Mortals Plus- A World/Chronicles of Darkness Campaign Concept

The World and Chronicles of Darkness setting is filled with possibilities and potentials. From vampires and werewolves, to mages and changelings, to Prometheans, Sin Eaters, and hunters, you could play through dozens and dozens of chronicles before you ever heard the same note repeated.

However, whether you're an old hand for these games looking for some way to spice things up, or you're a newer player looking for a gentler introduction to this setting for yourself and your table, I'd like to suggest something that I call a Mortals+ Chronicle.

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The Support Staff For The Supernatural

While each of the different spheres of the World or Chronicles of Darkness are unique in their own ways, there are a lot of design similarities between the games so that they can be played together as part of the same setting. And one of the big similarities shared by a majority of these supernatural creatures is that they have a slot reserved for mortals who have been let in on the secret, and who usually have some vestige of power of their own as a result.

Yes, Master... I see.

This tradition goes all the way back to the original edition of Vampire: The Masquerade and the idea of ghouls. These characters are mortals who are blood bound to a vampire, and they act as that vampire's agents in the mortal world, much like we see Renfield act in the classic novel Dracula. This role was carried forward with kinfolk in Werewolf: The Apocalypse, allowing for extended families of these shapechangers to provide backup and support, and to avoid/ignore the madness that viewing a werewolf usually brought on. Other examples include ensorcelled mortals for Changeling: The Lost, familiars in Mage: The Awakening, and so on. While not every game in the setting has these roles, it is uncommon for this kind of character to be absent.

They are the characters that a Mortals+ chronicle revolves around.

Normally these enhanced mortals are just thought of as sidekicks to the supernatural creatures of a given game. They're the aides de camp who help with planning, who open the doors, or who handle tasks that are too mundane for the monsters to whom they are bound to bother with. But the chronicle can take on an interesting twist when you shift that narrative, and see these stories from the perspective of these mortal characters.

The first benefit is that this allows you to focus on your character as a person, and figuring out who they are. You then need to ask what brought them under the shadow, and into the truth of the setting. Were they a lost kinfolk who was rediscovered when they saw a garou change forms, and didn't freak out? Were they a private eye tracking down a serial killer, only to find a vampire who offered them a choice between servitude or death? Was this person a student of the occult who stumbled onto a cabal of genuine mages who decided they were too useful to do away with? Or did they make a deal with someone that sounded too good to be true, only to find out they now work for a changeling?

But is it the worst bargain you've ever made?

This idea works best for Storytellers and players who want to stay at a boots-on-the-ground level of the game. Additionally, when you play an enhanced mortal, it gives you a taste of power (usually, anyway), and it gives the Storyteller a simple way of dispatching missions to the PCs. You can complicate this somewhat by giving the PCs different sponsors (say you each serve a different vampire, or you're all connected to different werewolf tribes), but that is a choice that's up to you as the ST.

Another aspect of a Mortals+ game is that, much like the Faces of Death Chronicle idea I shared a while back, there's a chance for players to be upgraded to a full supernatural template. Perhaps the ghouls prove themselves through their service, and their masters embrace them (or they betray their masters, and are embraced by another who promised them power for that betrayal). Your kinfolk might have their first change, your familiars might awaken, and it's possible that your ensorcelled mortals might be dragged away to Arcadia, only to have to claw their way back to the real world as a full changeling. Maybe this is something some characters want, maybe it's something they're forced to endure (because the player wants it to happen, even if the character doesn't), but it can provide an interesting way to continue the chronicle even when the PCs are all upgraded to a full, supernatural sheet.

Or, if you opt not to go that route, they can always make for ideal hunters, since they have a working knowledge of at least one supernatural community, how to navigate it, and how to disrupt it!

Recommended Reading on Enhanced Mortals

I've written up a lot of supplements about characters who fit into the Mortals+ mold. I've listed them below for folks who want to check them out for inspiration, or simply to fill your own World/Chronicles of Darkness game with a more organic cast!

- New World Nights: 100 Ghouls For The American Camarilla (Vampire: The Masquerade)

- New World Shadows: 100 American Ghouls For The Sabbat (Vampire: The Masquerade)

- Children of The Night: 100 Animal Ghouls (Vampire: Requiem or Masquerade)

- 100 Garou Kinfolk Bundle (15 Werewolf: The Apocalypse supplements in one bundle!)

- 100 Ensorcelled Mortals (Changeling: The Lost)

For those who want to see me expand this list of 19 supplements to other games, please consider leaving comments below, sharing the supplements around to help them find fresh eyes, and if you do get copies for yourself, leave a rating and a review to help the project maintain momentum!

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Rise of The Runelords Chapter 8: Halfings and Ghouls

Sandpoint just can't seem to catch a break. No sooner is the threat of the goblins ended, than murderous undead begin filling up the countryside. With a handle on what's happening (if not who is behind it), or heroes mount up to try to put a stop to yet another brush fire before it can build into something bigger.

