Night Reign: A Roleplaying Game of Stealth, Guile, Violence and Devilry

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Sinister Beard Games Presents

A roleplaying game of Stealth, Guile, Violence and Devilry Game development, writing and layout by Oli Jeffery, © 2020 Sinister Beard Games. Illustrations by Kasha Mika, © 2020 Cover by Harriet Moulton, © 2020 Editing by Lauren McMannamon Sensitivity Editing by Misha Bushyager Thanks to Frank Smiles and Jenny Lord for their help in playtesting and many useful suggestions, and for essentially fixing combat for me. Thanks to the Gaunlet Gaming Community LLC for their kind assistance in funding the cover illustration for this game, and to Jesse Ross and Jason Cordova for Trophy, without which this game would not exist. This work is based on Trophy (trophyrpg.com), product of Jesse Ross and Hedgemaze Press, and licensed for our use under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Trophy is adapted from Cthulhu Dark with permission of Graham Walmsley. Trophy is also based on Blades in the Dark (found at http://www.bladesinthedark.com/), product of One Seven Design, developed and authored by John Harper, and licensed for our use under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). Trophy™ is a trademark of Hedgemaze Press. The Rooted in Trophy Logo is © Hedgemaze Press, and is used with permission.

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The Book of Lore Laefendport The scabrous, rainslick metropolis of Laefendport was mere decades previously nothing but a collection of hovels and shacks, home to scavengers who scraped a meager existence salvaging whatever they could from the many ships dragged into the notoriously treacherous waters to its immediate east, and wrecked on shores so jagged and jutting it seems as if the very earth was reaching up in protest. Its name meant Liars Port, a reference to the treachery of both its tides and its residents. Farming was nigh impossible, as the area for miles around Laefendport was afflicted with the Night Rain - so called not because it fell at night, though it often did, but because of its colour. Black as a moonless winter sky, viscous and inert, the Night Rain falls near constantly, poisoning all but the hardiest, most unappealing plants, deforming and driving animals mad, and leaving anything it touches greasy and stained. For centuries, only the desperate or the touched would go anywhere near Laefendport. Until, that is, the Eisenhart Process. Named for its inventor, Friedrich Eisenhart, this is the alchemical process by which the Night Rain can be filtered and made combustible. Suddenly, there was a freely available source of fuel literally falling from the sky. Free, at least, until the noble families arrived to harvest it. This discovery led to a great revolution of industry and science, and the cancerous growth of Laefendport from barely a town to the largest city in the country. Noble families became businesses, businesses became dynasties; and above them all, the royal family of House Wilderose loomed: to them all the dynasties paid reverence and, more importantly, taxes.

The Night Reign The Royal House, House Wilderose had never lowered itself to actual industry, instead supporting itself through taxation alone. The Eisenhart Process marked a turning point. Suddenly, the other Houses were rich beyond any of their previous imaginings, and equally suddenly found themselves disinclined to pay their taxes. When the tax collectors arrived in Laefendport from the capital, they were turned away. When they attempted a second meeting, complete with an attendant squadron of guards, their heads were returned to the capital in their collection boxes. There followed much sabre rattling on both sides, but neither the Wilderoses nor the dynasties wanted a costly war, and so the Houses invited the Royals to Laefendport in order to resolve the matter diplomatically. The entire Wilderose family attended, with the full force of the Royal Guard at their side. They thought that would make them safe; but the Guard had already been bought. The Wilderose dynasty was massacred that day. Reports on exactly who was slain and who managed a desperate escape vary, though nobody who saw the bodies of the King and Queen strung from the rooftops of the House Eisenhart refinery can wipe the image from their memory. Laefendport was named the new capital city, and the Noble Houses control of the nation was complete; the Night Reign had begun.

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The Red Right Hand While many of the citizens of Laefendport and beyond still keen for their King and Queen, they do so quietly; public Royalist sympathy is now punishable by imprisonment, torture or death under the brutal police state of the Noble Houses. The members of the Red Right Hand are not among this quiet herd. The Right Hand was the name of the Royal Secret Police, back when the Wilderoses reigned. They should have been able to stop the dynastic coup, but even they could be bought. The leaders of the Right Hand owed their fealty to the Noble Houses, and any loyal agents who discovered the plot were disposed of. Even after the revolution, there were some who were still loyal to the Wilderoses, and conspire to find any rightful heir to the throne and return them to power. They are now known as the Red Right Hand, both to reaffirm their loyalty to the heraldic colours of House Wilderose, and in honour of the amount of Noble blood they have spilt since the Night Reign began. You play as one of these brave but terrible people.

The Sisters Laefendport does not traffic with gods. The sea swallows everything that dares come near, and the sky pisses down black tar onto the land. If ever anyone prayed to a god here, their prayers were demonstrably not answered. Instead, Laefendport has the Sisters. They are not things to worship, they are things to blame misfortune on, to curse, to avoid. If you mutter their names in a prayer, it is to ask that they overlook you for another day. There are two families of Sisters, each with three members: the Brostnest Sisters, the Sisters of the Lost, and the Ryne Sisters, the Sisters of the Hidden. The Brostnests hate the Rynes almost as much as the Rynes hate the Brostnests; the citizens of Laefendport know better of the Sisters than to enquire as to why.

A Whispered & Bitter Prayer The Right Hand were taught the sacred art of devilry to further the plans of the crown. Arcane power flows from the Sisters, but they do not grant it freely. To access their domains, you must reach into the blackness that lies beyond the rain and steal some of their divinity. The whispered prayer is not to be granted that power, but that you will not be caught by the Sister when doing so.

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Technology in Laefendport Technology in Night Reign e stinking is at a level roughly the same Let me walk through th nken dru of sic mu as the late 19th to early 20th alleys to the centuries, but nearly everything beatings is powered by refined Night Rain. Until the discovery of the Eisenhart Process, there was no steam or oil technology, and the only flammable was wood and coal, either inefficient or dangerous to mine. Laefendport has undergone a radical technological shift since the discovery of refined Night Rain. The streets are lit by flickering Rainlight. Gunpowder and explosives do not exist in the game world, so firearms powered by small capsules of liquid and flint are a new and powerful invention, and were key to the success of the Night Reign's revolution. With guns such a novelty, melee weapons are still common; they're cheaper to produce, and a knife in the kidneys will see to you just as surely as a bullet. Ships powered by the Rain have made travel easier, but not safer - the ocean is filled with monsters warped by years of exposure to the Night Rain. More common are smaller gondolas either hand rowed or powered by Rain fed outboard motors, used to navigate the labyrinthine canals that criss-cross the city. Primitive automobiles exist, though they are luxury items possessed only by the very rich. Generally styled in metal and wood art nouveau patterns, they are handcrafted per owner and as much an expression of personality as they are a mode of transport. Elsewhere, horses and carts are still common, as is the shit they leave behind on the streets.

PJ Hartvey, The Last Living Rose

The Noble Houses House Breman, The Pirates Sailors, traders and warriors who brave the monstrosity haunted seas around Laefendport to trade with far off lands like Mohtuharri and Mahl Kalada (or, more accurately, force their subjects to do so); they also provide the majority of the other houses' security, at a cost of course. They are ruled by Admiral Lydia de Breman.

House Eisenhart, The Alchemists House Eisenhart is the Noble line that first discovered how to refine the Night Rain, a process they still jealously guard from even the other houses. They control all the refineries in Laefendport, and as such their influence can be felt in all the other houses, who, in turn, hate them utterly. The head of the house is Alchemist Supreme Friedrich d'Eisenhart.

House Foreyda, The Traitors House Foreyda are negotiators, deal makers and liars par excellence. They handle all negotiations with powers outside of Laefendport on the other houses' behalf, always making sure that they get the choicest end of any agreement. Reciprocation is anathema to the Foryedas - to them, every deal must have a winner and a loser, and they intend always to be the former. The head of the house is Lord Wordsmith Logan de Foreyda.

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House Forbehn, The Blasphemers There was no religion in Laefendport before the Night Reign, aside from a few forbidden cults to the Sisters. Now House Forbehn, previously bookish cowards known for their vast libraries and knowledge of the minutiae of Noble history, made a grab for power, establishing themselves as the heads of Those Above Others, a religion that places the Nobles families as demigods spiritually above the mere humans they rule over. Nobody, themselves included, actually believes it, but the creed is enforced by their gold masked soldier-priests. They are ruled by Father Aldhelm de Forbehn.

House Kleinengest, The Overseers While Eisenhart brew poisons and balms in their labs, and Seeracraff tinker and giggle to themselves, Kleinengest makes. They own workhouses around the city that produce workable, saleable, practical applications from the other Houses wild and vapid imagnings. Their factories are brutal and frequently fatal places, but should the poor not be glad to be sacrificed to the great gods of Industry and Progress? They are ruled by a Mistress Ada de Kleinengest.

House Seeracraff, The Tinkerers Previously tinkerers and toy makers of little import, the Eisenhart process has allowed House Seeracraff to develop mechanical monstrosities such as clockwork soldiers, great striding suits for guards, and security measures such as flame walls. They take delight in endless creation, and in the destruction their creations wreak. They are headed up by Artificer Natalia de Seeracraff.

House Wilderose, The Lost Few of House Wilderose yet live after the tragic events that began the Night Reign, and none so far who would dare to attempt to take their throne back. Were they kinder, gentler, better rulers than the current regime? Probably not. They are Nobles, and Nobles are a different species to whom the travails of the proletariat mean nothing, if they are aware of it at all. But they were your House, and you shall avenge them. Their lost heir is Princess Emile de Wilderose.

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The Book of Rules The Night Reign will fall Night Reign is a roleplaying game of stealth, guile, violence and devilry for a GM and one or more players, Set in a quasi-Edwardian metropolis perched on an inhospitable peninsula beset by toxic black rain and ruled by a corrupt cabal of Noble Houses. You take the role of members of The Red Right Hand, a conspiracy loyal to the recently deposed royal family, using your talents in assassination, infiltration and dark sorcery to strike out at your oppressors.

