30016

a dv e n t u r e c o m p e n d i u m
science fiction horror adventure

paul ‘ W i g g y ’ Wa d e - W i l l i a m s
 adventure compendium
by paul ‘wiggy‘ wade-williams
Editing & pROOFREADING: Ron Blessing, Dave Blewer, Scott Alan Woodard

Graphic Design & Typesetting: Robin Elliott

Art: mark hyzer, Aaron Acevedo, Aaron Panagos, Davi Blight, Leanne Buckley,
Diego Gisbert, Michael Jaecks, Reto Kaul, Ojo De Kuervo, Luis Nunez de Castro,
Daniel Rudnicki, Cheyenne Wright, Celia Yost, Darek Zabrocki

Cover Design: Robin Elliott

Playtesters: Tim Bentley, Jim Ivens, Pam Ivens

www.tripleacegames.com

© 2008-2011 Triple Ace Games. Daring Tales of the Sprawl and all related marks and logos are
trademarks of Triple Ace Games. Savage Worlds, Smiling Jack and all related marks and logos are
trademarks of Pinnacle Entertainment Group. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
© 2011. All Rights Reserved.
978-1-908237-15-6

3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

Printed in the USA

This game references the Savage Worlds game system, available from Pinnacle Entertainment Group
at www.peginc.com. Savage Worlds and all associated logos and trademarks are copyrights of Pinnacle
Entertainment Group. Used with permission. Pinnacle makes no representation or warranty as to the
quality, viability, or suitability for purpose of this product.
 CONTENTS
the last word........................................... 3

the long sleep........................................ 21

the broken seal.. .................................... 51

the opener of the ways.................................. 73

echoes............................................................ 101

tales from the front line one.................... 135

tales from the front line two................... 163

 the last word

War Master’s Notes characters. Sister Superior Freemont, their com-

manding officer, is a Wild Card and the rest are
Extras. Stats can be found on page 16.
Welcome to The Last Word, a standalone sce-
nario written for the Necropolis campaign setting. Text in the adventure assumes four Sisters
are present. GMs will have to alter any text for
If you intend to play in this adventure, greater or lesser numbers of Sisters. Should
you should stop reading now. Advanced there be more than six, their cells contain
knowledge of the scenario will only spoil your bunks rather than single cots.
enjoyment of the game.
Note that each Sister except Freemont has
The WM should read the entire adventure a special talent, which must be determined
before play begins. Knowing the basic flow and randomly by the GM. Roll this and a personality
details in advance will greatly speed up play trait (Freemont is automatically Heroic) before
and make the game run smoother. the adventure begins and fill out one Ally Record
Sheet for each Sister. When indicated in the adven-
Required Materials ture, the Sisters’ Ally sheets should be handed out
at random among the player characters. Until that
You also need a copy of the Savage Worlds time they are GM-controlled characters.
rulebook and the Necropolis: 2350 Savage There is also a number of recruitment Ser-
Setting. The Necropolis Figure Flats are rec- geants (p. 19) equal to the player characters.
ommended, though any suitable sci-fi or dark Although quite inept in combat, the GM should
future miniatures will suffice. fill out an Ally Sheet for each one and hand
them to the players—all guns matter in war.
Roll a random personality trait for each one.
Characters
This adventure is designed for a squad Character Death
of four Knights from any of the core Sacri
In any adventure involving combat there
Ordines. The adventure is designed for Knights
is a chance of character death. Should a Wild
with 40–55 XPs (Veteran Rank), though lower-
Card die, the character can take any allied Extra
experienced characters should be able to cope
and promote him or her to Wild Card status
if they use their brains. Use the archetypes from
for the remainder of this mission or play Sister
the Necropolis 2350 setting book if you need
Superior Freemont as his sole character once
pre-generated characters. Each archetype has the Sisters’ sheets are handed out (until then
been designed as a starting character. Those she remains an NPC).
used should be advanced as the player wishes
to bring them up to 45 XPs. At the end of the mission, the player creates
a new character as normal, gaining Experience
For larger groups or more experienced Points earned during the adventure for his new
characters, the WM needs to adjust the number character (so his new character doesn’t lose out).
and stats of opponents appropriately to create
an exciting challenge.

Extras Act 1: Meeting the Hosts

Guarding the shrine is a Lance of Sisters of Begin the adventure by reading aloud
Bradamante, a militant order of nuns. There is a the Tactical Briefing (page 19) or handing
total number of Sisters equal to that of the player out copies to the players to read themselves.


Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Remember to give the players Player Handout commanding officer does not do the same
#2 and the Update sheet during the briefing, as with the Sisters’ tags, she requests he does so
these contain important information. immediately to avoid friendly fire incidents in
the event of trouble.

Scene 1: A Shaky Start Shortly after the scans are complete, loud
sounds of arguing can be heard from near the
Once the Lance is ready, they are driven to APC. One of the Sergeants is shouting at the
the Angel dropship, whereupon they meet the driver, who seems to be making matters worse
recruiting Sergeants assigned to the mission. by ignoring his complaints. Upon investigat-
Once everyone is aboard the Angel takes off and ing (Sister Superior Freemont investigates if
begins its journey. If the players want to banter the Knights don’t) the Knights discover the
while en route to the shrine, let them—it’s a good Sergeant ordered the Sister to help load boxes
way to introduce the Sergeants’ personalities in onto the APC, an order she flatly refused.
play and gives the players a chance to voice their Let the Knights sort out the disagreement.
opinions on what the mission might entail. The Update sheet makes it clear the Sisters are
On arrival at the town, read aloud the fol- not members of the Ordines. However, if neces-
lowing text. sary have the Knights make Common Knowledge
rolls. Success means they know the Sisters are
The voice of the pilot crackles over your under no obligation to follow any orders given
headset communicators. “Looks like any by a member of the Ordines while operating
hope of a quiet mission is out of the ques- under their own mandate and commander.
tion.” The screen by your commander’s The Sisters may be armed, but they are nuns,
seat flickers into life, showing the town not soldiers, and thus answer to ecclesiastical
and landing field as the pilot begins his authorities in this situation, not military ones.
final maneuvers.
At some point during the problem-solving
Although the image is grainy, you can exercise Freemont speaks up. Use the first sec-
make out a vast throng of people crowding tion of text if the Knights back the Sergeant and
the town streets, congregating most thickly request the Sister helps their men. The second
around a large Gothic structure—no doubt box should be read if the Knights rebuke the
the shrine. Further out, the perimeter of Sergeant and remind him of his position.
the landing strip is ringed with onlookers.
As the dropship approaches, people begin “Look, commander,” she says, “we have
pointing toward it and cheering. A Prophet to work together for a few days, but let’s
APC can be seen moving across the airfield draw the lines here and now. The Sisters
toward one of the landing pads. are not part of the military structure. We’re
not here to answer to your requests unless
The Angel hits the pad with a slight combat occurs. Our sole duty is protect
bump, and the pilot lowers the ramp. As Mother Agnes and the shrine. Driving here
you clamber out across the various boxes to collect you was a courtesy, not a sign
of merchandizing material, the APC draws
of subservience. As for the boxes, get your
to a halt nearby. An attractive woman
troops to load them—we’ve got to get back
climbs out of the passenger door, her light
to the shrine, with or without you and your
armor glinting in the sun and a flechette
materiel. Are we both clear on where we
SMG slung over her soldier. With the aid of
stand?”
a spear used as a walking stick, she limps
over to your position. “At least you know where the line is
drawn,” Freemont says. “If a fight breaks
“I’m Sister Superior Freemont,” she says,
out, we’ll fall under your command as
with no hint of friendship in her voice.
senior military commander. Until then,
“Your presence has attracted the usual
our only duties are to protect Mother Agnes
gathering of supporters and detractors, so
and the shrine. Just make sure all your
it was decided you’d travel to the shrine
troops understand that and we’ll get along
via Prophet. Load your gear in the back.”
fine for the few days you’re here.”
As she gestures to the APC, another
When the boxes and troops are loaded,
woman, similarly clad in armor, emerges
the APC heads off through the crowd gathered
from the driver’s door and leans against
outside the airfield and into town. The short
the front of the APC.
journey takes an hour, due to the crowds.
Sister Superior Freemont then scans each of Finally, the APC enters through the gates of the
the Knights’ and Sergeants’ ID tags into her ID shrine and into the relative calm of the outer
scanner for security purposes. If the Knights’ compound.


 the last word

Scene 2: Arrival at the two toilets, four sinks, and a communal shower
cubicle, capable of holding four at a time. There
Shrine is no hot water available (though enterprising
Knights may be able to jury rig a simple heating
Saint Malachy’s shrine is a squat, irregu- system). As Freemont said, there is a set of twin
lar-shaped structure of typical Church Gothic keys in each sleeping area—one key opens the
design. Its dark gray, stone walls are far from outer door and the other the sleeping cham-
welcoming in appearance, and the atmosphere bers (both barracks use the same key).
within the precinct is a somber one. After vacat-
ing the APC, Freemont points to areas around
the courtyard. Indicate the areas Freemont Scene 3: A Brief Tour
points out to the players using an unlabelled
map or areas on the tabletop. Exactly two hours later, Freemont enters
the courtyard from the shrine. She does not
“Over there is where you can set up your go to the barracks to fetch the Knights, expect-
stand. The gates open at dawn tomorrow, ing them to be present when she arrives. She
and believe me, this place will get crowded doesn’t comment on tardiness, but she does
very quickly. One of my Sisters will be with give the characters disparaging looks if they are
Mother Agnes at all times, one guarding late.
the shrine, and another on the gate. I’ll
be around as necessary to help maintain The tour is brief and takes in the main
order where needed. shrine, chapel, library, crypts, and shop, in that
order. She indicates the doors to the Sisters’
“That door,” she indicates a door in quarters but does not allow the Knights to
side of the shrine, “is where you’ll be sleep- enter. Likewise, she mentions there is a secure
ing. It’s usually the poorhouse, but we’ve armory in the shrine, but unless pressed hard
had to move them elsewhere during your by the Knights, she does not reveal its location
visit.” Her voice makes it clear she did not to them.
approve of this action. “There are two basic
sleeping areas and a communal wash- The shrine, the centre of attraction at the
room. Keys are inside—don’t lose them or site, comprises a toughened bulletproof glass
you’ll be fined. Meals are available in the case (Toughness +14) surrounding a gem-
main refectory. I’ll give you a quick tour encrusted, gold casket about 12” to a side and
after you’ve had the chance to unpack. 8” tall. The casket sits on a purple velvet cush-
ion. Freemont explains that in the morning the
“The shrine is protected by a basic casket will be opened, and the skull of Saint
security system. I can link my mobile Malachy will be placed on top for the pilgrims
command center into any of the security to see.
cameras, which are concealed around the
site. Restricted doors are protected by id The aim of the tour is simply to give the
scanners and alarm systems—the others Knights a general overview of the areas likely to
just have regular locks. The shrine itself be visited by the public tomorrow, just in case
is protected by infrared beams linked to their assistance is required. Other areas may
silent alarms, which patch through to our become used as the scenario develops.
headset comms gear. Trip the alarms and
the shrine area seals off automatically.
Unless Mother Agnes declares otherwise, Scene 4: Mother Agnes
your id tags won’t be cleared for secure Freemont knocks on the door, pauses for
areas. a moment, and then enters, beckoning the
“I have some paperwork to complete. Knights to follow.
I’ll meet you back here in two hours for a “Mother Agnes,” Freemont says, her
tour and introduction to Mother Agnes.” head bowed slightly, “these are the Knights
With that she limps into the main who will be recruiting outside the shrine
shrine, while the driver maneuvers the tomorrow. Knights, this is Mother Agnes,
now-empty APC into a nearby garage. keeper of the shrine of Saint Malachy.”
The sleeping quarters and washroom are Seated behind a wooden desk is a
indeed very basic. Eight hard wooden cots, with wizened woman wearing blue robes. She
woolen blankets and pillows seemingly stuffed rises slowly and slightly unsteadily to her
with rocks, are crammed into each sleeping feet and stares at each of you in turn. Her
area. At the foot of each cot is a small trunk bright grey eyes seem to pierce your very
for storing personal items. The washroom has soul with their intensity, rooting out every


Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
minor sin you have ever committed. Each Freemont gestures to you to say any
of you feels a flicker of relief as her eyes farewells and leave. Once outside she
move on from you, for though it’s obvious says, “Mother Agnes tires easily these days.
she is extremely frail in body, the willpower Sometimes I feel it is only her willpower
of the elderly nun is immense. and devotion to Saint Malachy that keeps
her going. Until tomorrow morning you
“Welcome to the shrine of Saint Mala-
are free to do as you wish, though I believe
chy,” she whispers. “I hope your mission
your orders prohibit you from leaving the
tomorrow is profitable.” With that she sits
precinct. The chapel is available to you for
down again.
prayers. The evening meal will be served in
Mother Agnes is content to answer ques- an hour in the refectory. You’ll be escorted
tions, though she has an intense dislike of there, around the back of the shrine.”
frivolity and time wasting. Saint Malachy is
naturally her favored subject. Given the near-
unlimited questions which could be asked, no
answers are given here. GMs should use the Act 2: Recruitment Day
background notes and common sense when
formulating answers. As dawn breaks over the town, whether the
Knights are ready or not, Mother Agnes appears
Agnes is also interested in the activities of at the main shrine doors and walks slowly
the Sacri Ordines and interrogates the Knights to the gates, outside which are thousands of
about their service. She has a keen eye for cheering pilgrims. Sister Superior Freemont
body language and is a good judge of char- and two other Sisters walk just behind her,
acter—attempts to impress her with tales of their eyes scanning the crowd, their guns ready
bravery or outright lies are doomed to failure, for instant use. (The Sister guarding the shrine
and she will call the Knight on any obviously is already at her station.)
erroneous facts. She’s interested in the men
Agnes gives a short speech, welcoming the
behind the tales, not barrack room bravado
pilgrims to the shrine and wishes each of them
and war stories.
a successful pilgrimage. She then walks back
When the questioning is over, read the fol- into the shrine with her bodyguard. Only when
lowing text to the players. she is safely inside are the gates opened and


 the last word
the pilgrims allowed entrance. Sister Superior
Freemont hangs around outside until the
procession of pilgrims is well underway, then
Update: Selling Relics
makes her way inside to oversee events in the The selling or purchase of holy relics,
shrine. or fraudulently selling items as holy
Despite the fervor running through the relics, is considered a major sin by
the Third Reformation Church and is
excited crowd, the procession is generally
punishable by 3-12 years hard labor,
orderly. There is some pushing and shoving
plus confiscation of any relics in the
and a few impatient shouts from those further
perpetrator’s possession. Selling holy
back, but nothing the Sisters on duty can’t
relics to a heretic (or even just giving
handle with a few well-chosen words.
them away) carries a sentence of death
Pilgrims enter the shrine along the right- by burning. When Inquisitors are
hand side of the path, passing by the Knights’ involved, a trial is considered optional
recruiting table, and enter the corridor leading and pleas of, “I didn’t know he was a
to the shop. From here, they enter the shrine heretic” carry no weight.
and walk counter clockwise around the reli- Citizens who discover a relic, or an
quary and into the chapel. After praying, they item which could be classified a relic,
leave the building by going back through the are rewarded by the Church, but only
shrine and out the main doors, keeping to the with absolution of past temporal sins
clear side of the path. (it doesn’t grant the citizen a guaran-
teed place in Heaven). Relics fall under
Scene 1: We Had Some Minor the jurisdiction of the Office of Relics,
a sub office of the Office of Antiquities
Incidents… (see the adventure, The Long Sleep
for details).
The first part of the adventure deals with Shrines are allowed to sell replicas of
a series of random events centered on the relics to raise income, but must clearly
Knights as they try to secure new recruits. The state their mundane nature.
order in which these occur can be chosen by
the GM or rolled randomly. GMs should also
feel free to create a few encounters of their
the Knights with an extra Experience Point if
own. How many the GM uses is really up to the
players, the sorts of gaming they like, and how they manage to actually recruit new members
much they are enjoying the game. Groups with equal to two-thirds of the events used (i.e. if
a strong desire for combat should only have you use 6 events, they need to recruit 4 or
one or two scenes, whereas those who enjoy more new soldiers to earn the bonus).
roleplaying their characters may be happy to In addition, for each person who talks to
run through a half dozen or more. the Sergeants, the Knights receive donations
GMs can reroll duplicate events or modify equal to several thousand miters. These aren’t
them. For instance, the armchair general may, if from the potential recruits, but from the pil-
sent packing by a Knight’s superior knowledge grims in general.
of tactics, return with a new theory to bore the
characters. Maybe another family wants photos. Once the cameos have been dealt with
This time the lone-parent mother tries to bribe the adventure proper begins—the cameos
the Knights to take her kids, a rude and unruly partly serve to disguise the first major event as
pair, off her hands and deliver them to the merely another routine incident, rather than
Ordo’s orphanage (possibly prompting a stern having it stand out as special as soon as it is
lecture on family values from a Knight). announced.
After each cameo, each of which is set about d10 Event
an hour apart, have every Knight make a Per-
1 Old Friend: One or more Knights
suasion roll. Success means they persuade one
person to go talk to the recruiting Sergeants. A meet an old friend. The buddy may
raise nets them 1d4 potential recruits. Keep a be from the same school or neighbor-
record of the total and halve the final number. hood, or perhaps be a former Knight
This is how many new recruits actually sign up who left through injury or crisis of
to join an Ordo. About half these join the main faith. What he has been doing since
Ordo the Knights serve and the other half elect he last saw the character(s) is up
to enlist with rival Ordines. Feel free to reward to the GM and may be interesting


Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
(“Yeah, I stopped jacking cars. I’m welfare, or more for laughs, with the
a priest now”) or rather mundane mother henpecking her son over
(“Hey, being a farmer isn’t all bad”). his sloppy dress, slouching stance,
2 Potential Assassin: Have each Knight strange friends, gaunt looks, slight
make a Notice roll while surveying paunch, or whatever other imaginary
the passing pilgrims. Whoever rolls issue the GM wishes to invent.
highest spots what looks like a pistol 5 Sign Him Up: A young lad of 18 years
sticking out from a youth’s jacket. It is slips out of line to talk to the Knights.
in fact a paintball gun the kid intends After a few minutes have each Knight
on using after he finishes his pilgrim- make a Common Knowledge roll.
age. Use citizen stats for the youth.
With success, they realize the kid
Knights who shoot first and ask ques- knows his stuff, and is able to discuss
tions later must answer to Mother their weaponry, not in some post-ado-
Agnes first and then their superior lescent fan boy way, but with a solid,
officer back at the Preceptory. How practical grasp of the hardware’s
they handle the incident may lead strengths and weaknesses.
to wild applause from the pilgrims
(nonlethal means) or boos and jeers Problem is, the kid doesn’t actually
(another casualty of war). want to join the Sancti Ordines—he’s
already lost two brothers and an uncle
Sister Superior Freemont comes in the war. Convincing him to enlist
to investigate any disturbance. She requires a Persuasion roll at –4 and
speaks to the Sister at the gate, who
only one roll is allowed. With success,
had already checked the youth, a
he signs his life away. Next time they
local lad of very good character and
strong faith, and noticed the gun for hear of the kid is a year later, when
what it was. She was under no com- they learn of his death during an
pulsion to tell the Knights, who aren’t ambush.
responsible for security. Freemont 6 A Real Assassin: The Sister at the
gives the Knights a lecture on areas of gate suddenly cries out, “Assassin!”
responsibility if they start kicking up a and points toward a young man in
fuss. the crowd as she readies her SMG.
3 My Plan Was Better: The armchair The man, a Necrolatrist hiding among
general the briefing officer warned the pilgrims who had hoped to kill
the Knights about makes an appear- Mother Agnes, draws a gun and aims
ance. He’s a real nerd and has never it at the Knights (any Church target is
been within 1000 miles of a battle, better than none). Deal initiative cards
but he knows his theory. He launches at this point for the Knights and the
into a blow-by-blow account of how Sister on duty (pick one at random,
he would have led the Battle of New except Sister Superior Freemont).
Budapest and secured victory weeks
earlier and with fewer losses. Have Treat him as a Wild Card assassin but
each Knight make a Spirit roll. Those armed only with a 6mm pistol (2 mags)
who fail suffer a level of Fatigue from and two monofilament grenades. The
boredom for the next two hours. courtyard is packed—two solid lines
of citizens, one entering and one exit-
The only way to get rid of the armchair
ing, line the path between the gate
general is to beat him in an opposed
and the shrine. Civilian casualties
Knowledge (Battle) roll, to show him
lead to a strong reprimand back at
the error in his great plan. He has a
skill of d10 (theoretical only—he’d the Preceptory and give a –4 penalty
panic in combat and be of no use). to the next Persuasion rolls to recruit
One roll can be made each hour. new blood.

4 Shoot Me, Please: Meeting an old Security is stepped up a notch after

friend is one thing, but one of the the incident—Freemont joins the
characters has an encounter with guard at the gate and Mother Agnes’
someone he never expected to see guard carries a shield, using it to
here—his mother. This can be played protect the elderly nun from poten-
seriously, with the mother being tial attackers. No amount of arguing
genuinely concerned about her son’s can convince Mother Agnes to halt


 the last word
the pilgrimage—cultists wanting her With success she snatches the baby
dead are just a fact of life she must back and joins the queue as if nothing
live with. had happened. On a failure she tries
7 Medic!: One of the Sergeants (picked to run away into the crowded street,
at random or based on a suitable per- leaving the Knights with a young
sonality trait, such as Lazy) commits infant whose diaper needs an urgent
a potentially fatal error in judgment. change if she is successful. Treat her
He accidentally leaves his flechette as a civilian.
pistol close to the replicas.
Local police, if informed of the
A woman picks up the gun and pulls incident, take the child away and
the trigger (while shouting bang— call in Family Services to deal with
civilians seem to think all guns go the mother. There’s a good chance
bang), thinking it to be a fake, at her the child will end up in a Church
boyfriend, who is seriously injured as orphanage, so the Knights may wish
a flechette rips through his neck. The to arrange for him to be sent to an
Knights, alerted by the screaming, Ordo orphanage instead.
have one chance at a Healing roll to
save the man’s life. How they deal 10 Crazy Woman: A female pilgrim stum-
with the Sergeant is up to them. bles from the shrine and collapses in
a heap in the courtyard. When given
8 Smile for the Camera: A rich family
(mother, father, two young kids) basic medical attention she recovers,
come across to the Knights after babbles, “It’s not real. He told me! It’s
leaving the shrine and asks if they not real,” rises shakily to her feet, and
can take some photos of their kids makes her way out of the precinct. If
posing. Unfortunately, the photos stopped and questioned, she merely
seem to go on forever, with shots of repeats what she said before, only
the kids carrying guns, posing with louder. This occurs ad infinitum.
Knights, wearing camouflage paint,
The woman received a vision from
and such like. Think of them as really
Saint Malachy, informing her of events
excited tourists.
which will soon become apparent to
Asking the kids if they want to join the Knights. Unfortunately, the expe-
up when older gets a rather rude rience has left her temporarily dazed
response. With a serious face, the and confused.
young daughter turns to the Knights
and says, “No way! Daddy says only
retards and the poor join the military!
I’m going to work in a bank and
Scene 2: …and Then the Real
marry a rich man.” The father, totally
embarrassed by his offspring’s out-
Trouble Started
burst, quickly ushers the family on This scene ends the pilgrimage, so the GM
their way. Being rude to the family should ensure all the cameos he wants to use
gives the next recruitment roll a –2 are dealt with first.
penalty.
Inside the shrine, the skull of Saint Malachy
9 You’re His Father!: A young woman is on display behind its bulletproof screen.
carrying a baby suddenly leaps out of From outside, the Knights hear a child shout,
line and thrusts the kid at the near- followed by a cacophony of screams and
est Knight. Through tears (false) she shouts. The loud crack of a stun grenade sig-
claims the Knight is the baby’s father
nals something very bad has happened.
and deserted her after a one-night
stand (no pun intended). On entering the shrine, the Knights
The woman is slightly deranged, discover a riot in progress. Several citizens
though harmless, and is known to the stagger around stunned by the grenade, but
local authorities, having pulled this many others are pushing and banging on the
stunt several times before with com- glass, while Mother Agnes and her bodyguard
plete strangers. Convincing her, and have been pushed back into a corner by the
the startled pilgrims, the Knight isn’t angry mob. The Sister has her shield covering
the father, requires a Persuasion roll Agnes, but this leaves her exposed to kicks and
at –2 (and ideally some roleplaying). punches.


Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Hand out the stats for one Sister to the using her ID tag. Closer inspection allows the
players. The other Sisters join the fray if the Notice roll at no penalty. Removing a flechette
characters summon them or if Mother Agnes from a magazine to compare sizes isn’t pos-
is taking a beating. Under no circumstances sible due to the way the magazines are loaded.
should she be Incapacitated, let alone killed. However, firing a single shot into something
relatively soft (such as the cushion on which
The Knights now have a dilemma. The
the casket sits) produces a near-intact flechette.
citizens are rioting, endangering a holy relic,
It’s a perfect fit!
and threatening a member of the Church, but
they are unarmed civilians. A massacre will not Mother Agnes is shocked to her core and
go down well (a trip to the Penitents is the collapses to the floor. After waking (a Healing
likely outcome of any inquiry—and one will be roll can do this in a few minutes with smell-
launched). Unfortunately, flechette weapons ing salts), she orders the shrine closed down
are virtually silent, so firing into the air won’t until further notice and orders Freemont and
get anyone’s attention. the Knights to launch a full investigation. She
also states that she checked the skull just last
Calming the riots can be achieved a number
week in minute detail and noticed nothing
of ways. First, the Knights can take out half the
untoward.
number. This can be achieved by nonlethal
means (such as punches or baton grenades), Questioning the rioters doesn’t reveal a lot
stun grenades, or killing them. Second, they of interest. A child spotted the hole and some-
can try to shout or talk them down. Only a one (an ex-Sergeant) quickly explained it was
single roll is allowed, though it can be a Coop- a flechette injury, something an ancient relic
erative roll. Intimidation rolls have a –2 penalty, could not have. Religious fervor then spilled
whereas Persuasion suffers a –4 penalty. over into anger and the riot ensued.
Hardcore Rioters (4): Treat as civil- Freemont orders the rioters arrested and
ians, but they are unarmed and Berserk (see locked in the Knights’ barracks (after they have
Necropolis). cleared out their gear). The local authorities
are not yet informed of the situation, both
Rioters (16): Treat as civilians, but they are
Agnes and Freemont wishing to keep the news
unarmed (see Necropolis).
of the skull being a fake secret until the truth of
the matter has been deduced.
What Happened?
Once the riot is over, the Sisters quickly
assume control. The pilgrims in the building
Scene 3: The Investigation
are lead or carried outside, and the shrine doors Hopefully, a Knight recalls Sister Superior
are closed. The main gates are also closed, Freemont’s earlier comments about the secu-
leaving the rioters trapped in the courtyard rity system and advises they check the recent
(for questioning). Sister Superior Freemont security logs. Should they not, Fremont makes
addresses the crowd outside the gates, by now the suggestion.
becoming agitated, and spins a story of “reli-
If asked, Freemont says she knows of only
gious fervor” and “closing the shrine for a short
one visitor in the last week, Father Supe-
while to allow passions to cool.”
rior Turman Fitzgerald, the head of a small
The Sister on duty in the shrine at the time monastic order whose monastery is located
tells the Knights that a child pointed at the skull on the end of town. Freemont reveals Father
and shouted something. Suddenly the crowd Superior Fitzgerald visits every year just before
around the reliquary strengthened, and then the pilgrimage to worship in private and pay
the riot broke out. All she can recall is hearing his respects to the saint. He and Mother Agnes
phrases like, “It’s not real!” and “They’ve lied!” have known each other for many years.
Investigating the skull through the glass Five cameras cover the shrine. Scrolling
requires a Notice roll at –2. With success, the back through the various recordings reveals
Knight discovers a small hole (just a fraction just one visitor who entered the shrine area—
of an inch across) in the back of the head. A the Father Superior. He is escorted in by Sister
Common Knowledge roll indicates the hole Marie-Nicole. The recordings show the elderly
could have been made by a flechette. man and Sister walk across to the shrine.
Mother Agnes allows the Knights to inves- The monk then whispers something to
tigate the skull in more detail, but only if they Sister Marie-Nicole, who promptly uses her
wear gloves. Sister Superior Freemont deac- ID tag to deactivate the alarms and open the
tivates the alarm system and opens the lock case. Father Superior Fitzgerald then opens the

10
 the last word
casket and removes the skull, which he places Q: Why did you allow him to take the
in his robes, and replaces it with another. The skull?
Sister then secures the case and reactivates the A: “I didn’t! No one is allowed to touch the
alarm. A further ten minutes shows the monk Blessed Saint except Mother Agnes. Those are
seemingly at prayer before leaving, escorted the rules of the shrine.” [Again, showing her
again by the Sister. the recording elicits a firm denial and total lack
A character making a Notice roll realizes the of memory.]
monk’s face is only clearly visible from one of Q: Did Father Superior Fitzgerald seem
the cameras—from the others he is concealed different?
by the Sister, the shrine, or his hood. Freemont
(who discovers this if the Knights don’t) states A: “No, not at all. He was his usual polite
self. He is a charming man, very devout and
that the camera they are viewing was installed
very proper in his ways.”
only two weeks ago and in secret—only Free-
mont and Mother Agnes knew of its existence. The Sister can’t remember anything of the
If questioned about this, Freemont says it is events because she was subjected to a version
standard practice before a major event to add of the puppet litany. Under the command of the
extra cameras to increase security. monk, she performed the deeds exactly as on
the tape, and was then ordered to remember
Should a character think to zoom in on the nothing untoward. As far as she is concerned,
monk’s face, have the Knights present make the monk came in, prayed silently, and left, the
Notice rolls. With success, they spot the monk same as he does every year.
is smiling while praying. It isn’t a warm smile,
but rather one of victory. On a raise, a Knight Breaking the mental block is possible, but
detects a momentary flash of yellow across the it isn’t easy. First, a character can try to perform
Father Superior’s eyes. Freezing that frame a quick exorcism of whatever is blocking her
memories (a dispel litany in game terms).
reveals not the eyes of a man, but something
The puppet spell has an arcane skill of d12 for
reptilian.
this purpose and only a single roll is allowed.
With success, the spell is broken and Sister
Interrogating the Sister Marie-Nicole’s memories come flooding back,
causing her to break down into loud sobs. After
Freemont protests if the Knights demand the nun calms down, she tells the Knights what
to question Sister Marie-Nicole, claiming the happened—Fitzgerald asked her to deactivate
security of the shrine is a matter for the Sisters. the alarms and open the case, and then forget
However, Mother Agnes rebukes her sternly, everything that happened.
proclaiming the Sisters have failed in their
sacred duty. With heavy heart, she turns the Should dispel not be available, there is a
investigation over to the Knights, promising ritual exorcism available, though it is difficult
them whatever aid she and the Sisters can and not without danger. Instead of invoking
provide. a litany, the exorcist uses his own faith and
willpower to break down the mental block by
Freemont, through gritted teeth, asks if she asking questions over and over, quoting scrip-
can be present for the interrogation. The final ture, staring into her eyes and locking wills with
decision rests with the senior Knight. whatever is causing the memory loss, and look-
ing for any chinks in the block. This involves a
Rather than provide a pre-written speech
Faith roll at –2 opposed by a d12 roll.
from the Sister, her interrogation takes the
form of likely questions and the nun’s answers. With success, a thin black vapor escapes
During the interrogation the characters can the Sister’s lips and she begins sobbing. She
make Notice rolls. Success reveals the Sister is then reveals the truth as above. On a failure,
telling the truth. the poor chaplain catches a glimpse in Marie-
Nicole’s eyes of the Dark, causing him to make
Q: What did Father Superior Fitzgerald say a Guts roll or suffer Terror. A critical failure
to you? gives a –2 penalty to the Guts roll. Whatever
A: “Nothing of note. He greeted me at the the outcome, the lengthy ritual is extremely
gate and asked if I was well. Then we entered draining, both mentally and physically. The
the shrine, but nothing more was said until character must make a Vigor roll or suffer a
he bade me farewell.” [Showing her the tape level of Fatigue for 24 hours.
causes the nun to frown and say, “I don’t It doesn’t matter if the Knights learn the
remember that at all. I swear, he never said a truth or not—they have enough evidence of his
word in the shrine.” involvement in the theft to question the Father

11
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Superior. Should they make their intentions for the Dark’s cause, it promptly stole the relic.
public, Mother Agnes pens a letter granting the Although it could easily have slaughtered the
Knights full authority in the investigation and Sisters and Mother Agnes, it had no wish to
stamps it with the shrine’s seal as proof to the instantly alert the authorities to the disappear-
Father Superior of their status. ance of the skull. Had it not been for a child, it
would likely have been a year before the theft
Reinforcements was noticed.

The Knights may wish to procure reinforce- You can use the shrine map for the monas-
ments for their trip to the small monastery. tery. Instead of the shrine area, the monastery
has a small church (with a separate chapel,
Sister Superior Freemont and the Sisters of still). This is where all the action takes place.
Bradamante are extremely reluctant to leave
the shrine. The crowd outside is still ugly, and
whatever stole the skull may seek to return and
finish off Mother Agnes. However, Freemont
Scene 1: The Truth Will Out
allows them full access to the Prophet and the The main church doors open to reveal
armory. the stench of a charnel house. Blood,
Aside from a lot of flechette ammunition blackened with age, clings to the walls
(assume 50 mags for every type of flechette and stains the tiled floor. Hanging in one
weapon), the Sisters have six flechette pistols, corner are the corpses of a dozen monks,
a 25mm SBAC (with 2 magazines), 20 baton their skin missing, gaping wounds across
grenades, 20 stun grenades, 10 monofilament their necks indicating the cause of death
grenades, 10 HEAP grenades, a Maximus and the source of the gore. Each has been
RGL (after 2352), and a dozen heartbreakers, hanged by his own intestines.
donated to them by the Impalers. Time for Guts rolls. The Knights have seen
The Sergeants whine loudly about being worse sights on the battlefield, so those who
noncombatants, but orders are orders and fail suffer Fear while they remain in the mon-
they’re not stupid enough to go against the astery.
Knights’ demand. They continue to whine
Seated on the altar (a blasphemous act, as
through the journey.
the Knights know) is an elderly man wrapped
Outside reinforcements from the nearest in voluminous black robes. His left hand rests
nearby Preceptory are, in theory, a possibility, but on a skull—the skull of Saint Malachy.
the WM should try to avoid allowing this through
plausible excuses. Perhaps there are simply no “You’re earlier than I expected,” the
dropships available (due to an exercise, routine monk sneers. “I had hoped for more time
maintenance, or mass delivery run), bad weather to complete my quest, but, as you mortals
has grounded all flights until further notice, or say, the best laid plans of mice and men
the local commander doesn’t think tracking often go awry. I take it you have come for
down a missing relic requires his troops. this?” It strokes its fingers across the skull.
“So strange an object, the bones of a
mortal being, yet ones possessed of strange
Act 3: Monastery of the power.” It lifts its hand and brings it crash-
ing down toward the skull. A faction of an
Damned inch from the skull, the hand pauses, as if
held back by some invisible force. “Material
Father Superior Fitzgerald isn’t really the vil- remains, yet ones impervious to physical
lain of the tale. It was his flesh which committed destruction by anything I can summon,
the crime, but not his soul. Always interested in and I can summon a lot of power! Still, I
the nature of the Rephaim, Fitzgerald acquired can’t allow you to reclaim it. You see, it
through dubious means several archaic vol- spoke to me and I don’t want you learning
umes on the nature of demons. Alas, one of the its secrets. Perhaps your weapons would
books contained more than just speculation, have some effect.”
and while reading a passage something from With lightning reflexes, the hand clasps
the Dark Dimension consumed him. the skull and holds it in front of its body,
Armed with the monk’s full memories, the darting it left and right, up and down. “Go
fiend learned of the skull of Saint Malachy and on,” it taunts, “fire your guns. Let’s see if I
its history. Seeing a potentially powerful tool can intercept your flechettes.”

12
 the last word
Knights looking to engage the monk The flechettes rip into the monk’s flesh,
immediately are met with a stern rebuke. The spraying blood as they exit his shattered
seated figure merely wags its finger and says, corpse. Rather than falling, the figure
“How typical. You are faced with something simply looks down and smiles. “Now let us
you don’t understand, so your first thought is play,” it laughs.
to kill it. Surely the opportunity to ask ques- The skin suddenly bulges and splits, a
tions and learn something about your enemy gigantic figure merging, writhing, twist-
should be seen as a golden opportunity.” ing from the fleshy shell as if escaping
The fiend is stalling for time, though it will imprisonment. It grows larger, rising to its
answer questions (such is its sheer arrogance). cloven feet to reveal a towering, glisten-
While it talks, it secretly animates the skinned ing black-scaled humanoid figure, with
monks. They join the battle one round after the yellow eyes and huge, curved horns. Bony
spines suddenly erupt from its arms and
combat begins (no matter how long that takes),
legs, while two bone blades slide from its
assuming the Knights haven’t topped and tailed
forearms with a sickening, grinding noise.
them, of course. Questions the creature will
Green balefire crackles across its body as it
answer are given below (along with its reply). rushes to attack!
On other matters it merely scoffs and refuses
to answer. Time for another Guts roll, only this time
it’s at –2 and those who fail suffer the effects
Q: What is your name? of Terror. The demon, unable to return home
A: “Names are power. I think you may find to the Dark Dimension, and being arrogant
this answer appropriate, though. My name is enough to believe it is indestructible, fights to
Legion, for we are many. If you want to live, the death. Once the demon is destroyed, all
you may call me Master! its spells end. This also deactivates the zombie
monks, who fall to the ground, lifeless.
Q: What are you? Are you Rephaim?
After it takes its final wound, the demon
A: “In your terminology, a demon would manages to utter a few final words before dis-
be the closest approximation. These creatures solving into a cloud of black, sulfur-smelling
you call the Rephaim are nothing, mere pawns dust. “My work is undone, but the shrine is no
in the endless struggle. Since you claim you more!” it howls. “Commence the attack! Let
are the light, the Rephaim would be mere their blood stain the shrine, forever!”
shadows. We are the darkness. Back at the shrine, a squad of Ordo Ten-
Q: How long have you been here? ebrae, summoned days ago by the demon and
currently operating from a safehouse close to
A: “I have been here for a matter of weeks, the shrine, begin an attack.
but my kind has haunted the universe since
time began. Your ancestors knew of us. Some Demon: See page 17.
worshipped us as gods, and rightfully so. Rephaim Monks (12): See page 18.
Others called us demons and sought to barter
with us. We are immortal and infinite. We
witnessed the beginning of the universe, and
we shall be its end. Act 4: Showdown at the
Q: What do you want?
Shrine
A: “Ah, now that is a simple question. Surely
even a talking ape like you could guess at the When the Knights get within five miles of
answer. We want nothing more than the total the shrine, their headset communicators burst
extermination of all life, all existence.” into life.
Sooner or later someone is going to get “This is Sister Superior Freemont to
trigger-happy. Maybe the Knights don’t want all available Knights. The shrine of Saint
to banter with a self-proclaimed demon, or Malachy is under attack. I repeat. We are
perhaps the fiend grows tired and seeks to under attack. Suspect Ordo Tenebrae Lance.
end the charade. The fleshy body of the monk Urgent assistance required. They are in the
has Toughness 5. When it takes its first wound building! They are in the building!”
(which actually causes the demon no injury), The radio then goes silent, though the
a dramatic transformation occurs. The skull is Knights can hear Freemont cursing as she lays
immune to any damage the Knights can cause, down withering fire. The Knights can reach the
though they won’t know this, of course. shrine in just a few minutes at top speed. Out-

13
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
side the main gates, which hang off their hinges
(having been blown apart with monofilament
Scene 2: Saint Malachy’s Final
grenades), are many dozen dead, dying, and
injured civilians. The sounds of combat, gre-
Prophecy
nade explosions and shouts, can be heard from Once the head is returned to its rightful
within the shrine. place in the shrine, a distant yet strong voice
can be heard echoing throughout the room.

Scene 1: Firefight! “The rekindled candle shall be engulfed

in darkness when the fallen angel to Salus
Hand out the Sisters’ Ally Sheet to the comes and the black eye flickers. Men of
players (the GM controls Mother Agnes). The purity shall fall and stand brother against
positions of the Sisters and Black Knights are as brother in times to come. The one upon the
below. No one has yet taken any injuries. Deal throne shall reign eternal over a divided
initiative cards and let the combat begin. realm. The End of Days has come.”
Mother Agnes is in her bedroom, with With a loud crack, the skull shatters
Sister Superior Freemont in the office, using into a hundred pieces. Saint Malachy, it
the door as Medium cover as she fires at two seems, will speak no more.
Ordo Tenebrae at the end of the corridor near Mother Superior Agnes falls to her
the stores (Medium Cover from the door). knees, her hands locked in prayer, tears in
Mother Agnes will use her miracles to defend her eyes. “At last I have heard his voice! I
the Sisters and shrine, but won’t risk her life in shall inform His Holiness of this prophecy
a fruitless endeavor. at once. May God have mercy on us all.”
Sister Bernadette is crouching behind a The prophecy is not just random gibberish
sarcophagus (Heavy Cover) in the crypt, keep- to confuse the players or force them to spend
ing a single Black Knight in the doorway to the time trying to work it out—it points to a ter-
chapel at bay (he has Medium Cover). rible future event. That event will be detailed
Sister Ophelia is pinned down in the fur- in a future product.
thest cell from the refectory (Medium Cover),
firing from the doorway at two Dark Knights at
the other end of the corridor
Sister Marie-Nicole is in the library, prone
Update: Sisters of
(Heavy Cover) behind a fallen bookcase while firing
at one Black Night in the chapel doorway and the
Bradamante
Ordo Tenebrae officer who is by the door that leads Of all the orders of nuns on Salus, the Sis-
from the refectory (both have Medium Cover). ters of Bradamante (or Bradamantites) stand
The Ordo Tenebrae soldiers are not rook- out as unusual.
ies. Once they realize they are being attacked
on tow fronts, they pull back to reform and
fight from a defensible position. They make use
History
of available Cover and Aim if the opportunity The Sisters of Bradamante were created
arises. They’ll certainly use their grenades in 2342 by Papal Edict. Several cardinals, all
to maximum effectiveness, not caring if they opposed to the power given the Sacri Ordines,
injure their own men or not, so long as a larger had long voiced concerns about male Knights
number of foes are in the blast radius. guarding convents, claiming it would lead to
“disciplinary problems.” None of the Ordines
Once the battle is over, the Knights and Sis-
were willing to split their forces along lines of
ters can perform first aid on the wounded. All
sex, and most resented having to divert man-
the Ordo Tenebrae Knights have a skull painted
power away from the frontlines for this duty.
with the number 666 in blood red below on
the left shoulder plate of their armor. They are Never one to let his opponents have the
members of the “Legion of Hell,” an elite Ordo final word, Pope John dutifully declared the
Tenebrae Banner trained to operate behind Sacri Ordines were no longer responsible
enemy lines and strike at a moment’s notice. for the protection of convents. Before his
Now introduced, the Knights should encounter opponents could congratulate themselves,
these fanatics again during your campaign. he added that he was creating a new order of
nuns, the militant Sisters of Bradamante, to
Ordo Tenebrae Dark Knight (5): Page 18.
fill that role instead. The Grand Masters put
Ordo Tenebrae Officer (1): Page 18. up token resistance, claiming any warriors of

14
 the last word
the Church should be part of the Ordines, but Adolphus Kesting of the Praetorians, a move
secretly breathed a sigh of relief. In creating the seen as even worse than giving control to the
Sisters, though, the Pope may have played into archbishops. Kesting, however, wisely leaves
the hands of cardinals who want to see females the day-to-day running of the Sisterhood to
formed into their own Sancti Ordo. their highest-ranking officer, Abbess Alicia Win-
Bradamante, though a creation of literature, ters, a former Preacher, who has served in this
was described as the ideal warrior maiden— role since their inception.
highly skilled, brave, and loyal. The Sisters There are four actual ranks—Abbess (the
serve the Church as protectors of its female- head of the order), Mother Superior, Sister
oriented sacred places. Efforts are focused on Superior, and Sister. The Abbess is commander
guarding shrines of female saints and convents. of the Sisters, though technically subservient
Many female senior Church figures use them to Grand Master Kesting. Each one of Salus’
as bodyguards even today, a direct snub against
archbishoprics (even the Union has Church
the Praetorians.
shrines which need guarding) is commanded by
Bradamante supposedly had a magical a Mother Superior. Sister Superiors command a
lance. Unsurprisingly, many Impalers consider single Lance, having the same status and com-
the Sisters almost part of their organization, mand responsibilities as a Senior Knight. Sisters
and relations between the two factions are are the rank-and-file members, equivalent to
generally good. Knights. As a purely monastic order, albeit a mili-
tant one, there is no equivalent of Sergeants.
Training
Members are accepted from the laity or Military Structure
transfers from the five original Ordines. Cur- The Sisters based their organization loosely
rent membership stands at just 5,000. Their on the Sacri Ordines. The smallest unit is the
forces are divided across Salus. Lance, comprising 4-6 Sisters. As defenders of
When a Sister joins the order, she undergoes the Church, not aggressors, Sisters use only the
a year of religious and military training, similar roles of Chaplains, Combat Medics, Infantry,
to that of Knights. Currently, the Sisters receive Infantry Support, and Vehicle Crew. A typical
military training from Praetorian instructors. shrine is guarded by a single Lance. Convents
Those who fail to meet the grade are sent and abbeys house up to six Lances, depending
home. Those who stay become Novitiates and on their size and location.
are closely watched for a further two years.
During this time they are expected to perform All the Lances in an archbishopric form a
the role of full Sisters, but are not required Convent. The Sisters have never marshaled their
to take holy vows. Candidates who pass must forces into a cohesive force, and a Convent is
decide to take their holy vows (identical to considered an administrative formation, not a
those of a Knight) or leave. Assuming she stays, military one.
the candidate receives the title of Sister. Military hardware is similar to that used by
Transferees undergo six months of religious the Sacri Ordines, though they may not carry
training only before becoming Novitiates. They swords (they carry molecular daggers instead)
also lose a rank, beginning again at the bottom and only wear light armor. The Sisters have
the ladder. access to Prophets and Nazareth tanks, but must
rely on the Ordines for other military hardware.
Command Structure
Although militant, the Sisters are nuns first Financial Support
and foremost, and thus have no Grand Master. As a non-military force, the Sisters are
Although always technically commanded by forbidden from operating Commanderies or
their Abbess, she was primarily a figurehead Preceptories. Likewise, they have no permanent
until recently. convents or abbeys of their own, and thus may
Before 2351, Sisters answered to the not collect tithes. Instead, they rely on a small
cardinal in charge of the Office of Antiquities budget from the Office of Antiquities, pilgrim
when it came to military matters, something donations, and funds from the Ordines. Convents
which annoyed the Grand Masters, who saw and abbeys are quick to provide as much support
this as placing military resources under civilian as they can, especially in rural communities,
authority and a dangerous precedent. As of where the Sisters, despite their low numbers, are
2351, they officially answer to Grand Master often the only form of military power.

15
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

Playing a Sister she has caused several cardinals to back down

from proposed changes to the shrine’s run-
Sisters are sometimes sent to serve with ning, much to the Pope’s amusement. Dressing
the Sancti Ordines when protection or libera- down heavily-armed Knights who breach the
tion of Church property or female personnel rules holds no fear for her.
is required and to gain combat experience. Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d10, Spirit
They can never command a mixed Ordo Lance, d12+2, Strength d4, Vigor d6
regardless of their rank, and must defer to the Skills: Faith d12, Guts d8, Intimidation d12,
highest ranked Knight. Sisters use only the Knowledge (Church) d10, Notice d6, Persua-
military roles listed above, but every Sister must sion d8, Taunt d8
have Spirit d6+ and Guts d6+, in addition to Charisma: +2; Pace: 3; Parry: 2; Toughness: 7
any other requirements. Hindrances: Elderly, Lame (advanced old age),
A newly created character may either take Loyal, Pacifist (Major), Stubborn, Vow (Major:
the Praetorian’s special training or elect to be holy vows)
a transferee and take an Ordo’s training. Trans- Edges: Arcane Background (Miracles), Char-
ferees must give up their sword. Characters ismatic, Combat Reflexes, Command, Fervor,
who transfer, whether in play or as part of their Improved Tough as Nails, Master (Spirit), New
background, may learn the Praetorian’s abilities Powers, Power Points, Strong-Willed
through the Sister of Bradamante Edge. They Powers: Blessing, detect/conceal arcana, dis-
retain their Ordo’s special training, but may pel, healing, stun (25 PP)
not take the Ordo Edge of their former Ordo Gear: Habit, rosary, walking stick
while serving with the Sisters, being removed
from the special training and constant practice
necessary to earn that bonus.
Sisters of Bradamante
Sister Superior Clare Freemont
New Edge Sister Superior Freemont transferred from
the Impalers, where she served with honors as a
Sister of Bradamante Senior Knight, three years ago, after a leg injury
Requirements: Novice, female ruled her out of future frontline duty. The Sisters
accepted her without question. Since then she
The character is a member of the Sisters of has worked hard and received her promotion last
Bradamante and has received special training. year. She is very fond of Mother Superior Agnes,
The character may take either the Bodyguard though she’d never tell the old girl that to her
or Defensive Mentality special training of the Pra- face. Her spear doubles as a walking stick.
etorians when she picks this Edge. Note this as Notes: Remove her Tactician Edge if a
Sister of Bradamante (Bodyguard) or (Defensive player character has the Edge.
Mentality). This Edge may be taken more than
once, thus allowing the hero to acquire both Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d10,
bonuses. These benefits are retained even if the Strength d6, Vigor d8
Sister leaves the sisterhood. A serving Sister with Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d8+2, Intimidation
both Praetorian special training benefits may d6, Knowledge (Battle) d8, Notice d6, Shoot-
take the Serve and Protect Edge as an advance- ing d6, Stealth d6
ment, ignoring the Praetorian requirement. Charisma: +2; Pace: 4; Parry: 7/8; Tough-
ness: 10(4)
Hindrances: Heroic, Lame (old leg injury),
Loyal, Mean, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
The Cast Edges: Attractive, Block, Charismatic, Combat
Reflexes, Command, Dodge, Face-to-Face, Hold
the Line, Rank (Senior Knight equivalent), Rock
Mother Superior Agnes and Roll, Sister of Bradamante (Bodyguard &
Defensive Mentality), Tactician, Total Faith
Mother Superior Agnes has governed the Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette SMG with
Shrine of St. Malachy since it was founded 3 mags (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1,
in 2320. Wizened with age, yet possessed of AP 2, Auto), spear (Str+d6, +1 Parry, Reach
indomitable spirit, she accepts no breach of 1, 2 hands), 2 stun grenades on belt (Range:
the rules regarding the shrine. She is a staunch 5/10/20, MBT, Vigor roll or Shaken), molecular
supporter of the Pope, and was an early convert dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2), binoculars, mobile
to the Third Reformation Church. In her time command center, ID scanner, ID tag.

16
 the last word
Sister of Bradamante Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Vow (Major: sacred vows), Yellow
Assuming there are four player characters, Edges: Charismatic
the three other Sisters are named Sister Berna- Gear: Flechette pistol with 1 mag (Range:
dette, Sister Ophelia, and Sister Maria-Nicole. 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, RoF 1, Shots 30, AP 2,
With more than four Knights, the GM must Semi-Auto), molecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP
create more names. 2), marketing materials
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Intimidation d6,
The Demon
Notice d6, Shooting d6 Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d12,
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 9(4) Strength d12+2, Vigor d10
Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows) Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d12, Necro-
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Sister of Bra- mancy d10, Notice d10, Stealth d6, Taunt d10
damante (Bodyguard: currently Mother Supe- Pace: 8; Parry: 7; Toughness: 14(2)
rior Agnes) Hindrances: Arrogant, Bloodthirsty, Mean,
Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette rifle with 3 Overconfident
mags (Range: 24/48/96, Damage: 2d8+1, AP Edges: Ambidextrous, Command, Improved
2, Auto, 3RB), 5 baton grenades in GL (Range: Frenzy, Improved Sweep, Level Headed, Two
10/20/40, Damage: 2d10 nonlethal), 2 stun gre- Fisted
nades on belt (Range: 5/10/20, MBT, Vigor roll Special Abilities:
or Shaken), molecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP * Armor +2: Glistening black scales.
2), medpac, ID tag. * Damage Resistance: The demon halves
Specialties: all piercing weapon damage and slashing
Each Sister has a particular specialty or talent, damage from melee weapons. Heavy
represented by an additional Edge. Roll a d8 Weapons, lasers, explosive weapons, and
for each Sister and consult the chart below. Do flamethrowers inflict normal damage.
not reroll duplicates.
* Demon: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
d8 Edge from being Shaken. Called shots do no
1 Alertness extra damage. Immune to poison and
2 Brawny (Toughness 10(4)) disease. No wound penalties.
3 Fleet Footed (Pace 8) * Gore: If the demon moves at least 6” before
4 Grenade Launcher King attacking and uses its horn at the end of its
5 Hose ‘Em Down (armed with flech- movement it causes an additional +4 damage.
ette MG, 3 mags, 2 stun grenades, and * Improved Arcane Resistance: +4 Armor
molecular dagger) against damage-causing powers and +4 on
6 Marksman trait rolls to resist opposed powers.
7 Medic (armed with flechette SMG, 3 mags, * Necromantic Weapons: Bone blades and
2 stun grenades, and molecular dagger) horns (Str+d8). For each wound inflicted
8 Rock and Roll
on a living foe with these weapons, the
demon heals one of its own wounds.
Recruiting Sergeant
* Size +3: The demon stands around 15’ tall.
The Sacri Ordines need constant recruits, * Spells: Barrier, burst, deflection, dispel,
and it’s the job of marketing and recruitment puppet (special: permanent duration
sergeants to tempt the masses into enlisting. unless dispelled or the demon is slain),
Few have any practical combat experience, zombie (special: once per day can animate
though they are equipped with sidearms as all corpses within 24”); 30 Power Points.
standard. Smartly dressed and with silver
tongues, Knights refer to these necessary links * Thermal Vision: Halves penalties for bad
in the chain as “Slimes.” lighting when attacking living targets.
* Weakness (Skull of St. Malachy): Hitting
Notes: The Yellow Hindrance represents the demon with the skull causes Str+d10
the Sergeants general lack of combat experi- damage (Range: 3/6/12 for throwing). The
ence and tendency to panic when faced with damage ignores the demon’s natural armor
armed opposition.
(reducing it to Toughness 11), passes through
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, any barrier it has erected, and cannot be
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Soaked. Unfortunately, the demon dedicates
Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d4, Notice d6, Persua- its attacks to killing a character holding the
sion d6, Shooting d4, Streetwise d6 skull after it has been used once.

17
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

Rephaim Monks Charisma: –4; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness:

10(4)
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4, Hindrances: Bloodthirsty
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Edges: Combat Reflexes, Command, Fervor
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4, Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette SMG with 3
Shooting d6, Stealth d6 magazines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1,
Pace: 4 Parry: 5 Toughness: 7 AP 2, Auto), molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4)
Gear: None Special Abilities:
Special Abilities: * Insane: These insane soldiers are immune
* Claws: Str+d4. to Fear and Intimidation.
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and
Intimidation. Dark Knight
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all penalties Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
for bad lighting when attacking living targets Strength d8, Vigor d8
or vehicles with their engine running. Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d8, Intimidation
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover d6, Notice d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6
from being Shaken. Immune to poison and Charisma: –4; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness:
disease. No additional damage from called 10(4)
shots. Half-damage from piercing weapons. Hindrances: Bloodthirsty
Edges: Combat Reflexes
Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette rifle with 3
Ordo Tenebrae magazines (Range: 24/48/96, Damage: 2d8+1,
AP2, Auto, 3RB), 4 monofilament grenades
in GL (Range: 20/40/80, Damage: 3d8, AP 4,
Dark Knight Officer MBT), molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4)
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d8, Special Abilities:
Strength d8, Vigor d8 * Insane: These insane soldiers are immune
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d10, Knowledge (Bat- to Fear and Intimidation.
tle) d6, Notice d8, Riding d8, Shooting d8

Map of Shrine of St. Malachy c.2350, Argentoratus, Nove Europa

18
 Player Handout #1: Tactical Briefing
Date: 26.VII, 0600 Zulu.
Good morning! My name is Donald Malidore. I am the Preceptor Marketing and
Merchandizing Officer, or MMO for short.
Tomorrow is the feast day of Saint Malachy, and thousands of pilgrims are set to
descend on his shrine in Argentoratus in northwest Nova Europa. He’s a minor saint,
so chances are you have never heard of him. A datasheet has been drawn up listing
the pertinent facts. [Give the players Player Handout #2.] Read it thoroughly.
The Preceptor Master has seen fit to organize a recruitment drive to take advantage
of the gathering, and your Lance has been volunteered for the hearts and minds
mission on behalf of our Ordo.
Mother Superior Agnes, who runs the shrine, has granted us permission to set up a
stand outside the main shrine and hand out flyers and promotional material. All you
Knights need do is look charming and talk to the locals. Once the potential recruits
are engaged in conversation with you, steer them to the marketing and recruiting
Sergeants who will be accompanying you. By all means regale them with war
stories, but avoid mentioning losses in combat and anything too horrific.
Mother Superior Agnes is a personal friend of His Holiness, so please treat her with
great respect, and obey her commands. Although she is advanced in years, she has
a reputation as being fearsome when roused. More than one battle-hardened Knight
has been reduced to a quivering wreck by her. She has permission from the Precep-
tor Master to hand out punishments if you break any rules while in her domain, and
believe me, she will carry them out.
Security at the shrine is being handled by the resident Sisters of Bradamante, a
militant order of nuns unaffiliated to the Sacri Ordines who specialize in this sort
of thing. A data update has been prepared. [Give the players the Update: Sister of
Bradamante sheet.] Liaise with their commander, Sister Superior Freemont, when
you arrive. Should any trouble occur, she is the commanding tactical officer in
matters of protecting the shrine, its contents, or Mother Superior Agnes, and you
are strongly advised to listen to her—she knows the local terrain, you don’t.
You will be flown up to Argentoratus, straight after the briefing by Angel, so you
have time to rest before tomorrow and set up the stand. The town is likely to be
heaving with pilgrims already. Quarters have been arranged for you near the shrine,
and you are under orders to stay within the shrine precincts at all times.
Enemy Forces: Thousands of pilgrims, the occasional fanatic or madman, groupies
clamoring to touch you brave war heroes, and some know-it-all armchair generals
who will tell you how to win the war are likely to be the worst of your problems.
There is always a chance militant heretics will use the gathering to commit some
atrocity, so stay sharp out there. Just do not go shooting any innocents—think
before you fire!
Support: A handful of marketing and recruitment Sergeants will be accompanying
you. These men have not been near a battlefield in years, so please treat them
gently. You Knights will draw the crowds, so the Sergeants are basically going to be
working in the background.
The Angel will drop you off just outside the shrine’s precinct and then fly to the
nearest Preceptory, a Templar Maritime Preceptory, to refuel. Your commanding
officer will have the necessary radio frequencies and call sign. It will return at 0900
hours on the 28th to bring you back here.
Equipment: Just your standard gear is being issued. We have loaded boxes of
recruitment flyers and posters, promotional mugs, pens, and buttons to give away,
and other marketing material on the dropship. Do not throw it out en route! Mock
flechette weapons are also being supplied. Civilians love this stuff; so let them play
soldier all they want. Just don’t give them any live weapons.
 Player Handout #2: Saint Malachy
Born of noble blood in Ireland, Malachy (1094–1148) rose quickly through the
Church ranks, becoming Archbishop of Armagh in 1132. Zealous by nature, he
helped reform the ailing Irish Church, bringing it back in line with Rome’s doctrine.
He was also a strong supporter of monasticism, founding the Abbey of Mellifont in
1142.
During a trip to Rome in 1139, he allegedly fell ill and spoke the Prophecy of Popes,
though this was never mentioned during his life. Saint Malachy died in 1148 at
Clairvaux, in the arms of Bernard of Clairvaux (later Saint Bernard). He was canon-
ized in 1199 by Pope Clement III.

Prophecy of the Popes

On a trip to Rome, St. Malachy reportedly succumbed to illness. During his fevered
state, he began spouting brief Latin verses, which an aide duly recorded. Each verse
was purportedly a prophecy relating to a future pope. In some cases it gave clues to
the identity of the pope, in others the works he would achieve.
Malachy’s list ended with Peter of Rome (Petrus Romanus), about whom he said,
“During the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church, the seat will be occupied by
Peter of Rome, who will feed his sheep in many tribulations; and when these things
are finished, the seven-hilled city will be destroyed, and the formidable Judge will
judge his people. The End."
The prophecies were not published until 1595, which made the veracity of the
authorship dubious. Regardless of who actually wrote them, their interpretations
stood the test of time, ringing true one after another. Detractors point out that any
prophecy can be twisted to fit known facts.
Following the death of the last-but-one pope, the Catholic Church sought to delay the
prophecy in a move which stunned the world. Rather than electing an elder statesman,
as was previously the case, they elected a youth, albeit one extremely knowledgeable
of religious lore and doctrine, who took the papal name Leo XIV. What the Curia who
elected the youth did not know was that he was an orphan whose original name was
Peter. Even Peter had no knowledge of his true name. Fate, it seemed, could not be
avoided.
Saint Malachy’s prophecy began to ring true in 2100. News of the discovery of Chal-
cis swept the globe and religious upheaval began. Though Rome was not destroyed,
her powerbase collapsed rapidly. Already pumped full of anti-aging drugs to extend
his life, the pope saw his people through the worst of the strife.
However, drugs could not work miracles, and he died a natural death on November
2, 2148, exactly a thousand years after St. Malachy. In 2149, the First Reformation
Church united mankind’s religious beliefs, albeit temporarily, ending the Catholic
Church’s spiritual power. The city of Rome survived until 2198, when it was
destroyed during World War III.

Shrine of Saint Malachy

Saint Malachy’s head was exhumed from its shrine in Clairvaux in 2318 and brought to
Salus as a holy relic. Since 2320, it has been enshrined in the Shrine of Saint Malachy,
in the town of Argentoratus in northwest Nova Europa. Mother Superior Agnes has been
keeper of the shrine since its foundation. She is served by a Lance of Sisters of Brada-
mante.
 the long sleep

War Master’s Notes In addition, a lance of specialist sergeants is

available. Stats can be found at the back of this
book. Cut them out and glue them to pieces of
Welcome to The Long Sleep, a standalone card for rigidity, then deal them randomly to the
scenario written for the Necropolis campaign players, ensuring every player commands at least
setting. one Extra.
If you intend to play in this adventure, you
should stop reading now. Advanced knowledge
Character Death
of the scenario will only spoil your enjoyment
of the game. In any adventure involving combat there
is a chance of character death. The nature of
The WM should read the entire adventure
this particular mission leaves the heroes cut off
before play begins. Knowing the basic flow
from reinforcements.
and details in advance will greatly speed up
play and make the game run smoother. The Should a Wild Card die, the player promotes
early stages of this mission should not be an Extra of his choice to Wild Card status. All
rushed—allow the heroes a chance to slowly Extras have been built as starting Novice char-
piece together the clues and investigate each acters, though with only one Hindrance. With
building as they wish. Eventually, characters the WM’s permission, the player may pick more
built for combat will get a chance to shine. Hindrances and spend the points as normal.
At the end of the mission, the player creates
Required Materials a new Knight character using the normal rules.
Experience Points earned for this mission are
You also need a copy of the Savage Worlds transferred over to his new character, meaning
rule book and the Necropolis: 2350 Savage he hasn’t missed out on the rewards.
Setting. The Necropolis Figure Flats are rec-
ommended, though any suitable sci-fi or dark
future miniatures will suffice.
Ancient Events
Characters Many millions of years ago, when dinosaurs
still roamed Earth, the Zal were locked in their
This adventure is designed for a squad of final, cataclysmic battle with the unknown
four to six Knights from any of the core holy alien race whose fury they had aroused. Suffer-
orders. The adventure is designed for Knights ing defeat after defeat, the Zal retreated back
with 25–35 XPs, though lower experienced across the galaxy, leaving behind shattered
characters should be able to cope if they use solar systems and burnt out stars. As has been
their brains. Use any of the archetypes from the previously told, the battle in the Salus system
Necropolis setting. Each has been designed as marked their defeat. Or so history recorded.
a starting character. As such, those used should
Not all the Zal were imprisoned that fateful
be advanced as the player wishes to bring them
day. Many had already seen the inevitable fall of
to 30 XPs.
their empire and took steps to preserve some
For larger groups or more experienced remnants of the race. In their eyes, the Zal were
characters, the WM will need to adjust the beaten, but they could return stronger, better
number and stats of opponents appropriately prepared to once again wage war on a galactic
to create an exciting challenge. scale.

21
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
On untold worlds they created concealed gists were unable to enter the tomb complex,
complexes, sealing themselves away in hiberna- stymied by a huge door engraved with alien
tion until the time was right for their return to symbols.
glory. Set as guards in each tomb were skeletal
A few days later, they powered up the
robots, the footsoldiers of the Zal. Their form
remains of the robot to see what they could
would rise again millions of years later when
learn. In the deepest recesses of its backup
the Dark Conclave formed their army out of
CPU, the robot sensed intelligent life, alien life,
skeletons.
enemy life. It activated a warning signal, awak-
One such hiding hole lay beneath the ening its brethren to battle once more. That
surface of Salus, then just a backwater world evening, the skeletal robots marched into the
in a backwater part of the galaxy. That the camp, slaughtering everyone they could find.
final battle occurred here is one of those great
Four days ago, the Church expected a routine
cosmic coincidences.
signal, but it never came. Despite solar flares
The Zal lay in slumber, dreaming whatever blocking much global communication, Knights of
dreams an alien warmonger has, waiting to the Sacri Ordines are duly sent to investigate the
emerge, but something went wrong. The final silence.
battle ravaged the solar system with weapons
In the first part of this adventure, the heroes
of unimaginable force and played havoc with
investigate the deserted archaeological facility
the energy fields maintaining the Zal’s life sup-
and slowly piece together events of the past
port chambers.
few days. Shortly after their arrival, a massive
They died to the last (though others may storm blankets the area, plunging the region
exist on unknown worlds), withering away in into darkness. As the storm rages, an army of
their sleep, unable to respond as their life signs skeletal robots responds to the appearance
faded. Only the skeletal army remained, pro- of the Knights’ dropship and marches to the
grammed to defend the complex, not administer camp, ready to slay everything they encounter.
medical aid to its slumbering occupants. There
Once the skeletal horde is defeated, the
they stayed, the entrance hidden beneath a
heroes, cut off from their Preceptory, have little
landslide, until a recent earthquake revealed the
option but to take the war to the robots and
entrance to the tomb.
explore the ancient tomb. After untold millions
of years, the tomb of the Zal will be entered by
living creatures.
Recent Events Note that while the heroes are able to
enter, explore, and interact with parts of the
The Ruber Desert lies on Terra Australis tomb, they will not receive all the answers they
and dominates Terra Infernalis. An arid, barren, seek. Even discovering the Zal’s name will take
hostile landscape, it is nonetheless home to many decades of laborious research. Actually
dozens of small Church and Union mining and deducing the secrets of their surviving technol-
research outposts. One such outpost is “Mars ogy could take centuries. As such, the tomb
Station,” a Church archaeological facility near remains an enigma, something the heroes (and
the Labyrinthus Angelus. players) will never be able to truly understand.
Eight days ago, the archaeologists uncov- For this reason, few true secrets are provided
ered what they believed was an ancient alien for the War Master (to avoid any temptation to
artifact—a metallic torso bearing marked use them).
similarities to that of a human skeleton. This
was one of the skeletal robots. How it came to
be outside and “die” remains a mystery. All that
matters is that a million years ago its remains
The Adventure Begins
were buried beneath a natural landslide and
Five minutes before the team is due to land,
became encrusted with rock over time. Its
the dropship pilot, Knight Vehicle Crewman
remarkable construction, which defies natural
Eduardo Gonzalez, contacts the Senior Knight
aging, concealed its true age from the archae-
over his headset communicator and informs
ologists.
him there is no response from the facility’s
That night, an earthquake dislodged the traffic controller, nor is the landing guidance
surrounding stone, revealing for the first time in beacon activated. The Senior Knight is given
countless millions of years the entrance to the control of the comms, allowing him to try and
tomb. Though they investigated, the archaeolo- get through (he can’t).

22
 the long sleep
A few minutes later the base comes into Data Retrieval: Takes 15 minutes and an
visual range. The pilot switches the gun camera Investigation roll to search the systems and
feed through to the passenger bay, where it recover the various logs (see Player Handouts
appears on a small screen. and detailed areas). Logs can only be recovered
from specific computers. Apart from these,
Have the Senior Knight and two others of
there is nothing of relevance to the adventure,
his choice (those sat near him) make Notice
though the Knights won’t know that.
rolls. Success reveals the base appears structur-
ally intact, with no sign of any major explosion Healing: As stated in the main rules, each
in or around the processing plant. The landing use of Healing to patch up a wound takes 10
pad is clear, but there is an industrial crawler minutes.
nearby. However, there is no movement to be
Searching Corpses: It takes 1 minute to
seen. On a raise, the Knight realizes the exter-
thoroughly pat down a body and rifle through
nal solar relay doesn’t have its panels extended
pockets, satchels, or other simple storage
nor is there any indication the base has power
items. Unless an item is extremely small or
(no landing lights, for instance).
very well concealed, discovery of any objects is
automatic.
Landing Searching Buildings: Performing a cursory
As the dropship begins its final approach, search of a 2” by 2” area takes 2 minutes but
Gonzalez gives a ten second countdown. As gives a –2 penalty on Notice rolls. This involves
soon as the squad has disembarked, the drop- moving a few objects and looking in obvious
ship blasts back into the air. Gonzalez radios in places. A thorough search takes 5 minutes and
that he’ll do a quick sweep of the surrounding gives no penalty. Unless otherwise stated in
area before heading back for the HARD shelter. specific area descriptions, there is nothing of
Orders are orders, and his come from a higher use to be found by searching areas.
authority, so there is no way to persuade the
dropship to hang around.
Encounter 1: All Clear
(L+10)
Timed Encounters The Senior Knight’s headset radio crackles
Aside from specific encounters detailed in to life as the dropship roars overhead and
the Tactical Briefings, there are a number of set Gonzalez calls in after performing his sweep.
encounters which occur during this mission. “Broadsword to Viper 1, Broadsword to
Each has a number in parentheses, such as Viper 1. Sweep is clean, sir,” Gonzalez says.
(L+120). This refers to the number of game “There’s nothing moving for twenty miles
minutes which have passed since the team in any direction. Juice is getting low and
landed. the burning bush has requested I get back
Because of this, the WM must keep a secret on the yellow brick road ASAP. You guys are
record of how much overall time passes from on your own for the next few hours. God
the moment the team touches down. Certain speed! Broadsword out.”
activities, such as repairing the power plant,
have their time listed in the appropriate sec-
tion. Other guidelines for how long likely
Encounter 2: Hungry Dogs
activities take are presented below. Other activi-
ties should be determined by the WM based on
(L+25)
best guess and real-world actions. Gonzalez’s sweep didn’t detect any life,
but his sensors couldn’t penetrate the canyon,
Since the party is likely to divide its forces,
wherein are numerous caves. Hiding in these
the WM should keep track of each group or
are several dogs, pets, and guard animals for
individual separately. It also allows you to
the scientists. They fled during the attack, but
quickly work out how much time remains
their loyalty has caused them to remain near
before a lengthy task is finished. For instance, if
the facility. However, they are half-mad from
one team goes to repair the power station (an
starvation and thirst, and the sound of the
hour) and another investigates a single habitat
dropship has lured them out.
block (probably 15 minutes at most), you can
easily see there are 45 minutes remaining Forming a pack, the hounds bound into the
before the station may be fixed and the person- camp, entering at the north end of the canyon.
nel assigned elsewhere. They head for anything moving outside, intent

23
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
on tearing it limb from limb. They use Gang Up The wind rapidly strengthens to gale force,
tactics, to a maximum of four dogs per person. If bowling over small, unsecured items. Thick
no characters are visible, they just move around plumes of red sand are kicked up and swirled
the camp, scratching at doors until someone around, adding to the particles carried by the
appears. winds. Overhead, sheet lightning rips through
After their defeat, a character can perform the sandstorm, briefly turning the sky blood red.
an autopsy in the medical center. This requires The storm continues for the remainder of the
a Healing roll and takes 30 minutes. Success adventure.
indicates the dogs were starving and dying of
dehydration. Don’t tell the heroes this was why
they attacked—they may come up with a more
Effects
irrational explanation and should be allowed Movement: Movement outside is treated as
to believe whatever they want. difficult ground due to the strong winds. Move-
ment over already difficult ground is treated as
Starving Dogs (8) 4” per 1” of actual movement.

Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6(A), Spirit d6, Lighting: Outside, lighting conditions drop
Strength d6, Vigor d4 to Dark (–2 penalty and no visibility beyond
Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Intimidation d6, 10”) as the sun is blocked out and Dim within
Notice d10, Tracking d8 an area illuminated by street lights. (References
Pace: 8; Parry: 5; Toughness: 3 to streetlights only apply if there is power.) This
Special Abilities: allows Shooting into an area illuminated by
* Bite: d6+d4. the street lights at a –1 penalty. Unless there is
* Fleet Footed: Dogs roll a d10 when power and the lights are switched on, lighting
running instead of a d6. inside a building drops to Pitch Darkness.
* Go for the Throat: Dogs instinctively go The robots (see Encounter 6) halve all
for an opponent’s soft spots. With a raise bad lighting penalties against living targets and
on its attack roll, it hits the target’s most
those producing heat—such as a vehicle with
weakly armored location.
the engine running.
* Size -1: Dogs are relatively small
creatures. Combat: At the start of each combat round,
deal an extra action card and consult the table
below. All effects last for the current round.
Encounter 3: Weather Warning Card Effect
(L+90) Black Deuce The sky turns extremely dark and
After 90 minutes, a brief, heavily distorted a dense cloud of dust sweeps
message comes through the satellite radio from across the base. Treat all unlit
the Preceptory. The message is not repeated. No areas as Pitch Darkness this
response is possible. The storm has been gener- round. Areas around streetlights
ated as a result of the increased solar activity and are Dark.
is not on any radar systems at the start of the
mission. Black King A powerful flash illuminates the
sky. For a few moments, visibility
“….weather warning. Repeat, this is improves to Dim lighting outside,
<crackle, hiss>. Extreme weather <hiss>. daylight conditions under street-
Massive sandstorm heading <hiss>. Esti- lights, and Dark inside buildings
mate <crackle hiss> 30 minutes. Batten
without lights.
down the <crackle>. Could last several
<hiss>. Repeat, this is…” Black Ace The lightning is particularly
powerful. Treat all outside areas
as daylight and unlit interiors as
Encounter 4: Sandstorm Dim.
(L+120) Joker The storm dies down momen-
tarily, removing all darkness
The storm arrives fast and hard—heroes
penalties.
outside receive five minutes warning before
the storm engulfs the facility. Other As the main rules for this section.

