare that he has no intention of participating in such a scheme). At any time of the day or night, a burly figure stands before the front door of the House, ostentatiously bearing a black sickle tucked into his belt. His job is to examine everyone who approaches and to refuse entry to those he finds questionable: as they are gweilos, he will automatically refuse to permit the party to enter. If pressed, he will crack open the door behind him and call forth the Red Pole - the chief of the cult’s soldiers - from within. This disagreeable character will listen to the party for awhile before hawking up a gob of phlegm and spitting it onto the street. He will then shake his head and turn from the characters, also denying them access. Attempts at reason will avail the party nothing, as the two cultists do not speak English and wouldn’t even if they could. If pressed, they will physically push the group away from the steps of the House in a display of final refusal. Threats and violence will result in the Red Pole whistling shrilly and summoning a group of enforcers from within and also from the nearby streets. Outnumbered, the party may wish to withdraw and re-think their strategy.

Wherever they retire to – either to the Stumbling Tiger Bar or to their hotel – the party will be closely followed (Spot Hidden or Track rolls will notice this; Idea rolls will allow suspicious or nervous characters to make these checks). Later that evening, a creeping, cloying fog rolls in from the sea and wraps the waterfront in a silent, white shroud. The cultists have resorted to their arcane lore – the t’ai p’ing tao; specifically, the spell Summon Demon Fog – to eliminate this foreign threat to their activities. Under cover of this damp pall, agents of the Black Fan Cult approach the characters’ base, seeking to abduct or murder them...!

Spell: “Summon Demon Fog”

This spell requires a circle of devotees who chant and burn ‘gold paper’ for the period of the exercise. Each participant spends a minimum 5 Magic Points and loses 1d4 SAN. The spell resembles Alter Weather but for the fact that it calls down only one specific meteorological effect – damp, oppressive fog. This fog lasts as many hours as Magic Points have been spent in its making and covers an area of about 1,000 feet radius per participant: visibility is reduced to practically naught. In the presence of those connected to the Summoning of the fog (fellow cultists, associated creatures and so on), unearthly tendrils of the vapour visibly coil and probe, seeking to enter buildings, or thicken around light sources.

While awaiting the terrifying Hand of Destiny, a knock comes at the door of the party’s headquarters. Opening the door will reveal the mysterious Jesuit Priest who has been dogging the group’s footsteps. He enters quickly, checking outside before closing and locking the door; he introduces himself as Pere (‘Father’) Hugolin and reveals that he may have information for them about their missing friend. Let the party make of this what they will.

Father Hugolin is tall and elderly, yet possessed of a wiry strength. His hair is white and his face lined and worn from years in service to his fellow creatures. He is dressed in the severe black cassock of his order, relieved only by the silver crucifix around his neck. He speaks English with a French accent and has a quiet, even resigned, intensity in his manner. He carefully checks the windows and other exits to the room and then turns to the party to address them:

“Your friend” he says, “has fallen into the clutches of an evil cult of devil-worshippers. He is, perhaps, dead even now; but it may be that there is still time to save him.”

Father Hugolin Speaks!

After the priest makes his fateful pronouncement, he falls silent and awaits the party’s questions. He knows the following:

He has worked for many years in China, not only in Shanghai; during his life, he has seen many strange and barbaric things, things of which the West has little understanding or knowledge. Like many of his brethren, he has read extensively from Jesuit histories of their efforts in the Celestial Empire, about things not well-known outside of his order.

While working in the Old City of Nantao, he witnessed an incident which, to begin with, seemed innocuous enough: a Westerner bought a page of calligraphy from a bookseller’s barrow. As it turned out, the Chinese boy who sold the leaf was the servant of the barrow’s owner and, when the owner returned, there was a shrill commotion: apparently the boy was not supposed to have sold this item but had not known this. He began to receive an awful beating. Making to intercede, Hugolin separated the two and was alarmed to see real fear on the face of the barrow owner; fear approaching actual terror. The bookseller fled in confusion leaving Hugolin and the boy to pack up the barrow and return it to the owner’s home. Several days later, Hugolin heard that the bookseller had been found murdered, hacked to pieces, in an alley near his house.

Hugolin began to search for the Westerner who had purchased the page. He had only the description of the lad to work with, but he soon found his way forward. He located and watched Ernest Vaughan-Sadlier and made some enquiries about him, which led him to the lilong and Martin Beauchamp. He tried several times to speak to Martin but was rebuffed: Beauchamp seemed drugged, half-crazed, living a filthy and degenerate lifestyle and scaring his neighbours in the Chinese enclave. At night he could be heard shrieking out insane pieces of doggerel, over and over again.