Gather your apparatus of infiltration To play Night Reign, you'll need two Sets of regular playing cards with the jokers removed, and two pools of poker chips in different colours, which you can acquire from your local bawdy house, or perhaps from a sinister street magician. We recommend that the two decks of cards have different backs so they can be easily distinguished from each other. The GM claims one of the decks of cards and shuffles it thoroughly. This is the Night Deck, and is used by the GM to Set difficulty on tasks, to represent obstacles that the players must overcome, and to provide actions for the players' opposition in combat, should you come to so gauche an activity as crossing blades in the open. The Night deck should be placed within easy reach of the GM, and within sight of the players. The players claim the other deck. Divide the deck into number cards (including Aces), and face cards (all Jacks, Queens and Kings). Shuffle both of the players' decks individually and place them next to each other. The deck with the number cards is the Royal Deck, and the deck with the face cards is the Sisters' Deck. Pray that you don't need to draw from the latter. All players draw from the Royal Deck, or if they are foolhardy and impetuous, from the Sisters' deck. Both these decks should be placed within easy reach of all the players, or if this is impractical, you can nominate one player to draw on the party's behalf. Number cards are worth the value of the number printed on them. Aces are worth either one or eleven, and can change between these two values at any time according to the whim of the player drawing, even after they are drawn. All face cards are worth ten, and a portion of your Soul. Choose one of your pools of tokens to represent Shadow, and one to represent Flame. Traditionally, black and red tokens provide a pleasing visual feedback that even the most Sister-touched inmate of the Broadgate Asylum can understand. The GM will also need tokens to represent Opposition; they may have their own pool or borrow from unused Flame and Shadow tokens, as Opposition tokens are only ever in play temporarily. You will also require one copy of the City sheet for the party and a copy of character sheet for each player. Character and City sheets can be distilled from the very æther at sinisterbeard.com/nightreign.

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Characters in Night Reign In Night Reign, you play an agent of the Red Right Hand, a contra-revolutionary group dedicated to bringing down the Noble Houses who betrayed and murdered your masters, the Royal House Wilderose. Your task is not an easy one, and you will likely die in pursuit of it. But even when your bones are the playthings of rats and your flesh is withered, Laefendport prevails. You may find yourself making several characters over the course of a campaign. First, choose your Name, Pronouns, Appearance and Cover Identities. Name, Pronouns and Appearance have no mechanical implication, but help you to portray your character. Place and proper names in this zine take inspiration from mangled versions of Old English, German and Russian; choose a name that follows suit. Names and appearances may also be informed by your cover identities. Your Cover Identities are the false roles you take to avoid being arrested by the Noble Houses. Pick two from the list on page 30, or invent your own. Each Cover Identity provides one free dot in a talent (page 30), and a network of connections which may be used as narrative permission (page 28). Next, choose your Talents. Talents describe what your character is good at, and can be marked to provide a mechanical bonus. You have 13 dots to distribute however you wish. You may choose 13 individual talents at one dot each, or choose several to specialise in with two or three dots. Collaborate with the other players in your group to ensure a wide breadth of Talents are covered between you all. Remember that you get a free dot in a specific Talent from each cover identity, so you'll have 15 dots in total. Next, choose your Prayers, if any. Prayers (page 36) are dangerous spells you can cast to perform miraculous feats. All agents of the Red Hand can learn and use Prayers, regardless of Talents or Cover Identities. For each dot you have in a Devilry Talent, you may choose one Prayer from that Talent's Prayer list (page 36). You can attempt to cast Prayers which you don't have access to (even if you have no dots in any Devilry Talent) by selling your Soul (page 18). Finally, choose your equipment (page 20). At the start of the game, you can choose up to five items, and you may acquire more during Incursions. You do not have to take all of your equipment with you on every Incursion, as discussed on page 20. You start the game with your Body and Soul tracks at 0, and no Conditions. Don't worry, they'll come. Oh, they'll come.

When you draw Night Reign uses cards instead of dice to resolve conflicts, like any decent ruffian or scoundrel. Depending on the circumstance, one may use Stealth, Guile, or Violence to overcome things between them and their goal. Oftentimes, you'll face off against the GM's hand to see if you succeed. These actions, and how they're resolved, are explained below. After completing any action, discard any cards drawn from the Royal Deck into a discard pile face up in sight of everyone. Any cards drawn from the Sisters' Deck do not get discarded after an action and are instead replaced at the bottom of the Sisters' Deck. Whenever the GM draws cards from the Night Deck, they are replaced at the bottom of the Night Deck once they are no longer relevant. Cards from the Night Deck are never discarded. If you make a Stealth draw and cannot immediately overcome the opposition, you must choose if you will next use Guile (page 13) or Violence (page 15).

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Improving your odds When you use a skill or piece of equipment to discard a card during any draw, you must mark it the skill or equipment used - simply cross through one of its boxes on your character sheet. When all available boxes on the skill or piece of equipment are full, you may no longer use it in this Incursion. Skills and equipment usage boxes reset at the start of each Incursion, so use pencil or Betrand Merryweather's patented removable Rain Ink when marking.

Shadow and Flame Tokens Shadow tokens represent how close you are to achieving your goal, and how well you have covered your tracks. The more of these you have, the better. Flame tokens represent noise made, blood shed and times you were carelessly spotted. The more Flame tokens you have, the harder it will be to achieve your goal through stealth, and the worse things will become in the city, but needs must when the devil drives, and oh, sirs, madams and all in between or nowhere at all, Laefendport has many a devil. You start every Incursion with no tokens of either type. Throughout the Incursion, you'll gain Shadow tokens when you sneak successfully close to your goal, and Flame tokens when solving a problem through open violence takes longer than anticipated... All tokens are pooled, so tokens gained be they shadow or flame affect everyone. You must learn to work together as a cell effectively if you're to succeed.

Spending Shadow tokens Bypassing opposition without open violence If the group wishes to bypass opposition they face as the result of a Stealth draw without open Violence, you must pay as many Shadow tokens as your current Flame pool, or the number of your Chaos track, whichever is higher, to do so. If both of these are currently at 0, as they will be at the start of the campaign, you may attempt to bypass opposition without open violence without spending Shadow tokens. Note this only covers open violence, as in a straight up fight. Dragging a guard into the shadows and slitting their throat before they can cry for help does not count as open violence, though it does count against your immortal Soul - but that is not a matter for these rules. Achieving a Set's goal Incursions are divided into Sets, and each Set in an Incursion has a specific goal. Once you have three or more Shadow tokens and the majority of the group agrees, you can spend three tokens to achieve the Set's goal and move onto the next. Buying off Flame tokens, Suspicion and Activation Tracks Once an Incursion ends, your individual suspicion rating, any dots activated in your or the City’s Conditions, and any Flame tokens your group has acquired can be bought off with Shadow tokens on a one for one basis. You do not have to buy them all off, but any remaining Suspicion or Flame tokens will have a detrimental effect, the Suspicion to your individual character (see page 21), and Flame tokens to the City. The number of Flame tokens that cannot be bought off in this way are added to the City's Chaos rating.

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Stealth The primary weapon of the Red Right Hand is shadow. The enemy should never see you coming, never even be aware of your presence until it is too late, or sometimes even after that. Other weapons of the Red Right Hand include monstrous violence and damnable witchcraft, of which more later.

Making a Stealth Draw When you enter or press further into an area you are forbidden in pursuit of your goal, make a Stealth Draw: describe how you are infiltrating the environment through stealth and draw two cards from the Royal Deck. If you have a useful Talent or piece of equipment, you may mark it to discard a card from your initial hand. You may then keep drawing more cards until: • • • •

You have a maximum hand of five cards; or You choose to accept your current hand total; or The total value of your hand is exactly 21; or The total value of your hand is more than 21.

Once you have stopped drawing cards, consult the table below to find your new fictional and mechanical position. The GM will describe how that is represented in the narrative.

Hand Total Effect 2-6

The way forward is blocked, and you’ve raised Suspicion. Encounter Heavy Opposition. Lose a Shadow token if you have one, and the GM will describe the opposition you face.

7 - 11

The way forward is blocked, but nobody is outwardly suspicious of you. Encounter Moderate Opposition. The GM will describe the opposition you face.

12 - 17

The way forward is blocked, but you have the drop on them. Take a Shadow token, but encounter Light Opposition as described by the GM.

18 - 20

You glide through like a shadow. Take a Shadow token. The GM will describe the opposition you would have faced, and you describe how you just bypass it without directly encountering it.

21 or a five card trick* Over 21

It’s like you’re not there at all. Take a Shadow token, and place all currently discarded Royal cards onto the bottom of the Royal deck. The GM will describe the opposition you would have faced, and you describe how you gracefully bypass it without encountering it. You've been spotted! Lose all Shadow tokens and encounter aggressive Heavy Opposition as described by the GM.

* A five card trick is a hand of five cards with a value of less than 21.

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After a Stealth draw, you'll either have already bypassed potential opposition (on an 18 -21), or be faced with opposition that you must overcome. If there's no opposition to overcome, you may make another Stealth draw and continue accruing or spending Shadow tokens as outlined on page 9. If there is opposition that you must still overcome (2 - 17, or over 21), then you have two choices on how to proceed - by leaning on your Guile, or committing open Violence.

Setting Opposition Unless your hand is between 18 and 21, you're going to encounter opposition after a Stealth Draw. The GM will take a number of opposition tokens to represent the obstacle that the players must overcome before they can move on. The amount of tokens should reflect how hard the opposition is to overcome in the fiction - light resistance is one token, medium resistance 2, and heavy or aggressive resistance at least 3, more at the GM's discretion. The difference between regular Heavy Opposition and aggressive Heavy Opposition is that aggressive Heavy Opposition will attack you immediately - you can't talk your way out of this one. This is true both in the fiction, and because you've just lost all your Shadow tokens, mechanically.

Light opposition examples • • • •

A single doorman or distracted guard A locked door A crowd of civilians Search lights

Moderate opposition examples • • • •

A 3 inch thick steel door with a lock designed by a master locksmith A squad of guards Rain maddened beasts A swordsmaster

Heavy opposition examples • • • •

A wall of flame A large gang of guards A traitor agent of the Red Hand, skilled in stealth, guile, violence and devilry A mechanical rain powered monstrosity

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Overcoming Opposition When you are left with opposition to overcome after a Stealth draw, you must choose and describe if you are doing so via open Violence (as described on page 15), or via Guile, overleaf. Note that for the purposes of these rules, "open violence" means outright, visible combat, where your opponent is aware of you or you could be spotted by a third party. Slitting someone's throat while they're unaware and dragging them into the shadows is an act that will leave a stain on your conscience for years to come, but it is not strictly speaking "open violence" and may be committed with a Guile draw. Conversely, Guile does not have to be quiet or subtle, as long as it is not violent. Walking straight up to the palace guards and trying to bareface lie your way in is a Guile draw, as is loudly breaking a window with a rock so that one of the guards of the old brewery leaves his post to investigate, leaving only one behind. As your Shadow and Flame token pools both start at 0 each Incursion, overcoming opposition with Guile initially doesn't cost any Shadow tokens. If you engage in open Violence, you'll probably accrue Flame tokens, and thereafter have to spend Shadow tokens to overcome opposition with Guile. In short, the more of a mess you make, the more alert guards will be, the more doors will be barred, and the more likely it will be that you'll have to commit more Violence to overcome future opposition. If you encounter opposition and have more Flame tokens than Shadow tokens, you may not attempt to overcome the opposition with Guile and are doomed to resort to Violence. Such is the will of the Sisters, sometimes. Once all Opposition tokens have been overcome, you have overcome the opposition in the fiction, and you may make another Stealth draw.