24
 the long sleep

Encounter 5: Power Outage Third, they are capable of using more advanced
tactics. Finally, if things are going very badly,
(L+135) there is always the illegal SBAC.

This encounter occurs only if the power

station has been repaired. Storm Effects (Optional)
Shortly after the storm hits, an intense As seen above, the lighting during the storm
electrical charge trips the power station’s surge is variable. When a robot becomes visible to at
protectors, fooling it into shutting off power least one Knight, place his miniature on the
and plunging the base into darkness. Fixing the tabletop. Remember, the Knights have headset
problem requires a visit to the power station communicators so they can report sightings to
and a Repair roll to override the surge protec- each other. When the robot moves out of range
tors. Each roll takes one round. Failures may or the lighting conditions prevent him being
be reattempted. seen by anyone, remove the figure.

Unfortunately, at the same instant the power Although this will slow down the combat, it
dies, the creatures who attacked the facility will add far more atmosphere than just telling
before make an appearance (see Encounter the players, “There is a skeletal robot there, but
6). you can’t see him and therefore can’t react to
his presence.” Having a foe suddenly appear
11” away because it has been illuminated by a
Encounter 6: Attack (L+140) powerful flash of lightning should provide an
air of excitement and fear.
WM Note: When the robots attack, they
initially have no idea where the heroes are
located. To represent this unknown, the WM Skeletal Robots (14)
should read this section and decide where to Even before they were imprisoned behind
place the robots before starting the adventure. the black hole and transformed into the
Thus, when they do attack, it is fate which Rephaim, the Zal were interested in death.
places a Knight in the danger zone, not WM Their robot armies were built in the form of
knowledge. skeletal Zal (whose form was close to that of
Five minutes after the relay trips, the robots humans) so as to sow fear into enemies.
arrive, summoned earlier by remote sensors Robots were equipped with multiple
which detected the Knights’ dropship. There redundant systems and even nannite repair
are 14 of them. Due to the poor lighting caused systems, allowing them to continue function-
by the storm, they can approach quite close ing after taking light damage. Back in their day,
before they are spotted. The robots attack in the robots were regarded as immortals by less
two groups of five and one group of four, each technological races.
entering from a different edge of the battlefield,
as chosen by the WM. Despite their armor and weaponry, these
robots are second-rate troops, lacking the
Position all the robots at least 16” from any energy shields and advanced programming of
light source or building. Then move them their superior models. Their weapons cannot be
regular Pace until one is spotted (this requires used by the Knights—they draw power from
someone to be on sentry duty). Run the combat the robot’s internal power supply, and use
as normal. encoded electrical impulses to actually fire. The
Despite their low intelligence, the robots weapon fires a beam of intense energy, which
are not stupid. They are programmed to use literally breaks down every atom, disintegrat-
cover both for protection and to conceal ing flesh, bone, even metal.
movement. They have the intelligence to shoot Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6,
distant targets and Aim if targets are in cover. Strength d8, Vigor d8
Remember, thermal vision works in the storm, Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice d6,
giving them a tactical advantage. Shooting d6, Stealth d6
The group is outnumbered by the robots, Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 10(4)
but they have several advantages of their own. Gear: Energy rifle (Range: 24/48/96; Damage:
First, they hold the facility, which means they 3d6; ROF 1; Shots unlimited in hands of robot;
have the luxury of being able to fire from win- AP 2, HW) with molecular blade attachment
dows or get onto the roofs. Second, they have (Str+d8+2, AP 4, requires 2 hands)
a lot of ammunition at their disposal, plus any Special Abilities:
explosives they have salvaged from the stores. * Armor +4: Tough metallic structure.

25
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
* Claws: Str+d4. At the start of next round, have each charac-
* Construct: +2 to recover from being ter make a Notice roll at –2 (due to the storm).
Shaken. No additional damage from Called With success, read the first paragraph. Should
Shots. Immune to poison and disease. they all fail, read the second paragraph.
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and “As the dropship slows to land, you
Intimidation. notice a sickly green glow grow in the
* Redundant Systems: A robot is very hard north, from somewhere in the canyon. Sud-
to keep down. Whenever one is wounded denly a beam of energy lances through the
by any means other than a Called Shot storm, striking Broadsword’s cockpit. The
to the head, area affect attack, or Heavy pilot likely dead, Broadsword spirals to
Weapon, draw a card from the action deck. the earth, engines screaming. Time seems
A red card indicates the robot is disabled to stand still as the ship crashes nose first
as normal and out of the fight. A black card into the canyon wall, erupting in a huge
(or Joker) means the robot ignores the fireball. The shockwave and heat roll over
damage from the attack. the landing pad as Broadsword disinte-
grates in a raging inferno.”
* Teleport: When the robot is killed by
any means other than a Called Shot to “You see a bright flash of green light
the head or an area effect weapon, an in the sky, then hear the howl of dropship
emergency teleporter activates. This engines straining. Spiraling out of the air
instantly transports the thing back to the some 50 yards away is Broadsword. Time
nearest base (in this case, the tomb). This seems to stand still as the ship crashes
was a basic safety feature to prevent Zal nose first into the canyon wall, erupting
technology from falling into enemy hands. in a huge fireball. The shockwave and heat
The robots cannot voluntarily activate this roll over the landing pad as Broadsword
system. disintegrates in a raging inferno.”
* Thermal Vision: Robots halve all penalties Without Broadsword, the heroes have no
for bad lighting when attacking living immediate hope of rescue. The storm contin-
targets or vehicles with their engine ues to rage for the rest of the adventure and
running. solar flares prohibit communication. More
immediately, however, the Knights may find
Enc. 7: Broadsword Down themselves in the open with skeletal robots still
on the rampage.
(L+141) The energy beam is generated from the
ancient Zal tomb. When the tomb was “asleep,”
At the start of the 10th round of combat
the beam was inert. Now some of the inhabit-
(that’s just one minute after it begins), the ants have wakened, and the defenses have
character manning the satellite radio receives activated, though the system is faulty (its auto-
a transmission. matic target tracking system no longer works).
“Broadsword to Viper 1, Broadsword The robots at the base sent a visual feed back to
to Viper 1. ETA one minute. Repeat, time to the tomb, triggering the cannon to fire on the
landing on the pad is one minute. Be on “incoming enemy vehicle.”
the ready line!” Should all the robots be destroyed, the
Communication with Broadsword is two- WM can assume the tracking system worked
way, so the Knight can appraise the drop ship well enough for a single shot. Isolating the
of their situation. Broadsword intends to make Knights from the outside world at this stage is
a quick landing and take-off, however—the important.
engines are sucking in too much dust for the
dropship to start engaging in combat, the
winds are making flight extremely difficult, Aftermath
and Gonzalez has no wish to shoot any of his
With no hope of immediate rescue and the
comrades. As such, he requests the Knights be
storm still raging, the team has only one real
on the landing pad when he arrives.
option after defeating the skeletal robots—to
At the start of the 8th round after Broad- explore the archaeological site. It should be
sword’s contact, anyone outside sees the obvious from the clues that the source of the
lights of the Angel approaching, it’s powerful problems centers there. Leaving a possible
nose-mounted searchlight cutting through the threat behind Church lines is an unwise option.
storm. Should the Knights not choose this course of

26
 the long sleep
action, a surviving Extra points out it is their Once back at their Preceptory, the Knights
duty to ensure the safety of the Church at any are debriefed by their Knight Commander.
cost. Within a few hours the Field Master orders
them to his office. He asks each of them to take
Walking to the site through the storm takes a vow never to reveal what they discovered,
around four hours. The crawler isn’t much promising a lengthy tour with the Penitents
faster, but at least the heroes have some shelter should they break their silence.
from the wind and sand.
The entire region is sealed off while Church
scientists begin the lengthy process of investi-
gating the tomb and discovering its deeper
The Adventure Ends secrets. The Knights hear nothing more of dis-
coveries, these being kept firmly under wraps.
The mission ends once heroes have finished Note that if the Knights didn’t hand over all
investigating the Zal tomb in the canyon. As the discs, there is a chance they may return to
they emerge from the tunnel, the Knights see the tomb of their own volition to find answers.
the storm has died down in a few hours. The The site is crawling with Lazarite scientists,
solar flares ease up enough for them to broad- who have commandeered mars Station as their
cast an SOS. A few hours later, three Lazarite base. Any more adventures set at the tomb are
dropships appear—one for the heroes and two left to the WM to devise, but he is cautioned the
carrying reinforcements dressed in HARD suits Lazarites have orders to use any means neces-
and armed with flamethrowers and laser rifles. sary to keep its existence a secret.
Should the Knights mention the email
The Knights are shepherded into the
regarding the sale of historical artifacts to a
dropship. The reinforcements, led by a Knight
private collector, the CIS is duly informed
Commander, refuse to answer any questions, and launches an investigation. Within a week,
instead simply insisting the heroes vacate the Cardinal Howe is arrested and his private col-
site. Should the characters refuse to play ball, lection confiscated. Many of the objects are
the Lazarites threaten them with deadly force. given to museums in Vatican City, but a few
They are not concerned with the characters vanish. Howe is charged with “heresy and
and are quite willing to execute them. trafficking in forbidden objects” and burned at

27
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
the stake a month later without being granted firmly attached to the walls or floor. Tipping it
absolution. He does not protest his innocence. over is an action. All furniture and fitting are
Davis is posthumously excommunicated for his dense plastic and provide +2 Armor if used for
role in the affair. Cover.
Award each Knight Experience Points Lighting: Outside it is a clear sky and bright
depending on how well the mission went. If sunshine. Inside buildings with windows,
they fail to enter the tomb or return with out any however, the lighting is Dark (–2 penalty) due
discs (to allow scientists access), they should to the sand-scoured glass. Peering through a
receive just a single point, having effectively window gives –2 to Notice rolls.
failed the adventure.
Low Walls: Crossing a low wall uses 2” of
movement. The walls provide +4 Armor when

The Facility used as Cover.

Plasma Screen: (Requires power) Embed-
This chapter details the archaeological station. ded in the walls around the facility are small
WMs should ensure they know the details of each plasma screens. These allowed the miners to
building, as different clues can be found in these watch Church and Corporate broadcasts when
areas. the weather permitted. A data disc player with
a collection of movies is located below each
screen in habitation and recreation areas.
General Notes The system ties into the facility’s comms
This section details features shared across network, acting as a videophone to other sets
the base. Differences are noted in the appropri- around the base. The weather conditions are
ate building description. blocking all TV signals except internal ones,
which are hardwired fiber optics. Deducing
Buildings: All doors and walls are heavily
the workings of the internal system requires 1
armored (Heavy Armor +10).
minute and a successful Smarts roll.
Corpses: There are no bodies in the camp.
Power: There is no power when the team
The attacker’s energy weapons literally vapor-
arrives. The power plant has been damaged
ized most of the scientists, leaving no trace.
The few left over corpses were taken back to and must be repaired (p. 14). Doors must
the tomb, standard orders for the Zal’s robots. be cranked open manually, a laborious and
time-consuming process, thanks to the airlock
Doors: Once power is restored, doors system in place. Similarly, no lights, air condi-
require an authorized swipe card to open. tioning, computer systems, food dispensers,
Some areas require specially authorized cards. and the like are functioning.
Because the scientists treated each other as
extended family, any swipe card can open an Street Lights: (Requires power) So long as
accommodation block unless a security code there is power, the lights automatically activate
has been activated, in which case only the during the storm. Place a Large Blast Template
occupants’ card or a command card (which face down under the center of each street light.
overrides all security locks) works. Details of lighting conditions can be found on
page 24.
Hand Cranking: Due to standard features
designed to keep out the fine dust, the outer Windows: A few structures have windows.
door to any structure must be closed before the None of the windows can be opened, though
inner door can be opened. There is no way to they can be shattered (Toughness 8 for break-
override this. Without power, the doors must be ing, Armor +10). The windows are not very
hand cranked—a process which takes 10 minutes large.
in total.
Wriggling through a shattered window
Cutting: Knights may elect to cut through takes 3” of movement for Small characters
the doors. This takes a total of 2 minutes (1 (Size –1). For normal size characters, it takes
minute per door), but leaves the entrances 3” of movement and is treated as an action. A
wide open to the wind, sand, and any aggres- successful Agility roll at –2 allows movement
sors. through as part of a character’s regular Pace,
Furniture & Fittings: Free standing low- though it still uses 3” of movement. Brawny
height furniture and fittings, such as chairs, and Obese characters (Size +1) always treat
tables, computer terminals, and beds, may crawling through a window as an action and it
be crossed as difficult terrain. None of it is uses 4” of Pace. Creatures of Size +2 or greater

28
 the long sleep
cannot fit through the small space. Only crea- behind the nearest pew. On subsequent rounds
tures of Size –2 can move through a window he casts armor and then obscure, before using
while running. any remaining spell points on more bolts. Only
when out of Power Points (or attacked first)
does he engage in melee.
Chapel
Being a Church-owned facility, there is a Features
chapel. Once the chapel is located, have the
characters make a Common Knowledge roll Altar: The altar provides +4 Armor if used
(+2 for Chaplains). With success, they know the as Cover. Written across the altar in blood are
priests sent to these remote outposts are often strange runes. Characters who understand
“problem cases.” Cryptspeak recognize them as Rephaim glyph-
words. If translated, they speak vaguely of
destroying human life, using blood to give life,
Gaining Access and other damnable acts. It is clear to anyone
The inner door has been sealed with a who speaks Cryptspeak the author was not very
locking code, which disables even the hand conversant in the language.
cranking mechanism. Until power is restored, Washing the altar clean takes 10 minutes
the room cannot be entered, except by cutting (and requires water). Using a flamethrower
the doors. Once power is back on, a hero can to destroy the desecrated altar takes a single
make a Lockpicking roll at –2 to run a bypass. action.
This takes one minute per attempt. Alternately,
a command level card can be used. The chapel Should the altar be left desecrated, all
has no windows. characters who see it suffer a –1 penalty to
Spirit rolls. This lasts until it is cleansed or the
Knights leave the facility.
Interior
Lectern: In front of the alter stands a
Once the Knights gain access, read the fol- lectern, atop which is a copy of the Book of
lowing text. Salvation, a common holy tome. Attached
By the light of myriad candles, the only to the cover with crude stitches are scraps
source of light, you can see the walls are of human skin (the priest’s facial skin). This
covered in prayers, hastily written in what requires a Guts roll. Anyone who looks inside
appears to be ink. Among them you recog- sees phrases like, “Lies to enslave the weak,” “I
nize prayers requesting salvation of body have tasted of His power and was born anew,”
and soul. Kneeling before the altar is a and “Blessed be the Darkness,” scrawled on
figure in priestly garb, his head bowed. He every page in blood.
rocks from side to side and a low murmur
Font: The font is full of thick, congealed
can be heard. He makes no indication he
has detected your presence. blood. The priest tried to save his soul from
a fate worse than death by slitting his throat.
Should a Knight call out, the figure raises He failed.
a hand (concealed beneath heavy robes) to
signal for silence. After a few moments, the Pews: The pews are heavy plastic benches
figure rises and turns to face the Knights. with high backs. They provide +3 Armor when
used as Cover. There is enough clearance
The priest turns, throwing back his to crawl under them and move around the
cowl. His skin has been torn away, reveal- chapel.
ing glistening muscles. A large, ragged
gash across his throat indicates a mortal Swipe Cards: Father David carries a com-
wound. “So,” he hisses, “you have come to mand level swipe card.
ask salvation from your sins? Allow me to Taint: The dark taint and desecration give
bless you!” With that he raises his hands heroes with Faith or a Saintly Litany a –2 penalty
and chants, calling on the powers of Hell. to arcane skill rolls while in the building. This
Deal initiative cards. is removed only when the chapel is cleansed.

Tactics (WC) Father David, Zombie Necromancer

The Rephaim priest begins by unleashing Father David was a true problem case.
three bolts of necromantic energy, aiming them Allegations of serious misconduct and even
at any Knights first. He then dives for Cover heretical preaching were swept under the

29
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
carpet and the priest sent to the remote out- posters, and such like. The name of the former
post, his superiors believing hardship would inhabitant is listed on a plaque screwed to each
be good for his soul. door.
Father David was one of the first on the
scene after the discovery of the tomb. As he Features
studied the bizarre glyphs and images on the Computer Terminal: (Requires power)
walls, he became convinced the structure con- Each habitat has a computer. It contains dia-
tained the forces of Hell in material form, and ries, work schedules, accounts, emails, and the
his sanity cracked. like. There is nothing of interest on three of
Back at the base, the priest shut himself in the computers, though discovering this takes
the chapel and prayed for salvation. When the 10 minutes at the terminal and a successful
firing began, he believed the Devil (a figure the Investigation roll.
Church no longer recognizes) had come for his Wright’s terminal, however, contains the
black soul. In desperation he began scribbling facility command log. When the Investigation
out prayers, hoping the holy words would pre- roll succeeds, give the group Player Handout
vent the “demons” from entering. As the firing #3.
came closer, his desperation grew. He made his Plasma Screen: In one habitat block, a
peace with God and committed suicide, slitting Corporate music video was left playing on a
his own throat, trusting in the Lord to under- loop. When power is restored, this reactivates,
stand his reasons for this mortal sin. blaring out at full volume. Anyone in the
Someone listened to his dying prayers, but room when the power is switched on must
it wasn’t God. The Dark, always eager for more make a Guts roll or be Shaken by the sudden
souls, answered the priest and promised him cacophony. The WM should pick a habitat occu-
pied by one or more characters when power is
eternal life at his right hand. With his last gasp,
restored.
Father David sealed the dark pact, rising shortly
afterward as a zombie blessed with necroman- Swipe Card: Running Deer’s habitat con-
tic powers. He converted the chapel as best tains a command level swipe card on her bed.
he could into an altar to the Dark and began She left it when she ran outside to investigate
worshipping in his own debased way. the shooting.

Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,

Strength d6, Vigor d6 Communication Suite
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d6, Intimidation d10,
Spellcasting d8 The facility’s communication suite is an
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: outdated wide broadcast system, meaning it
7 pumps out radio waves in all directions rather
Gear: Molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2). than through a tight beam. As such, it is highly
susceptible to solar flares, as well as general
Special Abilities:
atmospheric interference. It has a range of
* Claws: Str.
around 5,000 miles on a good day.
* Fearless: Immune to Fear & Intimidation.
* Powers: Armor (skin turns black), bolt
(ray of black light), obscure (darkness); 25
Features
Power Points. Comms System: (Requires power) Once
* Thermal Vision: Halves penalties for bad power is restored, the system begins transmit-
ting a standard SOS signal every 10 seconds.
lighting when attacking living targets.
The SOS is non-specific and merely indicates
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover the scientists require immediate assistance.
from being Shaken. Called shots do no
extra damage. Immune to poison and Computer Terminal: (Requires power) An
disease. Piercing weapons do half damage. Investigation roll and five minutes checking
through the logs reveals an SOS signal was sent
late on 22.IV.2351. Selecting a log entry replays
Command Habitats the message. It mentions an outbreak of hostili-
ties with unknown assailants but nothing more
The habitat blocks were occupied by the specific. The log reveals it was sent by Wright,
command staff. All are designed around a the base commander. The storm caused the
standard layout, though the former occupants signal to become lost in the ether, hence why it
personalized them with photos of loved ones, was never received.

30
 the long sleep

Laboratory Robot Torso: Beneath the sheet is what

at first appears to be a skeleton human torso,
The laboratory was where the scientists complete with arms (but no head). A Notice
returned promising samples for study. Several roll reveals the “bones” are in fact metal.
tables, some chairs, a small X-ray machine, a The robot is the partial remains of a Zal
chemical analyzer, and two computer termi- skeletal servitor. When it was powered up, it
nals are the only items of furniture. On one sent an automatic signal to awaken its com-
of the tables is a large object covered in a rades and come to its aid. Fortunately for the
sheet—wires from a power source outlet run Knights, damage to the power station caused a
total power loss and the robot fell silent once
under the covering.
more, its damaged internal power supplies
being unable to hold any charge. Unable to
Special Features locate the beacon and programmed to accept
the silence as meaning it was either vapor-
Computer Terminal: (Requires power) ized or had returned to the tomb through its
An Investigation roll and 15 minutes research teleporter, the robots slaughtered the “aliens”
reveals some clues about the robot. Give the they could find and retreated to await the Zal’s
players Handout #4 at this time. eventual return and new orders.

31
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Should power be restored while the cables
are still attached, the robot powers up enough
Damocles Industries “Scoop”
Acc/Top Speed: 2/8; Toughness: 15/15/19
to begin silently broadcasting its signal back (2/2/6); Handling: –2; Crew: 1+1 (+4 in
to the tomb. This alerts the other robots, who bucket)
move to investigate. If the Knights detach the Notes: Heavy Armor (bucket only), Tracked
cables, then the Knight’s dropship was detected
and the sentries alerted.
Main Habitat
Landing Pad The main habitat block comprises a number
of small rooms, each decorated with personal
The landing pad is large enough to take an effects. These housed the non-command staff.
Angel dropship. Remote facilities such as this Every room houses a bed and a wardrobe.
one are kept regularly supplied by civilian ver-
Each door bares a name plaque. Sex and
sions of Pedael dropships.
role are listed in parentheses for the WM, so he
can add flavor to individual rooms. The names
Features are as follows.
Computer Terminal: (Requires power) Davis, P (male archaeologist), Redburn,
The computer is a diagnostic system used to K (female archaeologist), Baissant, O (male
help find faults in dropships or vehicles. Once senior technician), Nasamwari, J (male techni-
powered up, it grants +1 to Repair rolls when cian), Smith, R (male service Manager), Cooper,
fixing vehicles. R (female services), Boucher, J (male digger),
Guidance Beacon & Lights: (Requires Kowalski, S (female digger), Peers, X (male
power) The landing guidance beacon and digger), and Narro, Y (male digger).
landing lights are in working order—they just
lack power. Once power is resorted they begin Features
working normally.
There is little if any of interest to the
Vehicles: There is one vehicle near the Knights—just clothes, a little money, photos
pad—a standard industrial crawler. This is of family and loved ones, and routine personal
described in more detail below. logs.
Computer Terminal: (Requires power)
Industrial Crawler Each room has a computer terminal. It contains
The crawler is a standard Damocles Indus- diaries, work schedules, accounts, emails, and
tries Model 3000G Industrial Crawler, known the like. There is nothing of interest in most
affectionately as the “Scoop.” Damocles is a of them (see below), though discovering this
Church-operated firm specializing in manufac- takes 10 minutes at the terminal and a success-
turing of construction industry ground vehicles. ful Investigation roll.
Any character with the Driving skill has likely If the heroes don’t search Davis’ terminal
operated one—the Sacri Ordines use them as for clues, have it begin beeping loudly and
well. Slow but steady, the Scoop is ubiquitous flashing a warning that there are unsent emails
across Church territory. at a later point in the adventure. The clues it
The Scoop requires a single operator, holds are important.
though there is room in the cab for two Hidden Object: A strange metallic object is
people. concealed in the second room searched. This
The bucket is raised and lowered by hydrau- room belongs to Davis, one of the archaeolo-
lic rams, though it only has a maximum height gists. In order to find it the heroes much search
of a foot. As well as being able to scoop up the computer. A successful Investigation roll
loose debris, it can be used as a general cargo reveals an unsent email (due to the flares jam-
hauler. Although the operator’s manual states ming the comms). Give the players Handout #5
persons shouldn’t travel in the rear bucket at this point. The disc is hidden in the overhead
for reasons of safety, it can comfortably hold light (the clue is in the email).
four passengers. Troops hiding in the heavily As the email says, it is an inch across,
armored bucket have +6 Heavy Armor when metallic, and has glyphs on both sides. Analy-
firing from Cover. sis requires use of the main laboratory (and
This particular Scoop is well weathered but power). A successful Common Knowledge roll
is in good working order. The bucket is cur- and 30 minutes work reveals the metal is of
rently empty. unknown composition, but matches that of the

32
 the long sleep
skeletal torso exactly. Due to its strange com- high-storage capacitors. During storms and at
position, no dating evidence can be gathered night, the capacitors’ stored energy is released,
to confirm Davis’ claim. supplying the base with its electrical needs.
The disc, once carried by the robot, is a key To conserve power, high-usage areas, such as
to open the tomb complex. The heroes will the processing plant, automatically shutdown
need it for the second part of the mission. during these times.
During the fight, the power station was
Medical Center damaged by gunfire, causing a general system
shutdown to prevent extreme feedback.
Compared to what most citizens have Unfortunately, a secondary fault caused the
access to, the medical center is a modern capacitors to release much of their charge. The
miracle. In comparison, to the Sacri Ordines’
capacitors are currently charged with enough
facilities, it is lacking. It contains two beds, a
blood analysis kit, surgical tools, and standard juice for just one hour standard use and begin
medical supplies, such as bandages, thermom- discharging once the main system is repaired.
eters, stethoscopes, and so on. Repairing the system takes an hour and
requires a Repair roll at –2 (with an additional
Features –2 if not using tools). Up to two other persons
can Cooperate on this roll. Failures can be re-
Drug Cabinet: The drug cabinet is locked.
Opening it requires a Lockpicking roll and 5 rolled, but each attempt takes a full hour. With
minutes or a command level swipe card and success, power flows again. Systems begin to
power to the lock. Inside are a variety of filled reboot, lights flicker on, airlocks work properly,
syringes, bottles of liquids and pills, and a and so on.
dispensary pad to record stock. These equate
Once power is restored, a digital readout
to 20 units of supplies for a medikit or field
surgery kit. shows the current storage (1 hour) compared
to the maximum storage (168 hours) and the
Fridge: (Requires power) Contains 20 amount of energy being used. Recharging
ruined units of synthetic blood and plasma. requires one or more solar panels on the relay
General Medicine: Using the facility grants station to be extended.
a +1 bonus to Healing rolls.
Search: A successful search around the Solar Relay
main console locates a packet of four syringes
hidden in a drawer. A Healing roll identifies The solar relay is used to collect solar
them as illegal stims, used by miners because it energy.
allows them to ignore fatigue and work harder.
A hero with Repair d6+ who spends 2
Like many citizens, miners are paid based on
results, not the hours they work. minutes inspecting the solar relay automati-
cally realizes the solar panels are in “protection
Each dose instantly removes one level of mode,” stored inside the relay to safeguard
Fatigue, except those caused by the virus. For
them from damage. He knows this is standard
an hour after use, they also increase Vigor by
procedure during sandstorms or power out-
one die type.
ages. To allow maintenance, the panels can be
However, they are also highly addictive. A hand cranked into the extended position. This
character using them must make a Spirit roll takes two minutes per panel and there are four
with a cumulative –1 penalty for each dose
in total.
taken in the last 4 hours. On a failure, he
becomes addicted and gains the Major Habit Any hero with the Repair skill knows how to
Hindrance. crank the panels safely. Other characters must
make an Agility roll per panel. A critical failure
Power Station & Solar causes the panel to jam, requiring a Repair roll
and five minutes work to fix it. The Repair roll
Relay may be reattempted.

The base’s power station makes use of solar Once power is restored to the facility,
energy. Light is converted to electrical energy extending the panels takes just a few seconds
at the external solar relay (see below) and with the press of a button on the relay, from the
stored in massive, subterranean, rapid-charge, power station, or from the operations center.

33
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
For each hour a panel is extended in bright Swipe Card: The insane worker (see
sunlight it provides enough charge to the below) carries a standard swipe card.
capacitors for three hours of use. Thus, all four
panels working together provide 12 hours of
energy per hour they are extended.
Sealed Room
The back room, once used as the cinema,
Given the sandstorm strikes exactly two
has been welded shut from the inside. The
hours after the heroes arrive and the power
only way inside is to cut through or enter via
station must be repaired before energy can be
a window. The internal blinds are down, which
stored (a minimum of an hour), they will, at prevent anyone from seeing into the room.
best, be able to store just 12 hours of energy.
This is enough to last the coming night. Inside is a former member of the facility staff
(Xavier Peers). During the incident, he welded
By carefully conserving energy, such as himself into the room, leaving his comrades to
switching off unused computer terminals and die. As their screams echoed through the build-
lights, and closing down air conditioning in ing, Peers, already half crazed from seeing the
unoccupied buildings, this can be extended to attackers, went insane. He is now homicidally
48 hours. paranoid, convinced the attackers still wait for
him.
Recreation If the heroes make any noise while outside
the door, such as shouting or cutting through,
The Rec Center was the hub of the facility’s Peers, convinced they are skeletal robots, takes
social life. The scientists cooked and ate their up a defensive position behind the door and
meals here, played cards and arcade games, prepares to attack. The Knights must check for
listened to music and watched movies, and Surprise when the door is finally opened as the
engaged in the time-honored tradition of lunatic attacks without warning. Peers attacks
brawling. It also houses the communal show- in a homicidal rage, from which he cannot be
ers and toilets. calmed.
Even if taken alive he is of limited use to the
Features Knights—his mind has shattered. A successful
Healing roll sedates him for several hours (after
Game Consoles: The game consoles pro-
which he awakes in a similarly insane state).
vide +3 Armor if used as Cover. A character Puppet can be used to draw secrets from his
who wants to waste 15 minutes and who suc- mind, though Peers is allowed a second roll to
ceeds at an Agility roll sets a new high score. resist any form of questioning which involves
His Agility roll becomes the target for others the skeletons. Successful use elicits a single
wishing to beat him. response, “The shining dead came for us!”
Kitchen: Contains standard plastic utensils,
cutlery, and dishes, as well as heavy-duty plastic (WC) Insane Worker
cooking pots. The oven, microwave, and deep
fryers are all electrical. Heating the fryer takes Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8(A), Spirit d10,
10 minutes. Strength d8+2, Vigor d8
Skills: Fighting d8+2, Stealth d4
Any creature shoved into the fryer takes Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 8
2d10 damage. A thrown pan of hot fat has Gear: Molecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2)
Range 2/4/8, Damage 2d8. Adjacent targets are Special Abilities:
splashed for 2d4 damage. This counts as an * Berserk: As per the Edge. Modifiers to
area effect attack. Treat targets soaked in hot Traits are included in his stats.
fat as very flammable.
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and
Pantry: The pantry contains enough dehy- Intimidation.
drated and tinned food to last for several weeks. * Improved Frenzy: Can make 2 Fighting
The two large chest freezers (+4 Armor) have attacks each round at no penalty.
no power, and the contents are spoiled.
Snack Machines: The snack machines
stock a variety of candy, potato chips, and soft
Storage
drinks. Acquiring a snack or beverage requires The storage facility contains everything
a swipe card or smashing the glass (Toughness the staff needed except for food, which is
4). The vending machines provide +3 Armor stored in the recreation area (p. 14). Most of
when used as Cover. the supplies are very mundane, and comprise

34
 the long sleep
bedding, clothes, writing paper, specimen bags When the characters enter any door, draw
and containers, chemicals for preserving finds, a card and check below to see where they
tape, shovels, and so on. However, there are a appear. If they enter within one round, all the
few special items. heroes appear in the same location. Otherwise,
different groups of characters draw their own
card. It may take an age for them to return to
Features the entrance chamber, and there may be rooms
Explosives: Contained in a locked crate are they don’t visit because of this. Patience and
10 explosive charges and two remote detona- determination will see them through.
tors. A quick glance reveals the crate could It is very easy for the heroes to become
hold a maximum of 24 charges. The crate can separated, as intended, so the WM must keep
be opened with a Lockpicking roll or smashing track of each group’s location.
or shooting the lock (Toughness 10).
Worse, just because you enter a door in the
SBAC 25mm: Despite being a civilian “north” wall of one room does not mean you’ll
organization, the scientists had a SBAC 25mm appear in the “south” door at your destina-
autocannon. The Ruber Desert is home to tion, as you would in a conventional building.
many dangerous predators, not to mention Compass directions mean nothing in the tomb,
Union facilities. There are 3 magazines for the so never describe doors in terms of cardinal
autocannon. The autocannon is concealed points. If you use floor plans for a battle, put
beneath a tarpaulin. them down in any direction you want. Let the
players worry about compass directions and
things like, “How did I go north but come out

The Tomb Complex

east?”
Card Result
In this section the heroes enter the Zal Deuce Door malfunctions. Each individual
tomb and make some remarkable discoveries. using the door draws a card to see
It should be noted that aside from the skeletal where he ends up, even if the Knights
robots there is nothing to truly link the Zal with use the door in the same round
the current Rephaim threat plaguing Salus. 3 Entrance Chamber (page 38)
4 Astronomical Chamber (page 38)
Internal Design 5 Hibernation Chamber (page 39)
None of the chambers in the tomb are actu- 6 Repair Chamber (page 39)
ally touching each other—this is intentional. The
7 Armory (page 40)
tomb is not actually a single locale on Salus, but
rather numerous chambers scattered beneath 8 Communications Suite (page 41)
the planet’s surface. The canyon chamber is just 9 Conference Room (page 42)
the front door, the Zal equivalent of a railway sta-
tion. The portals in the disparate chambers (see 10 Powerplant (page 42)
below) are teleporters. Jack–Ace Empty Room (page 43)
When the base was in full working order, Joker The doors work as intended. If a hero
the doors appeared as solid metal, just like the vocalizes that he wants to go to a
main door. A Zal or robot simply thought about certain room, even accidentally (“We
the destination, the metal dissolved to reveal need to find the powerplant,” for
the inky blackness, and the traveler walked example) then that’s where the portal
through, appearing at his destination instantly. leads.
The doors were also capable of accepting
multiple passengers at once—two Zal, each Internal Doors
seeking a different chamber, could use a portal
simultaneously and would appear where they Communication: All of the doorways
desired. indicated are inky black portals, through which
nothing can be seen using low light, infrared, or
Since the great battle screwed up the tomb’s visible light. Neither do ID scanners penetrate
power systems, though, the doors have become them—within the tomb an ID scanner only
scrambled and open into a random location each works on ID tags in the same room. The black-
time. ness defies any form of sensory investigation

35
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
(natural or artificial). Don’t let the characters entire tomb cease functioning for the entire
waste too much time trying to deduce something round. They open at the start of the following
far beyond their understanding. round, assuming no deuce is used that round.
The only way to communicate with some- While malfunctioning, the doors become
one on the other side of a portal is through totally impassable (though they remain inky
a headset communicator. Visual feedback is black holes) and all communication between
possible through a mobile command center. In separate chambers is lost.
both cases, the feedback is heavily distorted.
A Knight wishing to use his commander’s Robots
Leadership Edges draws cards as normal for The skeletal robots within the tomb are
using the MCC. However, he must then make not stupid. If the Knights run away, the robots
an immediate Notice roll (based on hearing). follow—their orders are to exterminate any
With success, he may use the Edges as normal. non-Zal they encounter. Since there is only a
A failure means he cannot hear the commands single door in each chamber, actually escap-
properly and does not receive the Edges—he ing them is rather difficult if the robots enter
has delayed for nothing. the same portal as the Knights during the
Touching a Door: Touching a door causes same round. Otherwise, the sentinels enter a
it to give slightly, like pushing through thick random room when they use the portal, just
syrup. To bare skin the blackness feels icy like the Knights.
cold (causes no harm) but there is no physical
sensation of actually touching anything—the
dense fluid gives, but the character cannot feel
Entrance Tunnel
that happening. The entrance tunnel measures 12 yards
Walking Through: A character can walk by 12 yards (or 6” by 6”) and extends for over
through a door with only a slight effort. On 20 yards into the cliff face before ending at
passing through, the hero is momentarily disori- the door. As mentioned in the logs, there is
ented, as if he has been deprived of all his senses. no evidence of any joins or welds, giving the
He experiences a terrifying sensation of falling impression of the tunnel being a single piece of
metal. The walls are resistant to any weapons
before he appears on the other side Shaken.
the heroes possess, even Heavy Weapons.
Each door can accommodate a maximum of two
people at once. Along both walls, engravings show a
legion of skeletal warriors marching to
A character who sticks just a limb through
war, heading out of the tunnel, while over-
can feel nothing on the other side. Should
head fly what appear to be small aircraft or
he stick just his head through to try and see starships of unusual design. Beneath some
what is on the far side, he feels intensely sick of the images are lines of strange glyphs,
and must make a Vigor roll or be Shaken and perhaps some form of writing. It bares no
suffer a level of Fatigue for ten minutes. This resemblance to any language you know or
can lead to Incapacitation, but not Death. The have seen before. A thin layer of red dust,
Knight also sees nothing—he has total sensory blown in during the storm, covers the first
deprivation and the feeling of falling into a bot- dozen yards of the floor.
tomless pit of absolute nothing.
Let the heroes spend time investigating
Should the Knights rope themselves here if they want. There is nothing of interest
together, the rope is immediately severed when to discover, though. The dust shows no signs
a person passes through a portal. Likewise, of having being disturbed, being blown in after
if holding hands, they are pulled apart by an the robots marched on the camp to combat the
irresistible force once the entirety of the first Knights.
person is through the door. Holding onto a gun
barrel while a comrade holds the butt slices the
weapon in half, ruining the gun. In short, there The Door
is no way to maintain physical contact with folk
on the other side of a door. After 20 yards or so, the tunnel abruptly
ends. The back wall appears to be part of
Temporary Failure: The system is prone the tunnel, yet is has different markings.
to constant malfunction. Whenever a deuce is Thin, concentric lines, slight ellipses rather
actually used for a combatant’s action (deuces than perfect circles, radiate out from a
rejected by characters with Quick and Level central semi-circular indentation about
Headed are thus ignored), the doors across the an inch wide. Positioned along each circle,

36
 the long sleep
seemingly at random, is a single semi-cir- the awesome firepower of both races, while
cular protrusion. These vary in size but are several shifted orbit, making the pattern largely
all smaller than the central one. unrecognizable.
Scattered across the door, seemingly What is of most importance is the central
in random fashion, though perhaps pass- indentation. The metallic disc found in Davis’
ing for someone’s idea of order, are more
quarters, fits neatly into this. When placed in
glyphs, similar to those on the walls.
there, indentations face down toward the door,
The circles and their protrusions represent read the following text.
planets and their orbits, while the central
indentation is a star. This is, in fact, the Salus The disc appears to melt as you place it
system as it appeared eons ago. Several planets in the indentation, becoming simply part of
vanished during the war, blown to pieces by the door. Suddenly, the door itself begins to

37
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
dissolve, starting in the center and almost around the walls. There is little useful cover, save
flowing outward. Within a few seconds, all for the pillar. Fortunately, it is indestructible (by
sign of the door has vanished. any weapons possessed in the adventure), so
Beyond, all is in darkness. A faint characters in Cover cannot be attacked through
musty smell wafts through the air, drawn it.
outward by the howling gale outside. No
sounds can be heard. Robot Skeletons (1 per character)
The door remains open for just one minute Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6,
(ten rounds) before sealing again. For the first Strength d8, Vigor d8
9 rounds anyone can walk through. However, Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice d6,
on the final round, the metal begins to flow
Shooting d6, Stealth d6
from the walls to seal the passage.
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 10(4)
Any character who decides to enter on the Gear: Plasma rifle (Range: 24/48/96; Damage:
round the door is closing must make an Agility 3d6; ROF 1; Shots unlimited in hands of robot;
roll at –2 to get through in time. With failure, AP 2, HW) with blade attachment (Str+d8+2,
part of him has become trapped in the door. AP 4, requires 2 hands)
Don’t roll for damage. Instead, roll on the Special Abilities:
Injury Table. A result of Arm (3–4) or Leg (10) * Armor +4: Tough metallic structure.
means the character’s limb is severed and the
* Claws: Str+d4.
victim is immediately Incapacitated. Anything
else instantly kills the poor sap (no Vigor roll * Construct: +2 to recover from being
to survive is allowed). Shaken. No additional damage from Called
Shots. Immune to poison and disease.
Once the door seals shut, the central inden-
tation is again hollow, the disc they inserted * Fearless: Immune to Fear and
having vanished. Any characters left on the Intimidation.
outside must wait until those on the inside * Redundant Systems: A robot is very hard
learn how to open the door from there. to keep down. Whenever one is wounded
Should no one enter, the Knights have screwed by any means other than a Called Shot
up big time. The tomb becomes nigh impregnable to the head, area effect attack, or Heavy
once the door seals (it takes the Church nearly a Weapon, draw a card from the action deck.
decade to breach the walls). Finish the adventure A red card indicates the robot is disabled
now. as normal and out of the fight. A black card
(or Joker) means the robot ignores the
Leaving the tomb is easy—simply touch- damage from the attack.
ing the door causes it to disappear as noted
above. * Teleport: When the robot is killed by
any means other than a Called Shot to
the head or an area effect weapon, an
Entrance Chamber emergency teleporter activates. This
instantly transports the thing back to the
This large, vaulted chamber lies silent. nearest base (in this case the tomb). This
Standing in the center, reaching to the ceil- was a basic safety feature to prevent Zal
ing, is a large, square, metal pillar. On each technology falling back into enemy hands.
face is a door-sized void of inky darkness. The robots cannot voluntarily activate this
The walls of the chamber are engraved system.
with images like those in the tunnel.
* Thermal Vision: Robots halve all penalties
The entrance chamber is quite literally for bad lighting when attacking living
that—a way into the tomb. Of course, the Zal targets or vehicles with their engine
were wise enough to leave guardians. After a running.
few rounds of exploring, read the following.
As you examine the chamber, several
skeletal robots appear from nowhere, as if Astronomical Chamber
stepping out of some invisible portal. This chamber is illuminated in bright
The robots are held in stasis elsewhere white light, originating from a swirling
(actually in a pocket dimension unreachable globe in the center of the room. The object
by any means in this adventure) and teleport in appears to be a large white star, complete
when sensors are activated. Check for Surprise with miniature solar flares erupting. Orbit-
as normal. Place the robots as equally as possible ing it at various distances are eight bodies.

38
 the long sleep
A small object spewing a tail of debris some way to a single figure, perhaps one of
behind it, possibly a comet, is approaching the original builders. The aliens are vaguely
the furthest world. human in appearance, though as a stylized
The spheres are holograms. While the star representation it is hard to be sure of their
generates light, it radiates no heat. true nature. Whoever they are, the figures
are obviously important, for they wear
The star at the center is a white giant (classifi- ceremonial headdresses and are shown in
cation A0 II). The solar system displayed is that of striking poses.
Salus, though the current star which shines in the
heavens now is an F2 III. As stated in Necropolis, Stairs lead down to the lower level, in
the star underwent some sort of change—the which lie six metal sarcophagi arranged in
transformation of the white star being a result of a star formation from a central hexagonal
weapons of godlike power. The black hole is an hub. The hub reaches to the ceiling and,
artificial creation. like other features you have seen, appears
to be part of the ceiling and floor rather
The eight bodies represent the Salus solar
system before the final battle. They appear than a separate structure. Long cables join
as three small rocky bodies of varying sizes the hub to each sarcophagus and winking
nearest the sun, a large gas giant, a large rocky lights and glowing glyphs can be seen on
world (actually Salus), a small gas giant, a ver- each face.
dant world, and a large rocky planet (now an The lights on the hub blink in seem-
asteroid field). ingly random patterns. The sarcophagi are
Back when the base was built, Salus was a hibernation pods for the Zal. Each one has
hot world with minimal life and water found malfunctioned, and the occupants are long
only beneath the surface. The major inhabited mummified through natural processes.
world at the time was actually the second most Opening the pods is an impossible task, but
distant world. The outer world was also colo-
there is a way to see the occupants. The solid
nized, but suffered extensive damage during
metal surface becomes transparent if touched,
the battle and is now an asteroid field. The large
revealing the grisly contents.
gas giant (Incus) no longer exists in the form
shown here, for it orbits New Sol as a dense, The instant you touch the lid, the sur-
metallic sphere stripped of its atmosphere. face becomes transparent. Inside, lying as
Despite these changes, the system is rec- if asleep, its arms crossed over its chest, is
ognizable through the type of star matching an elongated humanoid creature, perhaps
early scientific data and the location of the gas seven feet in height, with a high forehead.
giants. Any hero passing a Common Knowledge It is clearly mummified, though whether
roll deduces it is the Salus system in an earlier from natural processes or some dark nec-
incarnation, but there is no hope of dating it. romancy is unclear—it certainly has the
appearance of a greater mummy, complete
The chamber once served as an early warn-
with ceremonial regalia [This assumes
ing system. It mapped the heavens in real time
the heroes have encountered one of these
(thus the planets actually orbit the sun in real
Rephaim.]
time and even spin on their axis) and displayed
any foreign objects, such as enemy starships or The heroes have no way of actually check-
even rogue asteroids. It still functions for this ing if the occupants are truly dead, as opposed
purpose, despite the planets being images of to Rephaim. Let them worry about this as they
how they were, not how they are. Once back in continue to explore the tomb.
the world, a Knight who makes enquiries about
the comet is told that one is indeed entering
the system above the plane of the asteroid Repair Chamber
field, but it is currently too faint to see with the
naked eye because of its approach vector. GM Note: Any robots not killed by a Called
Shot to the head, area affect attack, or Heavy
Weapon teleport back to this chamber. There
Hibernation Chamber are always two robots present (to shove wrecks
into the niches).
This hexagonal chamber stands on
two levels. The level on which you enter is Draw a card for each robot destroyed at
a raised platform above the ground floor. the archaeological facility. A red card means it
Markings on the walls are broken down into is repaired and active. A black card means it is
six distinct zones. Each appears to relate in in a niche, awaiting repair (the repair chamber

39
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
is not functioning as well as it should). Jokers instantly transports the thing back to the
indicate the robot was too badly damaged for nearest base (in this case the tomb). This
the faulty chamber to make repairs. was a basic safety feature to prevent Zal
technology falling back into enemy hands.
Note that any Incapacitated robots killed in
The robots cannot voluntarily activate this
this chamber disappear for a round and then
system.
reappear the next round still in pieces.
* Thermal Vision: Robots halve all penalties
The metallic walls of this chamber are for bad lighting when attacking living
dotted with smooth, man-sized niches, targets or vehicles with their engine
some of which contain robot skeletons. A running.
number of robots are also present. They
turn, leveling their guns at you.
The niches are repair bays for damaged
Armory
robots. When a robot enters or is placed in a A metallic, egg-shaped dome sits
niche, an invisible forcefield activates, pinning squarely in the center of this chamber. It
the construct inside. Appendages with welders, is covered in glowing symbols. Across the
cutters, and other appliances then “grow” from room, four skeletal robots suddenly appear
the walls and begin repair work. out of thin air!
Should a curious human enter one of the The first time the Knights enter this cham-
niches, he too is trapped by the forcefield. The ber, the guardians activate. The egg makes great
appendages can’t tell flesh from metal, and so Cover, being impervious to all the weapons
get to work repairing him. The victim takes available in this adventure.
2d10 damage before the forcefield lifts and he
is freed. There is no way to free the victim, the Once the heroes get a chance to examine
forcefield being impenetrable to any weapons the egg, they discover an indent in the shape
the Knights possess. of a thin right hand, with five sensors on the
fingertips. Placing the hand of a robot still con-
nected to the torso (the power supply) in the
Robot Skeletons (2+) indentation activates the armory.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, The majority of the “shell” flows into the
Strength d8, Vigor d8 floor, leaving being just the part with the hand
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice d6, indentation and a raised dais on which lie 20
Shooting d6, Stealth d6 small cylinders (warp grenades), 15 plasma
Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 10(4) rifles (which the Knights can’t actually use),
Gear: Plasma rifle (Range: 24/48/96; Damage: and a dozen discs similar to the one they used
3d6; ROF 1; Shots unlimited in hands of robot; to gain entrance to the tomb. Used discs reap-
AP 2, HW) with blade attachment (Str+d8+2, pear here—one of these is the disc Davis found.
AP 4, requires 2 hands) Taking the discs is important if the Knights ever
Special Abilities: want to return to the tomb in the future.
* Armor +4: Tough metallic structure.
Removing the hand automatically reforms
* Claws: Str+d4. the protective shell.
* Construct: +2 to recover from being
Shaken. No additional damage from Called
Shots. Immune to poison and disease. Robot Skeletons (4)
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6,
Intimidation. Strength d8, Vigor d8
* Redundant Systems: A robot is very hard Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice d6,
to keep down. Whenever one is wounded Shooting d6, Stealth d6
by any means other than a Called Shot Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 10(4)
to the head, area effect attack, or Heavy Gear: Plasma rifle (Range: 24/48/96; Damage:
Weapon, draw a card from the action deck. 3d6; ROF 1; Shots unlimited in hands of robot;
A red card indicates the robot is disabled AP 2, HW) with blade attachment (Str+d8+2,
as normal and out of the fight. A black card AP 4, requires 2 hands)
(or Joker) means the robot ignores the Special Abilities:
damage from the attack. * Armor +4: Tough metallic structure.
* Teleport: When the robot is killed by * Claws: Str+d4.
any means other than a Called Shot to * Construct: +2 to recover from being
the head or an area effect weapon, an Shaken. No additional damage from Called
emergency teleporter activates. This Shots. Immune to poison and disease.

40
 the long sleep
* Fearless:
Intimidation.
Immune to Fear and
Communication Suite
* Redundant Systems: A robot is very hard Dominating the center of this chamber
to keep down. Whenever one is wounded is a floating orb of silvery light about six
by any means other than a Called Shot feet across. Within, you can just make out a
to the head, area effect attack, or Heavy reclining chair, molded seamlessly into the
Weapon, draw a card from the action deck. floor as if growing from the cold metal.
A red card indicates the robot is disabled The orb is harmless and can be passed
as normal and out of the fight. A black card through safely. On the right arm of the chair
(or Joker) means the robot ignores the are four buttons arranged in a diamond pat-
damage from the attack. tern, while on the left is a single button. None
* Teleport: When the robot is killed by are labeled.
any means other than a Called Shot to
the head or an area effect weapon, an
Sitting Down
emergency teleporter activates. This
instantly transports the thing back to the If a Knight sits in the chair, read the follow-
nearest base (in this case the tomb). This ing text.
was a basic safety feature to prevent Zal As you sit down, the globe alters, losing
technology falling back into enemy hands. its silvery appearance and instead repre-
The robots cannot voluntarily activate this senting a star map of the heavens. Dotted
system. across the map are numerous red dots
* Thermal Vision: Robots halve all penalties of light. The lights project from the map,
for bad lighting when attacking living stopping a few inches from the chair, and
targets or vehicles with their engine leaving them within easy reach.
running. The map is visible from both sides of the
globe. A hero making a Common Knowledge
Warp Grenades roll at –2 realizes the galactic map is from the
viewpoint of Salus, effectively placing it at the
Warp grenades have a Range of 5/10/20 and
center of the galaxy.
must be thrown. On impact they generate a
dimensional warp field filling a Medium Burst The diamond-patterned buttons on the
Template. Anything in the template suffers chair allow the character to rotate the star
3d10 damage (AP 100, Heavy Weapon). chart around the chair. Pressing multiple but-
tons, such as “up” and “right”, moves the view
Incapacitated vehicles and Extras simply
diagonally in the appropriate direction. Using
vanish, transported to an alternate dimension
opposite buttons simultaneously obviously
(actually the one inhabited by the Dark). Wild
means the map doesn’t move. The left arm
Cards must check for Incapacitation as normal. button does nothing until a planetary view is
However, all injuries are permanent, the activated (see below). Pushing it shifts back to
affected limb being dimensionally severed. As the star map. To deactivate the star map, one
such, any injury except an Arm or Leg kills the must simply vacate the chair.
victim outright.
Note that if the Template touches but Red Beam Activated
does not completely enclose an object, such
as a large vehicle or a building, only the part Read on if a red beam is touched.
destroyed within the template is teleported The orb changes again, this time show-
(though this counts as destroying the vehicle). ing the surface of a planet. Small golden
This can result in the object having a very neat symbols can be seen on the surface, the
circular chunk missing. light from each again projecting toward
There are a total of 20 grenades, but many the chair.
are faulty through excessive age. Whenever a The buttons now rotate the view of the
grenade is used, draw a card from the action planet.
deck. A black card means the device malfunc-
tions. It does not explode, but instead teleports
itself to the alternate dimension. There is no Golden Beam Activated
way to fix faulty grenades or determine in Should a hero touch a golden beam, read
advance which ones are functional. the following.

41
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Suddenly the quiet is broken by a
harsh disembodied voice, which seems to
Conference Room
originate from the globe. It speaks for a few Aside from a large circle surrounded
seconds before falling silent. by smaller circles etched onto the floor, the
The language is meaningless to the heroes room is completely barren.
and, without some sort of key in a known lan- Anytime a hero moves adjacent to a small
guage, cannot be translated. circle, a metallic chair grows seamlessly from
the floor within the circle. When the first chair
forms, the larger circle flows to form a circular
True Purpose table supported on a single pillar. Moving away
Each red dot on the star map represents from a chair causes it to merge back into the
a world formerly controlled by the Zal. The floor. When the last chair is gone, the table
planet is a 3D rotating view of the actual does likewise. Crossing through a square occu-
world, though many of these worlds no longer pied by a chair or the table counts as difficult
exist—each image is millions of years old. Each ground.
golden symbol is a former Zal base or colony
The room was nothing more than a confer-
on that world.
ence center for the Zal before they went into
When one was indicated by touching the hibernation.
symbol, the globe altered again to show the
communication suite at the other end. Instant
communication across vast distances was pos- Powerplant
sible through dimensional travel, an advanced
Rising from a bottomless pit are a pair
version of the principles used in FC Drives.
of gigantic energy coils, which crackle and
However, with the destruction of these bases
glow with untold power. Surrounding each
there is no receiver. The voice is simply telling
is a wide walkway, linked by a much nar-
the activator no communications link can be
rower span. The bridge looks very thin and
achieved.
has no support structures. At the far end of
the colossal room, beyond the second coil,
Finding Earth you can just make out blinking lights.
Heroes who want to find Earth must make CRACK! Two bolts of electricity suddenly
a Common Knowledge roll at –2. With success, arc from one of the towers, one slamming
they locate the general area of the Sol system. into the floor nearby and the other strik-
Sure enough, there is a red dot there. Touching ing a distant wall, leaving scorch marks.
it does not produce an image of Earth, though, Fortunately the strange metal is non-con-
but of Mars. ductive.
At this time, Mars is not the barren red No sooner has the arc struck, you notice
desert men of Earth new. There are oceans, a swarm of small beetle-like robots scurry
clear signs of major rivers and deltas, and up over the lip of the pit and begin bustling
even evidence of forests. Only the presence of around the tarnished floor. Within seconds,
Mount Olympus and the red sand gives it away there is no sign of any scorch mark and the
as Mars. There is a single golden symbol on the swarm scurries away across the bridge to
surface, though it takes a Common Knowledge where another bolt of lightning has just
roll at –4 to know it centers on a region for- struck.
merly known as Cydonia. Despite appearances, the bridge can sup-
A hero who knows the location can, if the port several hundred tons with ease. The small
player knows anything on the subject, discuss robots are maintenance robots. They are pro-
the ramifications of the “Face on Mars” and grammed to fight only in self-defense, serving
supposed pyramids which lie nearby. Although otherwise to make repairs as necessary. Unfor-
colonists thoroughly surveyed the region and tunately, the damage the base took millions of
found nothing artificial, rumors of alien life on years ago is more than they can handle. At best,
Mars never truly ceased. Otherwise, it is very they are maintaining the powerplant’s stabil-
unlikely a 24th century holy warrior with more ity. There are effectively an infinite number
pressing matters knows anything of these old of swarms, though only one at a time is ever
legends. (GMs may look up the visual phenom- activated.
ena on the internet and create a handout if they The powerplant has a slight imbalance in
feel it is appropriate—while interesting, it has its energy coils. Each round the squad remains
no relevance to the Necropolis setting.) here, deal every hero and the maintenance

42
 the long sleep
swarm a card. A black face card indicates he lowered by –2 (to 7(2) each).
has been struck by electricity, suffering 2d10 * Swarm: Parry +2; Because the swarm
damage. Characters who suffer a wound while is composed of scores, hundreds, or
on the bridge or a square adjacent to the pit thousands of creatures, cutting and
must make an Agility roll or fall to their death. piercing weapons do no real damage.
Adjacent characters who have not acted (if Area-effect weapons work normally, and a
you’re in combat rounds) may make an Agility character can stomp to inflict his damage
roll at –2 to catch their comrade. A Strength in Strength each round. Swarms are usually
roll is required to haul them back onto the foiled by jumping in water.
platform.
* Thermal Vision: Robots halve all penalties
In the event a hero is dumb enough to lob a for bad lighting when attacking living
warp grenade into the pit, draw a card from the targets or vehicles with their engine
action deck. A Joker indicates the dimensional running.
bubble severed a vital link and caused a core
breech. Alarms begin blaring across the base,
the powerplant immediately becomes a high Empty Rooms
radiation zone, and one round after the gre- These chambers are either unfinished or
nade is thrown the door seals—permanently. no longer function properly. Either way, there
Thirty minutes later, everything within 50 miles is nothing in them of interest. If the face card
of the powerplant’s location (which is located which lead them here is black, 1d4 skeletal
beneath the north pole) is vaporized in an robots teleports in to attack the occupants.
antimatter explosion.
Robot Skeletons (1d4): See page 40.
Worse, at least for those not in the power-
plant room when it detonates, the loss of the
power source shuts down the teleport system.
The heroes are trapped with absolutely no
hope of escape. Death comes when the air runs
out of the chambers in a few hours.
Anyone who jumps into the pit automati-
cally dies after freefalling for 10 miles into the
planet’s core, where the actual reactor lies.

Maintenance Robot Swarm

Attributes: Agility d10, Smarts d4(A), Spirit
d12, Strength d8, Vigor d10
Skills: Notice d6
Pace: 10; Parry: 4; Toughness: 9(2)
Special Abilities:
* Armor +2: Metallic structure.
* Attack: Maintenance swarms inflict
hundreds of tiny cuts and burns
every round to their victims,
hitting automatically and causing
2d4 damage to everyone in the
template (victims in completely
sealed suits are immune).
They only attack in self-defense,
though.
* Construct: +2 to recover from being
Shaken. No additional damage from Called
Shots. Immune to poison and disease.
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and
Intimidation.
* Split: These swarms are clever enough to
split into two smaller swarms (Small Burst
Templates) should their foes split up. The
Toughness of these smaller swarms is

43
 Player Handout #1: Mission Briefing

Date: 28.IV.2351, 0630 Zulu.

Good morning, Knights. Take your seats quickly and listen up.
We’ve lost contact with a research station out in the Ruber Desert in Terra Infernalis.
Last routine contact was due four days ago but failed to arrive. Under standard oper-
ating procedures, that’s flagged an alarm. Technically these guys are in unclaimed
territory, but they’re Church researchers working for the Office of Archaeological
Research, so they’re entitled to help. We’re near and available, so we get the job of
investigating.
Intense solar flares have been plaguing Salus for weeks now, and this is probably
nothing more than a fried comms relay. Still, there is a chance of a chemical spillage
or outbreak of disease. Whatever the cause, you’re to go there and sort things out.
Details about the facility and key personnel are available in a portable aide, which
the Senior Knight can collect after the briefing.
Your team call sign is Viper. The Senior Knight is Viper 1. Assign other numbers as
you see fit. The dropship call sign for this drop is Broadsword. Despite the comms
jamming, you should be able to use your headset radios up to their maximum range.
Broadsword’s broad-spectrum comms array should be good for up to 50 miles,
weather permitting. Anything beyond that is in the hands of the Almighty.
Enemy Forces: You’re operating in unclaimed territory, but far behind the frontlines.
There’ve never been any reports of Rephaim activity in our rear zones, but you know
the drill—be prepared for anything. At worst, it’s a major hazmat incident. Then
again, it could be there’s some sort of civil disturbance going on, and you’ll have a
few dozen cabin fevered scientists to pacify. Just remember these guys are on our
side.
Support: Rephaim activity along the front and the current solar conditions are
severely limiting our resources. You’ll be dropped in by Pedael. Only jump seats are
installed, so don’t expect a smooth ride.
While you secure the site and begin preliminary operations, the Pedael will return to
base and collect a HARD shelter, just in case you need it. Round trip should be a few
hours, so until she returns you’ll be on your own.
Since the Preceptory Master has declared this a rescue operation, a lance of eight
specialist sergeants is waiting for you by the dropship. There are two medics, two
technicians, and four infantrymen for routine duties. A Sergeant Commander has
been appointed to act as your liaison with the squad. You’ll find their service records
on file.
Equipment: Collect requisition forms for a field surgery kit and one portable welder
each. Other than that, it’s a standard weapons load. You might want your shields,
just in case the locals have gone nuts and started a riot. Damn researchers. Any
question? Good, then get your butts moving, people! God speed!
 Player Handout #2: Research Facility Data
Data Requested: Mining Facility #324-RD-04-Epsilon. Codename: Mars Station.
Authorization Code: IntSec Rating 128n+0, non-secured data. Sec-Encryp accepted.
Commence data stream.
Location: Ruber Desert, Terra Infernalis. Sector 7G, grid Omega-87-Beta.
History: Mars Station is a research facility operated by the Office of Antiquities.
Construction completed 31.II.2348 in Ruber Desert, close to the Labyrinthus
Angelus (see attached Data Link). Mission plan to survey and record archaeological
finds from possible first colony landings, circa 2130.
Key Personnel: Base Coordinator Terrance Wright, facility manager. Father Joshua
De Plume, spiritual advisor, dispatched by Cardinal Matisse at request of Archbishop
Francis Hawke (Personnel File sealed by orders of CIS). Chief Naomi Running Hare,
ex-mercenary cleared to operate in Church dominion by CIS, security chief. Doctor
Henrietta Stamp, chief archaeologist, volunteered for service following death of
spouse (Car crash, 01.VII.2350).
Other Personnel: 10 other personnel—Facility Services (2), Technicians (2),
Archaeologists (2), Diggers (4). Last census posted with Offices of Census and Public
Records 042.I.2351. No addenda.
Key Structures: Archaeological laboratory, communication suite, medical center,
recreation center, solar power station with enhanced capacitors and external relay
station, storage bays, chapel, habitation block, four command staff habitats. Landing
pad rated to Category Beta-Six, capable of supporting Angel-class dropships. See
attached satellite image, dated 13.III.2350.
All facilities are standard Church prefabricated constructions built in accordance with
Statute 19A.41.D4 of the Office of Industry’s Codex of Building Regulations (see
attached Data Link).
Vehicles: One Damocles Industries’ Model 3000G Industrial Crawler. Level 1
Industrial Driving License required for operation. Deemed roadworthy vehicle under
Office of Vehicles Statute 125G-99.
Attachments
Data Link <Labyrinthus Angelus>: Large natural geological structure created by
water erosion millions of years ago. Named for the low, singing sound caused by
winds blowing from the north. Intersecting valley network studied by Office of
Beatification and declared natural, probably caused by rock structure and geological
makeup.
Data Link <Ruber Desert >: Barren and arid region of reddish sand and rocks,
spanning much of Terra Infernalis. Has many similarities to Old Sol 4 (Mars). Dunes
can reach heights of 300 yards. Entrance into desert recommended only by holders
of Class 2 Survival skills training.
Data Link <Statute 19A.41.D4 >: Structures are to be shielded against small
arms fire and low-impact collisions. Structures must have airlock doors to prevent
contamination by particular matter. Structures must be capable of withstanding high
winds and particular erosion for a period of 50 Salus years.
End data stream
 Player Handout #3: Commander’s Log
<18.IV.2351>
Davis and Redburn still digging in Labyrinthus Angelus near ancient rockslide. I think
they’re hunting for fossils again. Must remind them of our mission brief over dinner.
<19.IV.2351>
Davis and Redburn excited over find in Labyrinthus Angelus. Henrietta informs me
it contains bone, possibly of some ancient beast. Strange she said bone and not
fossilized deposit. I’ll ask her in the morning.
<20.IV.2351>
Minor earth tremor in region last night—no damage. D&R radioed in to report
spectacular find but gave no details. Am taking a team to investigate with all haste.
Father David has asked to come along—might be of some use, I suppose, the old
drunk.
<Supplemental>
Dear God. Found sign of intelligent life from at least a million or more years ago.
Earthquake cleared the landslide D&R were investigating, revealing metal tunnel
going back into the canyon wall. No visible joints or welds—seemingly molded from
a single piece. Fascinating! Solar flares still screwing up radio, so can’t call this in.
Not sure I want to yet.
Entrance cleared shortly before dusk. Father David stayed behind with two of the
team to begin preliminary mapping of tunnel while I returned to formulate proper
plan—tunnel engraved with strange runes and symbols, as well as pictures. Clear
indications of intelligent life. Images show what appear to be army of skeletons
marching to war!
The end of the tunnel sealed with what could be a door. No visible lock or handle,
but strange engravings. Dismissed talk of using explosives or cutting torches to
avoid damaging valuable artifact.
Henrietta says bone could be of human origin. I’ve asked her to be 100% sure
before we make any announcement. Still no radio comms.
<21.IV.2351>
Father David returned to camp with others this morning for full briefing but promptly
locked himself in chapel. Team says he was ranting about “demons” all night and
trying to stop them from examining the door. Bad sort—shall request a transfer for
him.
Leaving skeleton crew (no pun) in the camp while rest investigate site in more
detail. Henrietta’s news very exciting, but no time to think about that now.
<22.IV.2351>
All attempts to penetrate door failed, so organized a thorough recording of the tun-
nels with full IR and UV spectrographs. Densiometer readings indicate metal thin but
immensely strong—ideal for more machines of war! Team returned to base. Carter
told me he heard strange noises, but none of the others could verify his claims.
Idiots left recording gear at the site! Still, we’ll be back in the morning. Hell, we’ll
probably be in this wasteland for years studying this find! We’ll be famous!
Meeting Henrietta for dinner in hour to discuss recent events. We need to handle this
carefully to protect our reputations and stop any panic in the Curia.
<23.IV.2351>
[Four days ago] No entry
 Player Handout #4: Chief Archaeologist’s Log
<19.IV.2351>
Davis and Redburn returned from the Labyrinthus Angelus today with what may turn
out to be a remarkable find. They brought a lump of rock measuring 36” by 19”. It is
rough and irregular but seems at first glance to match the geological composition of
the canyon walls.
At first I was going to rebuke them for wasting my time, but Redburn quickly
pointed out a reddish-white protuberance. A quick examination revealed what I had
originally thought was crystal, as bone. Not a fossil, but actual bone! It goes back
into the rock and appears to be totally encased, ruling out a hoax by my esteemed
colleagues.
Davis, a trained geologist, informed me the rock was found under a landslide dated
to around a million years ago. Whatever the bone belongs to, it must have been
crushed by loose stone a thousand millennia ago and slowly encrusted. Probably
some unfortunate animal.
<20.IV.2351>
X-ray analysis has revealed not just a sliver of bone, but what appears to be a
complete torso and pair of arms. Preliminary findings indicate it is a close match
to our own skeleton! Dear Lord, if this is human, then how did it get here a million
years ago? If it’s alien, it could indicate life on Earth did not begin as we were
taught. Astounding! Better tell Wright.
Wright informs me comms are still down, so he can’t get a message to Cardinal
Beevor. Thank God—something tells me this will be hushed up and declared a relic
so as to avoid those unwanted questions that plague my mind. I must learn more
before this find reaches the Cardinal’s ears and we lose control.
I shall break away the surrounding rock using a sonic probe and clean up the
skeleton (should I call it that?) for study.
<21.IV.2351>
It isn’t bone at all—it’s metal! Chemical composition defies the spectrograph and
densitometer, but it is definitely not a living organism. Some sort of robot by the
looks of it, but who built it and why does it resemble a human? Maybe we should
contact a Corporation and sell this? The Church sure won’t give us a bonus.
Fingers on right hand have electrodes—reason unknown, as the left hand is clear,
but it could be a recharge point. Musculature (if that’s the right word) would appear
to give it similar strength to a healthy human—nothing superhuman, so probably a
menial worker droid, but there is an amazing level of redundancy. Suspect it worked
in a hazardous environment.
Conclusion based on metallurgy and age—robot definitely not built by human hands,
thus leaving aliens as the only possible source. I pity the Curia having to debate
this!
<22.IV.2351>
Finally gained access to the torso compartment—the metal casing is tougher than
ceramic armor but much lighter. This could open up new advances for our Knights.
Chest cavity contains three separate power units of unknown origin—no residual
power spikes. Looks like the power supplies can be fed from our mains supply with
some tinkering, though there is little guarantee power will be transferred. A million
years is a long time to have a dead battery. Will let it charge while I go for dinner.
Wright has promised me a decent meal for a change.
<23.IV.2351>
[Four days ago] No entry
 Player Handout #5: Archaeologist’s Email

To: Cardinal Howe, Office of Sports & Leisure

From: Davis, P; Mars Station
Date: 21.IV.2351.
Encryption: 64E+2, Church standard encryption
code
Subject: Collection
Your Excellency,
I’ve found something of interest you might want to
add to your private collection. While digging in the
Labyrinthus Angelus I uncovered a metallic disc,
about an inch across, marked with strange glyphs. It
has a low intrinsic value, but it is undoubtedly over a
million years old and crafted by intelligent hands!
As always, you have first refusal on anything of
value I find. However, given the unique nature
of such a find, I’d like to suggest a price of
1,000,000M. This is subject to negotiation, as
always.
May the light guide you!
I remain your servant,

Pete Davis, Archaeologist

Office of Archaeology
 the broken seal

War Master’s Notes his replacement gaining the Experience Points

the rest of the party earned during the adven-
ture.
Welcome to The Broken Seal, a standalone
scenario written for the Necropolis campaign
setting.
WARNING: This adventure deals with
Act 1: Sides are Taken
mature themes and may not be suitable for
Even when on duty in the Preceptory, sleep
players below the age of 13. Adults gaming
is a valued commodity. It thus comes as some-
with younger players should use their discre-
thing of a surprise when at 0230 hours the
tion.
Knights are roused from their sleep.
If you intend to play in this adventure, you The barrack lights flicker into life, shed-
should stop reading now. Advanced knowledge ding their stark, soulless glow into your
of the scenario will only spoil your enjoyment of tired, blinking eyes. Standing by the door
the game. in full armor is the Preceptor Intelligence
The WM should read the entire adventure Officer, Dante Trebano.
before play begins. Knowing the basic flow and “Get dressed,” he says quietly. “Meet
details in advance will greatly speed up play me outside in ten minutes. And keep the
and make the game run smoother. noise to a minimum.” With that he turns
and leaves.
Required Materials PIO Trebano doesn’t make any comment
if the Knights are late, though he casts a dis-
You also need a copy of the Savage Worlds paraging look at the Lance. He gestures for
rule book and the Necropolis: 2350 Savage the Knights to climb into the back of a wait-
Setting. The Necropolis Figure Flats are rec- ing Prophet. Once they are aboard, he climbs
ommended, though any suitable sci-fi or dark into the passenger compartment and closes
future miniatures will suffice. the door. Trebano refuses to speak further
about the early summons, instead ordering the
Knights to keep quiet. The APC stops outside
Characters the main headquarters building. Trebano leads
the Knights into the Preceptor Master’s office.
This adventure is designed for a Lance of
four Heroic Knights from any of the core Sacri
Ordines, though Veteran characters should be
able to cope if they use their brains. Use the
Scene 1: The Darkness Gathers
archetypes from the Necropolis setting book if The Preceptor Master rises from behind
you need pre-generated characters. Each arche- his desk to greet you. As he does, Trebano
type has been designed as a starting character. places a small device on the desk and acti-
Those used should be advanced as the player vates. A momentary, high-pitched whistle
wishes to bring them up to 60 XPs. fills the air, but quickly fades. He flicks the
Should a character die, the player has only gizmo a few times, and then nods to the
one option—to play one or more of the Broth- Preceptor Master.
ers of Perpetual Prayer (page 65). The main “Good morning, Knights,” he says. “We
NPC, Knight Commander Damasc, should need you for a covert mission. Before I
remain an NPC. At the end of the adventure, continue, I must warn you that you may be
the player creates a new character as normal, going up against other Knights. I can’t tell

51
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
you any more until you take a holy vow then take off again. When the target is located,
to keep everything you hear secret until the Knights are to summon it for rapid evacu-
you face the Almighty in person. Because of ation.
this, you have the right to leave now, with
The Lance is issued with 12mm ballistic
no stain on your record or honor.”
weapons and as much ammunition as they
The Preceptor Master waits until the want. The Knights are free to take pistols,
Knights accept the terms (or leave). Assuming SMGs, or assault rifles, as each member prefers.
the former occurs, he continues. Medium armor is also issued across the Lance.
“I have been contacted by an old and Each hero may also take five grenades of his
trusted friend, Father Benjamin Goldblum. choice, though the Preceptor Master reminds
He’s a member of the Merovingian Order, them that they are still servants of the Church
a small sect largely unknown outside the and should try to restrict collateral damage to a
upper echelons of the Church. The Inqui- minimum. Any other gear they want, so long as
sition, with Papal approval, has begun it is not of Church-only design, can be arranged.
arresting the Merovingians. According to If the Knights forget, the Quartermaster (who
reports, dozens have been incarcerated assumes this is a typical secret mission) reminds
and just as many killed while “resisting them to hand over their ID tags.
arrest.”
Once everyone is kitted up, the Lance is
“Father Benjamin told me he had to taken to the Cherub.
reveal a secret before he was captured.
Strangely, that secret wasn’t for my
ears—it’s for yours. He didn’t ask for you Scene 2: Saving Father Benjamin
by name, just Banner and Lance designa-
tion. I don’t know what is going on, but if Since there is no way of knowing where the
Father Benjamin says it is important, then Lance is garrisoned, the GM must determine
I believe him. the time of day. If the Lance is stationed on
the same continent, it is early morning and the
“Your mission is to enter the slums of lighting is Dim (–1). Otherwise, it is dusk (and
Vatican City disguised as a mercenary team still Dim lighting).
and “kidnap” Father Benjamin from an
apartment building in which he’s hiding. Father Benjamin is currently hiding in a
With any luck we have a head start on the small apartment, in a rather seedy part of the
Inquisition, but there’s a chance you’ll have Vatican City. The Cherub hovers a few feet from
to engage with Inquisitors and Teutonic the ground over a small park, a block from the
Knights opposed to your plan. Father Benja- building while the Knights jump out. The inser-
min must be rescued at any cost. tion craft then silently lifts off into the gloomy
sky.
“You’ll be issued with Union manu-
factured weapons and armor, since they The Knights reach the apartment block
are preferred by mercenaries. Any gear without any difficulty. Father Benjamin’s apart-
traceable to the Ordo must be left behind. ment is on the third floor. The elevator is out of
If you have any distinguishing tattoos or order, forcing the Lance to use the stairs.
birthmarks, they’ll be removed by laser. If they knock on the door, a female voice
Naturally there is a risk you may be cap- answers, asking who is outside. Mention of
tured. In this event,” he pauses for a few the Preceptor Master’s name (the Knights
moments, “prisoners must be permanently know their commander’s name, even if they
silenced. rarely use it) results in the door opening
“Look, I know this sounds very bad and the Knights being ushered inside by an
right now, but I swear on my immortal elderly woman.
soul that if there were any other way to Kicking the door down is another valid
conduct this mission I’d take it. Time is means of entry (this is supposed to be an
against us, though.” authentic kidnapping). Bursting in, the Knights
The Preceptor Master provides the last find an elderly woman cooking stew. There’s
address Father Benjamin gave him, stating that no sign of Father Benjamin, but the kitchen
it is the only lead available. A Cherub will drop table is set for two diners. Again, mentioning
the Lance off in a park close to the apartment the Preceptor Master by name is the right way
block in which Father Benjamin is hiding and forward.