Hugolin followed Beauchamp to a meeting with Ernest and then to the Jesuit Compound to see Ambrose Pelletier. He himself went to see Pelletier afterwards and the Doctor mentioned that the Englishman had wanted to show him some notes which he’d made in translating a difficult Chinese poem: Pelletier seemed uninterested with the encounter and freely showed Hugolin his own notes on the interview. Hugolin at once recognised references to the blasphemous Tale of Priest Kwan which he’d read shudderingly about from Jesuit biographies of former missions in China; he confided his suspicions to Pelletier who suddenly seemed more interested and who promised that he would try to encourage the confidence of the young man, in an effort to procure help for him. Later interviews with his fellow countryman made Hugolin suspicious that perhaps Pelletier was less interested in helping Beauchamp than in obtaining the page for himself.

The Tale of Priest Kwan is a profane book which details the despicable practises of a coastal cult of devil-worshippers, a secret society dedicated to corruption and perversity. Their taint has been detected along the Chinese shores from Canton to Chekiang and has been expunged several times throughout Chinese history. Under the Emperor Chow Sin, the cult assumed immense national power through the agency of T’a Ki, the Emperor’s head concubine. Several times since the Seventeenth Century, the Jesuits have been instrumental in wiping out the cult and it is this fact that has led to the Chinese being less strict with the Society of Jesus as missionaries on its shores.

The cultists have spotted the party and intend to prevent them from asking further questions: the unholy fog outside is a product of their magic and they will have sent assassins out into the night, under its cover, to kill or capture the group for daring to expose them. Hugolin hopes that the party is well-armed, as they will probably be in danger of their lives before the sun rises (he pulls a large calibre pistol out of his pocket and checks the cartridges while he peeps once more out of the window). He observes that he thinks he arrived undetected, but that he can’t be sure.

Let the party make of all this what they will. Hugolin will, if asked, observe that he suspects Martin is inside the cult’s temple (the House of the Black Fan), if he still lives. He says that, if the cultists are out searching for the group, it may mean that there will be fewer forces guarding their headquarters and that the dense fog, while helping their enemies, should also serve them in turn.

Extra Fun for Wicked Keepers!

If the party is split into separate groups – the women separated from the men for example, for reasons of decorum – have the cultists attack and abduct them, before launching an attack (if required) upon the remainder of the team. These abductees will be taken to the House of the Black Fan.

The cultists have several evil tricks to facilitate such a move. For example, while the Demon Fog is in place, a favourite trick of the cultists’ is to blow opium smoke into a room, through chinks and gaps, along with the pernicious fog: this has the effect of rapidly subduing the cult’s opponents and making them more biddable.

Once the party has gotten ready and prepared to leave, the cultists will launch their attack. If the group has convened at their hotel or other residence in the city, the cultists will attack from the entrance door and by means of the nearest window, attempt to rush in and subdue the characters. These attackers are armed with sickles and bear yellow charms - strips of paper with calligraphy upon them - designed to deflect the bullets of the gweilos (they are ineffective; Hugolin can remark that this is an old Taiping trick, used to instil confidence in troops). Keepers should allow one crazy cultist for each party member and NPC currently present, with three more just for show. At any point that half of this crew is killed or otherwise put out of action, the rest will flee, demoralised, into the fog.

If the party are holed up at the Stumbling Tiger Bar, the attack will come primarily from the front entrance; soon, however, the cultists will attempt to gain access through the rear entrance. If the numbers are too great and the party is ill-equipped to repel boarders, an escape can be effected through the Unspeakable Conveniences: in the centre of this repellent room is a culvert entrance surrounded by a three-foot high wall and closed with a steel grate, locked with a padlock. Fergus can unlock this and use the same padlock to seal the passage behind them: the entrance leads to the sewers below and will allow the party to escape to the riverfront, through a passageway even more unspeakable than the room above (if that were even possible!). From this locale, the group can make their way back to their belongings and prepare themselves for a major assault on the cult headquarters.

Statistics

Ernest Vaughan-Sadlier (pronounced “VORN SAD-lee-er”)

Ernest has disappointed his family. In fact, he disappointed them so much, they sent him to Shanghai. Whatever he did, there’s very little that could rectify the situation. That being said, Ernest is definitely one to be shy of performing dental examinations on presented equines: here in the gateway to China, he has found a way to indulge his tastes for Chinese aestheticism and to build himself a living. Ernest is not ambitious: he takes very little and uses it to get what he needs; whether it’s from Shanghai newcomers or naive academics, it’s all the same to him.