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Guile When you attempt to overcome opposition without open violence: • • •

Spend Shadow tokens equal to the higher of your Flame tokens or the City’s Chaos track; Tell the GM what you're hoping to achieve; And ask them what could go wrong.

The GM will take a number of opposition tokens to represent the obstacle that the players must overcome before they can move on. The amount of tokens should reflect how hard the opposition is to overcome in the fiction - light resistance is one token, medium resistance 2, and heavy or aggressive resistance at least 3, more at the GM's discretion. The GM Sets the opposition. Once you have paid any necessary Shadow tokens and described what you're attempting to do, the GM will judge from the fictional circumstances whether the risk level of the action is Restrained, Risky, or Reckless. The risk level of the action will determine how easy the draw will be for you, the action's level of effect and how bad the fictional consequences will be. In short, the riskier the action is, the more it can achieve, the harder the draw will be, and the worse the consequences will be if you fail. If your action is Restrained: • • • •

The GM draws two cards from their deck, face up. Restrained actions can achieve minor feats in the fiction. A successful Restrained action removes an opposition token. Failed Restrained actions make things a little worse. If you action is Risky:

• • • •

The GM draws two cards from their deck, one face up and one face down. Risky actions can achieve worthy things in the fiction. A successful Risky action removes two opposition tokens. Failed Risky actions will hurt. If your action is Reckless:

• • • •

The GM draws two cards from their deck, face down. Reckless actions can achieve great things in the fiction. A successful Reckless action removes three opposition tokens. Failed Reckless actions will hurt, a lot.

If you think that the GM has misjudged the risk rating of the draw, either too high or too low, possibly because you misunderstood the fiction or they misunderstood your intentions, you can hash that out between yourselves. The risk rating of the action is not finalised until the GM draws, and they should give you adequate time to agree before doing so. Once the risk rating of the action is Set, draw two cards from the Royal Deck. If you have a skill or piece of equipment that can help you, you may mark them (page 20) to discard one

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of your cards. In order for your action to succeed, your hand total must be equal to or higher than the GM's hand total - though if your action is Risky or Reckless, you won't know what that total is. You'll know exactly the total to beat in a Restrained action, have an idea of the total on a Risky action, and have no clue on a Reckless action, and so the only surefire way of beating it is to aim for a 21 or a five card trick . You may then keep drawing more cards until: • • • •

You have a maximum hand of five cards; or You choose to accept your current hand total; or The total value of your hand is exactly 21; or The total value of your hand is more than 21.

Once you stop drawing cards for any of these reasons, the GM will reveal their hand. If your hand total is exactly 21 or you have a five card trick (a hand of five cards without going over 21), you succeed without a cost. Otherwise if your hand is equal to or higher than the GM's hand, you succeed but with a fictional complication, cost or choice that the GM will define. If your hand total is higher than 21 or lower than the GM's hand, you fail, and things get worse. The GM will tell you how, and take an additional opposition token. After the draw has been made, the GM will outline how things have changed for better or worse in the fiction because of the draw. Whatever the result, the fiction always changes after a draw. If there are more opposition tokens to be overcome, you may make another Guile draw, or resort to Violence. Any necessary Shadow tokens will need to be spent for each Guile draw you attempt until all opposition tokens are gone - if guards are already suspicious, the more time you spend trying to overcome opposition, the more likely they are to discover your trickery. If you run out of Shadow tokens during overcoming opposition without open violence and have one or more Flame tokens, they're onto you and you have no choice but to resort to Violence. All opposition should have the capacity to be overcome via either Guile, or Violence, so GMs should bear that in mind when describing it. If your way forward is blocked by a Night Rain powered wall of fire, bypassing the wall via Guile should be an option, perhaps by sabotaging the machine, but so should using violence; perhaps killing the watchman who operates it, then disabling it. If you start trying to sabotage the machine but run out of Shadow tokens before all of the opposition tokens have been tackled, perhaps guards catch you in the act and you have to suddenly and unexpectedly fight your way out.

Example guile actions • •

• •

Restrained Picking a locked door without anyone around to spot you. Pick pocketing a drunken guard.

guarded gala by pretending to be a guest who has lost their ticket.

• •

Risky A daring rooftop chase as you run from guards that have spotted you. Talking your way into a heavily

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Reckless Cracking a world class safe with guards bashing at the door outside. Choking out one guard while his comrade's back is turned.

Violence When you attempt to overcome opposition through open violence, the GM deals cards from the Night deck equal to the opposition in the scene as their hand. The amount of cards in their hand should be visible to the players, but not the values of the cards themselves. The amount of cards in the GM's hand does not have to be equal to the number of NPC combatants in the scene - a mob of unskilled and easily dispersed rioters could be represented by a single card, or a skilled assassin could be represented by five cards. Red cards (hearts and diamonds) represent offensive actions, such as slashing at an opponent or trying to wrestle them to the ground; black cards (clubs and spades) represent defensive actions, such as taking cover or parrying a blow. The higher the value of the card, the better. As there is no concept of "busting" in Violence draws, Aces are always worth 11. Each player involved in the fight chooses which of their characters Violence talents they'll be using in the fight, and draws a hand equal to their total rating in that talent - don't worry if the talent has been marked or not during this Incursion, only the total amount of dots your character has in that talent. The fiction affects which Violence talents a player can choose and how effective they are. If using a Talent is impossible, you may not use it; for example, a player couldn't use their Sword talent if their character had lost their sword as a result of a failed Guile draw in the previous scene. Sometimes, the GM may rule that a Talent is more or less effective depending on the fictional circumstances. If using a certain talent would be disadvantageous in the situation, draw one fewer cards than your Talent total. Trying to use a rifle against an opponent who's right next to you with a dagger aimed at your ribs, for example. You may mark a Talent or piece of equipment to ignore this and draw your normal amount of cards. The Talent you choose may also be particularly advantageous in a situation, or your enemy may be at a disadvantage, in which case you may mark that Talent or a useful piece of equipment to draw an extra card in addition to your Talent score. For example, if you're in a sniper's nest with a rifle, you could have advantage, or if you're fighting a cadre of sword wielding guards with a dagger in a tight corridor where they can't swing their swords properly. If both parties would have advantage or disadvantage, neither does and you draw the normal amount of cards. The GM chooses a character present in the fiction to act against, and chooses and plays one of their cards face down. They describe the action of the NPC or NPCs represented by the card. The card is a guide to their description - black cards represent defensive actions, red cards represent offensive actions, and the value of the card represents the quality of the action, with higher values cards being representative of confident, skilled actions and lower cards representing cautious or clumsy actions. For example, a two of clubs could be described as a guard cautiously backing a way and stumbling slighting as they do, whereas a 10 of hearts could represent a squad of guards all surrounding an agent and preparing to strike. It is important that the GM presents these actions clearly and honestly as they provide the basis on which the players will choose their cards. No action is certain until the cards have been revealed, so these actions should be phrased as an attempt, rather than a conclusion, for example "the guard slashes forward at you" rather than "the guard stabs you".

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The character being acted against must then play a card from their hand, unless they have no cards left to play. They describe their action in terms of the colour and value of the card as the GM does, above. If you don't wish to play a card from your hand, you can instead draw a card from the Sisters' Deck, using the Devilry rules on page 18. Once both the GM and the player have revealed their cards, compare them. If both cards are red, both blows land. The player and GM should cooperatively describe this in the fiction - this is the "the guard stabs you" part. The player marks Body and takes a condition, and the GM discards one of the unplayed cards from their hand. If both cards are black, the GM should describe the player's character and their NPCs pacing around each other cautiously or something similar. The GM draws another card to their hand and the player may choose to either draw an extra card for their hand or take a Shadow token. If the player's card is red and the GM's is black, compare the card values. If the player's score is higher, they describe their blow landing and the GM discards one of their unplayed cards. If the GM's card is higher, the GM describes their NPC(s) avoiding the character's attacks and draws another card. If the GM's card is red and the player's card is black, compare the card values. If the GM's card is higher, the GM describes their blow landing, and the player marks Body and takes a condition. If the player's card is higher, they describe their character avoiding or parrying the NPC's attacks and can choose between drawing another card or taking a Shadow token. Once cards are resolved, the player and the GM discard the cards they've played, the player to the Royal discard pile or the bottom of the Sisters' deck as appropriate, and the GM to the bottom of the Night deck. Once the first player's turn has been resolved, if the GM still has cards left, they must target another player's character and resolve as above. If the GM runs out of cards in their hand, the opposition has been overcome and the fight is over. The players may make another Stealth draw. If a player runs out of cards before the GM, they are knocked out of the fight - the GM will describe how in the fiction. If once all players have been targeted the GM still has cards in their hand, the players take a Flame token, as the fight is going on too long and could attract attention. Loop through the violence rounds again until either the GM or all the players run out of cards. If all the players run out of cards before the GM, they must flee, as described below.

Fleeing If the fight turns against you, or you otherwise wish to discontinue the fight, you can try to flee. To flee, you may spend 1 Shadow token or each mark Body, take a condition and gain 1 Flame token to attempt to overcome any remaining opposition with Guile, as detailed on page 13, with any remaining cards in the GM's hand converted to opposition tokens.

h the ing, throug ow l b is d in on will d, the w Freedom so , g oh the win in ow l b wind is e shadows graves the me from th co l l e' w come, then

Leonard Cohen, The

Partisan

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Devilry In addition to being skilled infiltrators and ferocious fighters, the agents of the Red Right Hand are also devious sorcerers. At any point when you are making a draw, for Stealth, Guile or Violence, you may choose to take a card from the Sisters' deck instead of the Royal deck. All cards from the Sisters' deck are worth 10, so this has obvious advantages, but it is not without significant risk. To draw from the Sisters' deck: • • • •

Mark one of your Devilry talents. If all of your Devilry talents have already been marked, you may Sell Your Soul instead, as described below. Choose a prayer to use that you have access to and that falls under the talent marked. Work that prayer into the description of your action. Draw a card from the Sisters' deck.

