GM Blog: Episode 19 (Patreon)

Been a while, eh?

What a bloody year this has been. Between COVID, my dad greeting Morr, my mum attending a Shallyan hospice for 3 months, and, well, everything else, it's been a toughie.

Still, getting a blog or two in would be nice, eh?

Where were we? Ah, I remember, raiding Wittgenstein castle. We're getting closer and closer to the juicy stuff. As those of you who have watched the show know, we diverge far from the published plot of Death on the Reik as we traverse this section. How far and why?

Let's find out!

Episode 19 picks up as the party’s plans to seize the outer keep of Castle Wittgenstein finally erupt into action. With their outlaw allies surging forward under the cover of dusk, the heroes turn their infiltration into a full-scale assault, hopefully opening the way for an attack on the inner bastion. How well does that go, then?

Let's find out with yet more bullet points!

• Map Cam Is Working? Yeah, nah! But we made do with an alternative, as the episode shows.

• 'It was set up for you to be discovered.' I mentioned in the XP section that the chances of taking Castle Wittgenstein's Outer Bailey without being discovered were low. I fully expected the whole castle to be alerted by the end of the last episode. But that isn't what happened. Instead, the PCs successfully planned and executed their mission to take out the outer defences quietly and quickly. Very well done.

• Cashing in a Fate Point for 50XP. Gerhardt's Short-term Ambition to challenge a significant NPC proved costly, as he lost a Fate point last session. But he did gain 50XP for his troubles. Totally worth it.

• Find Those Responsible. Dan, horrified by the events of the last session, chooses his next Short-term Ambition: to hunt down those responsible for inflicting the horror upon Sigrid's husband and get a bit of the good, old-fashioned vengeance. Let's see how that lands in practice.

• Deep Grognard Box Territory. I warn everyone at the beginning that the upcoming episode will be very different to the published Death on the Reik, and I wasn't exaggerating, as you are about to find out. Our Castle Wittgenstein offers a completely different way to play the Enemy Within, as you are about to see. Use, or don't use, whatever interests you.

• That Ancient Idea! I open by explaining that, long ago, an ordinary human became a god and logged his ideas in a selection of books. This was a reference to Nagash, the Lord of Undeath mentioned in the episode's title, a name that has been dropped a few times in previous episodes, especially in reference to the Wittgensteins. Its relevance will become clear as the story progresses.

• Morrslieb Heralds Prophecy! As the PCs gather to assault the inner keep, Alamennowyth spots Morrslieb change direction in the sky as it crawls across the heavens toward Castle Wittgenstein. Because of course it does. We have the Manic Street Preacher's prophecy mentioned in Blog 2 to fulfil, after all. Let's revisit those words and break them down so you all know what they mean. I wrote the section of Enemy in Shadows where it features (p36), so I know what the plan was for those words:

  I see Darkness Gathering as the Last House of Joy Falls — beware, for Shadows Over Bögenhafen stir! Then Beloved Morr, resplendent in Vestments of Green, stands astride Sigmar’s Great River — yea, I see Death on the Reik, and I despair! For then the Stained Hand guides the Once Mighty Lord, and this Power Behind the Throne curses us all. For then I see the Horned Rat claim the Broken King atop his Throne of Lies, and the White Walls Fall, leaving our Empire in Ruins! Tremble in fear, ye mighty, for the End Times have come.

  Let's break that down by line.

  I see Darkness Gathering. The prophet sees the gathering cults of Chaos. Which has already occurred. I once planned to write an adventure called Darkness Gathering to support the first line as a prequel to The Enemy Within, but, like many other things, that didn't happen.

  As the Last House of Joy Falls. This describes the fall of House Jungfreud, Gerhardt's household, after the Emperor seized Ubersreik.

  The 'Last House of Joy' as a name is hinted at in the WFRP Starter Set (p8) and used on the back of the Ubersreik book in that set, too.

  As explained there, House Jungfreud can trace its lineage back to the Frewida Clan of the Unberogen tribe. Frewida is the Old Unberogen word for 'Joy', and is the root of the later Unberogen word 'Freude', also meaning joy. Adding to that, Jung is Unberogen for 'Young'. So... Jungfreude translates to something like the 'Young House of Joy', the last bloodline of the original Frewida tribe; i.e., the Jungfreuds are the Last House of Joy.

