Witch Hunter The Gates of Flame.pdf

The Gates of Flame

Author: Tony Kenealy

Cover Artist: Pat Loboyko

Interior Artist: Paul Carrick & Pat Loboyko

Cartography: Keith Curtis

Layout: Ruben Smith-Zempel

Editor: Eric Wiener

Playtesting By: Witch Hunter: Dark Providence Campaign Staf

Team Paradigm

Pedro Barrenechea, Jimmy Beck, Matt Blank, Henry Lopez, M. Sean

Molley, Nelson Rodriguez, Eric Wiener, and James Zwiers

he mention of, use of or reference to any company, trademark or product in this book is not a challenge to the

trademark or copyright in question.

Proudly Printed in the U.S.A

Adventure: The Games of Flame

Adventure Summary

he Gates of Flame is an adventure set in London

in the spring of 1689 where a group of Witch

Hunters brought together by a vision, hunt for a

missing Witch Hunter. he hunt will take them

to various locations in the thriving city, from the

busy commercial heart of he Royal Exchange

to the dark streets of Southwark. In their search,

they will encounter the Brotherhood of the

Gate, the hunters will become the hunted, and

a busy village will become a monument to the

dead, as the true nature of the Brotherhood will

inally be revealed.

The Story Begins

During the reign of Solomon, the world was

bedeviled with creatures that plagued mankind.

Attacking from land and sky, these beasts dwelt

in the shadows and hunted men like animals.

Mankind’s faith in the Almighty was strong,

but these creatures tempted and challenged

humanity’s faith, and many began to doubt.

One of these Nephilim, as they were

known, was named Algar. He commanded a host

of daemons and spirits that rampaged through

the kingdom of Israel and beyond. Many tried

to stand against him, but all failed, paying the

price for their failure as their souls were ripped

from their bodies to roam the ether in torment.

One magus, Simeon of Ashkelon, vowed to

banish Algar from the land at all costs. Working

secretly with his apprentice, Simeon toiled for

many months fashioning an amulet with the

power to open the Gates of Flame, entrance to

the Void. Many evil powers could open a portal,

but his amulet would have the power to unlock

the Gates of Flame and then seal them again.

Only the amulet could ever be used to open them. Algar

sensed this threat, but in his arrogance he believed that a mere

man could not defeat him. He confronted Simeon and in the

ensuing struggle Simeon opened a portal and then the Gates

of Flame, drawing Algar and his host into the maelstrom and

banishing them to the Void. Simeon was severely injured in

the struggle and as he lay dying on the loor, his apprentice

crept in and stole the amulet. Simeon was a powerful Magi,

and he had already seen into the future. He knew that ater

his ight with Algar and the closing of the Gates, he would

not be strong enough to destroy the amulet forever and thus

prevent their return. As a safeguard, he had fashioned a Rune

of Faith into the silver knots around the jewel. his powerful

rune could only be activated by someone with true faith in

God, and can be used to destroy the Gates of the Flame. So

Simeon believed he had successfully guaranteed that future

generations had the ability to prevent Algar’s return. He had

also foreseen that his apprentice would steal the amulet and

conceal it deep in the catacombs below the city. He did not

know that his apprentice would be attacked and let for dead

as he let the catacombs, taking the secret location of the

amulet to his grave.

Unknown to Simeon, one Nephilim had escaped the

maelstrom before it was closed. Loscar, a lieutenant in the host

of Algar, with his earthly body torn and broken, had managed

to crawl away and hide as Simeon closed the Gates. Loscar,

gravely injured and unable to help his master, crawled away

into the deep dark places of the earth to recover his strength,

vowing to one day open again the Gates of Flame and bring

Algar back to the world of man.

For 2000 years the Amulet remained hidden, until

1153, when during the Second Crusades King Baldwin III

of Jerusalem besieged the city. Ater the siege, the Knights

Templar searched the city and found the catacombs, where

they discovered the Amulet of Simeon. Not realizing its

signiicance, but recognizing it as a valuable prize, they took

the Amulet back to London where they placed it deep below

the newly built Temple Church along with many other

treasures from the Crusades. here the Amulet stayed buried,

until 1689 when Loscar discovered its location.

he Brotherhood of the Gate consists of the six

founding members plus numerous associates and minions.