Drawing a card from the Sisters' deck will guarantee you a 10, but prayers are not prayers to the Sisters, they are prayers that the Sisters do not notice you as you leach a little part of their divinity for your base needs. Each category of prayer (e.g. Prayers of Absence, Prayers of Pestilence), falls under the guardianship of one of the Sisters, who is in turn represented by a pair of cards in the Sisters deck - for example, Prayers of Tempests are the domain of Dyngeas, who is represented by red Jacks, i.e. the Jack of Diamonds and the Jack of Hearts. If you cast a prayer and draw a card not associated with that prayer, you've got lucky, this time. You get the 10 for your hand and any associated fictional benefits - so if you cast Murder Form, you burst into a murder of crows and can do anything that such a flock could attain. However, if you draw the card associated with that prayer, the Sister in question has noticed you, and such a thing is never good. For example, if you were casting Raise Shipwreck and you draw a Jack of Diamonds or Hearts, you still get the 10 and any fictional details associated with it, but you will also be marked by Dyngeas. Mark your Soul score, and take a Soul condition (see Conditions and Tracks, page 21) associated in some way with the Sister. If your Soul score ever reaches 5, the Sisters claim you. What this means differs from person to person, depending on the Sisters that they have enraged. Some are found dead, drowned despite being bone dry, or having crumbled to a desiccated corpse. Others become daemon servants of the Sisters, and still others are simply gone from their homes one night and never heard from again. What they have in common is this: you may no longer play that character and will have to create a new one.

Selling Your Soul If you want to cast a prayer to which you don't have access, or you've already marked all your Devilry talents for this Incursion, you can still potentially cast one at an even greater cost. Choose the prayer you want to use, as above. Before you can use it, however, the GM will narrate a vision where time stops and you meet the Sister whose prayer you're using. The Sister will ask a promise from you. It will not be something you will like. If you accept their bargain, you leave the vision, mark Soul, and draw as above. If you don't accept the bargain, you will earn the wrath of the Sister; for beings of unlimited time, they take poorly to having it wasted. Return from the vision to the present action and mark Soul, but do not draw and stop drawing immediately, standing at whatever your current hand is. The Sisters are not patient. For each Incursion you undertake that does not directly work towards your promise, mark Soul at the beginning of the Incursion.

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Devilry Examples Using Devilry during a Stealth Draw The group needs to infiltrate a port without being seen by any of the dock workers who could rat them out later. Karel prays that Dyngeas' eye passes them by as they summon a deep fog to cloak them and their comrades. Zima has reached her target, the corrupt Captain of the Guard who recalled his forces from guard duty of House Wilderose, allowing their slaughter by the Noble Houses; however, it's at a ball and he's surrounded by more or less innocent bystanders and a cadre of Bodyguards. Nearing the climax of the session, Zima calls on Steal Light to extinguish all the lanterns in the room, plunging it into darkness, and Dark Vision to easily make her way through the panicked crowd to the Captain, and slit his throat before leaping out the window. A double prayer like is extremely Risky and Zima stands a good chance of being caught by one of the two sisters whose divinity she leached to perform the sorcery, Using Devilry during a Guile draw Volk is dashing across the slate rooves of Laefendport, pursued by three assassins hired by the aggrieved Noble Houses. He reaches a gap between the houses too large from him to jump without risking death. Instead he prayers that Steorfen will not notice him as he takes Murder Form and bursts into a flock of crows that easily fly across the gap before coalescing on the other side, leaving his assailants behind. Koshka is trying to make her way through a locked door, and the city guard are close on her tail. She lays her hand on the door and prays that Eora doesn't notice as the wood rots at an unnatural speed. The door bursts open, crawling with worms and lice. Using Devilry during a Violence Draw Vishnyak is fighting a master swordsman, and he is outmatched. He prays that he will be overlooked by Anadena as he casts Unfortunate Event, and an ornate brass and crystal chandelier directly above the swordsman mysteriously drops from the ceiling, crushing them to death. Luce is fighting through an entire gang of rowdy gang members, and they are hopelessly outnumbered. They Summon Winds, smashing the gang against walls and blasting them into the filth-ridden canals. They can only hope that Dyngeas forgives them; she will not.

nnibals, dine with ca a n on g e 'r 're gonna if you darling, you er t a l or sooner get eaten. Hymn

ad Seeds, Cannibal

Nick Cave and the B

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Equipment & Talents When generating a character (page 8), you will have 15 points of talents and up to five pieces of equipment. Equipment is just single line descriptions of a piece of equipment that can be of use to your character during an Incursion. Equipment and talents do two things: they give narrative permission, and they can be marked to grant a bonus during a draw.

Narrative Permission Narrative permission means that you can describe your character doing something in the fiction that you would not be able to do without that piece of equipment or talent. Sometimes this will influence your description of a Stealth or Guile action, or sometimes it may influence whether or not you can use a Talent. For example, if one of your pieces of equipment is a Rain Powered Grapnel that uses an explosive charge of Night Rain to shoot a grappling hook to great heights, you could describe your character scaling a shear wall where a character without one could not. Similarly, you can't use the Sword talent when making a Violence draw unless you have a sword to fight with.

Marking Equipment and Talents Equipment and talents can also be marked to grant a bonus in Stealth, Guile or Violence draws, as noted on pages 10, 13, and 15. Each piece of equipment and talent has a space next to its definition on your character sheet with three bubbles; each time you mark one, work the talent or piece of equipment into your description and fill in one of the bubbles. You then get to discard one of your current cards for Stealth and Guile draws, and draw an additional card in the case of Violence draws. When using equipment, you and the GM should ensure that it makes sense in the narrative you're telling, and the GM is allowed to veto its use if they think it doesn't fit. For example, if you have a pair of spring-loaded boots, marking them when overcoming opposition by leaping onto a roof out of sight of the guards looking for you would be allowable; using the same equipment when attempting to pick a lock would probably not be without some very creative narration on your part! You may only mark one piece of equipment or talent per draw, and only once per draw, though you may mark both a single piece of equipment and a single talent in the same draw, as long as both make narrative sense. Once your piece of equipment or talent has been marked three times during the current Incursion, you may not mark it again, though you can still use it to grant narrative permission. Equipment resets at the start of each Incursion, so you always start with all your equipment unmarked.

Suspicion The more equipment you bring on an Incursion, the more suspicious and easily spotted you are. Hiding in plain sight is a lot harder when you’ve got a heavy crossbow strapped to your back and an alchemical rebreather covering your face. Your current equipment is all the equipment that your character has access to and can use, but you are not obligated to take all of it with you on every Incursion. At the beginning of each Incursion, note which of your equipment is in play. Transformed Soul Conditions are always in play, as noted on page 24. You may take up to five pieces of equipment with you on any given Incursion, including transformed Soul Conditions.

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Each piece of equipment brought adds one to your character's Suspicion rating. As noted on page 9, Suspicion can be "bought off " using Shadow tokens at the end of the Incursion. While not all Suspicion tokens have to be bought off before buying off Flame tokens, you must decide how many of your Suspicion tokens you're buying off before buying off Flame tokens. If you can't buy off all of your Suspicion because you don't have enough Shadow tokens or you don't wish to, consult the chart below. Each player with Suspicion tokens left over must consult the chart separately.

Tokens

Effect

1

One of your pieces of equipment has become too easily identifiable. Choose one and remove it from your character sheet. If you have no equipment left, or only have transformed Soul Conditions, raise the City’s Chaos rating by 1 instead.

2

You’re becoming too recognisable, and the authorities are closing in, making you a danger to yourself and the conspiracy. You may either go on the run, in which case your character is no longer playable, or attempt to frame someone else for your crimes. If you attempt to frame someone, the GM will create an Incursion where this is the goal. If you succeed in the Incursion, you’re out of the deep end for now, but if you fail, you are captured as below.

3 or more

You become a public and identifiable enemy of the Houses. Raise the city’s Chaos rating by 1. You may undertake one more mission, after which you will be captured and either executed by the Houses, or die fighting your way out. If you choose to die fighting, raise the city’s Chaos rating by 1.

Conditions & Tracks All main characters in Night Reign have two tracks that measure the health of their mortal Body and their immortal Soul. Each is a five dot track on your character sheet. The City itself also has two tracks, Conspiracy, which measures how close the Red Hand Conspiracy is to achieving their ultimate goal and overthrowing the Noble Houses, and Chaos, which measures how far the characters' violent actions have pushed the city into turmoil. The Chaos and Conspiracy track both run up to ten, though if you want a shorter campaign, you can pre fill in as many of these as you like, but you don't get Conspiracy Conditions for these free bubbles. At certain times, you will be instructed to mark one of these tracks. This means you fill in one of the dots on your character sheet. Each time you mark one of the tracks, you also take a Condition. A Condition is a narrative and mechanical penalty that may make certain situations harder or impossible for you, or may change the Risk Rating of Guile actions. Conditions are decided by the GM, though they may take player input on ideas for Conditions. Body, Soul and Chaos Conditions must be two things: in keeping with the narrative, and bad news for the characters. Conspiracy Conditions are always positive, and can be marked by players during an Incursion in the same way as equipment or talents (see the previous page).

Character Conditions If your character's Body or Soul tracks ever fill up, your character cannot be played anymore - they can continue to be played to the end of the Incursion, but will die of their injuries if the Body track fills, or be claimed by the Sisters (page 25) if their Soul track fills.

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Body Conditions Body Conditions are physical injuries and strains. They are all natural, if unfortunate, in nature. Body Conditions may be inflicted as the result of failed Violence and Guile draws. For example, if a character is drawing Guile to outrun assassins over the rooftops of Laefendport, a failed Reckless draw as she leaps a gap between two houses could result in her marking Body and gaining the condition Two Broken Legs. A more minor failure should have a less severe penalty - breaking through a glass window and cutting your arm could result in Gashed Arm. A Gashed Arm is going to be painful, and could make lifting things or fighting more difficult at the GMs discretion, for example raising the Risk Rating of barring a door from Restrained to Risky; two broken legs would make anything involving walking impossible in the fiction, so you'd no longer be able to describe your character doing so for this Incursion. Soul Conditions Soul Conditions can only be inflicted as the result of a Devilry draw. They are explicitly supernatural in origin and appearance, and they are not beneficial, unless they have been transformed through Penance (see page 24). Each Soul condition gained will reflect the Sister that inflicted it upon you. For example, if you are casting a prayer of Tempests when you receive a condition, you may permanently take on the appearance of a bloated, palid corpse, or be constantly dripping seawater, or gain hideous vestigial gills. If you were casting prayers of Pestilence, you may constantly smell of putrid meat, or have an infestation of roaches constantly moving across your Body that you are unable to rid yourself of.