  I originally planned to introduce this as a plot point in the published Death on the Reik, but I didn't finish writing that book, and others took my place. But we have used it in the LAWhammer adventures.

  Beware, for Shadows Over Bögenhafen stir! Watch out for... well, you know this one. We've discussed it already in Blog 7. Luitpold witnessed this personally. Shadows did stir over Bögenhafen.

  Then Beloved Morr, resplendent in Vestments of Green. This line explains that a noble from Altdorf's court will cause much death. Nobles in Altdorf's court wear green velvet cloaks, as first introduced in Kim Newman's Beasts in Velvet.

  Stands astride Sigmar’s Great River. The death that will occur will afflict the length of the River Reik. This directly references the events of Death on the Reik and the long-term issues caused by the warpstone leaking from Castle Wittgenstein, which will be made worse when/if it goes BOOM! If it does go BOOM!, this part of the prophecy is fulfilled, and then...

  Yea, I see Death on the Reik, and I despair! Yeah, it gets bad if you are downriver from Wittgenstein. Really bad.

  For then the Stained Hand guides the Once Mighty Lord. This is the Purple Hand influencing Boris Todbringer. More on that when the PCs are playing the part of the adventure that is named...

  And this Power Behind the Throne curses us all. Again, this is a key part of the prophecy. I'll discuss whether it is fulfilled when we get to that part of the campaign.

  For then I see the Horned Rat. This references a Verminlord, a Greater Daemon of the Horned Rat, being summoned. That should happen during the Horned Rat section of the campaign. Let's see if it does when we get there.

  Claim the Broken King atop his Throne of Lies. This is the Skaven taking direct control of the Emperor! Poor old Karl-Franz isn't exactly in a good place should this happen! Again, let's find out if it does in later blogs.

  And the White Walls Fall. Altdorf, as mentioned back in Episode 2, has white walls. And, yes, this is talking about the city of Altdorf falling (not just its walls)! More precisely, the city falling under the control of Chaos. It is not a simple reference to crumbling walls, although I imagine many desperate cultists might believe that. If Altdorf falls, shit has clearly hit the fan for our campaign, and the PCs have a Bad Ending incoming. Super keen to see if that happens!

  Leaving our Empire in Ruins. Well, yes, not ideal. Altdorf falling to Chaos control brings ruin that heralds the End Times. Will our campaign leave things this bad? We'll discuss that when we get to the relevant episodes.

  Tremble in fear, ye mighty, for the End Times have come. Even if the PCs don't know it, they are the 'mighty' (they have Fate points after all, and this prophecy is about them). So, if all the prophecies come to pass, the PCs should be scared, for the Everchosen will soon be coming to town. Like Santa. But swordier.

• So, Chaos Moon Equals Prophecy? Not really, but it does make for a great reminder that the Enemy Within prophecy beats are about to hit. But Morrslieb gets full for lots of reasons, some of which I'll discuss later in the campaign.

• There is another Prophecy in the Starter Set? Yes, I mentioned a second prophecy in the WFRP Starter Set above when discussing the Last House of Joy. It's on the back of the Ubersreik book. It says this:

  ‘And, lo, like black bile from the world’s aching belly, the End Times rise. Mark the day the broken king atop his Throne of Lies casts down the Last House of Joy. Then, and only then, shall He come, the Final Moment, the Scourge of All. As the Great Fortress is abandoned, and friend turns to foe, the Great Axis around which the Wheel of Change turns shall turn southwards, and the Light of Unborn Stars will fall upon us. And so shall the Realm of Mortals quake, for the gnawing rift at the heart of reality shall wax, and all that is good will come to naught. For the Everchosen comes. And all is lost.’
  – Celestine Book of Divination, Necrodomo the Insane, 1587 IC

  I also wrote that prophecy, and it's related to the Enemy Within, largely referencing the same events. The Starter Set was designed to be a prequel to the campaign, after all. Anyway, enough prophecy bullshit — back to raiding this castle!

• Map. Our map of the Outer Bailey is a slightly different shape from the official one from Death on the Reik (p92-93), as I wanted to rationalise the interior a little to make more sense. But it's largely the same, as are the contents for almost all the rooms. However, some of the internal goodies, and the justification for them being there, are very different. I'll discuss any changes to the rooms the PCs visit, in order, and why I made them.