For those who aren't caught up yet, previous installments include:

- Chapter 1: Blood and Butterflies
- Chapter 2: Murder and Glass
- Chapter 3: The Sin Pit
- Chapter 4: Tussles in The Tangle
- Chapter 5: The Assault on Thistletop
- Chapter 6: Secrets Behind The Curtain
- Chapter 7: Murders At The Mill

All caught up? Good... because in this installment we're about to take another step down the rabbit hole surrounding the misfortune of one of Varisia's adventuring hot spots.

A New Friend, And A Whole Lot of Enemies

Returning from the asylum, and burying the unfortunate victim of the ongoing ghoul plague, Sandpoint's heroes found that the farmers had all come in from the outlying farms. The ghouls were rampaging, killing livestock, menacing the people they found, and it wasn't safe out there anymore. With everyone huddling behind stout walls, and the fields going to rot, it was only a matter of time before things grew worse.

Eager to set the cold thing in his guts to rights, Zhakar was only too happy to ride into the fields. Thokk came with to watch his back, and Zordlan came to help the people he'd known since they were born. Mirelinda groused about it, but her heart was only halfway in it. She knew there was no one else who could do the job, which meant she was part of the solution. The only one who remained behind was Chikara, who opted to make sure no threats attacked the town while the others went on the hunt.

Do you remember there being scarecrows? I don't remember there being scarecrows...

The first sign something was wrong was the silence hanging over the countryside... and the stink. A taint floated on the air, putting everyone on edge. There was no banter as they rode. None of the usual jibing or storytelling. Just grim purpose as they approached a scarecrow... and an ambush.

The ghoul masquerading as a farm distraction, leaped down, tongue lolling and claws at the ready. Two of its fellows stepped out of the fields, rushing into the fray. Though they were used to fighting farmers and peddlers, they weren't prepared for the assault they received. Zordlan parried the claws and fangs of a ghoul on the flank, running it through time and time again until he found the heart. Zhakar drove his fist into one's teeth, shattering them even as it tried to sink its fangs past the steel of his gauntlet. Thokk's bowstring thrummed, planting arrows into the creatures' flesh. When one fell and tried to rise, Mirelinda flicked a bone wand into her hand, and splattered its skull with a spray of glowing missiles.

When the dust settled, though, they heard another sound; a low groaning. It came from a scarecrow, but this one wasn't a ghoul. It was a halfling, tied to a crossbeam, with a bite mark at his neck. He had no fever, though, and the wound didn't seem to be festering or spreading.

Bostwick may no longer be welcome at the monastery he'd left, but disease had no hold over him. A fortunate advantage to have in ghoul country.

A Barnyard Brawl

With a new ally, and one who has a score of his own to settle with these creatures, they rode on. The oppressive feeling all around them grew, like an oncoming storm, and that was when they heard the moaning. It came from a barn, barred from the outside. There was a scrabbling, but nothing too determined. Someone had trapped a pack of the things before they fled.

Lovely... a target-rich environment.

They drew rein at the edge of the property, and Thokk reconnoitered the building. A dozen ghouls were pent up in there, listlessly shuffling this way and that. They looked half-starved, and particularly dangerous. Zhakar nodded, and drew his sword as he approached the gate. He and Bostwick would act as the bulwark, with Thokk and Mirelinda behind. Zordlan would act as support and a flanker, filling in gaps as they appeared. Once the plan was set, the bar was lifted, and the doors opened.

The ghouls snapped their heads toward the opening, charging in a single rush of mad hunger. Bostwick's fists flew, smashing a kneecap, and crushing another ghoul's pelvis. Zhakar's sword bit deep, tearing out streams of gore even as he parried claws and teeth. Every flick of Mirelinda's wand sent fresh streaks into the ghouls' ranks, and Thokk let arrows fly with impunity over Bostwick's head. Zordlan's song drove strength into his companion's arms, and his bow found more than a few marks of its own.

Beneath the sounds of battle, though, was another sound. A stranger sound; the grinding of claws against metal. Though some ghouls' blows were parried, and others turned away on Zhakar's shield, many of them struck home... or seemed to. The claws and fangs drug along the skin of his arms, his neck, and even the left side of his face, but no blood welled from the gashes. Instead, they revealed a layer of shining steel just beneath.

When the last of the ghouls fell twitching to the floor, it was Thokk who touched his friend on the shoulder. They conversed in Thokk's native language, one that Zhakar had learned during their long walks through the northern woods, but even as they talked the gashes seemed to knit themselves closed. The wounds, if wounds they were, gone as if they'd never been. Unsure of what to make of it, Zhakar rolled his sleeve down, and turned his collar up, before sheathing his sword. They needed to identify who was in that barn, and carry the news back to their families if possible. Whatever was happening to him would wait until that was seen to.

Who Is The Master?

Most of the bodies in the barn belonged to farmers and their families. But there was one that stood out... one that didn't belong. Its clothes had been finely made, once upon a time, and he still carried some of the tools of his former life. Along the figure's belt was a key wrought with a family crest... the Foxgloves.

Either Aldern was in trouble... or he was already far past saving.

That's all for this installment of Table Talk. What happens next? Well, you'll have to tune-in next month to see what happens to our heroes when they kick in the doors of Foxglove Manor!

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