52
 the broken seal
Father Benjamin emerges from a wardrobe the Knights, though—as a devout Templar he
in the bedroom on hearing his old friend’s won’t leave the field unless he is the last man
name. alive.
“Let us get this over with,” he says. Inquisitor: See page 67.
“Either you were sent to rescue me or the
Teutonic Chaplain: See page 67.
plan has been uncovered and you are
about to put a bullet in my brain. Which Teutonic Knight Infantry (2): See page
is it to be?” 67.
Father Benjamin says goodbye to the lady Teutonic Knight Infantry Support: See
(an old friend of his mother) and grabs a small page 67.
gym bag containing his few belongings. He tells
the Knights the Inquisition is close to finding
him (he has a civilian friend who works for
them) and that they should hurry in executing Act 2: Awakenings
their escape plan. The monk won’t speak of the
mission or what secret he has to tell, claiming The Cherub blasts off at top speed once the
all will be revealed at the appointed time. last Knight is aboard. Father Benjamin speaks
to the pilot and gives him coordinates.

Scene 3: Cometh the Inquisitor “I’m sorry,” the monk says, “but we
can’t go to the Preceptory just yet. I hope
The real trouble begins when the Knights your commander told you it was impera-
get outside. The roof of the building slopes and tive that you be the ones to rescue me.
is covered in aerials, both of which prevent the Before we can return I have to show you
Cherub from getting close enough. The only why, and we have to pick up someone
viable option is to leave the building at street rather special.”
level. Knights who radio the Preceptory for orders
Regardless of whether they leave from are told, by the Preceptor Master in person, to
the front or back door, the Lance runs into obey Father Benjamin’s wishes and not to ask
an Inquisitor-Captain backed by a Lance of too many questions.
Teutonic Knights. No warning shout or option
Several hours later, the Cherub flies into
to surrender is given—the Teutonics simply
the northern edge of the Leviathan Mountains.
open fire. The first volley misses the Knights by
Navigating down small valleys for added con-
a whisker, ripping into the wall. Deal initiative
cealment, it finally begins to slow as it draws
cards!
near a monastery built partially into the side
The Inquisitorial Lance is well-trained and of a cliff. With a gentle bump the craft lands
equipped. They don’t charge the Knights or in a small courtyard. Father Benjamin asks the
present easy targets, but instead make use of pilot to keep the engine running and ready for
Cover, suppressive fire, grenades, and litanies immediate lift off on his return. He then climbs
to the best of their ability. Despite not being out and asks the monks to follow him into the
stupid, they do fight to the last man—death in monastery.
the service of the Church is not feared by these
fanatics. “We are about to visit a very spe-
cial…prisoner. The prisoner has asked for
The only place the Cherub can safely land you specifically. We don’t know why, but
is the park. If ordered, it will attempt to land it’s important we follow protocol in this
in the street. For the latter, the Templar pilot matter. Rest assured, you’ve done nothing
must make a Piloting roll (Piloting d8+1) at wrong.
the end of each round. With success, it touches
down. On a failure, the updrafts and proximity “When we get to the prisoner, you are
of buildings and parked cars force him to abort not to approach closer than two yards.
and try again next round. Avoid eye contact whenever possible.
Should the prisoner try to escape, you have
Cherubs are not heavily armored and are one order—to use exceptional lethal force
susceptible to small arms fire. Each time the
to prevent this. Am I understood?”
Cherub takes a wound, the pilot makes a
Guts roll (Guts d8). On a failure, he bugs out The monk then walks toward the door and
at the end of the round. He won’t try to land orders the Knights to follow. Descending sev-
again until the area is secure, though he will eral flights of stairs, Father Benjamin leads the
provide aerial fire support. He won’t abandon squad down to the basement of the monastery,

53
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
into what appears to be a disused storeroom. symbols. The monk stands in front of a
Approaching a blank wall, he places his hand small screen and says his name and rank.
against a stone. A pale blue light flickers momentarily
With a sudden hiss, a hidden doorway in across his face. He indicates for you all to
the wall swings open to reveal a set of narrow do the same.
spiral stairs. As the Knights pass through, fol- “This is a facial recognition security
lowing the monk, they cannot help but notice system,” he says as you begin the process.
the door is solid metal, several inches thick, “When we leave that door,” he indicates
and has multiple locking bars. Halfway down the door at the end of the corridor, “sensors
the spiral, the Knights hear the sounds of the will scan our faces. If anyone not registered
door close and lock behind them. on the security system is present, appropri-
At the foot of the stairs is a long cor- ate automatic measures will be taken. Just
ridor, lit by low-wattage bulbs. At the far be warned, you do not want to be in this
end is a metal door engraved with strange corridor should that happen.”

54
 the broken seal
Once everyone has been scanned, the
group advances toward the door. Father Ben-
jamin dabs each of the Knights on the forehead
A Lack of Chanting
with oil, while reciting prayers. Only when he The four Brothers of Perpetual Prayer
is finished does the Merovingian activate the are present as an emergency meas-
door, again using his palm. With a terrible grat- ure. Although they continually pray
ing sound, the door slowly opens. and chant, they are not binding the
demon inside Damasc. Rather, they
are simply following the vow they
Scene 1: Demon Bound took when they joined the order.
Beyond the door is a large, vaulted- As such, it doesn’t matter, in terms of
ceiling, stone chamber. The smell of human the adventure, if they cease chanting,
filth, decay, and something altogether more though they resist any attempts to
unpleasant hangs heavily in the air. silence them.

Six monks clad in plain gray robes

kneel inside the door, their heads lowered Behind the Mask
and cowled. A constant droning chant
echoes through the chamber. “Do not dis- Damasc’s mask has no lock, having
turb them,” Father Benjamin warns. “They been welded shut around his face.
are members of the Brothers of Perpetual While many groups likely won’t try
Prayer. They perform a sacred task.” to take it off, there is always a chance
someone will get very curious and
The far end is in deep shadow, but take a cutting torch to it (the only way
something can be sensed moving in the to remove it).
shadows. “Prepare yourselves,” whispers
the monk. “And keep strong in the faith.” Underneath, Damasc looks surpris-
ingly normal. His face is aged with
The Merovingian takes a step forward, deep stress lines, but otherwise he
his presence activating low-wattage appears completely normal. At least
bulbs, which cast eerie shadows through until he opens his mouth wide and
the vault. Chained to the back wall is a reveals all his teeth have been sharp-
man. Manacles around his wrists attach ened to points (he did this himself)
to brackets on the ceiling, and his face is and his tongue has been cleft in two,
concealed by an iron mask. Only a narrow to resemble that of a snake (again,
slit for a mouth and two eyeholes break self-inflicted before his rescue).
the casing. The chains obviously allow
for some movement, for he is knelt on the
ground. purpose is to pray constantly for mankind.
All he wears is a stained loincloth. His Further information will be revealed later by
torso is covered in a patchwork of scars. Father Benjamin.
Yet they are not the scars of war like many Should the Knights take a peek under
of you carry. Each scar is a ghastly symbol the cowls (the Curious Hindrance virtually
of evil, the sort of glyphs you have seen on demands this), they must make a Guts roll to
the armor and vehicles of the Rephaim. avoid Fear. All of the monks have had their eyes
“They are here, as you requested,” calls removed and ears surgically blocked.
the monk. “Knights,” the Master says turn- Damasc raises his head and looks at
ing to face you, “this is Knight Commander each of you briefly. Though you cannot
Petrov Damasc.” see his eyes, you feel them move over you.
Petrov Damasc’s name is well-known to the Despite the distance between you, you feel
Knights. He is regarded as one of the greatest physically sick, as if something unhallowed
war heroes of their Ordo. According to the had cast its baleful glance into your soul.
public reports, he went missing over 25 years “Thank you, Father Benjamin.”
ago. No questions about how he came to be Damasc’s grating voice, deep and strong,
here will be answered at this time. sends shivers up your spine. “Welcome to
Have the Knights make a Common Knowl- my home, Knights.” He extends a hand in
edge roll at –2 to see what they know of the greeting, a hand lacking any fingers. “No
Brothers of Perpetual Prayer. With success, the handshake?” he laughs. “Ah well, human
Knight knows they are a small order whose contact is such a strange thing to me now.

55
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
At least let me do the proper thing and Father Benjamin sighs heavily when this
stand in your presence,” he adds with a topic is raised. With heavy heart he says their
smile. sacrifice was necessary. In order to ensure they
fell for no seductive words or illusions, they
Yanking on the chains, he drags himself were “modified” to reduce all outside stimuli.
upright. You see now that Damasc was not Hidden security cameras, manned around the
kneeling before—his legs are missing below clock, watch over them, and the monks operate
the knee. With a chuckle he lowers himself in shifts, allowing them to eat and sleep before
back to the floor. “Sorry,” he smiles, “but I continuing their eternal vigil. Each monk knew
get so little humor in my life these days. what would happen if he accepted the role,
“I think it is important that you know and each volunteered, regardless. Although
I am not insane,” he continues. “Whatever Damasc has managed to keep the entity bound
tales you may have heard, I am perhaps within his flesh for over two decades, there is
the sanest man alive. I have seen things no guarantee how long this status quo will last,
hence the need to remain constantly vigilant.
beyond imagination. I have seen the true
nature of the universe. I have seen beyond Once back in the relative calm of the upper
the veil you call reality. monastery, Father Benjamin turns to the
Knights.
“Something dark is held bound in the
central Leviathan Mountains. The seal of “Before you ask, Damasc is obviously
faith is weakening, and soon it will be the ’Vessel.’ Unfortunately for you, he
freed. The great darkness knows of this and served in the same Banner and Lance as
seeks to speed up the process. Where the five you. Seems whatever power’s behind this,
valleys meet as one, you will find it. The you’re the Lance. Come, we must return
Lance of the Vessel must destroy the dark- to your Preceptory now and inform your
ness, but the Vessel must be present. Only commander of what has transpired here.
when it is, so can the Beast be slain.” Reinforcements should be here soon to col-
lect Damasc and some others. It’s all been
Should a hero invoke detect arcana on the arranged by your pilot.”
prisoner at any point, have him roll his Faith
as normal. With success, he sees a terrible,
grotesque, demonic form writhing beneath
Information
Damasc’s skin. He must make a Guts roll at –2 During the trip, Father Benjamin tells the
to avoid Terror. Any reaction causes Damasc to Knights about his Order and the Brothers of
laugh loudly, though he says nothing. Perpetual Prayer. This is reproduced in the two
Updates, which should be given to the players
Whether this incident is raised with the at this time. He also tells the tale of Knight
monk or not, Father Benjamin imparts some Commander Damasc.
more information once the troupe is back
outside the vault. “I feel it best you know something of
Damasc’s background,” the monk says.
As far as the Merovingians who have stud- “Knight Commander Damasc was once an
ied the man can tell, Damasc is possessed by honorable Knight. He had proven himself
some powerful Rephaim spirit. Its exact nature in battle countless times and performed
remains a mystery, but it is speculated Damasc many acts of bravery. He was loved by his
is somehow using the spirit to gain valuable men. Knights even openly requested trans-
information. All that seems to be holding the fers to serve in his Banner.
entity from consuming his soul, mind, and
“Twenty five years ago, Damasc was
body is Damasc’s remaining faith and his approached and informed of the demon.
willpower. Should it break free it could cause We needed a new host and he seemed
havoc, hence the security and spiritual wards perfect. He volunteered without hesitation,
surrounding the prisoner. It is also a valuable laying down his life, perhaps his sanity,
asset, albeit a highly unorthodox one. for the cause. The story was put out that
Aside from revealing the monks’ act as a Damasc had fallen in battle in the Levia-
spiritual ward against the entity (they work than Mountains and his body could not be
together to cast a ritual version of consecrate recovered.
around the area near the door), no other “Ten years ago Damasc’s willpower fal-
information is imparted unless a Knight has tered slightly while he was making contact
seen beneath the cowls and raises the matter with the entity. Much to my shame security
of their mutilation. was not as tight back then. We had grown

56
 the broken seal
complacent, a sin for which God shall gray hair and a long scar down his right
judge me in His own time. Damasc escaped cheek. He draws on a cigarette, silently
his bonds, killing three of my brothers in watching you file into the room.
the process.
“Welcome back,” the Master says, a
“By the time we recaptured him he warm smile on his face. He gestures toward
was naked and covered in those scars. the smoking man. “This is Padre Fistulus
As far as the medics could tell, they were Rosemont, the most senior Chaplain in
self-inflicted. He was also missing his the Ordo and the Grand Master’s personal
fingers and lower legs. They weren’t cut off spiritual advisor. He knows what you’ve
in combat. The flesh was missing but the been doing recently. It seems Father Benja-
bones were intact.” min has friends in very high places.
He pauses for a long moment. “After “Father Benjamin has briefed us on the
analysis the surgeons concluded the flesh situation. It has come as something of a
from his fingers and legs had been gnawed shock, but these are strange times in which
off. Bite marks were present on the neigh- we live. We have no choice but to do as
boring tissue. The imprints matched those Knight Commander Damasc says. We have
of Damasc’s teeth. Whatever lives inside to find and eliminate the demon before it
him, it caused a battle-hardened veteran falls into enemy hands or escapes and goes
to eat his own flesh. on a rampage.”
“Since then, he’s been kept imprisoned Hand the players Handout #1 at this time.
under maximum security. Every now and
then we check on him in person. Most After the briefing, Padre Fistulus volunteers
times he says nothing, but occasionally, some extra information if the Knights don’t
like today, he decides to reveal something. raise the questions.
Were it not for his remarkable insight, and “In case you are wondering why we had
those of previous hosts, we’d likely have to take such extreme measures, you should
exorcised the demon a long time ago. know that all is not well in the Church. We
“God and Damasc alone know what strongly suspect enemy forces have gotten
torment the Knight endures daily, but I feel close to the Pope and are subverting his
that the Almighty has reserved a place in will. We have lost much access to His Holi-
Heaven for Damasc, as he did all those he ness and can no longer guide his actions.
came before.” “The destruction of the Merovingians
will lose mankind a great deal of useful
knowledge. The demon would also likely
Scene 2: Back at the Preceptory be loosed upon the world. We may be
Just before landing, Father Benjamin passes acting against the Church in this matter,
the Senior Knight a small wooden cross. but we are fighting for a just cause. God
will understand the need for our actions,
“Take this, and use it wisely,” he whis- even if we can’t.”
pers. “It’s a talisman designed to weaken
Rephaim. It doesn’t last long, but it might
just save your life.”
The talisman contains the weaken Rephaim
Act 3: Ancient Secrets
power and has 10 Power Points. It uses the Damasc is fitted with rudimentary cyber-
rules for the Talisman Creator Edge from the netic legs during the time the Knights are at
Necropolis 2351-55 Update. the stores, gathering equipment. Most man
As soon as the Cherub lands at the Precep- portable gear should be made available. Only
tory, Father Benjamin is taken to brief the Tabernacle power armor is expressly denied,
Preceptor Master. The Knights are led away by as it exists only in very limited numbers and
Trebano. After giving the Lance time to wash is currently little use for operating so deep
and eat, Trebano escorts them back to the behind enemy lines.
Preceptor Master’s office.
The Senior Knight is given a small detona-
Inside are two men. One you recognize tor. The bomb it triggers, a small shaped charge
immediately as the Preceptor Master. of monofilament strands, is around Damasc’s
Standing by the stained glass window is neck. It can be activated as an action by the
a tall, muscular man with close-cropped Senior Knight. The bomb kills the former

57
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Knight Commander instantly but causes no suddenly stops. “Here,” Damasc says quietly.
damage to those around him (it just severs his “I can feel it. Search the area. Quickly! Time
head). is against us!”
Damasc is escorted to the landing pad by Have the Knights make a Notice roll.
eight Assault Knights in full battle gear, armed Whoever rolls the highest (even if that would
with incinerator units. He remains silent normally indicate a failure) locates a door in
throughout the trip, focusing his will on keep- the side of the valley wall.
ing the demon bound. Characters who choose
The finder must now make a Spirit roll.
to sit near him must make a Guts roll (no one
With failure, he catches a brief glimpse of dark
has to—there’s plenty of room in the Angel).
tendrils extending through the door. This is a
With failure, they suffer a –1 penalty to all trait
demonically-induced hallucination. The Knight
rolls until an hour after they hit the ground
suffers a –1 penalty to all trait rolls for the next
and begin their investigation. During this time,
hour. On a critical failure, he sees disembodied
they have the feeling Damasc is watching them
faces forming in the door, howling in agony.
rather too closely and possibly licking his lips
This causes him to roll on the Fright table. No
behind his mask.
other hero, even one stood beside the door
The four Brothers are led to the Angel finder, sees the images.
by Padre Fistulus, who blesses each one and
Judging by the scarring and weather-
wishes them luck. They chant quietly during the
ing, the metal door has been here for
journey, though one takes the time to answer
many years. The only marking of note is
any questions about their order the characters
a faint circle with a raised solid circle in
may have. Only if asked do they gives their
the centre.
names—Brothers Frederick, Augustine, Lucius,
and Simon. Have the characters make a Common
Knowledge roll at –2. With success, they recog-
nize the symbol as that of the First Reformation
Scene 1: The Door Church, which lasted from 2149 to 2201.
The outer circle represented mankind, while
When the dropship is a few minutes from the inner circle symbolized the belief in one
the landing site, the pilot radios through to the supreme deity. In texts, the deity was referred
Senior Knight’s headset and tells him to get his to as the One, but worshippers could apply any
men ready. The pilot, Paula Jeffries, tells the name they wished (such as God, Allah, Buddha,
commander she’ll be setting down for as little or even pagan deities like Odin). Should they
time as possible and then bugging out to the all fail, Damasc reveals the information.
other side of the mountains, to await their call
for extraction. At best, it’ll be an hour after the There is no sign of a handle or lock. As soon
call is given before the dropship will be at the as someone asks, “How do we get in?” the door
landing zone. creaks open of its own accord. A strong waft
of stale air, tinged with something describable
The dropship settles down on the rim of only as unholy, assails the Knights’ nostrils.
a valley, one of five, which join nearby. Once Damasc chuckles when this occurs and says,
the ship is airborne, Damasc points toward the “It looks like we’re invited. After you!” Alter-
valley floor. A narrow pathway winds down the nately, the door can be destroyed, though this
slope to the valley bottom, two hundred feet likely requires explosives due to its Toughness
below. “Down there,” he mutters. “We need to (Toughness 18).
get down there.”
Have each character make an Agility roll.
Unless a critical failure is rolled, no harm befalls Scene 2: The Cathedral
the hero. Failure indicates a Knight starts to
Beyond the door is a rough-hewn cor-
slip, but someone grabs him. Those who roll
ridor. After a dozen yards, the corridor
snakeeyes suffer a level of Fatigue from bumps
ends at a bridge. Some fifty feet below is
and bruises, as they lose their footing and slide
the rubble-strewn cavern floor. Across the
and bounce partway down the slope.
bridge is a strange yet wondrous sight—a
The valley floor is strewn with small cathedral! Silvery lines cover its surface,
mounds of rubble, large boulders, the result shedding pale light across the cavern. The
of recent landslides, small trees, and dense bridge, which spans perhaps 20 yards, ends
patches of thorn bushes, making it difficult at a large door, marked with the same
going. After an hour of hard marching, Damasc symbol you found on the outer portal.

58
 the broken seal
Damasc says very little while in the cathe- lose the full amount on a failed Faith roll). This
dral. He seems almost absent-minded and bonus is lost when the demon escapes, the
callous, flicking through old books, moving capacitors having finally run dry.
skeletons around with no respect, and making
Although this does drain the capacitors
generally unfitting comments. He never tries to
slightly faster, the WM need not be concerned
escape the Knights, nor does he act to arouse
with recording the details—it’s all accounted
their suspicions—he simply doesn’t care about
the trappings within the structure. For this for later.
reason, and because he has an inkling of what
occurs later, he avoids combat, taking shelter
behind cover and letting the Knights do the
Key Areas
dirty work. Only a few important locations are
described. The rest of the cathedral contains
General Overview appropriate paraphernalia to meet the room
titles you decide. For instance, a chapel con-
Unless otherwise stated, all doors in the tains an altar and pews, bedrooms hold beds,
cathedral are unlocked and have Toughness books still rest on the library shelves, and so
12. The outer walls have Toughness 40 (+20 on.
Heavy Armor) and the inner ones Toughness
20 (Armor +10). Every room is lit by strange, Crypt
silvery lines, engraved into the walls. Treat this
glow as providing Dim lighting (–1), in the Dust covers a collection of stone biers,
event no other source of illumination is pres- upon which lie skeletons. A few have bullet
ent. holes in their heads. Others have deep
scars on their bones or are missing limbs,
Dust covers everything, except the shim- possibly indicating some acts of mutilation
mering energy field of the great seal. Moving
occurred in life.
through the dust leaves footprints. Concealing
the footprints is extremely difficult (Tracking The skeletons are those of the cathedral’s
roll at –4) and time-consuming (30 minutes). former occupants. Driven mad by the demon,
One roll and 30 minutes of time is required for many took their own lives cleanly, but some
each room or corridor. chose to mutilate their bodies (like Damasc did
when he was possessed). None of the skeletons
In some places, parts of the ceiling or walls
have been topped and tailed, which means they
have collapsed, due to earth tremors. Moving
through an area of debris counts as difficult can be animated using the zombie power.
ground.
Great Machine
Silvery Lines Within this chamber lies a strange sight.
The silvery lines are conduits for spiritual Four skeletons clad in decaying robes sit
energy. Part machine, part arcane, they keep cross-legged on the floor, around a central
the ward preventing the demon from material- column of stone glittering with silvery
izing fuelled, drawing energy from capacitors lines. The column rises up, ending in a
buried deep underground (and unreachable in large crystal sphere, which glitters with
the adventure). pale, silvery light. Thick cables run from
the crystal into the walls, from where thin
The lines are extremely fragile (Toughness silvery lines identical to those you have
4) and breaking one causes it to fade as the seen throughout the cathedral radiate.
energy flow is disrupted. Breakages cannot be
repaired. Atop each skeleton’s head is a metal
cap from which wires project. The wires
Characters with the Arcane Background connect to the base of the column.
(Miracles) Edge gain the effects of the Wizard Arranged on a control panel of some sort
Edge while in the cathedral, the capacitors
are old-fashioned dials. The needles flicker
providing extra spiritual energy whether it is
weakly, each dial reading near zero.
wanted or not. Characters with the Holy Man
Edge gain a further benefit—they reduce the This is the heart of the cathedral, spiritu-
cost of a litany by one with success plus one per ally at least. It served as the user interface for
raise. As usual, they must have the full Power the great machine. The skeletons, all former
Points to invoke the litany, normally (since they monks with miraculous powers, transferred

59
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
their spiritual essence through the wires to the break the pattern, the stairs remain visible until
column, which then funneled it into subter- five people again stand on the tips, at which
ranean capacitors. point the door seals again.
When the device was fully functional,
amplifiers allowed each monk to keep the Study
capacitors charged with ease. Earthquakes and
the ravages of time have damaged the amplifi- The dust of centuries covers everything
ers beyond repair (they too are concealed deep in a thick layer. In a high-backed wooden
underground) and the energy reserves of the chair sits a skeleton, its robe now a patch-
great machine are almost expended. work of thin threads. Clutched in its hands
is a leather-bound book. In front of the
The skeletons show no signs of injury. They skeleton, on a wooden table, rests an old-
willingly gave their lives to ensure the machine fashioned pistol.
was kept fully charged, denying themselves
food or rest, and eventually perishing from The skeleton shows no sign of injury. The
starvation. unfortunate victim simply lost the will to live
after becoming possessed by the demon after
A successful Repair roll reveals the wiring, finishing the book and sat here until he died
caps, and column all form some sort of of natural causes. The book appears to be a
machine, but it is unlike anything the Knights
diary. Its contents are summarized in Handout
have ever witnessed before. No amount of
#2, which should be given to the players after
raises can fathom the exact nature of its inner
someone has read the book for half an hour.
workings.
Treat the pistol as a 6mm pistol. It is fully
Refer to page 61 (The Seal Weakens)
loaded. Firing the pistol without cleaning it
if a character with the Arcane Background
causes the weapon to explode if the Shooting
(Miracles) Edge places one of the metal caps on
his head. Anyone donning a cap must remain die is a 1, regardless of any Wild Die. The firer
adjacent to the pillar due to the short reach of takes 2d6 damage. Removing the dust takes 5
the wires. minutes but no die roll is required (despite not
using ballistic weapons, Knights learn how to
operate and maintain them during basic train-
Great Portal & the Seal ing).
Carved into the floor of this chamber is
a five-pointed star. Archaic runes and sigils
surround the pentagram. Preplanned Events
This is not the great seal—it’s simply the
access portal. To activate it, a living creature There are several preplanned events that
must stand at each of the star’s points. No take place during this phase of the mission.
words need be spoken—the very act of stand- These should be used when required by the
ing there activates hidden sensors, which WM to keep the action going, but they must
power the mechanism. Note that the Rephaim all be used.
cannot activate the mechanism. Should they
slay the Knights, they resort to using weapons
to smash through the portal. Earthquake!
When five people stand at the tips, the This event should be used shortly after the
central portion of the pentagram slides back. Knights enter the cathedral. Although it risks
Beneath is a set of spiral stairs leading down. A injuring them, it gives plentiful time to per-
pale silvery glow radiates from the hole. form Healing before the true antagonists are
The stairs descend for 10” (20 yards), encountered and provides a clue that time is
before opening up into a cavern. In the center not on their side.
of the cavern is a swirling vortex of energy. Without warning, the ground begins trem-
Within the vortex can be glimpsed a towering, bling. An earthquake has struck the cathedral
dark shadow, though no details are discern- (but not the surrounding terrain). This is a
ible. See Act 3: Acts of Faith below for more result of the demon attempting to force its way
information. through the seal. It has tried many times in the
Once the portal is activated, it remains last 200 years, and each time it has succeeded
open until one of two events occurs. If the five in damaging part of the internal structure, so
creatures remain standing on the pentagram’s speeding up the rate of the decay of the ward
tips, it seals after a minute. Should anyone which binds it.

60
 the broken seal
Deal each character (including individual If the Lance posted a sentry, then he sees
NPCs) a single card. A red card or Joker indi- the Rephaim arrive (they begin 50” away from
cates the hero avoided being struck by falling the door, having rounded a spur in the valley
debris. A club means the unfortunate soul is wall). Otherwise, the first the Knights learn of
struck by falling masonry, taking 2d6 damage. the Rephaim’s presence is when they assault
A spade results in 3d6 damage. Armor protects the cathedral.
as normal. The Rephaim have no idea about the
After the quake ends, the characters notice Knights, though they are convinced some are
some of the silver lines have stopped glowing. likely to be present. In their arrogance, they
The obvious cause seems to be a large crack make straight for the largest supernatural
running down the wall nearest them, which power source, which in this case is the great
has severed a line. seal surrounding the demon. Unfortunately, if
the portal is closed they are stymied, temporar-
Should the party be having too easy a time ily.
later, perhaps having walked through the
Rephaim, the WM should use another during Should they run across the Knights, they
the encounter with the demon. take up positions and engage. They’re not
stupid (skeletons may be fairly mindless, but
their commander is a competent leader) and
Report from the Front will make use of Cover, aim if they need to,
throw grenades to clear rooms, and so forth.
The backpack radio suddenly crackles into
life. If the party is exceptionally strong (90+
Experience Points) or contains lots of members
“Stonewall calling Bloodhound, (6+), or the WM has a cruel streak, he should
Stonewall calling Bloodhound. Enemy have the Rephaim encounter the Knights the
forces have engaged us as expected. Large round after the great seal is discovered. This
numbers of skeletons and zombies with forces the party to try and staunch the seal’s
war demon support. Primary defensive collapse and engage the Rephaim, simultane-
perimeter is breeched. We’re falling back ously, which should present the Knights with
to secondary defensive lines and activat- tactical and resource problems. Otherwise,
ing the minefield and sentry guns to delay the Rephaim should make their presence felt
them and cover our withdrawal. Don’t before the seal is located.
take too long doing whatever you have to
do!” The Rephaim force comprises:

Stonewall, the mission codename for Greater mummy (High Priest Beleth): See
Preceptor Master Elizabeth Cruz, the senior page 68.
commander in the assault force, is available to Young vampire (Centurion Hauras): See
talk if the Knights want to update her as to their page 68.
progress. She’s not in any mood for idle gossip,
Sentry skull (1): See page 69.
though!
Advanced skeletons (10): See page 68.

Rephaim Incursion
The Dark Conclave, having learned of the Act 4: Acts of Faith
demon’s whereabouts through the Dark (the
demonic essence inside Damasc has a link to Events in this section are triggered the
its master only when Damasc uses it to reveal instant the great seal is first spotted, even if
information), ordered a two-pronged assault that occurs during a firefight. Other events of
on the region. the Lance’s making may occur during these
scenes—this section is not linear until the ward
The main force, the one Stonewall’s troops
reaches a critical point.
are fighting, was a diversionary force sent out in
case the Sacri Ordines tried anything en masse.
Were the Ordines lax in their duties, they were
to push on toward the location of the demon
Scene 1: The Seal Weakens
and provide additional support. The actual The great warding seal is failing rapidly.
strike force sent to liberate the demon is much When it is discovered, it has 12 Power Points
smaller and arrives at the door not long after remaining. At the start of each round thereaf-
the Knights. ter, one Power Point is drained. When the total

61
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
number of Power Points reaches 4, events in prefers). Each character has just one chance
The Binding, below, come into play. When the and a maximum of four rounds in which to
Power Points reach zero, move on to Release decide his course of action. Should they want
and Destruction. to start a theological debate with Damasc, or
Although the heroes cannot permanently each other, give them 24 seconds of real time
reestablish the warding, they can delay its (each round equates to six seconds). Once the
collapse. Any character with the Arcane Back- creature fully materializes (when the Power
ground (Miracles) Edge, who connects to the Points reach zero), it is too late to try and
Machine, can expend one Power Point per absorb part of its essence.
round to help fuel the warding spell. Multiple A failure means the Knight either cannot
characters can each donate one Power Point per go through with the possession or the demon
round. While connected to the Machine and simply refuses to enter him. Either way, he
transferring Power Points, the hero can take no cannot aid in weakening the fiend, though at
actions (including movement or speech). least his soul is not imperiled. A critical failure
Discovering that spiritual energy can be results in instant and automatic possession, as
transferred into the ward can occur in one of described below.
two ways. First, the party can use the informa- With success, the character accepts the
tion left by the former inhabitants. Second, demon into his body and manages to keep
a Knowledge (Religion) roll or Common it imprisoned, for the most part, though the
Knowledge roll from any character with Arcane containment is not guaranteed to work, should
Background (Miracles) reveals the warding has the Knight lose concentration.
been set up so any member of the Faithful can
sacrifice energy into the litany. Discovering the If, during the final combat, the Knight rolls
latter requires four rounds studying the ward. a 1 on his Spirit or Spirit-linked skill die, regard-
less of the Wild Die, the fragment escapes his
control and vacates the body. Whatever power
Scene 2: The Binding the demon lost is returned instantly. On a criti-
cal failure of a Spirit or Spirit-linked skill roll,
Sooner or later the warding will fail, fully the hero’s resolve crumbles and he becomes
releasing the bound entity. When the Power fully possessed. He automatically goes berserk
Points total is reduced to 4, the ward reaches (as per the Edge) and turns on his comrades.
a point of critical failure. Adding extra Power Only his death or the destruction of the demon
Points now has no effect. Characters attached can end this rage (though he can be temporar-
to the Machine realize this immediately. ily disabled by rendering him unconscious).
As the seal fails, tendrils of dark, crackling During the possession, his form warps and
energy begin to break through. A howling, mutates as the demon tries to consume his
deafening wind rips through the area, whip- living form. Fortunately for him the miniscule
ping up loose material. Damasc, who knows amount of energy within the Knight cannot
what is happening through his link with the complete the process, though it does give him
demon, is quick to act. the Fear ability.
“The Beast must be complete but weak- Once the demon is slain, all possessed
ened if you are to prevail,” he shouts. “Join characters are free of its essence.
with the darkness! Bind it into your souls
and keep it imprisoned with your faith or
all is lost!” Weakening the Demon
Now comes the final test of faith. Damasc is For each Knight who successfully imprisons
telling the truth, but he is also possessed by part part of the demon’s essence within his body,
of the entity. The Knights simply have no way of the demon loses access to one of its special
knowing whether this is some fiendish trap or abilities. The character doesn’t gain the abil-
the truth. It is, of course, the truth. Although ity—he simply denies it to the demon. Should
imprisoning parts of the demon won’t destroy a hero holding one of these abilities in check
it, the process will weaken its physical form die, it returns to the demon at the start of the
when it inevitably materializes (see Weakening next round.
the Demon below). Since the adventure is designed for four
In order to accept possession, a character characters, there are four such abilities. Don’t
need simply reach out and touch one of the take away more abilities if you have more than
snaking tendrils. He must then make a Spirit four characters—the extras just allow for mul-
roll at –2 (or Faith roll with no penalty, if he tiple chances of success.

62
 the broken seal
Not every group will negate every power,
and some may fail to cancel any at all. Such
Scene 3: Release & Destruction
Lances will just have to think more tactically When the Power Points in the warding
and hit harder if they want to survive the reach zero, the demon completes its material-
encounter. ization. Deal initiative cards now. The demon
The abilities the demon loses, and the order completes its transformation at the end of the
are they removed, are as below. Whoever makes round. Until then, it can only be harmed by
the first roll negates the first ability, the second suc- arcane powers, it effectively being ethereal. It
cessful roll cancels the second power, and so on. has full access to its special abilities (less those
1. Improved Arcane Resistance taken by the Knights), though it cannot use
them offensively.
2. Hardy
With a terrifying roar of victory, the
3. Armor (Toughness drops to 18) entity breaks free of the collapsing energy
4. Malleable vortex. A vaguely humanoid creature, its

63
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
flesh pulsating and writhing, steps forth. corrupt them. The defensive action by the
Long, fleshy tentacles, three times the Ordo’s other forces is widely broadcast by the
length of a man and ending in a grotesque media as a surgical strike into the Dead Zone,
maw, slash wildly through the air. Across planned long before Damasc’s remains were
the beast’s body writhe countless smaller uncovered.
tentacles, each tipped with a small mouth
full of sharp teeth. Knight Commander Damasc (whether his
body is brought back or not) is given a funeral
This is the final encounter of the adventure. with full military honors and buried close
Now fully formed, the only way to remove the to the altar within the Preceptory cathedral.
demon from Salus is to destroy its physical Channel 1, the Church news channel, runs a
body. Unfortunately, this is not easy. lengthy documentary on Damasc’s heroic life.
Aside from its colossal form and special Part of the documentary involves an interview
abilities, a core part of its essence lies within with the Knights who recovered the war hero’s
Damasc. As noted in its stats, the demon remains.
cannot be Incapacitated while Damasc lives. If
Don’t feel you have to mention the inter-
the heroes don’t work this out, Damasc does
(although it takes him 5 combat rounds from view just in passing. Players who enjoy this sort
the first time the Beast ignores an Incapacitated of thing can roleplay the actual interview. The
result). Damasc won’t kill himself (that’s a interviewer wants to know the usual sort of
mortal sin), but he urges the Knights to, “do things—how do they feel after recovering the
the right thing for the greater good.” Should remains of a great hero, what Rephaim were
Damasc have died earlier, this isn’t a moral present, how did the Knights overcome enemy
problem the Knights have to face. resistance, and so on.
Activating the bomb instantly kills him, PIO Trebano is present throughout the
allowing the Knights to finish off the demon. interview, though he only intervenes if the
Any character adjacent to Damasc can perform Knights get into difficult ground or start reveal-
a Finishing Move—Damasc doesn’t resist. Once ing more than they should. His stock answer is,
the demon actually becomes Incapacitated, it “Sorry, answering that question may jeopar-
ceases to exist, simply disappearing with a bang dize ongoing missions. Next question, please.”
as air rushes in to fill the void it leaves.
Agreeing to partake in the interview allows
a character to take the Media Star Edge, though
it must be with his next advancement.
Aftermath
Following the destruction of the demon,
the Knights are largely free to do as they wish. Update: Merovingian Order
Their comrades are still fighting the Rephaim
army, though, and any serious delay results in Various monastic orders are under the
further casualties. Although no one except the umbrella of the Third Reformation Church,
party knows when the mission is completed, one of which is the Merovingian Order.
the characters should be reminded (with According to the Census of the Faith of
the GM serving as the conscience) that every 2346, the Merovingian Order comprised a
minute they refrain from summoning support mere 24 monks. As far as the general public is
places more lives in jeopardy. concerned, the monks were just another small
The dropship arrives an hour after it is order. A handful of those close to the Pope
signaled and extracts the survivors. The Pre- know the Merovingians research occult matters
ceptor Master, Padre Fistulus, and PIO Trebano for the purposes of combating them, but none
thoroughly debrief the Knights on their return. outside the order know the true reason for the
The mission is never out on record, and the Merovingians’ existence.
location of the cathedral remains a closely
guarded secret.
A Sacred Duty
In order to cover up their disappearance
from the Preceptory, they are told to repeat to During the Crusades of the Middle Ages,
their comrades-in-arms the official story being a powerful demon manifested on Earth. Little
told the press—they were sent to recover is recorded of its name or appearance, only
Damasc’s mortal remains from inside Dead that it existed. A small group of knights slew
Zone Beta, which were located by a scout team the demon’s physical form, but not before one
on routine patrol, before the Rephaim could of them was possessed by a small part of the

64
 the broken seal
demon’s essence. While the demon’s unholy they found it easy to shift spiritual views to
body was shattered, its true self sent back to its meet those of the dominant faith and so ensure
own realm, the essence remained in the man. their continuity.
Rather than exorcise the spirit, it was When the Third Reformation Church
decided to keep the man imprisoned. The rea- moved to Salus, the Merovingians followed,
sons why shall perhaps never be known, but bringing with them their great library and, of
perhaps the religious powers at the time sought course, the demon. While most brothers oper-
to better understand their enemy. An order of ated openly, a small few remained dedicated
monks, the Merovingians, was founded for the to safeguarding the vile entity and finding new
sole purpose of studying the demon. All the hosts. A secret monastery was constructed to
initial members were exorcists or specialists in contain the demon host.
the occult, as are many members today.
The monks interrogated the man-demon,
they studied ancient texts the Catholic Church
denied existed, and they walked dark paths,
Update: Brothers of
guided only by the light of their faith. In short,
they became occultists operating within the
Perpetual Prayer
sanctity of the Church. The Brothers of Perpetual Prayer had
Two things soon became clear. First, the their origins back in Earth’s history. Founded
human host could access the consciousness of by Father Jerome Packard in 2037, Packard
the demonic essence he had bound within his followed the pseudo-Dionysian hierarchy of
flesh. This wasn’t true communication, rather Heaven, which placed the seraphim as the high-
vague images and feelings. Still, it provided est order of angels. According to the creed, the
valuable information and helped thwart several sole purpose of the seraphim was to surround
demonic acts over the years. It was a danger- the throne of God and repeat the trisagion
ous act, for the only things keeping the demon (“holy, holy, holy”) in praise of God.
bound within the host were his willpower and Father Jerome also believed that constant
faith. Contacting the demonic essence in this prayer by mortals was required to ensure salva-
manner was not without risks—any lapse in tion in God’s grace. Since mankind collectively
concentration risked giving the demon full could not perform this action, he founded
control of the host body. a brotherhood of monks whose role was to
Second, the host did not need to eat or intone prayers 24 hours a day, on behalf of
drink, nor did he suffer the ravages of illness, mankind collectively. For over three centuries,
but he was not immortal. In order to keep the the Brotherhood has kept its vows and the
demon bound, the monks performed dark ritu- recitation of prayers has been unbroken.
als to transfer the essence to a new host, a host
It is said that, even during the exodus to
whose willpower and faith were unshakeable, a
Salus, the monks continued to pray while
host who was fully informed of the sacrifice he
aboard the starships. Collectively, the Brothers
would make. For generation after generation,
have clocked up over 16 billion minutes of
the monks watched over the demon, gathering
prayer time.
new hosts and acquiring forbidden knowledge,
piece by piece. The Brothers occupy a single monastery,
where they work in grueling shifts. Day and
night, monks working 18-hour shifts walk a
Eternal Order circular pattern around the chapel of their
By the late 19th century their true purpose monastery, continually intoning prayers.
had all but been forgotten by Rome. On the Despite having lived on Salus for less than
surface they appeared to be a chapter of exor- four decades, they have worn a path in the
cists and eccentric monks, dabbling in matters flagstones of the chapel.
priests called folly or superstition. The monks
At present there are 71 monks at the mon-
chose to keep things that way and eventually
astery, broken down into seven groups. Each
destroyed all references to their true purpose
group is named after one of the ruling princes
outside the walls of their monasteries.
of seraphim, these being recorded as Jehoel,
Religions have come and gone since those Kemuel, Metatron, Michael, Nathaniel, Sera-
days, but the Merovingians have remained. phiel, and Uriel. Some texts place Satan, before
Never considered an orthodox monastic order, his fall, as a ruling prince, but the monks do

65
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
not use his name, despite the Third Reforma-
tion Church having written the Devil out of its Allies
doctrine.
The eldest of each group carries the title
Choirmaster Vigilant, and it is his sacred duty
Father Benjamin Goldblum
to ensure those under his charge never cease Father Benjamin (he hates being called
praying. Leading the Brotherhood is Father Ben) is the de facto head of the small Merovin-
Harabiel Vinall. Although he takes his turn gian Order. A scholar of the occult, he knows
praying, his role is largely administrative, for more about the nature of demons than any
other man alive. He has an inkling something
the Brothers employ many lay members to
truly evil exists (the Dark), but even his lengthy
perform the many chores their duties prevent studies have revealed few clues.
them from undertaking.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d10,
Strength d4, Vigor d6
Other Branches Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d12, Intimidation d8,
Knowledge (Occult) d12+2, Notice d8, Persua-
Two other groups of Brothers exist outside
sion d6
the monastery, though only one is known to
Charisma: +2; Pace: 5; Parry: 4; Toughness:
the public. 5
The first, comprising four members, Hindrances: Curious, Elderly, Pacifist (Major)
attends the Pope. Their prayers fill his audience Edges: Arcane Background (Miracles), Char-
chamber day and night. According to common ismatic, Holy Warrior, Improved Arcane Resis-
tance, Master (Occult), Talisman Creator
belief, they pray for the Pope and his cardinals,
Powers: Consecrate, detect/conceal arcana,
on whose backs the continued existence of healing, stun; 20 Power Points
mankind rests. Many myths have arisen about Gear: Book of Common Prayers, 3 medpacs.
the small band of monks. The most popular
story states the Pope will die if they stop pray-
ing. When he learned of this tale, Pope John
Knight Commander Damasc
supposedly remarked, “I may not die, but Damasc is of little use throughout the adven-
rest assured part of my soul will suffer for the ture, except when he feels he has something to
loss.” say. Lacking any fingers, he cannot even use a
weapon, though he is capable of kicking and
The second group of monks comprises “punching” opponents. For the most part, he
those 12 members who secretly serve the is a spectator, but one the Knights must devote
Merovingians. Their sole function is to main- resources to watching and protecting.
tain the spiritual wards surrounding Damasc
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d12+2,
and prevent whatever infects his body, soul, Strength d6, Vigor d8
and mind from escaping. They have undergone Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d12, Intimidation
ritual mutilation for their own protection. d8, Notice d8+2, Persuasion d6, Shooting d8,
Only a handful of souls, a number not Stealth d8
Charisma: –2; Pace: 4; Parry: 6; Toughness:
including the Pope or any member of the
6
Curia, know of the second group’s existence. Hindrances: Lame (artificial legs), Ugly (mu-
All records within the Brotherhood’s archives tilated)
have been removed or falsified to conceal their Edges: Alertness (covers all senses), Com-
disappearance from the monastery. mand, Improved Arcane Resistance, Improved
Nerves of Steel, Master (Spirit)
Special Abilities:
The Cast * Focused Will: Damasc must devote huge
amounts of willpower to controlling the
demon, possessing him. As such, he may
The War Master may choose to substitute only ever take one action a round. He may
other forms of Rephaim for the ones listed take free actions, such as moving his Pace,
here, to better match the combat potential of as normal.
the Lance. Unless the party is exceptionally * No Fingers: Damasc lacks fingers on both
weak or strong, the main villain, a powerful hands. As such, he cannot perform tasks
demon, should be left untouched. which require these digits.

66
 the broken seal

Brothers of Perpetual Prayers The Inquisitorial Lance

The Brothers are completely blind and
deaf and rely on being led around by a Knight. Inquisitor-Captain
As such, unless carefully supervised, they are
in danger of blundering into trouble. During Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
combat, they shuffle around until they find Strength d8, Vigor d8
suitable cover, and then take shelter from the Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d10, Guts d12, In-
violence. One of them chants at all times and timidation d10, Notice d8, Shooting d8, Stealth
often all four chant when they are awake. d8
Charisma: 0; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; Toughness:
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d10, 10(4)
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Hindrances: Loyal
Skills: Faith d8, Guts d12 Edges: Combat Reflexes, Improved Frenzy
Charisma: –2; Pace: 6; Parry: 2; Toughness: Gear: Light armor (+4), molecular dagger
5 (Str+d4+2, AP 2), flechette pistol with 3 mags
Hindrances: Blind, Hard of Hearing (Major), (12/24/48, 2d6, AP 2, Semi-auto)
Ugly (disfigured)
Edges: Arcane Background (Miracles), Power Teutonic Chaplain
Points
Powers: Arcane resistance, consecrate (20 PP) Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d12,
Special Abilities: Strength d6, Vigor d6
* Droning Chant: Any character adjacent to Skills: Faith d8, Fighting d4, Guts d8, Healing
a Brother suffers a –1 penalty to trait rolls d6, Investigation d6, Knowledge (Rephaim)
requiring concentration (this includes d10, Notice d6, Shooting d6
Shooting), due to the droning chant. Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness:
However, he receives a +1 bonus to Spirit 9(4)
and Spirit-linked skill rolls, as the prayers Hindrances: Pacifist (minor), Vow (Major: sa-
bolster his faith and willpower. cred vows)
Edges: Arcane Background (Miracles), Church
* Combined Faith: The Brothers have
Knowledge, Dodge
learned special techniques allowing
Powers: Deflection, detect/conceal arcana,
them to combine their spiritual energy.
entangle, stun; 20 Power Points
When one invokes arcane resistance
Gear: Light armor (+4), stunner with 3 mags
or consecrate, the Brothers are able to
(Range: 3/6/12, Damage: 2d6 nonlethal), me-
pool Power Points for the purposes of
dikit, Book of Common Prayers, ID tag
Maintaining the spell, but only so long as
they chant together. It doesn’t matter who
pays for the litany’s Maintenance, so long Teutonic Knight Infantry
as the Brother is chanting the same litany. Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
When two or more monks cooperate in Strength d6, Vigor d6
this manner there is no single caster, so Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Notice d6, Shoot-
the spell cannot be disrupted so long as at ing d6
least one brother continues to chant. Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
Chanting in this manner to pool Power 11(6)
Points is considered an action. A brother Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
can aid only one litany in a round, even if Edges: Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Homeland
two castings of the same litany are in effect. Security
A Shaken brother is temporarily removed Gear: Medium armor (+6), flechette rifle with
from the chanting, and his Power Points 3 mags (Range: 24/48/96, Damage: 2d8+1, AP
are not available to continue Maintaining 2, Auto, 3RB), 5 baton grenades in GL (Range:
the spell. Rejoining the chant is an action, 10/20/40, Damage: 2d10 nonlethal), 3 stun gre-
once he has recovered from being Shaken. nades on belt (Range: 3/6/12, special, MBT),
molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4), medpac,
ID tag
Enemies Teutonic Knight Infantry Support
The enemy forces in this adventure com- Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
prise three distinct groups—an Inquisitorial Strength d8, Vigor d8
Lance, a Rephaim strike team, and a powerful Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Notice d6, Shoot-
demon. ing d8

67
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: overall objective. Hence, he elected to serve
12(6) the priesthood, a unified body devoted to serv-
Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows) ing the Dark’s will.
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Homeland Although he carries a Hades pistol, he has
Security, Wall of Flame little love of weird science. Beleth chose him as
Gear: Medium armor (+6), hand flamethrower military commander of the operation for this
(Range: Cone, Damage: 2d10, ignores armor), very reason.
molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4), 3 stun gre-
nades on belt (Range: 3/6/12, special, MBT), Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
medpac, ID tag Strength d12, Vigor d10
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d8, Intimidation d8,
Knowledge (Battle) d6, Persuasion d6, Stealth
The Rephaim d6, Streetwise d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 11(2)
Gear: Stygian armor (+2), Hades pistol, rune
Advanced Skeletons dagger (Str+d6+2, AP 2)
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4, Spirit d4, Special Abilities:
Strength d6, Vigor d6 * Bite: Str+d6.
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4, * Frenzy: Vampires may make two attacks
Shooting d6 per round at –2 penalty.
Pace: 7; Parry: 5; Toughness: 11(4) * Greater Undead: +2 Toughness. +2
Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette rifle with 3 to recover from being Shaken. Immune
magazines (Range: 24/48/96, Damage: 2d8+1, to poison and disease. No additional
AP 2, Auto, 3RB), 5 monofilament grenades in damage from called shots. Half-damage
grenade launcher (Range: 20/40/80, Damage: from piercing weapons. Ignores wound
3d8, AP 4, MBT) penalties.
Special Abilities: * Leadership: Vampires have the Command,
* Bony Claws: Str+d4. Fervor, and Hold the Line Edges.
* Fearless: Skeletons are immune to Fear * Sire: Anyone incapacitated but not killed
and Intimidation. by a vampire must make a Spirit roll or
* Necromantic Resurrection: The Rephaim die and return from the dead as a vampire
is very hard to keep down. Whenever one after 1d4 days.
is wounded by any means other than a * Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
Called Shot to the head, area affect attack, penalties for bad lighting when attacking
or Heavy Weapon, draw a card from the living targets or vehicles with their engine
action deck. A red card indicates the running.
Rephaim is disabled as normal and out of
the fight. A black card (or Joker) means High Priest Beleth (Mummy, Greater)
the Rephaim ignores the damage from the
attack. Beleth is a senior member of the Dark
Priest’s inner circle. Normally he is found at his
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
master’s side, but the Dark insisted the recov-
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
ery of the demon be left to the priesthood,
living targets or vehicles with their engine
not the politicking Dark Conclave or some
running.
lesser minion. Indeed, the Dark Conclave do
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover not know the true nature of Beleth’s mission,
from being Shaken. Immune to poison having been left out of the loop. They simply
and disease. No additional damage from sent a large force of troops to coordinates
called shots (except as noted above). Half- the Dark Priest provided, unaware they were
damage from piercing weapons. sacrificial pawns.
Although the Dark Priest chose Beleth to
Centurion Hauras (Vampire, Young) lead the recovery mission, an up-and-coming
Formerly a Senior Knight serving with a young vampire from the Dark Priest’s personal
Templar Infantry Lance, Centurion Hauras guard was selected as military commander,
has served the Dark since 2320 (he took part Beleth lacking any combat experience. Beleth
in the Templars’ first engagement against is a purist and despises the new weird science
the Rephaim). He has no loyalty to the Dark to which so many of the Rephaim are taking.
Conclave, who, he believes, expends too much Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d10, Spirit d12,
effort on individual schemes rather than the Strength d12+4, Vigor d12

68
 the broken seal
Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d10, Necro- * Flying: Pace 6.
mancy d10, Notice d8 * Headbutt: Str.
Pace: 4 (d4 running die); Parry: 7; Tough-
* Scream: A skull can emit a terrifying
ness: 15(5) scream. This functions as the fear power.
Gear: Stygian armor (+5), rune sword The skull uses its Spirit as its arcane skill
(Str+d8+4, AP 4) and has 10 Power Points.
Special Abilities:
* Arcane Background (Magic): A mummy * Shared Senses: Beleth can use its senses
typically knows barrier (creates a wall of as if they were his own. Sharing senses
darkness), bolt (swarm of tiny skulls), requires concentration and gives a multi
deflection (shield of swirling skulls), detect/ action penalty to the creator (but not the
skull).
conceal arcana, fear (unearthly cry),
obscure (area of darkness), and zombie * Size –2: Screaming skulls are the size of a
(ritual preparation) (40 Power Points). regular skull.
* Crushing Grasp: Str+d6. On a raise, * Small: Attackers are –2 to attack rolls
the mummy automatically grapples its against a skull because of its size.
opponent. * Thermal Vision: Halves penalties for bad
* Fear (–2): Opponents must make a Guts lighting when attacking living targets.
roll at –2. * Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and from being Shaken. Called shots do no
Intimidation. extra damage. Immune to poison and
disease. Piercing weapons do half damage.
* Greater Undead: +2 Toughness. +2
to recover from being Shaken. Immune
to poison and disease. No additional balam, the Demon
damage from called shots. Half-damage
from piercing weapons. Ignores Wound Fate has not been kind to this demon. In
Penalties. days of yore it went by the name Balam. It
manifested on Earth during the Crusades and
* Improved Arcane Resistance: +4 Armor
was instrumental in extending the suffering
versus magic, and +4 to rolls made to
the wars brought to the Holy Land. Its physical
resist magic effects.
form was destroyed, but not before part of its
* Mummy Rot: Anyone touched by a essence had been transferred to a human host.
mummy, whether he is damaged or not,
must make a Vigor roll. Failure means the A thousand years later, Balam again sought
character has “mummy rot” and suffers to appear in physical form. Whether as part of
an immediate wound. Victims who die as some complex plan weaved by the Dark, divine
result of “mummy rot” may be brought will, or just one of those cosmic coincidences,
back as guardian mummies. its manifestation was on Salus, the planet on
which its bound essence would arrive centu-
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all ries later.
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
living targets or vehicles with their engine Balam, a particularly powerful demon,
running. managed to escape the black hole prison
during a momentary weakening of the energy
* Weakness (Fire): Mummies take +4
field during the arrival of starships in 2176.
damage from fire.
Fate intervened, and it was discovered and
imprisoned before it could fully materialize. It
Sentry Skull has spent the best part of 200 years trapped in
The skull is Beleth’s “pet,” having served as limbo. Now it senses its prison is weakening.
his eyes and ears for many decades. Beleth uses In a bid to ensure its escape, it contacted
it as an advanced scout during the mission. the Dark, a terrible drain on its resources.
When combat occurs, it begins by using its Damasc picked up fragmentary pieces of the
Scream to soften up foes before the advanced message as images and realized that Balam was
skeletons attack. close to escaping. Should it be found by the
Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, Rephaim, it would undoubtedly use its powers
Strength d4, Vigor d6 against mankind.
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Notice Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d12,
d10, Stealth d6, Taunt d8 Strength d12+4, Vigor d12
Pace: 0; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5 Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d12, Notice
Special Abilities: d8, Spellcasting d10

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Pace: 8; Parry: 7; Toughness: 22(4) * Tentacle Slam: Str+d6, Reach 2, AP 4. The
Hindrances: Arrogant, Bloodthirsty, Vengeful demon has two large tentacles.
(major) * Tentacle Swarm: The demon’s smaller
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Improved Frenzy, Im- tentacles act like a swarm, automatically
proved Level Headed, Sweep, Unholy Warrior. striking and inflicting 2d4 damage on all
Special Abilities: adjacent creatures. Attacking with these
* Armor +4: Thick skin. tentacles does not count as an action. It
* Demon: +2 Toughness; +2 to recover cannot use Improved Frenzy or Sweep
from being Shaken; Called shots do no with these tentacles.
extra damage; Immune to poison and * Unkillable: While Damasc lives, the
disease; No wound penalties. demon cannot be destroyed. It can take
* Extra Senses: Ignores all penalties for three wounds, but simply ignores any
darkness or concealment (even an obscure further injuries. See page 62 for details.
spell).
* Fear (–2): Anyone who sees the
demon must make a Guts roll at –2
or suffer Terror.
* Fearless: The demon is immune to
Fear and Intimidation.
* Hardy: Does not suffer a wound
from successive Shaken results.
* Huge: Attackers have +4 to attack rolls
against the demon, due to its size.
* Improved Arcane Resistance: +4
Armor versus arcane power, and +4 to
rolls made to resist arcane effects. This
does not inhibit spells it casts on itself.
* Malleable Form: The demon can alter its
form to fit through passages as narrow as 1”
(2 yards). This does not affect its statistics
(but it does allow the demon to chase the
heroes through the ruins).
* Powers: Bolt (entropic energy),
lower trait (can only be used
on those containing part of
his essence), detect/conceal
arcana (word of revealing
or concealment), dispel
(word of banishment),
entangle (slimy
tentacles), fly, stun (word
of power), teleport (40
Power Points)
* Sickening Aura:
Characters within 3” of the
demon must make a Spirit
roll or suffer nausea. They
suffer a –1 penalty to all
trait rolls for the next hour
(this is not a level of Fatigue,
though penalties do stack
with other modifiers). Effects
are non cumulative. A character
who passes the roll is immune
to this demon’s aura for the
remainder of the encounter.
* Size +8: The demon stands
close to 30’ tall.

70
 Player Handout #1: Tactical Briefing
We’ve conducted reconnaissance flights over the region Damasc indicated before,
and there’s nothing of note—certainly no structures. However, that area is a maze of
valleys and overhangs, so it might be our birds missed something. This means we
don’t know exactly where the target is located, but his description gives us enough
information to launch the mission with a high chance of success.
Records indicate Damasc was operating in this region when he…well, you know. We
haven’t been able to get any more information from him, though.
Enemy Forces: If Damasc is telling the truth, and he hasn’t lied to us yet, the
Rephaim are already on their way. Were the mission on our side of the mountains,
we’d expect a small strike force. The mountains have prohibited any major incur-
sions—crossing through the passes makes any force an easy target for our bombers.
Unfortunately, the mission is taking place on the western slopes, which means
there isn’t anything of note between you, and the Rephaim in Dead Zone Beta. The
Rephaim might send a small strike team, or they might launch a major assault.
We’re banking on the latter.
As for Damasc’s “great darkness,” it could be anything. You won’t get any more
out of him on the subject, so don’t bother asking. If he has further insight, it’ll be
revealed only when he’s ready.
Support: Every time Damasc gives us information, it’s only for the ears of a select
few. Each time we’ve sent extra support something conspires against us. In some
cases the reinforcements have met terrible deaths and other times the whole
mission has been a waste of time. To that end, you’re going without military backup.
An Angel will drop you off ten miles from the site. After that, it’s a foot slog into the
mountains.
However, Damasc said nothing about intercepting the Rephaim forces en route,
so we’ve assembled a strike force to intercept and either annihilate or delay the
enemy. The intercepting force will be flown in via Angels along the most likely route
of approach and briefed they are performing a mission to intercept an assault force
heading for the frontline. As far as they are concerned, you’re on a covert mission
related to the attack and control the air support. Shipping tanks so deep into enemy
territory is asking for trouble, so the troops will have to rely on close support
artillery.
We’d rather not send them to certain death, so it’s vital you work as quickly as
possible. Once you’ve achieved your objective, broadcast the codeword, “Paradise
Found.” This will call in virtually every aircraft from our Preceptories in Tomaculum to
pound the area while the infantry are evacuated. Losses on the ground are likely to
be high, but it’s a sacrifice we have to take.
We don’t like it, but Damasc is going to have to accompany you on this mission.
He’ll be fitted with cybernetic legs—not powerful enough to allow him to move fast,
but strong enough so you won’t have to carry him around. He’ll also be fitted with a
remotely activated bomb. If he goes bad, you are ordered to ensure he dies quickly
and with as little suffering as possible—he has been tormented enough, already.
To further ensure your safety, you’ll also be taking four Brothers of Perpetual Prayer.
We can’t risk whatever is inside him escaping without containment being available.
Equipment: Whatever you can carry and we have in stores, you can have. Damasc’s
visions never involve a stroll in the park, so make sure you’re ready for anything and
everything. Don’t forget to request a backpack radio!
 Player Handout #2: Assorted Notes
These notes are summaries of pertinent information left behind by the previous
occupants.

In the Beginning
Let this testimony serve as guidance and a warning to those who come after me.
The year of this writing is 2176. I am a servant of the One, though my name in
unimportant. I am the last survivor, the last guardian of a dark and terrible secret.
How the Beast came into existence I do not know. I was brought here in strict
secrecy to witness an unholy birth trapped by the power of faith. Others called
the creature a demon, and they may be right. All I know is that upon my arrival I
saw only a vaporous cloud held in check by the power of colleagues from the First
Reformation Church.
It was a battle of faiths. On one side was this vile entity, a palpable evil seeking to
enter our world for unknown, yet surely ghastly, purposes. On the other were my
brethren, whose constant prayers prevented the abomination from materializing. It
was a sight I shall never forget, though one I never wish to recall by choice.

The Great Seal

Our labors have been fruitful—the Beast is chained. But the cost has been terrible.
We have combined faith and science to produce a Machine. Several brothers wanted
to give the device a name, but the Machine serves well, for it is both an abomination
and a miracle at once, and to name it would be blasphemous.
The Machine is not just metal and wire. Within the cavern we have created a
cathedral, whose very shape focuses and amplifies divine will. Stone and metal,
electricity and faith, are working together. While our brethren kept the Beast at bay,
we have worked long and hard to make their sacrifice a worthy one.
I am not sure anyone truly understands exactly how the device works, but it does
work. A human of great faith connected to the Machine can transfer his spiritual
energy into the device. This energy serves to reinforce the great seal we have
placed around the Beast, keeping it chained. It is not a solution to the problem, but
it buys us valuable time.
We dare not reveal this to the wider world. Our cause is just, but it must remain
secret. Knowledge of such an entity would tear mankind asunder, threatening our
collective sanity and what we now believe is truth.

Fettered and Free

Alas, we do not know for how long the great seal will hold, and while held in body,
the fiend is unfettered in spirit. It cannot leave the warding, but it can reach out
into the minds of men. It whispers to me in my dreams, telling me terrible things,
wondrous things.
It whispered to others, drove them mad. I think it may even have possessed them,
but my specialty is not in such matters. Those who sought to leave were, by my own
hand, convinced to stay for the greater good. I condemned them to the fires of Hell
and for that I will surely pay in due time.
Some killed themselves in manners too unpleasant to commit to eternity in writing.
Others chose to take their own lives, removing themselves from the One’s grace
through their mortal sin. I could not understand their actions, for what could drive
a man to seek Hell for eternity rather than live for an instant longer? But now I am
beginning to understand. My faith is strong and I will resist to the end. I am, after
all, the last of my kind.
 the opener of the ways

War Master’s Notes as a starting character. As such, those used

should be advanced as the player wishes to
bring them to 25 XPs.
Welcome to The Opener of the Ways, a
standalone scenario written for the Necropolis
2350 campaign setting. This adventure deals
with the mature themes of violence and illegal WM Background
drugs. It does not glamorize drug abuse in
any way, but the contents may not be suitable Despite being a military game, not
for younger audiences. Parental discretion is every Necropolis adventure need involve
advised. the heroes being on the frontline. Knights
also serve as police within their Preceptory
If you intend to play in this adventure,
estate. Although this role typically falls to
you should stop reading now. Advanced
Sergeants, Knights are sent onto the streets
knowledge of the scenario will only spoil your
to give them a break from frontline duties.
enjoyment of the game.
In this particular mission, investigative
The WM should read the entire adventure and social skills will prove just as useful as
before play begins. Knowing the basic flow and combat skills.
details in advance will greatly speed up play
and make the game run smoother. Many of the The GM should also note that there is
bit-part actors don’t have unique stat blocks. plentiful opportunity for roleplaying in this
Rather, they share common stats, thus giving adventure. However, not every detail of pos-
the GM some generic archetypes he can reuse sible conversations is spelled out in black
in other Necropolis adventures. and white. The conversations could take any
number of turns, and so the GM is free to go
with the flow as required.
Required Materials Many moons ago, a liche was contacted,
You need a copy of the Savage Worlds rule through an oracle, by a demon of the Dark
book and the Necropolis: 2350 Savage Setting. Dimension known as Upuaut (pronounced
The Necropolis Figure Flats are recommended. “wepwawet”). Upuaut, the Opener of the
GM’s may find the Necropolis 2351-55 Update Ways, has long been known to mankind.
of use, though it isn’t required to play the Indeed, the ancient Egyptians even wor-
adventure. shipped him as a god. According to their
mythology, he opened the gates of the
underworld to allow souls to travel through
Characters to the afterlife. In truth, he serves the oppo-
site function—his purpose was, and still is,
This adventure is designed for a squad of
to open the gateway to the Dark Dimension
four Knights with 25–35 XPs (Seasoned Rank),
and allow the Dark to escape back into the
though higher-experienced characters should
universe.
be able to cope if they use their brains. For
larger groups, or more experienced characters, It told the liche how to harvest the cer-
the WM needs to adjust the number and stats ebral fluid of a psion and combine it with
of opponents appropriately, to create an excit- necromantic energy, to create a powerful
ing challenge. weapon—a drug.
Use the archetypes from the Necropolis In order to create the drug, the liche
2350 setting book if you need pre-generated needed a psion of suitable power. His lucky
characters. Each archetype has been designed break came just a few weeks later, when

73
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
traitors in the CIS reported the arrest of a ability, and 1d4 x 10 Power Points. These ben-
powerful psion. The liche acted quickly, efits remain for just ten minutes. Once the drug
arranging for the psion to be “executed” by wears off, the user remembers very little except
his agents. In truth, he was smuggled out of feeling powerful and divinely inspired.
captivity and into the hands of the Rephaim.
Multiple doses serve to extend the duration
Heavily sedated, he has since been kept
by 10 minutes and grant an extra +10 Power
imprisoned, his brain fluid harvested for its
Points. They don’t affect the Psionics die or
precious DNA.
grant more powers.
Highly addictive, and with the added
Unfortunately, the user becomes unhinged
side effect of granting users both psionic
while under the drug’s influence. He may per-
abilities and psychotic tendencies, the liche
ceive those around him as Rephaim agents or
has arranged for the manufacture and distri-
heretics and try to cleanse them using his new
bution of the drug through human dupes.
powers, believe he has been appointed as a
The liche’s only problem is that the brain
divine messenger, using powers like puppet to
fluid rapidly loses potency. As such, it has
convince people of the error of their ways, or
had no choice but to keep the prisoner close
use his new powers for perverted or criminal
to the manufacturing facility. Unfortunately
means. However it affects the user, it makes
for the Knights, the location he has chosen
them generally nasty.
to test his new product is their Preceptory
estate. For NPCs, the WM need only make them
behave like psychotics or sociopaths with a mes-
No liche worth his status would ever
siah complex. Should a player character take
risk his flesh by leaving the sanctity of his
it, the WM should take him aside and instruct
Stygian Tower. The liche has appointed a
him how to act. Should he fail to roleplay this
greater mummy by the name of Clyterravix
side effect, the WM should take control of his
to oversee the operation.
character until the drug wears off.
Gateway serves Upuaut’s agenda in
Gateway is highly addictive. For some, the
three ways. First, Gateway has the potential
psychic power it grants is enough to get them
to spread chaos and disorder. Second, it
is forming an army of drug users eager for hooked. For most, the visions they receive are
another fix and willing to do most anything the hook. A user must make a Spirit roll, with
for a hit. As any Rephaim with a brain knows, an additional –1 penalty for each dose used in
the downtrodden and desperate make for the same hour, or become an addict. He gains
easy converts. Third, Upuaut believes, and the Major Habit Hindrance.
always has believed, that releasing enough
psychic energy in the world will rip open
the fabric of reality and free his entropic
master.
Act 1: Murder Most
Horrid
Gateway’s Effects The Knights have been pulled back from the
Gateway has the chemical effects of clos- frontline and put to work as part of the police
ing the pathways of the brain which control force in a local town. Their area of operations
psychic activity. In the vast majority of humans, covers three residential districts in the south
these pathways are open circuits, thus prevent- side of the town, one of the poorer parts. The
ing any form of psionics. In a few rare cases, citizens aren’t wicked by nature—they’re just
the pathways close, creating what are known frustrated and bored. Still, that leads to a life of
as psion. sin (according to Church analysts and propa-
ganda).
When a dose is injected, the user undergoes
a startling series of revelations as the networks For the last month you’ve been working
close. In most cases these appear spiritual, but undercover, investigating suspected hereti-
that is more a result of Church conditioning cal cults. The few leads you uncovered
than anything else. In truth, these are demoni- haven’t lead to any arrests, but there’s a
cally-influenced “epiphanies.” strange feeling around town—something is
definitely going on.
The user gains a Psionic die exactly as per
the Variable Ability from the rogue psion (see Life undercover has meant a few
the Necropolis 2351-2355 Update). He also changes to your usual routine—you’ve
gains three powers determined at random each been allowed to grow your hair long and
time, as per the rogue psion’s Variable Power sport beards, have been handling money,

74
 the opener of the ways
have committed a few minor sins (for times he has to stop using drugs and get his
which you have been granted absolution), act together. Unfortunately, he never uses his
and rather than living in the Preceptory name.
you’ve rented roach infested rooms in a
Shortly before the killer vanished, he hissed
rundown tenement block. Armaments
have also been Corporate issue, rather the words, “Stay back! You’re one of them!
than Church weaponry. You’re a Rephaim! God has made me your
judge!” There are shouts of pain and pleas to
stop during the attack from the victim, but the
Scene 1: Preliminary killer does not speak again.

Investigations The Corpse

The Knights begin the mission in the Pre- The victim of the assault is in the local
ceptory briefing room, having been called in by hospital’s morgue. His identification card and
the Preceptor Intelligence Officer, the de facto driving license confirm his identity as one
head of police for the Preceptory. Read aloud,
Benedict Garantia, an assembly line worker at
paraphrase, or hand out the Mission Briefing
a small automobile factory. His next of kin have
(page 98). Once the briefing is concluded, the
already been informed of his death.
Knights have some investigating to do before
they can hit the streets. A casual glance at the corpse reveals mul-
tiple stab wounds to the neck and torso. Both
hands and forearms are lacerated, indicating
The Surveillance Footage defensive wounds. Any Knight with Healing d6
The surveillance footage is available for has the skill to perform a basic autopsy. A lab is
viewing whenever the Knights are ready. The available to handle any blood and tissue tests
Preceptory has an imaging enhancement suite, the Knight wants.
as well. The basic footage is available as Player
Handout #2 (page 99). Have the hero performing the autopsy make
a Common Knowledge roll. (If the heroes lack
Enhancing the imagery requires a success- the Healing skill, a coroner is brought in to
ful Common Knowledge roll from a character perform the autopsy. He doesn’t need to make
with a technical background, such as a Knight a skill roll, but he only grants the information
Combat Engineer or a hero with a techni- for a success.)
cal Knowledge skill. With success, the video
shows the killer pulls a syringe from his coat With success, the Knight confirms the cause
and injects himself in the hand after punching of death was blood loss, due to injuries con-
the victim to the ground. His look of absolute sistent with a frenzied stabbing. Several blows
ecstasy begins a few moments later and his punctured Garantia’s heart and lungs, though
disappearance only a short while after that. they did not kill him instantly. There’s a good
chance the victim was alive for several min-
Success also produces an image of the
utes after the attack ended. A raise allows the
killer’s face of good enough resolution to run
Knight to know the blows were delivered with
through the main Church database, which
contains files on all citizens on the census. It immense force. Several ribs are cracked where
also ties into the standard criminal database. the weapon’s hilt or attacker’s fist slammed
Because the Preceptory works alongside the home.
Inquisition, they have limited access to CIS Toxicology tests, if requested, indicate no
criminal records as well. traces of alcohol or drugs, illegal, legal (such
as nicotine), or prescription, in the victim’s
Audio Information system.