• Chapel of Sigmar. Death on the Reik p 105 has a Temple of Slaanesh sited in the old Chapel of Sigmar that stands inside the Outer Bailey of Castle Wittgenstein. That is not the case in our version. Our Wittgensteins don't randomly worship Slaanesh (or any Chaos God) here in the castle — I'd prefer to keep the antagonists tighter than that. Instead, our version is Sigmar-only. For my players who knew the adventure — notably Andy and Lindsay — this was a shock. When I told Andy he could feel Sigmar's presence, he was genuinely surprised: 'Oh, interesting!' Of course, this was the response I was looking for — but I made the change for more reasons than simply keeping some players on their toes. This version of the Wittgensteins is very different, and Sigmar is still involved, as we'll soon see.

• Is Birdie Alright? As the last GM Blog discussed, things are rough for Birdie. Her uncontrolled slaughter of the mutant beggars broke her, and she's struggling to understand why. When asked if she's faring well, she replied: 'Not even remotely.' Gone is her pretence of humour and lack of intelligence during this episode. Instead, she's in shock. She hasn't had time to process what happened in the Outer Bailey. Alamennowyth steps in and tries to reground her, aware that without Birdie, any potential conflict ahead could go very wrong. Alamennowyth does a pretty good job, drawing upon Ulrican dogma as a foundation, so Birdie presses on, still confused and emotional, but no longer in the same state of semi-panic.

• Sigrid Is Pulled Into The Pit! As the PCs gather their thoughts, Sigrid, the outlaw leader, advances and is pulled into the Charnel Pit at the centre of the Inner Keep (location 33 from Death on the Reik, p102). Our use of the pit is largely the same as in the printed adventure, but the Thing in the Pit is a bit more... more, and Lady Magritte's motivations for creating the pit are entirely different. Again, more on that later in the blog.

• Why Pull Her In Immediately? Because the Thing in the Pit rolled well. It could have just as easily missed. More importantly, it was great to have Sigrid there to warn the PCs that what was ahead was BAAAAAAD. The noises they heard as it devoured her — the same character they had earlier seen dispatch castle guards easily — made it clear that the PCs were in trouble if they were not very careful. A handy demonstration that likely saved a bagful of Fate points.

• It's a PHALLUS? Hahah! Their reaction to the Thing's... thing was predictably priceless. Our Thing in the Pit uses all of its extremities to capture any passing prey.

• Alamennowyth States The Stakes. Alamennowyth makes it clear that for all the party may want to deal with the Thing, they have a bigger fish to fry: i.e., finding their friends and rescuing their barge. She makes it clear their friends could be killed or held hostage if the PCs are discovered indiscriminately attacking things, or if Elrick starts blasting spells. The party agrees stealth is their best route and progresses with that in mind, likely keen to avoid Sigrid's fate. Lindsay again takes time to make Alamennowyth the glue that holds the party together, which not all the other PCs will welcome, since most have problems with authority, and she takes a very controversial position later in the episode.

• Gerhardt's Warpstone Compass. Gerhardt wonders if the vial of swirling warpstone dust that Birdie secured from the Physician's Surgery, as discussed in Blog 16, will react to the proximity of the warpstone hidden within Wittgenstein Castle. And it does, creating a handy warpstone compass. Great thinking from Ed, and I gave him an immediate XP bonus.

• The Thing Hunts. To again demonstrate the Thing's potential reach, it continues its hunt by plucking a passing bat from high in the air near to the PCs. By this point, the repeated 'I don't like it!'s coming from the players made it pretty clear to me that they understood how dangerous the Thing could be.

• Woman Holding A Spear. Andy is excited by the woman holding the spear depicted in the Chapel of Sigmar, as it clearly links to St Helga, a woman he correctly believes is his ancestor, and is also on display in the Chapel of St Arnulf in Ubersreik. More will likely come of this later, although I doubt these plot points will be resolved before campaign 1 is finished.

• Ume Bites Hammer. It's an enduring image, so I have to call it out. Ume biting Sigmar's sacred hammer in the chapel just to check if it's real gold. It will never fail to make me smile when I think of it.

