The Forge Archives

My system collapsed moments ago, so I'll do this faster, just in case:

Sorcerer in early 1920s Britain, in the Highlands of Scotland, events centred around an old mansion in the hills.

Daemons are the ghosts of those who died traumatically, sorcery, specifically pacting is quasi-shamanic and folk-magicy, binding usually involves competitions.

Humanity is Sanity, basically.

All ghosts have ties, and as long as their tie is intact, so are they. Daemons without ties start to fade quickly, those who retain them still do so, only at a greatly reduced rate. Older daemons are more powerful, not as a result of their age but as a cause.

Four players, three characters, one kicker so far:

An elderly gamekeeper, whose daemon is a hunting dog's spirit, bound in a walking stick. Its Tie is the leather of the handle, taken from its collar, its telltale is the ornate carving on the handle of a dog's head, which is animated when its powers are in use.

His kicker is the parcel he'll recieve, containing his sons personal effects which contain his Tie. He was shot for cowardice, and resented the family in the Big House already, before they volunteered wholesale for the war.

A young girl, fifteen, who discovered a necklace and made an invisible friend on the same day. She's a relative, farmed out to the family of the house while her sister and mother are in London for the season. Her daemon is, in fact, the spirit of a sorceror, who is teaching her lore in an effort to gain an ally to gain revenge over his brother, himself a sorceror, who killed him many years ago. There's no kicker in there as yet, but there will be.

The girl's older sister, a debutante, currently in London with her mother [the father may well have died in the war]. This is a rough character at present, but still looks to be intersting within the context.

I'm looking for some help in a couple of areas:

Anyone know where I can find floorplans for mansions?

Any suggestions for sorcery, specifically ideas that correspond to the tropes of 1920s supernatural fiction? [I've some, but 300+ heads and all that...]

Any potential sources for the relationship maps? [Upstairs and Downstairs?] I've looked at Gosford Park, and it might work, but does anyone have any others that will be large enough? [I'm thinking ten to fifteen for each 'half', including the players].

Any other suggestions, hints, ideas?

Oh, and before I forget. SG refers to an image we all liked, a young woman muttering about a dress in a magazine while her pet cat plays with a bleeding rat that her ghost is dangling in the air.

drew [please work...]

Drew,

Remember that relationship maps are not setting-specific. You can dig'em out of any of the references in Sorcerer and Soul, as well as anywhere else, and you can apply'em to whatever setting you'd like. You definitely do not need to find them from servants/employers type stories.

I suggest that you think in terms of layers. Think of a 3-D chessboard, with each horizontal section being a relationship map (and notice that each map might span a lot of time). Now provide obligations going vertically, whether of employment (upstairs-downstairs) or anything else.

Best,
Ron

Aargh, and indeed, gnash, wail, and weep.

I know that R-Maps can be got from anywhere, but in the initial post, which was Consumed By A Black Screen Of Windows XP Mystery I mentioned that the problem I had with them was I needed large R-Maps, to the point where there'd be two, or perhaps three, [for Upstairs, House Downstairs, and Service Downstairs] all reaching up for ten or fifteen, so I was looking at two large ones for Downstairs that stuck together and a smaller one for the residents and their families.

I really needed lots of nodes. Of course, it came to me just as I was thinking about it here.

I shall use Soap Operas. I'll stick two together to get Downstairs, and add a third for Upstairs, then try and figure out where Upstairs/Downstairs link [that one's going to be Sex, I'd wager].

I might even try and wangle it such that the links are from actors who jumped series, though that might be a bit silly.

I am aware that R-Maps need not be genre. The cybersorcerer one-shot I used to introduce my players to the rules was built up from Hamlet.

drew

Hell, man, armed with soap operas as you are, then I have nothing to add! You're set.

As for mansions, I am the happy owner of many Call of Cthulhu supplements, most of which have at least one mansion in them, and plenty of which have two or three. I recommend them if you don't mind spending bucks.

Best,
Ron

A cheaper alternative is to get some interior design magazines, especially ones that cater to Southern living, Victoriana, etc.

For a little bit of amusement with your floor plans, pick up Kill Doctor Lucky from Cheapass games; it has the advantage of being well-sized for miniatures.  You could also grab the supplement for Kill Doctor Lucky, Craigdarach, which is based on the layout of an actual mansion.