The audio track from the surveillance

camera is terrible. Lips can be seen moving, Witness Statements
but the sound is horribly distorted. Cleaning One of the Knights’ fellow Lances investi-
up the signal requires a Common Knowledge gated the initial scene and collected witness
roll, as detailed above. statements. All corroborate the video evidence.
With success, the Knights glean the follow- None of them witnessed the attack or saw any
ing information. The victim was apparently signs of the attacker afterward. The Knights are
the brother of the killer. From the discussion free to follow up these statements with their
it seems the victim entered the club earlier own line of questioning, but no one changes
to search for his brother. He tells him several their story. It’s a dead end.

75
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Running ID Scene 2: Arresting
There are two main resources the heroes
can search for an identity and address for the
Developments
killer. If they’ve cleaned up the video image, Garantia’s apartment block is typical of
they can run his picture through the official those across Vatican Town—Gothic in style,
census records. Otherwise, they can use the constructed of gray concrete, blackened
audio track in combination with the ID of the through pollution, and rundown. It comprises
victim to search for the surname Garantia and ten stories with twenty apartments on each
floor.
check out each record until they find a match.
An alleyway runs along the rear of the
Either method requires a Common Knowl- building. A fire escape from each apartment
edge roll (the system is designed to be easy leads into the alley. The Knights have enough
to use). Because there are two possible ways information to locate the windows of Garan-
forward, the Knights can run both simultane- tia’s apartment in case they want to enter that
ously, thus allowing them to double-check any way or prevent an escape attempt. His blinds
findings. With success, the Knight locates an are down, preventing clear view into the apart-
image of the killer. His name is Eduardo Garan- ment and thus foiling snipers. The elevators
tia, unemployed and with a rap sheet for petty rarely work in these places, and this block is
no exception.
theft and drug abuse.
A letterbox in the foyer confirms Garan-
He has served time in jail on two occasions
tia’s apartment number (#6-14). Opening it
and is currently on his final warning—one requires a Lockpicking roll at +1 and a set of
more arrest and he’s scheduled to be shipped electronic picks. It has Toughness 8 if a hero
off to a reeducation camp so he can be turned wants to break the lock. (This isn’t illegal
back into a productive member of society. His under Church law, as Garantia is a suspect in
address places his domicile just a few blocks a murder case.) Inside are a handful of final
from the Straw Man, on the sixth floor of an demands for electricity, water, and vidphone
apartment block (apartment 14 on that floor). bills to be settled.

An alternative is to take the video images The latter may prove useful to the Knights,
as it lists Garantia’s vidphone number. They
to Garantia’s mother, to see if she can identify
can call him (withholding their image) to see if
the killer. The poor woman is in a state of deep he’s in before they head upstairs.
shock, as one would expect, but agrees to
see the Knights. When shown the images, she
gasps loudly, clutches her chest, and promptly Concerned Citizen
collapses—the poor woman has suffered a As the heroes reach the 6th floor, an
massive heart attack! Unless immediate first apartment door swings open with a bang. A
aid is immediately administered (a Healing roll middle-aged woman steps into the corner. Her
at –4), she dies in 2d6 rounds. Yep, it’s rough hair is bedraggled, her skin sallow, and her
on the players, but life isn’t all sweetness and clothes stained with food and sweat. She eyes
the Knights for a moment, and then shouts,
roses in Necropolis.
“Typical! You never come here on social visits,
Should the Knights learn Garantia’s identity do ya? Oh no, it’s always guns drawn and
but visit the mother to inform her of the iden- ready to kill some innocent citizen! Who is it
tity of her son’s killer, she suffers heart failure this time, eh? Who’s going to disappear off to
at that point instead. a camp?”
Unless the Knights are quick to shut the
When she recovers (a few hours is enough
woman up, other citizens drift into the hallway.
for her to talk), she reveals the killer’s iden- The mood turns ugly, as the downtrodden citi-
tity—her wayward son, Eduardo. She can zens find the courage to begin shouting abuse
provide his address, but claims she hasn’t at the Knights. Any overt threats (like shoving
seen him in almost a year. “He started using a gun in someone’s face and warning them
drugs, so I told him to clean up or clear out. to back down) have a disastrous effect—the
He cleared out. You do whatever you have to crowd turns violent!
to bring him to justice. He killed Benedict, and The woman (Martha Higgs, no criminal
he has to pay the price for that. The Lord will record) can be calmed surprisingly easily—all
judge him in his own way.” the heroes need do is mention Garantia’s

76
 the opener of the ways
name. “That lowlife piece of crap in number wording appropriately if they decide to enter
14? About damn time you turned up to ship via the fire escape (or by blowing a hole in the
his ass off to a camp!” She refuses to elucidate wall from the neighboring apartment).
further on her reasons for wanting Garantia
arrested. No matter when or how the Knights gain
Citizens (3 per hero): Use Citizen stats access to his apartment, Garantia has just fin-
from Necropolis 2350. ished injecting himself with a dose of Gateway.
The lock gives and the door crashes
Turning the Tables inward. A lone man, who matches the
images of Eduardo Garantia, straightens
This section assumes the Knights enter via
the front door without knocking (Garantia from his crouched position, his face twisted
doesn’t answer if they do opt for the polite with a terrible smile. You’ve seen that
approach). Going through the front door smile before on the faces of fanatics and
requires either a Lockpicking roll or overcom- madmen. He stretches out a hand toward
ing the door’s Toughness of 8. Change the you, dropping a syringe to the floor, and

77
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
hissing loudly as he does, “So the Rephaim Success, or an NPC analysis, reveals the
have come to me. You’ll all die, for I am drug is actually 99.9% harmless chemicals,
God’s vengeance made manifest!” the sort of chemicals mixed in with medical
drugs to help them break down in the body or
Deal action cards as normal. Garantia is far
stabilize them in solid form. However, the 0.1%
too paranoid to be taken by Surprise.
remaining appears to be human DNA, although
Garantia begins by using fear, which takes in an unusual form. The lab technicians have
the form of terrible visions of the victim being never seen anything like it before.
flayed alive, and draws his pistol. On round
A raise on the roll, or two days with the
two, he uses bolt (a wave of psionic energy that
lab boys, reveals the purpose of the mystery
causes internal bleeding and severe mental chemical—it closes the synapses which are
trauma), and fires a double tap at the nearest purportedly responsible for psionic abilities. In
Knight. On the third round, he activates deflec- essence, it makes the user a psion for a short
tion and fires another double tap. During while. It is also highly addictive, at least to
subsequent rounds he makes use of his powers laboratory rats. (Rumors the Church conducts
and weapons as best fits the situation. such experiments on condemned prisoners are
Roll on the Incapacitation Table as normal popular, but unproven.)
for Garantia when he takes more than three
wounds. It doesn’t matter to the adventure DNA
whether Garantia is taken alive or gunned
down, but there’s no need for the WM to kill Running the DNA sequence through the
him off unnecessarily. database produces an interesting result—the
owner’s file has been security locked by the
The apartment contains two clues, which CIS. Since the Knights are only accessing the
allow the Knights to progress further in their records through a database, they can’t hack in
investigation without having to interrogate and try to reverse the lock.
Garantia. The first is the syringe he dropped
(it’s the only one in his apartment). The second
is a business card for the Straw Man club. Interrogation
Eduardo Garantia: See page 94. If Garantia is taken alive, he can be inter-
rogated. Church law does not give heretics the
right to legal representation or medical treat-
Heresy in Liquid Form ment, though if Garantia is unconscious he’ll
The syringe Garantia dropped as the need basic first aid before he can be questioned.
Knights entered is engraved with a small A paramedic team arrives after 1d4 x 5 minutes
symbol that resembles a partially open door, if backup is called. They have Healing d8.
obviously some sort of drug symbol. It’s a new Once Garantia is conscious, the questioning
one on the Knights, though, no matter how can begin. Gateway users have no recollection
experienced they are. of their paranoid delusions or psychic powers,
Options for tracking down the symbol so the killer vehemently denies anything
and its meaning, include using the Preceptory beyond getting high. He won’t reveal details
database for similar finds (Investigation roll), about his dealer, either, at least not under
asking their comrades (Streetwise roll), asking conventional interrogation.
around the streets (Streetwise at –4, because Showing him the video of him killing his
no one talks to Knights), or using appropri- brother causes him to crack. At first he tries to
ate Connections. On any success they learn deny it, but as he watches the tape he begins
the drug is called Gateway. It’s new, but it’s to break down. By the time the footage has
sweeping the streets like wildfire. Users speak ended, Garantia is willing to give up his dealer.
of experiencing divine revelations and feeling He doesn’t know his name, but the pusher
powerful. War Masters can find details about is always in Booth #3 at the Straw Man Club
Gateway on page 74. between 1900 and 2100 hours.
There is a tiny amount of drug left in the The Knights aren’t responsible for judging
syringe, but the Knights don’t have the capa- criminals, so Garantia is sent elsewhere to be
bilities of analyzing it until they return to the processed. They learn within a few hours that
Preceptory. Even then, it requires a Knowledge Garantia has been shipped to a reeducation
(Chemistry) roll at –4 or has to be handed over camp for a lengthy spell. In truth, Garantia
to the lab technicians (who take a whole day to never reaches the camp—CIS agents involved
run their tests). in the plot take him away for further study.

78
 the opener of the ways

Scene 3: Order from Above out the skill, the Knight knows next to nothing
about the true workings of the Union. If he runs
Whether the Knights report their findings into another criminal who’s really in the Union,
to the PIO or not, he quickly hears of the his cover story will be broken in minutes.
results of the investigation and summons them You might also wish to remind them that
to his office. electing to be an ex-Knight is an easy cover,
“I’ve read the case file, and this looks but a whole team of ex-Knights is going to
serious. You’re to resume undercover duties raise eyebrows. Suggest, if necessary, that at
with immediate effect. Your orders are to least a few opt to be Sergeants. Sergeants are
track down Gateway’s manufacturer, and more plentiful, aren’t beholden to the Ordines
put him out of business with terminal quite so strictly, and, if they embark on a
force. Your best hope is to try and infiltrate criminal career, are naturally inclined to follow
the gang selling the crap, and then work ex-Knights.
upwards any way you can—drug gangs
always need troops, and we produce some Heroes with the Arcane Background
of the best-trained warriors on Salus. (Miracles) Edge actually have a very convenient
cover story already available if they wish. When
“However, you must act with subtlety. the Pope ordered that all Faithful report for
These gangs aren’t stupid. If they suspect duty with the Ordines or Church, many chose
you’re undercover agents, you’ll be
instead to flee underground. Any high combat
speaking to God quicker than you’d like.
skills are easily accounted for by having to
Likewise, we can’t afford for you to start
survive on the mean streets and stay one step
rushing around and warn the top dog.
ahead of the Inquisition.
“And don’t communicate with anyone
except me about this—God knows the The characters have access to any Corpo-
local police station leaks information like rate personal gear they want—rifles, pistols,
a sieve. If the CIS find out about this drug, grenades, electronic lockpicks, the works.
they’ll get a Papal Interdiction Warrant There’s no need for rocket launchers or other
and take over the case. Even if we can block heavy weapons, though. The only armor they’re
them, you can bet your butt word will get allowed to take is a light armor breastplate (+4
out onto the streets. You’ll be provided with Armor, torso only) in one of the various Cor-
a boosted comlink set to a frequency that’ll porate designs. This fits under loose clothing.
reach me directly. Day or night, I’m here In addition, the Senior Knight receives 1,000
for you. Miters in hard currency.
“Finally, we’ve put all the Knight Lances
currently serving with the Lictors on high
alert. If you need backup, you ask. Don’t
be heroes!
Act 2: The Lower Rungs
“Now, get down to the stores, and The Knights have a lead, and it’s one they
take whatever Corporate gear you want. can’t afford to lose. If the Knights interrogated
Dismissed.” Garantia, they know when and where the
dealer will be present. If Garantia was killed,
they’ll need to work out another way to find
Undercover Work their man.
The Knights’ undercover identities now
come into play. As far as the criminal under-
world knows, the Knights are freelance Scene 1: The Straw Man Club
criminals. Tell the players they need to come
up with some basic cover stories for their new The Straw Man Club has a valid license for
identities. They can make these as elaborate 24-hour entertainment and the sale of alcohol.
and detailed as they wish, but should include It also has a current health and safety certifi-
a new name, a brief history, and any criminal cate. The owners know that drugs are sold on
record a Knight fancies taking. Church records the premises, but turn a blind eye in return for
will be doctored accordingly to register any jail regular kickbacks.
terms, previous employment records, or cur- The police know drug-trafficking goes on,
rent warrants for arrest. but they allow the club to remain open. It’s
Unless a character has Knowledge (Union), easier for them to keep an eye on the criminals
adopting the background of an ex-Corporate if they know where they are, and shutting down
employee or soldier is not a wise move—with- the site would simply move them elsewhere.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
The club is the subject of several ongoing Local Toughs
investigations by the local police, but none
involve the distribution of Gateway. Some of the local goons have noticed new
faces in the crowd—the Knights. Figuring it’s
Once inside, the Knights enter a world time to remind any newcomers who’s the
of loud music, dim lights, heavy smoke, and muscle in town, they approach the hero with
gyrating bodies. As far as dens of vice go, this the lowest Strength (the wimpiest looking
one is up there with the best. Treat the lighting one).
conditions as Dim (–1).
“Well, well, well,” one of the muscled-
Locating the table is easy enough, but bound goons says, “looks like we’ve got a
regardless of what time the characters enter the new face in town! Just so you know, we run
club there’s no one seated at it. Should they not business in this joint. And just so you don’t
have learned the exact details of where to meet forget…” With that he swings his fist.
the dealer, they’ll need to make Streetwise rolls
Deal action cards. The characters must roll
to learn of the table.
to avoid Surprise. No guns are drawn by the
Before the dealer arrives, the GM should run goons unless the characters do so first. Should
a few cameo encounters. A sample is provided this occur, interrupt the fight immediately,
below, but the GM has the option of creating and read the text below. If the firearms aren’t
his own based on the various Hindrances of produced, Jago arrives on the scene just as the
his particular group. There’s no right or wrong last thug drops.
outcome to any of these events—let the heroes
The lead goon suddenly freezes. Peering
deal with the situations as they see fit.
through the smoke you can make out a
man in a sharp suit standing behind him,
Heretical Propaganda a huge 12mm pistol jammed into the thug’s
A bespectacled youth sidles up to one of temple.
the Knights (a Chaplain would be great) and “What have I told you, Johnny?” the
discretely shoves a flyer into his hand. A quick man says quietly and calmly. “Didn’t I say
glance reveals it’s Forsaker material, slamming that if you harassed my patrons again you
the Church for its sins and proclaiming God have to pay the price?”
has left man alone in the void.
The thug gulps and lowers his gun.
The kid, Charles Montgomery, isn’t a “Look Mr. Jago, we were just having some
hardcore heretic—he’s a disillusioned student fun. We weren’t going to do too much
rebelling against the system because he feels damage, honestly.” Jago motions to the
that’s what students do. Still, heresy is heresy. door. “You have 30 seconds to vacate the
club, and you’d better pray I’m not in the
The Knights can try to learn more about
mood to follow you.” As one, the thugs
this particular sect of Forsakers, such as trying
holster their weapons and flee across the
to locate their meetinghouse. This requires a
crowded dance floor.
Persuasion roll, as the youth is disinclined to
reveal too much to strangers right away. With “Local hoods think they’re somebody
success, the Knight learns the sect is just a important,” Jago says, turning to you as he
bunch of spotty-faced students, not some ultra- holsters his pistol. “Name’s Max Jago, head
dangerous sect of priest killers. of security. You’re new here, right?” He
motions to a passing waitress. “Get these
Any raid on the heretics by the Knights is
folks whatever they want from the bar on
up to the GM to devise—it’s a complete aside
the house—the Club’s way of an apology
to the adventure. Since they’re undercover and
for the rude welcome. Now, are you here
on a major case, a good plan is just to radio in
for anything specific or just to have a good
any details they learn and let their buddies take
time?”
care of things.
If the heroes don’t know where to meet the
Alternately, they might decide to lead him
dealer, this is a chance to find out. Jago knows
outside and remind him (with fists or words)
all the operators in the club, though he isn’t
that the Church is trying to save mankind from
directly involved in the drug trade. He gets
total extermination.
bribes to look the other way, but that doesn’t
Student Heretic: As Low Level Criminal mean he doesn’t run a tight surveillance opera-
(page 94), but with no gear. tion.

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 the opener of the ways
Have each Knight make a Notice roll. Those When the Knights approach his table, he
who succeed spot a distinctive tattoo poking asks what they want. He doesn’t name any spe-
out from Jago’s sleeve—an Incinerator tattoo. cific substances, and answers questions like,
Jago has never hid the fact he served with the “What do you have?” with a simple “Whatever
Ordines, and although he becomes suspicious you want.” Play him as cautious—the guy sells
if the Knights make mention of it, he doesn’t drug for a living, so he isn’t going to hand out
clock them as undercover agents. menus to complete strangers.
“Yeah, I did my time and served Mother Gateway costs 10 Miters a shot. Any hero
Church. I served with the Incinerators making a Common Knowledge (–2) or Street-
for ten years before I grew disillusioned. wise roll knows that is way below the market
I guess you could say I lost my faith. Too price of other narcotics. If questioned on the
many good friends dead on the battlefield price, Eisenman says he has strict orders to sell
and too many hollow speeches about how at that price and not a Miter more.
they died for the righteous cause. You ever The heroes, of course, don’t want a few
serve with the military?” hits—they need to work their way up the chain
Thugs (1 per hero): Treat as Hardened of command. Eisenman, being the end dealer,
Criminals (page 95), but without the usual is on the bottom rung—he just sells the stuff,
gear. Instead, they carry 6mm pistols (Range: and knows nothing about its distribution pat-
12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, Shots 15, Semi-auto, terns or manufacture. He never touches the
AP 2) and 2 mags. stuff himself.

Jago: Treat as a Wild Card Hardened Acquiring the information the Knights want
Criminal (page 95), but without the usual should be roleplayed. Eisenman isn’t keen on
gear. Instead, he sports a 12mm pistol (Range: handing out details about his suppliers, so he’s
very cagey and nervous. For all he knows, the
12/24/48, Damage: 2d8, Shots 7, Semi-auto, AP
heroes could be a rival gang trying to muscle
2) and 2 mags.
in on the action or even undercover Knights.
Ideally, this scene should be roleplayed rather
Sins of the Flesh than reduced to a die roll. However, if a hero
wants to roll, he needs a Persuasion roll at –4
An extremely attractive (Charisma +4) girl,
to learn the facts.
barely out of her teens, struts up to one of the
Knights (preferably the one with the highest Eisenman eventually cracks. However,
Charisma) and brazenly asks if he wants to before he agrees to take the Knights to his
dance. She’s very touchy-feely and is exposing suppliers he wants to run a few details about
a lot of flesh. them by the men he buys from. He asks for
names, addresses, and any pertinent facts, such
Let the Knight handle this however he
as a criminal record. He then gives them his
wants. Should he be inclined to dance, maybe address, and tells them to meet him tomorrow
in the hope of learning a little information, morning. If they check out, he’ll take them to
the girl hints she’d like a little more physi- a rendezvous.
cal contact. She tries to kiss the Knight for a
start, while letting her fingers roam freely. Of He won’t mention this, but if their cover
course, such an act is against a Knight’s vow stories don’t work out, he plans to take them
of celibacy. along anyway, so the gang can kill the meddling
heroes.
If you’ve got an attractive female Knight in
the party, then the teenager can be switched
to a young man without changing any other Eisenman’s Apartment
details. On reaching Eisenman’s apartment, the
Knights discover someone has beaten them to

Scene 2: The Dealer it. The door is closed, but not locked. A Notice
roll at –2 made while studying the door reveals
After you’ve run the cameos, the dealer, telltale scratch marks around the electronic
Sebastian Eisenman, arrives and takes a seat at lock—someone hacked the code.
his usual table. Hopefully by now the Knights The dealer lies dead on the sitting room
know he’s the man they need to see about floor, his torso riddled with flechettes. His
Gateway. Before the characters can reach him, face is heavily bruised and bloodied, indicat-
he’s already made half a dozen sales. ing a recent beating. If you’re running this

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
adventure in 2351 or later, his face is marked the boss. You’d better be quick talkers,
by the distinct impressions left by a cestus (see because,” he checks his watch, “in about
the 2351-55 Update). two minutes you’re going to be dead unless
Paranoid characters may suspect the you check out.”
involvement of other Knights, but as with most The leader of the gang, Umberto de Mont-
Church gear the combat gloves are available fort, is a former Asgard officer. As such, he
on the blackmarket. The same applies to fle- knows all about Asgard’s military machine, and
chette weapons. A quick call to the Preceptory sees through any strange stories or inconsisten-
confirms Eisenman wasn’t being investigated
cies immediately.
by any other Lance, and none have reported
visiting his apartment recently. The important thing is that the Knights
A successful Healing or Notice roll (hero’s keep to whatever stories they gave Eisenman. A
choice) made while examining the body sudden change in details causes the soldiers to
reveals Eisenman was standing when he was become very suspicious.
shot. There’s no sign of blood anywhere else, Interrogate two Knights (picked randomly).
so he was likely killed where he fell. Before de Montfort can start on the third one,
The apartment has also been searched. An two black sedans scream into the car park and
Investigation or Notice (–4) roll reveals the skid to a halt, disgorging a handful of armed
search wasn’t random, like that of common men.
burglars—it was very systematic and profes-
sional, leaving no stone unturned.
We Want Drugs
Whoever killed Eisenman did leave one
clue, though—there’s a scrap of paper in his “Hey,” shouts one of the new arriv-
pocket. It simply says, “Thursday 2100, 49th als, “you guys distribute Gateway, right?
and Bentley.” A Common Knowledge roll Don’t bother lying, man; we know you
reveals there’s an underground car park at that sell the stuff. We want some.” He smiles a
location. broad and slightly maniacal grin. “Actu-
ally, we want all the stash in your SUV.
Don’t try to resist—we serve the great
Scene 3: Shooting up the darkness that is the Rephaim!”
Town Your contact shrugs, and nods to his
men. “You heard them. Let them have
The 49th Street car park is no different to it, boys!” With that, gunfire booms in the
those in the 21st century. It has several floors enclosed space as both sides open fire!
marked out with white-lined parking bays,
ramps heading up and down, and sturdy con- The second party is a bunch of violent
crete pillars to support the roof. There are no Immortalists led by a corrupt priest. They’ve
security cameras, nor is there a parking attend- discovered the joys of Gateway, and believe it
ant. The car park serves the local apartments, will grant them the power to take on the Sacri
and few citizens have vehicles worth more than Ordines. Rather than pay for it, though, they
few hundred Miters at most. Those who can intend to acquire the shipment by force.
afford decent cars don’t live in this neighbor-
hood. Hand out Ally Sheets for de Montfort and
his men—they all share the same stats. Deal
It’s up to the Knights whether they choose action cards. Split the cultists into two groups
to arrive in advance or wait until after 2100 for action card purposes.
hours to make an appearance.
The car park measures 24” to a side. The
A black SUV arrives at 2050 hours and parks
entrance and exit ramps are in opposite
up near the exit ramp. Four men, all armed
corners. Aside from the SUV and two sedans,
with Corporate weapons, climb out. Three of
them fan out, their guns trained steadily on the there are a dozen parked cars spread around
characters, while the fourth approaches the the level. Ten pillars, each filling a 1” square,
Knights. He gruffly demands to know what the should be placed in logical positions.
heroes are doing in the car park. Hopefully they The heroes and their newfound allies begin
mention that Eisenman arranged the meeting. within 4” of the SUV. The cultists start 13” away,
“Where is that little puke? Dead? just in front of their cars. In the first round,
Nature of the business, baby. He told us a the heretics move to take cover behind their
little about you, but not enough to satisfy vehicles while blasting away with their pistols.

82
 the opener of the ways
The SUV provides +3 Armor to characters Q: What’s the boss’ name?
using it for cover. Other vehicles in the car park
A: “Heh, you know, I’ve never asked. I don’t
provide +2 Armor only. The pillars are essen-
care, either. So long as the money keeps coming
tially indestructible—chunks can be blown off,
but the steel reinforcing rods running through in, I’m happy with that arrangement.”
them mean only explosive charges can bring Q: Where are you taking us?
them down.
A: “Be patient, baby. We’ll be there soon.
Umberto De Montfort: See page 94. If we wanted you dead, we could have hosed
Hardened Criminals (1 per hero): See you during the firefight back there.”
page 95. Q: Is the pay good?
Corrupt Priest: See page 95. A: “A thousand Miters a month. That’s tax
Cultists (2 per hero): See page 95. free, of course,” he laughs loudly.
Q: How many people are in the organiza-
A Welcome Addition tion?
Once the dust has settled and the last A: “In ours, about a dozen. I know the boss
corpses stopped twitching, de Montfort slaps has ties to other outfits, though. You sure ask a
the nearest hero on the back. lot of questions.”
“Now that, my friends,” he laughs, “was
an initiation by fire. You handled your-
selves pretty well there. Quick reactions to
Scene 1: Meet the Boss
an ever-changing situation and gratuitous After a few more minutes, the SUV pulls
use of violence! Okay, I’ll take you to see into a disused factory site. The driver pulls the
the boss. You’ve earned that much at least. vehicle into an old warehouse, safely out of
Hop in the SUV and we’ll take you there sight of any passing patrols. De Montfort then
now. I’m Umberto de Montfort, by the way. asks the heroes to hand over any weapons.
Call me anything except Monty, baby.”
“You know the drill, baby,” he smiles.
Any attempts to avoid a meeting with “the
“Strangers don’t get near the boss if they’re
boss” are met with the reply that this is a one-
armed. We’ve shown you a lot of trust let-
time offer—the group either comes now, or
ting you keep your tools this far, so now it’s
they lose the opportunity.
payback time. If you want a receipt, just
ask,” he adds with a broad grin.

Act 3: Climbing De Montfort doesn’t ask the Knights to

dispose of any other gear, though he accepts it

the Ladder if the Knights start handing over equipment.

Once the Knights are disarmed (they can
The SUV heads out of the residential area keep their armor), de Montfort leads them up
and into the neighboring industrial zone. Tall a stairwell and into the adjoining building—a
chimneys belch black, acrid smoke day and former canning facility, long since shut down.
night, the steady thump of hidden machinery Crossing the factory floor, which is covered in
echoes eerily through the gray sky, the build- rusting machinery, de Montfort stops outside a
ings lack even basic maintenance, and what few metal door. He knocks twice, and is answered
residential apartment blocks exist are covered by a panel being slid across. A pair of eyes can
in thick layers of soot. be made out through the gap.
During the trip, the heroes might have a “Hey, baby,” the goon grins. “It’s me
few questions for de Montfort. Possible ques- and the boys. I’ve got a report for the boss
tions posed by the Knights and de Montfort’s and some potential new blood.”
answers are detailed below.
A few moments later the door opens, to
The goon doesn’t know everything about reveal a bronzed, muscular man. He eyes the
his organization, nor does he ever let on in party up and down, briefly, nods, and opens
advance “the boss” is a woman—it simply the door wider.
doesn’t occur to him that it’s important in
the 24th century. If the Knights ask questions The decay of the facility is in stark
not detailed below, the GM should feel free to contrast to the opulence behind the door.
answer with a simple, “Not my concern.” What was probably once an office is now

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
decorated with works of art, marble busts, “Okay, it sounds like you’ve got the
and antique, wooden furniture. The floor skills I need. Even if you hadn’t, I always
is covered in a thick carpet of deep red need more,” she casts a glance at her
hues. servant and then smiles at you, “servants
around the place. Now I need to know if I
Seated behind a desk is a woman,
can trust you, and that means putting you
her long hair falling to her shoulders.
to the test.
Porcelain-white skin and a beautiful face
are marred only by an ugly, purple scar, “Tomorrow at midday, I want you to
which runs from her right temple to her assassinate someone, someone who has
chin. You’ve seen such injuries before—the endangered my organization more than
telltale mark of a molecular sword blade once. You kill him, and you get added
slicing through flesh. As you enter, she looks to the payroll. You fail, and don’t bother
up, raising an eyebrow at de Montfort. coming back. Any questions?”
The criminal quickly explains about Hopefully the heroes have at least one
the cultist attack on their drop, and praises question—who is the target? Alexandria smiles
you several times for your reactions and a devilish grin. “Oh,” she says, “you’ll learn
marksmanship. He adds, “Boss, these guys that in the morning. De Montfort will show
would make a great addition to the team. you to your quarters. Details on the hit will be
Their identities check out to the max.” sent along shortly.”
The woman stands and walks over to
you, her booted footsteps muffled by the
carpet. “So,” she says, “you want to join my
Scene 2: Plans, Information,
operation? What makes you think you’ve and Sneaking
got what I need?”
The Knights’ quarters are in another part
It’s time for the heroes to brag a little. No of the factory. Accommodation isn’t just basic;
die rolls are required—just allow the Knights it’s practically primitive. Rusty iron beds with
to talk up their skills and Edges. Alexandria, the moldy mattresses, blankets which would give a
boss, has need for gunmen, drivers, explosives Rephaim second thought about wrapping them
experts, thieves (anyone with Lockpicking and around its flesh, a bucket for a toilet (thankfully
Stealth would qualify), as well as unregistered empty), and a sink in which the water runs a
Faithful—basically, she wants what the Knights nasty shade of green.
can provide.
De Montfort throws the Knights a few
Heroes who make a Notice roll at –4 spot Union-issue ration packs—the food is tasteless
hidden lust in the boss’ gaze toward them. but nutritious. Just like the Church rations,
She’s mentally undressing them and visualizing each can of food in the pack contains heating
them in a variety of interesting roles—willing chemicals to cook the mush. Rations packs also
or otherwise! come with a simple spoon and fork combina-
Although the Knights may have the skills tion (a spork).
she wants, she doesn’t trust them an inch—not “Don’t leave your quarters,” de Mont-
yet, anyway. To earn a place in her organiza- fort adds as he leaves. “The boss doesn’t
tion, the Knights are going to have to perform a like guests walking around unescorted. You
job for her, and it won’t be one they relish. She need anything, you holler for me, baby.”
will, if asked directly, reveal her name—she’s
never made a secret of it. The characters have an hour to kill before
de Montfort returns with the briefing informa-
Alexandria Vancelli: See page 96. tion. They can hear footsteps echoing around
Umberto De Montfort: See page 94. during that hour. Any Knight who peeks
outside sees de Montfort and his men pacing
Hardened Criminals (1 per hero): See
around at sporadic intervals. They don’t appear
page 95.
to be guarding the heroes, but simply doing
whatever it is they do.
The Job Offer The briefing file contains photographs of
After listening to the Knights’ boasts about a building in town. Have each Knight make a
their prowess, some of which de Montfort con- Common Knowledge roll. Preachers gain a +2
firms, Alexandria sits on the edge of her desk. bonus. With success, they recognize it as the

84
 the opener of the ways
local recruiting office for the Ordo. On a raise, “Alexandria Vancelli, age 29. Records
the Knight has served in the office and knows indicate she grew up in a Church orphanage
the layout. after her father abandoned her at the age
of six. Mother died when she was four. No
The GM should design an appropriate
criminal record, but that’s probably because
street map based on his hometown and pro-
she’s smart enough not to get caught.
vide a sketch for the characters. Essentially, the
map has a road with shops and offices on each “She visited a psychiatrist several years
side. ago. Under Church law, doctor-patient
confidentiality ended when he suddenly
De Montfort, who hands over the folder,
disappeared. Vancelli was a suspect, but no
provides the following information: evidence was found and no charges pushed.
* The target will be wearing medium armor. Apparently she has several perversions
and fantasies of a sexual nature involving
* The Knights will be equipped with 12mm
domination of men.”
SMGs, armor piercing rounds, and one mono-
filament grenade each. All weapons will be De Montfort: “Umberto de Montfort,
provided by the boss before the mission begins. age 37. Apparently de Montfort is a Valhalla
graduate. He served with Asgard for six years,
* The target will arrive outside the building reaching the rank of full captain before being
at 1015 hours, along with his bodyguards. He is sent to their stockade in northern Midgard.
to be eliminated before he enters the building. Asgard isn’t exactly on good terms with us, so
If the characters need to take out the guards as we don’t have any other details to hand. After
well, then that’s their choice. that he vanished. He only appeared on Church
* De Montfort will accompany the party on records when he entered the domain after his
behalf of the boss to keep an eye on the heroes release. Since then he hasn’t had a job or paid
and ensure they don’t have a change of heart. any taxes, and his census records are non-exist-
ent. I guess he went underground and stayed
there.”
Checking In
De Montfort was an Asgard officer, just like
Although the characters don’t have any his record says. However, he never served time
weapons, they do have the secure communica- in prison. For the last six years, he’s been serv-
tor. Should they have forgotten its existence, ing with the Preachers! He spent four years out
give them a prompt—the players may have for- in the boondocks training militia, before going
gotten, but hardened soldiers would remember undercover to infiltrate a drug ring. His record
such lifesaving details. with the Church has been doctored to remove
If they contact the Preceptory about the all trace of his Preacher service as part of his
planned raid, they are informed by the Precep- cover. The PIO knows the truth, but isn’t about
tor Intelligence Officer Manager, who answers to break his cover.
the call personally, that he and the Preceptor
Media & Merchandizing Officer are paying a visit Sneaking Around
to the recruiting office tomorrow, along with a
Lance of Knights. They’re due to arrive at 1015 Once the briefing is over, the heroes are
hours. locked in their quarters for the night. Naturally,
they may want to go for a midnight walk and try
He orders the Knights to do what they must and uncover a little information of their own.
to fulfill their primary objective—tracking down The aim of the section is to let them find some
and eliminating the source of Gateway is far too clues, but without making it look like they have
important. He’ll make his peace with God, he to find them.
adds, before tomorrow dawns.
As such, the GM should have the Knights
The characters might also ask him to check hear a passing sentry every now and then and
background details on Alexandria Vancelli and ask for Stealth rolls. Don’t worry if anyone
Umberto de Montfort. Searching the databases fails—a second sentry calls the first one away
takes an hour, so he’ll call them back. When he just as he reaches the character’s poor choice
does get back in touch, he provides the follow- of hiding place.
ing information:
Escaping the barracks requires a Lockpicking
Vancelli: Before he hands over any data, the roll (–2 if the heroes don’t have any lockpicks).
PIO asks the characters to confirm the name. He A critical failure activates an alarm, which bring
even asks for a physical description. de Montfort and four goons running. The char-

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
acters are then thoroughly searched and warned last caller withheld their number, so there’s no
to stay put. A sentry is posted outside the door chance of discovering its origin. Every speed dial
for good measure. number in Vancelli’s system is a codename.
The obvious place to begin checking for Have the characters make Common Knowl-
clues is Vancelli’s office. Cracking the lock is a edge (–2) or Knowledge (Church) rolls if they
little trickier, and requires a Lockpicking roll at have hacked the computer. With success, they
–2. Again, a critical failure activates an alarm. recognize one name—Phanuel. It’s a variant of
Should bennies not be spent on this critical fail- Uriel.
ure, de Montfort and his boys arrive 2d6 rounds Uriel is actually a mummy, and the de facto
later, and they’re prepared to shoot first and head of the Gateway manufacturing operation.
worry about the mess later unless the heroes Vancelli has no idea about his origins.
invent a very good excuse for breaking into the
boss’ office. Should they be so bold as to dial the
number, the screen flickers into life after a few
Vancelli’s bedroom adjoins the office, but moments. Unless the heroes have withheld the
it’s obvious from the noise she’s otherwise visual feed at their end, their faces will be shown
occupied with a guest. There are two sources to whoever answers the call. Should they forget,
of information. allow them a Common Knowledge roll at –2.
Computer Terminal: The first is a com- With success, they can hit the withhold button
puter terminal, which is linked to the Stream, just before the call is answered.
the Church equivalent of the internet. Basic The receiver is shrouded in darkness and no
functions aren’t password locked, but all the visual details are discernible. His voice, however,
important files are. has a deep bass tone and a slightly disturbing
Hacking the system requires a Common quality. He demands to know who the Knights
Knowledge roll, but with restrictions. A Combat are and what they want—Vancelli also hides her
Engineer can make the roll at –2, since repair- number, so Uriel has no idea the location from
ing computers and encoding systems is part where they are calling. It’s up to the characters
of their routine work. Unless another hero’s how they respond. Any verbal communication
backstory specifically mentions he’s a compu- could endanger their mission if the shadowy
ter whiz, he can’t make the roll—hacking is figure hears them speak later.
beyond untrained heroes in the time available. Passing the number dialed back to the
The characters don’t know enough about her Preceptory doesn’t help. The call is being for-
background to start guessing mother’s name or warded via several exchanges. Tracking it down
important birthdays. could take days without involving the CIS.
The encrypted files contain the usual lists Vidphones also have one additional feature
of drop off points, bank account details, illegal of note, as the Knights would know—private vid-
shipments of guns and ammo, and so on. Only phones can be set to record live conversations,
two files are of any immediate use. The first, utilizing both voice and image storage. The
entitled “Open Sesame,” contains details of crime lord has set a password on hers. Crack-
the gang’s Gateway shipments. It mentions the ing it is as per the rules above. The codeword is
name Uriel as a contact and indicates several obscure, and can’t be guessed blindly.
meetings on the east side of town (the really bad
With success, the last message replays. The
slums where even Knights travel in Prophets for
caller is the same individual as described above.
safety at night), but nothing else of use.
The call discusses increasing the amount of
The second file is more disturbing—it’s a Gateway distributed and mentions a meeting,
file on the Preceptor Intelligence Officer, and which is to be held tomorrow night. The loca-
contains photos taken at public engagements tion is given simply as “the usual place.”
and personal information. None of the data is
If the WM wishes to create a follow-up
about secret Ordo projects. Should the Knights
adventure, there is a second stored message.
contact the PIO, he tells them it’s not unusual
When replayed, it shows a Lazarite Knight in
for criminals to know their enemy.
full armor. He’s discussing buying Gateway, but
Vidphone: Aside from the computer, there no firm deal is reached. This could be an agent
is also a vidphone panel. Vidphones work much involved with Project Messiah, thus dragging
like 21st century telephones, but display video the heroes into a greater conspiracy, or just a
images. They share common features, such as drug-user who wants a fix. In the latter case,
last number redial and speed dial. Vancelli’s the Lazarite should belong to the Knights’ Pre-

86
 the opener of the ways
ceptory. A little investigation would be required decided to do away with the chief of police.
to track down his identity, as the only clues are Rather than dirty her hands directly, the arrival
battle scars on his armor and his voice. of the Knights presents a perfect opportunity
to have freelancers do the necessary.

Scene 3: The Hit The PIO is visiting the recruitment office to

check over the files of potential new recruits.
The following morning, the Knights are It’s a routine action he undertakes before every
given a hearty breakfast of Corporate ration intake is accepted into Squire or Sergeant train-
packs and lukewarm coffee. After dining, de ing. Alexandria knows the time and place of his
Montfort leads them to an armory and hands visit, as well as his security arrangements—one
them each 12mm Asgard SMGs, three maga- Lance of Knights—as it’s the same drill every
zines, and a single monofilament grenade. few months.
Any Knight who checks the magazine dis-
covers they are fitted with what appear to be
standard Asgard armor piercing rounds. He
Death on the Streets
can also make a Notice roll at –2. With success, Lay out the map on the tabletop and place
he discovers the ammunition isn’t actually some parked cars along the street. Let the
what it seems—the tips, although AP rounds heroes position themselves where and how
in appearance, don’t look right. De Montfort they want. At exactly 1015 hours, an unmarked
quickly notices any hero studying the ammo, car pulls up outside the recruiting officer. The
and tells him to lock and load immediately as PIO, Preceptor Estate Manager, and a Lance of
the boss is waiting. He won’t raise the subject Knights disembark.
of the rounds, nor will he answer questions
about the ammo. Instead, he just replies, “Huh, Although they’ve been tipped off to expect
guess you ain’t the soldier you think you are, the attack, the Ordo forces don’t know exactly
baby.” when and from where it is coming. They must
roll to avoid Surprise, but the Knights don’t
De Montfort has switched the ammunition gain the Drop. It’s possible the Knights may
for low-impact rounds commonly used in live-
try to tip off their comrades anyway if they
fire exercises. The SMGs inflict normal damage,
haven’t guessed the ammunition they’re using
only it’s nonlethal. They have no AP rating,
is phony.
either. The grenades are fakes as well. They
explode, but it’s all flash and smoke. Run the fight as normal. The bodyguards
Once he learned of the nature of the hit, play their part well—they take up defensive
he contacted the local Preceptor Intelligence positions and blast away at the heroes. Remem-
Officer through his own methods and made ber, these are well-trained soldiers under
arrangements to stage the fight. The Knights orders to make their defense look realistic, not
attending the recruiting office are wearing cannon-fodder. They won’t enter hand-to-hand
specially modified armor containing blood combat unless a hero does. Even then, they
packs, again, used in training exercises, and pull their blows. Roll damage as normal, except
the guards have been issued modified flechette no dice Ace.
rifles designed to fire at much reduced veloci- The blood packs fitted to the PIO and his
ties (see the appropriate stat blocks).
men explode when hit, resembling an actual
De Montfort knows the Knights are work- wound. The PIO has briefed his team, and
ing undercover, thanks to the PIO. His hasty all act as if actually wounded. Since the SMG
“lock and load” statement was to prevent them damage is nonlethal, their injuries are just
uncovering his identity as a double agent. bruises. Once the PIO is “down,” the remain-
Once they’re tooled up for war, Vancelli ing Knights try to drag him into the safety of
gives them the identity of the target—the Pre- the recruitment office. De Montfort orders a
ceptor Intelligence Officer. All being well, this fighting withdrawal at this point.
won’t come as a total shock to the Knights. If In the event the heroes begin losing the
it does, then their reactions provide the crazed fight, then one of the other Knights loudly
gang boss with a cheap thrill. orders the men to use, “Defense plan Beta.”
This is a code for them to start faking injuries
Why the PIO? and falling over “dead” so as to allow the char-
acters to “complete” their mission.
With the increased business from dealing
Gateway, an ideal opportunity for the organi- Preceptor Intelligence Officer: See page
zation to expand its activities, Alexandria has 96.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Preceptor Estate Manager: Use the same Here the GM has two choices. He can con-
stats as the PIO (page 96). tinue directly with the adventure as written, or
Knight Infantry (1 per hero): See page he can keep up the undercover work by adding
96. in some cameos of his own devising. The latter
would lengthen the mission, but shouldn’t
Umberto De Montfort: See page 94. affect the story. Missions could include delivery
runs of Gateway, removing a rival gang in a
vicious shootout, or even robbing a bank.
Vancelli orders the heroes to stay in the
Act 4: The Top Rung factory, since the streets will be crawling with
Knights and Lictor Sergeants following the
Reached murder. She says she and de Montfort have
an engagement tonight, but the heroes are on
De Montfort remains silent on the return free time until tomorrow. Whether or not the
journey, shunning all attempts to discuss the Knights know about the meeting already, it’s
ambush. Since he’s alone with the heroes, they in their interests to attend—whoever Vancelli
may decide to play a little rough in the hope of is meeting could be important to their case.
gaining useful information. A hardened soldier, Convincing her to take them along through die
de Montfort isn’t going to crack easily. rolls requires a Persuasion check at –2. If the
group wants to roleplay their arguments, then
Threatening to kill him doesn’t cause the GM should let them—they’ll need to create
him to flinch—he knows the operation he is a valid reason, of course. Should they fail, de
involved with is bigger than him. De Montfort Montfort puts in a word for them.
is also content that he has made his peace with
God, and thus has nothing to fear from death. “Boss,” de Montfort says, “I think we
Torturing him would take many days and would should take along the new blood. They did
still reveal nothing of use. well today. The hit was very professional.
A little extra firepower wouldn’t go amiss,
The Knights may suspect he is a fellow
and it would show we’re a serious orga-
operative and try to get him to open up by
nization with the means to expand and
revealing their true identities. It’s a very risky
protect our operation.”
decision because if they’ve got it wrong, de
Montfort will know the gang has been infil- Vancelli looks her aide straight in the
trated. This requires a Persuasion roll at –6—the eye for a few moments. “Yes,” she muses, “it
undercover Knight isn’t going to blow his cover wouldn’t hurt to show our muscle a little.
without a very good excuse. With success, de They’re talking of expansion, and display-
Montfort says he believes the Knights are the ing our muscle might convince them to give
good guys, and he’ll help them in their goal any us a larger share. Get some rest. We’ll meet
way he can, so long as it doesn’t endanger his up back here at 2100 hours.”
plans. On a raise, he reveals he is a Preacher
Senior Knight but warns the characters that if Vancelli offers one Knight the chance to
he suspects they are endangering his cover, he stay behind for some “recreational activity.” It’s
won’t hesitate to permanently remove them up to the Knight whether he accepts and how,
from the scene. if at all, he lets down the boss without causing
offense.

Scene 1: Back at the Base How the Knights pass the time is fairly irrel-
evant. They can check back with the Preceptory
By the time the hit men return to the indus- if they so wish. It may come as a surprise when
trial site, Vatican Radio is already carrying word the PIO, apparently in remarkable health, answers
of the assassination. The television news chan- their call.
nel has interrupted normal service to bring He doesn’t go into any details, asking only
pictures and interviews with eyewitnesses from if the deception worked. If they tip him off
the murder scene. about the meeting, he reminds them to make
Vancelli’s mood is somber, though she sure they’re dealing with the top man before
is pleased with the Knights’ work. She offers they start killing criminals. Should anyone
them permanent employment at the rate of mention Vancelli, the PIO orders the Knights to
500 Miters a month, to be increased as they bring her to justice if possible, but to terminate
continue to show loyalty and dedication. her if given no other choice.

88
 the opener of the ways

Scene 2: Meeting the Vancelli has pondered this herself, being no

stranger to the dog-eat-dog world of suppliers.
Supplier She figures the manufacturer is just creating
a market, and once he has reached enough
After another meal of bland rations, de customers, the price will skyrocket to both her
Montfort takes the heroes to the armory. This and the end users.
time he returns their original weapons, though Unfortunately, Vancelli seems about to seal
he’s happy to let them have 12mm SMGs again the deal and order the Knights to leave. This
if they’d prefer. Checking the ammunition isn’t good—the heroes are obviously close
reveals it is conventional 12mm rounds. Each to the manufacturing site, as the other goons
hero can also take up to three grenades of his don’t have any vehicles. Unless they act fast,
choice. they might lose the opportunity—manufactur-
Once everyone is tooled up, they are loaded ers are prone to moving headquarters on a
into a pair of SUVs. Vancelli and some goons regular basis.
take one, while de Montfort and the heroes One way to try and get closer to the source
are bundled into the other. The convoy heads is to play mind games with Vancelli. Doubts
across to the really rough end of town. Well-to- could be raised about the quality of the prod-
do neighbors give way to rundown apartments, uct, or whether the apparent selfless act of
and finally to the crowded and unhygienic giving it away isn’t hiding something else, such
slums. Eventually, the SUVs pull into an old as a more profitable drug being sold for higher
warehouse. profits behind Vancelli’s back. If the heroes
Waiting for them are a group of rough-look- don’t start something like this, de Montfort
ing men armed with Corporate weapons. One, will. He encourages the heroes to support his
dressed in a smart suit, approaches the lead SUV arguments by asking the Knights what they
think.
and holds up his hand it to stop. Vancelli gets
out, as do her goons. De Montfort signals the Any sensible and logical argument should
Knights to do the same, and to be on guard for work—Vancelli wants to be somebody, and if
a double-cross. she thinks she’s getting held back or sidelined
she demands to be reassured.
“Who are these people?” the man asks,
waving his pistol at you. “New faces make Vancelli turns to her contact. “The boys
me nervous, especially ones so well armed. have a point, you know. I want to make sure
Are you expecting to cause trouble?” we’re partners in this venture all the way.
Whatever you can supply we can sell, but I
Alexandria sniffs casually, studies her want to meet your boss. I want reassurances
nails for a few minutes, and then replies. before we move to the next level. Can you
“These people? Oh, these are just my new arrange that?”
hired help. We’re looking to expand our
operation, and we want your boss to know The man frowns, then whips out a com-
we’re serious. As for whether we’re expect- municator. He punches a button, pauses, and
ing trouble, we’re always expecting trouble. then speaks. “Sire? Yes, I’m with Vancelli now.
That’s how we manage to stay alive. Now, She’s keen to proceed, but she wants ‘reassur-
what about the increased shipments?” ances’ we’re on the level. She wants to see the
production plant.” A pause follows while the
“Calm down, calm down,” the man goon receives instructions.
croons. “The boss has agreed to triple your
shipment size for tomorrow. Same rate, “Yes, boss. Right away boss.” He pockets
same deal—you get Gateway for free, you the communicator. “The boss is expecting you.
sell for 10 Miters a pop, you keep what you This way, please?”
raise.”
It shouldn’t take the characters long to The Source of Gateway
realize that something is wrong here. Giving Clyterravix is a greater Rephaim, and a smart
away drugs is great if you’re the dealer, as free one to boot. He’s used to the underhanded
samples of addictive drugs tempts those who politics of the Rephaim, but he knows next
might not otherwise dabble in narcotics, and to nothing about humans and their seemingly
creates a ready market for return sales once endless reserves of treachery. As far as he is
they’re hooked, but the manufacturer handing concerned, Vancelli is a minion, and therefore
out freebies in larger quantities and letting incapable of such an act. After all, no lesser
Vancelli keep every Miter means he’s making Rephaim or human agent has ever turned
no money. on their masters. To that end, he neglects

89
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
to deprive the characters of their weaponry She staggers back, her hand clutched to
(Rephaim grunts sport all manner of weapons her mouth. “Dear God,” she chokes, “you’re
in front of their lieges). Rephaim!”
The group is lead through the warehouse, Uriel’s laugh grows in intensity. “You
down several flights of stairs, and through honestly thought you were dealing with a
steam tunnels before entering a large chamber. human? What human mind could conceive
Inside are racks of chemical equipment and of Gateway? And what does my origin
unusual machines. Atop one machine is a large, matter, human? You are growing rich from
glass tank. The milky, bubbling fluid hides my labors, and I ask for nothing but loy-
something bobbing up and down inside. At alty in return.
the far end is a huge metal door, which creaks
“Gateway is a natural drug,” the
open slightly, shortly after the characters enter. creature hisses. “The key ingredient is the
Stepping through is a tall figure, swathed synaptic fluid of this brain, which we call
head to toe in dark, voluminous robes. The the Source. A fitting title, yes? He would
figure shuffles awkwardly toward Vancelli, have been burnt by your Inquisition, but
stopping several feet away. we took pity on him. We wished to share his
gift with your race. Through his sacrifice,
“Greeting, Vancelli,” the figure says
thousands of humans will develop psionic
in a deep, unsettling voice. “I am Uriel,
abilities, and when they do, the walls of
sole manufacturer of the drug you call
reality will weaken. Upuaut, the Opener of
Gateway. Welcome,” it says, sweeping its
the Ways has shown us the key to unlock
cloaked arm outward, “to my lair.”
He Who Abides in Darkness! Through your
Uriel then proceeds to give a guided tour of continued servitude, willingly or other-
the facility. While the cloaked figure seems quite wise, we shall secure total victory over
relaxed, his guards keep a vigilant watch. Any humanity!”
character who wants to inspect the machinery
Vancelli fumbles for her pistol, but
must make a Stealth roll to be surreptitious. On
the mummy is too quick. He backhands
a failure, he finds his gaze blocked by a burly
her, sending the woman tumbling to the
soldier.
floor. “Insolent witch!” he hisses through
Combat Engineers are the most techni- blackened teeth. “How dare a minion of
cally inclined of the various Knight branches, the Rephaim dare draw a weapon in anger
but even they rarely dabble in chemistry. A against its master! You are lucky I am…”
Common Knowledge roll at –4, –2 for Combat
Boom! The sound of a heavy pistol
Engineers, is required to deduce the machin-
rends the air. The mummy staggers, its
ery is fairly standard, and is used for filtering,
head jerking back from the impact, though
distilling, and purifying chemical compounds.
it appears unharmed. De Montfort lunges
The only really interesting item is the tank of
forward, smoking gun in hand, and grabs
milky fluid.
the boss by the wrist. As he drags her away,
A hero who manages to get close can make he shouts out. “We’re criminals, not her-
a Notice roll at –2. Should the roll fail, he may etics, baby! Open fire! Open fire!”
try again next round, but only after passing
another Stealth roll first. With success, he real-
izes the mysterious object floating around is Scene 3: The Big Fight
a human brain! Have the Knight make a Guts
The drug manufacturing plant is 24” to
roll to contain his surprise. With failure, he lets
a side. Long tables and machines should be
out a cry, instantly alerting Clyterravix to his
placed to break up the battlefield and provide
discovery.
cover. The brain-in-the-jar is in the dead center
Clyterravix let’s out a low chuckle at of the room.
the Knight’s displeasure. Vancelli, however,
The Knights should be placed in the lower
demands to know what the hero saw. Once
half of the chamber, no closer than 2” to the
told, she says:
jar. Vancelli, de Montfort, and Vancelli’s cronies
“What sort of sick creature are you? start further back. Clyterravix begins 3” from
Only the…” She reaches out a hand, and the hero nearest the jar. Half his minions
grabs Uriel’s hood. With a sharp tug, she should be within 3” of him, while the rest are
pulls it down to reveal…a withered, ban- no closer than 8” to a hero and in the northern
daged corpse—a greater mummy. half of the chamber.

90
 the opener of the ways
Deal action cards! Divide the cultists into 5 Bolt (3 bolts for 2d6 damage; 3
two groups for action card purposes. PP)
Warning: At its height, this battle could 6 Bolt (2 bolts for 3d6 damage; 4
involve five distinct groups of antagonists— the PP)
Knights, Vancelli and her goons, Clyterravix and 7 Bolt (3 bolts for 3d6 damage; 6
his cultists, the Source, and the Inquisition (se PP)
below).
8–10 Burst
The GM controls only Clyterravix, his minions,
and Vancelli to begin with. At the start of the Jack Entangle (one target)
rounds indicated below, more forces join the fray. Queen Entangle (Medium Burst Tem-
The Source is really a nonentity in the fight as far as plate)
controlling him is concerned—he fires off random
King Fear
powers in random directions and does nothing
else. Ace Stun
Hand out Ally Sheets for de Montfort and Joker Previous power used, but with
the hardened criminals to the players. Vancelli the Joker bonuses
remains an NPC under the GM’s control. This
time you should use de Montfort’s full stats.
The criminals fight alongside the heroes until The Source has no insight into where his
foes are, so he fires off powers in random direc-
the Knights decide to finish them off or join
tions. Roll a d12 and read it as a clockface.
the Inquisition, at which point the goons revert
to GM control. De Montfort is controlled by a Targeted spells like bolt, telekinesis, and
player until the fight ends. the single victim version of entangle are aimed
at the closest foe along the line. If none are
The fight ends when either the bad guys present, then the spell has no effect, though it
win (meaning the Knights have failed) or the still drains Power Points. For burst, place the
good guys claim victory (meaning Vancelli, template touching the source and rotate it in
Clyterravix, the Source, and all the minions are the appropriate direction. Victims beneath the
dead). template are affected as normal. Place the center
of the template for area effect powers (entangle
Round 2 with a template, fear, and stun) 1d10+4” in the
indicated direction and determine results as
A stray shot (someone will miss their target) normal.
thuds into delicate machinery, producing a
Should he run out of Power Points, he
shower of sparks. Damage to the console has
switches to Soul Drain. He keeps using his
destroyed the drugs repressing the Source’s
powers until he is killed or passes out from the
psionic powers, and he’s now able to use his
strain.
arsenal.
Note that the source is a Wild Card and
The Source may be physically incapable thus has bennies. Don’t use his bennies to
of action, but his brain has remained active reroll failed Psionics rolls—use them to Soak
during the painful extraction process, and it’s damage.
driven him insane.
Deal the Source an action card each round Round 4
as normal, including this one. His only action
is to use his Psionics. In his deranged state, he The Inquisition arrives on the scene! The
activates a random power each round. Com- CIS, during a routine internal investigation,
pare the card value to the table below to see stumbled across the liche’s agents. They
which power he activates. endured torture just long enough to reveal the
Source has not been executed, but rather had
Card Power been smuggled to safety. They have spent the
Deuce Bolt (1 bolt for 2d6 damage; 1 last few months following the trail (and leaving
PP) behind many smoking corpses).

3 Bolt (1 bolt for 3d6 damage; 2 Unusually, they chose to contact the Pre-
ceptory and actually ask permission to enter
PP)
the estate. This was no act of goodwill. Once
4 Bolt (2 bolts for 2d6 damage; 2 the Preceptor Master knew they were seek-
PP) ing a very dangerous heretic, his hands were

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
bound—had he refused, the CIS could have De Montfort has achieved his mission, and
labeled him a heretic for thwarting their inves- can now return to active service. He informs the
tigation. Thus, the CIS has effectively forced Knights about his work and how he arranged
him to accept their jurisdiction in the matter. for the PIO to know about the assassination
It’s petty politics, but it’s how things work on attempt, bids the Knights farewell, and makes
Salus. arrangements to return to his own Preceptory.
At the GM’s discretion, he could return in
A small strike team has located the facil- another adventure.
ity and decides to strike quickly and without
mercy. As far as they are concerned, everyone The PIO congratulates the Knights on a suc-
inside is a heretic. As such, they attack the near- cessful mission.
est targets. Should the Knights and their allies lose the
A hero trying to convince them he is on final fight, there are three possible outcomes.
their side must make a Persuasion roll at –4 as If the battle hasn’t produced a clear winner,
an action. It’s up to the hero whether he names then assume Clyterravix and his minions win
his comrades and de Montfort as well. Once (they’re the most powerful faction).
convinced, they change their attention to the First, Clyterravix survives. The Source is
Source, the criminals, and the Rephaim. With now too powerful and uncontrollable, so he is
failure, the Knights are likely going to have to eliminated. The experiment has proven to the
kill a few Inquisitors in order to save their own Rephaim that psions have a purpose in the war.
skins. You can rest assured that further experimenta-
Switch the Ally Sheets for the Inquisitor- tion will continue.
Captain and his Inquisitors. Vancelli and her Second, Vancelli and her gang are the sole
soldiers are now the heroes’ enemies, but survivors. They gather what supplies of Gate-
they’re still against the Rephaim! way they can find, sell them, and then move to
Once the Knights and Inquisitors team up, a new city to continue their criminal ways. Van-
Vancelli, if still alive, tries to escape in the con- celli, once she learns of the PIO’s miraculous
fusion. It doesn’t matter to the plot whether recovery, could become a recurring villain.
she succeeds or not, but she should try. If Finally, the Source is the only survivor. He
successful, she can return later as a villain in won’t last long, though—he just keeps firing
another police duty adventure. off his psionic powers until the Soul Drain
Clyterravix: See page 96. eventually kills him.

Cultists (2 per hero): See page 95.

Alexandria Vancelli: See page 96. Update: Policing
Umberto de Montfort: See page 94.
The details on law enforcement in Necropo-
Hardened Criminals (1 per hero): See lis 2350 cover dioceses and archdioceses, but
page 95. not Preceptories. In accordance with their
The Source: See page 97. being immune to standard Church law, the
Ordines have managed to extend certain rights
Inquisitor Captain (1 per hero): See page to the citizens who serve them. In this particu-
97. lar instance, that’s the right to be policed by the
Inquisitors (1 per hero): See page 97. local Preceptory, not the regular Curia-backed
police, and be judged not in the Bishop’s Court
but by a council of Knights.
Scene 4: Aftermath Naturally, the Curia has complained bitterly
The ideal ending is for Vancelli’s gang and that bishops should retain authority over all
the Rephaim to be defeated, and the Source citizens, regardless of where they live. How-
killed. Whether the criminals are captured or ever, the Knights also have the right to ship any
slain matters little. The Inquisitors, assum- criminal to the Bishop’s Court for trial.
ing any survive the mayhem, try to claim the Most petty cases are handed over to the
public relations victory, brazenly claiming bishops, if only because it creates less admin-
they defeated a Rephaim operation in the istrative work for the Ordines and promotes
Preceptory’s estates. This could lead to some good will. Major cases are generally heard in
interesting tension between the Knights and the Preceptory, as it’s an excuse for the Knights
any Inquisitors they meet on future mis- to prove their loyalty to the Church and to gain
sions. some PR with the general populace (who often

92
 the opener of the ways
fear a trial by Knights means an immediate accords him the same respect, but not actual
guilty verdict because of the Ordines’ strict rank, as a Knight Commander. Although he
vows). is outranked by the Preceptor Master, the
There’s also the matter of one-upmanship. Preceptor Master rarely, if ever, gets involved
On more than one occasion in the past, Knights in his subordinate’s work.
have caught a dangerous criminal and handed
him over for trial to the Bishop’s Court, only to His duties include considerably more
have their role in his capture be heavily played than just policing the Preceptory estates,
down in the media. so except in the smallest Preceptory he
appoints a deputy. The deputy, a Sergeant
Structure Commander, runs the day-to-day policing.
The senior law enforcement officer in He holds the title Lictor Primus while in
any Preceptory is the Preceptor Intelligence office. In modern terms, he’s effectively the
Officer, a senior Knight whose position chief of police.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Depending on the size of the settlements because of his devoutly religious parents, or
in the estate, he may be aided by a number of maybe from some deep-seated desire to atone
Lictor Secundi, the equivalent of precinct cap- for his sinful ways, Garantia always believes he
tains. A town generally has one Lictor Secundus is divinely appointed to cleanse the Rephaim.
for every 20,000 souls. Unfortunately, everyone he meets while high is
The police on the street are Sergeants. considered a Rephaim.
Smaller Preceptories rotate Sergeants from Entries marked “*” are for the combat
the combat-ready stock, whereas larger ones encounter only. If Garantia is taken alive, he
have a permanent force of Sergeants purely for loses these abilities after the drug wears off.
policing civilians. These carry the title Lictor
Sergeant. Although they still retain 10-man Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
Lances, these are divided into five pairs. Lictor Strength d6, Vigor d6
Sergeants are armed as regular Sergeants, but Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d4, Notice d6, Psion-
also carry batons, stunners, and, in riot duties, ics d10*, Shooting d6
shields. Charisma: 0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: 5
Hindrances: Delusional (Major; sees Rephaim
Knights sent on policing duties fill an
awkward position. Although they are expected everywhere)*, Habit (Major; Gateway)
to show due respect to the Lictor Primus and Edges: Arcane Background (Psionics)*, Com-
Secundi, their title means they are actually bat Reflexes*, Dodge, Mentalist*, Quick Draw
only directly answerable to the Preceptor Intel- Gear: Molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2), 6mm
ligence Officer, a fellow Knight. In most cases pistol (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, Shots
the PIO waives this responsibility to the Lictor 15, Semi-auto, AP 2)
Primus, meaning the Knights actually serve Powers: Burst, deflection, fear (30 Power
under a Sergeant, albeit an experienced one. Points)
The typical roles Knights fulfill are that of
special investigators and tactical strike teams. Low Level Criminal
Being of sterner moral fiber, they are also
called in to handle cases involving heresies, Street punks, thugs, and low end drug
something to which the Inquisition vocifer- pushers all use these stats. WMs who want
ously objects. slightly tougher thugs should increase Strength
and Agility to d8, and add Combat Reflexes.
Every Preceptory’s police force is served
by at least one representative from the Office Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
of the Bishop’s Attorney. They are on hand to Strength d6, Vigor d6
ensure suspects have access to legal represen- Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d8, Lockpick-
tation, and to make sure the Ordines follow ing d6, Notice d6, Shooting d6, Stealth d6
the letter and spirit of the law when dealing Charisma: –2; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
with criminals, and to try and secure a trial in 5
the Bishop’s Court. Since they serve the Curia, Hindrances: Mean
legal representatives are viewed as potential Edges: —
spies and troublemakers by default. Gear: 6mm pistol (Range: 12/24/48, Damage:
Administrative duties are handled by 2d6, Shots 15, Semi-auto, AP 2), 2 mags, mo-
civilians from the local estate, thus providing lecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2)
citizens with honest jobs. All citizens serving in
this manner are carefully vetted. Any criminal
record prohibits a citizen from serving with the
Umberto de Montfort
police. Umberto de Montfort began his military
career with Asgard, graduating the prestigious
Valhalla Military Academy with honor. He served
The Cast for six years and reached the rank of captain
before he found faith and switched sides, sign-
ing up as a member of the Preachers. For four
years he put his command experience to good
Eduardo Garantia use training militia units in rural areas.
Eduardo Garantia is a street punk with a He has spent the last two years as an under-
history of minor convictions and an addiction cover operative. Although his Preceptory is in
to Gateway. Like all Gateway users, he suffers another part of Salus, his work has led him to
from delusions when on the drug. Perhaps the heroes’ home turf. He has registered his

94
 the opener of the ways
presence with the local Preceptor Intelligence Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
Officer, but has little to do with the local Strength d8, Vigor d8
authorities. Skills: Driving d8, Fighting d8, Intimidation
De Montfort has two sets of near-identical d8, Notice d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Throw-
stats. The first stat block should be given to the ing d6
players during the car park fight. Do not let Charisma: –2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 10
them see the second set until indicated in the (4)
text. This is very important.
Hindrances: Loyal, Mean
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8, Edges: Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Rock and
Strength d8, Vigor d8 Roll
Skills: Driving d8, Fighting d8, Intimidation
Gear: Light armor breastplate (+4, torso only),
d8, Knowledge (Battle) d8, Notice d8, Persua-
sion d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Streetwise d8, 12mm SMG (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8,
Throwing d6 ROF 3, Shots 30, AP 2), 2 mags, 2 x monofila-
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: ment grenades (Range: 3/6/12, Damage: 3d8,
10 (4) AP 4, MBT), molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2)
Hindrances: Loyal, Quirk (keeps saying
“baby”)
Edges: Assault, Combat Reflexes, Command, Corrupt Priest
Command Presence, Dodge, Gossip Network, These damned souls are priests who have
Hold the Line, Inspire, Rock and Roll, Tactician,
sold their souls to the Dark in exchange for
Valhalla Graduate (+3”)
Gear: Light armor breastplate (+4, torso only), arcane power. They seek to lead others down
12mm SMG (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8, the path of damnation.
ROF 3, Shots 30, AP 2), 2 mags, 2 x monofila- Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
ment grenades (Range: 3/6/12, Damage: 3d8,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
AP 4, MBT), molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2)
Skills: Fighting d8, Faith d8, Guts d6, Intimida-
Full Stats tion d10, Knowledge (Rephaim) d6, Stealth d6
Hindrances: Delusional (Major; Immortalist
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
heretic), Loyal (to any Rephaim)
Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Driving d8, Fighting d8, Intimidation Edges: Combat Reflexes, Improved Dodge,
d8, Knowledge (Battle) d8, Notice d8, Persua- Level Headed
sion d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Streetwise d8, Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 5
Throwing d6 Gear: Rune dagger (Str+d6+2, AP 2)
Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: Powers: Blast (ball of hellfire), bolt (ray of
10 (4) black light), obscure (darkness); 30 Power
Hindrances: Loyal, Quirk (keeps saying
Points
“baby”), Vow (Major: sacred vows)
Edges: Assault, Combat Reflexes, Command,
Command Presence, Dodge, Hold the Line, Cultist
Inspire, Rank (Senior Knight), Rock and Roll,
Tactician, Valhalla Graduate (+3”) Cultist is a generic term used to describe
Special Training: Hearts & Minds, Training any heretic.
Cadre
Gear: Light armor breastplate (+4, torso only), Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4, Spirit d6,
12mm SMG (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8, Strength d6, Vigor d6
ROF 3, Shots 30, AP 2), 2 mags, 2 x monofila- Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d6, Intimidation d6,
ment grenades (Range: 3/6/12, Damage: 3d8, Knowledge (Rephaim) d6, Stealth d6, Throw-
AP 4, MBT), molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2) ing d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 5
Hardened Criminal Edges & Hindrances: —
Gear: Asgard 6mm SMG with 2 magazines
These hoods are on the next rung up
the ladder from the street pushers. They’re (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, Auto, 3RB, AP
well-armed and armored, and prone to using 2), 2 x monofilament grenades (Range: 3/6/12,
excessive force. All their gear is of Union manu- Damage: 3d8, AP 4, MBT), and a molecular
facture. dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2)

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

Alexandria Vancelli, Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:

11 (6)
“The Boss” Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
Edges: Charismatic, Dodge, Investigator
Alexandria is the daughter of a (now- Gear: Medium armor (+6), modified flechette
deceased) Knight Templar. Born before her pistol with 3 mags (Range: 12/24/48, Dam-
father enlisted, she was just six years old when age: 2d6–1, Shots 30, Auto), molecular sword
he found his faith. With her mother dead, (Str+d8+2, AP 4), ID tag.
Alexandria’s father sent her to an orphanage.
There, she grew to hate her father and the Sacri
Ordines.
Knight Infantryman
Her drift into crime was an easy one. Few Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
children who pass through the orphanages Strength d6, Vigor d6
ever get a break once they leave, and crime Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Notice d6, Shoot-
is the only recourse open to most. Alexandria ing d6
began as a pickpocket but quickly moved into Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
selling drugs. By the age of 21, she was running 11(6)
her own gang. When she was contacted by the Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
Rephaim, through human agents, and invited Edges: Combat Reflexes, Dodge
to sell Gateway, she leapt at the chance to boost Gear: Medium armor (+6), modified flech-
her operation’s turnover. ette rifle with 3 mags (Range: 24/48/96, Dam-
age: 2d6, Auto, 3RB), 5 baton grenades in GL
Although she is willing to commit all manner (Range: 20/40/80, Damage: 2d6, nonlethal),
of crimes, she has no love for the Rephaim. After molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4), medpac,
all, if they weren’t around, her father wouldn’t ID tag
have left her. Crime is one thing, but heresy is
something altogether worse.
Publicly, Vancelli plays at being a domina-
Clyterravix
trix-type figure. In truth, it’s just an act—men Clyterravix is a priest serving the Fane
seem to expect that sort of thing from a woman Abnormis, an unorthodox sect whose methods
in power (at least in her eyes), so she doesn’t are seen by traditionalists as opposing the will
disappoint. Naturally, when her true nature of the Dark. Since the Dark hasn’t ordered
comes out, it often leaves her enemies slightly them destroyed, the other priests have yet to
confounded. act beyond political sniping. Clyterravix sees
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d10, his appointment to the Gateway operation as
Strength d6, Vigor d8 a major opportunity for his Fane to grab glory
Skills: Driving d8, Fighting d8, Guts d10, In- and recognition.
timidation d10, Notice d8, Persuasion d8, Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d10, Spirit d12,
Shooting d10, Stealth d6, Streetwise d10, Taunt Strength d12+4, Vigor d12
d8 Skills: Fighting d10, Guts d12, Intimidation
Charisma: –2 (–6); Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Tough- d10, Necromancy d10, Notice d8, Weird Sci-
ness: 6 ence d10
Hindrances: Bloodthirsty, Cautious, Ugly Pace: 4; Parry: 7; Toughness: 15 (5)
(scar) Gear: Stygian armor (+5), rune sword
Edges: Connections (Criminal gangs), Frenzy, (Str+d8+4, AP 4)
Improved Dodge, Level Headed, Marksman, Gizmos: Pituitary bracelet, vocal cords
Quick Draw, Strong Willed Special Abilities:
Gear: Ravendell laser pistol (Range: 15/30/60, * Arcane Background (Magic): A mummy
Damage: 1–3d6, ROF 1; Shots 24, Semi-auto), typically knows barrier, bolt, deflection,
molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2) fear, obscure, and zombie (35 Power
Points).
Preceptor Intelligence * Crushing Grasp: Str+d6. On a raise,
the mummy automatically grapples its
Officer opponent.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d8, * Fear (–2): Opponents must make a Guts
Strength d6, Vigor d6 roll at –2.
Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Investigation d10, * Greater Undead: +2 Toughness. +2
Notice d8, Persuasion d10, Shooting d6, Stealth to recover from being Shaken. Immune
d6, Streetwise d10 to poison and disease. No additional

96
 the opener of the ways
damage from called shots. Half-damage to the brain’s size.
from piercing weapons. Ignores Wound

*
Penalties.
Improved Arcane Resistance: +4 Armor
Inquisitor-Captain
versus magic, and +4 to rolls made to Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
resist magic effects. Strength d8, Vigor d8
* Mummy Rot: Anyone touched by a Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d10, Guts d12, In-
mummy, whether he is damaged or not, timidation d10, Notice d8, Shooting d8, Stealth
must make a Vigor roll. Failure means the d8
character has “mummy rot” and suffers Charisma: 0; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; Toughness:
an immediate wound. Victims who die as 10(4)
result of “mummy rot” may be brought Hindrances: Loyal
back as guardian mummies. Edges: Combat Reflexes, Improved Frenzy
* Shuffling Gait: Mummies roll a d4 running Gear: Light armor (+4), molecular dagger
die. (Str+d4+2, AP 2), flechette pistol with 3 mags
(12/24/48, 2d6, Shots 30, AP 2, Semi-auto)
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
living targets or vehicles with their engine Inquisitor
running.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d8,
* Weakness (Fire): Mummies take +4 Strength d6, Vigor d8
damage from fire. Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d6, Guts d8, Intimi-
dation d6, Notice d8, Shooting d6, Stealth d8
The Source Charisma: 0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
10(4)
Had the Source been born thousands of Hindrances: Loyal
years ago, he might have ruled as a living god. Edges: —
A thousand years ago and he would have been Gear: Light armor (+4), molecular dagger
branded a witch, just like he was by the Inquisi- (Str+d4+2, AP 2), flechette pistol with 3 maga-
tion on Salus. Captured and kept drugged to zines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, AP 2,
prevent him using his awesome natural talents, Semi-auto), one flamethrower per 4 Inquisitors
the Source (real name Algernon Satamoto) was (Range: Cone, Damage: 2d10, ignores armor)
awaiting execution when he was spirited away
to unwillingly serve the Rephaim.
Now he is an ingredient in a scientific proc-
ess, his brain separated from his body and kept
functioning through necromantic technology.
The Rephaim knew the brain was still alive, but
such thoughts do not trouble them—a human
is lower to them than an ant is to a human.
The Source’s mind was kept sedated to
negate its psionics, yet was still active enough
to understand its fate. Totally insane and
beyond redemption, the Source is no longer an
ingredient—it’s an uncontrollable weapon.
Attributes: Agility —, Smarts d8, Spirit d12,
Strength —, Vigor d8
Skills: Psionics d12+2
Pace: —; Parry: 2; Toughness: 11 (7)
Hindrances: —
Edges: Arcane Background (Psionics), Great
Luck, Master (Psionics), Mentalist, Soul Drain
Powers: Bolt, burst, entangle, fear, stun (40
Power Points)
Special Abilities:
* Armor +5: Encased in an armored jar.
* Size –2: It’s a brain in a jar.
* Small: Attackers are –2 to attack rolls due