• Birdie Sticks With Alamennowyth. Again, it's worth calling out how messed up Birdie is at this point in the adventure. She attaches herself to Alamennowyth like the elf is a life-ring in an empty ocean devoid of hope for most of this episode. Apparently, randomly killing beggars, even if they are mutants, is not so good for the soul, even if you were raised to be a monster by Skaven. The cost of a burgeoning humanity, I suppose.

• Rumble of Thunder. As the party searched the Chapel of Sigmar, I dropped a rumble of thunder. This foreshadowed what was to happen later in the upper levels of the main building, where lightning would be part of the proceedings. However, as you'll note if you've watched the episode, the PCs never make it up there. Nevertheless, it was good to foreshadow what could have happened.

• Cutting Walls With Barrakul. The conversation about whether or not to cut open the walls of the Chapel of Sigmar to avoid the Thing outside was taking an age, so I had the Thing bang harder on the walls to get the PCs moving and give them something else to discuss. Analysis paralysis meets Thing.

• 'As long as blessed Helga lies in torment, our souls are saved.' This is inscribed in the Chapel of Sigmar in the inner keep of Castle Wittgenstein. What the hell does it mean? In short, it references the fall of St Helga and the story surrounding that dark event, when a Prophet of Sigmar succumbs to the subtle whispers of the Ruinous Powers. We'll maybe learn more about this later in the campaign. It's definitely not a foreshadowing that prophets of Sigmar are destined for that end. Honest...

• The Grub Gurgles. Gerhardt's Rotwyrm, sensing the immense corruption in the nearby Kitchen Garden (location 32, Death on the Reik, p100), stirs, giving him a brief sense of what it may be like to be pregnant. Good times.

• The Thing Is Intelligent? Hell yes. Our version of the Thing in the Pit is not only intelligent but also has multiple intelligences, and it talks to itself. A lot. That said, much of the Thing is very simple, so the conversation is far from scintillating, and mostly revolves around base desires and the need to be free from the Wittgensteins.

• Crowman? Do the Wittgensteins have a Cathayan Onyx Crowman in their Aviary (location 30, Death on the Reik, p100), as Ume suggests? No, it just strongly reminded Yume of one. Some of the 'birdmen' in our version of the aviary are aethyric, more akin to manifested daemons than mutants, which isn't so far from what Crowmen are. Ume had previously witnessed Crowmen when passing through Cathay on her way to the Old World. Emanuelle Nacht, the Emperor's Herald in Ubersreik, pointed them out to her; Emanuelle was the daughter of the Empire Ambassador in Cathay at the time. So Yume made a simple, understandable mistake here. In actuality, the Wittgenstein's aviary is full of experimental mutants who can do things like detect daemon proximity, mutants, Chaos cultists, and the like, which makes some of them go absolutely crazy when the party draws close. Make of that what you will.

• Wyvern? Ed mentions he thinks he's seen undead bird things before, but Andy Leask corrects him, saying it was a wyvern. This reference comes from our 14th pre-stream adventure, titled Death in the Family, which was an adaptation of WFRP2's Carrion Call scenario from Plundered Vaults. That adventure included a location the players sometimes call 'Murder House 1'. You can find a bit more about that in our Timeline, under the 12th Jahrdrung, 2512 entry.

• The Great Hall. PCs are going to PC. When the party enters the Great Hall and finds a bunch of artefacts that are owned by what they think is a legit bad guy, what do they do? Steal 'em, of course! Let's take a look at what they did:

  Liber Nagash. In one of the Great Hall's display cases, there is a space where a copy of the Liber Nagash once sat. The actual copy is in Margritte's laboratory upstairs, where she is conducting her latest experiments into patchwork men (basically, Frankenstein's Monsters). Sadly, the PCs never go up there, so we never need to resolve the potential fun that could have been brought to the table. However, I wasn't too upset about this, as it was a secondary part of the tale — what Margritte would be saying, and how the PCs reacted, was far more important than what was going on in the upstairs laboratories. Lastly on this one, is the missing book really worth the 94k crowns Gerhardt guessed it would be if it were intact? Kinda, yes, at the correct auction. Good luck selling such a proscribed book, though.