Loscar, in the guise of Sir William led the group. His second

in command is homas Mackey, an importer of foodstufs

from Europe and a smuggler of anything that could make a

proit. he four other members are: Joseph Jacobs, a dealer

in weapons; Jack and Samuel Gillet, two brothers, dealers

in alcohol, legal or otherwise; Nathaniel Moore, a trader in

exotic silks with a sideline of organizing illegal ights and

gambling.

At the beginning of 1689, Loscar kidnapped and

tortured a descendant of a Knights Templar who had been at

Ashkelon. He dragged from him the location of the treasures

removed from the city and now hidden in the catacombs of

the Temple Church. For a group such as theirs, it was easy for

them to organize a raid on the Church led by homas Mackey

with detailed instructions from Loscar as to the object of their

search. It was at this time that the paths of the Brotherhood

crossed with the Witch Hunter Alfonso and the adventure

you are about to embark on was set in motion.

Alfonso, a Witch Hunter and member of the

Fellowship of the Ashen Cross had irst encountered homas

Mackey a few months ago in Spain, and had instantly felt on

the alert for trouble. He had been tracking Mackey and in

doing so had encountered Sir William/Loscar in London.

His instincts told him that things were not right and he

had begun tracking the dealings of the Brotherhood of the

Gate, culminating in the raid on the Temple Church. As the

Brotherhood’s minions were transporting the Amulet to a

location on London Bridge, Alfonso had intercepted them

and managed to steal the Amulet. he chase was on and

the whole force of the Brotherhood was now on Alfonso’s

trail. He knew he had to prevent Loscar from obtaining the

Amulet of Simeon, but he also knew this was not enough, he

must destroy him and the Brotherhood. He sends the Amulet

to his brother Alejandro for safekeeping, and he goes of to

confront Loscar and then no more is heard of him.

The Brotherhood of the Gate

It was rumored that Sir William Waller, a merchant from

London, formed the Brotherhood of the Gate in 1682. his

was indeed true, but although it was Sir William Waller who

formed the Brotherhood, it was Loscar, lieutenant of Algar’s

host, who possessed his body and controlled his actions. On

a trade trip through the Ottoman Empire to the Holy Lands,

Sir William encountered Loscar at an illegal slave auction.

Loscar enticed Sir William with promises of power and

great wealth and tricked into giving up his body to Loscar’s

possession. Loscar had heard the tale of the Knights Templar

and the great treasure that had been moved to London from

Ashkelon and he was convinced this was the resting-place of

the Amulet of Simeon.

When Loscar returned to London in the guise of Sir

William Waller, he proceeded to gather together a group of like-

minded individuals to form the nucleus of the Brotherhood

of the Gate. he wealth and power of the founding members

increased rapidly as they established themselves as a criminal

organization, rooted in extortion, thet, and gambling. he

founding members were mainly merchants eager for wealth

and power, and were persuaded by Sir William/Loscar that

this was more easily achieved on the wrong side of the law.

Loscar dragged each of them deeper into the dark underbelly

of London to a place where they were prepared to follow

him anywhere. To Loscar, the Brotherhood was the means of

obtaining the Amulet of Simeon, so his path would lead them

to the re-opening of the Gates of Flame.

Where the Player Characters Come In

It has been six weeks since Alfonso went to confront Loscar

and did not return. Alfonso’s brother, Alejandro has been

searching for him ater receiving the package with the Amulet.

His search brings him to London where contact with the

Court of Whispers and speciically Tom Hargetty has assured

him that help is on the way. Enter the Witch Hunter party.

London: 1689

At a Glance

he setting of London in the year 1689 is an exciting and

dynamic place, full of change and growth. For one, most of

the city is new, still fresh from being reconstructed from the

London Fire in 1666. Most of the population are in their

teens and twenties, and transplants to the area. hese people

are young, fresh, and eager to begin work as apprentices or

servants.