97
 Player Handout #1: Tactical Briefing
Date: 19.I.2051; 0800 Zulu.
Good morning. Glad to see you’ve taken the criminal role to heart. Those beards
really suit you! Intelligence picked up suspected heretical activity last night, and
since it might be linked to your ongoing investigation, you’ve drawn the short straw
to investigate the situation. After life on the frontline, this should be a cakewalk for
you.
At 0634 this morning, a surveillance camera picked up a minor disturbance outside
the Straw Man Club. That by itself isn’t unusual—we’re always busting up fights
outside the joint. However, one of the combatants was caught on camera turning
invisible. We’ve no idea who he is, so it’s just possible he could be an unregistered
Faithful, but given what occurred next, the odds are he’s a rogue psion or heretic.
Anyway, the camera image is grainy—you’ll get a chance to review it after this
briefing—but the victim is clearly being viciously assaulted by some unseen force.
It doesn’t take a genius to work out our heretic is also a brutal killer. The corpse is
down in the morgue if you want to examine it.
Check over the surveillance footage and use whatever resources you require to
locate that heretic. Then pay him a visit and remind him of Church law. We don’t
want to blow your undercover work, but we’re short of manpower. You’ll be going in
wearing standard Church issue gear. Make sure you keep your helmets on!
Just be careful! He likely lives in an apartment building, so keep weapon and
grenade use to an absolute minimum, to avoid unnecessary civilian casualties.
Enemy Forces: We’re not sure exactly what you’re facing on this one. At best, it’s a
lone heretic who needs reeducation. If that’s the case, we want him alive. At worst,
he’s part of a large, active cell of heretics with access to ungodly powers and illegal
weapons. Should that be the truth, you have official sanction to cleanse the nest
with whatever force you feel is appropriate.
Support: Right now this is a routine bust. If the situation warrants support, a Lance
of Sergeants is on standby. A Peacemaker RCV is fuelled up and ready to transport
you around the town as needed. We’re short of drivers right now, so one of you
better be able to produce a Class II or better license (Driving d6+). If you can’t,
you’ll be walking.
Equipment: Standard patrol gear for this one. Leave all your extraneous equipment
in stores. I can’t see you needing rations or canteens on this mission. Since there’s a
chance the killer might be useful alive, take a stunner as well.
 Player Handout #2: Video Image
The footage is grainy, as the briefing officer said. However, it clearly shows two men
emerging from the Straw Man’s main entrance. One is tall with dark hair and a beard
(the victim), while the other (the killer) is shorter, but also with dark hair. The first
few minutes involve brief scuffling. The tall man is clearly trying to drag the shorter
man away from the club, but without success.
The killer then swings a fist, knocking the victim to the floor. While the victim is
regaining his feet, the other seems to be fiddling with his jacket, but the raw image
is indistinct. The shorter man suddenly clutches his head and doubles over. The
other rushes over to him, but is quickly pushed back.
The shorter man rises to his full height, his face contorted in what looks like ecstasy.
He points at the tall man and hisses something, but the audio track is too poor
quality to understand. Without warning, he just vanishes from sight, as if he had
never existed.
The tall man staggers back, obviously confused and shocked at what he has just wit-
nessed. He seems to be calling out, turning on his heels to locate the other person.
He steps back, his hand rising to his shoulder, where a blood patch can be seen.
He begins flailing his arms and contorting, reacting to stab wounds, no doubt. The
attack continues for several minutes before he finally falls to the ground, motionless.
A few minutes pass before other patrons from the club step into the street. On
noticing the corpse, they react as one would expect from civilians—a mixture of fear
and curiosity. One of them checks the victim’s neck and wrists, but shakes his head
a few moments later. Another makes a vidphone call from a nearby booth. A few
minutes later, a Peacemaker turns up, and the situation is quickly brought under
control by your colleagues.
 echoes

War Master’s Notes For example, the local Lictor Primus knows
of Pete Moulton by name, but he has not yet
linked him to the case. Unless the Knights bring
Welcome to Echoes, a standalone scenario up Moulton’s name, the police chief does not
written for the Necropolis 2350 campaign setting. reveal any facts.
If you intend to play in this adventure,
you should stop reading now. Advanced
knowledge of the scenario will only spoil your
enjoyment of the game.
Plot Overview
The WM should read the entire adventure Knights are not just combat troops—they also
before play begins. Knowing the basic flow and serve as law-enforcement officers within the Pre-
details in advance will greatly speed up play ceptory estates. While this duty commonly falls
and make the game run smoother. to Sergeants known as Lictor Sergeants (or just
Lictors), there are times when the services of the
Knights are required. Set entirely in a city or large
Required Materials town within the Preceptory’s boundaries, this
You need a copy of the Savage Worlds adventure is primarily an investigative mission.
rulebook, the Necropolis 2350 Savage Setting, Six months before the start of the adven-
and the 2351-55 Update to run this adventure. ture, a team of archaeologists from the local
Necropolis Figure Flats are recommended, museum embarked on a dig in southern Nova
though any suitable sci-fi or dark future minia- Europa, searching for evidence of mankind’s
tures will suffice. The adventure Opener of the earliest colonies on Salus. Although the mis-
Ways contains useful background information sion failed to uncover a cache of treasure, it
on the Sacri Ordines and their role as Lictor did discover an artifact of apparent non-human
officers, as well as information about how manufacture. This was returned to the local
policing works within a Preceptory’s estates. museum for study and display.
The actual mission begins, as far as the
Characters plot is concerned, one week before the main
This adventure is designed for a Lance of events take place. A local news story carries
four Knights of any character Rank from any of an interview with the archaeologist who led
the Sacri Ordines. Use the archetypes from the the team that located the artifact and gives
Necropolis 2350 setting book if you need pre- the Knights their first glimpse of it. One week
generated characters. Each archetype has been later, a related news broadcast carries a story
designed as a starting character. on the theft of the artifact and the murder of
a museum employee. The Knights become
directly involved at this point.
Questioning NPCs The investigation into the theft and murder
There are several lines of investigation open takes the Knights on a hunt for the killer, a
to the Knights. Every relevant NPC the heroes man who is no longer entirely in control of
may interact with has notes regarding informa- his mind. The artifact, actually a Zal device
tion they can pass to the heroes. It is important buried eons ago, flooded the thief ’s mind with
to note that the NPCs are largely reactive—they images. Effectively corrupted, the thief has
respond to certain lines of questioning rather become a Dark Prophet, convinced that the
than just blurt out information. Furthermore, Rephaim are mankind’s saviors and will soon
some information an NPC knows can only be make him a god and punish humanity for its
accessed after other clues have been found. collective sins.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Initial investigations demonstrate to the except crush theories put out by scientists on the
Knights that the killer is no ordinary man—writ- odds of aliens existing. They are not subtle—any
ing found on the museum in the victim’s blood indiscretion committed by an outspoken scien-
shows the killer has a knowledge of Cryptspeak, tist quickly becomes public knowledge, and if
a talent very few humans possess, and was will- no indiscretion exists, they happily invent one,
ing to commit appalling acts of violence. The complete with documented “evidence.”
local Lictor Sergeants are convinced they are
News of the existence of the golden artifact
looking for a heretical psychopath.
came to their attention through an informant.
Following the leads brings the Lance into Rapidly spurred into swift action, the team
close contact with Doctor Andersen, the team concocted a plan to acquire the artifact. Using
leader, and her young daughter, Paige. Aside a false name designed to incriminate Asgard,
from giving the Knights information about the if their plans went awry, they began covertly
artifact, Andersen is also a victim—destined to questioning the museum curator. Next, they set
be attacked by the killer, but not badly hurt. up a plan to have a fake artifact created, which
Her daughter, Paige, also tries to seduce one they were planning to substitute for the origi-
of the Knights, causing friction between the nal. Unfortunately, the murder and theft has
doctor and the team, but providing some good completely ruined their plans. In true Lazarite
role-playing opportunities. form, they are now prepared to use whatever
force is necessary to acquire the relic.
Further investigation leads the Knights into
an armed confrontation with what appears to
be security staff from Asgard’s embassy to the
Vatican. These are in fact Lazarite agents working
The History of the Field Trip
on Project Revelation (see below). Another lead Just over six months ago, the local museum
takes the Knights to a local antique shop, whose sent a field team of eight archaeologists to
owner has been paid to produce a copy of the search for a “lost” colony constructed during
artifact. This again is part of Project Revelation the first wave of colonization. Although the
The Knights should begin to understand team did not expect to find the ruins during
that the artifact is more important than they their first season, they did hope to make head-
first realized and that capturing it before the way, enabling future expeditions to carry on
other group is of paramount importance. from their work.
Unfortunately, events conspire against them The team set up its base camp near the
and the Knights end the adventure with only border with the Alvam Pocket, convinced by
half of the artifact in their possession. evidence found by Doctor Alexandria Ander-
The Knights themselves may not actually sen, the team leader, that the ruins they sought
end the final battle against the Dark Prophet. lay in the scrubland to the east. The first few
Holding a hostage on a church roof, the months of the season were spent with one-
prophet (who is destined to die there) may half of the team searching the region for clues
be killed by one of the Lazarites seeking the and the other half going over old records in
artifact, or the Knights themselves, depending the hope of finding further evidence point-
on how events conspire. ing to the location of the colony. In the first
week of the fifth month of searching, the team
excavated an area and found a small structure,
Project Revelation possibly a house.
Officially, the Third Reformation Church The team had not expected to uncover a
actively denies the possibility of alien life. treasure trove, but was disappointed to dis-
Those who espouse such ideas publically are cover the structure held little of value besides
not branded heretics, but, if their position is a few pieces of household cutlery and some
one of public trust, are ridiculed through media old Earth coins. Ironically, the colonist site the
channels. Unofficially, the Church is open to team sought was quickly abandoned in favor
the idea of aliens. However, given the religious of a natural cave system not many miles away.
upheaval the discovery of Salus caused, the With no interesting finds in the colony, the
Church has no desire to suffer a similar fate team switched to hunting for fossils of Salus’
should evidence be uncovered. ancient life forms. And deep inside the cave, in
strata dated to around 70 million years old, the
In order to conceal any information relating
team discovered a strange golden object.
to possible alien life, the Lazarites and CIS formed
Project Revelation. An ultra top-secret project, The team was naturally excited, for the
Revelation exists to suppress knowledge of alien artifact was of unknown design and obviously
artifacts. Until recently, they have had little to do extremely valuable. Church law is notoriously

102
 echoes
vague when it comes to alien artifacts, primar- artifacts. The Department of Antiquities has
ily because the Church has no belief in aliens. frequently tried to gain control of the museum,
As an independent museum, the archaeolo- but its presence on Preceptory lands has
gists furthermore had no legal requirement to thwarted each attempt.
inform the Department on Antiquities.
Although nowhere near as large as the
The plan was to finish excavating the site Smithsonian, the museum does boast some
and then return home, taking their treasure with impressive works of art, mainly supplied
them. Over the next week, three of the diggers through the private investors whose families
were killed by scorpions and one of the team transported the artifacts to Salus. Local archae-
was killed by a snake while organizing supplies. ological teams have discovered dozens of items
Doctor Andersen pulled the plug on the opera- dating back to mankind’s first exploration of
tion and the team returned home early. Salus.
The newspapers, both locally and abroad, The museum is situated in the northern
reported the deaths. Few outside of the suburbs of the city, opposite a Preceptory
scientific community saw much about the Estate office. It is open from 9:30 am to 12:30
expedition in the media, and even fewer know pm and then again from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm
of the deaths.
daily. Admission costs 5 Miters and is purchased
either from the booth at the museum entrance
The Artifact or through one of the tourist information
bureaus dotted throughout the city. The direc-
The statue is actually a Zal data storage tor of the museum is Doctor Ernest Watkinson.
device, a leftover from the ancient days when He can generally be found in his office during
the Zal briefly inhabited Salus. Contained within business hours.
its memory banks were Zal propaganda images.
Security within the museum is quite high
When connected to a powerful energy source,
and consists of a dozen private security guards
the device allowed the technologically superior
aliens to broadcast the images contained in its who pay close attention to the artifacts they are
memory directly into the minds of races they watching. Cameras and a number of infrared
wished to conquer. The images showed the Zal alarms are also used to maintain security. All of
fleet arriving in orbit over several worlds and the cases are wired to sound an alarm if they
bombing them into submission. These were are lifted or the glass is broken.
intended to weaken enemy resistance by show- Aside from housing the artifacts from the
ing the futility of defying the Zal. dig, the museum itself has very little to do with
Pete Moulton, a thief, drug addict, and the mission. The staff can be questioned over
latent psychic, accidentally activated the artifact events that take place there, but the Knights
through his own innate psychic powers when should only need to spend a token amount of
he tried to steal it from the museum. In so time investigating the museum itself.
doing, the visions flooded his mind. Unable
to comprehend the images contained within,
he went insane, his mind concocting its own
story to fit the scenes of destruction. Moulon Hooks
became a dark prophet. Having known only
war since his youth, Moulton’s brain automati- The Knights are introduced to the mission
cally equated the Zal with the Rephaim. In this, and gather background material. The WM
he has taken a dramatic leap toward a truth should copy relevant player handouts and dis-
unknown to the rest of humanity. Confused tribute them at this time. Some of the handouts
and insane, he believes the Rephaim are gods, are only available if the Knights actively request
coming in force “from the heavens” to take over further information from the various Precep-
the world. He has been singled out as their tory databases.
chosen spokesman, to be elevated to godhood
when they finally arrive.
The Power of the Media
The Museum The mission begins, whether the Knights
realize it or not, with the broadcast on the
The local museum is funded by private Church news channel of a local event. This
investors and the local Preceptory, and main- event should take place at least a week before
tains small collections on Egyptian, Greek, the Knights actually begin investigating the
Roman, and Central and Native American murder and the strange symbols.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
The news starts with one of the presenters “Doctor Andersen? Hi, I’m Clint Parker.
standing on the steps on the local Museum of I understand that you’re busy, but I won-
Antiquities. A small number of the general public dered if I might have a quick word? Can
stand beside him, queuing at the doors that, you tell us the significance of these finds?”
unusually for this time of day, are shut. A few sec-
onds pass before the presenter begins speaking. The woman turns to face the camera,
smiles briefly, and begins talking.
“Good afternoon viewers, I’m Clint
Parker and this is the latest news, live from “Well… Clint was it? The site was
the [insert Preceptory name] Museum of discovered in an area of Salus that is not
Antiquities. As some of you may be aware, associated with any of the main colonist
the Museum is today revealing a series of landings of Salus’ early history. My team
artifacts discovered by Doctor Alexandra hasn’t yet come up with any definite proof
Andersen. Doctor Andersen has spent the of who built the structure but it is definitely
last six months excavating a previously old. It might date to one of the very first
unknown lost colony settlement in the colonies. Little in the way of visible dating
jungle. We hope to be talking to her later evidence survives, especially in the way
on in the program. of writing or technology. I’m hoping to go
“We can confirm that artifacts are being back next season and continue my work.”
housed in the new Weisman Wing, which “What about the object in that case?”
was built specifically to house new finds Clint asks, pointing to the darkened dis-
and was recently opened by Mr. George play case. “Is it true it is solid gold? Do you
Weisman himself.” have anything to say about its supposed
The doors behind the presenter open origin?”
and the public begin to filter in. The pre-
The woman places her body between
senter casts a quick look behind him and
then returns to face the camera. the camera and case. “I’d love to chat some
more,” she smiles coldly, “but I’ll have to
“It looks like we’ll be able to go inside end the interview there. I have work to do
soon and talk to Doctor Andersen about before the opening. Thanks.”
her work. The artifacts are naturally under
heavy guard, while a team of experts With that, the woman turns away from
debates their value, culturally, scientifi- the camera and continues her conversation
cally and financially. Yes, the small queue, with her colleagues. The presenter looks
who are not here to visit the artifacts by the rather hurt, but faces the camera with a
way, is clearing so we’ll go inside now.” typical news presenter’s smile.
With that, the presenter and cam- “Well, that’s about it for now. The exhi-
eraman go inside, pass through the lobby, bition opens to the public in three weeks,
down a long corridor filled with display when we’ll carry the whole event live. Now
cases, and through a door marked “Weis- back to the studio for the sports results
man Wing,” which is flanked by two armed with Andrea Hogan.”
security guards. Inside, the main lights
are turned down low. Small spotlights in Shortly after this, the Knights should be sent
the ceiling highlight several display cases. on a short duration mission (no longer than a
A single unlit case stands in the centre of week), thus preventing them from asking too
the room, too sparsely illuminated for its many questions at this stage.
contents to be seen.
The camera zooms in on a few of
the displays, revealing a golden item of
Murder at the Museum
unknown purpose and a few pieces of The second, and most important, part
broken pottery. A small group of figures of the hook happens one week later, the day
(including a striking woman in a black before the grand opening at the museum. The
business suit) stands at the far side of the Church news reports another story tied to the
room discussing the gold-colored artifact, museum and the artifacts recovered by the
which rests in a nearby case. In the back- expedition. The event takes place at whatever
ground, a pretty teenage girl can be seen time the Knights watch the local news and is
lurking around the display cases. The pre- the lead story.
senter approaches the main group and the
camera pans to include the woman and “And now for the latest news, read by
the presenter in frame. Douglas Chick.”

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<Camera zooms in to show a well- “Now, sit down and listen good! I know
groomed man sitting behind a desk. A you’ve heard the news and I won’t waste
picture behind him shows the front of the time with background details. You’re
museum.> assigned to investigate this murder. All
other duties are cancelled—I want you
“Good evening. Tonight’s main story…a
100% on this as of five minutes ago. Lictor
break in at the museum ends in murder.
Primus Novak, the local Lictor chief, has
Sometime in the early hours of this morn-
been informed you’re assuming control of
ing, intruders broke into the <Preceptory the case. He knows to cooperate with you
name> Museum of Antiquities. At some to his fullest extent.
point during the robbery, Doctor Michael
O’Shea, a local archaeologist who was “I want you in town within the hour
working late on the artifacts recently armed for a hearts-and-minds operation,
brought back from southern Salus, dis- not war. Things are bad enough without
turbed the intruders.” The picture behind you lot packing enough heat to take out a
the newsreader changes to that of a white Rephaim stronghold and scaring the public
male in his late Forties wearing glasses. half to death. Do I make myself clear,
Knights?”
“Doctor O’Shea was found dead this
morning by museum staff reporting for The Preceptor Quartermaster already has his
work, and several of the artifacts, includ- orders. The Knights receive pistols, light armor,
ing a valuable gold piece, are missing. A and basic gear. Absolutely no infantry support
Preceptory spokesman has revealed that weapons, special weapons, or grenades other
Doctor O’Shea, a local man who leaves than baton, screamer, and stun grenades are
a wife and three young children, was to be issued under any circumstances. A Peace-
stabbed to death. Early reports are that no maker APC has been placed at their disposal. If
other items were taken. no hero has Driving d6+, then a Knight Vehicle
Crew is made available, as well.
“An inside source has revealed to
us that strange symbols were drawn in
Doctor O’Shea’s blood, although the Lictors
have not commented on this. A citywide The Local Lictor House
search has commenced. No one from the
museum was available for comment and On arriving at the precinct house, the
the museum remains closed indefinitely as Knights are shown straight to Lictor Primus
Lictors comb the area for clues. Kevin Novak, the local police chief. He is as
polite as can be expected given the pressure he
“Other news…we reveal the contents of is under by the Preceptor Master and Preceptor
a secret Corporate report into food addi- Intelligence Officer. The Lictors have little to go
tives used in chicken feed...” on during the initial stages of the investigation,
Within minutes, the Knights receive orders besides a dead body and some strange writing.
to haul their butts to the Preceptor Master’s Novak informs the Knights that the museum
office immediately! As they are shown in by the has been sealed off and the crime scene kept
Preceptor Master’s adjutant, their commander free of reporters.
is dressing down the Preceptor Intelligence What Novak Knows: See page 122.
Officer.

Briefing The Murder Scene

“I don’t give a damn! You’re supposed The museum has been closed to the public
to be in charge of intelligence in this Pre- whilst the police investigate the murder. A total
ceptory. How is it the first I hear of a high of five Lictors are on duty outside and another
profile murder is on the main news chan- 20, including forensic experts, are working
nel? Dear God, what am I going to hear inside, interviewing museum employees,
next on the news? That we’ve been overrun searching for evidence, and documenting the
by Rephaim? You get your butt back to crime scene.
your office and you get me answers! Dis-
Inside, the Lictors have set up their crime
missed!”
unit in the lobby, where benches have been
As the PIO slips out the office, the Pre- erected so the officers can take statements and
ceptor Master turns to address you. store evidence bags. At least four officers are

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
on duty here; three taking statements and one The security room for the museum is
tagging the evidence. The main investigation is located upstairs and enables the guards to
taking place in the Weisman Wing, the scene of monitor every room that contains exhibits, as
the murder. well as the lobby, the souvenir shop, and the
No matter how soon the Knights arrive, the restaurant. Each camera has its own video
body of Doctor O’Shea has already been sent recorder with 24-hour data storage and is con-
to the coroner for an autopsy. Knights making a nected to a monitor. Remote controls for the
successful Common Knowledge roll realize this cameras enable the guards to rotate them at
is fast work for a normal Lictor investigation, will and zoom in and out on any specific area.
especially since the Knights are the investigat- Any Knight who makes a Common Knowledge
ing officers and they did not clear the body for roll deduces that security is fairly tight and
release. any intruder would be caught on at least one
camera.
Asking around about this elicits little in the
way of useful information—the officers first When the Knights play the disc, give them
on the scene must have had forensic backup, Handout #1 (page 129) and let them make
as they photographed the body and called their own conclusions.
the paramedics to transport it to the morgue. The disc itself runs for another four hours
Although the two officers can be described, before it runs out. Anyone watching it discov-
they cannot be found at the scene and no ers a few more interesting facts. Around 0417
one can remember their names, although one hours a man enters the frame. He is dressed
officer does recall that both were fairly new to in a long raincoat and is smoking a cigarette.
the precinct. He spends a few moments walking around the
The Weisman Wing is a scene of devastation. scene and studying the bloody writings before
Many of the display cases are smashed upon making a call on his cell phone. The image
the floor, several exhibits lie broken amongst cannot be refined any further to show the
them, blood covers a large area of the central number he is dialing. If any of the Knights have
floor (mainly centered around the disc outline already met Mr. Jenkins (see page 106), then
of a body), and on the east wall, scrawled in they recognize him instantly. Otherwise, they
what appears to be blood, are strange letters will have to try to identify him by other means.
about six inches high. A Lictor photographer No one else enters camera until 0500, when
is documenting the writing when the Knights the cleaners, who called the Lictor, arrive.
arrive. He has little to say about the letters, There are several tests the Knights can
except he doesn’t recognize the language and perform on the video if they so desire:
that it has been confirmed that it was written
with the victim’s blood. Other officers are * Knights with a technical background
carefully sifting through the debris for clues, (GM’s call) who wish to check the video for
occasionally stuffing potential evidence into defects, may make a Common Knowledge roll
self-sealing bags. to realize whatever caused the disc to stop
capturing images was an external influence and
The Knights are free to snoop around as not a disc defect. Trying to record something
they wish, but there are few clues save for a
over the blank area reveals a perfectly clear
cigarette butt, which is lying under a display
picture when played back.
case description card. It requires a Notice roll
to detect the stub at this time (it is reported to * The same Knight can also try to enhance
the Knights 1d4 hours later if no one makes the the quality of the video to give a clear picture
roll). It has been extinguished for some time of the intruder. This requires an Investigation
and no usable prints can be recovered from it. roll. A high quality laser print out provides an
It is the most common Church brand, and thus easily recognizable photo image.
used by almost every smoker in Church lands.
* If a Knight specifically wishes to enhance
the frames just before the white out, he must
The Security Camera Discs make a second Investigation roll. Upon suc-
cessfully completing the project he spots that
If the Knights ask any of the Lictors or
within a fraction of a second of the intruder’s
museum security guards whether there was a
hand touching the artifact, a bright light begins
security camera in use, the answer is affirma-
to emanate from it. The light only reaches a few
tive, although no one has yet checked the
inches before the video stopped recording.
discs. This gives the Knights time to review the
discs themselves. If they do not inquire about Knights without the appropriate Knowl-
the cameras, then they are informed of their edge, or those who fail their rolls, can hand
existence 1d4 hours later. the discs over to intelligence officers back at

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the Preceptory. They complete the tasks within The Museum Curator
1d6+2 hours, or 1d4 hours if subjected to a
successful Intimidation or Persuasion roll. Doctor Ernest Watkins is the current curator
of the museum and has held the post for many
years. Watkins is shocked at the recent death
Who Are Those Men? of a colleague and has not yet fully recovered
Once the Knights have a photo image of the when the Knights visit. Although normally very
intruder they can run it through the Preceptory busy, he makes time to meet with the Knights.
databases to track down a name and address. Watkins’s office is typical of many academ-
This requires an Investigation roll. The intrud- ics, cluttered with papers and pieces of artifacts.
er’s record sheet is presented as Handout #2 Although there is plenty to search in the way
(page 131) and should be given to the players of drawers and cupboards, there is nothing of
at this time. use to the Knights’ current investigation. Being
Once the Knights have IDed the murderer the gentleman that he is, Watkins makes sure
they can begin searching for him. The logical the Knights are given refreshments before he
place to start is his last known address, although answers any questions.
there is little useful information there—the
Doctor Watkins, although head of the
Church correctional facility does not require
museum, did not have a great deal to do with
released prisoners to list an address.
the actual expedition, instead staying in the
Aside from combing known haunts, the States to organize the exhibition of any artifacts
Knights are on a dead end chase. Only perse- found. Once the Knights are ready to leave, he
verance, a little luck, and roughing up a few of remembers something that might be relevant.
the local street punks will lead them to their
man. The WM should ensure this information “Before you go, I’ve just remembered
is found only after the scene A Friend in Need something that might be important. If you
has played out. Once that is done, a lead takes hang on I’ll just check my diary. Ah yes!
them to Last Known Address. About three days ago I was approached
by two men on the same day; both had
Identifying Mr. Jenkins from the video (if an interest in purchasing the golden arti-
they have not already met him in Weisman’s fact. The first…er…a Mr. Jorgen Pietersen,
office), proves to be extremely difficult. represented the Asgard Embassy Cultural
Although just a common citizen, his files seem Department. Very polite man, asked a lot
to be fairly well hidden. An Investigation roll at of questions on the security of the museum
–4 is required. This may give the players ideas and what we were planning to do with the
that there is more to him than meets the eye.
artifact once the show was over.
Let them explore this avenue. If they have
“The other was a private business-
already met him and try to arrange another
man, one Christopher Tovlowski. He said
meeting with him, they are told he has left town
he was an independent purchaser of rare
on business and will not be back for some time.
antiquities for other museums and private
Assuming they have not met him, then the sec-
tion on meeting George Weisman changes and collectors. He wouldn’t say whom he was
another lawyer is present. Jenkins is a false lead representing though. I have both their busi-
designed to irritate the Knights—once identi- ness cards handy if you would like them.
fied on the video they cannot encounter him We had no intention of selling the artifact
again in this adventure. to anyone so I dismissed them.”

What little the Knights can get on Mr. Jen- Copies of the business cards are presented
kins is found as Handout #3 (page 130). (Handouts #4 and #5; page 27).
What Watkins Knows: See page 123.
The Museum Staff
Asking the museum staff what was stolen, Investigating the Strange Symbols
the Knights are told that it was a special artifact The writing on the museum wall is in a
and a few pieces of pottery. It is unlikely that basic form of Cryptspeak, the language of the
a local buyer could be found for the artifact, Rephaim. Only one person at the museum is
but if the thief wants money, it could be melted capable of translating the words if the Knights
down into gold bars and used. The worker sug- cannot speak the language—the curator, Doctor
gests the Knights speak to the curator if they Watkins. He has studied several Rephaim texts
want more information about the artifact.
on behalf of the Preceptory over the years and
What the Staff Know: See page 122. holds valid security clearance.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
After a few moments checking, the scholar With success, the Knights find the file on
deciphers the text. the murdered archaeologist in the doctor’s
filing cabinet (Handout #6; page 133). The
“Well, the writing is certainly Crypt-
file contains several photos taken at the crime
speak, though it is very rudimentary
scene by a Lictor. The photos contained within
in some ways. Anyway, this message is
are in full color and depict scenes of almost
incomplete. It literally translates as ‘They,
unimaginable brutality. Any Novice Ranked
the master of the universe, will return/have
Knights must make a Guts roll or lose the con-
returned/are returning from the skies in
tents of their stomach. Any Knight who makes
the year of…’
a successful Healing roll notices the wounds
“It uses what we call the ‘indeterminate bare more resemblance to those made by an
form,’ which indicates a tense, but it doesn’t animal’s claws rather than a knife.
give us any dating evidence I’m afraid. No
Give the Knights a few minutes free time
indication of past, present or future can
before Doctor Wainwright enters her office. If
be discerned from this fragment. Whoever
she walks in whilst the Knights are searching
wrote it certainly knew something of the
her files, she becomes very angry and demands
idiosyncrasies of the language, definitely
to know what is going on. She is used to work-
no common heretic.
ing with Lictors and Knights and knows all
“Look here, the verb ‘to return’ is used about warrants and due process. Unless the
correctly in its ‘return from’ variant, rather Knights can calm her down, she makes a call to
than just as ‘to return’ as many amateurs the Preceptor Intelligence Officer in his role as
would write. The use of verb suffixes is overall chief of the Lictors and lodges an official
unusual, but correctly applied.” complaint.
There is nothing else the Knights can glean On the other hand, if the Knights are
from the writing. Whoever wrote it wore gloves behaving themselves when she enters, she is
and left no fingerprints in the bloody patterns. prepared to help them as best she can. She
willingly shows them a copy of her report. If
If the heroes make a Cryptspeak roll, they
questioned about the wounds on the deceased,
read the following—“They, the master of the
she says it had crossed her mind the wounds
universe, will return/have returned/are return-
were particularly vicious and numerous, but
ing from the skies in the year of…” If none of
appear to be the work of a lone attacker.
them speak the language, Watkins apologizes
for his assumption and translates the writing. If the Knights ask why the body was brought
here so quickly, she cannot answer—she just
got a call to perform an autopsy. She can be
The Local Coroner of little other use and can only state the facts
contained in the file.
The Knights have little evidence of the The body is currently in cold storage in the
murder, the scene having been cleaned by the basement. Knights with a medical background
Lictors after their investigations had finished. can run their own tests, but discover noth-
The best records available are those of the ing more. Within three hours of the Knights’
coroner, who performed the autopsy on the visit, the body has been removed—its location
deceased. cannot be discovered. The corpse is removed
by CIS agents working alongside the Lazarites.
The local coroner, Doctor Emily Wainwright,
is a middle-aged woman who detests outsid-
ers sticking their noses into her work. What
especially riles her are people who question The Businessman
her findings. She can be found at the morgue
during normal office hours. The receptionist at Note: If the Knights have identified Mr.
the main desk inquires as to why the Knights Jenkins from the museum surveillance camera,
wish to see the doctor. She is not at all fazed by then he is not present at this meeting. Mr.
the Knights’ status and does not respond well David Hewlett should replace all references
to threats. to Mr. Jenkins. There is also no ashtray and
no cigarette present. Hewlett does not smoke.
Assuming the Knights can make it past
Hewlett is of average height, large build, and
her, they are shown into Doctor Wainwright’s
has close-cropped hair.
office while the receptionist informs the doctor
they are here. If the Knights wish to rummage George Weisman’s office is located on the
around the office, have them make a Notice top floor of a downtown office block, and can
roll. be located fairly easily. After all, one of the

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 echoes
museum’s wings is named after him and he is aged man of slight build. Paintings, many of
well known in the local community. Basic infor- them valuable, line the walls. Seated in a large
mation about him is presented as Handout #7 leather chair to one side of the room is a man
(page 133). If the Knights take the time to make in a black suit, a briefcase rests beside him. On
enquiries, give them the handout. a small table near him stand a lamp and an
Weisman is head of Globe Electronics, ashtray with one dead cigarette in it. The brand
a defense contractor. Knights who turn up is the same as the one found in the museum
without an appointment can expect to be (that is, a “generic” brand).
turned away—Mr. Weisman is a very busy The man behind the desk rises and wel-
man and has little time for interviews that comes the Knights. “Good afternoon. I am
do not directly concern him. Trying to force
George Weisman, and this is my attorney, Mr.
entry is extremely foolish, resulting in secu-
Jenkins,” he motions towards the suited man,
rity being called and the Knights threatened
with arrest (a very real threat considering that who merely nods. “I believe you have some
Globe does military work for the Church). If brief questions for me?” He then sits back
the Knights call ahead to arrange an appoint- down in his chair and invites the Knights to be
ment, they receive one for 3:00 pm, the day seated, as well.
after the Knights call. Weisman is an honest, if somewhat ego-
When the Knights arrive for their appoint- tistical man, who talks about his work for the
ment, they are shown directly into the office. community as if it were common for all men to
The far wall is one expanse of glass, revealing be so generous. He has very little to say about
the city beyond. In front of the window is a the matter at the museum, preferring to leave
large antique desk, behind which sits a middle- speculation to the media and the Knights.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
If the Knights begin to enquire into his The storefront itself is rather bland, with only a
business affairs, Mr. Jenkins interjects and small sign above the door to mark its presence.
asks them to keep to the matter at hand. The A large glass window allows viewing into the
Knights have only ten minutes to ask their shop interior from the street. The first thing the
questions before Mr. Jenkins reminds Weisman Knights notice is the clutter of chairs, tables,
that he has an important meeting with Cardinal lamps, statuettes, and so on.
Mitchell of the Office for Military Research. At Almost anything that can be considered an
this point, Weisman thanks the Knights and antique in the 24th century can be found some-
buzzes for his personal assistant, who shows where in the shop. Although most of the items
the Knights to the elevator. are of late 21st through 23rd century origin,
Meeting Weisman is a one-time chance for there are a few pieces of English, French, and
the Knights. Trying to arrange a second appoint- Italian origin dating back many hundreds of
ment proves fruitless as his assistant informs the years. These carry price tags with at least six
Knights that he is in the Vatican for an important zeroes. Typically, there are only a handful of
meeting and it is expected to last at least a week. customers in the shop each day—much of the
She gives no further information, nor can any be business is conducted over the Stream.
found through other channels. As the Knights open the door, a small bell
What Weisman Knows: See page 125. rings. A few moments later, a middle-aged man
in a suit emerges from behind a curtain situ-
ated at the rear of the shop. With a polite smile,

The Asgard Embassy he asks if he can be of any assistance.

If questioned about the artifact, he admits
The Knights may wish to visit or contact that he did approach the museum curator with
an eye to buying it, although not for his shop.
the Asgard Embassy in the Vatican to find out
He produces a piece of paper from behind
if Jorgen Pietersen actually works there. It
the counter and shows it to the Knights. The
requires a Persuasion roll at –2 to discover this
contents of the document are presented as
from the embassy staff, as they do not have to
Handout #8 (page 133). Tovlowski has no idea
reveal that sort of information to Knights (all
how the man even knew it existed, since the
staff are protected by diplomatic immunity).
object had not been revealed to the public.
Friendly contacts in the CIS (if such are known
to the Knights) can be used to find such infor- Tovlowski then says that when the curator
mation—the Church’s spooks have ways of refused to sell the artifact he contacted the
discovering such information legally, although buyer and told him that he had none available,
it takes several hours before a reply is heard. but would keep an eye open for any that came
on the market. Knights who try to reach the
However the information is gained, the Knights e-mail address of the private collector find the
learn that there is no one by that name at the account unreachable. This is another part of
Embassy. Pietersen is a fictitious name invented by the Lazarites’ plans to acquire the artifact.
the team from Project Revelation. Should the plan
go badly wrong, the CIS can always point fingers Tovlowski has not been entirely truthful with
at Asgard, their favorite fall guys. the Knights in regards to inquiries about the
artifact. Shortly after the e-mail arrived, two men
visited his shop and offered him 120,000 Miters

The Private Buyer to have an item built and detailed to show signs
of aging. They brought a design with them,
which perfectly matched the golden artifact
If a Knight browses the company’s Stream stolen from the museum, and told him that they
site (details of which can be found on the busi- would return in a few days. He was warned to
ness card obtained from the curator), he finds keep quiet about his involvement in this.
the usual sales blurb, a small catalog with some
The Knights should be suspicious of Tov-
pictures, a photo of the owner (Mr. Tovlowski),
lowski—he has the most to gain by buying the
and an on-line ordering form. The site is sparse
artifact and shipping it on. Nothing needs to go
and the quality indicates it has been built “on
on his books and so proving this could be dif-
the cheap.”
ficult. Surveillance of the shop does not reveal
Millennium Antiques is situated in an older anything untoward, but breaking in or legally
district of town, where there are plenty of shops searching the premises does. The shop has an
but few residential areas. The streets, though alarm system on the door and window frame,
far from being crowded, are normally busy linked to the Lictors (2d6 minutes until they
with shoppers going about their daily business. arrive if the alarm is activated), but otherwise

110
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has no internal security. Behind the curtain by eight personnel. Security is very high, with
is a small office area, where Tovlowski keeps alarms on all the cases and infrared beams
pieces he is repairing and all of his notes on across the shop floor. Concealed cameras also
customers. cover all areas of the store. The Lictors take a
mere 1d6 minutes to arrive if one of the silent
Buried in a pile of papers on a desk is a
alarms is sounded. The shop is generally busy
sketch of the golden artifact, complete with
during the day, especially at lunchtime and
dimensions, and the name of a local jeweler.
early evening.
Finding it requires an hour’s search and a
Notice roll at –2. Threats toward Tovlowski’s The Knights are treated well by the shop
good health, or insinuation he might spend a assistant, although she is quick to fetch the man-
few years doing hard labor for aiding a mur- ager if official identification is produced. Marge
derer, quickly lead the proprietor to produce Diaz, manager of this branch, quickly emerges
the schematic. from the rear of the store if summoned.
“I didn’t want to do it! I needed the Diaz denies any knowledge of any transac-
money! They offered me 20,000 Miters to tion between the shop and Tovlowski unless
have a copy made and antiqued. I passed threatened with legal action, at which point she
it on to a friend of mine who works in suddenly “remembers” the incident.
MacMillian’s. You know, the jewelers in the
“Ah yes! How could I forget? Mr. Tov-
main street. He has certain connections,
lowski did call with an order for a most
if you know what I mean. They told me
unusual piece. It was to be solid gold and
they would kill me if I mentioned this to
created to a very specific design. He faxed
anyone! I need protection! I’ll testify in
me a copy of the item with all the necessary
court if you’ll protect me! The original?
measurements, including the weight. I did
I don’t know where it is. I don’t have it.
think it a little odd, but business is busi-
Maybe those men do, maybe that’s why
ness and he was paying cash.
they haven’t come back for the fake yet.”
“I would like to hand it over, but it’s
With a successful Notice roll, the Knights
already been collected. Two gentlemen
deduce the diagram has been electronically
picked it up barely two hours ago. They
scanned and transmitted to someone. The
paid cash, 272,000 Miters to be precise,
number can easily be traced to an address—
and then left. Naturally, I made out a
MacMillan’s Jewelers, in the main commercial
receipt. They gave their address as Hodg-
part of the city.
son’s Ranch, just off the main highway out
The fake is, in Tovlowski’s mind, still in situ of town. Now, will there be anything else I
in the jeweler’s shop. Tovlowski is a cautious can help you with?”
man when it comes to money and he intended
Searching the shop proves fruitless—the
to get payment before delivering the goods. As
item has indeed been collected by the Laza-
the Knights later learn, the men have actually
rites.
cut Tovlowski out of the loop (see MacMillian’s
Jewelers’ Shop below).
What Tovlowski Knows: See page 126.
Hodgson’s Ranch
The old ranch listed as the customer’s
MacMillian’s Jewelers address is located twenty miles outside of
town, roughly four miles from the nearest
MacMillan’s is in a higher-class part of town highway. Access can be reached by an old,
than the antique store. It is well known locally, unmarked, dirt road that winds through light
mainly for the custom jewelry it produces, woods before emerging into open plains. The
some of which is sold across the planet by mail ranch itself is little more than a few wooden
order. buildings, none of which have been repaired in
years, surrounded by a chain link fence. A few
The shop fills two floors of the building in
rusty pieces of farm machinery sit in the yard.
which it is situated, with a large display area
out front and a vault and offices at the rear. There is no sign of habitation as the Knights
The upper floor houses more display cases approach, although a Notice roll reveals tire
and the workshops. Six shop assistants work in tracks in the dirt that are no more than a day or
the public area, as well as one security guard, two old. There is plenty of cover if the Knights
and three office staff and the manager work in wish to scope out the farm first or merely start
the offices. The workshop is generally staffed a surveillance operation.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Staking out the ranch brings no useful infor- firing a few bursts to provide cover while they
mation, no matter how long the Knights wait. hide behind the cars. Once in place, they begin
Those who were using it have left the site already firing at the Knights.
and have no intention of returning. The address
was given as part of a plan to throw pursuers off The attackers are well-trained profession-
the trail. It is likely, however, that the Knights will als. If the Knights run into a building, they
go in under cover of darkness to investigate. send a flanking force whilst providing heavy
covering fire. If the Knights try to make a dash
Opening the gate in the chain link fence is
for their car, they spray both the car and the
surprisingly easy (no roll is necessary) as the
padlock is of cheap quality and looks quite old. area between the Knights and the vehicle. Treat
Likewise, the Knights can elect to gain entry by them as a unit of soldiers, not as common
climbing the fence or ramming the gates with thugs who are lining up to be shot by gun-
their APC if they are so inclined. Once inside toting Knights.
the yard, the Knights can begin their search. If five or more of the attackers are badly
There is little to find of immediate interest, wounded, they retreat, laying down excessive
save for more tire tracks in the gravel, until the covering fire while boarding their vehicles. The
Knights search the old barn. Inside, aside from attackers, to stop them speaking, shoot any
bales of straw, some rusty ploughs, and tractor wounded colleagues that cannot walk, and leave
parts, are four ferocious guard dogs. Their their corpses behind. Under no circumstances
being here may convince the Knights the ranch
do any of them surrender to the Knights.
is still inhabited. The dogs were originally used
to protect the site and now that the site is The Knights are likely to have a real fight on
deserted, they have been left to either escape their hands, but teamwork and tactics should
into the wilds or starve to death. Once the barn win them through. Any contacts called, such as
door is open the dogs, who know their masters a request for agency backup, will take a mini-
by smell, attack by pouncing. They may be mum of 30 minutes to arrive.
animals, but they are not dumb, and they can
be driven off by damaging attacks. There are two possible outcomes to this
scene; the Knights escape with their lives or
Inside the main house, there are signs of
they are captured or killed. Assuming the
recent habitation, such as dirty plates, used food
cans, and so on. There is little to no furniture, Knights win, they can search the bodies. Aside
but there is a vidphone. Last number recall has from the equipment listed, each carries an
been disabled. Knights checking the last number identification card stating that he is a member
dialed from the phone with the operator need of the Asgard Embassy security staff and has
to make an Intimidation or Persuasion roll to get limited diplomatic immunity. The cards appear
the information they want. With success, they to be genuine. Detecting them as fakes requires
are told the last number was to a local municipal access to a technical laboratory, an Investiga-
airfield (they are given the number). tion roll, and 30 minutes work.
Once the Knights have finished their search If there are any Lazarites in the Lance, there
and are preparing to leave, drop the next scene is a slim chance he knows one of the dead assas-
on them without giving them a chance to do sins, though not personally. Draw a single card
anything else.
from the action deck. If it is a Joker, the Knight
Attack Dogs (2 per hero): See page 127. knows one of the men from a previous posting.
If the Knights lose the fight, those that are
An Unexpected Assault badly wounded (i.e. will probably die without
As the Knights are leaving the main house, medical aid) are shot once in the head to finish
they spot two black cars speeding down the them off. Those in better shape, or who have
farm track. A lookout on the road can give surrendered, are handcuffed and dragged to
those in the ranch one minute’s warning as he the waiting cars. All of the bodies are left where
sees their approach. The first smashes through they lay, to be picked up and disposed of later
the gate and skids to a halt just inside the yard; by a clear-up team. Black hoods are placed over
the second comes through the same opening the Knights’ heads to block vision and they are
in the perimeter and stops alongside the first. driven off.
Knights who make a successful Notice roll spot
Asgard diplomatic plates on both cars. All the Lazarite Strike Team (2 per hero): See
doors burst open and armed men leap out, page 127.

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 echoes
Questions and Answers Should the “embassy staff ” be arrested, they
are removed from jail 2d6 hours later by the
The Knights are driven around for several CIS with the approval of the Preceptor Master
hours before ending up in a warehouse in (who has no desire to become embroiled in a
the industrial district of the city. Each is tied political dispute with Asgard).
to a chair, with their hoods still in place, and
politely questioned. Those who refuse to
answer or are generally uncooperative find Checking the Airport
themselves pumped full of truth serum to help
them ‘remember’ the facts. Aside from the Once the Lazarites have been dealt with, the
interrogator, there are six armed men present, Knights can call ahead to the airfield if they so
all of whom have orders to shoot the Knights wish, to try to gain information. On producing
dead if they try to escape. The interrogator’s some official identification, the Knights learn
life is forfeit if they try to hold him hostage. three men listing the ranch number as theirs
booked flights to Midgard on a Trans-Salus
The interrogator, who speaks with a slight Airways flight leaving in six hours. One of them
Asgard accent (requires a Smarts roll to detect paid in cash but did not collect the tickets. This
this), asks them about the artifact, the expedi- is, in fact, all part of a plan designed to throw
tion, their business at the ranch, and so on. The would-be pursuers off the trail. The men did
WM should come up a list of around ten ques- book tickets from the ranch (hoping the call
tions to ask the Knights, all of which should would be traced) and they paid someone to
be related to the case. Plausible answers are pick them up from the airport (a patsy), but
believed. Those that sound too plausible are they have no intention of catching the flight or
re-asked in different ways to try to catch the going anywhere near the airport!
Knights out.
The municipal airport is not very busy, with
Once happy that they are just Knights only a few flights departing or arriving each
investigating a routine crime, the interrogator hour. There is only one departure lounge and
has them drugged to the eyeballs and dropped only ten gates, all of which are reached from
off in a central location, such as a public park the lounge area. The flight the Knights want
or shopping mall parking lot. The interrogator leaves from gate three.
has no wish to bring more Knights down on No matter what the Knights do, no one
him by murdering the characters. arrives to claim the seats booked by whoever
called from the ranch. The girl at the check-in
And If It Does Go Wrong? desk can tell the Knights that the tickets were
booked under the names of Benning, Smith,
As with any encounter, there is always the and Lockley. The man who paid was Benning,
chance that things will go wrong. Use of stun- and he had an Asgard driver’s license under
ners or nonlethal damage could result in one that name. No luggage has been put on under
or more of the “Embassy staff ” being captured the seat holders’ names however. Knights who
alive and unharmed. The Knights will undoubt- search the plane, with the aid of the check-in
edly then want to question him. Should this girl, are told that no one on the flight matches
unfortunate event occur, the individual WM the man’s description, but it is not unusual for
will have to make use of the following informa- such late cancellations.
tion as best he can.
This lead is a total dead-end and absolutely
The Lazarites all stick to the same cover nothing can be gained from this encounter,
story—they were told that a known terrorist except the knowledge that the Knights’ foe is not
wanted in Midgard for bombing government as dumb as they might have liked to believe.
buildings was hiding out in the ranch. They do
not know how the Asgard authorities learned
of this, nor why the Church authorities were
not informed. Their orders were to attack the The Archaeologist
ranch and kill anyone present.
Should the Knights enquire at the museum
The Knights are not pure as snow, and of the whereabouts of Doctor Andersen,
some may resort to torture to gain informa- they are told that she is at home, recovering
tion (perhaps not believing the cover story). from shock. Her address can be found via
Regardless of the techniques, the Lazarites stick several methods including, but not limited
to their story—these men are hardened fanat- to, the vidphone directory, her records at the
ics. Knights who claim to know one of the men museum (Investigation roll), using Connec-
are informed it is mistaken identity. tions, or asking one of her co-workers or the

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
museum staff (Persuasion roll). The task is guess that’s why you’re here. She means well,
not difficult—the doctor is not trying to hide but she’s a teenager and you know what they
from the authorities and she actually has Lictor can be like. Now, how can I help you?”
assistance to stop reporters bothering her. Paige soon returns with iced tea and sits
Her house is in a fairly well-to-do area of down next to the youngest male Knight, smil-
town, although it is by no means extravagant. ing at him as she does so. Alexandra answers
As the Knights arrive, they spy a car in the any questions as best she can, having nothing
driveway and they can hear loud music blaring to hide and very little to reveal. If the Knights
from one of the upstairs windows. Two Lictors ask about her husband, she stares down at the
stand guard at the driveway, but allow Knights floor for a few moments before answering.
through with few questions. “He died in a car crash about eight years
Knights who knock at the front door are ago. He was hit by a drunk driver and died
forced to wait several minutes before the door before the paramedics could reach him. He
is opened on a security chain. The face of an was a good man. Wonderful temperament,
extremely attractive teenage girl peers through never drank, and doted on Paige. Still, these
the gap at them. Anyone who watched the things happen, don’t they?”
original news story recognizes her from the Knights making a successful Notice roll
museum. The girl looks the Knights up and detect tears in her eyes.
down for a moment, grunts “No press allowed
Once the Knights have finished question-
in, sorry” and then slams the door shut without
ing her, she shows them to the door and bids
allowing them time to speak.
them farewell. Paige accompanies her and says
If the Knights knock again, the door opens goodbye, but only to the Knight she has taken a
almost immediately. The girl tells them, quite shine to. Any Knight with an ounce of common
firmly and with language that no young lady sense can determine that the girl has taken a
should know, to leave her mother alone. If the fancy to him.
Knights show any identification, the girl asks What Doctor Andersen Knows: See page 124.
that it be handed over to her. As soon as it is,
the door slams shut again. Several minutes
pass before the door opens once more, this
time fully. The girl informs the Knights that her Mistaken Identity?
mother is out back and will give them a few
minutes of her time. Important Note: This entire section can be
skipped if either the GM or the player involved
Once the Knights are allowed in, they can
would be uncomfortable with the situation.
see that the girl is in her late-teens, and she
Although not life threatening, it does touch on
sports denim shorts and a white T-shirt with a tender subject and was written in to show
the words “No Stream Censorship” printed on that not all danger a Knight faces comes from
it. She stares coldly at any Knight who is obvi- the Rephaim. The potential for some good
ously looking at her young but womanly body, role-playing is there if both parties are happy
mutters “Pervert” just loud enough to be heard, with the situation and act maturely. Note that
and then proceeds to wander off through the Paige is considered to be at the age of consent
hallway towards the kitchen. Once there, she in the United Kingdom, though only just. Alter
opens the back door and gestures outside. her age as necessary to suit your country.
When the Knights have stepped through the
door, she follows. Ideally, this scene should be run with only
the WM and lone Knight present. His comrades
The back yard is fairly large and well kept. will then be able to react more appropriately if
A small swimming pool fills the centre of the everything goes as written.
yard. Doctor Andersen is sitting in a chair
reading a book on archaeology. As the Knights A few hours after the Knights visit Doctor
exit the kitchen, she puts the book down on a Andersen, one of them receives a call. If the
nearby table, stands, and walks over to greet Knight has not given Paige his access code
then the call was made to the Preceptory and
them. She invites the Knights to be seated on
re-directed. The call is from Paige and has been
the patio furniture and then asks her daughter,
made to the Knight she has developed a crush
Paige, to fetch refreshments.
on. She has tried to disguise her voice as her
Alexandra then turns to the Knights and mother’s, but if the Knight spent any length of
says, “I hope she wasn’t too rude. She’s been so time talking to her, he can make a Notice roll
protective since the…since…well, you know. I at –2 to recognize her. If the Knight recognizes

114
 echoes
her, she ends the call and refuses to answer Andersen immediately calls the Precep-
it if he rings back. This section can then be tory and reports the “crime.” Moments later,
ignored. the other Knights receive a call to arrest their
She invites the Knight (and is quite clear colleague on suspicion of breaking his vows
to make sure that it is only that one Knight) of celibacy. He will be thoroughly questioned
to dinner later that evening at her house. She before being released until further evidence is
claims to have some new information that gathered.
might be of help to his investigation. Assuming Although the situation will eventually
the Knight accepts, the evening turns out to resolve itself when Paige confesses her crime,
be very awkward for him. Paige has decided to the intervening period (no more than 12-24
make the first move on the object of her crush, hours) should be hell on the unfortunate
even though it will only lead to embarrassment Knight. Sure it isn’t fun for the poor sucker,
and heartbreak (unless the Knight fancies a but the role-playing opportunities are almost
spell in the Penitents for breaking his vow of unlimited.
celibacy). Normally Paige is a sensible girl, but
she has great difficulty making friends and is
not very good with boys her own age.
When the Knight arrives at the Andersen A Friend in Need
residence, Paige answers the door. If the Knight
has brought backup, Paige will be momentarily It is assumed that the Knights regularly
stunned, and then splutter out that her mother monitor emergency channels, especially those
was called in to work at the last minute and of the local Lictors. However, if they do not do
had to cancel. She then slams the door and this then an alternate entry to this scene has
hides in her bedroom. Paige is wearing a knee- been included below.
length, low-cut, red dress that does not reveal Around 11:00 pm on the night after the
too much flesh; she has also done her hair up, optional Mistaken Identity scene has finished,
and applied her mother’s make-up to an expert the Knights pick up an emergency broadcast
degree. Given her natural figure, she could made on a local Lictor channel. The operator is
easily pass for someone in her early twenties. asking for a team to respond to an emergency
She invites the lone Knight in, claiming her call made from Doctor Andersen’s house. The
mother will be along soon as she has gone to only car that answers is at least ten minutes
the shops for some wine, offers him a drink away, giving the Knights time to arrive first on
and a seat (all the chairs have books on, leaving the scene if they push it.
only the two-seater sofa), and then sits next to If the Knights do not listen to Lictor broad-
him, holding a glass of whiskey she intends to
casts then one of their communicators beeps
drink herself. Any Knight worth his salt is now
(either they gave Doctor Andersen their code or
going to be nervous and looking for an excuse
she rang their Preceptory and got immediately
to stand up.
transferred through by a receptionist). A weak
Unless the Knight is quick, Paige knocks back sounding voice comes over the phone. “It’s
the whiskey in one gulp, coughing slightly, and Alex…Alexandra Andersen…please…we’ve
then leans over and kisses him firmly on the been attacked by an intruder…my daughter
cheek, whilst placing her hand on his thigh. It is is hurt…please come…” With that, the phone
expected the Knight backs away long before she goes dead. The Knights can be at the house
gets much further in her exploration of his lower within five minutes if they push it.
body. Once suitably spurned, Paige calls the
Knight “a heartless bastard” and storms upstairs, However they hear the news, they arrive
tears flowing down her face. She locks herself in before the Lictors. The front door is open and
her room and refuses to speak to the Knight. At no Lictor guards can be seen. Knights who
this point Dr. Andersen returns home! search the house thoroughly, find the bodies of
the two Lictors who were watching the house
The GM should handle the situation in stuffed into a dumpster beside the garage.
the most embarrassing way for the Knight. Both have been viciously stabbed. Whoever
The evidence against him is damning from killed them did not take their flechette pistols,
the mother’s point of view; a grown man is in although he did take their handcuffs.
her house alone with her teenage daughter,
there are two glasses that contained, or still do No one in the house answers any calls. A
contain, alcohol, the Knight has lipstick on his quick search of the ransacked property reveals
cheek, and her daughter has locked herself in both Alexandra and Paige handcuffed in the
her room! master bedroom. A cordless vidphone lies on the

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
floor in front of the Doctor, who has been badly Further details on following up this lead can
beaten. Her daughter lies unconscious beside be found in the above section entitled Who’s
her, bleeding from a deep cut to her neck. That Man?.
As the Knights enter the room, Alexandra Alexandra is kept in the hospital overnight
lifts her head briefly and smiles, before passing for observation, but only has to contend with
out. A Lictor and paramedics arrive ten minutes a few bumps and bruises. Paige will live, no
after the Knights if the Knights intercepted the doubt thanks to the Knights, and is released in
radio call, otherwise they do not arrive until a few days. The wound will not scar, something
the Knights call them. A Healing roll is required her mother was worried about, but Paige will
to stabilize both women. be a different person for the next few months
Once stabilized, both women can be taken as she rehabilitates after her attack. Knights
to the hospital (or back to the team if there are with psychology training can help with this
secure medical facilities and the team is feeling process if they so wish. Doctor Andersen will
particularly daring). When Alexandra regains be extremely grateful for the assistance.
consciousness, after about five minutes, she
When Alexandra returns home and checks
tells the Knights, who can probably keep the
what has been stolen, she finds that only a
Lictor away long enough to get a statement if
few Egyptian artifacts (minor pieces she has
they are present, exactly what happened.
collected over the years), and her journal
“We were watching TV, Paige and I, (in which she has all her notes regarding the
when the front door burst open. A man was Church, her life’s work), are missing. She is
standing there holding a knife covered in distraught over the loss of her journal and asks
blood. He looked insane, his eyes were… the Knights, assuming one of them has been
<sob>…full of hate and fear. Paige tried gallant enough (or is interrogating her on the
to run past him but he grabbed her and sly) to escort her back, to help retrieve it.
put the knife to her throat. Oh God, I was
so scared for my baby…<sob sob>…Is she The Lictors post a four-man guard on the
going to be OK? He forced us upstairs to the house and all of the officers are now in body
bedroom. I thought he was going to rape armor and carrying flechette rifles. Naturally,
us both…<sob>…I didn’t know what to the media surround the house with news vans,
do! He began putting handcuffs on Paige’s making the Andersen’s life hell for several days
hands but she struggled free of his grip. to come.
Then he…he…he stabbed my little girl!”
Five minutes of deep sobbing follows.
“I’m sorry. I’m just scared. Where’s Last Known Address
Paige?…sniff…Can I see her yet? Paige fell
down, covered in blood. I didn’t know Pete Moulton’s last known address is not in
what to do so I tried to thump him. I had a particularly nice part of town. “Slum” is being
to protect Paige. He hit me repeatedly. I too kind to the neighborhood. The streets
thought I was…<sob>…going to die! He are littered with broken cars on bricks, tires,
tied me up and then did the same to Paige. rubble, stray dogs, and young kids who should
He was babbling the whole time, talking be in school. The atmosphere is overtly hostile
about gods and how he was going to rule and easily sensed. If the Knights are foolish
the world. It didn’t make any sense. enough to leave their APC unattended while
“After he ‘cuffed us he went down stairs. they follow up their lead, they return to find
I could hear him searching the house. I just it covered in graffiti. Of course, no one on the
lay there, trying to remain conscious and street saw anything.
talking to Paige. Letting her know I was Knocking on the door of Pete’s apartment
there and she should hang on because help gets no reply. The door is locked but a Lock-
would be here soon…<sob>…He never picking roll at +1 gains the Knights access, as
came back upstairs. I went to the phone will kicking it down (Toughness 7). Inside, the
beside the bed and called for help. Where’s place is filthy, with mold on the walls and cock-
my little girl? I’ve got to see her!” roaches running free. No one has inhabited the
Alexandra can describe the attacker in great place for some time. The landlady, a large black
detail. If the Knights have already identified woman somewhere between 40 and 60 years
him from the security camera video then the of age, can be found downstairs in her apart-
description matches. If not, they now have ment. If questioned about Pete, she becomes
a good description of a suspect in the case. quite vocal.

116
 echoes
“That piece of shit owes me three months If they start getting heavy, either with
rent! If you find him, you get me my money. violence or by smashing the place up a little,
What you want him for anyway? You CIS or he becomes more “amiable.” Threats do not
something, dressed like that? Hell, I might bother him too much as he is used to them
have known Pete would be in trouble! He from the Lictors.
ain’t coming back is he? Damn my foolish
“Hey look now! I don’t want no trouble
hide for letting him leave. I should have
from you either! I don’t know what cartel
shot the bastard! You see him, you tell him
Pete’s got himself into shit with, but it’s
I’m gonna shoot his nuts off!”
nothing to do with me. Like I told your
As she says, the landlady has not seen him for buddies, I’m only small time, pal. You want
three months and his apartment has not been Petey? Hell, he ain’t been here in a week. He
used by anyone else. If the Knights ask about his had some crazy idea about stealing some
known haunts she flies into another rage. stuff from the museum. You know, that new
“Oh yeah, he used to hang at O’Malley’s. shit they found. He wanted me to fence it
You know the joint? Down on 8th Street. for him but I told him to fuck himself. I
Shit! I bet he’s blown my rent on gambling! wasn’t touching that shit. It’s cursed. The
Damn him! I always knew he was a badass media said so. If you want to know where
mother. I should have got my rent in he is, you ask his girlfriend. She lives down
advance. You want anymore info, ‘cause on Maple. Number 1382 I think it is. Ask for
the TV is on?” Suzy. She’ll know where that no-life is.”

There are no further clues here and no one Knights who question O’Malley as to the
the street has seen Pete recently, not that they other men that came looking for Pete are given
would tell the Knights anyway. the following information.
“Three goons in black suits walked in
O’Malley’s Bar here and started asking questions about
Pete. When? Yesterday I think it was. Yeah,
O’Malley’s is a pool hall in one of the yesterday afternoon, about 5:00 pm. I
rougher parts of the city. Frequented by all gave them the same information I gave
manner of criminals, it is not a place the Lictors you. I don’t want no trouble from you
visit in small numbers or frequently. Aside from heavy types, I said. I just gave them the
pool hustling, a large amount of illegal gam- address and they left. Weird accents they
bling goes on behind closed doors at night, had though. Drug dealers I reckon. I don’t
and the Lictors suspect that illicit drugs are also know nothing else.”
distributed from there, as well.
The front of the bar is nothing special to look Suzy’s Apartment
at. A faded sign depicts the name “O’Malley’s”
and the walls are grubby from the filth of the The apartment belonging to Pete’s girl-
city. All of the windows are barred and many friend, Suzy, is in a quiet, though lower class,
are boarded up. Those that are not are too area of town. If the Knights knock at the apart-
dirty to see through. There is a fire escape out ment door, they receive no reply. Gaining entry
back, which leads into a small, dingy alley, full is quite tough; the girl was obviously security
of trash and home to a half dozen homeless conscious. A Lockpicking roll or kicking it
people. down (Toughness 9) is required to open the
door. If the Knights use brute force, then one
Upon entering, the Knights are hit by a of the neighbors comes into the hallway to see
tangible wall of cigarette smoke, stale beer, and
what is going on. A quick flash of a sidearm has
even staler sweat. The lights are kept deliber-
them scuttling inside their own apartment.
ately low and some areas are in near blackness.
Around twenty patrons are in the bar when Inside, the apartment is a mess—someone
the Knights enter, many playing pool and the has obviously searched it thoroughly. All of the
rest sitting at or near the bar. The conversa- drawers have been emptied out, the furniture
tion dies when the Knights walk in and most has been slashed open, and most of the orna-
of the patrons glance towards them nervously. ments are broken on the floor. Inside the
Many slowly reach for concealed weapons. The bedroom, the Knights find what is left of Suzy.
owner, O’Malley, is behind the bar serving. He
Her body lies face up on the bed, which
looks at the Knights and grunts, “What do you
is covered in blood. The blood has not yet
want?”
fully congealed and a Healing roll reveals she
What O’Malley Knows: See page 126. cannot have been dead for more than a few

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

hours. A cursory examination shows that she

was badly beaten before being shot twice in the How Did You Get My
chest with a 12mm AP round.
Once the blood is cleared away, the Knights
Number?
can see her fingernails have been ripped out,
Once the Knights have had some fun fol-
she has severe gashes to her chest area, possibly
lowing the leads and learning more about the
made by a small blade, the soles of her feet
artifact and the various factions that seek it,
have been slashed, her tongue has been forced
down her throat, and something has burst her one of them (chosen at random from those
eardrums, causing her to bleed from he ears. It that gave Alex their number) receives a call.
is hard to tell what caused her death; any of the The caller is male and identifies himself as the
wounds could have been fatal when combined high prophet of the true gods. Pete is merely
with the others. Unless she lost consciousness taunting the Knights and re-confirming to them
quickly, she could have been in agony for hours that they are not alone in their search for him.
before finally dying. Seeing the mangled corpse During the call, the Knight on the phone
warrants a Guts check to avoid Fear for the next can make a Notice roll at –2 to identify the
hour.
background noises. On a success he hears
Searching the apartment reveals that some- “--large burger and fries” called out over the
one was living with her—men’s clothes are in gaggle of background conversation. Of course,
the wardrobe and the laundry basket (which that only narrows the location down to several
has been emptied onto the floor). One room, dozen places in the city but it does mean that
probably once used as a closet, has become Pete is stationary.
some sort of bizarre shrine. Scraps of paper lie
on the floor, obviously torn from the walls. The “Hello Church man! See you haven’t
scraps are newspaper articles about the recent found me yet, have you? You can’t find me
murder, magazine pictures of Knights fighting because I’m a fucking god and you can’t
Rephaim, homemade drawings of the artifact think like me! You listening soldier? Good.
missing from the museum, and an article about You keep fucking listening good and don’t
heresy from a Union newspaper. try to trace me! I’m mobile and I got me a

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 echoes
nice hostage as well. I see any pigs nearby
and the little girl dies. You want that blood
News Offices
on your hands, fucker? When the Knights arrive at the media
“I got your number off that nice Doctor offices, the place is a bustle of activity, with
Andersen. Lovely lady – she wanted me, reporters and camera crews getting ready for
you know. I could see it in her eyes. When an outside broadcast. Any of the reporters can
I’m ascended, I’ll make her mine. She’ll get be stopped long enough for the Knights to
more than a Second Coming from Petey. So learn that some nut claiming to be a prophet
will her daughter! I saw you at their house. of some new gods is holding a hostage on the
How gallant of you to come to their fucking roof of Saint Mary’s Church. The camera crews
rescue. I’ll send you the video of us together are planning to capture the whole thing on film
if you leave me a forwarding address. for the evening news.
“I’ve got what you want, spook. Did If the heroes do not visit the media station,
you know others are after it as well? Bad Lictor Primus Novak contacts them and orders
men, trying to stop the gods returning. They them to get to Saint Mary’s immediately!
killed poor little Suzy before I could. That
pissed me off so fucking much. I wanted
her for myself. It talks to me Knight man,
it tells me the future. You’re gonna fucking Saint Mary’s Church
die at their hands! Slow, painful, messy
death. Oh fucking yeah! Saint Mary’s is a large church in the heart of
the city. By the time the Knights arrive, the Lic-
“Gotta go now. People to see, fortunes tors have sealed off the area, although a large
to tell!”
crowd of on-lookers has gathered behind the
With that, the line goes dead. Pete will not barriers. Lictor Primus Novak is already pres-
stop to talk or answer questions. He just says ent and organizing his men. A SWAT van waits
his piece and hangs up. The Knights can track nearby and three snipers can be seen checking
the call simply by contacting the Preceptory if their rifles. The Knights can recognize Pete as
they put the call through. Otherwise, it requires the hostage taker. He has one hand around the
a Persuasion roll and a chat with the operator. child’s throat and a megaphone in the other.
The call was actually made from a payphone
in a burger bar in the main shopping mall, but Novak, if approached, tells the Knights,
that is over ten minutes away from the Knights’ “Some nut has taken a kid hostage. He’s on the
current location. roof and is threatening to throw her off unless
we give him access to the news channels. The
By the time they arrive, there is no sign of news teams will be here shortly. We’ll give him
Pete. Any alerted Lictor units arrived too late to what he wants and hopefully he’ll clam down.
catch him as well. An Intimidation or Persua- We don’t want to shoot until we know the kid
sion roll, and showing a photo of Pete while
is safe.”
questioning the staff, is required to gain the
following information: Just then, the news team arrives on the
scene and begins setting up their cameras and
The staff confirms a man matching Pete’s
sound equipment. From up on the roof Pete
description or photograph was present and he
calls down to the assembled Lictors, onlookers,
had a little girl with him. He ordered two meals
to take out and then made two calls on the pay- and media.
phone. The girl looked upset over something “Listen to me you pathetic fools! I am
and the staff considered calling mall security. the prophet of the true gods and I have
They have no idea where he went after he used been sent to tell you that you are all fuck-
the phone. ing doomed! My masters will soon arrive
The Knights can try to garner whom he to fuck you all over. None of you will
called from the phone by calling the operator. survive their coming unless you swear alle-
A successful Persuasion roll from a legitimate giance. I, their chosen disciple, will become
law enforcement agency convinces the opera- a living god and rule over this world. As
tor to assist them. One number belongs to one a sign of my love for you scum, you may
of the Knights’ communicators; the other is bow down before me and praise my name.
listed as belonging to the local news station. All If you refuse, I will throw this child off the
the lines to the news station are permanently roof as a sacrifice. Do I make myself fuck-
busy. ing clear?”

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Knights who acquire a bullhorn can talk The last sentence hangs menacingly in the
with Pete for a few minutes. Let them ask him air before the stranger turns and walks to his car,
some questions, learn something about him in which can be seen two other similarly attired
and his motives, and then move straight on to men.
the next scene before they can put their plan Asked about the golden artifact, the agent
into action. replies, “I have no idea what you are taking
As the Knights talk with Pete, a third figure about. I suggest you get back to your duties
appears on the roof—a large man dressed in a before I am forced to contact your superiors.”
black suit. Pete hears his approach and turns The Knights, regardless of their host organi-
to face him. Shoving the girl back onto the zation, have no legal rights to interfere in a CIS
roof, Pete reaches into his jacket pocket and investigation without consulting their superi-
produces the golden artifact stolen from the ors first. The local Lictors will not interfere on
museum. their behalf and any Knight with an ounce of
“My master!” he shouts, “I have brought intelligence should realize that starting a fight
the item as you requested! Wait…you’re would result in a bloodbath captured live on
TV, action being taken against the Knights by
not one of them, you’re a…”
the CIS and their superiors, and an investiga-
The stranger lunges for the artifact and tion into the Knights’ reckless behavior.
manages to get one hand around it. The
Should the Knights decide to tail him,
child screams and almost loses her footing.
the car drives to the local airport, where the
Novak begins shouting orders to his men to three occupants meet up with an Angel carry-
set up a safety net in case anyone slips. Pete ing Lazarite markings. They board a dropship
and the stranger remain locked in hand to and it takes off, heading south. The air traffic
hand combat for few moments. controllers can be contacted with a successful
The stranger suddenly steps back, half Persuasion roll at –2, but they are under orders
of the artifact in his hand! He pulls a to let the Angel go. Naturally, the Angel never
large gun from his jacket and shoots Pete reaches its logged destination, a nearby major
through the face four times in rapid suc- city, instead landing in the country and being
cession. Pete’s body flies from the roof and destroyed. The piece of the artifact the stranger
plummets to he ground, smashing into the possesses is lost to them.
grass, the second part of the artifact flying
from his grasp. Lictors and paramedics The Knights as Heroes
immediately begin rushing to him, though
it is obvious no one could have survived What happens if the Knights enter the
the shooting and fall. church to stop Pete themselves? Let them get
to the roof without incident and let them talk
The Knights should be able to retrieve to Pete for a bit. If any Knight is stupid enough
Pete’s half of the artifact with little bother. If to draw or raise a gun, Pete threatens to kill the
they search Pete’s body they also find a few girl by, “Teaching the bitch to fly,” a threat he is
grams of illegal drugs and the knife used to kill only too happy to carry out.
Doctor O’Shea. Any damage to Pete, regardless of the actual
The stranger can either be met coming damage it causes, forces him backwards, where-
down from the roof or upon leaving the upon he loses his footing and falls. The artifact
church, from which he calmly walks. Much as hits the edge of the parapet and breaks into
the Knights would obviously like to arrest him, two—one half resting on the roof, the other half
the local Lictors arrive first and start reading falling with Pete. Nothing the Knights do can
him his rights. The man produces identification stop this from happening—especially if they try
and the Lictors question him for a few moments to use occult powers on live television!
before allowing him to leave. As he heads to his However, what if the Knights choose not to
car the Knights can try to talk to him. try to stop Pete? Don’t worry, if they have not
The stranger shows the Knights his ID card, stopped him in five minutes a Lictor sniper is
which identifies him as a member of the CIS. ordered to blow his head off, forcing the same
(above) chain of events into motion. A single
“Moulton was wanted in connection shot rings out and the church roof is splattered
with a drug smuggling ring. He resisted with blood, bone, and brain matter. Pete’s life-
arrest. He died. If you want more details, less body twitches once, and then falls over the
contact my office. This investigation is edge. The young girl scrabbles free and holds
terminated.” onto the roof for dear life.