  Cathayan vs Nipponese War. Yume spots a disc-shaped relief of a famous siege between Nippon and Cathay where her grandfather on her mother's side fought before Yume was born. This battle, the 'Second Siege of Kagoshima', took place in 2487 IC at the southern tip of Nippon. It was a major victory for Nippon against Cathay, and it was where Yume's parents met. Yume takes the disc, noting its relevance to her family. There is a reason why it is so connected to her, which we'll cover later in the blog.

  Talon? The talon Yume inspects and does not recognise comes from a Great Eagle. It was hunted by Dagmar. Yume takes the talon.

  The Book Yume Spots? The book, in a language Yume does not recognise, is an Indish tome that translates roughly to 'Fables from the Land of the Thousand Gods'. Yume takes the book, much to Gerhardt's annoyance, as he wanted it.

  Red Elven Wayshard. Alamennowyth finds a red elven Wayshard (a crystal that can house a dead elf's soul, saving it from being devoured by the Chaos God Slannesh) and concludes that it contains a tortured elf that died 'in insanity'. Did she get that right? Yup. 100%. It actually contains a fallen elf, an entity called an 'Anointed', which is an elf that has willingly sworn itself to Slaanesh. Margritte experimented on the Anointed while it was alive to see if she could make it mutate (she could not; elves are immune to mutation). Alamennowyth takes the wayshard.

• Waxed 'Hand'. The 'PAW', as it was described in the episode. The waxed hand is a Skaven Grey Seer paw mutated with talons. It is particularly powerful when used with a 'BIG RAT' (more on that in a later blog), and grants control over that machine. Dagmar secured it when warring with the Skaven in Middenheim. But more on that muuuuuuch later when we're playing part 4, The Horned Rat. Birdie takes the PAW.

• Butler Drops By Multiple Times. The poor 'butler' that drops in on the PCs several times is resurrected with necromancy and is now more automaton than man. He is the work of Dagmar, who did not want to lose his favourite butler upon the servant's death some 80 years ago. The poor creature is not particularly intelligent and spends most of his time asleep or responding to Magritte's needs.

• Elrick Walks Away From Birdie. Why did Elrick completely blank Birdie when the Great Hall was being investigated? In short: Elrick does not like Birdie. At all. All the lies, the slaying, the Skaven connections, and more. Elrick doesn't approve of her or what she represents, and would prefer to have nothing to do with her if he could.

• 'Skavenfreude'. Lindsay was a genius when she coined that one: a word for the pleasure felt when things go wrong for other Skaven. Man, I love that one. I should have given her bonus XP.

• The Dungeons. After raiding the Main Hall, the PCs head into the dungeons (Death on the Reik, p117). Our version of what lies below differs significantly from the published version. The main changes involve the shape and placement of the rooms, which were adjusted to fit within the footprint of the Outer Bailey (which the official map does not). There are also some changes to some of the rooms' contents. This map shows how we changed things. The key aligns with the official map, but has many updates.

• Bear-Man. The 'Bear-man' in the location 7 storeroom is one of Dagmar's children. He graduated from Amethyst College and later mutated after returning to Wittgenstein. It affected his mind and body in many negative ways, leaving him a huge, hirsute sex-pest, one that was eventually put into 'storage' by Margritte as he repeatedly interrupted her work. The Bear-man is not 'stuffed,' as the PCs presume; Margritte's magic holds him in place and preserves him. Dagmar begrudgingly let Margritte do this because he wanted to keep her happy, but demanded that his son be freed each time Dagmar returned home and on holy days. Yume is caught up in the fraying periphery of Margritte's spells when she first inspects him. She is then caught in the Bear-man's spells, so she has no real idea of what is happening to her as her perceptions and sense of time become muddled. Later, Birdie follows suit and is similarly affected. Then Alamennowyth does the same and also falls under its spell. A few minutes later — after an hour or so has passed for Yume, Birdie, and Alamennowyth's perspective because of the Amethyst spells cast, not that they know this — Elrick pulls them free. Then Gerhardt, who was watching, slams the storeroom door shut.

• Slagdarg and Fritz. The Ogre jailer — Slagdarg — and his screaming prisoner — Fritz — from location 3 are used largely as presented in Death on the Reik, p118, but Slagdarg is more Ogre Kingdoms in dimensions rather than WFRP1. When the PCs arrive, Fritz is screaming out pained cries to please Slardarg, as the corpse the Ogre is butchering is long dead and quite incapable of making any cries of its own. Fritz is keen to do anything that keeps Slagdarg happy.