Dilletante & Aesthete

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	12	POW	16	Age	34
CON	8	DEX	13	HP	11
SIZ	14	APP	10	Magic Points	16
INT	18	EDU	23	SAN	80

Damage Bonus: None

Weapon: None

Armour: None

Skills: Art: Chinese Calligraphy 35%; Art: Literary Criticism 50%; Library Use 80%; Medicine 30%; Chinese: Cantonese 85%, Mandarin 85%, Wu 85%; English 100%; Persuade 65%; Pharmacy 9%; Psychology 70%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see Ernest Vaughan-Sadlier

Dr Ambrose Pelletier (pronounced “pel-LET-ee-ay”)

Ambrose spent some time in Algiers, educating natives before moving even farther East to China. He has a fondness for calligraphy and delights in Arabic script, Egyptian Hieroglyphs and Chinese characters in equal parts. He feels that there is a clinical crispness in the perfect execution of these written forms that transcends mere human objectives and he has made it his life’s work to discover perfect examples of each. Sometimes, Dr Pelletier needs to be forcibly dragged back down to the humbler plane of human existence...

Ascetic Sinologist

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	12	POW	14	Age	48
CON	12	DEX	11	HP	13
SIZ	14	APP	6	Magic Points	14
INT	17	EDU	23	SAN	70

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Forehand & Wandsworth .38 Hammerless Revolver 55% (1d8)

Armour: None

Skills: Accounting 60%; Anthropology 49%; Archaeology 30%; Art: Chinese Calligraphy 41%; Credit Rating 35%; History 60%; Library Use 75%; Arabic 50%; Chinese: Cantonese 75%, Mandarin 75%; French 115%; Persuade 70%; Psychology 75%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see Dr. Pelletier

Pere Hugolin (pronounced “pair OO-go-lah”)

Father Hugolin is one of those altruistic types whose curse it is to become aware of the hidden, alien menace behind all the world’s worst machinations. The good father has spent many hours in Jesuit libraries, putting two and two together, and unearthing the insidious taint of the Cthulhu Mythos. He has traced the Cult of the Black Fan in its various incarnations from Fukien in the 1400s to Shanghai in the present day and he has combed the world’s libraries to uncover the proper response to its foul presence: a powerful magical charm and a big gun.

Secretive Jesuit Priest

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	11	POW	16	Age	71
CON	8	DEX	6	HP	11
SIZ	14	APP	8	Magic Points	16
INT	15	EDU	22	SAN	80

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Bulldog .45 Revolver 71% (1d10+2)

Armour: None

Skills: Accounting 65%; First Aid 75%; History 65%; Listen 55%; Medicine 65%; English 50%; Chinese: Mandarin 65%, Wu 75%; French 110%; Pharmacy 50%; Psychology 63%

Spells: Sigsand Diagram

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see the good Father

Black Fan Enforcers

“1”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	12	POW	10	Age	???
CON	10	DEX	10	HP	9
SIZ	8	APP	4	Magic Points	10
INT	10	EDU	6	SAN	20

Damage Bonus: +0

Weapon: Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Knife 55% (1d6+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“2”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	12	POW	10	Age	???
CON	10	DEX	8	HP	14
SIZ	13	APP	14	Magic Points	10
INT	10	EDU	5	SAN	10

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db); Thrown Knife 50% (1d6+db/2)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“3”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	11	POW	9	Age	???
CON	13	DEX	17	HP	14
SIZ	14	APP	10	Magic Points	9
INT	14	EDU	2	SAN	10

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Nunchaku 50% (1d8+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“4”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	11	POW	9	Age	???
CON	14	DEX	9	HP	12
SIZ	9	APP	9	Magic Points	9
INT	13	EDU	8	SAN	10

Damage Bonus: +0

Weapon: Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Machete 45% (1d6+1+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“5”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	9	POW	7	Age	???
CON	13	DEX	13	HP	11
SIZ	9	APP	14	Magic Points	7
INT	12	EDU	2	SAN	0

Damage Bonus: +0

Weapon: Cleaver 60% (1d6+1+db); Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“6”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	14	POW	8	Age	???
CON	16	DEX	10	HP	14
SIZ	12	APP	11	Magic Points	8
INT	11	EDU	12	SAN	10

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Chinese Straight Sword 50% (1d8+1+db); Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“7”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	12	POW	10	Age	???
CON	10	DEX	14	HP	12
SIZ	13	APP	9	Magic Points	10
INT	11	EDU	6	SAN	15

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db); Spear 65% (1d8+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

“8”

char.	value	char.	value	char.	value
STR	15	POW	12	Age	???
CON	14	DEX	13	HP	14
SIZ	13	APP	12	Magic Points	12
INT	9	EDU	8	SAN	25

Damage Bonus: +1d4

Weapon: Fist/Punch 70% (1d3+db); Kick 65% (1d6+db); Knife 55% (1d6+db); Sickle 55% (1d4+3+db)

Armour: None

Skills: Climb 50%; Dodge 45%; Hide 45%; Jump 50%; Listen 35%; Chinese: Hui 30%, Mandarin 60%, Wu 90%; Martial Arts 50%; Sneak 85%; Spot Hidden 35%; Track 25%

Spells: None

SAN Loss: It costs no SAN to see this fellow

[Sickles]

To Be Concluded...