City Conditions City Conditions describe the effect that your actions have had on the city of Laefendport, for good or ill. The GM should work these Conditions into the descriptions even when they have no mechanical effect - if you've gained the Chaos condition "Constant Rioting", then the areas you infiltrate might be filled with broken windows, burning buildings, and the distant sound of clashes between the proletariat and the City Guard. The two city tracks are crucial to track, as they control when the campaign will end. If your Chaos track ever reaches 10, the Laefendport is destroyed by whichever Chaos condition currently has the most marks. The GM should frame a scene in which the characters and the city itself perish due to that condition. For example, if the highest marked condition is Plague, the city might be overrun by the pandemic, and then Set ablaze by worried outside parties trying to keep the contagion from spreading. Whatever happens, the campaign is at an end. On the flip side, if the Conspiracy track fills, the Red Right Hand has triumphed! The GM should frame some scenes that show their triumph and between them and the players come up with the future of Laefendport in this new world. However, don't forget about the Chaos track. The higher the track, the darker the outcome should be - the Red Hand's triumph needs only involve the toppling of the noble houses, everything else could still be going to shit. The Chaos track also has an effect during Incursions. The higher the Chaos track, the more aware and prepared the opposition you'll encounter during oppositions will be. The initial value of any Shadow tokens spent to overcome opposition without open Violence always starts at your current Chaos track, even if you currently have fewer Flame tokens than that.

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• • •

• •

Example Chaos Conditions Rat-borne zombie plague - There've been a lot more bodies rotting in gutters since the Red Hand began their secret war. Bodies attract rats, and rain-maddened rats carry terrible diseases that can pass their hunger and rage onto humans with a single bite. Constant rioting - The sense of unease in the city created by the war between the Nobles and the Red Right Hand has spilled out into the streets. Burned out buildings and angry mobs found on every corner as the City Guard clash with the proletariat. Terrible storms - A raid on a secret cult of Dyngeas has angered Our Lady of the Tempest, and the already horrible weather in Laefendport has somehow taken a turn for the worse, with constant night rain storms and flooding. Example conspiracy Conditions Public support - The people of Laefendport talk, and they talk of revolution. An agent of the Red Hand may find themselves with a place to hide in the secret smuggling rooms of a friendly docker, or find munitions hidden for them at a convenient location. Legitimate heir - You locate one of the remaining few remaining Wilderoses and find that political missions are easier once you can provide an alternative.

Activating Conditions Each condition has a number, and the same amount of bubbles, its activation track. Activation tracks do not reset after each Incursion, and must be bought off with Shadow tokens (page 9). The first Body condition activates on a 2, the second on a 3, the third on a 4, the fourth on a 5. The first Shadow condition activates on a 6, the second on a 7, the third on 8 and the fourth on 9. Chaos Conditions of the same activation number can be activated instead of a Body or Soul condition, and the 9th Chaos condition activates on a 10. When you draw and play a card which is equal to the activation value of one of your Conditions, mark that condition or the equivalent Chaos condition on the city sheet. If the condition's activation track fills, your condition activates, and the draw you're currently making fails as if you had a hand total of over 21. The GM will narrate how your condition causes trouble for you. Any marks on the activation track that you don't buy off at the end of Incursion stay with you through to the next Incursion. You may only remove Conditions that are unmarked, i.e. those that have had any marks that were triggered in an Incursion bought off first.

Removing Conditions Negative unmarked Conditions (i.e. Body, Soul or Chaos Conditions) may be removed between Incursions as highlighted below. If any of your Conditions have been marked during an Incursion, you must buy them off at a cost of 1 Shadow token per mark before removing them. Healing Unmarked Body Conditions can be removed in between Incursions at the cost of one Shadow token each - this represents you laying low while waiting for your injuries to heal. For each Shadow token spent to remove a condition, also reduce your Body track by one.

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Penance Once your Soul has reached 3, the Sisters truly have their claws deep into your Soul. You may begin penance at this point, which will transform Soul Conditions and reduce your Soul track. To do this, you must take an action during an Incursion that is contrary to the goal of the Incursion, but pleasing to the Sister who cursed you with the condition. Each Sister has a list of pleasing actions (page 32), and you and the GM are free to agree more within the theme. Once you do that, reduce your Soul track by one, and rewrite your Condition so that it becomes useful. For example, Hideous Vestigial Gills could become Hideous But Functional Gills, allowing your character to breath underwater. Once a Soul condition has been transformed in this way, it counts as a piece of equipment and can grant narrative permission and be marked as such (page 20). However, as they can't ever be fully erased, they are now equipment that you must take into every mission, and come with the accompanying Suspicion score (page 20). Erase the previous condition from your Soul Conditions list, and write it as a piece of equipment instead. Fill in the "in use" box on this equipment in pen, as it shall haunt you forever more. City Conditions Conspiracy Conditions cannot be removed, but they're beneficial to the players, so there's no reason for them to remove them anyway. Chaos Conditions, and your Chaos track, can only be removed if you undertake an Incursion specifically to combat or remove that condition. If you do so, you receive no Conspiracy mark or condition for that Incursion, but if you're successful you can remove the relevant condition and reduce your Chaos track by one. Be warned - it is a lot easier to throw the city into Chaos than it is to get it out of it.

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Phases of Play Night Reign has two phases of play, the City Phase, and the Incursion Phase. Each feeds into each other, in a constant loop.

The City Phase The City Phase begins every session of Night Reign. It's a largely free roleplay phase where the players and the GM imagine the characters' lives during the brief respite periods between their covert missions and deal with the consequences of their previous actions. You may frame scenes around any of the actions below during the city phase - though some will only come into play after the characters have been on their first mission, and are marked as such. Sections of the City Phase marked with an asterisk happen only after the first mission is complete. Buying off Conditions* During the City Phase, the players may use tokens to buy off any marks or Conditions that they gained during previous. See the rules on pages 23 and 24 for healing and removing Conditions. You should roleplay out these scenes at least briefly. For example, if someone received a Nasty Gash on the Back condition, play a scene where they have to endure surgery from a back-alley doctor who must be paid in bootleg liquor. Dealing with character departure* Not every mission is going to go your way, and sometimes characters will die, become too recognisable to stay in the city, or have their very Soul stolen from them by the terrible forces that haunt Laefendport. To prevent the awkwardness of one player having to sit half a session because their character died, all characters whose Body or Soul tracks (page 21) fill during an Incursion play to the end of that Incursion, and handle scenes where their character departs during the City Phase in free roleplay. Showing how your actions changed the city* For each Conspiracy or Chaos condition that you gained during the prior Incursion, the City gets a condition, as outlined on the previous page. In short, Conspiracy Conditions reflect a positive change in the city, and Chaos Conditions reflect a negative change. The GM should frame some scenes to highlight all new Conditions. Freeplay You can also use the City Phase for any other free roleplaying scenes that you and the GM want to address, though you can't make any draws during these scenes. The city phase can last as long as the players and the GM wish, with players and the GM framing scenes between them in free roleplay in the wretched city of Laefendport. Getting your next mission The players must decide in character what their next mission will be - the GM can present an opportunity for a mission from an NPC, or the players can decide on their own course of action - though they should check that they have a GM who's willing to improvise to this level before doing so! As soon as the group receives their next mission, the City Phase ends and the Incursion phase begins.

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The Incursion Phase The Incursion Phase is where most of the play of Night Reign happens, and hence where most of the rules kick in. This section describes how an Incursion works, but to truly understand them, it will be helpful to read this alongside the sample Incursion To Bring You My Love on page 42. Incursions have a Mission Objective. If the players meet this objective, the Incursion finishes and they mark the Conspiracy track on the city sheet and take a Conspiracy condition unlike most Conditions (see page 21), Conspiracy Conditions are positive and beneficial to the players. The Incursion is made up of a number of Sets that must be completed before the Mission Objective can be achieved. Each Set has its own separate Goal. Players can achieve these Goals by gathering and spending Shadow tokens - see the rules for Stealth on page 10 and spending tokens on page 9. A Set is a discrete location with a clear goal. A Set could be as granular as the back room of an abandoned tavern with the goal of finding the a secret hidden room where the Red Hands have organised a drop off, or as expansive as a whole section of Laefendport's back streets with the goal of chasing down an assassination target, while avoiding guard patrols. It's important that a single Set - no matter how many rooms or physical spaces exist within it - has a unified appearance and tone. A Set should "feel" a certain way. Moving through it provides a single experience. All Sets have six features: Name, Goal, Environment, Moments, Obstacles, and Enemies. A Set towards the end of the Incursion (either the final Set, or the penultimate Set if you also have to escape etc) must have the Mission Objective as its Goal. Everything except the goal in a Set is a guide to improvisation rather than an exclusive list. Name is just a simple label you use to impart flavour and organise the Incursion. It could be something like "the abandoned inn" or "twisting back streets" Goal is the reason the agents are in the Set. This could be to "find the hidden door" or "track down your target". When the agents first enter the Set, pose the problem they're meant to solve ("The last meeting of the murdered Red Hand cell happened in a secret room hidden somewhere in this inn. Find it." or "Your target overturns a market stall to block your way and dashes off into the back alleys. Can you find him before he reaches safety?"). The players can spend 3 Shadow tokens collected via Stealth draws to immediately achieve the Goal of the current Set. Sometimes, the Set goal will change depending on the actions the players take. For example, in the example Incursion To Bring You My Love on page 42, the second Set's goal can be either "locate Logan de Foreyda", or if the players have already been spotted and Logan has fled to his sanctuary, "find the secret entrance to the Highest Spire". Either way, the players only have to pay once to achieve the goal of the Set, even if it changes. The Environment describes the physical elements the characters can interact with: things they can touch, hide behind, use as improvised weapons, cast prayers on, set on fire, find hidden things in, be pinned against, and so forth. They're slippery rooves, decrepit bridges over canals, chandeliers inside ostentatious mansions. In a Set that comprises a larger physical area, they can be whole other locations, such as the Last Drop Inn on page 43. They're the toys of the Set for the players to play with, and for you to use against their agents when a draw calls for it. When the characters first encounter an Environment element, describe it with 3 - 4 details (or ask the players to help you describe it). A Set can have as many Environment elements as needed. Moments are descriptive encounters or sensory details; used by the GM to establish some atmosphere in the Set.