• Slagdarg Feeds The Prisoners. To keep things lively, and to ensure the dungeons didn't feel static, with each room presenting a different isolated puzzle, I had Slagdarg head off to feed his prisoners in location 5. This panicked the PCs, as they were more likely to be discovered if the Ogre wandered the dungeons freely. Which was exactly what I wanted. It's a lived-in place, and it needed to feel that way.

• The League of Karl-Franz. Gerhardt, upon seeing a bottle of Holzkrug Eisglaswein in the Wine Cellar (location 1), remembers his initiation into the League of Karl-Franz, an upper-class society in Altdorf University. Realising just how expensive the stuff was, Gerhardt steals a bottle.

• Luitpold's Sins. Luitpold decides not to save the Empire citizen who clearly sounds noble from Slagdarg, who is stuffing raw liver down the poor man's throat. A Sin point followed. Sigmar supports nobles and the Empire's unity, after all. Andy is less than impressed, preferring stealth to direct confrontation. Which, of course, he is free to do; after all, he has already received the penalty for his choices.

• Prisoner Check. The PCs shut Slagdarg in his room as they head off to check on, and potentially free, the prisoners. What they don't know is that all of the prisoners are Chaos cultists, including two that the PCs have met before:
  1) Ernst Heidleman. The scholar chap from Episode 1, and a Tzeentch cultist who works with Etelka Hertzen as revealed in Episode 11. He was the poor individual being 'fed' the raw liver by Slagdarg, and he is in a bad way.
  2) Etelka Hertzen. The foul sorceress they are chasing is in the prison, already! They don't immediately identify the shaved woman in rags in the cell, but they soon work it out.
  And, yes, to be very clear, all the prisoners in the dungeon are Chaos Cultists. There is a reason for that, which we will get to very soon.

• COMBAT. Slagdarg, after Luitpold fails to trick him, attacks the party, and immediately takes out Alamennowyth, who spends a Fate point to survive the combat.

• Gerhardt Pulls Barrakul. In the desperate hope of bringing down the ogre, Gerhardt pulls Barrakul and has a vision of engaging Greenskins from the back of a griffon, stunning him for 6 rounds. Oops. He's not going to be useful in the combat. This vision comes from one of Gerhardt's ancestors in Grey Lady Pass over two thousand years ago. When Elrick frees him from the vision, Gerhardt immediately grabs Barrakul again and has another vision, this time from an ancestor facing a Greater Daemon of Khorne, an event that occurred alongside the invasion of the 10th Everchosen in 1603IC. He then has a third vision when arguing with Elrick, this time from one of his ancestors facing a Beastman horde during the era of the 8th Everchosen, just under 2,000 years ago. Seems the Jungfreuds have a long history of facing off against Chaos (and Greenskins).

• HORN! What the hell happened when I made the horn noise during Gerhardt's vision? The reverb wasn't planned or added, but it was surprisingly epic.

• Slagdarg Retreats! Elrick whacks the Ogre hard on the leg, driving it back to its room to fetch a weapon as Gerhardt reels from his visions. Alamennowyth then wakes up with Birdie's help as Luitpold and Ume rescue prisoners. Seeing Gerhardt is lost to his visions, Elrick wrestles Barakul from him and loses control in turn, attacking Gerhardt. Elrick quickly realises what he has done, so he drops the blade in horror. Then a civilised voice interrupts...

• Margritte Arrives. Margritte, the lady of the house, was upstairs in her chambers preparing experiments concerning her patchwork men (as I mentioned before, basically Frankenstein monsters). When she called down for food, her largely brainless butler informed her she had new guests. Slightly annoyed at the intrusion, Margritte went to find them. This led her to the PCs, who had trashed her Main Hall and were freeing all the cultists in her Dungeon, which she, in her own words, 'cannot abide'.

• Alamennowyth Responds. Realising the potential problems they could face, Alamennowyth, upon hearing Margritte approach, chooses diplomacy and says she will attend to the lady in a moment. Margritte is surprised that an elf responds, and one so polite given the mess in the Great Hall. The last elf she had hosted was one of the Anointed, and she was far from diplomatic.