England has just crowned a new king and queen –

William III and Mary II. hese joint rulers now usher in a

new era – one where the power of the monarchy will become

increasingly limited, and the voice of the people will speak

and gain more authority. he English Bill of Rights has just

now been published, airming the idea that people are born

with certain inalienable freedoms. Within this Bill of Rights

will be universal ideas that will eventually take hold in almost

every single country that will ever embrace Democracy.

In the world of Witch Hunter, the idea of human

equality is even more advanced. William and Mary are truly

equal partners on the throne. Mary’s co-rulership now pushes

women’s liberation to the forefront of today’s politics. here

is currently talk of allowing women to serve in the House of

Commons. In the Witch Hunter’s version of London, women

may already serve in the House of Lords.

Despite many of these idealistic thoughts running

through society, crime is deinitely a part of London life.

Despite the religious fervor of the time there are, as always,

the destitute, the mad, or those who simply can’t get along in

society. hese folks tend to live in the East End of London.

One of the reasons that crime is so prevalent is because

a modern system of policing has not yet been invented.

If someone commits a crime against a person, usually it’s

that person’s responsibility to go haul the ofender before

a magistrate in court. Even then, it usually amounts to one

person’s word against another. here exists no process for

considering forensic evidence.

A London city watch does exist, but these individuals

are basically hired soldiers who simply patrol the streets,

looking for trouble. here is no procedure for asking the

watch for help, interviewing witnesses, or gathering clues

from a crime scene. he city watch, like any city watch of the

time period, simply puts stops to crimes when and where they

see it. Finally, the system for prosecuting someone for a crime

is still fairly primitive. Laws deinitely exist, but the kind of

sentence one might receive for a crime is mostly the whim of

the magistrate, who may or may not be fair-minded.

Currently, a large portion of crime in London

is controlled by the Inked Palm, a secret organization of

Witch Hunters who actually did not sign the Great Accord,

and do not believe in it. he Inked Palm is a Witch Hunter

organization that seeks to use the supernatural to their own

ends, rather than stomp it out of existence.

Recent History

he amount of change that London has seen over the past

century is tremendous. he loose and free times of the

early 1600s contrasts sharply with this time period’s strict

religious beliefs. During this time, people are more religiously

conservative, but socially liberal. he thought that people

were “all God’s children” began to spread, and the idea that

a single mortal, such as a king, should have the right to rule

over everyone began to be viewed with skepticism.

Eventually, England saw a Civil War, ater which a

Puritan by the name of Oliver Cromwell would become a

military dictator over England itself, and no king would rule

at all.

Ater Cromwell’s death, Charles II took the throne.

However, even with a monarch on the throne, the idea of

human equality had already taken hold. During Charles

II’s reign, anti-Catholic sentiment began to run rampant.

Catholics were seen by many of the populace as idolaters.

Further, Catholics were seen as people who did not support

the idea of equality, because they believed in the supremacy of

the Church Hierarchy and the Pope. To the ardent Protestants

of the time, these things were seen as symbols of a system that

attempted to place certain people above others.

hings came to a head in 1685, when King James

II took the throne. James was an ardent Catholic, in direct

opposition to the Anglican and Protestant England. In just

four years, the Glorious Revolution took place, in which

William of Orange from the Netherlands took the throne

from King James, at the behest of many English. Once

William III took the throne, he co-ruled England with his

English wife and Queen – Mary II.

his time of religious revolution, of course, led to the

immigration of many Puritans to the New World. Hundreds

of thousands of settlers would travel from England and

Europe, hoping to escape the religious turmoil and practice

their religion in their own way.

Invisible London

Behind the curtain of religious strife, new ideas, civil war, and

terrible ires lay other forces. It is well known at this point

that corrupted humans under the direction of some dark

power started the London Fire of 1666. Witch Hunters from

diferent religious groups have set aside their diferences in the

face of a common enemy. One of the central rallying points of

Witch Hunters in London has been in Westminster Abbey.

here is a secret passage outside in the street that leads to the

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