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When a player encounters opposition as part of a Stealth draw, they should encounter both Obstacles and Enemies, as there should always be a way to bypass the opposition through either Guile or Violence (with a sprinkling of Devilry in either case). Obstacles are non-living things that bar a character from entering further into the Set or stops them from achieving their Goal. They could be supposedly impenetrable safes, environmental hazards or traps, like a room that locks and fills with toxic gas, or a night rain fuelled wall of fire. Enemies are people or creatures that can be bypassed through Guile or Violence. They don't all have to be strictly living, or strictly sentient, but they must be able to move, and to harm the players in a fight. Enemies can include Bodyguards, the City Watch, a crowd of rioters, clockwork soldiers, rain-maddened feral dogs or clockwork assassins, and anything else you can think of that it's keeping with the tone of Night Reign. Obstacles can only be overcome through Guile, while Enemies can be overcome by either Violence or Guile, depending on your tact. The more Sets you have, the longer an Incursion will take to complete. You can expect to be able to play through 3 - 5 Sets in a 2-hour session, depending on your pace and the number of players. The Incursion Core Loop Every game has a core loop, a repeated Set of actions that you undertake until the game ends. The core loop during the Incursion phase is as follows: • • • • •

The GM tells you the goal of the current Set. You describe how your character is infiltrating the environment and make a Stealth draw. The Stealth draw will result in changes to your Shadow token pool, either up or down. There may be opposition as the result of the Stealth draw. If so, you must overcome it with either Guile or Violence. Once all opposition is overcome, you may spend 3 Shadow tokens to attain the goal of the current Set, or make another Stealth draw to gain more Shadow tokens.

The Sands of Time Eora, Our Lady of the Clocks, watches over us all and knows that soon we shall all be as the grains of sand in her many burdensome hour-glasses; if we perish in fire, of course. Your character will more likely be thrown into a blackened canal or be left in the gutter, a rancid meal for the feral and rain-maddened dogs that plague Laefendport's streets. All Incursions in Night Reign are subject to a time limit. If the Royal Deck is ever exhausted - and this can happen surprisingly fast if you are careless - you have taken too long in your mission and fail at your goal. The GM will determine what effect this has on the narrative, and rest assured, it shall not be a pleasant one. To avoid running out of time, you have two options. You can be cautious and draw fewer cards, but what roof-running, demon summoning, bursting into a murder of crows at the first sign of trouble member of the Red Right Hand was ever cautious? Far more exciting is the other option - if you ever reach a perfect hand (a hand total of 21 or a 5 card hand without going over 21) when drawing for a Stealth action, you may return all discarded Royal cards to the bottom of the Royal deck, resetting the clock and buying you more time. A particularly gifted agent may even be able to recall the order in which the cards were drawn previously, offering them an advantage that few can attain. Of course, aiming for a perfect hand puts you ever close to discovery and ruin - but you are not a coward, surely?

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muscular type to scare away the hoi-polloi who get within smelling distance, and to cut them if they are disinclined to leave.

Cover Identities Actor Bonus Talent: Disguise Network: Theatre owners, fans, other actors The theatre is a common form of entertainment in Laefendport, from bawdy music hall to the most prestigious opera. Actors can ply their trade in any number and range of establishments, sometimes on the same night. Work is work.

Alchemist Bonus Talent: Poison Network: Patients, quacks, suppliers of noxious chemicals. Medicine in Laefendport is a precarious and experimental business, a field of bloodletters, sawbones and leech farmers, and if you're lucky, alchemists. The Night Rain has brought their field forwards in leaps and bounds and imbibing potions has a somewhat lesser chance of fatality than previously.

Death Cultist Bonus Talent: Any one Devilry Talent from the Brostnest Sisters Network: Other cultists, unwilling mediums who speak the truths of the Brostnests. In a world as without hope as we are presented with, it is little wonder than some meet in private to worship the concept of death itself, as presented and embodied by the Brostnest sisters. Some pray for death to pass them by, others for a sweet release, and still others for its cold hand to fall on those that they hate so very, very much.

Enforcer

Gang Member Bonus Talent: Intimidate Network: The other members of your gang, those who rely on your "protection". If you were to ask the average citizen of Laefendport who ruled the city, they would of course answer "the Noble houses", and then a brick would be thrown through their window, and they would admit, quietly, that perhaps the gangs also have some sway.

Gentlefolk Thief Bonus Talent: Security Network: Fences, criminals, and the best and brightest of polite society There are muggers, there are bandits, there are cutpurses and robbers, and then there is you. You, who attends parties with the very people you steal from, climbing up ivy trellises to lift priceless works of art. You're not just an art thief: your thievery is itself art.

Guard Bonus Talent: Any ranged Violent talent Network: Other guards, and those likely to pay guards to look the other way on occasions. The Noble Houses have always had enemies, even more so since the coup and the rise of the Red Hand, so they've upped the amount of guards that surround them at all times. Wouldn't it be terrible if those very ranks were infiltrated by those who wished them harm. Simply awful.

Noble

Bonus Talent: Conceal Network: Your master, those they wish to keep close, those they wish kept far away. Money gets you a lot of things in Laefendport, and one of those things is a dangerous and

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Bonus Talent: Confidence Network: Dissident and loyal but foolish nobles. Hiding in the plainest of sight is sometimes an option. You've taken the role, either by

birth or by assassination and replacement, of one of the very Nobles that you're fighting against. It's difficult to be around those you loathe so, but the foie gras and aged port make up for it a little.

Politician Bonus Talent: Lie Network: Other members of parliament, your constituents, and lobbyists. By and large, the Noble Houses do not wish to bother themselves with the day to day running of their petty empires, and instead rely on their cadre of politicians to do so, a combination of hereditary peers and personally selected toadies; democracy has no place in Laefendport's politics.

Prostitute, Pimp or Madame Bonus Talent: Charm Network: Other prostitutes, pimps and madams, but also many clients of significance. Many ply their trade in the world's oldest profession on the streets and in the brothels of Laefendport. Compiling blackmail material on their clients has long been a profitable sideline for Laefendport's prostitutes, and those who are secretly members of the Red Right Hand have elevated it to an art form, with whole dossiers on people of significance.

Pugilist Bonus Talent: Any melee based Violent talent Network: Bookies, fans, and other pugilists. Those looking for more visceral thrills than the music halls can usually find a sawdust covered basement where cheering crowds surround pugilists beating seven shades of shit out of each other. It's not the most glamorous of cover identities, but it does afford members of the Red Right Hand to get in plenty of practice at inflicting violence, while making a little money on the side.

Rabble Rouser Bonus Talent: Distract Network: The belligerent working classes The Red Right Hand aren't the only ones fighting against the Noble Houses. Union organisers, agitators and anarchists all have a bloody finger in that pie too. The Noble Houses underestimate the proletariat, and they underestimate you.

Ranger Bonus Talent: Stalk Network: Other rangers, those poor Souls who live beyond Laefendport's walls. The Night Rain warps and corrupts animal life. Animals caught in the rain are driven mad and vicious by its touch, and their warped physical appearance reflects this. The rangers hunt and kill tainted animals in Laefendport itself and in the twisted forests that surround it, keeping the citizens safe from everything except each other.

Smuggler Bonus Talent: Hide Network: Clients, dealers in illicit goods, dockworkers, other smugglers Many things, from drugs to forbidden texts, are prohibited on the streets on Laefendport; though of course this applies only to the common people. The Noble Houses have always been able to get their hands on whatever they want. Smugglers do their part to retip that balance.

Street Magician Bonus Talent: Any one Devilry Talent from the Ryne Sisters Network: Other street entertainers, beggars and dealers in magical items. The thoroughfares of Laefendport are filled with street traders, panhandlers, entertainers and street magicians; mostly magicians ply sleight of hand and deceptions, but the odd (in every sense of the word) few can perform some true magics.

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Thiefmaker Bonus Talent: Steal Network: A constantly changing gang of around 20 criminal wards, plus the gang leaders of several adult gangs throughout the city. Thiefmakers are generally older, working class burglars and thieves who have retired from an active life of crime due to age or injury. Instead, they adopt orphans and train them in the art of relieving others from their property (taking a significant share themselves, of course) before selling them onto the city's adult gangs when they come of age.

Talents

m e or at st som co ng nd ck ri ha bla nd e th ll, y ha ga ta ust ht and a d ig H a on mes n a d r ight i e o R c n, a r ed R ma th , e v wi Ca

ck

Ni

Violence

Stealth Conceal - Keeping an item hidden, either in situ or on your person and removing evidence from a scene. Hide - Remaining unseen while still. Poison - Murder and incapacitation with poisons both prepared and improvised. Security - Working with alarm systems and picking locks. Stalk - Moving without being seen or heard, and up-close assassination. Steal - Pick pocketing and lifting without being caught.

Guile Charm - convincing people to do what you want through charisma and looks. Confidence - acting like you belong. Disguise - combination of dress and acting. Distract - providing a convincing distraction for a fellow Hand, and getting away with it. Intimidate - convincing people to do what you want through threat of force or blackmail. Lie - convincing people to do what you want through bluffing, blathering and artful obfuscation.

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Each of these Talents represents an exceptional ability at committing a certain form of open violence. Archery Brawling Dagger Pistol Rifle Sword

Devilry Each of these Talents represents a dedicated study of a particular Set of sorcerous abilities. Prayers of Absence Prayers of Clocks Prayers of Pestilence Prayers of Repose Prayers of Tempests Prayers of Unrest

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The Book of the Sisters The Brostnest Sisters The Brostnest Sisters came before all things. They concern themselves with death, time and the inevitable end of everything. They are plotters and schemers, immeasurably patient, for they alone know how long they have to achieve all they should want.

Peostrea, Our Lady of Absence Peostrea is not portrayed at all; those who wish to attempt to capture her likeness in fresco mark her as negative space in an otherwise crowded scene. She is the youngest of the three Brostnest sisters, and has domain over the lost and the lonely. Examples of pleasing actions • • •

Stealing meaningless objects for fun. Kidnapping and disappearing people. Destroying art. Examples of Soul Conditions

• • •

Your face becomes entirely blank. You have no eyes, mouth or ears, but can still see, breath and hear. Your voice becomes silent, but everyone can remember when you talk and what you said. You leach thoughts from everyone around you. They appear as wisps of grey smoke travelling from the mouths of people who speak to you. They forget information that would be helpful to you.

Steorfen, Our Lady of Pestilence Steorfen, the mother of swarms, is usually portrayed as a heavily pregnant woman, her belly distended and bulging in odd, inhuman shapes, a raven on one shoulder and a rat in her hands. She holds domain over swarms, illness and putrescence. Examples of pleasing actions • • •

The desecration of the dead. Leading locations to squalor. Spreading illness.