• Arabyan Lamp. Luitpold leaves the cell he was hiding in and runs into Margritte, who is lighting the way with an Arabyan lamp sporting a blue flame. Is her lamp magical? Yes. Did the PCs need to worry about that? Nope, not at all. It just doesn't need fuel. Margritte received it as a gift from Dagmar for his 100th birthday (yes, in Warhammer, you give gifts to others on your birthday, not receive them). The lamp also reinforced that the character was anything but mundane.

• Luitpold Blathers. The PCs have raided Margritte's Main Hall, and she is annoyed, so she questions Luitpold relatively firmly. Luitpold, not wanting to admit he just barged into her home and let his friends take her stuff, resorts to Blather, but Margritte resist, and is not impressed in the slightest.

• Alamennowyth's Soulmate. Alamennowyth still believes diplomacy is the best option, certainly better than Luitpold bullshitting, and reveals herself after Margritte calls for her. Alamennowyth claims she is looking for her soulmate, Greta, whom she believes is in the castle. Margritte, who was already been charmed by Greta after she took the Trott in as a 'guest', realises the party must be Greta's companions. Greta had painted them in a very different light from how they were currently presenting themselves (as cultist-freeing thieves), but she is aware that her castle, and what it contains, can confuse outsiders, so she is willing to give them some slack. Now that she guesses it's Greta's companions, she suspects far more than just Luitpold and Alamennowyth are raiding her dungeon and releasing her prisoners. So she asks the remaining party members to reveal themselves.

• So Civil! It's worth noting that Margritte is quite taken by the civility Alamennowyth demonstrates, as well as her obvious beauty. Both of these things strongly influence how Margritte responds to her (taking all those points in Attractive and Etiquette (Nobles) has paid off for Lindsay here).

• Sigrid is to Blame. Alemennowyth immediately blames Sigrid for their bad behaviour, a woman whom she claims was driven mad by what happened to her husband. Margritte, who was responsible for keeping Sigrid's 'husband' alive, no matter what her captain, 'Skullface' from episode 18, did to him, is very aware of that situation, which makes Alemennowyth's spin plausible. Margritte knows Skullface was 'excessive in his tastes' when it comes to cultists, and also knows Sigrid was extremely angry, and likely to have filled the party's heads with lies. So, she takes what Alamennowyth says at face value.

• 'Calm down'. As Alamennowyth talks, she speeds up her speech to ensure she gets everything out. Margritte, who sees this, orders the elf to calm down. Alamennowyth immediately responds with 'of course', calms, apologises for accidentally offending, then bows. This immediate passivity attracts Margritte, as she's a bit of a dom. Margritte is beginning to really like the elf. But she doesn't let that show. But, be aware that Margritte's first impressions of Alamennowyth are very positive.

• Gerhardt Struck By Beauty. I reinforced how casually beautiful Margritte was when Gerhardt sees her to mark the difference between Luitpold's observations (he can't actually see her) and Alamennowyth's (as an elf, she has different beauty standards). As he gazes upon her, he incorrectly guesses that Margritte is in her mid-20s. As we will find out later, she is much older.

• The Lies Begin! Margritte knows exactly who Gerhardt is — she's had many chats with Greta and Lukas by this point — but she instead pretends she may recognise him to see how he reacts. He sorta flirts badly in response as the rest of the party reveals itself. His clumsy flirting does not impress her.

• Bows to Elrick. Our version of Margritte is a graduate of both the Bright and Amethyst Colleges, neither of which she enjoyed attending. She particularly hates the Bright College for how it treated her, but she is still polite to Elrick. She believes in being polite and thinks negatively of those who are not.

• Alamennowyth Apologises Again. Alamenowyth again offers her humblest apologies, not just for the intrusion, but for how the party has acted in Margritte's home. She claims her rushed actions stemmed from fear for Greta's well-being. Margritte approves, as she values loyalty, and it reaffirms her first impression of Alamennowyth.

• Slagdarg Is Obedient. Slagdarg attempts to interrupt Margritte's conversation with the party. He is still smarting after Elrick attacked him (because, to be very clear, Slagdarg attacked them first!), but Margritte immediately cuts him off. Slagdarg may be a massive, hungry monster, but he nonetheless immediately responds as Margritte prefers: with absolute obedience. This subtly reinforces Margritte's clear power, a handy warning sign for the PCs who might make the mistake of attacking her, since they would almost certainly lose.