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 echoes
As the Knights look down at Pete’s body the WM a handy hook for another adventure).
they spy a man in a black suit pry the artifact The museum displays the remaining piece, if
from Pete’s hand. He leaves the crime scene returned, and the exhibition proves to be very
without bother from the Lictors and departs in successful, especially with the extra media
a black car. The rest of this is as above if the coverage. Alexandra and Paige Andersen begin
Knights manage to get a tail on him. rebuilding their lives.
No matter what course of action the Later that day, the local news carries the
Knights’ take, the Knights have to gain only following story.
half the item and Pete has to die. Cheat, lie,
steal, beg, but make this happen. Why only “Welcome to the news in your area. Lic-
let them have half the relic? First, it gives the tors were forced to end a hostage situation
WM a chance to set up a follow-up adventure at Saint Mary’s Church today by shooting
with members of Project Revelation trying to dead a man armed with a knife. The man,
steal the other half. Second, it creates a mystery identified as Pete Moulton, an unemployed
for the Knights—what is the CIS’ true involve- local man, was wanted for questioning
ment? regarding the recent murder of Doctor
Michael O’Shea at the city museum. A
Lictor spokesman said there was little else
Returning the Artifacts they could do as Mr. Moulton, a known
drug addict, was about to kill his hostage,
Once Pete is dead and the Knights hold a young child who has not been identi-
half the artifact, they need to decide what to fied. The hostage was unharmed but said
do with it. Although keeping it is an option, to be in a state of near-hysteria. No other
they should consider returning it. Firstly, this suspects are wanted with regards to the
is good publicity for their Ordo and secondly murder of Doctor O’Shea.”
it may give them new contacts, either Doctor
Andersen herself or one of the museum staff. There is a small chance that a Knight and
Of course, they could return the fakes and Alexandra form a relationship over the course
swap them back before they are noticed. of this story. Use this opportunity to introduce
her as a fully developed character.
If the material is returned to Doctor Ander-
sen, she is absolutely delighted. The return of
the artifact means her work was not in vain
and the museum can display the pieces. She is
extremely grateful to the Knights, gives them
Threats and Promises
tickets to the opening gala, and responds well This scene should be inserted at an appro-
if any (male) Knight invites her out on a date. priate point in the plot, but definitely before
Of course, her daughter Paige will not like this the end sequence. It is best used after the team
one bit, nor will the Ordo, but that is something has made some headway into the investigation
the Knight will have to deal with over time. and when they are in a public place, such as a
The museum is also very grateful if the mall or restaurant. Although many teams may
Knights return the material to them. What naturally resort to guns to end the encounter,
remains of the artifact, goes on display within the mass of innocent bystanders makes this
the week. The Knights are given tickets to the impossible.
opening and the gala that follows as a sign of
A large, dark-suited man wearing mirrored
the museum’s gratitude. The museum also
shades appears beside the heroes. For a few
gives the Knights media coverage if they want
moments, he says nothing—he just stares at
it. Refusing could be a little awkward, but the
them. Then he speaks in a low tone to the
heroes should be resourceful enough to find a
Knights.
working solution.
“I’m going to say this slowly and only
once, so listen carefully. Forget about the
Aftermath museum murder. Forget you ever heard of
Doctor Andersen. Forget about the artifact.
If you persist in your current investigations
Once Pete is killed and the pieces of the your lives will be made…uncomfortable.”
artifact returned, the case is effectively over.
Trying to search for the artifacts taken by the With that, the man turns and leaves. If the
stranger results in no leads, no matter how Knights try anything, they had better be careful;
hard the Knights search—the man and the arti- the area they are in is full of innocent shoppers
facts have simply vanished into thin air (leaving or diners minding their own business. Any Knight

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
who grabs the man is roughly pushed aside and force” to bring the killer to justice, effectively
the man hisses, “Let it go” before he resumes his giving them carte blanche to shoot on site and
exit. worry about the paperwork later.
The drawing of any guns, even stunners,
is going to start a panic, involve the local What the NPC Knows…
security, and be broadcast all over the media. It
is important to the plot that no combat takes About George Weisman: “Mr. Weisman
place between the Knights and the stranger. If is an extremely influential man, a personal
weapons have been drawn and a fight looks friend of the governor and senator. His work
imminent, have the stranger pull out a portable in the local community is well known to every-
vidphone and dial the Preceptor Master. He one. He’s not a suspect in this case.”
speaks in hushed whispers before handing the About the Expedition: “I don’t know any
phone to the Knights. They are ordered to back of the details. You’d need to speak to someone
off and let the man go. at the museum for that. I do know that the
A wise party will try to tail the stranger, curse the papers mentioned is a load of crap.
hoping to gain useful information. Once out- You didn’t know about that? Some of the work-
side, the WM has several options: He can lead ers died in the final days of the dig. All natural
the Knights on a merry chase before they lose causes, apparently, but you know what the
him, he can hop into a black car that speeds off media is like. I’m surprised the censors let the
into crowded traffic, or he can simply vanish story out.”
into the crowd. Once again, the Knights should
About Doctor O’Shea: “A brutal killing.
gain no information on the stranger. He is
included simply to stir up the feeling there is One of the worst I’ve seen. Whoever did it was
more going on than the Knights realize. obviously after something in the museum. No
doubt to pay for his drug habit. Don’t worry,
we’ll catch him.”

Cast About the Artifacts: “There was nothing

of any real interest except that gold necklace,
or whatever it was. You’ll need to question
Most of the NPCs in this adventure do not
the museum staff—they’re being rather tight-
have stat blocks. Only those NPCs the heroes
lipped right now. Museum security is pretty
will be liaising with on a long-term basis or
those who are presented as antagonists have tight though, so they should be safe.”
full stat blocks. About Paige: “The Andersen girl? What
about her? We’ve had no need to question
her.”
Lictor Primus Kevin Novak About Dr. Andersen: “We’ve spoken to Dr.
Age 41; well built; grey hair and moustache; Andersen. Naturally, she’s very upset about
rarely smiles; overworked; keeps photos of his the whole incident. Don’t go bothering her.
family on his desk. Just some friendly advice from the local Lictor
Novak is a career policeman, following a Primus.” <cold stare>
family tradition that goes back three genera- About Pete Moulton: “He’s got a record as
tions. He began his career as a beat cop and long as your arm. Mainly small stuff, but he’s
quickly rose through the ranks. His skill and a known drug dealer. What does he have to do
dedication to his work earned him a transfer with this case?”
to the local SWAT team, where he stayed for six
years. He was promoted to Lictor Secundi in
his third year on the team. Typical Museum Staff
Three years ago, he was hit in the leg during
a bank robbery shoot-out. Although not badly Member
injured enough to remove him from the force, Age between 20 and 50; conservative cloth-
he was disabled enough that he had to take a ing; fair racial mix; polite; scared.
desk job for the rest of his career. His promo-
tion to full Primus status is fairly recent and this
is his first big murder case. What the NPC Knows…
Novak is a family man with five children About George Weisman: “Mr. Weisman is
and he wants the killer caught as soon as pos- an extremely generous man. He funds many
sible. He has ordered his men to use “necessary local projects, including one entire wing of the

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 echoes
museum. He’s an amateur archaeologist you About the Expedition: “A worthy endeavor.
know? I’ve never met him of course; he’s far I must confess that I was a little dubious about
too busy to visit.” its validity, but Doctor Andersen has proven
herself. A pity those four men died though.
About the Expedition: “I don’t know
much, except that it lasted six months and has Most unusual on a modern dig. You will be
been hailed as a great success by all involved. wanting to know about the curse as well, I
If you want more details, you’ll need to speak suppose? There was a famous excavation on
to Dr. Andersen. The curse that the papers Earth in the 1920s. There were some accidents
reported has always been a popular media and deaths. Well, the press immediately fabri-
joke since the 1920s.” cated the story of a curse. To be honest, until
the local media mentioned it I’d forgotten all
About Doctor O’Shea: “A terrible waste. about it. At least it shows there is one reporter
He worked here for years. Everyone knew him who knows a little something about history, I
and he was well respected. I hope his killer is suppose.”
caught soon and…well, that’s up to the legal
system.” About Doctor O’Shea: “A great loss to
the museum, his family, and the community.
About the Artifacts: “I haven’t gotten close He was a good worker, very loyal, and highly
to them. I know that there’s some pottery and talented. His loss will be mourned.”
other bits and pieces. Security is awfully tight
for a few bits of broken jugs though. I think About the Artifacts: “Although most are
that Mr. Watkins, the curator, had someone only bits of pottery, there was one special item;
offering to buy them just before the robbery. the team uncovered a golden artifact in rock
I don’t know any more details though. You’ll strata millions of years old. You know what
have to ask him.” that means, yes? Yes, that’s right, this is an
alien artifact! Don’t worry, it is quite harm-
About Paige: “Dr. Andersen’s little girl? Oh less,—our technicians ran a battery of tests. It
yes, I’ve met her. She often comes here to look seems to be ornamental.
around while her mother is working. A lovely
child, so polite and very well educated, given “Normally we would have had to inform
the circumstances. What? Oh, that’s not for me the Department of Antiquities, but our
to say.” museum is rather special. Thanks to it being
on Preceptory land, we’re immune from that
About Dr. Andersen: “A credit to the law. And you can imagine what would have
museum! Her latest work has really put us on happened if we had reported it! We’d have
the map. She’s a lovely lady as well, so kind, lost all rights immediately and it would have
and helpful. Pity she travels so much; must be ended up hidden in some archive. Aside from
hard on her daughter.” that brief glimpse on the news, no one outside
About Pete Moulton: “I don’t know a Pete the museum knew the artifact even existed. It
Moulton.” was going to be our big crowd draw.”
About Paige: “I assume you mean Doctor
Doctor Ernest Watkins Andersen’s little girl? I don’t really see much of
her. She hangs around the museum sometimes.
Age 53; tweed suit; grey hair; hazel eyes; Did you know she was on the expedition? Not
glasses; speaks in upper-class English accent. in any official capacity, of course.”
Ernest Watkins has been curator of the About Dr. Andersen: “I don’t know what
museum for 15 years. Before that, he held the I can say about her. She’s very talented and is
title of deputy curator for ten years. Ernest is an destined to go a long way. This find has really
expert on American Indian culture, specifically made her name in the field. I just hope that
that of the Navaho tribe. In his youth, he was some other museum or the Department of
an enthusiastic field archaeologist, but arthritis Antiquities doesn’t poach her from us.”
has forced him to take a back-seat role. About Pete Moulton: “I don’t know
anyone by that name. Does he work here?”
What the NPC Knows…
About George Weisman: “Mr. Weisman is
a credit to the community. His donations have
Doctor Alexandra Andersen
revitalized parts of the city. To be honest, with- Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d8,
out his aid we may have had to close down a Strength d6, Vigor d6
few years ago and sell out to the Department Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d6, Knowledge (His-
of Antiquities.” tory) d10, Intimidation d6, Investigation d8,

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Notice d8, Persuasion d8 six months investigating it. I have a full set
Charisma: +4; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: of notes if you’re interested? They’re my only
5 copy though, so you’ll have to be careful.”
Hindrances: Loyal (her daughter)
About Doctor O’Shea: “A good man. He
Edges: Very Attractive
was a family man, you know. I don’t think
Age 37; brown hair; green eyes; wears little
he had any enemies; I don’t know who would
make-up; attractive; sports casual clothes most
of the time. want to murder him. His murder was a shock
to all of us at the museum. Just shocking!”
Alexandra Andersen, nee Waiteman, was
born and bred in rural Tomaculum and as a About the Artifacts: “The gold artifact is
child developed an interest in history. As she unique and most definitely millions of years
grew, the interest became an obsession and old. I can’t give you any further explanation
by the age of 14, she had joined several local yet, not until I’ve had chance to perform a full
archaeological clubs sponsored by the Office examination. That will take a few weeks and
of Antiquities. In college, she studied Archaeol- even then I might not be able to give you a firm
ogy, as well as Egyptology and Architecture. It answer—it may just be a lump of ancient alien
was here that she met her late husband, Sam gold. There’s definitely no sign of technology
Andersen. present, at least not that we can detect.
Although highly skilled and motivated, “Do you think whoever murdered Doctor
archaeology is not a field that is easy to break O’Shea was trying to steal it? I expect the Office
into, and Alex, as she prefers to be known, of Antiquities will be annoyed. They sent an
spent years after graduation travelling to digs official around about four days ago. Said he
as a consultant and advisor. At the age of 23, was just doing some routine paperwork about
she gave birth to her only child, Paige, and the artifacts. Seemed very interested in where
whilst her daughter was young, she suspended exactly I found the object. I told him he would
her work to concentrate on researching the leg- have to wait until the official press release. He
ends of a “lost colony” believed to be located didn’t seem very happy with that. He just got
deep in the jungles of Nova Europa. up, said, “We’ll see,” and left. I’ve got a record
of his name in my diary.”
Sadly, Sam was killed when a drunk driver
hit his car and Alex had to raise Paige by herself. (Tracing the name through the Office of
Rather than farm her off to relatives, she started Antiquities reveals that no official matching the
to bring her daughter on expeditions, educat- man’s name or description works for the office,
ing her herself as best she could. She has some not are they investigating the artifacts).
guilty feelings that she has denied her daughter
About Paige: “My daughter? She has noth-
a proper childhood; they rarely remain in an
ing to do with this. She’s only a child. If you
area long enough for Paige to settle into school
think she had… Look, I think you’d better
and she has few good friends.
leave. I don’t want to answer any more ques-
Alex currently works for the local museum tions right now.”
and lives comfortably from her wages and book
sales. About Pete Moulton: “I’m sorry, I don’t
think I know anyone by that name.”

What the NPC Knows…

About George Weisman: “I don’t really
Paige Andersen
know Mr. Weisman that well. He is very well Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
known in the local community for his charity Strength d4, Vigor d6
work though. I don’t think I can tell you much Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d8, Knowledge (His-
more about him. I’ve only met him once and tory) d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d6, Persua-
all other correspondence comes though his sion d10
personal assistant.” Charisma: +4; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness:
About the Expedition: “There have 5
been rumors of a “lost colony” for years. I’ve Hindrances: Loyal (her mother), Stubborn
dedicated much of my life to researching it, (teenager)
but evidence was always hard to find. Just Edges: Very Attractive
before we set out to investigate, we received an Age 16; black hair; green eyes; well-devel-
anonymous letter, giving us precise locations. oped body; wears scruffy clothing, bad attitude
Once there, we easily located the site and spent toward authority figures.

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 echoes
Paige is the only child of Dr. Alexandra About the Artifacts: “I didn’t really have
Andersen. She is independently minded and much to do with them. Mom only brought me
far more advanced for her years, both mentally along to help catalog the smaller finds. I know
and physically, than other children her age. the big one is gold though. Probably worth a
Although she has been dragged from expedi- few Miters in the right hands as well.” <gives
tion to expedition and tutored by her mother, a teasing smile>.
she is intelligent and proud of the work her
About Alexandra: “Mom? She’s pretty
mom does. She seeks to emulate her in many
ways. upset, as you can probably guess. I just wish
the press would leave her alone. She didn’t
Although her unusual schooling has meant have anything to do with it. Say, you’re a
she has made few friends, her computer skills Knight, can’t you stop them coming around or
are quite accomplished, and she has many something?”
friends across the world through the Stream.
Basically a good girl, she has experimented About Pete Moulton: “Who’s he, another
with hacking and has made a close friend on Knight? No wait, I bet he’s on the Ten Most
the Stream, whom she knows only as “Spider.” Wanted list, isn’t he? Hell, it’s so cool knowing
you!”
Her active lifestyle has given her a well-
developed body and older boys are starting
to take an interest in her, something she has George Weisman
noticed but rejects. When she has spare time
she practices her gymnastics, reads, and plays Age 67; white; dark brown hair; grey eyes,
loud industrial music. dark business suit, well manicured.
Paige never really knew her father well, he George Weisman is head of Globe Electron-
died when she was only eight, but her mother ics, a large firm specializing in radio and radar
talks about him all the time. She is very protec- components. The firm rapidly grew and became
tive of her mother and is convinced that no man involved in military contracts. Weisman has a
can ever replace her father. Knights getting too low-level Church security clearance because of
friendly with Dr. Andersen will have to face the his military work. Aside from being a successful
tantrums of a teenage girl! businessman, Weisman is also a keen amateur
archaeologist and donates money to the local
To Knights, other than the one she has
museum, as well as numerous other charities.
taken a fancy to, she is a typical obnoxious
teen, refusing to completely co-operate, even Barely a few weeks go by without his name
when asked to by her mother. To her “favorite being linked to some worthy local cause.
Knight” she is happy to talk for hours, so long
as they are away from her mother, of course. What the NPC Knows…
About the Expedition: “The expedition
What the NPC Knows… was a great success, despite the untimely
About George Weisman: “The rich guy? deaths of four of the members. I don’t know
Yeah, I know of him. He spoke to mom about all of the details, though.”
that last dig. Never met him though. Are you About the Artifacts: “I only managed to
rich? No, you’re not allowed money, are you? catch a brief glimpse shortly after they arrived.
What’s that like, having to beg for everything I prefer to let the experts do their work before
you need?” I view any displays. Yes, they were put in the
About the Expedition: “Man was it hot! wing I sponsored. I donated the money so the
Kinda weather where wearing any clothes museum would be able to host new displays
at all makes you sweat like a pig. And not a and special exhibitions. My lawyer has all of
power outlet in sight for my datapad! It was the paperwork if you wish to check it.”
cool though, all that old stuff. I even saw the About Doctor O’Shea: “I had only met
bodies. Yuck! That freaked me out.” Doctor O’Shea briefly, at the opening of the
About Doctor O’Shea: “He worked with new wing. By his record, he was a well-talented
mom. I met his family once at a university man. I believe he leaves a wife and children
party. Man, whoever whacked him was a behind. A fund I organized several years back
real psycho! You don’t think he’ll come after will make sure that the family does not go
mom, do you? The killer I mean. You gonna be without. Mr. Jenkins has all the details if you
around to protect us?” wish to check them.”

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
About Dr. Andersen: “Alexandra Ander- About Dr. Andersen: “The archaeologist
sen? A most charming woman and excellent from the museum? She never buys anything,
company. I’ve only met her the once, but she is but if I acquired any artifacts, I’d ask her for
very hard to forget. We are lucky to have her at her opinion. They say she is very talented in
the museum. Her talents will take her a long her field.”
way in the field of archaeology.”
About Paige: “I’m sorry, who?”
About Paige: “Paige? Paige Andersen? Yes,
she was at the opening. Polite child, if a little About Pete Moulton: “I don’t know
boisterous at heart. I’m not a family man so I anyone by that name I’m afraid.”
haven’t had much experience with children. I
believe she accompanies her mother on expedi-
tions.” O’Malley
About Pete Moulton: “I don’t know Age 31; heavy build; thinning brown hair;
anyone by that name. Ask my assistant when blue eyes; grubby clothes, cigar butt in corner
you leave to check our company personnel
of mouth.
files to see if he is in there.” (He is not).
O’Malley is a low-level hoodlum, who lets
drug dealers use his bar as a selling point so long
Christopher Tovlowski as they pay him a cut of the profits. He is gener-
Age 53; average build; grey hair; glasses; ally obnoxious and loud-mouthed but, like most
well-made suit; smokes a pipe. bullies, soon backs down when people stand up
Christopher Tovlowski was born to a Polish to him.
family. His father was an antiques dealer on
Earth and later set up a shop on Salus. Chris- What the NPC Knows…
topher carried on the family trade when his
father died thirty years ago. About George Weisman: “I don’t think he
ever drinks here. Not his sort of place really.
Aside from his legal activities, Tovlowski dab-
Huh! Huh!”
bles with stolen goods and knows a few sources,
but he is generally law-abiding. The visit from the About the Expedition: “What are you on
mysterious men has made him greedy and, whilst about? I don’t keep tabs on them highfalutin’
he knows he is involved in something wrong, he academics. You gonna order or you just wast-
is willing to go through with the deal—on his ing my time, pal?”
terms!
About Doctor O’Shea: “That guy who got
wasted? Murder a minute in these parts. I’m
What the NPC Knows…
sure the pigs’ll sort it out when they stop eating
About George Weisman: “I have sold a donuts and start working for a living.”
few minor pieces to him over the years. He
rarely visits personally—he sends his lawyer, About the Artifacts: “Worthless bits of
Mr. Jenkins, if he wishes to purchase an item.” crap. You think people would have better
things to waste money on than going to see
About the Expedition: “I remember read-
ing something about it in the papers. Wasn’t it stuff like that.”
going to some first landing site or something?” About Dr. Andersen: “That sexy dame from
About Doctor O’Shea: “I read about that the museum? I saw her on the news channe;.
in the papers. Shocking to think it can happen Man, she’s got a nice ass. Shame she don’t visit
on your own doorstep, metaphorically speak- here. Reckon me and the boys could show her
ing of course.” something worth uncovering. Eh, lads?”
About the Artifacts: “I’m planning to About Paige: “Who? Look, we ain’t got no
see them when they go on display. Well, that young girls working outta here. Now, I can help
assumes that the stolen ones are returned, you find some if you want. Cost ya though.”
of course. I doubt they’ll be as good as true
antiques, you know, ones from Earth, but I’m About Pete Moulton: “Never heard of him.
sure they will be interesting in their own way.” Now, you want that drink?”

126
 echoes

Pete Moulton About the Expedition: “The angels told

me about that. Oh yeah, those deaths were
Pete is a psychopath, torn apart by the sooo cool. Wanna die, fucker? You come any
visions he has been having and his drug habit. closer and you’re fucking dead meat, pal!”
His language is for a mature audience. If playing (He actually read about this in the papers).
with younger players or those who dislike foul About Doctor O’Shea: “Who? The museum
language, temper his responses accordingly. guy? He had to die. I have a fucking destiny
and no one is gonna stop me reaching it. You
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d12,
hear me, fucker? Hey, you listening? I’m gonna
Strength d10, Vigor d10 tell the whole fucking world what I’ve seen! I
Skills: Fighting d10, Guts d10, Intimidation KNOW THE FUCKING FUTURE!”
d10, Investigation, Knowledge (Occult) d4,
Notice d6 About the Artifacts: “The dark angels sent
Charisma: –4; Pace: 6; Parry: 7; Toughness: 8 me to get it. It doesn’t belong to you! When I
Hindrances: Bloodthirsty, Death Wish (after return the artifact, they’re gonna make me a
fucking god! Just you wait ‘til they get here!”
the “gods” return), Delusional (Major), Habit
(Pete planned to steal the artifacts to pay for
(Major: heroin)
his drug habit—he knew nothing of the golden
Edges: Berserk, Improved Frenzy, Improved
artifact until he broke into the museum. His
Nerves of Steel, Level Headed confused state has caused him to believe the
Gear: Molecular knife (Str+d4+2) angels have spoken to him for much longer
Age 27; average build; unshaven; worn than they really have).
clothes; carries a small knife; homicidal.
About Paige: “Mmmm…I’d sure like some
Pete Moulton was born a criminal. From of that sweet pie. Reckon she’d go with a guy
his earliest days, he stole from friends, family, like me? Hell, I’ll make her! Just you wait until
and strangers alike. By the age of 12, he was a I ascend. Oh yeah, she’s gonna beg for more
member of a violent street gang and became a from her Uncle Petey! Did you see the mark I
drug addict at 15. Pete feeds his habit through gave her? She’s mine now! I fucking own her!”
burglary and mugging. About Dr. Andersen: “Oh yeah, fucking A-
Amongst his other bad points, Pete is also 1 body. I’ve been in her house, y’know? Wanna
thoroughly corrupted. Many years ago, he know what color her panties are, holy man?
began to hallucinate. The visions started after a Sure you do. I can see it in those lusty eyes of
particularly bad hit and they have gotten worse yours. Imagine me with her and her ripe little
since. Although not a true psion, Pete picks up daughter. You gettin’ a hard-on, hero?”
the latent hostility of the streets and it feeds his
rage and anger. He is a bitter man.
Attack Dog
When he grabbed the artifact from the
museum, he activated something within it and These are very large dogs, bred for aggres-
siveness.
began receiving visions of strange beings. He
has not understood the true meaning of the Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6 (A), Spirit d8,
visions and believes that angels are speaking to Strength d6, Vigor d8
him, telling him that he will become a god if he Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d8, Notice d10,
obeys their wishes. Stealth d6
Pace: 8; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6
What little sense of humanity and decency Special Abilities:
Pete has left urges him to kill himself. Although * Bite: Str+d6.
capable of suicide, his deranged personality will * Go for the Throat: Attack dogs instinctively
not allow it, and Pete will try to provoke the go for an opponent’s soft spots. With a
Knights into killing him, thus ending his misery. raise on its attack roll, it hits the target’s
The parts in parenthesis are WM-only infor- most weakly-armored location.
mation and should not be read to the players. * Fleet Footed: Dogs roll a d10 when
running instead of a d6.
What the NPC Knows…
About George Weisman: “The rich guy?
Lazarite Strike Team
Mr. Charity? What has he ever fucking done Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
for me, eh? His kind won’t be spared come my Strength d8, Vigor d8
ascension.” Skills: Driving d8, Fighting d8, Guts d8, Heal-

127
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
ing d8, Intimidation d8, Lockpicking d8, Notice His duties include considerably more
d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d8 than just policing the Preceptory estates, so,
Charisma: –2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: except in the smallest Preceptory, he appoints
10(4) a deputy. The deputy, a Sergeant Commander,
Hindrances: Loyal, Mean runs the day-to-day policing. He holds the title
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Rock and Roll Lictor Primus while in office. In modern terms,
Gear: Light armor (+4), 12mm SMG with two he is effectively the Chief of Police.
AP magazines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8,
Depending on the size of the settlements
Auto, AP 6), three filament grenades (Range:
in the estate, a number of Lictor Secundi (the
5/10/20, Damage: 3d8, AP 4, MBT), one stun
equivalent of precinct captains), may assist
grenade (Range: 5/10/20, MBT, see Necropo-
him. A town generally has one Lictor Secundus
lis Update), one screamer grenade (Range:
for every 20,000 souls.
5/10/20, MBT, see Necropolis Update), molecu-
lar knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2), headset communi- The police on the street are Sergeants.
cator, medpac Smaller Preceptories rotate Sergeants from
the combat-ready stock, whereas larger ones
have a permanent force of Sergeants purely
Update: Policing for policing civilians. These carry the title
Lictor Sergeant. Although they retain 10-man
The details on law enforcement in Necropo- Lances, these are divided into five pairs. Lictor
lis 2350 cover dioceses and archdioceses, but Sergeants are armed as regular Sergeants, but
not Preceptories. In accordance with their being also carry batons, stunners, and, in riot duties,
immune to standard Church law, the Ordines shields.
have managed to extend certain rights to the Knights sent on policing duties fill an
citizens who serve them. In this particular awkward position. Although they are expected
instance, that is the right to be policed by the to show due respect to the Lictor Primus and
local Preceptory, not the regular Curia-backed Secundi, their title means they are actually
police, and be judged not in the Bishop’s Court only directly answerable to the Preceptor Intel-
but by a council of Knights. ligence Officer, a fellow Knight. In most cases,
Naturally, the Curia has complained bitterly the PIO waives this responsibility to the Lictor
that bishops should retain authority over all Primus, meaning the Knights actually serve
citizens, regardless of where they live. How- under a Sergeant, albeit an experienced one.
ever, the Knights also have the right to ship any The typical roles Knights fulfill are that of
criminal to the Bishop’s Court for trial. special investigators and tactical strike teams.
Most petty cases are handed over to the bish- Being of sterner moral fiber, they are also
ops, if only because it creates less administrative called on to handle cases involving heresies,
work for the Ordines and promotes good will. something to which the Inquisition vocifer-
Major cases are generally heard in the Precep- ously objects.
tory, as it is an excuse for the Knights to prove Every Preceptory’s police force is served
their loyalty to the Church and to gain some PR by at least one representative from the Office
with the general populace (who often fear a trial of the Bishop’s Attorney. They are on hand
by Knights means an immediate guilty verdict to ensure suspects have access to legal rep-
because of the Ordines’ strict vows). resentation, to make sure the Ordines follow
There is also the matter of one-upmanship. the letter and spirit of the law when dealing
On more than one occasion in the past, Knights with criminals, and to try to secure a trial in
have caught a dangerous criminal and handed the Bishop’s Court. Since they serve the Curia,
him over for trial to the Bishop’s Court, only to legal representatives are viewed as potential
have their role in his capture be heavily down- spies and troublemakers by default.
played in the media. Administrative duties are handled by
civilians from the local estate, thus providing
Structure citizens with honest jobs. All citizens serving in
this manner are carefully vetted. Any criminal
The senior law enforcement officer in any record prohibits a citizen from serving with the
Preceptory is the Preceptor Intelligence Officer, police.
a senior Knight whose position accords him the
same respect, but not actual rank, as a Knight
Commander. Although he is outranked by the
Preceptor Master, the Preceptor Master rarely, if
ever, gets involved in his subordinate’s work.

128
 Handout #1:
Museum Security Camera Footage
The camera, apparently situated above the main doors to the Weisman Wing, covers most
of the central exhibit area. Low-level lighting illuminates the area. The time stamp reads
0215 hours. The scene remains unchanged until 0219, when a man dressed in casual clothing
enters frame. The playback is a little fuzzy and his features are not easily recognizable.
He is clearly not a museum staff member on duty, as he constantly whips his head left and
right as if looking for someone. He makes his way over to the golden artifact brought back
by Doctor Andersen’s team and leans over to get a closer look.
Suddenly he spins around, obviously disturbed by something he has heard. At the bottom
of the frame, another man enters. His dress and manner seem to indicate that he is a
staff member, although not a security guard. He walks up to the intruder, his right hand
outstretched and his index finger pointing towards the exhibit.
The intruder lunges for the display case and knocks it to the floor. He reaches down for
the artifact, just as the staff member charges him and they both hit the ground. A brief
scuffle ensues in which the staff member is pushed aside. The intruder reaches for the
artifact...and the playback suddenly goes blank.
The whiteout continues for almost fifteen minutes and just as quickly as it began, it
stops, revealing the exhibit room again. The room is a mess, with broken display cases and
artifacts strewn across the floor. The staff member lies near the case that held the golden
object, a dark stain surrounding him. On the back wall, writing can just be made out in the
dim light. There is no sign of the intruder. The time stamp reads 0234 hours.
 Handout #3:
Mr. Jenkins
Personal Details: Jenkins, Samuel Michael Clarence. Born 2298, Martha’s Vineyard,
Maine, Earth. No surviving family.
Salus Arrival: 2314.
Reason for Earth Departure: Transfer of father (died 2315 in automobile acci-
dent)—Church Colonial Administrator in now defunct Office of Colonial Affairs.
Education: No records surviving before 2314. Attended Church school in New Vatican
City on Church scholarship. Graduated Vatican Law School with honors 2324.
Ordo Service: Entered Ordo Lazari Sancti 2325. Achieved rank Senior Knight 2330.
Promoted to Preceptor Estate Officer 2331. Transfer to frontline Preceptory by own
request 2335; served as Preceptor Administrator. Left Ordo 2338.
Civil Employment: Joined Office of Supreme Justice, Office of the Pontifical Court
2338 on personal invitation of Pope. Joined Globe Electronics, a Church-backed
company, as corporate lawyer in 2342. Promoted to head of Legal Division 2347.
Criminal Record: No known criminal record.
 ECHOES
HANDOUT #2: CRIMINAL RECORD SHEET

Name: Peter Moulton

Aliases: Pete Moulton, Weird Pete, Peter Molton
Last Known Address: Church correctional facility

Age: 26; Height: 5’ 11”; Weight: 164 pounds

Build: Average; Hair: Brown, dark; Eyes: Green
Racial Type: Caucasian
Distinguishing Marks: Two-inch scar on upper left forearm
Criminal Record:
Possession of Controlled Substances (2344)—fine 500M
Petty Theft (2344)—30 days imprisonment
Aggravated Assault (2344)—3 years imprisonment
Possession of Controlled Substances (2348)—fine 1000M
Willful Destruction of Public Property (2349)—fine 500M and 100 hours
community service. Final warning issued.
Subject is scheduled for reeducation upon next arrest.

25
NECROPLIS 2350
HANDOUT #6: CORONER’S REPORT

Subject: White male, early Thirties, height 5’ 9”, weight

on arrival 218 pounds, blood group A positive, appendix scar,
small scar on left arm indicates animal wound in past. Subject
identified by contents of wallet.
Findings: The victim shows multiple
wounds on his hands and chest. Hand wounds
are mainly slashes and indicate he was
trying to defend himself during the early
stages of the attack. Wounds to chest
puncture heart and lungs. A total of 137
individual external wounds present. The
wounds are ragged,
Possibly inflicted by a dull-edged
weapon of approximately four-inch length.
Attempt to remove heart has resulted in
several ribs being broken and pulled
outwards. Twelve internal stab wounds to
organs. Subject missing roughly four pints
of blood. Cause of blood loss is defi-
nitely the puncture wounds and attempted
extraction. Time of death put at between
0200 and 0300 this morning.

26
 ECHOES
HANDOUT #4: BUSINESS CARD #1 HANDOUT #5: BUSINESS CARD #2

HANDOUT #7:
GEORGE WEISMAN
Personal Details: George Carlton Weisman, born Mjollnir Colony, Midgard,
2283
Salus Arrival: Native
Reason for Earth Departure: N/A
Education: Graduated Midgard University 2300 with Honors degree in Elec-
tronic Engineering.
Military Service: Joined Asgard Army Signal Intelligence as 1st Lieuten-
ant in 2302. Served one four-year tour achieving rank of Captain. Left
with honorable discharge. Moved to Nova Europa 2308.
Civil Employment: Founded Globe Electronics 2312. Current personal wealth
valued at 126 million Miters. Donates large sums of money to local chari-
ties and Curia causes. Keen amateur archaeologist. Holds Level Two Church
security clearance due to business contracts.
Criminal Record: No known criminal record.
//Appended notes on Globe Electronics.//
Globe Electronics is a firm specializing in radio and radar systems.
Currently valued at 5 billion Miters. Total workforce estimated at 5,700
across Salus. Globe Electronics performs classified military work for the
Church on long-range radar systems and low frequency communication. All
projects are rated at Top Secret or higher. Current projects classified
under Project Narrow Focus. The CIS has been notified of your search.

HANDOUT #8:
STREAM MESSAGE
From: Simon Hiscox <[email protected]>
To: “[email protected]”
Subject: Sales Inquiry
Am looking for unusual artifacts, specifically golden amu-
lets, armbands, etc. For private collector with money to
spend.
Regards,
Simon Hiscox

27
 tales from the front
line one
introduction WM Note: This mission introduces two
new forms of Rephaim (Necroscope and SBAC-
ula) and two zombie variants (grenadier and
Welcome to Tales from the Frontline! This sniper). The latter do not count as new forms
mission pack contains a complete adventure, a of Rephaim for the purposes of successfully
shorter mission, and three quick tales written completing the mission—they’re just regular
for the Necropolis 2350 campaign setting. If you zombies with a defined role in the armies of
intend to play in these missions, you should darkness.
stop reading now. Advanced knowledge of
the scenarios will only spoil your enjoyment of
the game. There’s also a quick set of rules for
designing non-combat missions. Briefing
The WM should read each adventure before
Preceptories operate 24-hours a day every
play begins. Knowing the basic flow and details
day of the year. The Lance receives orders to
in advance will greatly speed up play and make
attend a briefing late one evening. Read the
the game run smoother.
information in Player Handout #1 to the group,
and then give them a copy of the briefing. Hand
Required Materials them Player Handout #2 at the same time.
You need a copy of the Savage Worlds rule The GM should ensure that no Knight has
book and the Necropolis: 2350 Savage Setting. a backpack radio. The quartermaster refuses to
The Necropolis Figure Flats are highly recom- issue one, as their mission doesn’t call for it.
mended. It’s also a heavy piece of kit, and the Knights are
under orders to travel light.
Characters In the briefing room are four other
Knights—the Lance’s support team. Operating
Each adventure is designed around a squad
the APC are Knights Fitzroy Malhoon and Oskar
of four Knights of Seasoned Rank. For larger
Nuttall. The Nephilim pilot is Senior Knight
groups or more experienced characters, the
Elisabeta Bogdanovich, head of her Lance. She
WM should adjust the number and stats of
is assisted by Knight Wayne Jennings. All the
opponents appropriately to create an excit-
NPCs use stats for Knight Vehicle Crew (see
ing challenge. Use the archetypes from the
page 157) and are Templars. Create Ally Sheets
Necropolis 2350 setting book if you need
for the APC crew.
pre-generated characters. Each archetype has
been designed as a starting character, and thus Once the briefing is over, the Knights are
should be awarded four advancements (to ordered to return to their barracks and get as
bring it to 20 XPs). much sleep as possible—they’ll be woken at
0400 hours the next morning.

Snatch and Grab Tall Stories

This mission begins as a “simple” opera- As the Knights enter the barracks, their
tion to grab Rephaim specimens, but quickly comrades probe them for information about
involves the Knights in an attempt to rescue their mission. Several Knights have been into
civilians left behind in enemy territory for a Olisipo on similar raids, and most all know of
decade. someone who has gone there.

135
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Lances preferred to set up a static base and
Nephilim Dropship hunt for Rephaim further afield on foot.
There’s plenty of cover in the ruined build-
The big brother of the ubiquitous ings, and ambushes have proven successful
Angel, the Nephilim is a vehicle in the past—any common Rephaim are
transporter. Its cargo bay can hold one
gunned down quickly, leaving the target
Prophet APC or one light tank (Flagel-
lant, Nazareth, Proverb, or Purifier), specimen isolated.
three Sinai, or six Daniel quad bikes. The Knights can make Streetwise rolls to
No passenger seats are installed, so pry a little more information about the city.
crews must sit inside their vehicles
With success, roll a d6 and read aloud one of
during the journey.
the stories below. On a raise, they learn two
Its weapons are described in terms of random stories.
air support. See Necropolis 2350 for
details on how these work. Nephilim d6 Result
rarely serve in a support role, though.
1 “I was there a few years back. Man, it
Instead, they unleash their weapons
as they come into land or take off, was creepy. I kept hearing these ghostly
driving back enemy forces or clearing voices over my headset communicator,
obstructions. but no one else did. The Senior Knight
reckoned it was a malfunction, but
Acc/Top Speed: 30/250; Toughness:
40 (24); Handling: +0; Crew: 2 I’m not so sure. That place is full of
ghosts.”
Notes: AMCM x 4, Fixed Gun, Heavy
Armor, Night Vision 2 “A friend of mine went into the city back
along. He swore blind something was
Weapons:
watching them. He said it was human-
* Flechette chain gun (nose) oid and moved fast, but he never got a
* Rockets x10 (30mm) clear look. Could have been a shadow, I
* Rockets x2 (200mm) suppose, or a trick of the light.”
3 “Never again! We were on a night mis-
Modified Job Supply Truck sion. It was black as pitch and we heard
a baby crying. Man, it was freaky. We
The four holding tanks have Tough-
ness 17. Thus, only a creature with hunted around, but we didn’t find
Strength d12+5 or higher can escape, anything. Put the fear into my Lance
and even then not easily. for sure.”
Acc/Top Speed: 6/25; Toughness: 4 “Hey, you guys remember Knight
25/20/20 (15/10/10); Handling: +0; Artillerist Andropov? Big guy, bald as
Crew: 2+6 a coot. Yeah, well, he told me he saw
Notes: Heavy Armor, Night Vision something real big flying over the city
Weapons: during a thunderstorm. His Senior
Knight radioed the Dropship, but there
* 30mm autocannon turret mounted was nothing on its radar.”
(40 rounds)
5 “They send you in light on ammo to stop
* 2 x Passover 6cm AT missile tubes
you getting the urge to go ballistic and
(no reloads)
start a fight. We had one kid, he’s dead
now, got the jitters as soon as we left the
APC. He blew through three magazines
Heroes who mention the nature of their
before we’d gone 20 yards. Idiot was
mission are rewarded with a few snippets of
information. Regardless of whom they converse shooting at shadows.”
with, the Knights get the feeling there is more 6 “I heard one Lance set up camp over-
to their tales than the speaker is letting on. night in ruined buildings. Things kept
The docklands’ streets are choked with vanishing or moving around when no
abandoned vehicles and rubble. APCs one was looking. Got the entire Lance so
don’t maneuver well in the debris, so most scared they abandoned the mission.”

136
 tales from the frontline one

Entering the City the order is given does the Prophet roar into
life, its heavy tires squealing as they seek grip
on the slick metal deck.
The morning drill is no different to any
other mission—wash, dress, eat, grab weap- As soon as the Prophet is clear, the
ons, and load up. By 0530 hours the Knights Nephilim’s engines roar. Like a bloated bird, it
are strapped into the uncomfortable seats in blasts off into the sky, heading back north.
the modified Prophet, which in turn is inside
the Nephilim.
Nosing Around
“Good morning,” chirps Bogdanovich
in a voice far too lively for the time of day. Use the Survivors map from Necropolis
“Weather radar shows low cloud and light 2350 for the docklands, but litter the bat-
showers over the drop zone, but nothing tlefield with rubble and wrecked vehicles.
rough. Estimated touchdown is 0645 hours Resting against one of the wharves, tilted over
local time. We’ll be coming in fast and to one side, is a damaged freighter. Stretching
braking late. If you’ve had a big breakfast, off to the east and north are more streets. The
grab a bag. You puke over my floor, you Prophet begins on the only crossroads. The
Knights begin inside the Prophet.
clean it up.
No building has a roof, most have gaping
“Senior Knight, please make sure the
holes in the walls, there isn’t an intact pane of
APC is ready to bail out the moment we hit
glass in sight, and most structures show signs
dirt—we don’t want to be on the ground
of intense burning. Great piles of debris and
a second longer than necessary. Give us a
deep craters block the roads, as do the remains
second for final checks, and we’ll get you
of abandoned vehicles. The wrecked freighter
airborne.” is lying on its side, having suffered a hit from
The journey is bumpy, but the turbulence a bomb.
is minimal. Bogdanovich continually updates The characters are now free to explore their
the Senior Knight on their progress. After an surroundings for an hour or so of game time.
hour, she informs the mission commander to There’s plenty of ruined buildings for them
get ready—the city is coming up fast. to nose around in, as well as the damaged
Video feedback from the gun camera freighter. No buildings contain anything of any
to the Senior Knight’s position shows the great interest or value. The Knights don’t know
blackened, withered ground typical of a this, of course, and Rephaim could be lurking
Dead Zone. Up ahead, you can just make anywhere.
out the shattered remains of the warehouses Before the Rephaim turn up (see below),
and buildings of the old docklands. Giant one Knight picked at random begins to hear
cranes, bent, buckled, and twisted, claw ghostly voices over his headset communicator.
upward like skeletal fingers. He can’t make out any words (the signal is too
Stretching out from the city toward weak) just the impression of voices. Have the
Tomaculum is the overgrown and cratered Knight make a Guts roll as well. With failure,
ruin of Highway 23D. Hundreds of burnt he suffers the effects of Fear until after Scene
out vehicles litter the highway. 3 is complete. No other Knight can hear the
voices, even if the Knights lends a comrade his
The Nephilim drops low, but doesn’t communicator.
reduce speed. The Prophet driver starts
the engine. Bogdanovich’s voice crackles
over your headset communicators. “Touch
down in 5, 4, 3…” Contact Made
The pilot kicks the thrusters into reverse Whenever the group is suitably split
as she wrestles the bulky Dropship to the between locales or is getting bored of search-
ground. A sudden increase in gravity slams ing empty ruins, have the Rephaim attack. A
you into your seats, and everything starts small patrol stumbles across the Knights during
to fade to black. a routine sweep.
Have the Knights make Vigor rolls. Those The Rephaim enter from the northern
who fail momentarily black out, leaving them edge of the map. The unlimited possibilities
Shaken. As is typical of the chain of command for the dispersal of the Knights makes exact
in the Ordines, the Prophet driver waits for placement in the adventure impossible. Place
orders to clear the landing ramp. Only when them in whatever position the first Knight can

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
see them. In some instances this might be at A large shape, black, serpentine, and
a great distance, while in others the Rephaim winged, drops through the cloud directly
could be practically adjacent. above the descending Dropship. With a
Deal action cards and let battle commence. sickening crash it slams into the Nephilim,
Remind the heroes, if necessary, that they its clawed legs tearing through the
are seeking new specimens for capture—the armored frame like it was made of butter.
Ordines want them alive, not shot to pieces. Bogdanovich reverses the thrusters, trying
to gain altitude, but the creature attached
As well as providing the Knights with two to the Dropship has made it unstable and
new forms of Rephaim to capture—a Necro- too heavy.
scope and a SBACula—the attackers should
try to deprive the Knights of their Prophet. The beast opens its mouth and rips into
The SBACula has the power to do this, but is the cockpit. As it does, it unleashes a blast
likely to make itself a prime target for elimina- of hellfire directly into the crew compart-
tion. Should it be killed, the GM can bring a ment. The Dropship shudders, wobbles like
single exploding corpse into play. It emerges a wounded bird, and begins to plummet
from the ruins somewhere within 10” of the earthward!
APC and tries to get close. When it gets within Give each hero one round to start running
blast range, it detonates! Don’t panic if the APC in whatever direction they want. Knights who
remains intact—there’s another way to destroy
want to guess the likely impact point must
the vehicle coming up soon.
make a Notice roll. A multi action penalty
In the event the new Rephaim are gunned applies as normal if the hero also wants to run
down, roll as you would any normal Extra to in the same round.
see if they are truly dead or whether they are
The Nephilim is actually heading for the
just Incapacitated. So long as one is alive, the
Prophet. No matter where it is or how fast it
Knights can bag him and call their mission a
success. moves, the APC gets crushed by the spinning
wreck as it careers through the debris, carrying
Should both be slain, repeat the attack its Rephaim load with it.
a short while later—the sounds of the fight
(flechettes are silent, but grenades and SBACs Roll a d12 and read it like a clockface. Then
are not) alert other Rephaim. Don’t repeat the roll 3d10 and count this many inches in the
process a third time, though. Necropolis isn’t a indicated direction. This is where the mangled
setting where the heroes always win. No matter Nephilim comes to rest (it smashes through
where in the docklands the Knights search, any buildings in its path). It then explodes for
there just aren’t any more Rephaim present. 5d10 damage in a Large Burst Template. The
Sooner or later they’ll call for evacuation. Rephaim, actually a hell beast, is destroyed in
the explosion, as is the APC (and probably its
Knight Vehicle Crew (2): See page 157. crew).
Necroscope: See page 159.
SBACula: See page 159. We Need a Radio
Zombies (2 per hero): See page 159.
The nearest Preceptory is 75 miles away,
Exploding Corpse: See page 158. far beyond the range of the headset commu-
nicators worn by the characters. Unless they
Rain of Fire fancy walking through Dead Zone Beta, they’ll
need to find a powerful radio transmitter. For-
The Dropship is within radio range when- tunately, the city was large enough to have a
ever the Knights require evacuation. In the media broadcast center for both television and
event they are getting hammered, it can provide radio. The Knights would know this, as Church
air support, but only for a single round. As the cities tend to follow the same pattern. Unfortu-
Dropship comes in, read aloud the following nately, it was located in the core city, which is
text. five miles south of the docks.
The Nephilim roars into view through The Knights have no idea exactly where the
the low cloud. Bogdanovich wiggles it from station was located, but such buildings tend to
side to side to indicate she’s spotted you. be in the administrative part of the city, and the
The thrusters scream into life as it begins telltale dishes should be visible once they get
its rapid descent. into the ruins.

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 tales from the frontline one
The APC is beyond repair, but some of is appropriate. At best, they Knights encounter
the abandoned vehicles might be in running 1d4 patrols each of 2d10 zombies of skeletons.
order. Scavenging enough parts to get a single At worst, they may face tanks or powerful
car working requires a Repair roll at –2. With Rephaim out hunting.
success, the wreck runs long enough for them
to reach the radio tower. A failure means the
group is going to have to walk through enemy
territory.
Radio Gaga
Should the party elect to start walking the Debris and abandoned cars make the going
75 miles home, the GM should have them slow along the highway, but fortunately there
attacked by whatever Rephaim forces he feels are no Rephaim present. Once they enter the

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suburbs, the Knights quickly spot the radio Zombie Grenadier: See page 160.
mast. Despite the heavy damage all around, the
Zombies (2 per hero): See page 159.
facility looks largely undamaged.
One of the outer walls has been reduced to
rubble. Behind it is a series of offices, the fur- Calling Home
niture destroyed and scattered. The transmitter
machinery is in a room behind this. There’s a Once the radio transmitter is repaired, the
communicator set almost identical in design Knights can call home and report on the situ-
to a backpack radio in the same room, used ation. Once they’ve told their story, read the
by technicians to broadcast test signals after following text to the group.
repairs. However, several of the circuit boards “Roger. We confirm loss of Prophet
are fried, and a few key elements have been
and request for immediate evacuation.
struck by debris. It’s not a major repair job, but
An Angel is on its way. Get yourselves to
it’ll take a few minutes.
the top of the tallest building in the city.
Place ten counters in front of the Knight You’ll be picked up from there. Repeat. The
making the repairs. Each raise removes one streets are deemed to unsafe. Get to high
token, while a raise reduces the total by two. ground and await rendezvous. Wait just a
Multiple raises have no additional effect. When second…
the last token is removed, the radio is ready to
use. Each roll can be made in a single round, “Command has ordered you to ensure
as it’s really a matter of swapping circuit boards your primary mission is complete. I repeat,
and some spot soldering to connect wires. your primary mission must be complete.
Secure specimen for evacuation with you.”
Time, though, is something the Knights
don’t currently have. Once the Knights have
made their first successful Repair roll, a
Rephaim patrol stumbles upon them, having
been alerted by the sound of the car gunning
Survivors
through the city streets. Whether the Knights are en route to the
The front of the communication suite meas- tallest building in the city or have lost the radio
ures 24” long and is a low wall with a dense station and are simply moving on in search of
rubble field (8” long) in front. Treat moving new hunting grounds, the Knight who earlier
through this as difficult ground. The office is 6” heard voices over his headset communicator
deep and filled with debris (difficult ground). now hears the same voice again, only this time
All that separates the office from the electronics it’s clearer.
is a thin partition wall (Armor +3).
“Hello? Is there anybody there? Please
If the Knights posted sentries in the outer help us. We’re under attack. Junction of Leo
office, the Rephaim are spotted 24” away. Oth- V and 11th.”
erwise, check for Surprise when the Rephaim
reach the rubble outside the offices. Trying to respond is unsuccessful. It’s up to
the characters if they want to investigate or not.
Any shots fired into the building have a Using the remaining street signs, the Knights
chance of damaging the electronics. A Shooting know they are on Lando and 14th.
roll which comes up 1 and doesn’t hit an Inno-
cent Bystander instead penetrates the wall. Being of circular design, most cities use the
Draw a single card from the action deck for same naming convention. Streets which follow
regular firearms, and two cards if the weapon the concentric shape of the city use numbers.
has a template effect (like a SBAC) or is a Heavy The lower the number, the nearer it is to the
Weapon. center.
If any card comes up a black numbered Avenues, known as spokes, radiate outward
one, the machinery is hit. Add a token to in straight lines. These are named after popes
the repairer’s pile. A black face card means of old. Traditionally, all papal names used must
2 markers must be added. If the number of correspond to the order the popes sat on the
tokens exceeds 15, the machinery is too badly throne, and naming runs clockwise. Thus, if a
damage to repair—the characters will need to city wants to use Pope Jean-Paul I as a spoke
devise a new plan. For this reason, it may prove name, the clockwise spoke must be Jean-Paul II
necessary for the technician to spend his time (his antecedent), while the one anti-clockwise
making Repair rolls. (assuming Jean-Paul I isn’t the first spoke used)
SBACula: See page 159. would be Paul VI (his predecessor).

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 tales from the frontline one
Since this city follows the traditional
procedure, the group needs to head three
The Survivors’ Story
streets toward the city center and three spokes After the rescue, the “headman,” Jeff
across. Koenig, approaches the Knights and introduces
The Knights don’t have to respond in order himself. There’s no set way Koenig feels about
to complete their mission. They may believe the the Knights. GMs can either pick his attitude,
signal is a trap, or that it’s an old recording. The determine it randomly, or let the experience of
survivors will eventually be rescued, though the players (not the characters) determine his
they’ll be fewer in number, and the characters mood.
will have to live with the fact they didn’t follow If the players are experienced gamers,
up the signals and help save lives. Koenig should be hostile—this creates more
opportunities for roleplaying. If they’re new to
Firefight gaming, have Koenig friendly—it encourages
the players to roleplay, rather than forcing it on
The voice belongs to one of a group of them by having a confrontation.
survivors. They’ve spent the last decade eking Alternately, roll on the Reaction Table to
out a living, surviving on canned food well past determine Koenig’s initial feelings toward
its use by date, and sneaking around to avoid the group (and the Ordines in general). This
the Rephaim. Unfortunately, a roving Rephaim should come across in his greeting—he’s either
patrol has discovered one of their hideouts, going to be rude, apathetic, or friendly. The
one crammed with woman and children, and heroes get a single Persuasion roll to alter his
are launching an attack. Knowing they can’t mood, if they so wish. Once his final mood is
let the women and children be captured, the determined, read the relevant section below.
menfolk are prepared to sell their lives dearly.
As the heroes approach, they hear the dis- Hostile/Uncooperative
tinctive sounds of SBAC fire echoing through
the streets, as well as blasts from shotguns (the After introducing himself he invites
militia looted sporting goods stores). the group to follow him down a manhole.
Clambering down the ladder, the Knights
Use the Street by Street map from Necrop- find themselves in an old cistern. It’s now a
olis 2350 (but without the tanks and enemy slum, the sides supporting makeshift shelters.
placement markers) to get the basic layout. The stench is sickening, as are the appalling
Scatter copious amounts of rubble around. conditions in which the citizens live. Woman,
The citizens are sheltering behind a makeshift children, and babies huddle in the shadows,
barricade of barrels and rubble (Armor +4) clutching their few meager possessions. Any
which have been placed to block off the lower Knight with Healing has the opportunity to
crossroads and turn it into a fort. treat some minor injuries and infections.
The militia is inside the fort. Half the regular There’s an air of resentment simmering in
zombies and two grenadiers are approach- the air. The citizens aren’t stupid enough to
ing from the north, and begin 16” away. The attack the Knights, but they may spit or curse at
remaining zombies are split between the east them for abandoning them.
and west roads leading to the crossroads, and
start 12” away. Two snipers have taken up posi- “You see how we’ve had to live since
tion inside one of the buildings—it doesn’t the Ordines abandoned us here?” Koenig
matter which one, so long as they have line of shouts. “We’ve lived like rats in these stink-
sight to the barricade. The Knights begin at the ing tunnels! Disease and starvation have
southern end of the map. claimed God knows how many lives! Why
didn’t you come back? Why didn’t you
Because of the militia’s very limited amount check there weren’t any more survivors
of ammunition, each player should keep a very being you upped and left? Damn it, we’ve
careful track of the ammo level of the militia been sending out radio broadcasts every
he controls during the fight. Each pair begins time we hear a Dropship, but no, you’re
at High ammo level. Afterward, the militia loot too busy fighting your war to worry about
fallen zombies for their SMGs. the citizens! For the love of God, you aban-
Militia (2 per hero): See page 157. doned us to the Rephaim!”
Zombie Grenadiers (2): See page 160. Koenig is willing to cooperate with the
Knight only so far as being shown to the pickup
Zombies (4 per hero): See page 159.
point. He won’t obey orders, nor will the
Zombie Snipers (2): See page 160. citizens, and they don’t benefit from any Lead-

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
ership Edges in combat. Throughout the rest of “I tell you, had you arrived in the first
the adventure Koenig snaps at any Knights who year after we went underground we’d
try to placate him, calling them cowards and likely have killed you in anger. But time’s
traitors to humanity. a great healer. We realize now we had our
chance to escape, and had you known we
were here you’d have been back in force
Neutral to rescue us. A few went bad and started
As above, except the citizens fall into two heretical preaching. As much it shames me
camps. The first are afraid of the Knights, to say it, we dealt with them in accordance
sheltering in their ramshackle shelters and with the law. Still, I’m sure we’d all appre-
peering out through racks. The second camp ciate absolution for our sins if you’ve got a
is more open, but lacks any feelings toward the Chaplain to hand.
Knights–a decade of deprivation has less them “We’ve got an old radio, but it hasn’t
shell-shocked and without much faith in the got much range. Sometimes we hear Drop-
Ordines. ships overheard, so we try to call for help.
“So you finally turned up, eh?” Koenig So far everyone’s ignored us. If you’re
says. “Took your time, but I guess we should getting pulled out, you’ve got to take the
be grateful. I guess those radio broadcasts women and children at least. They can’t
finally got through to someone. I take it stay here—it’s too dangerous and too
you’ve got a plan to get us out of here? My damned undignified.
people have spent ten years in this hell If the heroes had to abandon the radio
hole living like rats just to stay alive. It’s a station before broadcasting a distress call, the
damned miracle we survived at all!” citizens’ radio set is a battered backpack radio.
Koenig follows any orders, but only so It needs repairs (Repair roll at –2) before it can
long as he doesn’t feel the Knight are placing communicate with the Preceptory. Otherwise,
it’s just a headset communicator they scav-
his people in danger. None of the citizens are
enged off a fallen Knight during the invasion.
willing to risk their lives now they’re so close
to rescue, but they’ll fight if there is no other Koenig works with the Knights to get the
option. survivors ready to move out. If the Knights
don’t advise them to leave behind any non-
The citizens don’t have a huge supply of
essential goods, Koenig does so.
drugs or bandages available, but they provide
basic first aid to wounded heroes. Each Knight The citizens provide healing as above,
benefits from a single Healing d6 attempt (they except they roll a d8+2 Healing (they’re willing
have other sick and injured to attend to, so to provide better aid, albeit at the expense of
can’t spare the time or resources for further their own people). Any character succeeding in
rolls). a Notice roll before he receives first aid detects
civilians in need of dire medical aid, and can
refuse to be treated.
Friendly/Helpful
As Hostile/Uncooperative, except the
citizens are pleased to see the Knights. The A Potential Disaster
wretches paw at them, thanking them profusely Assuming the Knights contacted the Pre-
for rescuing them. ceptory, they know there’s a single Angel en
“You have no idea how good it is to route to rescue them. An Angel can hold 18
see you guys!” Koenig beams. “We’ve been Knights in full combat gear, or 36 passengers
here since the evacuation. We got cut off for a short and very crowded flight. At a push,
and hid out until the relief column came, you can cram 50 into the hold, but that gen-
but it never did. Before we knew it the city erates weight problems and makes the Angel
was abandoned and we were here to stay. extremely hard to handle—few pilots will fly
A few groups tried to make it out on foot with such a load.
or in vehicles, but no one ever came back The number of civilians comes to 18
to rescue us. We figured they’d failed to children (all below the age of 14), 22 women,
reach the border. So we’ve lived like rats and 20 men (after any losses in the battle are
for ten years, scavenging canned food from accounted for), or 60 in total—far too many for
wrecked shops, drinking rainwater, and a single Angel, even operating in emergency
trying to avoid detection. conditions.

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 tales from the frontline one
Unless the Knights head back to the radio lend support only if the Knights are in serious
transmitter and summon a second Angel, folks trouble or the woman and children are threat-
are going to be left behind on the first run. Do ened.
not remind the heroes of this—the players
With no power, the elevators don’t work.
have access to the Angel stats in the Necropolis
The only way to reach the roof is to climb the
2350 campaign guide, and they can always ask
30 flights of stairs! Although the passage of so
the GM (you should tell them the cold, hard
many feet alerts the Rephaim to the humans’
facts) if unsure about the maximum load.
presence, they are too slow to react. Unless
the characters go looking for trouble, they can
Fighting Men reach the rooftop without further incident.
Militia (2 per hero): See page 157.
The count of 20 male survivors takes into
account any slain in the previous battle. In later Zombie Grenadier: See page 160.
battles, there are always 2 militiamen per hero. Zombies (2 per hero): See page 159.
Any casualties are replaced from the extra men,
but only to a maximum of 20. For instance,
if there are six Knights, the number of militia
aiding them at any one time equals 12. This
Rooftop Rescue
leaves 8 spare men to replace casualties. As the heroes reach the top of the high-rise,
the Angel pilot contacts them to alert them to
his imminent arrival. There isn’t room for him

Last Stand to land on the roof, and he can’t guarantee the

structure will take he weight, so he plans to
drop the ramp and hover just off to one side.
The tallest buildings left standing are in the All the Knights have to do is hop onboard. If
inner residential district. Once the penthouses a second Angel hasn’t been summoned, the
of the elite, they are now shattered ruins. Many pilot calls for emergency support as soon as he
have been gutted by fire or are so badly dam- learns there are citizens present.
aged they are in danger of collapse, but one has
remained remarkably intact. By the time the The Rephaim, however, aren’t going to let
Knights reach the foyer, the Dropship is only the humans escape that easily. A small force of
minutes away. zombies has managed to shamble up the stair-
well and onto the roof. As the first Angel takes
If you want detailed floorplans, look no up position, they emerge from the stairwell
further than 12 to Midnight’s Modern Floor- and open fire. The Angel pilot won’t depart to
plans: High-Rise Building. provide air support—he’s focused on saving as
many civilians as possible. Should the Knights
Foyer have let the Preceptory know about the survi-
vors, the second Angel provides air support
The only entrance to the tower not clogged using its guns (and only its guns) until the first
by debris is the main foyer. The Rephaim use one has picked up its cargo and bugged out.
the building as a base, and there are a large At the end of each round, after all other
number of them in the building. Fortunately, actions are taken, the GM must roll 2d6 to
there is only a handful of zombies guarding the determine how many citizens have climbed
entrance. into the Angel. Remember, there are a total of
The foyer measures 24” by 36”. Like most 40 women and children. Once this number is
foyers in 21st century high-rise buildings, reached, the pilot closes the ramp and departs.
it contains a reception desk, seating areas, The Knights and the menfolk will have to hold
snack machines (all empty), stairwells, and out for another hour (if only one Dropship is
elevators. Spread the zombies out around the present) or wait 1d6 rounds while the second
foyer, ensuring none are closer than 15” to the Angel takes up position.
entrance. The Knights begin outside the main Regardless of Koenig’s attitude, his men
doors.
stand and fight while the women and children
The militia only joins the battle without board the Angel. However, if the headman was
being ordered if Koenig was Friendly or Help- Hostile or Uncooperative he and his men still
ful. A Neutral reaction means they are content don’t benefit from Leadership Edges—they’re
to let the Knights do the fighting unless given a not fighting with the Knights, they’re fighting
direct order. Hostile or Uncooperative citizens purely for their families.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
The roof measures 24” by 36”. The Angel’s
ramp touches down in the center of the north- Briefing
ern edge of the map. Aside from a few vents
and satellite dishes, there is little cover on the Begin by reading or paraphrasing the infor-
roof. The Rephaim begin 8” from the southern mation in Handout #2 to the players. When
edge. you’re done, give them a copy of the handout
to use during the adventure.
Militia (2 per hero): See page 157.
WMs should ensure the Knights aren’t
Zombies (3 per hero): See page 159.
issued with any heavy support or explosive
weapons. As far as the Sacri Ordines are con-
cerned, the mission is a rescue operation, not
Aftermath an assault. When things go badly wrong, as
they will, the Knights will lack heavy firepower,
Assuming the citizens are rescued, the forcing them to use whatever they have to hand
Ordines launch a determined effort to locate to win the day.
any others. The GM can allow this task to fall
to other Lances and fall into the background, The second Lance accompanying the
or he can create an adventure (or a mini-cam- Knights comprises as many members as there
paign) where the Knights get to go back to are player characters, with one notable excep-
Olisipo, liberate more survivors, and combat tion—if you have more than six players, you’re
more Rephaim. likely running two Lances anyway. In this
instance, there is no support—the mission is
Word of the survivors soon circulates to the for two Lances only. Ideally, each player has
media. Friendly citizens praise the Ordines,
two characters—his Wild Card and an Extra.
specifically the Knights, for coming to their
rescue, and dismiss any claims that the decade The second Lance must include a Senior
long wait was excessive. Hostile citizens, on the Knight, who is second-in-command of the
other hand, use the opportunity to criticize the operation, and a Combat Medic. Beyond that,
Ordines (but not the Church) for leaving them the players should decide their comrade’s
behind. Any Knight who offended the civilians specialties. In accordance with the mission
gets a special mention. This may lead to reper- briefing, only flechette SMGs and limited types
cussions, and possibly earn the Knight a place of grenades are available to their support crew.
on a Preacher-run training course on handling Hand out Ally Sheets as appropriate.
civilians in stressful situations. Whatever the
outcome, the media wants to speak with the
Knights about their role in the affair. Replacement Characters
Should a Wild Card character be Inca-
Experience Points pacitated or killed during the mission, the
first player to lose his character promotes the
This adventure should take two sessions
second Senior Knight (an Extra) to Wild Card
to play out. Knights who failed to grab a live
status (assuming he’s alive, of course). Other-
specimen in the first session should earn no
more than 2 Experience Points—they’ve failed wise, a player can promote any Extra Knight to
their mission. If they don’t manage to capture replace their fallen Wild Card.
one in the second session or fail to rescue the The newly promoted character doesn’t gain
survivors, they again shouldn’t be given more any advances, though—he just has a Wild Die
than 2 XPs. Should they manage to fail the pri- and three wound levels. This means he’s much
mary mission and screw up the rescue attempt, weaker than the hero he is replacing.
the GM should consider rewarding them with
a single XP. Once all the Extras are used up in this
manner, there are no more replacements or
reinforcements available—the players are

A Cardinal Error going have to be more careful with their men

in future.
In this adventure, the Knights must rescue When the mission ends, the player is free
a cardinal from his captors. Although the mis- to generate a new character as normal. Any XPs
sion briefing mentions separatist guerillas, the the player earns during this adventure are car-
kidnappers are in fact Rephaim, seeking to ried forward to his replacement character so he
convert the cardinal into a greater mummy. doesn’t lose out.

144
 tales from the frontline one

Plans and Tactics “Nuncia Chang,” he continues, blatantly

ignoring the woman, “has been appointed
The Lances are carried to the forward to ensure you don’t stray over the border
base by Angel. As the heroes disembark, they and create a diplomatic incident. Appar-
are greeted by the local Preceptor Master, his
ently your target is very close to Kobia,
Preceptor Intelligence Officer, and a Church
bureaucrat—Nuncia Petra Chang of the Office and the Union has forbidden flights over
of Corporate Liaison. their territory. We’d like you to make our
The Master greets welcomes the Knights lives easier by remembering that.”
to the base, introduces his two comrades, and Once in the tactical center, the PIO calls up
ushers the Lances straight to the rooms set
a large aerial view of the monastery. The WM
aside for them.
should use the information below to create
“We’ve set aside a tactical operation a map of the monastery, which comprises six
center and two barrack rooms for you,”
the Preceptor Master explains on the short main buildings. The plateau on which the com-
journey across the air strip. “Our intel- pound lies should measure no more than 24”
ligence resources are at your disposal. long and 20” wide.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
“Sorry we didn’t have this informa- located by the Ordines, and he doesn’t want
tion available earlier, but the monastery to reveal his presence by having his minions
has been abandoned for some years and shambling around in the open for too long.
records were few and far between.
Since flechette weapons are silent and
“Right, here’s the general layout,” he zombies don’t make a great deal of noise, the
says, pointing to the map. “Every building Knights alert the other defenders only if gre-
is constructed from stone quarried on the nades are used or they make excessive noise
site. All doors, interior and exterior, are (such as shouting and screaming). If they can
wooden. There’s no mains electricity to keep quiet, they stand a very good chance of
the site, though there’s every chance the catching the Rephaim by surprise.
kidnappers have installed a generator.
Of course, that’s if they can approach the
“The large building in the lower right monastery without being spotted. Cherubs
corner is the old church. It’s been decon- have stealth systems designed to fool sen-
secrated, so don’t worry about spilling sors and visual observations, but they aren’t
blood inside. Up from that are two linked foolproof. As the Cherubs approach, have the
buildings. The large is the old library, and outside guards make a Group Notice roll at
the smaller one the scriptorium, where the –4—the heat dampers on the Cherubs are just
monks copied out books by hand. as effective against Rephaim thermal vision.
“In the far northeast is the elevator. With success, the zombies alert their master,
It’s the only regular way in and out of the who in turn gives his troops orders. The heroes
compound. Left of the library is the main are ambushed as they land. Check for Surprise
accommodation block and refectory, with as normal. On a failure, the zombies react to
a small kitchen attached. This is the only the presence of the Cherubs only once the
two-story building—accommodation Knights disembark.
downstairs, and the refectory on the upper
floor. The last building was a storehouse
for provisions. The short lengths of wall Complications
you can see are about three feet high.”
Few Necropolis 2350 missions don’t have
No interior blueprints are available, so the some sort of complication, and this one is no
Knights have only limited tactical data. exception. First, Cardinal Vespasian is beyond
The PIO then asks the Knights to apprise saving—he’s already dead and most of the
him of their plan. He’ll offer tactical advice way to becoming a Rephaim. Second, unless
where necessary. The players should be given the Knights stop the greater mummy from
the opportunity to plan the rescue to suit their completing his ritual, the cardinal will arise as
characters’ strengths. a greater mummy himself (albeit one with no
Stygian armor or rune blade).
The WM should use the PIO to help the
Knights only if they get stuck, or they devise The mummy requires 10 rounds to com-
a risky strategy—such as both Lances landing plete his ritual. Place ten tokens out of sight
in the same place (creating a kill-zone for of the players. The countdown begins as soon
the enemy) or having the Knights search the as the Knights touch down in the compound.
buildings one at a time, rather than performing Subtract one token for each round in which the
a blanket sweep as quickly as possible (thus mummy takes no actions beyond chanting and
allowing the kidnappers chance to eliminate engraving eldritch runes on the corpse. When
their hostages). the last token is gone, the cardinal awakens at
the start of the next round as a greater mummy
(without Stygian armor or a rune blade).
The Mission The mummy is not suicidal, though, and
will defend himself to the best of his ability.
The defenders comprise a number of After all, once the pesky Knights are dead,
zombies and a greater mummy. Aside from he can continue his work in peace. He’ll also
the mummy, who is in the church completing have new corpses to replace any losses to his
the ritual to turn the cardinal into a greater forces.
mummy, and his bodyguard of four zombies, The cardinal’s retinue is also deceased.
the location of the defenders is left to the WM. The mummy tortured them in front of the
No more than four zombies should be on cardinal to assist in breaking his mind ready
guard duty outside the buildings—the mummy for his transformation. Their corpses are in the
doesn’t know his headquarters has been church.

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 tales from the frontline one
Greater Mummy: See page 158. down as the presenters for part of this
week’s show, which is being broadcast
Zombies (3 per Knight): See page 159.
from this Preceptory.
Zombie Grenadiers (1 per 2 Knights):
“I only just found out myself, and we
See page 160.
don’t have time to correct the error. You’re
each going to have to go on live television
for two minutes and sell something to the
Aftermath masses.
“While you might get the bright idea to
The heroes had no hope of rescuing the kill me and get an instant transfer to the
cardinal—he died a long time ago. Although the Penitents, it won’t work—you’ll still have
populace is rightfully disgusted at the images to go on live television first.”
beamed into their homes, the success of the
Knights gives them courage, and reminds them Enemy Forces: Only a few hundred
there are men and women who have dedicated million viewers whose money we want.
their lives to combating evil. Support: Sorry, but you have to handle
The Pope makes a rare televised appear- this on your own. I could try ordering an
air strike on the studio, but the odds of
ance, in which he exhorts the citizens of Salus
that coming off are slim.
to be eternally vigilant against the horrors of
the Rephaim, and to report any suspected Equipment: You’ll be issued a
heretical activity to the authorities immediately. microphone by the sound crew and given
Enlistment figures for the Sacri Ordines rise 4% makeup, but that’s your lot.
over the next few months, as brave citizens sign
up to fight the good fight.
The Mission
Before you run this mission, gather as many
Short Tales props as there are players. Yes, even Chaplains
have been roped into the mess.
The following adventures are less detailed The Sacri Ordines sell mugs and pens
and involved than those above. They could be bearing their symbol, signed photos of heroic
used as mini-adventures, perhaps for when the Knights, model tanks, and such like. Just think
group is missing a player, as additional scenes of a modern home shopping channel, only
in a larger scenario, or when the GM doesn’t with a militant bent. Your house should have
have anything planned for the session. plenty of props.
Give each player an actual prop he can hold
and wave around, describe it in terms of how
Holy Orders it looks in the 24th century (which is pretty
much as today, only with the markings of the
The Knights are given a shot at TV fame—for Sacer Ordo), and give them some time to think
two minutes, anyway. Due to a bureaucratic about their sales jargon. Remind them this is
error, the Knights are ordered to sell memo- live television, as well—swearing will not go
rabilia on the weekly Ordo Night show. This down well!
isn’t a very long adventure, and is intended as a When they’re all ready, give each player
light-hearted break from the usual bloody car- exactly two minutes to “sell” his item to an
nage the heroes must endure most missions. audience of around 300 million eager shop-
Given its nature, the WM can reuse it over and pers. When the clock gets to 10 seconds, hold
over again. up your fingers and silently count down, to
give the Knight chance to close his slot.
Briefing Every player who at least makes an effort
to roleplay should be awarded an Experience
“Knights, some bureaucrat has boned Point. Anyone who really gets into the roleplay-
and dumped you right in it. In exactly 20 ing should be awarded an extra XP. Very kind
minutes, the weekly Ordo Night where we WM’s may wish to increase a Knight’s Charisma
get chance to sell Sacer Ordo memorabilia by +1 when dealing with Church civilians for
to the masses goes live. I don’t know how the next few missions because of the momen-
it happened, but your Lance has been put tary fame they gain.