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Examples of Soul Conditions • • •

Your flesh is in a constant yet stagnant state of decay Your skin crawls with an infested with swarms of insects Your skin becomes a brittle chitin

Eora, Our Lady of the Clocks Eora is portrayed as an impossibly old, malnourished hag dragging a heavy cloak of chains behind her, and clutching an oversized hourglass. She holds domain over time, and the inevitability of death for all things. Examples of pleasing actions • • •

Needless murder. Imprisonment of the innocent. Wasting an opportunity. Examples of Soul Conditions

• • •

Constant and cyclical aging Time shifts around you in inconvenient ways Plants and small animals die inexplicably in your presence presenc

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The Ryne Sisters Dyngeas, Our Lady of the Tempest Dynageas is pictured as a furious young woman, drenched to her skin and bedraped by sea weed; her skin is the pallid blue of a drowned corpse, but she has a lithe beauty you don't often find in bloated river corpses. She holds domain over the weather, in particular storms, shipwrecks and all those Souls lost at sea. Examples of pleasing actions • • •

Drowning your enemies. Wrecking a ship or boat. Flooding a location. Examples of Soul Conditions

• • •

Your skin takes on the appearance of a water-logged corpse You constantly spew forth water when breathing Ugly, vestigial gills

Anadena, Our Lady of Unrest Anadena is portrayed as a middle aged woman wracked by pain and nightmares, clutching at a deck of fortune cards. Her realm is dreams, prophecy and pain. Examples of pleasing actions • • •

Torture. The delivery and enactment of troubling prophecies for your friends. Absolute refusal to sleep, even when exhausted. Examples of Soul Conditions

• • •

Ill timed narcolepsy Babbling prophecies rise from your lips Incomprehensible writings cover your Body

are not mercy, they of s er g for me st si e All th ere waitin w ey h T e, gon on st can’t go departed or t that I ju h g ou h t I when

ers of Mercy

Leonard Cohen, Sist

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Ahilden, Our Lady of Repose Ahilden is always pictured covered by a shroud that clings closely to her pained face and grasping Body. Her domain is dreamless sleep, and the mysteries that may be revealed there. Examples of pleasing actions • • •

Smothering sleepers Restraint where action would benefit you more Obsessing over a mystery Examples of Soul Conditions

• • •

You may only talk in a nonsensical babble Creatures follow you from your dreams to the waking world Your spirit leaves your Body at inopportune moments.

Prayers Content note: Some of the Prayers listed below deal with a loss of agency in non-player characters, and have extremely problematic analogues in real life, including gaslighting (the act of trying to convince someone that their memories are false) and coercion. If you feel comfortable using them in your game, use them only in the context that they intended, e.g. making guards turn on each other or forget that they saw you pass, and if anyone at your table doesn't want them to be used in game, take them out.

Prayers of Absence Prayers of Absence are the domain of Peostrea, represented by a black Jack. Steal Light You temporarily fill an area up to the size of a small room with inky, unnatural blackness, in which nobody (including yourself, should you enter the area) can see; though you can hear, perhaps, things moving within the darkness that were not there before. Steal Sound You temporarily remove all sound from an area the size of a small room. No action within the affected area will make any noise, though you, and only you can hear something perhaps not quite human whispering awful truths. Steal Memory You can pluck a specific memory from an enemy's mind; the memory is destroyed. Lore has it that they are eaten by Peostrea, who grinds them between her crumbling teeth. She does not need to eat, but she enjoys the screeching noise that memories make as they are torn.

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Steal Mind You put your Body Elsewhere, and project your mind into the Body of a side character, controlling their actions for a brief period. After you return to your own Body, you bring some trace of them with you; perhaps a smell, or a scar, or a cherished childhood memory that will haunt you forever. Steal Object You can will an object small enough to hold from any NPC into your possession; it doesn't physically travel, and yet, here it is. If examined closely, the object is not quite an exact duplicate of the original; something unwholesome and worrisome will have wormed into its design. Steal Self You can momentarily step Elsewhere, causing yourself to briefly blink out of existence. You may return Elsewhere, more or less intact except for the look of quiet horror behind your eyes.

Prayers of Pestilence Prayers of Pestilence are the domain of Steorfen, represented by a black Queen. Summon Colony You summon a ravenous horde of rats who will do your bidding for one draw. They're real animals, so they must come from somewhere, but they say that in Laefendport you're never more than six feet from a rat. Perhaps that's a metaphor. Summon Murder You summon a flock of crows, rooks, ravens and other carrion birds to do your bidding. They're real birds, so they must come from somewhere, but it's surprising how common carrion birds are in Laefendport. Summon Swarm You summon a swarm of insects and arachnids - well, not so much summon as herd, as you can't move for infestations these days. They will scuttle and crawl and bite and spin as you wish for one draw. After, they will disperse and crawl, bite and spin as they wish. Be careful. Colony Form Your Body and Soul shatter into myriad pieces and crawl away in the form of a colony of rats. Every part of your being screams to be reunited, but while you can bear to be in this form, you may achieve anything that a horde of vermin with human intelligence could. Swarm Form You collapse into a swarm of creepy crawlies, and gain any abilities they may have, whether a poisonous sting, flight, the ability to spin web, acting as a disease vector, or whatever else you determine the arthropod inhabitants of Laefendport could achieve, before coalescing back into your natural form.

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Murder Form You explode into a murder of carrion birds, and can fly, harry your opponents and split into individual birds to achieve multiple tasks at once before recollecting into your normal form. Afterwards, you are left with a hankering for rotted meat, and ocular fluid.

Prayers of Clocks Prayers of Clocks are the domain of Eora, represented by a black King. Rewind Time You reverse time by a few seconds for everyone, including yourself - allowing you to look after you've leaped and discovered that you can't quite make that jump... Slow Time You slow time around you for everyone except you, so that you appear to everyone else to be moving at super speed. You can see every little twinge of regret and despair on their faces in such exquisite detail. Rot You vastly increase the speed at which organic matter decays, allowing you to make your way through a previously sturdy door, dispose of a Body near instantly, or anything else that takes your peculiar fancy. Freeze Time You cause the grains of time to come to halt, freezing the very world in a slice of time. Nobody, including yourself, may act while time is frozen, but you alone are conscious of the crystallised moment. A lesser person, a brute, may think that nothing can be achieved. Oh, but you can observe. Oh, but you can plan.

Prayers of Tempests Prayers of Tempests are the domain of Dyngeas, represented by a red Jack. Summon Winds You can summon winds ranging from a gentle breeze to a gale gust: knocking people over, blowing out candles and creating crashing waves are all within your power. Summon Fog It's not just the rocks and the rip tides that gave The Liar's Port its reputation; Laefendport is also beset by thick fog that hides all manner of dangers. You can summon this fog to you, though its inscrutable will beyond that remains its own. Raise Shipwreck Whether in the coast or in the many canals that criss-cross Laefendport, there are always shipwrecks to be found, large and small. You can call one up from the depths, and for a short time, make it serviceable once more despite its appearance.

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Wrecker's Light You can summon a willow-the-wisp which not only provides light, but entrances and draws all those who see it. Some say they are the ghosts of drowned children. Others know better than to ask. Drowned Form You temporarily assume the form of a drowned corpse; your appearance is terrifying, and you do not need to breathe. Try not to catch your own reflection, or think about how this prayer may be an indicator of any future fate.

Prayers of Unrest Prayers of Unrest are the domain of Anadena, represented by a red Queen. Change Places They were there, and you were here, and now they are here and you are there, and who's to say which, if either, is the true and right state of things. Fear Laefendport is a dangerous place, and the fight or flight instinct should be nurtured and valued. You are able to send the prey animal instinct burrowing just a little further into the minds of anyone you can see, sending them fleeing from imagined horrors. Anger You can fill anyone you see with a sudden and unquenchable rage, causing them to lash out at anything and anyone near them, regardless of their previous temperament and feelings, and without thought for their own safety or bodily integrity. Cacophony The screams of a million dead are waiting just at the edge of everyone's perception. It takes only the slightest push for you to bring them momentarily a little closer, shattering windows, making ears bleed and letting nobody who hears it forget the awful sound. Poltergeist You may summon someone or something from beyond. The nature of the spirit summoned varies each time, but they all have this in common; they can move physical objects, and they hate the living with an incomprehensible passion. Unfortunate Event People die in accidents every day in Laefendport. A ladder with a rotten rung, a precariously held crate at the docks being lifted on a rotten chain, a beautiful stained glass skylight that with the right amount of pressure becomes a hundred falling, but wonderfully colourful, daggers. Sometimes accidents happen. With this prayer, you may make them happen.

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Prayers of Repose Prayers of Repose are the domain of Ahilden, represented by a red King. Sleep You can cause any one person you can see to instantly fall into a deep sleep. How harmful this is for them depends on whether they're in the middle of a fight, or standing on a rickety bridge, for example. Extraction You may enter the dreams of a sleeper, and glean truths amongst the nonsense, if you have the spirit and will to tell them apart. Be careful that nothing follows you back. Inception You can implant an idea or thought in someone's head that they are unable to shake; at first it seems invasive, but before long, they are convinced that the idea is theirs, and a fine one it is as well. Dream Logic You may bring the world of dreams (and perhaps nightmares, though is there any difference in this bleak life?) into contact with yours briefly, and bring the logic of dreams to bear. It lasts for but a moment, but what you achieve in that moment could last forever. Dark Vision Assassins tend towards the nocturnal, perhaps so they won't be seen, perhaps so they don't have to admit to themselves what they do at night during the daylight. With this prayer, you can see in even unnatural darkness, even as you try to avoid looking at yourself in the mirror and seeing the awful things you have wrought.

ove, od ab g d e s r love il, cu e dev ng you my h t h i it ain w aven, to br I've l e h y Love n M ke u o Y g forsa rin

, To B

ery PJ Harv

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To Bring You My Love Even as the head of a noble house, and the de facto ruler of a totalitarian industrialist police state, the genocide of an entire other noble family makes you enemies. The head of House Foreyda, and mastermind behind the massacre of House Wilderose, Lord-Wordsmith Logan de Foreyda is rarely seen in public. He is well aware of the Red Hand's conspiracy against him; his location changes frequently, is always a closely guarded secret, and he is never without his Bodyguard Beatrice Thródor, an ex member of the Right Hand and one of the deadliest women on the continent. However, his daughter, Natalia de Foreyda, is to be married tomorrow night to the heir of House Eisenhart, Abram d'Eisenhart. Far from a sentimental man, Logan cares little for his daughter's happiness; the purpose of this arranged marriage is for House Foreyda to gain access to the Eisenhart Process. Foreyda tradition dictates that all marriages take place at the Fort Leodruhn, on an island off the coast of Laefendport, and tonight there will be a great feast there before the Eisenhart's arrive for the wedding tomorrow. Tonight, you can strike. Mission objective: Assassinate Lord-Wordsmith Logan de Foeryda.