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A Knight who really gets into the swing of 2 Bank Robbery: The heroes blunder
his sales pitch may be invited back again for across a robbery in progress. There are
another slot. This is a perfect excuse for him four robbers and all begin rushing from
or her to take the Media Star Edge, and is well the bank, firing as they leave. Stats are
suited to Knights whose specialty is talking provided on page 158.
rather than killing.
3 Rescue My Cat: A small child stops the
Knights and asks them to rescue her cat,
which is up a tree. The “cat” is in fact
Walking the Beat a Salusian bobcat, a notoriously vicious
breed similar in size to a dog. It doesn’t
This is a hearts-and-minds mission and is want to be rescued. Treat as a dog (see
centered more on roleplaying than combat. Savage Worlds), but add Climbing d8
It’s a chance for the Knights to meet common and swap Bite for Claws).
citizens and interact with them. It’s also chance 4 Forgetful Old Lady: An elderly lady
for the WM to be creative, and design his own asks the Knights for help. She’s a little
encounters. senile and has forgotten where she
lives. Investigation and Streetwise rolls
Briefing may be handy here. She also thinks one
of the Knights is her grandson. When
“A neighboring Preceptory has been they eventually find her apartment, she
ordered to send troops to the frontline. invites them in for tea and cake, and
They’re pulling out their rearguard as well, then proceeds to pull out the old family
so you lot have been assigned to perform photo albums.
policing duties in their local town. This is a 5 Stop, Thief: While passing through
hearts-and-minds operation, so we expect the local market, the Knights hear a
politeness and smiles at all times. Don’t hue and cry. A young urchin has stolen
get yourselves on the local news and don’t some fruit and is making a break for it.
screw up relations with our neighbors!” Use the Chase rules. The chase begins at
Enemy Forces: Aside from potential Medium Range. As it is market day, the
cultists and criminal elements, the town place is crowded and counts as Thick
is safe. Obstacles. The youth, a starving lad with
a sick mother and no father, has Agility
Support: You won’t need any support
d8. Otherwise treat him as a civilian.
for this mission. If an old lady attacks you,
I’m sure you’ll deal with her. You’ll be air- 6 Old Veteran: A one-legged, drunken
lifted in and then left to patrol on foot. The man clad in foul-smelling rags bumps
boss wants face-to-face contact, not you lot into the Knights. He immediately tells
huddled in a Prophet. them how he is a wounded veteran and
wants to swap war stories. Refusal leads
Equipment: Just your regular gear.
to loud cries of how the Sacri Ordines
Take your shields as well, though. Appar-
neglect their wounded heroes which
ently there have been riots recently.
generates sneers and foul-looks from
passersby. Acceptance leads to some
The Mission rather dubious stories with lots of obvi-
ous contradictions. The man is, in fact, a
Rather than tell you how to roleplay this fake—he’s just the town drunk.
mission, we’ve provided a sample list of 7 New Arrival: A breathless man runs up
encounters. After the Knights have walked the to the Knights and explains his wife is
beat and chatted with a few passing citizens, having a baby but something is wrong.
draw a card. Repeat this as often as you want. A Healing roll reveals the woman has
This mission can be used several times by internal bleeding and needs surgery
replacing used encounters with the WM’s own immediately. Calling for an ambulance
ideas.
will take too long, so the man suggests
Only basic information has been given, leav- the Knights commandeer a car. Time for
ing the WM and players to handle the actual some roleplaying as both parents-to-be
social interaction in any way they see fit. There ask if everything is going to be okay and
are a number of street maps in Necropolis the if the Knights could drive a little faster.
WM can use as needed. At the hospital, the baby is delivered, the

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Dangerous Secret: Project Lazarus

Mankind’s mortal life has always been relatively short. Even during the height of Corporate
power, when anti-aging treatments were popular with the rich and famous, life expectancy
only crept up to around 150 years. Since the Corporate War ended, research into longevity
has been all but ignored.
It doesn’t take a prophet to work out that mankind is losing the numbers war. It takes
16 years for a baby to reach the age it can be trained for war (within acceptable moral
guidelines), and in the time it takes an infant to reach adulthood, countless soldiers will
have been killed or maimed in the fighting. On the other hand, every dead human is a
potential recruit for the Rephaim.
While the Church has not advocated forced insemination (yet), the Lazarites have taken
the first steps down a dark road into closing the numbers gap. Since there is no way to
speed up human development, the answer is to create a better soldier, one more resistant
to damage.
Twenty years ago, a Lazarite investigation team discovered the wreck of a starship, the
Demeter, which crashed on Salus before the outbreak of World War III. Amid the cor-
rupted data files in the ship’s computer, they retrieved the transcribed fragments of a
diary dating back to the turn of the 20th century.
The diary, written by one Xavier Jahrling, told of how, in ages past, a group of men and
women battled fell creatures of the night. It told of a procedure for grafting body parts
from these night fiends onto human flesh, which was used to strengthen their warriors.
The diary was dismissed as nonsense, perhaps part of a novel kept in the ship’s library
system, until it eventually came to the attention of Lazarite Dr. Johannes Weissman.
For over a decade, Weissman studied the diary in untold depth, reading, rereading, analyz-
ing, and hypothesizing. At last he reached a startling conclusion—the medical procedures
the diary described were not fiction.
Using members of the Penitents deemed irredeemable and Rephaim captives, Weissman
has performed his own experiments—Rephaim limbs, tissue, and organs have been surgi-
cally implanted into and onto human bodies. Initial tests have had mixed results. In a few
rare cases the graft has taken, resulting in what Weissman calls a “super soldier.” In most
cases, however, the subjects go insane and commit suicide. A few become psychotic, and
must be given, to use the Church euphemism, “the final rest.”
Live-fire tests using the human subjects are conducted under close guard by Lazarite
forces. As with many Lazarite projects public knowledge of the Lazarus experiments
would result in a fierce backlash against the Church.

mother saved, and the new child named vow of celibacy, he outranks the heroes.
after whichever character was the most Will they arrest him or use his predica-
friendly to the couple. ment to earn future favors?
8 I Want to Join: A spotty-faced youth of 10 Car Crash: Two cars collide at a busy
around 17 years approaches the Knights intersection. No one is hurt, but the
and says he wants to enlist. It’s obvious drivers (treat as Citizens) begin arguing
from a glance the kid wouldn’t last a over who is to blame. While they stand
day as a Squire, but he’s ultra-keen. Can and rant, traffic backs up in all directions
they talk him out of it or will they sign and the drivers quickly start to honk
up obvious meat for the grinder? their horns and demand the blockage is
cleared. This could turn ugly.
9 Broken Vow: The local Preceptor Estate
Manager contacts the squad via radio and Jack I’ll Jump: A crowd has gathered at the
asks them to raid a suspected brothel. All base of a tall building. A lone figure can
goes well, but when checking the id of be seen on a window ledge ten stories
the clients they discover a Knight Com- up. The man, an accountant whose
mander on leave from a neighboring wife has left him for a fitness instructor
Preceptory. Although he has broken the named Hans, is threatening to jump.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Queen Rats: Recent rains have flooded Enemy Forces: We have no idea what
the sewers and storm drains, forcing a you’ll be facing, but we suspect a large
swarm of rats into the streets. Hungry number of hostiles must be involved.
and vicious, the swarm is treated as a Support: You’ll be dropped in by Angel,
Wild Card. There are 2d10 innocent along with a half-strength Lance of Ser-
citizens in the street when the rats surge geants and three Preacher Knight Combat
forth, which may hamper attempts to Medics. If the situation is really hot, call
use grenades. Of course, destruction of for backup and we’ll send what we can.
public property (such as parked cars) or
injuring citizens gets very bad press. Equipment: Grab your regular gear
and mount up—we’ve got friendlies in
King Angry Mob: An angry mob is protesting trouble!
at recent tax increases. There are 30
citizens (see Necropolis), half of whom
are armed with rocks (Range: 3/6/12,
Str+d4) and makeshift clubs (Str+d4).
The Mission
Forceful behavior in breaking up the mob Use the map from Fliegerkopf (see
leads to a barrage of stones followed by Necropolis 2350) for this mission.
a clubbing. Intimidation and Persuasion The facility is, in fact, a top secret Lazarite
are useful, though getting the entire mob research base linked to the Crypt and Project
to calm down should involve a –4 penalty Lazarus (p. 15). A Lance of Knights stationed
(better that it’s roleplayed). there underwent alteration, being grafted with
Ace Monster: A hysterical woman comes Rephaim tissue and organs. Unfortunately, the
running out of an apartment block guinea pigs went insane and turned on their
screaming blue murder. She claims, keepers, slaughtering them and accidentally
through her sobs, that some sort of starting the fire, which has, of course, destroyed
Rephaim beast is in her apartment. Such all of the research notes.
talk quickly draws a large crowd. The As the dropship approaches the base, the
monster is nothing more than a large, heroes can clearly see the main building is
albino rat. Catching it without tearing completely alight. There are signs of movement
up the apartment won’t be easy. on the ground, but the smoke makes it difficult
Joker Double Trouble: Life is rarely kind. Two to determine who or what, the figures are.
encounters occur simultaneously. Draw Unwilling to land his bird in the smoke-filled
two cards. Each demands attention, pos- compound, the dropship pilot touches down
sibly forcing the Knights to divide their 30” off the eastern edge of the map. The Angel
forces. remains there until called.
No sooner have the heroes touched down
than they come under fire from the insane
What Price Victory? Knights, who are gathered around the build-
ing. The Knights scream and bay continually, as
the necromantic energy in their grafts destroys
The heroes stumble across a secret Lazarite their minds. The heroes cannot communicate
project while on a rescue mission. Hopefully, the with them.
revelation of the Lazarites’ activities will cause a
crisis of faith. Surely victory cannot come at any There is one insane Knight per hero and all
price? are Wild Cards. Pick any from the list below,
using duplicates if necessary. All of the enemy
Knights are berserk, as per the Edge.
Briefing If the WM wishes to be cruel, he can have
“Sorry to call you away from prayer, one of the Knights be a former comrade of at
but we have an emergency situation just least one hero. The Knight was a regular petty
developed. An Angel pilot returning from rule-breaker, and was sentenced to a year in the
a drop reported seeing fire from a small Penitents to straighten him out. He was listed
facility about 50 miles from here. By the as missing in action 18 months ago. Seeing him
will of God, he picked up a radio mayday requires a Guts check to avoid the effects of
from the base. We have no idea who they Fear.
are or what is attacking them, but these * Insane Knight Infantryman #1: His
are fellow Knights in need of help. We’re the skin is covered in patches of zombie flesh,
closest Preceptory, so we’re going in.” granting him +2 Toughness for Toughness

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 tales from the frontline one
13 (6). Suddenly, an aircraft screams overhead at
* Insane Knight Infantryman #2: His just a few hundred feet. The heroes recognize
hands end in the gnarled claws of a ghoul, it as a Scourge bomber, an aircraft loaded with
giving him Str+d4 and the Paralysis special napalm. As they watch, it commences a slow
ability with a successful claw attack. turn, setting itself up for an attack run. The
heroes have just a few rounds to flee in what-
* Insane Knight Infantryman #3: His ever direction they want before the Scourge
internal organs have been replaced with delivers its deadly load. Deal initiative cards as
those of a zombie. He has the Undead normal (including one to the aircraft).
special ability.
Signaling the Scourge has no effect—the
* Insane Knight Infantryman #4: Has the
Lazarite pilot has strict orders to cleanse the
wings of a winged zombie attached to him area, regardless of who may be alive down
(Flying Pace 6). there.
* Insane Knight Infantryman #5: Has
The Knights’ dropship won’t open fire
vampires’ teeth, causing Str+d8 damage
on the bomber, but it is available to airlift the
with a successful bite attack.
heroes to safety. It takes one round to lift off,
* Insane Knight Infantryman #6: Has the one round to move over to the characters’ loca-
wrappings of a mummy grafted to his flesh. tion, and can begin loading on the third round
He has the Arcane Resistance Edge. (which might prove rather fatal). Alternately,
Knight Combat Medics (3): See page 157. the Knights can run to the dropship, but unless
they are close to it, the odds of reaching it
Sergeants (5): See page 158. safely within 3 rounds are not good.
On the Scourge’s third action card, it
Removing the Evidence releases all four napalm canisters into the base
After stopping the Knights, the heroes can simultaneously. Position the chains side by side
examine the extent of their surgical altera- to cover as much of the base as possible. Roll
tion—this requires a Guts roll to avoid Fear. for deviation for each canister separately.
None of the Knights have any ID tags, nor do Moments after the Scourge delivers its
they wear any unit insignia. A number of other deadly cargo, two Angel dropships with Lazarite
bodies lying outside the burning building, markings supported by a pair of Archangel
however, wear the distinctive black armor of assault ships fly into view from the smoke and
Lazarites. flame.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Should the heroes be hiding and the Angel itchy trigger fingers, the Lazarites only move
well out of sight, they see a Lance of Lazarites in away from the characters once Wheeler is safely
infantry battle suits climb out of the dropships in the air.
(once they land) and begin examining the area.
If they refuse to comply, they have signed
After about ten minutes, they withdraw to the
their own death warrants. The Assault Knights
dropships hauling the corpses with them. The open fire with their flamers! Run the combat as
dropships then leave. There is no evidence, normal. Cleaning up the aftermath if the heroes
other than the heroes’ testimony, linking the win should make for interesting gaming, and
Lazarites to the site. even if they lose the WM has an adventure hook
If the heroes are in the open (or later reveal to hand—a Lance is sent out to discover how
themselves) or the Angel is nearby, the char- the previous Knights died.
acters are ordered, over their headset radios, Should the heroes decide to tell anyone the
to drop their weapons and surrender or face truth of what happened here, they should come
the consequences. Having an Angel nearby is to regret it. They may find themselves on the
a clear sign someone is in the base! The Arch- receiving end of an artillery “miscalculation,”
angels attack the heroes with guns and rockets being “accidentally” targeted by a Lazarite Lance
if they do not comply within 3 rounds, but during a joint mission, or even being temporarily
cease fire once the Lance surrenders. They only reassigned to serve alongside Lazarites, during
attack the Angel if the characters start running which time they receive the most suicidal mis-
toward it. sions. No, it isn’t fair, but the heroes were clearly
Assuming they value their lives and comply, warned to keep quiet and the Lazarites aren’t
both Angels land, each disgorging a Lance of all that nice, really. If they want to investigate
Knights in full infantry battle suits and armed further more covertly, the WM has a plot hook
with hand flamers. They take up positions sur- already lined up.
rounding the characters. Lazarites (12): As Knight Assault (page
A female Lazarite, wearing medium armor, 156).
then climbs out from one of the dropships and Field Master Wheeler: See page 157
approaches the heroes. Any Lazarite heroes
in the party can make a Common Knowledge
roll. Other characters require the Knowledge
(Sacri Ordines) skill to recognize her, and even
Further Adventures
then the roll is made at –2. With success, they This section provides a basic adventure gen-
recognize her as Field Master Amy Wheeler, the erator for non-military missions, two alternate
senior Lazarite in this sector and a close friend tables for the regular adventure generator, and
of Grand Master O’Flaherty. a list of distractions the WM can use to make
She studies the heroes carefully for a few the Knights’ lives more interesting.
moments, memorizing their faces, before
speaking.
“Whatever you thought happened here Non-Military Missions
didn’t. Whatever you think you saw, you
were mistaken. This was an attack by The Sacri Ordines of the Third Reformation
Rephaim on a Lazarite holding facility, Church are not just a military force. They own vast
nothing more. By the time you got here, tracts of land, on which citizens live and work,
everyone was dead. Then we arrived to and are responsible for policing their estates. All
take care of our dead. If you fail to under- Knights are required to undertake regular police
stand this and report otherwise, you will duties, both to give them a rest from battle and
regret your foolishness. Don’t speak, just keep them in touch with the folk they are sworn
nod if you understand.” to defend.
She waits to see nods before she continues To create a non-military mission, simply
speaking. roll 3d6 and consult the tables below. The WM
assigns one die to each table as he desires to
“Good, now get out of here while I’m
form the skeleton of the story. Once he knows
still feeling benevolent!”
the basics, he can begin designing scenes and
She then departs back into the dropship, encounters. WMs should also consider using
while her men check over the base as detailed the Complications and Distractions Tables (p.
above. Just in case the heroes think of getting 21) to help develop the core idea.

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Note that routine and petty crimes, such as
burglaries, muggings, and assaults, are typically
Table 2: Criminal Activity
handled by Sergeants. Don’t turn the game This table highlights the general type of
into a cop drama. Murder is a foul crime, but crime. Each category is deliberately wide in
only when the victim is important or found in scope, so as to allow the WM greater freedom
mysterious circumstances should the heroes in picking the actual nature of the illegal activ-
become involved in the story. ity.
Note that heresy is not a defined category.
Table 1: Villain Depending on the adventure, heresy may fall
into any category. For instance, an Immortal-
This table determines the generic nature ist may seek to sabotage or destroy Church
of the main villain. Additional details must be property, whereas a Pelagianist might seek to
determined by the WM. Henchmen, soldiers, corrupt others into following his creed.
or fanatical followers can be added as the WM
wishes—few villains work alone. d6 Result
d6 Result 1 Conquest
1 Bandits 2 Corruption
2 Corporation 3–4 Kidnapping/Theft
3 Criminals 5 Sabotage/Destruction
4 Heretic 6 Smuggling
5 Psion Conquest: While conquest can refer to
6 Rephaim military activities (such as bandits seeking to
capture a remote village), it can be used in
Bandits: Life on Salus is tough. Some bandits other ways. Rival gangs seeking dominance of
are nothing more than regular citizens driven to the local underworld through violence, using
break the law to ensure their families are fed. blackmail or threats to force someone into
Others choose a life of “freedom,” taking what providing assistance, and even the rigging of
they need to survive from those weaker than elections all count as conquest crimes.
themselves.
Corruption: The villain may be a drug-
Corporation: Corporate activities in dealer, corrupting the flesh of his victims with
Church territory may be covert military opera- narcotics, or a heretic corrupting the spirit with
tions, propaganda teams, or even media crews dangerous lies. It also covers crimes such as
reporting things the Church would rather keep bribery and perjury. Alternately, the corruption
quiet. may refer to anti-Church propaganda or attacks
Criminals: Although petty criminals are com- against a person’s social and moral standing.
monplace, catching a mugger or burglar isn’t very
Kidnapping/Theft: Kidnap involves the
heroic. This entry refers to organized criminals,
capture of a person or persons, whereas theft
whose activities include drug-running, smug-
is directed against an inanimate object. Persons
gling, prostitution, selling blackmarket goods,
may include sacrifices for ghastly rituals, hos-
and so on.
tages, important civic figures, or celebrities.
Heretics: Regardless of his heresy, the villain Objects might be food stores, the contents of
has turned his eyes away from the Church. He a bank vault, or top-secret plans. Tax evasion
may be a “harmless” Pelagianist or a die-hard also falls under theft, as does embezzlement,
Necrolatrist. espionage, fraud, and identity theft.
Psion: A psion may be a rogue or, more Sabotage/Destruction: Villains who seek to
rarely, a Corporate employee. For an extra sabotage something want to cause a temporary
twist, it may even be a Corporate deserter, breakdown. While this might refer to equipment
which perhaps prompts a Corporate team to or a building, such as a power station, the rail
infiltrate Church territory in search of him. network, or even a hospital, it can also refer to
Rephaim: Rephaim such mummies, vam- society in general. Destruction, on the other
pires, changelings, wights, and other types capable hand, involves the permanent removal of some-
of subversive activities are the best villains. Most thing (and includes arson and murder). While a
often they lead a small cabal of lesser Rephaim or serious crime in itself, sabotage is the lesser of
heretics. the two evils.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Smuggling: Almost anything can be found Underground: This locale might be a
on the blackmarket. Anti-smuggling operations subway station or train, the sewers, a basement,
might involve drug-dealers, food hoarders, holy a cyst, or even a cave system. All that matters is
relic traffickers, gunrunners, Rephaim smug- that it is located beneath the surface, away from
glers (bringing Rephaim into Church territory), prying eyes.
or people smugglers (such as an underground
railroad for Faithful who don’t want to serve
Examples
the Church or moving rogue psions or citizens
who want to defect to the Union). Example 1: The dice come up 5, 5, and 5!
The Wm doesn’t have any choice in assigning
these. The results are Corporation, Sabotage/
Table 3: Location Destruction, and Wilderness. The WM decides
a team of Corporate engineers and a few
This determines the general focus of activities soldiers have captured and sabotaged a
in the mission. The WM may use the result as the remote media relay station. Now, whenever
entire setting, or perhaps just as the scene of the the Church news comes on, the Corporates cut
climax. the feed and broadcast their own fake news
d6 Result stories.
1 Building Example 2: The dice are kinder this time
and give us a 1, 2, and 4. The WM picks Psion
2 Business (2), Corruption (1), and Church (4). The plot
3 Church involves a rogue psion who uses puppet to
dominate a local priest into giving heretical
4 Residential sermons. Although the priest appears initially
5 Underground to be the villain, the Knights must discover the
true source of his corruption.
6 Wilderness
Example 3: Our final rolls are 2, 3, and
Building: This covers important or interest-
6. The WM selects Bandits (3), Smuggling (6),
ing buildings, such as power stations, libraries,
and Building (2). The WM decides to make
hospitals, media studios, broadcasting towers, this a moral issue for the Knights. The bandits,
museums, docks/transport hubs, schools, and actually peasants, are workers at a Church
storehouses. granary complex, where they are involved
Business: This generic category covers smuggling much-needed food reserves to
shops, office blocks, malls, factories, and the remote communities. They may be Robin Hood
like. Some business may be a front for the types, but they are still criminals in the eyes of
villain, whereas others are the target of his Mother Church.
nefarious plans.
Church: A catch-all category covering actual
shrines, monasteries, churches, and cathedrals, Adventure Generator
as well as Curia offices and Preceptories. Typi-
cally, these structures are located in an urban
environment, though some can be found in the
Additions
Wilderness. Below are optional tables. They are num-
Residential: Includes towns and districts bered in accordance with the Necropolis 2350
within cities. The exact type of area can range tables they replace. Likewise, any references to
from the luxurious estates of the rich and pow- other tables refer to those in the core setting
erful down to crowded slums and tenements. book. You can use either these tables or the
Villages typically come under Wilderness originals from Necropolis 2350 to throw obsta-
cles at the heroes.
results, though larger or important villages may
fall under the Residential category.
Wilderness: Although the wilderness might Table 1: Mission
refer to a forest, swamp, or desert, it can also
refer to rural farming communities or a small This alternate table gives a quick overview
of the heroes’ mission, leaving the GM to fill in
Preceptory office, as well as a remote outpost
the details as he wishes.
(such as a meteorological station, observatory,
or monastery). d20 Result

154
 tales from the frontline one
1 Battle! The Knights engage or are 5 Bad intelligence (the objective is
engaged by an enemy force. not where it should be, is heavily
guarded, doesn’t exist).
2 Capture enemy fortification or settle-
ment. 6 Bad weather (–1 to all physical trait
rolls due to weather).
3 Capture important person (enemy
leader) or information (battle 7 Communication failure leads to erro-
plans). neous orders.
4 Capture important terrain (ford, 8 Mistaken identity (heroes misidentify
bridge, pass, hill). objective, or allied troops attack
them in error).
5 Capture sentient prisoners for inter-
rogation. 9 Natural obstacle (impassable ter-
rain, river) causes heroes to detour
6 Construct bridge or fortification (or
through hostile territory.
guard engineers on such a project).
10 New orders received during mission.
7 Defend allied commanders or impor-
tant information. 11 NPC commander, guide, or other
support is incompetent.
8 Defend allied camp.
12 Objective is in bad terrain (dense
9 Defend allied fortification or settle-
forest, mountains, swamp)
ment.
13 Rival allies on the same mission want
10 Defend important terrain (ford,
the glory.
bridge, pass, hill).
14 Support troops fail to materialize.
11 Deliver orders to allied unit.
15 Support units desert at crucial
12 Deliver supplies to allied unit. moment.
13 Destroy enemy supplies. 16 The heroes become lost and end up
14 Intercept enemy messengers. deep in enemy territory.
15 Liberate prisoners/allied force (or 17 Trapped behind enemy lines by
individual) in trouble. enemy troop movements.
16 Patrol duty. 18 Very bad weather (–1 to all trait rolls
and half Pace due to weather).
17 Reconnoiter enemy fortification or
settlement. 19 None. Everything goes according to
plan for a change.
18 Recruit and train militia.
20 Disaster! Roll twice on this table
19 Track down deserters or enemy
(reroll further results of 20).
spies.
20 Double duty. Roll twice on this table
(ignoring further results of 20). Distractions
Not every event in the heroes’ lives
Table 5: Complications revolves around warfare. This section lists
a number of distractions you can use to add
d20 Result something unusual to your game sessions.
You can either pick one, or roll a d20. If
1 Allied troops retreat (to engage
you roll a distraction you have already
enemy or because of enemy num-
used, take the next unused entry.
bers) without telling the heroes.
1) Another Lance develops an intense
2 Allied support or other NPC is a trai-
rivalry with the characters’. Each is
tor.
always trying to outdo the other.
3 Allied unit nearby asks for aid in
2) One of the characters meets a girl
their own mission.
in a local village or town. Whether
4 Ambushed by enemy force (Roll on a relationship develops, she pursues
Table 4A or 4B as appropriate). him against his wishes, or the pair

155
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
form a Platonic friendship, the girl’s 14) A heat wave or cold snap strikes the
family strongly disapproves, as does region. Temperatures rise to over
the hero’s Knight Commander. 110 (43° C) or drop to 12 (-11° C)
or lower, whichever suits the region.
3) Somehow the characters make an
This lasts for the next mission.
enemy in their Ordo. The enemy
outranks the characters and decides 15) An important member of the unit
to make their life a misery. This may suffers a crisis of faith. Until it is
have a detrimental effect on the regained, he cannot use bennies and
Lance’s morale. has his Spirit lowered one die step
(min d4). If it is a leader, he loses his
4) One or more of the characters makes Leadership Edges as well.
a very close friend in their Banner or
an allied unit. If this friend is killed, 16) A close friend of the heroes deserts.
the character(s) suffer –1 to Spirit Can they find him before his absence
rolls for the next mission. is noticed by their Knight Com-
mander?
5) The hero with the lowest Vigor
catches a cold, leaving the character 17) The Preceptory has an ammo crisis.
Fatigued for 1d4 days. For the next mission, the Knights are
issued just half the usual ammo load
6) The characters hear rumors of some and have no artillery or air support.
type of hideous creature inhabiting This can be reused in an alternate
the local wilderness. The rumors way, with fuel shortages grounding
are false and any investigation leads all vehicles.
nowhere.
18) A well-liked Sergeant is getting mar-
7) The Banner has taken heavy losses ried and invites the Knights to attend.
recently. Until the heroes secure a This may be an opportunity for social
major victory over the Rephaim, they role-playing or a chance for heretics
suffer –1 to all Spirit rolls. to take out the Knights while they are
8) The heroes’ immediate superior is unarmed (except for swords).
replaced with a political appointee 19) The Lance receives letters from
who has no battlefield experience. friends and loved ones, a rare but not
Treat him as a Citizen with Knowl- unknown event. Recipients’ Spirit
edge (Battle) d4. rolls are boosted by +1 for the next
month. Each character has a letter on
9) Disease sweeps the region. This not
a d6 roll of 1–3.
only affects the civilian population,
but also the Preceptory’s combat 20) The Preceptory is having one of
strength. those days when everything seems to
be going wrong. Roll for two Distrac-
10) The local archbishop visits the Pre-
tions.
ceptory on a goodwill mission. If the
heroes can impress him, he blesses
them, granting each hero +1 to Spirit
rolls for the next month. The Cast
11) A Penitent assigned to the unit is
All the stats used in the adventures are
someone the heroes know (perhaps
grouped here for convenience. Stat blocks are
a former comrade). He wants their
listed alphabetically, first by Church forces or
help in regaining his honor as quickly
allies, and then by Rephaim or other adversar-
as possible.
ies.
12) One of the characters’ comrades
wants a Papal blessing and keeps
on talking about it. He starts to take Knight Assault (Lazarite)
unnecessary risks.
Although the Lazarites refer to these sol-
13) Cutbacks because of the fight for New diers as Assault Knights, they actually serve
Budapest mean the Grand Master to clean up any “mistakes” involving Lazarite
plans to close the heroes’ Preceptory research into the Rephaim. They don’t serve
unless they achieve a major military in the regular army, but work solely in the
victory in the near future. Lazarites’ secret facilities.

156
 tales from the frontline one
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, disease. No additional damage from called
Strength d8, Vigor d8 shots. Ignores wound penalties.
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d10, Notice d6, Shoot-
ing d8, Stealth d6
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: Knight Vehicle Crew (Templar)
15(8)
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
Edges: Brawny, Combat Reflexes, Dodge Strength d6, Vigor d6
Training: Rephaim Knowledge, Specimen Col- Skills: Driving d8, Fighting d4, Guts d4, Notice
lection d6, Repair d6, Shooting d8
Gear: Infantry battle suit (+8), flamethrower Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness:
(Range: Cone, Damage 2d10, ignores armor), 9(4)
molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4), ID tag Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
Edges: Ace, Combat Reflexes
Knight Combat Medic Training: Vehicle Expertise (Driving)
Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette SMG, 3 mag-
(Preacher) azines (Ranged: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1, AP
2, Auto), molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4),
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, medpac, ID tag
Strength d6, Vigor d8
Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d6, Healing d8, No-
tice d6, Shooting d4, Stealth d6 Lazarite Field Master Wheeler
Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: A close friend of Lazarite Grand Master
10(4)
O’Flaherty, Field Master Wheeler is privy to
Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
many of the Lazarites’ darkest secrets. For this
Edges: Healer, Improved Dodge, Medic
reason, she is always accompanied by at least
Training: Hearts & Minds, Training Cadre
Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette SMG with 3 one Lance of Assault Knights equipped with
mags (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1, AP 2, flamethrowers (with orders to prevent her
Auto), molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP 4), me- capture using lethal force). She isn’t the head
dikit, ID tag of Project Lazarus, but she’s fully aware of what
the project entails. A true Lazarite, she can see
Knight Infantryman (No no wrong in her work—mankind must win the
war, and that means using “unconventional
Ordo) tactics.”
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d10,
Knight Infantryman can be used to bring
the group up to five or six characters (the typi- Strength d6, Vigor d6
cal strength for a Lance). The special abilities Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d10, Knowledge (Bat-
are used only in the adventure What Price tle) d10, Knowledge (Rephaim) d10, Notice d6,
Victory? Shooting d8, Stealth d6
Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness:
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d8, 11(6)
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Hindrances: Arrogant, Cautious, Loyal, Vow
Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Notice d6, Shoot-
(Major: sacred vows)
ing d6
Edges: Attractive, Combat Reflexes, Command,
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
Command Presence, Fervor, Hard to Kill, Hold
11(6)
Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows) the Line, Improved Dodge, Tactician
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Dodge Training: Rephaim Knowledge, Specimen Col-
Gear: Medium armor (+6), flechette rifle with lection
3 mags (Range: 24/48/96, Damage: 2d8+1, Gear: Medium armor (+6), flechette pistol
AP2, Auto, 3RB), 5 grenades (Range: 3/6/12, (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, Shots 30, AP
Damage: 3d8, AP 4, MBT), molecular sword 2, Semi-auto), molecular sword (Str+d8+2, AP
(Str+d8+2, AP 4), medpac, ID tag 4), ID scanner, ID tag.
Special Abilities:
* Paralysis: Victims must make a Vigor
roll or be paralyzed and incapable of any
Militia
action—even speech—for 2d6 rounds. These citizens aren’t an organized militia—
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover they’re survivors who’ve learned to use guns
from being Shaken. Immune to poison and and stay alive. Their weapons were scavenged

157
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
from a sporting goods store. Despite ten years are caught in the template. This counts as a
of preserving ammo and avoiding fights, they’re Heavy Weapon.
down to their last few shells apiece. * Firearm Absorption: Exploding corpses
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d6, ignore all piercing weapon damage. Heavy
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Weapons, other melee weapons, lasers,
Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Shooting d6, explosive weapons, and flamethrowers
Stealth inflict normal damage.
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness: * Stench: Characters who make a successful
5 Notice check may detect the smell up to 6”
Gear: Shotgun (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: away (12” downwind). The putrid stench
1–3d6, +2 Shooting), no reloads, molecular permeates everything except airtight
dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2) vessels (most armored vehicles).
* Thermal Vision: Exploding corpses halve
Sergeant penalties for darkness against living targets
(round down).
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, * Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
Strength d6, Vigor d6 from being Shaken. Immune to poison and
Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d6, Guts d4, Notice disease. No additional damage from called
d6, Shooting d6 shots.
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
* Weakness (Fire): Fire is especially
9(4)
dangerous to exploding corpses. They
Hindrances: Loyal, Vow (Major: sacred vows)
automatically catch fire. After that they
Edges: —
suffer 2d10 damage per round until they
Gear: Light armor (+4), flechette SMG with 2
explode.
magazines (Ranged: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1,
AP 2, Auto), molecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2),
medpac Mummy, Greater
Bank Robber Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d10, Spirit d12,
Strength d12+4, Vigor d12
These criminals are ex-Corporate soldiers Skills: Fighting d10, Guts d12, Intimidation
who’ve decided to supplement their regular d10, Necromancy d10, Notice d8
income by robbing banks. They’re trained, dis- Pace: 4 (d4 running die); Parry: 7; Tough-
ciplined, and more importantly, well-armed. ness: 15(5)
Gear: Stygian armor (+5), rune sword
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, (Str+d8+4, AP 4)
Strength d8, Vigor d8 Special Abilities:
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d6, Notice d6, Shooting * Arcane Background (Magic): A mummy
d8 typically knows barrier (creates a wall
Charisma: –2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 10 of darkness), bolt (swarm of tiny skulls),
(4) deflection (shield of swirling skulls), fear
Hindrances: Loyal, Mean (unearthly cry), obscure (area of darkness),
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Rock and Roll and zombie (ritual preparation) (35 Power
Gear: Light armor (+4), 6mm SMG with 2 mag- Points).
azines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d6, ROF 3),
* Crushing Grasp: Str+d6. On a raise,
molecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2), headset
the mummy automatically grapples its
comms, medpac, ID tag
opponent.
* Fear (–2): Opponents must make a Guts
Exploding Corpse roll at –2.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4, * Greater Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to
Strength d8, Vigor d10 recover from being Shaken. Immune to
Skills: Fighting d6, Notice d8, Stealth d8 poison and disease. No additional damage
Pace: 5; Parry: 5; Toughness: 9 from called shots. Half-damage from piercing
Special Abilities: weapons. Ignores Wound Penalties.
* Bite or Claws: Str+d4. * Improved Arcane Resistance: +4 Armor
* Explode: When an exploding corpse is versus magic, and +4 to rolls made to
wounded it explodes for 4d10 damage in resist magic effects.
a Medium Burst Template. This may cause * Mummy Rot: Anyone touched by a
a chain reaction if other exploding corpses mummy, whether he is damaged or not,

158
 tales from the frontline one
must make a Vigor roll. Failure means the and transforming them into walking gun
character has “mummy rot” and suffers platforms. Though they are of little use against
an immediate wound. Victims who die as tanks, their weapons can penetrate APCs and
result of “mummy rot” may be brought other light support vehicles.
back as guardian mummies.
Attributes: Agility d4, Smarts d4, Spirit d8,
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all penalties Strength d12+4, Vigor d10
for bad lighting when attacking living targets Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d8, Intimidation d8,
or vehicles with their engine running. Notice d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6
* Weakness (Fire): Mummies take +4 Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 12
damage from fire. Gear: 25mm SBAC (Range: 30/60/120, Dam-
age 3d8, AP 10, Small Burst Template), 3 full
Necroscope reloads
Special Abilities:
Necroscopes are Rephaim bloodhounds, * Brawny: +1 Toughness, carrying capacity
capable of sensing living creatures through of 8 x Str.
even the thickest armor or shielding. Gray- * Claws: Str+d6.
skinned and hunched, with huge, bulging, * Hardy: Multiple Shaken results do not
black eyes and enlarged nostrils and ears, they cause a wound.
lead Rephaim to hiding prey or serve as sen- * Size +2: SBACulas stand 9’ tall and weigh
tries. They have no mouth and are not capable around 400 pounds.
of communicating beyond pointing to their
targets with their withered arms. * Thermal Vision: Halves penalties for bad
lighting when attacking living targets.
Though they undoubtedly have superior * Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
eyesight, smell, and hearing to a human, they from being Shaken. Called shots do no
can also sense air currents, heat signatures, and, extra damage. Immune to poison and
to a limited degree, pick up strong thoughts. disease. Piercing weapons do half damage.
This battery of senses gives them their ability to
apparently “see” through objects.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4, Spirit d6, Skeleton
Strength d4, Vigor d6 Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
Skills: Fighting d4, Notice d12, Tracking d10 Strength d6, Vigor d6
Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness: 6 Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4,
Special Abilities: Shooting d6
* Battery of Senses: Necroscopes can use Pace: 7; Parry: 5; Toughness: 7/11(4)
their Notice to detect living creatures within Gear: Typically a flechette rifle with 3 maga-
24”, even those concealed behind solid zines (Range: 24/48/96, Damage: 2d8+1, AP
objects (or inside vehicles). This is opposed 2, Auto, 3RB), 1d3 grenades (Range: 20/40/80,
by Stealth as normal. They suffer no penalties Damage: 3d8, AP 4, MBT); 50% have light ar-
for darkness or concealment and always mor (+4)
count as alert sentries. Special Abilities:
* Size –1: Necroscopes are similar in size to * Bony Claws: Str+d4.
small children. * Fearless: Skeletons are immune to Fear
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover from and Intimidation.
being Shaken. No additional damage from * Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
Called Shots. Immune to poison and disease. penalties for bad lighting when attacking
Half damage from piercing weapons. living targets or vehicles with their engine
running.
SBACula * Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
from being Shaken. Immune to poison and
SBACulas are hulking, Rephaim brutes, cre- disease. No additional damage from called
ated by the liches to work in the mines and on shots. Half-damage from piercing weapons.
other construction projects. Dumb and strong,
they have proven very capable workers.
Lacking much in the way of mobile infantry
Zombie
support, the Dark Conclave came up with the Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
idea of strapping captured SBACs to these Strength d6, Vigor d6
brutes, known among the Rephaim as “mules,” Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4,

159
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Shooting d6, Stealth d6 * Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
Pace: 4 Parry: 5 Toughness: 7 from being Shaken. Immune to poison
Gear: Flechette SMG with 2 magazines (Range: and disease. No additional damage from
12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1AP 2, Auto) called shots. Half-damage from piercing
Special Abilities: weapons.
* Claws: Str+d4. Skilled: Grenade Launcher King
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and Experienced: Shooting d8, Marksman
Intimidation.
Elite: Grenade Launcher God
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
living targets or vehicles with their engine Zombie Sniper
running. Even with flechette weapons, which
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover produce minimal noise and no muzzle
from being Shaken. Immune to poison and flash, human snipers are trained to fire and
disease. No additional damage from called move—staying stationary is a sure way to get
shots. Half-damage from piercing weapons. yourself killed. Zombies don’t have the same
survival instincts as humans, nor do they pos-
Zombie Grenadier sess cognitive abilities of any note. As such,
once they find a good position they stay there
Zombie grenadiers provide support to and keep firing. This mentality only changes
Rephaim troops through a variety of grenades when a zombie has survived long enough to
launched from a Brimstone. They aren’t accu- develop rudimentary tactics.
rate marksman, but Rephaim commanders are The italicized stat entries below allow for
far less worried about friendly fire incidents more experienced snipers. All entries are
than their human counterparts. GMs who want cumulative (so an elite sniper gains the benefits
to use skeleton grenadiers need simply add the of all three entries).
gear and Grenades special ability to the base
skeleton stat block. Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
Strength d6, Vigor d6
The italicized stat entries below allow Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4,
for more experienced grenadiers. All entries Shooting d6, Stealth d6
are cumulative (so an elite grenadier gains Pace: 4 Parry: 5 Toughness: 7
the benefits of all three entries). From 2352 Gear: Flechette sniper rifle with 2 magazines
onward, zombie grenadiers begin making use (Range: 30/60/120, Damage: 2d8+1, AP 2, in-
of captured Maximus rotary grenade launch- tegral scope)
ers (see 2351-55 Update). Special Abilities:
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4, * Claws: Str+d4.
Strength d6, Vigor d6 * Fearless: Immune to Fear and
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4, Intimidation.
Shooting d6, Stealth d6 * Marksman: +2 to Shooting rolls if it
Pace: 4 Parry: 5 Toughness: 7/11(4) remains stationary.
Gear: Brimstone grenade launcher (Range:
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
20/40/80, Damage: as grenade, see below, no
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
reloads); 50% have light armor (+4).
living targets or vehicles with their engine
Special Abilities:
running.
* Claws: Str+d4.
* Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and
from being Shaken. Immune to poison
Intimidation.
and disease. No additional damage from
* Grenades: Zombies aren’t clever. called shots. Half-damage from piercing
Grenadiers load whatever grenades they weapons.
can find, without caring about their type.
Skilled: Shooting d8
Each time the zombie fires, roll a d10 to
determine the type of grenade launched: Experienced: Dig In, Steady Hands
1–6 monofilament; 7–9 incendiary, 10 Elite: Move and Fire
starshell.
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
living targets or vehicles with their engine
running.

160
 Player Handout #1: Tactical Briefing
Date: 32.VI.2050; 2030 Zulu.
Ten years ago, the Rephaim captured the city of Olisipo, south of what is now the border
between Dead Zone Beta and Tomaculum. You’ll be handed a small data file on the city after the
briefing.
Much of the city was destroyed and we managed to evacuate the vast majority of citizens, so
we have no immediate interest in recapturing it. The Rephaim seem to know this, because they
haven’t bothered fortifying it. What they have been doing is field testing new species, though. It
seems they use the city as a sort of training ground, which has played right into our hands.
Over the last few years, the Ordines have conducted a number of covert missions into Olisipo
for the purposes of grabbing specimens. We don’t take many and we don’t do it often—as far as we
know, the Rephaim are none the wiser, and attribute any losses to their live-fire combat exercises.
Your mission is to follow on from other missions and snatch living specimens for our Lazarite
comrades to play with.
Technicians have modified a Job supply truck by adding a number of sturdy holding tanks and
fitting seats for your Lance. It won’t be a smooth ride, but she’s perfect for the task. The tanks
are rated 12D, which should suffice most regular Rephaim. If you get anything stronger, we can’t
guarantee how long they’ll be contained.
A Nephilim Dropship will drop the APC in the docklands district just before dawn. We don’t want
the Rephaim alerted to your presence, so the Nephilim won’t be available for air support. The pilot will
circle around in the wastes between the city and the border, dropping into headset communication
range every 30 minutes or so. Signal as soon as you’ve got a specimen and she’ll land and pick you up.
We want to minimize her presence, so work fast.
Enemy Forces: The bulk of the enemy forces are known to comprise skeletons and zombies.
We’re not interested in these, though, or in vampires or mummies. The Lazarites want new speci-
mens. In essence, if you encounter something you’ve never seen before, grab it! Avoid engagements
with regular Rephaim forces at all costs.
Support: Because this is a covert mission, you’ll be going in alone. Sergeants just don’t have
the training for this sort of work. This is another reason for you to avoid contact where possible.
Equipment: This is a snatch-and-grab mission. Aside from your regular gear, the Lance will be
issued with two tangle guns, each with two rounds. Everyone is to take a mancatcher as well.
*****

Olisipo
(Census Record 2340)
Population: 1.32 million (currently abandoned).
Location: 75 miles south of current Tomaculum border and 22 miles inland. The city sits on
the southern bank of the Tamesis River.
Purpose: Heavy industry and shipbuilding hub (nonfunctional).
Olisipo was divided into two distinct areas.
Located on the river banks were the docks, shipyards, and heavy industry plants. During the
Rephaim invasion, the docks served as the stronghold for the Ordines. Almost the entire popula-
tion was evacuated from here on heavily armed ships, or via convoys of Job supply trucks and
Pedael cargo lifters. Before the final withdraw, the Ordines ordered an intense artillery and aerial
bombardment to deny the Rephaim use of any facilities.
The residential and administrative districts were constructed five miles south of the city, along
Highway 19R, in a series of four concentric circles. The outermost zone contained housing for the
general populace. Next were light industrial and administrative businesses. Inside of this sat the
housing of the elite, and well as an urban Preceptory. The core district served the Curia, and con-
tained two notable buildings—the Cathedral of St. Thomas, and the Basilica of the Rose-Cross.
 Player Handout #2: Tactical Briefing
Date: 05.VIII.2050; 0730 Zulu.
Sit down and shut up—this one is serious, and I want your full attention.
Two months ago, Cardinal David Vespasian of the Office of Agriculture was kidnapped along
with his entourage. The kidnappers are members of the Independence Movement. Intelligence
reports they’re farmers living near the Kobia border who want to secede from the Church and
join the Union. Until now they’ve been very low key and more a nuisance than a threat, but now
they’ve crossed the line.
It’s taken a while, but we’ve finally deduced the kidnappers have taken up refuge in the old
monastery of St. Maximillian. It’s not well-fortified, but its location makes it a bitch to reach with-
out being seen. The monks lived a hermit lifestyle, and constructed their home on a rocky ledge
high in the mountains.
The Grand Master received instructions a short while later from His Holiness to rescue the
cardinal and his entourage through military force. Apparently the Curia wanted the Praetorians
and Teutonics to handle the rescue, but the Pope felt we were better equipped.
The compound, you’ll get a map soon so stow any questions about the layout right now, is inac-
cessible from the ground except by a treacherous climb or a winch lowed from the monastery. We
doubt the kidnappers will be so kind as to invite you in, though. For that reason, we’re going to rely
on stealth to get you into the compound. You’ll be dropped right into the monastery via Cherubs.
Once you’re down, they’ll take up holding positions nearby, along with a third Cherub for
hostage extraction. Once you have secured the prisoners and are in the open, the Cherub will land
to collect the hostages while the others provide fire support. Only when the hostages are safely in
the air will you be permitted to leave.
The wind shear in the mountains can be lethal. For that reason, the senior Cherub pilot has the
final go/no go decision on whether the insertion is possible. If he says he can’t land safely you’ll be
climbing several hundred feet of vertical cliff, so make sure you take suitable equipment!
To ensure other enemies of the Church know kidnapping will not be tolerated, Papa John has
ordered your camera feeds and audio signals to be broadcast live once the operation commences.
The monastery has no communication equipment—it doesn’t even have electricity—and it’s too
far from the transmitters to pick up stray signals on portable units. The Cherubs will forward your
signals to the nearest relay station.
We rescue Vespasian successfully, and we get a major public relations boon. Screw up, and this
will make us look very bad in front of millions of citizens. It’ll also give separatists across Salus a
major boost to their cause.
Okay, aside from Vespasian, the entourage includes First Secretary Pietr Damocles of the Office of
Agriculture New Territories Province, Archpriest Maria Valence, the local priest, and three Knights from
the Praetorians—Johnson, Irobi, and Zelwigger. Two other Knights were slain in the kidnapping.
Once you’re tooled up, you’ll be flown to a forward camp nearer the mountains to plan your
operation. His Holiness wants this to be hard and fast, so don’t dally making detailed plans.
Enemy Forces: A Cherub performed a flyby during the night, but the enemy wasn’t playing
ball. As best as we can tell, you’ll be facing maybe a dozen or so citizens armed with shotguns and
flechette SMGs. Chances are the militants are Preacher-trained, so they do know how to use their
guns. They might have a few grenades at their disposal if the Cardinal’s entourage were dumb
enough to carry any.
Support: A second Lance of Knights, Lance XI Banner B, will be accompanying you on this
one. You’re the senior Lance, and your Senior Knight is the mission commander.
Equipment: The Curia has sanctioned extreme force for this mission, but they don’t want the
cardinal wasted by trigger-happy Knights. For that reason, you’ll be restricted to smoke grenades only.
Since this is a rescue mission and not a raid, you’ll all be issued with SMGs instead of your
usual primary weapons. They’re far more compact than rifles, and much better in a tight environ-
ment. No support weapons of any sort will be issued. Any Infantry Support Knights had better get
used to being a grunt for a while.
 tales from the front
line two
introduction The adventure is set near The New Ter-
ritories and the Augustine Territories, and
Welcome to Tales from the Frontline 2! This is ideal for a Gamma Front campaign. WM’s
mission pack contains three adventures writ- setting their campaign in another part of the
ten for the Necropolis 2350 campaign setting. world should feel free to alter these details
If you intend to play in these missions, you appropriately. Alternately, the Knights may be
should stop reading now. Advanced knowledge on secondment or undergoing training at a
of the scenarios will only spoil your enjoyment
local Preceptory, thus placing them in the right
of the game. There’s also a quick set of rules for
designing non-combat missions. place at the right time.
The WM should read each adventure before Rank: Seasoned (25–30 XP).
play begins. Knowing the basic flow and details
in advance will greatly speed up play and make
the game run smoother.
Briefing
Required Materials At the crack of dawn, you were roused
You need a copy of the Savage Worlds rule- and ordered to prepare for a mission,
book, the Necropolis: 2350 setting book, and foregoing the usual breakfast and prayers.
the Necropolis 2351-55 Update. The Necropo-
What makes today more unusual from the
lis Figure Flats are recommended.
usual routine is that you’ve been aboard
an Angel heading across the landscape for
Characters an hour, and you still don’t know where
Each adventure is designed around a squad you’re going or why. Even the pilot seems
of four Knights. The specific adventures suggest unsure as to what he has to do, besides fly
suitable character Ranks and Experience Point
you to a set of coordinates.
totals. For larger groups or more experienced
characters, the WM should adjust the number You’ve had chance to converse with the
and stats of opponents appropriately to create pilot about the location. Unless he’s made
an exciting challenge. Use the archetypes from
the Necropolis 2350 setting book if you need an error, it looks like you’re going to an
pre-generated characters. Each archetype has abandoned mining town in the wastes
been designed as a starting character, and thus between The New Territories and the
should be awarded advancements as required Augustine Territories.
to bring it up to the adventure Rank.
The muted silence in the dropship
passenger bay is broken suddenly by your

Last Train to Doomsday headset comms, crackling into life. “Sir,”

says the pilot over the link, “I’ve got the
In this short adventure, the heroes have Preceptor Intelligence Officer on the line
to board a moving train and stop a Rephaim with your briefing. Patching him through
plot to seed a city with a powerful necromantic now.”
virus. If they fail, tens of thousands of citizens
could transform into zombies right in the heart Read or paraphrase the following informa-
of Church territory. tion.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
PIO’s Briefing Fortunately, there’s an abandoned
mining station along the route, and the
Sorry to rush you into the air without train’s got to pass through it. Although
giving you a heads up in advance, but we the train isn’t scheduled to stop there,
needed you airborne while we were col- she’s programmed to slow down. She’ll be
lecting and correlating data. Time is of the moving just slow enough for you to leap
essence on this one. aboard. You heard me right; you’re going
Early this morning, a freight train to have to jump onto a moving train.
carrying industrial parts, assorted goods, We’ve got no idea what state the mining
and chemicals left Messana, in The New town is in, but it’s likely filled with debris.
Territories, for Vigornia, in the Augustine All simulations have indicated the Angel’s
Territories. Not long after, we received downwash could blow debris onto the
a report from our comrades in The New tracks, and that in turn could derail the
Territories that a routine security sweep train. To that end, you’ll be dropped out-
discovered heretical materials in the lodg- side the train station. From there, make
ings of the two security troops stationed your way onto the platform as quickly as
aboard the train. possible—calculations indicate you’ll have
We’ve been told some of the chemicals just a few minutes at best from landing
onboard are highly explosive, and could until the train rolls through.
therefore be used in a terrorist attack. According to the stationmaster in Mes-
Given that the only known armed person- sana, this particular train had a total of ten
nel on the train are heretics, we’re pretty flatbeds at the rear, an armored carriage,
sure the train is now a large bomb. Ideally, for security personnel or holding unruly
we’d just blow the train off the tracks and passengers, five passenger compartments,
call the job done, but this train is carry- eight more flatbeds, the first class carriage,
ing passengers as well as freight, and we and then the engine. Aim for a flatbed—the
can’t allow innocents to die while there’s other cars don’t have any handholds. For
a chance to bring the situation under the love of God don’t miss!
control.
Enemy Forces: The freight company
However, once the train gets within 10 tells us there are 36 passengers and five
miles of the nearest settlement, we’ll have crewmembers, not counting the two secu-
no choice but to launch a full airstrike rity guards, who we know are hostiles. We
unless you signal the all clear. Assuming have no idea how many of these may be
the train follows the correct speeds all the terrorists, which isn’t going to make your
way, that’ll give you just 30 minutes from job any easier. Consider everyone a poten-
the time you board. tial threat.
The train runs on a fully automatic Support: The Angel is going to be
system, but the override isn’t functioning. extremely short on fuel when it drops you
We suspect a jammer has been setup on the off, so it won’t be hanging around for air
train, confirming our worst fears. That also support or evacuation duties. We’re prep-
means you’re headset comms aren’t going ping more dropships as they return from
to work. I hope you remember your hand missions and getting them airborne, but
signals training. it’s going to be tight getting them to you
Your orders are to board the train, before the train hits the point of no return,
neutralize any terrorists, and bring her to and we can’t get them in close until all
a manual halt in that order—don’t stop hostiles are neutralized.
the train before securing it, just in case the Equipment: Sorry we never had time
terrorists get boom-happy and decide to to issue any specific kit. I’m afraid you’ll
become martyrs to their warped cause. have to make do with whatever you’re car-
Ideally, we’d drop you right onto the rying on this one.
train by Angel, but for the reasons stated The Preceptor Intelligence Master doesn’t
before we can’t risk that. There’s also a have much else he can add at this stage, so the
chance the heretics are serious players GM should refrain from answering any ques-
and are packing Doves, or other heavy tions the Knights might have in detail. The
weapons, aimed at preventing a boarding Knights have just the standard kit and ammo
action. loads for their specialty.

164
 escape tales from the frontline two
A few moments after the PIO’s briefing is the remaining zombies are in the rusting cars
over, the pilot comes over the line again. “Sir, across the tracks, and two are lurking on the
we’re going green and mean in about two customs building roof, having been hiding
minutes. We can see the train on its approach. under sheets of corrugated metal when the
You don’t have much time once we hit dirt. dropship roared into sight.
The station looks…clear. No sign of hostiles.”
The front of the train enters the station at
The pilot recommends touching down in the start of the second combat round from the
the streets outside the station. The yard is full north and moving south. Deal the train a single
of abandoned automobiles, and piles of loose initiative card. Its only action is to move 20”.
rubbish are a hazard if they get sucked into an
intake. Ordering him to disobey the PIO and As noted in the briefing, the order the vari-
hover in the yard requires an Intimidation roll ous components roar through the station are
at –2. Convincing him to hover over the tracks the engine, first class carriage, eight flatbeds,
is impossible—he’s quite prepared to disobey five passenger cars, an armored carriage, and
a Senior Knight when the order places him and ten flatbeds. Each car, including the engine,
his co-pilot at risk. is 10” long, and the train is moving at 20” per
round. At that rate, the engine and its 26 cars
will completely clear the platform in exactly 14
rounds. If the heroes aren’t aboard by then,
Touch Down they’ve screwed up—the Angel hasn’t enough
fuel to return, pick them up, and chase the
The Angel touches down, kicking up a great locomotive. See Aftermath on page 172 for
plume of dust and loose debris. As soon as the ideas on what to do in this occurrence.
last Knight is off, it blasts back into the sky and
Zombies (3 per hero): See page 195.
heads for home.
The moment the characters set foot inside
the station, whether they enter through the
gate or leap out the Angel directly into the All Aboard the Doom
yard, they come under sustained automatic
fire from a squad of zombies placed here to
prevent the Church from boarding the train
Train
as it passes through the station. The Rephaim Boarding the train requires the Knights to
know about the automatic control system from be adjacent to the tracks and a car. Each Knight
cultists, but they have no idea how to disable it must make an Agility roll, modified by the type
without stopping the train dead. of car they’re trying to leap onto. Except for
Check for Surprise. the flatbeds, which give a –1 penalty, trying to
board the moving train by any other car gives
The station yard measures 20” wide and a flat –6 penalty.
16” deep. The western side, through which the
heroes enter, is a high wall broken by a 2” wide On a result of 1 or less after modifiers, the
gate in the center. To the north, the precinct is Knight tries the jump, fails, and is dragged
bordered by the old customs and ticket offices. along the platform for 4d6 damage before he
A single door (1” wide) and a pair of windows manages to let go. He is prone on the platform,
face into the station’s yard. The south is the 1d6” further south than his previous position.
side of a warehouse, and lacks any windows or With any other failure, the Knight didn’t actu-
doors. The western end is the platform. ally make the jump—he thought better of it.
Within the yard are four rusted automobiles Should he move off the platform because of
(3” long and 2” wide), a few piles of debris this, he is lying beside the tracks. Any attempts
left behind when the miners left, and other to jump onto the train from there are made at
detritus. a further –2 penalty. Climbing back onto the
platform uses 2” of movement, but is not a
Two tracks run through the mining town. distinct action (there are steps).
The one nearest the station is the one the
inbound train uses. On the other sit two rust- Note that depending where the characters
ing passenger cars (10” long and 3” wide), the board, they may be immediately attacked by
glass in their windows long smashed and the Rephaim.
doors smashed off. Once on board, the Knights have 30
One-third of the zombies are in the old minutes before the bombers unleash their pay-
customs house and ticket office, and one-third loads. Since a combat round is 6 seconds, it’s
hiding inside the wrecked automobiles. Half unlikely the fighting will burn up much time.

165
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Likewise, at 10” long, the cars can be traversed The two guards were executed and subse-
in just two combat rounds. What will burn time quently raised as zombies by Malifix, as were a
is Healing, which takes 10 minutes per attempt. total of 19 passengers and crew (through the
Without a Faithful with the healing litany, the zombie lord’s Necromancy or Sire abilities),
Knights cannot afford to spend time patching giving Malifix an army of 27 loyal minions.
up their wounds. Their locations are detailed in the text below.

Tactics
The Train’s Layout & Aside from Malifix and his elite zombies, the

Passengers remaining Rephaim are completely mindless.

Despite lacking any autofire skills and being on
a swaying train, they use full auto each round.
The train is divided, as previously noted, Against a foe in the open at short range, this
into different types of car. For game purposes, means they require an 8+ to hit. All being well,
each is 10” long and 3” wide. There is a mini- this inability to hit will cause the Knights to
mal gap between the cars (about 6 real inches grow complacent, even arrogant, as they wade
in total). through their foes.
Only the freight cards are exposed to the They’ll be in for a shock when they encoun-
elements—the rest are armored (engine and ter the elite zombies, however. Not only do they
armored car have Toughness 18(4) Heavy have armor, but they’re quite skilled with their
Armor, and the cars are Toughness 12(2)). firearms and understand the tactical advantages
Unless otherwise noted, all doors slide open of using cover and going on Hold. Unless the
and are activated with a simple push button. Knights employ tactics, the fight against these
All windows in the passenger cars are covered implacable foes could be quite brutal.
in metal slit shutters. These are attached to the
All the zombies count as alert sentries.
walls on the inside, preventing the Knights
from unscrewing them. The common zombies investigate shouts
(zombies don’t speak, and they know Malifix’s
Combat: The train counts as an Unstable
voice), explosions, and other “combat noises.”
Platform. Movement over seats or across the
Any of these sounds made on an adjacent car
freight car’s cargo counts as difficult terrain
summon the zombies automatically. The one
(unless the cargo is considered impassable).
exception is the elite zombies—they never
Communications: A jammer is located leave the car containing the rocket unless
under the rocket (page 164). Until it is switched directly ordered by Malifix.
off, the Knights can’t use their headset commu-
If Malifix is alerted to sounds of an attack,
nicators, and the train can’t be stopped.
he abandons his command post in the armored
Jumping: Once the train clears the mining car (page 171) and heads for the freight car
town, it increases speed to 100 mph (or 40” containing his weapon. If he sees the Knights
per round). Any Knight who abandons the on the one remaining security camera, he
train suffers 8d6. This is halved if the jumper summons his entire army to head toward the
makes an Agility roll, as normal. freight car carrying the rocket and engage in
combat.

The Rephaim
Leading the Rephaim is High Exarch Mali-
Engine
fix, a zombie lord. He boarded the train with Only a small compartment (1” square) on
just six elite zombies, more than enough to the right hand side of the engine car is acces-
deal with a few unarmed humans. In addition, sible—the rest contains the engine and various
the security guards on the train were heretics, drive systems—and is normally used only by
planted in the company by Malifix in prepara- maintenance teams when the train is stopped.
tion for the plot. In a cost-cutting exercise, the freight company
neglected to order the optional manual over-
Of the 43 humans aboard the train, two
ride control panel. In short, there’s no way to
are already accounted for. The crew comprised
stop the train from onboard.
five loadmasters assigned to safeguard the
cargo. The remaining 36 were passengers The only way inside, once the train is under-
(five first class and 31 standard class). Most of way, is to walk along the roof, and then swing
the humans were slain in the attack, much to down into the driver’s cabin. Walking the roof
Malifix’s dismay. is difficult ground, and swinging in requires an

166
 escape tales from the frontline two
Agility roll. Failure leaves the Knight dangling are designed to be self-sealing,
precariously as the ground rushes by. Since a but the system isn’t foolproof.
Knight who falls has no chance of getting back Use the Innocent Bystander
onto the train (and therefore won’t take part rule whenever combat occurs
in the rest of the adventure), try to avoid the on these freight cars—each 1”
temptation to have one go tumbling over the of the tanks counts as a unique
edge. “bystander” for this purpose.
When a tank takes a wound, draw a card from
Flatbed the action deck. A black face card
(Jack through Ace) causes the
The flatbeds have low railings (2’ high) tank to explode if the attack was
along all the sides, with a 1” wide gap where from a non-Heavy Weapon. This
the cars touch adjoining ones. fills a Large Burst Template, and
inflicts 4d20 damage to every-
thing beneath. A Heavy Weapon
Cargo creates an explosion as above if
The train is carrying a variety of cargo. the face card is any black suit.
Freight cars are numbered from the front of 13–15 Oil: This isn’t fuel oil, but
the train. In addition to its regular cargo, one lubricant. The barrels are small
of the freight cars carries a special weapon. Its enough to fit a dozen in a single
location is determined by where the heroes 1” square, and many stacks are
boarded the train. See The Real Danger (page 2” high (the barrels are lashed
172). together to stop them falling
Car Cargo over). The barrels have Tough-
ness 8.
1–6 Crates: The freight cars are
loaded with crates of machine While the contents are nonflammable, they
parts, canned food, and other are slippery. A barrel which takes
common freight goods, ulti- a wound leaks a Small Burst
mately useless to the Knights. Template of oil, centered on the
These boxes should be placed barrel over the car. Movement
so as to create cover and break through this patch is difficult
up straight line movement (thus ground. Any hero who runs and
allowing a more tactical approach rolls a 1 on his running die, or
to combat). who rolls a 1 on his Agility die
(regardless of the Wild Die), slips
7–10 Long Pipes: The sides of the cars and falls prone. Due to the slip-
are loaded with long lengths of periness, standing up requires an
pipes, held together with chains. action.
Each bundle of pipes is 5” long
and 1” wide, and there are four 15–17 Crates: As #1–6.
bundles per car. The chains 18 Heavy Plant: The final car
are Small targets (–2) and have is carrying two heavy plant
Toughness 10. When a chain machines—a bulldozer (2” wide
takes a wound, it shatters, spill- and 3” long) and a small crane
ing the cargo of pipes. Draw a (4” long and 2” wide).
card from the action deck. A red
card or Joker means the train’s
movement spills the pipes into Rephaim
the car. All creatures adjacent to A total of 13 zombies are patrolling the
the cargo must make an Agility freight cars. Their starting locations are as
roll at –2 or suffer 2d10 damage. noted below:
A black card indicates the pipes
Car Zombies
fall harmlessly over the side.
#4 2
11–12 Explosive Chemicals: Each #7 2
freight car is carrying four large #9 3
tanks of chemicals, which react #10 2
violently with air. Each tank meas- #12 2
ures 1” wide and 3” long, and #16 2
has Toughness 16(4). The tanks Zombies (13): See page 195.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

168
escape tales from the frontline two

169
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

170
 escape tales from the frontline two

First Class Car blood and flechette holes than accounts for
the number of corpses. For instance, there is
Freight trains provide a single, first class car, clear evidence of blood holes and pockmarks
mainly in the hope of luring a few wealthier against the walls, indicating a victim was
citizens to take the longer (and marketed as standing there, but there is no body nearby.
more romantic) journey across Salus. Touted These corpses were raised as zombies through
as luxury compartments, the truly rich would necromancy.
consider them basic fare, leaving only the Only the passenger car nearest the armored
middle classes to find them mildly acceptable. car is guarded. Two of these zombies are in the
The poorest members of society would prob- main passenger bay, one is in the seated area,
ably find them opulent; such are their regular and the other is in the forward waiting area.
living conditions.
Zombies (4): See page 195.
The large compartments contain two plush
benches, which convert into beds. Between
these is a fold up table. The smaller compart- Armored Car
ments contain only a single bench, though
it serves adequately as a bed. Note that even The inclusion of an armored car on freight
traveling “first class,” train passengers must trains is a formality, followed to toe the Church
share a communal lavatory-cum-shower room. line that all installations, mobile or static, must
have a security force. Most freight companies
“Dining facilities” comprise vending save money by hiring the absolute minimum
machines, which dispense a variety of tasteless staff stipulated by law—two. This train was no
soft drinks and alcoholic beverages, and snacks exception.
and pull-ring-to-heat “luxury” meals. Most of
the meals have never been anywhere near real Unfortunately, the two hirelings were actu-
meat or vegetables, being comprised almost ally Rephaim agents, planted by the zombie
entirely of protein substitutes and vitamin lord months ago. They helped smuggle the
paste. Rephaim aboard, and then, at the appointed
hour, turned their guns on the passengers.
Four corpses lie in the car, two in the cor- Malifix, who wanted the passengers alive so he
ridor, one in the compartment by the toilet, could use his Sire ability, rewarded his minions
and one in the smaller compartment on the with eternal life as zombies.
opposite side. All have been shot with flechette
rounds (shot by the two guards). Inside the armored car is a holding tank,
seats for the security troops, and a row of
Two zombies are in this car. One is patrol- screens linked to the onboard security cam-
ling the corridor, while the other is guarding eras. All the cameras have been destroyed save
the forward waiting area. Both lack the brains one—the one showing the Rephaim’s reason
to use developed tactics, being very much for capturing the train (see page 164).
“spray the area with flechette” types.
There’s also a small armory, but it’s empty.
Zombies (2): See page 195. Knights making a Notice roll deduce it once
held two each of SMGs, spare magazines, and
Passenger Car a grenade launcher. Given the likelihood of a
Rephaim attack would be small, the grenades
Most citizens who travel by train between were probably stun and baton rounds, designed
territories do so because they can’t afford to incapacitate troublesome passengers or
airfares. The freight trains provide an alter- stowaways.
nate, and cheap, means of transportation, but The two former heretics and High Exarch
it’s strictly a no-thrills ride. The bulk of each Malifix, the zombie lord mastermind behind
passenger car, as evidenced in the diagram, is the hijacking, occupy the armored car. Unless
a communal empty space, where passengers the Knights make a lot of noise (like lobbing
can sit, lie, or stand. The front compartment grenades or causing explosions), the Rephaim
contains small seats, but these are far from can be taken by Surprise.
comfortable. There are no refreshment facili-
There are two doors, one on each end, but
ties—passengers must supply their own food
these are protected by a coded entry system
and drink.
which doesn’t react to the Knights’ ID tags.
The passenger cars contain a total of 16 Cracking the code requires 10 minutes and a
corpses. All have been shot with flechette Lockpicking roll. After three failed attempts,
weapons. A Notice roll made while performing the doors seal and can only be opened from
a thorough examination reveals a lot more within.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Climbing onto the roof is easy enough, so Although the rocket is tied to the freight car
long as the Knights use something to stand on. to prevent it falling over in transit, there is noth-
Once on the top, they discover an unlocked ing to prevent the heroes from simply throwing
hatch. A ladder allows access to the interior it over the side of the train or torching it with a
(security troops sit on the roof with binoculars, flamethrower from a safe distance.
normally, scanning the horizon for trouble).
High Exarch Malifix: See page 193. Zombies
Zombies (2): See page 195. Guarding the flatbed are the zombie lord’s
initial squad of zombies. Malifix has given these
special training, and they are capable of using
The Real Danger cover and performing basic tactical maneuvers
(like never standing in the open and making
The true threat aboard the train isn’t actu- themselves an easy target).
ally the chemicals. Although they are highly
explosive, the Rephaim have placed a far more Typically, the zombies seek cover as quickly
useful device on board. as possible, once foes are detected. Four of
them lean out from cover, fire, and duck back
On one of the flatbeds (#1 or #18, which- down on their action card, forcing enemies
ever is furthest from where the heroes board) to go on Hold to shoot them. The remaining
is a primitive rocket. Contained inside panels pair seek cover while laying down fire on their
around the nosecone are glass spheres, each first action card, but then go on Hold. They
containing green gas. The gas is a necromantic interrupt opponents trying to make their way
heavier-than-air weapon. Inhaling it infects toward their position or who are about to
living victims with the same sort of toxin as launch grenades.
carried by diseased zombies (variant I).
Once the enemy gets close, all the remain-
Unfortunately, the Rephaim don’t know ing zombies fire a final burst (at –2 for taking
much about guidance systems, so their best two actions), drop their guns, and draw their
hope of getting it into the heart of a human swords (an action), ready for melee.
city was on one of the trains. Their plan is
Elite Zombies (6): See page 195. In addi-
simple—drive the train into the station, launch
tion, one has a Brimstone grenade loaded with
the rocket, and detonate the small warhead,
three baton rounds (Range: 10/20/40, Damage:
releasing the gas over the city. As it sinks to
2d6 nonlethal) and two stun grenades (Range:
earth, it will be breathed by thousands, maybe 20/40/80, Damage: victims must make a Vigor
tens of thousands, of humans. roll or be Shaken, Medium Burst Template)
Detecting the panels is automatic if the
Knights closely inspect the rocket, but requires
a Notice roll as an action from a distance of
2” or more. Unscrewing any of the six panels
Aftermath
requires four actions—one action per screw. This adventure can end one of several
Analyzing the gas is impossible without a labo- ways.
ratory, but the Knights are free to speculate.
First, the Knights wipe out the Rephaim
Removing a sphere requires an Agility roll and destroy the rocket. Once the jammer is
as an action. On a failure, the sphere shat- off, the freight company sends the override
ters (they are extremely fragile), releasing signal, which stops the train. A pair of Angels
a Medium Burst Template of gas. Everyone supported by an Archangel arrives on the
under the template not using a respirator must scene a few minutes later (having been waiting
make a Vigor roll or contract the virus. See the over the horizon). The Knights can congratu-
Diseased Zombie Variant I from the Necropolis late themselves on a job well done, and the
2351-55 Update for details. Lazarites get a new weapon to study (assuming
Any hero carrying a sphere who is hit by a it wasn’t ditched overboard).
weapon or by a litany with a damaging effect, Second, the Knights miss the train at the
regardless of whether or not he takes damage, mining town. The Knights might be able to
or who rolls a 1 on his Agility die (regardless catch another Angel, but if they do, time should
of Wild Die), must draw a card from the action be really against them when they board the
deck. A black suit means the globe breaks. train. Give them maybe 10 or 15 minutes of

172
 escape tales from the frontline two
game time to check the train before it reaches Mrs. Betts is a rich widower. Her
the point of no return and the Church sends in husband was some bigwig back on Earth
the bombers. before the Final Exodus. He died shortly
Alternately, the WM can use the heroes’ fail- after arriving on Salus, and his wife has
ure to start a new mini-campaign—no second been a recluse ever since. She’s worth
team is available, the bombers miss the train, millions, donates heavily to various Pre-
and the rocket launches, infecting thousands of ceptory projects, and is a vocal supporter
citizens. Within a week, the city is crawling with of the Pope. Treat her with utmost respect
infectious zombies. at all times.

Third, the Knights board the train but get So pay Mrs. Betts a visit, and find out
killed. The WM’s options are as above. However, what’s going on. I’ll expect this case closed
since the team screwed up, having the zombies and a report on my desk by lunchtime.
rise up in the city gives their replacements a Enemy Forces: Mrs. Betts is well into
chance to atone for their comrades’ failure. her nineties. We don’t think she’ll give you
Fourth, by some quirk of timing, the Knights much trouble.
are still onboard after 30 minutes but haven’t Support: Unless an elderly woman is
deactivated the jammer. The choices for the packing a lot of firepower, we don’t think
WM are simple—blow up the train or give the you’ll need much backup on this one.
Knights a few more minutes. The Ordines are Anyway, you won’t be far from the Precep-
usually pretty good at meeting deadlines in tory if anything goes awry. You’ll be issued
these situations, so it’s up to WM how generous a Prophet APC if you’ve got a certified
he wants to be. driver on the team. Otherwise you’ll have
to catch a lift with a Lance heading into
town.
The Strange Case Equipment: Lose the heavy firepower
of Mrs. Betts for this one. This is a hearts and minds
operation in friendly territory, so keep
your rifles and SMGs slung when talking to
What begins as a regular hearts and minds
Mrs. Betts. But do take a stunner, just in
operation quickly turns into a surreal tea party,
case the old girl is high on drugs or some-
which in turn leads the Knights on the hunt for
a murderer and organlegger. thing—weirder crap has happened.

Rank: Seasoned (25–30 XP). The briefing officer has nothing more to
add. When the Knights are ready to move out,
proceed to the next section.