Set I - The Warehouse District Set Goal Make your way through the warehouse district to a small boat hidden in the docks that will take you to Leodruhn Island.

Overview A boat has been hidden for you in the Warehouse District of Laefendport, an area ruled by the brutal Tilycan gang, that will provide you with passage to the island. A dangerous place to be at night during any other day of the year, the Tilycans have been paid by the Foreydas to provide extra security along the shoreline this evening to stop... well, people like you, frankly. Launching a boat from the main docks some miles down the shore is nigh impossible with the increased police presence, so Tilycans or not, the small shipping docks at the warehouse is your best bet. A sympathetic dock worker has planted a boat there for you that you should be able to make it to Leodruhn Island on, if you can reach it without being noticed.

Moments •

•

•

There's an atmosphere of ill omens in the air tonight. The Night Rain pours down, rendering the streets and rooftops stained and slippery; the gang members patrolling the streets scowl and curse the sky; they're not spending much time looking up: that's a good way to get rain in your eye. A reveller celebrating the impending Noble Wedding at the nearby Last Drop Inn attempts to enter the warehouse district; he's turned away roughly, but he's drunk and tries again, violently this time. He's savagely beaten by the guards on the door. They throw him into a canal when they're done with him. A rat-king, a group of about 15 rats whose tails have been fused together with congealed rain, twitches madly as each of the rats tries to pull in a different direction, leaving them only to spin madly in circles and claw and bite at each other.

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Environment •

•

•

The streets of the Warehouse District are a twisting warren of narrow back alleys, fire escapes, and hidden alcoves decorated with beggars, some alive and some dead, refuse both from animals and humans (or near enough), and many enveloping shadows. The Last Drop Inn, so named because there is a gallows in its courtyard, still in frequent use both officially and unofficially when debts incurred within cannot be paid any other way. It's an open secret that the Tilycans run the place, and also that they have an illegal fighting pit hidden somewhere on the premises. The rooftops around the area are never in the best of repair, tiles sliding off them at fairly regular intervals, and are especially treacherous tonight due to the rain, but mansard windows, widow's walks and skylights all provide excellent infiltration opportunities.

Obstacles & Enemies • • • •

The watchful and hardly drunk at all members of Tilycan gang. The gang's infamous rain-maddened hounds, usually kept for intimidation and Body disposal, are ready to be Set loose at a moment's notice. A network of street urchins in the pay of the Tilycan Thiefmaker. Slippery rooves, long jumps and loose tiles aplenty.

Set II - Leodruhn Island Set Goal Infiltrate Fort Leodruhn.

Overview A small and largely barren rocky island a mile or so from the shore of Laefendport, Leodruhn was a site of small tactical import in the centuries before the Night Reign. As Laefendport was struck by the night rain and its population fell, the fort built there lay abandoned until the noble houses took the city over and renovated it into a palace for entertaining.

Moments • • •

Various sea creatures of indeterminate nature mutated and maddened by the rain pollution swim in and around the boat as it crosses the gulf towards the island, curious more than aggressive. The guards on the watchtowers stop for a celebratory tipple with each other before changing shifts. A wrecked ship is belched up by the seas around the island, its captain mummified by the viscous waters below and still tied to the wheel like a grotesque figurehead, before being swallowed again.

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Environment • •

•

The dark and fathomless waters between the docks and the island, their waves choppy and vicious. A small and recently erected chapel to Those Above Others, encased in a glass and bronze dome to protect it from being stained by the rain. The inside is decorated with tapestries and stained glass depicting the heads of noble houses as benevolent saviours of the common folk. A cave in the base of the hill turns out to be a naturally occurring tunnel that leads from the shingle beach at the island's base to who knows where - and what is that source of that stench?

Obstacles & Enemies • • •

Mechanical watchtowers with rain-powered flood lights and hydraulic cannons scan the waters surrounding the island. Patrolling boats surround the half mile or so around the island itself, filled with armed guards. The fort is surrounded by a large curtain wall with snipers within that must be bypassed somehow.

Set III - Fort Leodruhn Set Goal Locate Logan de Foreyda / Locate the secret entrance to the Highest Spire.

Overview Though its imposing stone exterior remains, the inside of For Leodruhn has been refurbished to resemble more of a luxury mansion than a military installation. Carpets so thick it feels as if you're sinking into mud, hand painted wallpaper from the finest artisans in Mal Khallada, and cloying incense to cover the ghastly smell coming from the rain blackened seas around it. Everything here is just a little too much. Guests for tonight's feast mingle about, drinking finely distilled vodka and ignoring the servants toing and froing to make sure their every need is met. The first time that the players are spotted or counter opposition with open violence, an alarm is sounded by one of the servants that sounds throughout the building. At this alarm, Logan Foreyda will retreat to The Highest Spire, a sort of elaborate panic room at the top of the fort, taking only his Bodyguard, Beatrice Thródor, with him, leaving his guests and even his own daughter behind. If the players reach the Set goal without any open violence, they locate Logan de Foreyda, but are held off by Beatrice as detailed in the below Set, who gives her masters time enough to escape to the Highest Spire.

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Moments •

•

•

A servant spills a little of the soup that they're serving, and are berated horrendously by the nearby nobles, and made to stand on the table and apologize to the room. The other guests throw parts of their entrees at the servant, which they then have to clear up afterwards. The servants bring out the centerpiece of the feast, a hideous Frankensteinian creation of creatures sewn together and roasted, with a cow's Body, a boar's head attached to each end and a dozen swan wings stitched to each side, the feathers of which have been reattached post-oven. When it's cut open, a dozen jackdaws fly out, to the delights of the gathered nobles. One table begins a drunken and rambunctious song about the beginning of the Night Reign, and the night that the Wilderoses were slaughtered. Logan de Foreyda does not join in, and looks vaguely embarrassed, though he doesn't stop it.

Environment • • • •

Disused dungeons below the servants quarters speak to the fort's original purpose. An opulent staircase leading from the entrance hall to the upper floors and balconies above. The main feasting hall, sometimes a ballroom, complete with ostentatious chandeliers. Servant quarters and kitchens are extremely plainly decorated in comparison to the rest of the fort, flat, whitewashed walls. Corridors connect allow the servants to move between the "public" rooms without encountering the nobles more than is necessary.

Obstacles & Enemies • • • •

Campbell, a persistent butler with ideas above their station, surveys the guests, guards, and servants for any sign of impropriety or gatecrashers. The Fort is filled with curious, verbose and uncomfortably flirtatious guests. Guards lining the halls are increasingly lax as the night goes on, counting on the outer defences to stop any potential attacks, but there are a lot of them, and if an alarm is sounded they can be deadly. It takes the servants at the fort years to learn to properly navigate the winding corridors that link the rooms, and you can be easily turned around or lost entirely.

threw my bad fortune off the top of a tall building

PJ Harvey, Good Fortune

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Set IV - The Highest Spire Set Goal Assassinate Logan Foreyda and escape.

Overview The Highest Spire is literally that, the highest point in the fort, but it has been retrofitted with a baroque range of security measures by the tinkerers of House Seeracraff to be a sort of clockwork panic room for the fort's inhabitants. Everything within is designed to cut off, confuse or kill intruders. Logan Foreyda hides within.

Moments • • •

The Eisenhart steamer ship The Grand Illusion crossing the channel towards the island, bringing the other guests and a whole new cadre of guards; the houses do not trust each other even in marriage. A parliament of rooks summoned by Beatrice flies in circles around the tower, trying to spot the agents. The dull rumbling of gears and stone grinding against stone precedes a shower of disturbed dust as the spire rearranges itself.

Environment • • • •

The Master Bedroom is where the agents will find Lord Wordsmith Foreyda cowering with a duelling pistol. Perhaps the most ostentatious room in an already gaudy fort, intricate frescos and gilted plaster cover the walls and ceiling. Reinforced stained glass windows look out onto the waters below. A labyrinth of Escheresque architecture, constantly changing. The gears and cables hidden within the walls and ceilings.

Obstacles & Enemies •

• •

If she hasn't been defeated by the agents in the main part of the fort, Beatrice Thródor will be encountered here. A vicious and hyper competent swordswoman, she was part of the Right Hand that turned coat and joined the nobles during the Night Reign, so she has access to the same technology and sorcery that the agents do. Tall, her greying hair is tied back in a plaited bun, and her pristine armour shows how rarely someone lays a blow against her. An impenetrable door with a lock that requires a spoonful of noble blood to be poured into a small and highly decorated golden funnel before opening. Walls rise and fall under clockwork mechanisms with guillotine blades underneath to trap the unwary as the spire reorganises itself. Ceilings and stairs fold into themselves and floors can disappear under your feet.

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Night Reign is a roleplaying game of stealth, guile, violence and devilry for a GM and one or more players, set in a quasi-Edwardian metropolis perched on an inhospital peninsula beset by toxic black rain and ruled by a corrupt cabal of Noble Houses. You take the role of members of The Red Right Hand, a conspiracy loyal to the recently deposed royal family, using your talents in assassination, infiltration and dark sorcery to strike out at your oppressors. Using an innovative blackjack based rules system, Night Reign brings the tension and excitement of stealth videogames to the tabletop.

  Name: 

Appearance: 

Pronouns: 

Cover Identities: 

Talents  Stealth   Stalk Security Steal Hide Poison Conceal

Violence  OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO

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Guile   Distract Lie Disguise Confidence Charm Intimidate

Dagger Sword Archery Pistol Rifle Brawling

OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO

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[ ]    [ ]    [ ]  [ ]  [ ]  [ ] 

OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO

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Devilry  OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO OOO

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Body   [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (2) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (3) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (4) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (5) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (Final) 

Prayers  _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ 

Absence  Pestilence Clocks Tempests Unrest Repose

Soul   [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (2) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (3) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (4) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (5) [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ (Final) 

Equipment  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ]  __________________________ O [ ] [ ] [ ] 

City Sheet 

 

 

Name:  Description: 

  Conspiracy Conditions   [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (2) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (3) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (4) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (5) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (6) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (7) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (8) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (9) [ ] [ ] [ ] 

Chaos Conditions   [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (2) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (3) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (4) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (5) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (6) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (7) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (8) [ ] [ ] [ ]  _____________________________________________________________________ (9) [ ] [ ] [ ] 

Notes & Notable Personages  ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________