Briefing Mrs. Betts

The adventure begins in the briefing room The Knights can conduct a little research
at the Knights’ Preceptory. Read or paraphrase on Mrs. Betts before leaving the Preceptory if
the following information to the Knights. they so wish. Her house, a sprawling Gothic
We’ve had repeated calls from a con- mansion, is located on several acres ground,
cerned citizen that one of her neighbors is in the exclusive neighborhood of the local
acting strangely. Normally we’d throw this town. As the briefing officer said, she’s in her
to the Lictor Sergeants to handle, but the nineties, is extremely wealthy, and remains an
Preceptor Master has decided Knights need active member of the local community. Accord-
to be involved. ing to the last census, she is attended by her
butler—Woodes—but has no other staff.
According to the reports, made by
one Ms. Constance McNally, her elderly

Dead Girls
neighbor, Mrs. Elizabeth Betts, lives alone,
but recently has been taking delivery of
copious amounts of food. There could be
many valid reasons for this, but McNally The Betts mansion has seen better days.
insists her neighbor never has visitors. The perimeter walls of the estate are heav-
Sounds like a curtain twitcher seeing what ily overgrown with ivy and climbing weeds,
she wants to see, but we’re duty bound to the front gates are rusted, the garden looks
investigate. like it hasn’t been tended in years, and the

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
brickwork of the mansion is crumbling. She indicates a coat stand just inside the
There’s no buzzer on the iron gates, nor door. “Please leave your hats and cloaks
does there seem to be any lock. here.”
Before the Knights can enter the premises, Mrs. Betts is mad. She isn’t dangerously
a middle-aged woman, wearing binoculars psychotic, but her marble bag has definitely got
around her neck, runs up to them, glancing fur- some holes. She has mistaken the Knights for
tively left and right. She presses herself against young gentlemen, come to teach her girls how
one of the walls, out of view of the gates. to dance. No amount of persuasion, cajoling,
“I’m Ms. McNally, the one who reported repeating facts, shouting, or threatening can
Mrs. Betts’ strange activity. You should convince her otherwise. Her mind has blanked
have been here a few minutes ago—Mrs. out the sight of swords and armor, instead
Betts received a delivery from the local seeing walking canes and cloaks from a bygone
bakery. Trays of sandwiches and cakes, if age.
I’m not much mistaken,” she says, patting If there’s a female Knight in the party, Mrs.
her binoculars. She lowers her voice before Betts has a few words to say. “A lady? They sent
continuing. “I think she’s keeping a heretic me a lady? Well, I don’t know what sort of
cell in her basement. Keeping them hidden thing goes on in the city, but my girls are most
until the time is right for them to prey on us definitely not into that sort of thing. You may
innocent and God-fearing citizens.” watch, my dear, but you cannot participate. I
McNally is the typical nosey neighbor. simply won’t allow it!”
She’s watched far too many documentaries, Mrs. Betts won’t let the Knights any further
newsreels, dramas, and citizen advice broad- into the house until they have placed their
casts about heretics. She is easily pacified by canes (words) and cloaks (armor) in the rel-
promises the matter will be fully investigated,
evant positions. That means stripping down to
but unless ordered she doesn’t go home—she
combat fatigues. Strangely, the old lady makes
leans around the corner of the wall and peers
no comments about guns or grenades. Of
into the house with her binoculars.
course, the Knights can simply shove their way
past Mrs. Betts, but that isn’t part of a hearts
I’ve Been Expecting You and minds operation involving a wealthy dona-
tor to the cause.
The gates are unlocked, and creak open
Once “suitably attired,” the Knights are
if pushed. When the Knights reach Mrs. Betts
shown through to the dining room.
front door, they discover a sign hanging out-
side. Unlike the rest of the house, this appears
relatively new, with minimal signs of weather-
ing. It reads, “The Betts Home for Homeless
This Just Got Weird
Girls.” Knights who contact the Preceptory As you enter the dining room, the over-
about this are informed no such business or powering smell of perfume assails your
charity has been registered with the Preceptor nostrils. On a large table a small feast of
Estate Manager’s office. sandwiches, cake, and fresh fruit has been
A few moments after knocking or ringing laid out. The table is set for 16 places.
the bell the door opens a crack. A wizened Seated around it are a dozen figures, all
face peers out for a second, and then the door wearing dresses, long gloves, and full veils.
opens fully. “Girls,” Mrs. Betts says, clapping her hands
once as if to attract the diners’ attention,
Framed in the door is an elderly “these are the young men I was talking
woman, pince-nez glasses perched on the about.” Not one of the seated figures
end of a long nose. Her deep wrinkles responds in the slightest way.
and gray hair indicate she is a woman of
considerable age. Her eyes narrow briefly, Mrs. Betts then gestures to the empty places
and then open wide, as if in sudden rec- and invites the Knights to sit. She takes a seat at
ognition. the head of the table.
“Oh, most excellent!” she beams, Mrs. Betts pours tea for the girls seated
clapping her hands together rapidly. “Gen- near her. “Cake, my dear?” she asks one.
tlemen, do come in. The girls have been Again, there is no reply. “Oh, Amelia,” she
expecting you. I must say, you are a most says, “you mustn’t be so shy. How will you
rugged lot. Please, please, come inside.” ever find a rich husband unless you learn

174
 escape tales from the frontline two
to speak up for yourself? Here, have a the drop point, so they’re under the impres-
cream bun.” The old lady places a cake in sion the doctor hasn’t found many suitable
front of the figure to her left. specimens.
Sooner or later, probably sooner, a Knight All the victims are prostitutes or homeless
is going to take a closer look at one of the girls. girls. Their disappearances go unreported (such
Lifting a veil reveals a worm-eaten corpse! Have girls often move around without warning), leav-
the Knight makes a Guts roll to avoid the effects ing no trail of missing persons. Tracking down
of Fear. From here on, there’s no script—the all the girls’ identities and informing next of
Knights are going to have to handle this as they kin is a laborious process, and one handled by
see fit. the Lictors once the corpses are delivered into
their hands from Mrs. Betts’ house.

Mrs. Betts is Mad Uncovering Facts

The “girls” are all dead, but they’re not
zombies, nor were they killed by Mrs. Betts. Mrs. Betts denies anything is seriously
Extremely senile and confused, Mrs. Betts was wrong with her girls. Possible comments and
questions by Knights are given below, along
being driven through town by her butler, when
with the old girl’s replies.
she spotted a pair of legs sticking out from
beneath a pile of cardboard boxes in a back Q: This girl is dead!
alley. She ordered Woodes to stop the car, and A: “Nonsense, young man. She’s just a little
she went to investigate. peaky. The weather has turned most inclem-
In her confused state, she believed the ent.”
corpse she discovered was a homeless girl. Q: She’s decomposing! Can’t you smell it?
Being of charitable nature, she took the waif
home and began to care for her. On a whim, A: “She has eczema, but I admit she does
she returned to the same spot a few days later, whiff a little. A life on the street does not allow
and found another body, and then another, and for regular hygiene.”
another. Over a few weeks, she had “rescued” Q: None of them are eating or drinking.
a dozen “girls,” and so founded her home for
A: “My girls are polite. They nibble, but
homeless girls. Mrs. Betts has no concept that
never gorge. Anyway, they are just shy. It isn’t
the girls are dead or otherwise abnormal—she’s
often we receive guests. Give them time, and
that mad. they’ll come round.”
Woodes, the butler, isn’t quite as insane, Q: Where do you find your girls?
but he’s just as elderly and wants to make his
mistress’ remaining years as comfortable as A: “In town. There’s a dumpster in a small
possible. If that means putting up with a few alleyway. It must be a popular place for them
stinking corpses in the house, then so be it. to sleep, because I found all my girls there.”
Q: All at the same time?
Mistakes Happen A: Dear me, no. I rescued them over the
space of a few weeks. I’d pop back on the off
The hearts were removed by a Necrolatrist
chance, and there’d usually be one there, fast
doctor. He donates them to his masters as
asleep.”
power packs for necromantic weapons.
According to the arrangements, he’d perform Q: How did you get them back?
the operations and leave the bodies to be A: “Woodes, by butler, helps me. A lovely
collected by other heretics in town. The two man, so devoted to me since my husband
parties don’t communicate directly, which has passed away.”
led to a problem.
Trying to inspect one of the girls for cause
The doctor is dumping the corpses as of death means taking off clothing, and Mrs.
promised, but Mrs. Betts is removing most of Betts isn’t going to put up with that sort of
them before the other heretics find them. The improper behavior. She threatens to call the
doctor, having heard nothing about corpses heroes’ parents if they persist. Knights can
being discovered by the authorities, believes get around this with a very good excuse, but
his comrades are doing their part in disposing this should be roleplayed, not left to die rolls.
of them. The body handlers, on the other hand, Being a medic, for instance, allows a Knight to
aren’t finding many corpses when they go to claim he’s a doctor, and allows him to check

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
the girl’s neck for swelling symptomatic of flu
(Mrs. Betts did mention the inclement weather Another Corpse
making the girls feel peaky).
Woodes can provide directions to the
Unfortunately, she’s influential enough to dumpster where all the corpses were discov-
have the Preceptor Master’s office on speed ered—Mrs. Betts’ memory isn’t up to the task. If
dial, and in her confused state she dials it if no the town is large (100,000+ souls), the Knights
excuses are forthcoming. The Master listens need to make a Common Knowledge roll or
to her complaints, then asks to speak to the check in with the Preceptory about nearby
Knights. Once told the facts, he orders Mrs. locations of interest. Otherwise, the place is
Betts gently restrained and sedated while the small enough they know the general area. With
Knights do their duty. success, or automatic knowledge, they know
the alley is in a middle class area of town, two
The cause of death is not immediately obvi-
blocks from St. Jerome Hospital.
ous. There are no cut throats, caved in skulls,
flechette wounds, or other signs of trauma. A When the Knights arrive on the scene,
full body examination reveals each corpse has they discover a fresh corpse sticking out from
been hacked open and crudely stitched back beneath cardboard boxes. A successful Healing
together, but this was done postmortem. Check- roll indicates the girl is fresh, probably only a
ing inside one of the corpses (someone might) few hours old at most. Bruising on her neck is
reveals each is missing their heart. A Notice roll clearly visible, and indicates a needle puncture.
at –4, made while checking the corpses, reveals Like all the others, she has stitch marks indicat-
a tiny bruise on each one, usually in the neck ing organs were removed.
or upper arm. In the center of each bruise is a A postmortem is required to learn further
small hole, the sort left by a hypodermic. information, and that can’t be done on the
The old lady has, in her eyes, nothing to streets. The postmortem reveals the heart and
hide, so if questioned about the location of the adjoining arteries have been removed with
the alley she happily provides it. “It’s nice to great skill. Blood test analysis indicates mild
levels of alcohol and nicotine, but a high dose
see young gentlemen taking an interest in the
of DHM (dihydroalkamoxitine), a powerful
homeless,” she smiles. “Another cup of tea?”
sedative used in most hospital surgical opera-
tions. The drug is strictly licensed, and misuse
The Butler’s Story carries a mandatory five-year jail sentence and
loss of license to practice. Additionally, few
Woodes, the butler, is in the kitchen, but
quacks and backstreet doctors can afford it, so
makes an appearance at some point in the pro-
they make do with lesser drugs.
ceedings. When he sees the Knights he drops
the tray of candied fruits he was carrying. He Fingerprint, retina scan, and DNA sequenc-
makes no attempt to run, but instead seems ing produce a name—Maxine Huckley, a local
quite resigned as he approaches the Knights. prostitute with several minor convictions. Her
He holds out his hands. parents live in Church-controlled territory
(rather than on a Preceptory estate), so the
“It’s my fault,” he says. “I know I should Knights don’t have the job of informing them
have reported the bodies to the Lictors, of their daughter’s death. A quick call gets the
but milady seemed so intent on caring local priest, Father Daniels, to tell them the
for them. The doctors diagnosed her with bad news. Huckley’s rap sheet includes an
a rare form of brain tumor. It affects her address.
behavior. I just wanted to make her last
years as comfortable as possible, and she
was set upon caring for these…girls.” Talking to Her Friends
Whether the Knights decide to arrest Mrs. Huckley shared a rented room with two
Betts and/or Woodes is up to them. Although other working girls, Stacey Keane and Nadine
laws have been broken and crimes concealed, Klump. Both girls are in if the Knights pay a
the strange pair are not actually involved in visit. There are a few packets of illegal drugs in
the murder of the girls. The Preceptor Master, the house, so the door is immediately slammed
if his advice is required, suggest the Knights in the Knights’ faces, and the process of flush-
move on in their investigation, promising he’ll ing them down the toilet begins. The door has
handle this delicate situation personally, after Toughness 8 and needs to be battered down
consulting with the local Field Master. (there’s a deadbolt on the inside).

176
 escape tales from the frontline two
Intimidation won’t get them to open the A: “Yesterday... yesterday evening. She
door, but informing them the Knights’ are here went out to work her patch at 1900 hours,
investigating Huckley’s death allows a Persua- as normal. She was due back this morning
sion roll. With success, the girls open the door around dawn, but never turned up. We figured
on the condition the team won’t bust them she’d been offered an all-day special. You
for prostitution or drug abuse. It’s the Knights know, extra money for extra company.”
call whether they agree honestly to the terms
Q: Do you know any of her clients?
or agree as an excuse to gain entry and then
throw the book at them. A raise opens the door A: “No, we work different patches. She had
immediately. a few regulars she mentioned, but no specific
details.”
The interrogation is handled through likely
questions posed by the Knights and the girls’ Q: Where was her patch?
answers. Before the ladies answer any ques- A: “East side of town, outside the train
tions, they want to know how their friend died.
station. She had a thing about businessmen,
The Knights are under no obligation to tell
and figured that was the best place to hook
them.
up with them. We prefer to stick to the local
Q: When did you see her last? patch—plenty of doctors needing attention.”

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Local Knights know the location of the Q: Can you remember anything about the
main station—it’s across town from the hos- man or his car?
pital. Huckley was therefore either working a A: “You know, I’d hold out for some sort
different patch (untrue), or was dumped across of payment for you eating into my work time,
town after her heart was removed (true). but I know you suckers ain’t got any money.
Q: Can you identify any girls working the How about you cut me some slack next time I
same patch? get picked up for working? We got a deal?”
A: “I think she works with Tall Sally. I don’t Sally’s trying her luck—the Knights have the
know Sally by any other name, and Max never legal authority to haul her in for questioning
described her. I don’t know any of the other and apply rough arm interrogation methods,
girls.” and she knows it. Whether she’s threatened
or secures a deal, she recalls a few important
facts.
Tall Sally “Lemme see now. He was dark-haired.
That’s about all I saw of him—he never left
Tall Sally is 4’ 9” tall, plump, approaching the car, and the streetlights here are intermit-
middle age like an express train, and well past tent. He drove one of them flashy cars, a sports
her beauty days. When the Knights arrive, Sally car—that’s it, he drove a black Speedbird.
acts casual—she isn’t in the act of securing a Latest model and all. It had a permit or some-
client, so she’s not breaking any major laws. If thing in the window saying he worked at the
approached, she immediately says she’s waiting hospital across town. St. Jerome’s I think it is.
for a friend due in on the next train, thereby
avoiding loitering laws.
Vehicle Check
Once she hears of Huckley’s death, she
whistles quietly. “Wow, Maxine as well. I told The Preceptory or the local Lictor precinct
her to stick to her regulars.” Further question- house can run a check on all black Speedbirds
ing is handled through possible questions and registered in the city. One result produces a
good match—a Dr. Abel Miller, a surgeon at
Sally’s answers.
St. Jerome’s, owns one. It’s black, and it’s the
Q: Did you know Huckley well? latest model.
A: “We weren’t buddies or anything. We
walked the same beat, is all. A quick hello and
we were done with small talk.” Enter the Doctor
Q: Why did you say, “Maxine as well”?
If the Knights go to Doctor Miller’s house or
A: “Typical Knights, avoiding the real issues try to call him at home, they learn he’s at work.
at home because of their great war. Three Mrs. Miller says her husband works long hours
girls, long-time pros with a good client list, all on private cases, often into the early hours.
vanished in the last few weeks. I figured they’d She doesn’t expect him home until he turns
been murdered/ It’s an occupational hazard, up on the doorstep. Mrs. Miller knows nothing
honey.” about her husband’s extracurricular operations
and is a devout supporter of the Church. Mrs.
Q: Did you know of these missing girls?
Miller vehemently denies the possibility her
A: “Not by name. Just face, you know. They husband could be involved in anything illegal
all worked hereabouts.” or immoral, claiming him to be a pillar of the
community. She offers the suggestion that he
Q: Did you see Huckley with anyone last loaned his car to a friend.
night? Maybe a new client?
On arriving at the hospital, have the Knights
A: “Hmmm, her first client was Father John. make a Notice roll at –2. With success, they see
He ain’t a real priest, of course. More a sugar a man matching Dr. Miller’s description, getting
daddy than a standard client. Maxine always into a black Speedbird. Unfortunately, he’s on
said he treated her real good. Then she was the other side of the car park, and he doesn’t
back here for a spell. Yeah, she left about 2200 have to pass them to exit. If the Knights have
hours. Some guy in a car pulled up. Maxine a Prophet, they can give chase immediately.
said she’d seen him around here a few times, Otherwise, they need to commandeer a vehicle
but she’s never…well, you know. Wasn’t a face from the car park. Luckily, one is just pulling
I recognized, but I attract a certain kind of up. See The Chase below. On a failed Notice
guy.” roll, Dr. Miller escapes unseen.

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 escape tales from the frontline two

The Doc’s Office However, unless the Knights make their

presence known, Miller doesn’t react to being
Inquiries in the hospital lead the Lance followed, even if the Knights are in a Prophet.
to Miller’s office. His secretary, Dolores He may be up to his neck in Rephaim servi-
Mayweather, a battleaxe of a lady, informs the tude, but Miller is a cool customer and believes
Knights the doctor has left for the day. She he has his back covered. Each round, he drives
doesn’t know where he’s going. normally, making no stunts or maneuvers.
Getting past the secretary into the empty Because he isn’t speeding or driving erratically,
office requires an Intimidation roll—she he ignores any Club suits.
doesn’t respond to kind words or flattery. Knights in a Prophet can try and get the
Sticking a gun in her face or threatening her doctor to pull over as a stunt. They must be
with a short spell in a labor camp is worth a +2 within one Range Increment as normal and
bonus. With success, she reluctantly allows the succeed in an Intimidation roll. This might rep-
Knights access, but warns them not to disturb resent flashing the APC’s lights or tooting the
anything. Knights worrying about the need
horn to attract Miller’s attention. Maintaining
for a warrant should be told they don’t need
the image of a law-abiding citizen, the doctor
one—such formalities went out the door when
does as requested.
the Third Reformation Church came to power.
Should the Knights be in an unmarked
The office contains all the usual trappings
one might find in a doctor’s office, including car and start harassing the doctor, such as the
a computer linked to the hospital network. methods above or by waving guns to attract his
Discovering anything of interest on the system attention, Miller assumes the heroes are poten-
requires a password. Dolores can provide tial carjackers and puts his foot down. Now the
it if asked, or a Knight with a technical back- regular chase rules apply—Miller’s only plan is
ground, such as a Combat Engineer, can make to escape by driving as fast as possible, though
a Common Knowledge roll at –2. Three failed he will use Distract and Force stunts if the
rolls locks the system. To unlock it, the Knights opportunity presents itself.
have to wait for the IT department to arrive (an
hour unless overt threats are made).
Speedbird
Once through the security, a Knight may
The Venator Speedbird is sleek, fast, and
make an Investigation roll. Success locates the
expensive. It’s the sort of car driven by media
doctor’s diary. On a dozen or so days it records
“Private Patient” with an “X” beside each entry. stars in the Union. The Speedbird is based heav-
The last entry is this morning! The other dates ily on the Outremer Firebird, though its engine
match those when Mrs. Betts found the corpses is not as powerful. With Union vehicles heavily
in the alley. The diary lists an appointment for taxed in Church territories, the Speedbird is a
this evening, though the entry doesn’t yet have cheaper alternative.
a cross beside it. Top Speed: 56; Toughness: 10 (3); Handling:
Dolores doesn’t know much about Miller’s +1; Crew: 1+3
private work. She remembers he has a private Notes: Airbags
surgery across town, which he sometimes uses
for private work. Some of his patients, she says, Generic Family Car
are nervous about going into a hospital. She has
Top Speed: 40; Toughness: 11 (3); Handling:
never visited, but she provides the address.
+0; Crew: 1+4
Notes: Airbags
The Chase
Questioning Miller
Miller’s sports car begins three Range
Increments ahead of the Knights, and each If Miller stops, or is forcibly stopped, he asks
Range Increment equates to 5”. Stats for the what is going on. He is polite, but tries to avoid
Speedbird and a generic car (required if the leaving his car, making feeble excuses (“The
heroes commandeer a car) are provided below. door is stuck”) as long as possible. Eventually
Because this is a Chase, the Acceleration rating he’ll either run out of excuses or the Knights
is not required. The chase takes place on the will drag him out. Despite the circumstantial
city streets, and there are Rough Obstacles (–2) evidence, there is little to link Miller to any
representing other road users. crime.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Possible lines of questioning and Miller’s A: “A post box down at the post office near
answers are detailed below. Patting down the hospital. Sometimes I need to send mate-
Miller finds the usual—wallet with money and rial out to patients, but it’s cheaper to do a
photos of the family, driving license, and so bulk delivery. I store my stuff there until I have
on—and a key. enough.”
Q: Do you know a prostitute by the name Q: Any objections if we search your private
of Maxine Huxley? surgery?

A: “No. I’m a happily married man.” A: “Would it make a difference if I said

no? I know you don’t need a warrant. I do
Q: You were seen picking her up outside demand my lawyer be present, though. Mind
the train station. Sure you don’t know her? if I call her?”
A: “Okay, I do. Look, I have a stressful job, The Knights know that Miller is within his
and Maxine helps relieve my tension. I’ll pay rights to have a lawyer present. Only if they
the fine, but I’d prefer it if this stayed out of the arrest him for heresy is that right forfeited,
courts. I have a reputation to protect.” and if they do that they are legally required
Q: Maxine is dead. Were you involved? to inform the Inquisition, who promptly take
over the investigation. The heroes’ part in the
A: “Dead? She was a pretty thing. But no, I adventure is now over. Miller is eventually
wasn’t involved! How could you even insinu- found guilty and executed, but the Rephaim
ate that? We had a good time; I dropped her part in the plot goes undiscovered.
back at the station afterward. I haven’t seen
her since.”
We Lost Him
Q: You do a lot of private work. Is that
While it’s possible the Knights might lose
common for a surgeon?
Miller during the chase, it’s more likely he
A: “I earn a little extra doing minor cos- avoids them as they enter the hospital. In this
metic surgery. It’s all strictly above board.” case, the Knights know his home address.
Q: We need the names of your patients. We Miller, however, is not at home. His wife
have some questions for them. claims she hasn’t seen him all day and isn’t
expecting him back until later, as he has a pri-
A: “Sorry, I can’t do that. Doctor-patient
vate patient. Knights who haven’t questioned
confidentiality, you know.”
Dolores learn the location of his private surgery
Q: What does this key open? from his wife before they depart.

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 escape tales from the frontline two

Surgical Malpractice two remain watchful outside. Any Knight with

experience as a Scout knows the goons are
This scene can happen one of two ways. professionals by the way they scan the crowd
First, the Knights haven’t arrested Miller for for potential trouble. One man remains inside
anything and make an appearance at his private the car. All are Dark Knights.
surgery. In this instance, the deranged surgeon How the goons react depends on whether
is just about to cut open a prostitute’s ribcage the Knights left the heart in place. If the medical
when the Knights enter. A fight is likely to container is inside the locker, the Dark Knights
ensue, immediately. This is detailed below. pick it up and get back into their vehicle. If the
Second, the Knights arrest Miller after a post office box is empty, the two inside return
short chase and drag him here. In this case, outside and confer briefly with their comrades.
the Knights enter the surgery to find a woman Regardless of whether they have the heart or
already unconscious and strapped to the oper- not, they then drive away.
ating table! Miller and his lawyer, actually his Following the Dark Knights without being
handler, fight the heroes. detected isn’t easy. Have the Knight driving the
Miller’s first action is to grab a laser scalpel. Lance’s vehicle make a Driving roll opposed by
If he’s already doing surgery, he has one to a Group Notice roll from the Dark Knights. The
hand. Otherwise he has to snatch one off the heroes have a –6 penalty if they’re driving a
operating table. Activating it is a free action, but Prophet. With success, the Lance tails the Dark
grabbing it is not. The lawyer requires an action Knights back to their lair—an old school, now
to open his briefcase, but can draw his 12mm long abandoned. On a failure, they are spotted
pistol as a free action, thanks to his Quick Draw and the Dark Knights open fire.
Edge and the way the pistol is stored. Run the rest of the scene as a Chase. The
The doctor fights to the death, believing Dark Knights begin three Range Increments
that his death will be prevented by his masters. ahead of the Knights, and each Range Incre-
He’s wrong—if it looks like Miller is about to fall ment equates to 5”. This area of town has little
unconscious, his lawyer executes him. Should traffic, so Obstacles are Sparse (–1).
Miller become Incapacitated, the lawyer uses a Dark Knight Officer (1): See page 192.
Finishing Move to silence the maniacal surgeon.
Next round, the lawyer shoves the pistol into Dark Knights (4): See page 192.
his own mouth and pulls the trigger—since he
isn’t resisting, this is a Finishing Move. Post Office Rumble
Dr. Miller: See page 193. Some groups may wish to try and arrest the
The Lawyer: See page 194. Dark Knights at the post office. The soldiers
are well-trained and carry powerful ballistic
weapons, capable of shredding the Knights’
The Key armor—it won’t be an easy engagement.
Worse still, there are a lot of innocent
The key Miller carries does indeed open
bystanders around. For the first three rounds
a post office box. There are no papers inside,
of combat, any Shooting die which comes up
however. The only object inside is a small box,
1, regardless of the Wild Die, hits an innocent
about 6” to a side which is cold to the touch.
citizen (Toughness 5). The villains’ car is as
Any hero with Healing automatically knows
per the one on page 169. If a firefight erupts
what the object is—it’s a storage container
outside, they use it for cover.
for live organs. Stored inside is a human heart
(ripped from Maxine Huckley). Interrupting the Dark Knights in their duty
has more serious repercussions than the pos-
Miller placed the heart here for his masters
sibility of a few dead citizens. The Rephaim are
to collect, but they have yet to do so. The
naturally quite paranoid when operating inside
Knights can stake out the post office in the
a Church city. When the Dark Knights, who
hopes of catching whoever is behind the scam.
aren’t easily distracted from their duties, don’t
It should be obvious to them now that the
return in a timely fashion, the vile creature
surgeon might have been doing the operations,
behind the plot packs up and ships out. By the
but he didn’t place the heart here for his own
time the Knights break the insane troopers and
amusement—it’s here to be collected.
get any information from them, it’s too late to
Several hours later, a black car pulls up bring the ringleader to justice. The adventure is
outside the post office. Four men in long coats over (and the Knights receive a severe dressing
climb out. Two enter the post office, while down for their hasty actions).

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The Dark Lair If the WM wishes, the Pope can visit the
town, perhaps meeting briefly with the Knights
to thank them in person for their role in the
Now the Knights know where the lair is; affair. Such a visit should not be a casual com-
they can call for backup. Within 20 minutes, a ment at the end of the adventure, but played
Prophet APC, carrying a rapid response Lance up as a major moment in the heroes’ lives.
of Lictor-Sergeants armed as regular Sergeants,
arrives on the scene. Hand out Ally Sheets
among the players.
The true villain, a young vampire by the
Ice Station Zulu
name of Calvorix, has his lair in the old refectory. Unlike other adventures, this one has no
The former dining hall has been converted into defined timeline or sequence of events, save for
a workshop, where Calvorix is experimenting one. The heroes are free to do as they please,
with new forms of weird science. Among the and it is left to the GM to provide the necessary
many devices, none of which currently work, air of growing tension. The GM should read
is a prototype fear generator. It is based on the the adventure through carefully at least once
same principal as the Banshee defense system, before play, in order to have a good idea of
but should, if made operational, affect a much the base layout, the equipment available to the
larger area (like an entire city block). His plan characters, and how he will plan the creature’s
is to finish the weapon and then arrange for a attacks. Likewise, there are no NPCs for the
major attack on the city. group to interact with. All roleplaying must
therefore come from party interaction.
The lair is 12” to a side. The floor is covered
in tables (2” long and 1” wide). A set of double Rank: Seasoned (25–30 XP).
doors in the south wall lead into the refectory
from the main school block, while a single door
in the north wall leads into the old kitchen.
WM’s Notes
Calvorix is overconfident, but not suicidal. The Asgard station is not involved in mete-
He runs if the situation goes bad, knowing he orological or geological research. Asgard has
can always continue his great work elsewhere. secretly been working on reinventing the FC
Drive. Although Asgard (among others) had
His bodyguards loyally stay behind to thwart
engineers on Salus who knew how to repair
pursuers.
the star drives, none were ever involved in
Primus Pilus Calvorix: See page 193. the manufacturing process. After years of trial
and error, Asgard finally produced a small pro-
Dark Knight Officer (1): See page 192.
totype. At best it would power an unmanned
Dark Knights (4): See page 192. probe, but it’s a vital step toward rediscover-
ing the full technology and giving mankind a
chance to escape its fate.

Aftermath The scientists at the base cranked the FC

Drive to a mere 50% of its full power, enough
Once Calvorix and his Dark Knights are to create a low level and extremely local distor-
dead, the case is closed. The Lazarites are tion in space-time, but far below the power
needed to initiate a jump (tests centuries ago
informed of the find and quickly secure the
proved categorically that opening a space-time
school, forbidding any other Ordines from
portal on planet was disastrous).
entering. The Knights are congratulated on
a job well done, though the Lazarites remain Unfortunately, the energy field was enough
aloof as usual, refusing to do more than to create a momentary blip in the black hole. A
acknowledge the Knights played a part in the demon leaked through into the universe right
discovery of new Rephaim technology. at the point the FC field was created. Then it
did what it does best—create havoc.
Mrs. Betts and her butler are not charged
with any crimes. The Pope personally contacts
the old lady and convinces her to close down Guts Rolls
her school, telling her the “young ladies” are The Knights are hardened soldiers who
now capable of surviving in the big world. have witnessed all manner of Rephaim and
Instead, she is persuaded to use her vast the destruction and vileness of which they are
fortune to open an actual school for disadvan- capable. However, there is a difference between
taged citizens. blood-and-guts, to which the Knights are largely

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 escape tales from the frontline two
accustomed, and psychological terror, to which Yesterday evening a CIS monitoring
they are not. Guts rolls to avoid Fear should be station picked up a garbled distress call,
commonplace in this adventure. broadcast over an unencrypted channel
from an Asgard geological and meteoro-
There is a thin line between using Guts rolls
logical research station a few hundred
to add effect and making them monotonous. miles further north. The Asgard base is offi-
Ideally, create an atmosphere of fear, slowly, cially designated Ice Station Zulu, but the
relying on roleplaying and good descriptions local chatter we’ve intercepted in the past
first. Keep the rolls for moments when the indicates the inhabitants call it Carpenter
characters would likely be scared. Having the Station. I have no idea why.
Knights talk to one of the Asgard staff (through
the demon’s illusion power), and then later The base is located on the edge of
have them stumble across the corpse obviously Catena Paelex, a subsidiary crater chain of
incapable of having spoken with them is worthy Catena Parens. It’s a rich area for studying
of a Guts check. rock strata, and the Asgard team has been
quietly working there for decades, prob-
Because this is essentially one big scene, the ably surveying for useful minerals, but
affects of Fear last for an hour. Failing another that’s not our concern. Or rather it wasn’t
Guts roll within that timeframe adds another until now.
hour to the duration.
The CIS knew you were nearby, so they
contacted us and asked for our help. It’s not
often they come to us, cap in hand, so we’re
Briefing going to make the most of this opportunity.
You are to exploit a gap in a storm brewing
This adventure begins on Terra Septen- in the region and investigate the situation.
triones, Salus’ most northern continent. The Officially, you’re a rescue party on a mercy
Knights have been rotated out of frontline mission. Unofficially, the CIS wants you to
duties, and for the last month have been acting download as much data as you can from
as security at a Church scientific research sta- the base’s computers while you’re there. I
tion, deep inside the Arctic Circle. Life has been don’t know why, and I don’t ask questions.
boring in the extreme, the repetitive nature of The survey Angel at your current location
patrolling corridors and the base perimeter, has been prepped for immediate takeoff.
broken only be the occasional chance to scare Enemy Forces: Asgard is likely to have
off a curious polar bear (the species was a security team in place. We don’t know
imported to Salus centuries ago, to prevent the nature of the emergency, and they
their extinction on Earth). may not appreciate your presence. The CIS
has issued strict orders that you are not
The adventure assumes the year is 2352. It
to engage Corporate troops. If they don’t
is fall in the northern hemisphere, the nights
want your help, you’re going to have to be
are getting steadily longer, and the average
insistent. There’s no other way of getting
temperature is a chilly –18F (20 degrees colder
the data the CIS wants.
at night).
We’ve no doubt Asgard also received the
The Knights are summoned to the office of distress call and are likely to be sending
the base administrator, Sven Calpurna. Although their own rescue team. Unless their pilots
he’s a civilian and the Knights represent the are insane, the next anticipated break in
military, they come under his jurisdiction for the storm isn’t for six hours. That should
the duration of their tour. He hasn’t interfered give you enough time to do your job.
in their tactics regarding base security, and the
Knights have had no reason to grumble—the Support: You’re a thousand miles
staff has treated them with respect and placed from anywhere, and there’s a huge storm
no undue demands on their time. coming. We’ll be lucky to get you to the
base on time as it is. You know what that
Calpurna greets the Knights warmly, flicks means—no backup. On the plus side, the
on a video monitor, and then leaves the office. CIS has supplied us with blueprints of the
A fuzzy image of the Knights’ Preceptor Master station, as well as some basic informa-
appears on the screen a few seconds later. tion.
Good evening. I hope the weather is to Equipment: Take whatever you need
your liking. Anyway, you’ve had a month from supplies. You’ve got the only weapons
off—now we’ve got a job for you. of note already, but there are plenty of

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
toolkits, medical supplies, heaters, fuel * The players do not need room dimen-
sticks, flashlights, winter clothing, and so sions—they have a map.
on.
* Most rooms have a brief read aloud
Allow the Lance to go “shopping” for non- description, even if it bears no part in play. To
combat equipment as they desire. Any gear
make life easier on the GM, a small paragraph
except communication equipment is available
entitled “Equipment” lists any suitable equip-
from the base’s stores. No extra ammunition or
weaponry is available. ment that can be salvaged from the room.

No One Home A Block: Living Quarters

The dropship pilot circles the Asgard base The first boxed text is common to all six
before he lands. There are no lights on, neither living quarters and is given here once. Repeat
are there any signs of life. Attempts to reach as necessary. Each room contains personal
the inhabitants by radio fail—there is only items, none of which are designed as being
static on the line. As the ship touches down, important to the plot. Your players may have
the pilot informs the Knights the storm will other ideas, however.
hit very soon. They can either request he stays
on the ground, or give him chance to fly back Laid out exactly like your own quar-
now while he can. Once the storm hits (20 ters, the room contains a foldout bed and
minutes), the Angel is going nowhere fast. The table, a collapsible chair, and a built-in
only ways into the Asgard base are via either of wardrobe. A combined intercom and
the airlocks. clock, apparently non-functioning, is built
into the wall by the bed.

Carpenter Station 1. Administrator’s Quarters

Carpenter Station is a geological research The bedside alcove contains several
base belonging to the Asgard Corporation. It photos of a woman and baby, none of
does not have an armory, nor does it possess which are labeled in any way.
any defensive systems.

2. Vehicle Ops Quarters

Important WM Notes
This room was certainly lived in.
* All doors are clearly labeled in Norwegian
(Asgard’s language of choice). Ladies’ underwear lies where it was
discarded, magazines featuring cars and
* The computers accept commands in Nor- motorbikes lie open on the table, and a
wegian or English, but not in Latin.
picture of a muscle-bound man wearing
* The entire base has an ambient tempera- only the smallest pair of briefs imaginable
ture of –18 degrees F. is pinned to the ceiling above the bed.
* Everything is coated in a thin layer of ice
(frozen condensation). 3. Scientist’s Quarters
* There is no power—all doors must be
Dozens of paper books stand piled on
hand cranked (taking 2 minutes per door). The
base’s non-portable electrical equipment is the foldout table, restricting the amount of
non-functional, including the lights, intercom available space. Most are on geology and
system, and computers. rock formations. Two samples of Mars’
rock have been left on the bed.
* Reactivating the life support (which has
an emergency generator) returns the tempera-
ture to normal (70 degrees F) at a rate of 20 4. Scientist’s Quarters
degrees per half hour. Until it climbs above
freezing, the rules for Cold are in effect. It’s This room was obviously home to some-
unlikely the heroes will be here long enough one who missed Earth. Dozens of posters
for them to start suffering from the cold, but of panoramic shots of Earth line the walls,
you never can tell. and an atlas rests on the bed.

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 escape tales from the frontline two
5. Engineer’s Quarters 10. Communal Washroom
The contents of the wardrobe have Aside from the showers and toilets,
been emptied onto the bed. On top of the there are only a few personal effects above
jumble is a box clearly labeled “Danger! the sinks.
Explosives!” It is empty.
11. Library/Cinema
6. Medic’s Quarters The library contains two tables and six
Well-ordered and neat, the only per- chairs. Racks of data storage discs, hold-
sonal effect noticeable is a photo of a man ing movies and electronic books, line the
in the bedside alcove. walls. Two smaller display and data access
units sit idly in the corners.

7. Mess & Lounge There is a selection of reading material and

movies here, none of which is important to the
The communal lounge contains a pool adventure. Removing the discs from the small
table, dartboard, and several 3D video display units reveals that the last books read
game machines. Various magazines, some were Moby Dick and Fanhard and Lyle, the
technical, some of a more personal nature, Early Years: A Swashbuckling Yarn. The disc in
lie scattered around the table and chairs. the plasma screen unit is an episode from the
The main dining table has been used as 21st century pulp series, The Daring Tales of
a barricade to block the archway to the Brent Hardcastle.
kitchen; the chairs lie haphazardly around
the room.
12. Laundry Facility
Two small washer-dryers stand against
8. Kitchen
the back wall. A pile of laundry rests in a
Read the first text if the characters try to basket at the feet of the left hand machine;
open the door, the second if they try to enter a box of soap powder tablets sits on top.
via the mess hall. On the wall above the machines hangs the
laundry roster.
The manual override lever refuses
to work. It may be locked from the other The washers are empty—the laundry is
side. frozen, dirty, and is a mixture of garments from
most of the crew.
Finally the makeshift barricade is
removed. Behind it is the kitchen area,
complete with a fridge, microwave, wash- 13. Cold Weather Storage
ing machine, and racks of plates and cups. Five cold weather suits hang from
Slumped against on of the cupboards is a their hooks, like corpses on a gallows. The
body in a cold weather suit. mirrored glasses reflect your lights, giving
The label on the suit reveals the corpse to them a soulless feel.
be Wallace Kirk (Administrator). There is obviously a suit missing. A brief
examination reveals it to be that of Wallace
9. Provision Store Kirk, the administrator. Actually examining the
suits reveals that all of them have been slashed,
Behind the door are crates of preserved rendering them useless.
foods in packets and cans. The water nozzle
that connects to the sealed underground
water tanks is closed and there is no ice 14. Main Air Lock
beneath it. When the characters press the door release
The food is edible once heated, but the button read them the following.
water supply is frozen. Restoring power You hit the door release button but
activates the internal heaters, which require 4 nothing happens. Looks like you’re going
hours to defrost the water enough for it to be to have to use the manual override and
drinkable. hand crank the door.

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B Block: Command Center 4. Medical Center

What was once the medical center, has
become a morgue. Two bodies lie on the
1. Mainframe floor, each covered with a sheet. The rest of
The base mainframe lies quiet, the the room contains a desk, fold out exami-
usual bank of flashing lights in darkness. nation table, and the medical cupboard,
which has been ransacked, its contents
The mainframe automatically reboots once lying spilled on the floor.
power is restored. Once it is operational, a The corpses have all been killed in different
character making an Investigation roll quickly ways. Characters examining the bodies learn
realizes a virus has destroyed most of the their name from their overalls, but must make
stored data. However, a successful Investiga- a Healing roll for each (takes 10 minutes per
tion roll at –2 (takes 30 minutes per attempt) corpse) to learn the exact cause of death. Each
retrieves some of the base’s log (give out Player body is described below.
Handout #2), which is recorded automatically Stephanie Miller (Vehicle Ops): Multiple
in Norwegian and English. stab wounds to the head and chest. Cause of
Simply inserting a memory stick causes the death was a fatal wound to heart.
mainframe to begin an automatic data dump. Dr Nicolas Hendricks (Science): Severe
Downloading the technical data required by contusion to back of skull. Cause of death was
the CIS takes one hour. blunt force trauma.
Dr Pierre DuPont (Medic): Several slash
2. Communication Suite wounds to arms, possibly defensive. Some
healing indicates they were not caused during
The communication suite houses all of the fatal attack. Severe desiccation and muscle
the radio equipment for communicating atrophy of type never seen before.
with the outside world. It now lies smashed
across the floor, with circuit boards trashed 5. Operating Room
and wiring stripped out.
The operating room contains a single
Fixing the communications suite requires a operating table, as well as sterilized
Repair roll and an hour’s work. Even if fixed, surgical instruments. A window provides
the antenna is still damaged and cannot be fixed viewing from the doctor’s office.
during the time allowed in this adventure.
6. Medical Airlock
3. Robot Control Center The medical airlock provides a decon-
From here the operator could control tamination zone between the base and
the quarantine room. When functioning,
the surveying robots. At present, all four
it sprays anyone in the airlock with dis-
screens are in darkness. infectant. A window and intercom allows
When power is restored, the screens spring communication with the quarantine
back into life. A character making a successful room. The shutter is currently closed from
Piloting roll can deduce that three of the robots the inside.
are out in the field and would take six hours to When the power is restored anyone enter-
get back to base. The fourth is currently sitting ing the airlock is sprayed with disinfectant. It
in the garage. is harmless; although a character subjected to
fear at this point may see his flesh start to melt
Equipment: ROV suite. The characters can away. The players may be worried that entering
use the remaining tracked robot to investigate the quarantine suite without being disinfected
the base, receiving visual feedback through the may leave them open to some sort of contami-
monitors. It has Pace 6, cannot run, and Tough- nation. Don’t correct them.
ness 8(2).
If they think of this, give them a brief 7. Quarantine Suite
glimpse of a shadowy form vanishing out of Inside is a slightly large living area,
sight. Seeing the beast this way requires a Guts with all of the standard furnishings. A
roll to avoid Fear for an hour. shroud covered object lies on the bed.

186
 escape tales from the frontline two
The shroud covers the body of Dr. Cynthia suffering similar damage. Repairs require a suc-
Palin (physics scientist). It is strapped to the cessful Repair roll at –2, tools, and 3 hours of
table with makeshift straps scavenged from time per roll.
power cable. The demon has carved vile runes
into every inch of her flesh. Seeing this requires The ROV is operational but cannot be con-
a Guts roll. trolled without power, as the ROV Suite does
not function.
8. Administrator’s Office Activating the life support without first
repairing the breech causes the air to bleed out
This is the base’s command center. A
to atmosphere through the powerplant ceiling.
large desk houses a computer terminal
and a data pad. Pictures of the base taken Of course, without power the alarm klaxons
from low orbit decorate the walls. do not work. A character in the room when
life support is restored cannot help but feel
The data pad functions (as it has an inde- the drag as the air vents out. Repairing the wall
pendent power supply) but contains nothing
requires a Repair roll, a welding torch, and an
of use; just routine reports, shift patterns, and
hour of time.
so on.

9. Stores 3. Cold Weather Storage

The storeroom contains racks of elec- Six cold weather suits hang from their
tronic supplies, spare data pads, tools, hooks, like corpses on a gallows. The mir-
light bulbs, and other assorted bits and rored glasses reflect your lights, giving
pieces. them a soulless feel.
Equipment: Anything the Knights need As before, all the suits have been slashed,
in the way of small tools or spare parts can be rendering them useless.
found here. There are no guns or explosives,
however.
4. Fire-Fighting Equipment Store
C Block: Engineering This small room contains a variety of
color-coded, handheld fire extinguishers.
Equipment: There are a dozen water, CO2,
1. Life Support foam, and halon extinguishers. All are hand-
The machinery of the life support plant held and explode for 3d6 damage in a Small
lies dormant. There are no obvious signs Burst Template if punctured.
of damage. The control panel is currently
unlit.
5. Hydroponic Garden
The life support system can be switched on
without the power being restored, as it has its The hydroponic chamber was designed
own backup generator. Any character inspect- to provide the crew with a way of clean-
ing the control panel realizes that the system ing their air, as well as providing limited
has been switched off. Flicking the switch starts fresh food. All of the plants are coated in
the machinery back to life. frost and appear to have died, their leaves
As mentioned earlier, air returns to breath- withered and brown.
able levels quickly, but reheating the base takes Characters exploring the northern, domed
much longer. area automatically find a body amongst the
dead plants. Its id tag shows it to be Patrick
2. Garage Swartz (Mining Engineer). An empty bottle and
syringe lie nearby.
The garage houses all three rovers and
one of the ROVs, all parked neatly. The A character passing a Healing (–2) or
inner wall adjoining the powerplant room Knowledge (Chemistry) roll identifies the
is severely buckled and breeched in several bottle as containing a powerful sedative. Large
places. doses can be fatal (Schwartz injected the entire
Any character inspecting the interior of any bottle). A successful Knowledge (Biology) roll
of the rovers immediately sees that the control or a Common Knowledge roll at –2 confirms all
panel has been badly smashed. All of them are the plants are dead.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Reactivating the power restores light and * A Knowledge (Demolitions) roll confirms
heat, as well as bringing the bio-readout screen that at least five pounds of mining explosives
to operational status. It confirms that the plants was used.
are dead.
* A Notice roll reveals that an unexploded
charge has been placed on the northern part
6. Hatches to Maintenance Ducts of the powerplant. It contains eight pounds of
explosives, more than enough to cause severe
A large metal hatch in the floor allows
access to the underground maintenance damage. Disabling it requires a Knowledge
ducts. The hatch is currently closed. (Demolition) roll. A roll of a natural 1, regard-
less of Wild Die, sets off the charge, causing
The hatches are manual operation only, 8d6 damage to everything in the room and
and are similar to those on submarines (when wrecking the powerplant beyond repair.
you turn a central round handle to lock and
unlock). * Repairing the powerplant requires a
Repair roll, access to the tool store, and two
There is no map of the underground hours of time. This is a jury-rigged repair and
ducts—assume that there are a dozen of so the characters know it will only last a day or
tunnels going under C Block. If you want to two at most. Complete repairs are beyond the
be nasty, have the demon attack when a char- scope of this adventure.
acter is down here. If you cannot get a player
to volunteer to go exploring, explain that the
powerplant repairs require it. D Block: Science Center
The WM should note that rooms 2 through
7. Tool Storage 4 on the map do not actually exist as separate
The tool store is an Aladdin’s cave of entities. Although Asgard filed plans detailing
spare parts and tools. Everything needed them, in reality they are a single room, con-
to keep the generators up and running is structed to house the FC Drive.
stored here.
Equipment: This is a McGyver’s palace. 1. Scientific Store
Cutting and welding torches, heavy tools, 20
The scientific store is crammed with
pounds of mining explosives (1d6 damage per
pound, Medium Burst Template), fuses, spare boxes of instruments, ranging from spare
parts for the powerplants, and so on can be circuit boards to microscopes. Everything
found here. appears undamaged at a glance.
Equipment: Pretty much any piece of sci-
8. Workshop entific apparatus the characters may wish for.

The central corridor of C Block doubles

as the workshop. Various small pieces of 2. Geology Lab
equipment are in various states of repair. The main lab contains the stores of rock
Equipment: Various hand-held tools, dug up from beneath the surface. Most of
such as hammers and screwdrivers, as well as it rests in labeled jars, but powdered rem-
a broken data pad, an ROV camera, and other nants of several rock samples lie scattered
useless gear. on one of the workbenches. One sample
catches your attention, as it appears to be
in better condition. Although split in half,
9. Powerplant it appears to once have formed a faceted
The powerplant room is a complete disaster sphere.
area; the ceiling and outer walls are ruptured The labeled rock samples are just that. The
and a large part of the powerplant has been powdered fragments are the eggs smashed
destroyed. by the crew; the broken rock is the egg from
Several skill checks can be made in this which the larva hatched.
room. Analyzing the powder or cracked egg
* A Repair roll confirms that the power- requires a successful (Geology) roll and an
plant itself did not explode, it was blown up. hour of time. On a success, the character learns
However, the explosion looks far worse than that the rock is like nothing he has ever seen
it actually is. before and defies chemical analysis..

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 escape tales from the frontline two
3–5. FC Drive Test Lab Invisibility: Although being invisible is
great in combat, the demon isn’t much of a
The sides of the room are a mass of fighter. Instead, it uses this power to get close
computer banks and workbenches. In the to its foes. This allows it to open and close
center is a table, on which sits an unusual doors or move objects around, thus startling
piece of machinery. The device is inactive. its prey.
A hero making a Common Knowledge roll Panic: Reducing a foe’s ability to resist fear
at –4 recognizes the device as a primitive FC is a very powerful tool. Typically, the demon
Drive (he read about them in a book). Such should invoke this power first, and then hit the
devices are believed lost to mankind. The drive victim with fear.
contains its own power supply, and can thus
be activated independently of the main power Puppet: This ability can be used to make a
supply. However, it weighs several tons and character wander off on his own, to attack his
thus cannot be easily transported. colleagues, or simply to move away from an
area. With the added feature of foes not being
able to remember any actions undertaken while
6. “Experimentation Chamber” dominated, puppet is perhaps the creature’s
Through the reinforced glass you can most potent ability.
see that the experimentation chamber is Zombie: Half a dozen unarmed corpses
intact and empty. aren’t much threat to the Knights, but it’s all
The chamber was used as a clean room, part of the fear-inducing game the demon is
allowing the scientists to work in an area totally playing. Ideally, the corpses should only ani-
free of contaminants. mate when a hero is alone with one.

The Demon’s Tactics Isolation & Paranoia

The nature of the creature in this adventure
The demon is not a combatant. It operates should be used to create an air of isolation
from the shadows, using its ability to detect life and paranoia. Hopefully the GM has seen
to locate suitable prey. Avoid the temptation The Thing, Event Horizon, or the first Alien
to get the fiend involved in a standup fight. film—use them for inspiration!
Instead, use it to induce fear and paranoia in The characters are responding to a possible
the group (see below). No set attacks are listed emergency situation and should act accordingly.
for the demon—the GM should bring the crea- Stress that multiple tasks (restoring power,
ture in play whenever he thinks it is needed finding the crew, checking the logs, etc.) need
to keep the paranoia going. The demon thrives to be completed as fast as possible, if they are
on fear, though it may have met its match in to save the Asgard scientists. They also have to
Knights of the Sacri Ordines.
steal important data, which means taking the
Keep the demon in play as long as possible. time to repair the powerplant first.
While it can recharge Power Points quickly, it
Use the demon’s abilities as well to isolate
does not have an infinite supply of them. It
characters. Take players away from the table
should not be slain before the Asgard team
while you talk to them or they perform actions
arrives (see page 191). Only when it is out of
detrimental to the rest of the group whilst
Power Points and the Knights and Asgard have
under a puppet spell.
turned to blows should it finally reveal itself.
Possible actions include:
A selection of possible uses for its abilities
is given below. Feel free to create your own as * Smashing the Angel’s controls to prevent
required and to suit your group’s style of play. escape. If the Knights leave the dropship pilot,
the demon controls the pilot to do this. He
Entangle: This should be used whenever
then orders him to commit suicide in front of
the creature needs to escape from a small
the Knights (this should succeed—there’s no
number of attackers.
need to have an NPC running around).
Illusions: This is the demon’s most versa-
* Locking someone in a room and then
tile ability. With it, the demon can convince a
running away.
character that he is a survivor, or lure a Knight
away from the others by generating noises * Planting some of the spare explosives and
(such as tapping or cries for help). setting a timer.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
With no witnesses and no one admitting to * Believing they are talking to one of the
performing the acts, the paranoia levels should dead crew (before they find the body).
start to increase.
Chip away at their sanity through repeated * Impersonate the Senior Knight (only
uses of illusion by creating illusions affecting possible after he has seen or heard him) and
all their senses. If you’re stuck for ideas on how
to screw them up use these examples: give another Knight orders, either “in person”

* Hearing one of the corpses speak. or over the communicator. Typically these com-

* Catching a glimpse of someone moving mands should be ones which lead to the victim
around (in the hope of separating the party). being isolated from their comrades.

190
 escape tales from the frontline two

Asgard Arrives ing its appearance on Salus and the FC Drive.

It then attempts to track down and possess
the scientist, Polikov, who has the know-how
In the briefing it was stated that an Asgard
team would only arrive at the base while the to switch the device on again. It also tries to
Knights were present if the pilot was insane. stir up trouble between the Union and Church
While not clinically insane, he is a loyal Corpo- forces, hoping to get the two sides to attack
rate employee, and that means obeying orders. each other.
Exactly two and a half hours after the Knights
arrive (not enough for the party to reboot the If the Knights have no idea what the FC
powerplant and download the data) an Asgard Drive is (and there’s a good chance of that),
Nightwing touches down outside the base. The Olafsson tries a bluff, telling them it’s an experi-
demon should still be alive at this point. mental grav engine. Should it become clear the
The team (including the pilot) belongs to Knights know about the drive’s true nature, Lt-
Asgard’s elite 1st Brigade, known within the Major Olafsson has a tough call to make. While
Corporation as “Odin’s Ravens.” They’re here he could try to eliminate the Knights before
to neutralize any threats, recover the FC Drive they can report the device’s existence, failure
and the technical data, and take care of their would not only leave the FC Drive in Church
wounded—in that order. hands but would also give the Church political
If the Knights have restored power and ammunition—the Knights’ headset cameras
fixed the communications suite, the Asgard would record his attack. If he can find a way
troops announce their presence by contacting to make the Knights look like the aggressors,
the base. This is the Knights’ first chance to he’ll take his chances and order them killed.
establish some sort of dialogue. Not doing so
Otherwise, he’ll have no choice but to give the
should cause problems when the two teams
eventually meet face to face (it’s “obvious” to order once the drive is secured or destroyed
the Asgard team that the Knights are here for and the data in his hands.
illegal reasons if they wouldn’t respond to the Lieutenant-Major Lars Olafsson: See
hail). Asgard’s forces don’t immediately attack
page 192.
the Knights on sight—they give them a single
chance to surrender first! Nadia Polikov: See page 192.
Exactly how the encounter between Asgard Medic (1): See page 192.
and the Lance plays out is down to the Knights.
The Lance may be able to convince Asgard Veteran Soldiers (4): See page 192.
they’re here on a mercy mission. Of course, the
presence of Corporate troops makes stealing
the data extremely difficult, but that’s part of
the dilemma now facing the Knights. Aftermath
Asgard, regardless of whether the Knight If the Knights are slain, Asgard success-
answered any comms signal or not, is paranoid fully keeps its research hushed up. Should
about the FC Drive being discovered. Olafs-
they manage to recover the technical data,
son’s first priority is to secure the FC drive.
the Church orders the Knights to keep quiet
He sends his soldiers to secure the labora- about the discovery. The data is taken away and
tory, while he, the medic, and the scientist
studied carefully by top scientists. Neither side
make for the mainframe. Whether power is
restored or not, Olafsson intends to remove makes any mention of the demon.
the hard drives so they can be returned for An Asgard attack on Knights “conducting
study. This will take 15 minutes. Unless he is a rescue mission” provides the Church with
prevented from doing this, the Knights have
prime political ammunition. Asgard is admon-
lost the data. If push comes to shove, he has
orders to destroy the FC Drive, but only when ished by the Union, who knows nothing about
the technical readouts are secured—Asgard has its FC Drive project, and greatly loses face. Its
no wish to let it fall into Church hands. protests of accidental friendly-fire and attempts
to brand the Church as the aggressor fall on
By dividing his forces, Olafsson has unwit-
tingly given the demon more playthings! For deaf ears. Even if the Knights fired first, that’s
its part, the demon quickly uses puppet on a not how their headset camera footage shows
Corporate soldier. It learns why they are at the events unfolding—thanks to some creative
base, and puts two and two together regard- editing.

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Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium

The Cast magazines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8,

Semi-auto) molecular knife (Str+d4+2, AP 2),
headset comms, ID tag
All the stats used in the adventures are
grouped here for convenience. Stat blocks are
listed alphabetically, first by Church forces or Corporate Soldier, Veteran
allies, and then by Rephaim or other adversar- Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8,
ies. Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d6, Notice d8, Shoot-
Asgard Rescue Team ing d8
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness:
The Asgard rescue team is primarily 12(6)
concerned with recovering the FC Drive and Hindrances: Loyal
the technical data stored in the mainframe.
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Improved Dodge,
Recovery of the scientists is a secondary mis-
sion goal. Nerves of Steel, Rock and Roll
Gear: Medium armor (+6), 12mm ACR
with 5 magazines (Range: 30/60/120, Dam-
Lieutenant Major Lars Olafsson age: 2d8+1, Auto, 3RB), 5 grenades (Range:
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, 20/40/80, Damage: 3d8, AP 4, MBT), molecu-
Strength d6, Vigor d6 lar dagger (Str+d4+2, AP2), headset comms,
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d8, Intimidation d6, medpac, ID tag
Knowledge (Battle) d6, Notice d6, Shooting
d8
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: Dark Knight
11(6)
Hindrances: Loyal Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Command, Fervor, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Hold the Line, Level Headed Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d8, Intimidation
Gear: Medium armor (+6), 12mm SMG with d6, Notice d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6
2 magazines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8, Charisma: –4; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness:
Auto, 3RB), molecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 10(4)
2), headset comms, binoculars, medpac, ID Hindrances: Bloodthirsty
tag Edges: Combat Reflexes, Rock and Roll
Gear: Light armor breastplate (+4), 12mm
Nadia Polikov, Scientist SMG with AP rounds (Range: 15/30/60, Dam-
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d10, Spirit d8, age: 2d8, ROF 3, AP 6)
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Special Abilities:
Skills: Fighting d4, Guts d8, Investigation d6, * Insane: These insane soldiers are immune
Knowledge (FC Drives) d8, Notice d6, Repair
to Fear and Intimidation.
d8, Shooting d4
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 4; Toughness:
9(4)
Edges & Hindrances: —
Dark Knight Officer
Gear: Light armor (+4), 12mm pistol with 2 Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
magazines (Range: 12/24/48, Damage: 2d8, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Semi-auto), headset comms, portable com- Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d10, Knowledge (Bat-
puter
tle) d6, Notice d8, Riding d8, Shooting d8
Charisma: –4; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness:
Medic 10(4)
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d7, Spirit d6, Hindrances: Bloodthirsty
Strength d6, Vigor d6 Edges: Combat Reflexes, Command
Skills: Fighting d6, Guts d6, Healing d8, No- Gear: Light armor breastplate (+4), 12mm pis-
tice d6, Shooting d6
tol with AP rounds (Range: 12/24/48, Damage:
Charisma: +0; Pace: 6; Parry: 5; Toughness:
9(4) 2d8, ROF 3, AP 6)
Hindrances: Loyal Special Abilities:
Edges: Healer, Medic * Insane: These insane soldiers are immune
Gear: Light armor (+4), 12mm pistol with 2 to Fear and Intimidation.

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 escape tales from the frontline two

doctor Abel Miller a Touch Attack. Every raise on its Fighting

roll automatically inflicts one wound to its
Abel Miller is an experienced surgeon of target.
some renown. His expertise did not go unno- * Fear: Anyone seeing the creature must
ticed by a Rephaim agent, who, over a period make a Guts roll.
of many months, corrupted the surgeon into * Greater Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to
the Necrolatry heresy. Miller takes prostitutes recover from being Shaken. Called shots
and down and outs, cuts out their hearts, and do no extra damage. Immune to poison
gives them to his masters for use in necroman- and disease. Piercing weapons do half
tic weaponry. On the surface, he’s polite and damage. Ignores wound penalties.
sociable, but beneath the surface lurks the
* Sire: A victim Incapacitated by the zombie
deranged mind of a psychotic serial killer.
lord’s Death Touch has a 50% chance of
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8, dying and returning to life as a regular
Strength d6, Vigor d8 zombie within 1d4 rounds.
Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d10, Healing d10, No- * Stench of Death: Zombie lords reek of
tice d6 death. The first time a character gets within
Charisma: +2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: 3” of a zombie lord, he must make a Vigor
6 roll or be Shaken for 1d6 rounds. Whether
Hindrances: Delusional (Minor: Necrolatry he succeeds or fails, he is then immune to
heresy), Overconfident the stench for 24 hours.
Edges: Berserk, Improved Frenzy
Gear: Laser scalpel (Str+d6, AP 4) * Thermal Vision: Halves penalties for bad
lighting when attacking living targets.

High Exarch Malifix of

Primus Pilus Calvorix of
Fane Obscurus
Like many lower-caste Rephaim, Malifix’s
Fane Doctrina Fatum
title is self-given, rather than earned. The Calvorix is a young vampire, barely into
mastermind behind the plot to create an army his third decade since his conversion. Before
of zombie’s in the heart of a human city, the his rebirth, he was an Impaler combat medic.
zombie lord didn’t seek approval from his His title, which translates as “first spear,” is
master. While it is very likely the liche would a direct reference to the Roman rank. His
have approved the plan, it would also have master, who has studied Earth records, uses
taken full credit at the Dark Conclave. Perhaps Roman titles for his troops. Calvorix’s title
because of his Fane, Malifix isn’t like regular is both his actual rank, him being third in
zombie lords. While his compatriots serve as command of one of the liche’s legions, and a
“recruiters,” Malifix is very much a hands-on reference to his previous life.
leader, though one with only limited combat As well as being a capable combatant, Cal-
experience. vorix is a very capable weird scientist, having
Malifix’s Necromancy ability, common to all taken to the system extremely quickly. Where
zombie lords, has been used on the passengers. once he saved lives, he now uses human body
His Power Points have yet to regenerate, and parts to further his master’s goals. His stygian
thus he is incapable of using the power during armor is decorated with befouled Impaler
the adventure. symbols as a mockery, and memory, of his life
before undeath.
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d10, Spirit d10,
Strength d10, Vigor d8 Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d8, Spirit d8,
Skills: Fighting d10, Guts d10, Knowledge (Ar- Strength d12, Vigor d10
cana) d8, Notice d8, Stealth d6 Skills: Fighting d8, Guts d8+2, Healing d8,
Pace: 6; Parry: 7; Toughness: 11 (3) Intimidation d8, Knowledge (Battle) d6, Per-
Edges: Command, Frenzy, Level Headed suasion d6, Stealth d6, Streetwise d6, Weird
Gear: Stygian armor (+3), runic long sword Science d10
(Str+d8+4, AP 4) Pace: 6; Parry: 8; Toughness: 11(2)
Special Abilities: Special Training: Face-to-Face, Total Faith (in-
* Death Touch: The touch of a zombie lord cluded)
can drain the life of its victims. Instead of Hindrances: Cautious, Vengeful (Major)
a normal attack, a zombie lord may make Edges: Block, Level Headed, Spear Mastery,

193
Necropolis 2350 adventure compendium
Sweep * Indistinct Form: The demon’s form is
Gear: Stygian armor (+2), Hades pistol (range: shadowy and continually shifts. This gives
12/24/48, Damage: 2–3d6, PP 15), rune spear it the equivalent of the Improved Block
(Str+d6+2, AP 2, Parry 1, Reach 1, 1-handed), and Improved Dodge Edges.
adrenal bracelet, vocal cords * Mentalist: +2 to opposed Psionics rolls.
Special Abilities: * Powers: The demon can use the following
* Bite: Str+d6. powers: entangle (paralysis), fear
* Frenzy: Vampires may make two attacks (illusions), illusion (see below), invisibility
per round at –2 penalty. (a favorite for its tactics), panic (makes
* Greater Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 victim’s nervous and easily startled), puppet
to recover from being Shaken. Immune (mental domination), zombie (places tiny
to poison and disease. No additional portion of self inside corpse). Each requires
damage from called shots. Half-damage use of the Psionics skill. It has 40 Power
from piercing weapons. Ignores wound Points. Victims of puppet have no memory
penalties. of being dominated, nor of acts committed
under the demon’s command. Note that
* Leadership: Vampires have the Command,
the demon does not have to be able to see
Fervor, and Hold the Line Edges.
its victims—it simply has to know where
* Sire: Anyone incapacitated but not killed by they are and be in range to use its powers
a vampire must make a Spirit roll or die and on them.
return from the dead as a Vampire after 1d4
* Sense Life: The demon can detect life
days.
within 24”. This functions through solid
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all objects.
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
* Slam: Str+d6.
living targets or vehicles with their engine
running.
Illusion
The Demon Power Points: 2
Range: Smarts x 2
The demon ranks in the Ordo Secundus.
Its specialty is fear. Unlike many others, it has Duration: 3 (1/round)
no name, at it never reveals one. Fear of the Puppet can be used to represent illusions.
unknown is much more potent, and once a However, puppet forces a victim to act as the
thing has a name, you can begin to rational- caster wishes. Illusion simply creates a false
ize it. image, typically an object up to Size +4, allow-
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d10, Spirit d10, ing the “victims” to interact with it how they
Strength d6, Vigor d8 please, it can also reproduce any sound the
Skills: Fighting d10, Intimidation d10, Notice demon has heard before. Through this power,
d12, Psionics d10, Stealth d12 it can create images of the Knights, once it has
Pace: 6; Parry: 9; Toughness: 8 seen them, and even speak to them through
Hindrances: — their headset communicators.
Special Abilities: This power is quite versatile, and exists only
* Demon: +2 Toughness, +2 to recover for this monster—don’t consider it a standard
from being Shaken, Called Shots do no power suitable for the setting.
extra damage; immune to poison and
disease, no wound penalties.
* Fear Regeneration: If a victim fails a Guts The Lawyer
roll or is subjected to fear within 12” of the Miller’s “lawyer” is actually his handler.
demon, it can make a Vigor roll to recover The surgeon was given instructions to call his
one wound. Wound penalties apply as “lawyer” should he ever run into difficulties
normal. with the Knights or Lictor Sergeants. Although
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and Miller believes his lawyer is there to protect
Intimidation. him, he’s actually there to silence him if his
* Immunity (Cold): Immune to background illegal operations are discovered.
cold and any attack involving cold (such as Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d6,
liquid nitrogen). Strength d8, Vigor d8
* Improved Rapid Recharge: Recovers 1 Skills: Driving d6, Fighting d8, Intimidation
Power Point every 15 minutes. d6, Notice d6, Shooting d8, Stealth d6

194
 escape tales from the frontline two
Charisma: –2; Pace: 6; Parry: 6; Toughness: (Range: 5/10/20, Damage: 3d8, AP 4, MBT)
6 Special Abilities:
Hindrances: Mean * Claws: Str+d4.
Edges: Combat Reflexes, Improved Level * Fearless: Immune to Fear and
Headed, Marksman, Quick Draw, Intimidation.
Gear: 12mm pistol with AP rounds (Range:
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve all
12/24/48, Damage: 2d8, AP 6, Semi-Auto), mo-
penalties for bad lighting when attacking
lecular dagger (Str+d4+2, AP 2)
living targets or vehicles with their engine
running.
Zombie * Undead: +2 Toughness. +2 to recover
from being Shaken. Immune to poison
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4, Spirit d4,
and disease. No additional damage from
Strength d6, Vigor d6
called shots. Half-damage from piercing
Skills: Fighting d6, Intimidation d6, Notice d4,
weapons.
Shooting d6, Stealth d6, Throwing d4
Pace: 4 Parry: 5 Toughness: 7
Gear: Flechette SMG with 2 magazines (Range:
12/24/48, Damage: 2d6+1, AP 2, Auto), one
monofilament grenade (Range: 5/10/20, Dam-
age: 3d8, AP 4, MBT)
Special Abilities:
* Claws: Str+d4.
* Fearless: Immune to Fear and
Intimidation.
* Thermal Vision: Rephaim halve
all penalties for bad lighting
when attacking living targets
or vehicles with their engine
running.
* Undead: +2 Toughness.
+2 to recover from being
Shaken. Immune to poison
and disease. No additional
damage from called shots.
Half-damage from piercing
weapons.

Zombie, Elite
Zombies aren’t quick learn-
ers, but after a decade or so, the
lucky ones begin to develop some
improvements and a strange survival
instinct. These particularly zombies
understand the need to use cover.
Attributes: Agility d6, Smarts d4,
Spirit d6, Strength d8, Vigor d6
Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation
d6, Notice d4, Shooting d8, Stealth
d6, Throwing d6
Pace: 4 Parry: 6 Toughness:
7/13(6)
Edges: Rock and Roll
Gear: Medium armor (+6),
molecular sword (Str+d8+2,
AP 4), flechette SMG with 2
magazines (Range: 12/24/48,
Damage: 2d6+1, AP 2, Auto),
one monofilament grenade

195
 Handout #1: Asgard Corporation Survey Station “Zulu”
Location: Catena Paelex, Terra Septentriones
Purpose: Mineral Survey & Meteorological Study
Total Working Staff: Six [plus unknown number of security staff]
Vehicles: One Mjolnir MDP-17 mobile drilling platform, two Loki MR-29-B rovers, four remote
robotic SP-X1-7 surveyor probes
Computer Terminals: Computer terminals are marked with dots on the map.

A-Block: Living Quarters (1 story)

1 Administrator's quarters 2 Vehicle Operator's quarters
3 Scientist's quarters 4 Scientist's quarters
5 Engineer's quarters 6 Medic's quarters
7 Mess & lounge 8 Kitchen
9 Food/water store 10 Communal toilet/shower facilities
11 Library/cinema 12 Laundry facilities
13 Cold weather clothing storage 14 Main airlock

B-Block: Command Center (1 story)

1 Mainframe & master console 2 Communications suite
3 Robot control center 4 Medical center
5 Operating room 6 Medical Airlock
7 Quarantine suite 8 Administrator's office
9 Stores

C-Block: Engineering (1 story, plus one sub-level for engineering access)

1 Life support systems 2 Vehicle & robot parking bay
3 Cold weather clothing storage 4 Fire-fighting equipment storage
5 Hydroponic station 6 Access to maintenance ducts
7 Tool storage 8 Workshop area
9 Main powerplant

D-Block: Science Center (1 story)

1 Scientific equipment storage 2 Geology laboratory
3 Metallurgy laboratory 4 Meteorology station
5 General research laboratory 6 Experimentation isolation chamber
 Handout #2: Main Station Log
D-2 (1232H) The electrical storm has damaged the main communication antenna.
Miller says that it can be repaired but we'll be off line for a few days.
I've sent a brief message via the backup system to let the Board know.
D-2 (1741H) Palin has double-checked everything, and we’re good to go. Without
being able to communicate back home I have no choice but to follow
our last orders and commence with the test as planned.
D-2 (1800H) Success! Everything ran according to plan. Well, almost. The drive cre-
ated a low-level space-time distortion. The computer recorded a field
surge, but Palin rushed in to correct it. Brave, but foolish—no one
knows what the field could do to living flesh. Anyway, we’ve done it!
We’re on our way back to the stars! Have recorded all data ready for
transmission once the main array in back on line.
D-2 (2310H) Palin has gone insane and murdered Miller! God knows what hap-
pened. Doc says that Miller was stabbed to death with a screwdriver.
We caught Palin leaving the garage and subdued her. Placed her in
quarantine. Doc is checking for drugs. The bitch has smashed up all
the rovers. Without Miller repairs will take a while.
D-1 (0825H) Investigation started into Palin’s behavior. Doc says no drugs in her
system. She was in the room when the FC Drive started, but Doc says
the field was stable and shouldn’t have affected her. Repairs started on
rovers.
D-1 (0945H) Doc called me to quarantine—Palin is awake. Claims to have no
memory of what happened. Lying bitch! Christ, IntSec are going to
tear her a new asshole for this.
D-1 (1130H) Computer glitch reported by Schwartz. Can’t find Hendricks. First the
antenna and now the mainframe. Bloody cheap systems.
D-1 (1137H) Hendricks has attacked Doc! What the hell is going on here? Schwartz
gave Hendricks a clubbing with a fire extinguisher and killed her. Doc
says her own injuries are minor and is running a viral check on every-
one.
D-1 (1340H) Doc activated fire alarm in Med Lab. Something attacked her. Couldn't
get much sense from her. What did this? My medical knowledge is
limited, but I don't think Doc is going to survive. I dare not release
Palin from quarantine. Will fire off another mayday using the backup
array. I doubt it has the power to reach anybody in the storm.
D-1 (1410H) Communication with other bases overdue. How long before I can
expect a rescue? Can't find Schwartz. Will check on Palin later.
D-1 (1425H) Fire alarm activated in Comm Suite. Shit, shit, shit! Someone has
smashed the radio—it must be Schwartz. Is he mad?
D-1 (1630H) Oh God! The powerplant has been damaged! Thank God life support
is working. The fire burnt out quickly. No chance of repairing the pow-
erplant without Miller or Schwartz. Palin is dead. Something horrible
did this. Will start checking the base for Schwartz.
D-1 (2000H) I’m going to turn off life support and freeze the bastard to death. Suit
will keep me warm for a while. Must find Schwartz before it gets him
too.
D-1 (2157H) Found Schwartz in hydroponics. He took an overdose. I don't know
if that was cowardice or bravery. I keep hearing noises. It sounds like
Hendricks talking but it can't be. Am going to barricade myself in the
kitchen and wait for rescue. With any luck it'll only be a fe [end of
log]
$ 1 9 . 99 30016

it’s a hell of an adventure!

Battle all the horrors of Hell in this fantastic
series of seven adventures for Necropolis 2350!
The Necropolis 2350 Adventure Compendium contains a set of
adventures for the sci-fi horror Roleplaying Game, Necropolis
2350 and is based in a fictional 24th century.

In these dark days, mankind, divided into two main camps and
stands on the brink of extinction.

The Third Reformation Church are locked in desperate battle

against “undead” invaders known as the Rephaim. While the
heroes of humanity use advanced weapons and can call upon the
power of faith, the twisted Rephaim are masters of necromancy
and wield vile technology created from living tissue.

Adventures contained in this book:

The Last Word • The Long Sleep • The Broken Seal

The Opener of the Ways • Echoes
Tales from the Frontline One • Tales from the Frontline Two

Each adventure contains all the information the GM needs

including maps, handouts and full monster stats.

Necropolis 2350 is designed to be used with the

award winning Savage Worlds RPG.

www.tripleacegames.com
© 2011 Triple Ace Games. Necropolis 2350 and all related marks and logos are trademarks of Triple Ace Games.
Savage Worlds, Smiling Jack and all related marks and logos are trademarks of Pinnacle Entertainment Group.
All rights reserved. Used with permission. © 2011. All Rights Reserved.