• Introductions. Margritte requests introductions to judge each PC. She already knows who they are, but she's interested to see who they claim to be, what tone they use, and whether they are polite. In order:
  
  Elrick. Elrick is polite and accurate, but reveals he isn't trained in etiquette by slightly mistitling himself.
  Yume. Yume goes off on one like the child she has been allowed to be: 'We've seen horrible stuff on our way here! Why should we tell you? Why should we like you?' Her mother, a diplomat, would be absolutely horrified. Nevertheless, Margritte, used to such reactions, accepts that Yume has probably seen things she finds unacceptable, and lets her rave. She then, again, requests Yume introduce herself. Which, reluctantly, she does. But she offers no details beyond 'Yume'. Which, if we're being accurate, is a pseudonym, so 'Ume' is not only withholding; she is also lying here. Which Margritte notes. Margritte has already met Ume several times in Altdorf when Ume was younger, so she's aware of the subterfuge.
  Gerhardt. Ingratiatingly, Gerhardt offers his name and house. He clearly finds Margritte attractive, but she has no interest in return.
  Luitpold. He says only, somewhat stiffly, 'Father Luitpold'. The young priest is upset to have been called out by Margritte and lacks either the inclination or the maturity to be fully polite. This is a common response from Sigmarites, so Margritte moves on.
  Birdie. Birdie responds with a simple 'Birdie' to introduce herself. Margritte doesn't know what to make of the blood-covered woman and (incorrectly) assumes she's just muscle or a bodyguard, mostly because that's how Greta described her. So, in Margritte's head, Birdie is side-lined.
  Alamennowyth. Margritte, already quite attracted to the elf despite what good sense tells her, decides to see just how passive the elf is, so she demands the elf tell her her house, expecting a gentle rebuff. Instead, Alamennowyth responds immediately with the truth: 'House Aenarion'. Margritte has to look away at this point. She knows exactly who Aenarion, the first Phoenix King, is, and wants to know more. But she can't let her deeply felt interest show. She is too controlled for that.

• Clattering From The Stairs? Clattering comes from the Great Hall stairs as the party makes to leave the dungeon. Before the party can reach there, the source of the clattering has withdrawn. The clattering came from armoured patchwork men Margritte had brought with her, just in case her guests proved uncivilised. She decided they were not needed, so dismissed her guards with a shake of her head before the PCs could spot them.

• 'Very droll.' As they make their way upstairs, Gerhardt continues in his attempts to impress Margritte. Obviously, this fails, but he does convince her he may be useful later if he is so easily charmed. So, she is polite in turn, saying that if he had properly introduced himself, she would have given him a tour of her castle.

• 'Quite the raconteur.' Gerhardt enquires after Lukas and Margritte confirms that she and Lukas had lunch, and that Lukas told many stories. Again, she makes it clear that while her castle may host many horrors, here in the main building — where Lukas and Greta are guesting — things are much more civilised. This somewhat settles Gerhardt's concern for Lukas. Yume, by comparison, has none of it and snorts in derision in the background.

• Rooms. The PCs are given rooms with a view over the Reik, and Gerhardt, whose mind turns to food, enquires after Dumpling. Margritte explains that Dumpling is still in the barge below the castle. Margritte was suspicious of the halfling, so she did not let her into her home. Yet, at least. Margritte then leaves the PCs to clean, change, or do anything else they prefer.

• Yume Sticks Her Tongue Out. Yume sticks her tongue out at the retreating Margritte. Yume does not like the lady of the house. Up to this point, she is the only PC openly expressing her dissatisfaction with the current circumstances.

• Alamennowyth Spins. With Margritte gone, Alamennowyth gives the party a fully acceptable set of excuses for their actions in Castle Wittgenstein: in short, blaming everything on Sigrid, who had clearly broken her Ulrican vows of chastity and was likely acting dishonourably in other ways. That should give them enough of an excuse for raiding the castle. However, the party immediately attacks this position: Elrick is horrified at the patchwork men; Birdie is horrified by the mutants; Luitpold is horrified at what happened to Sigrid's husband; and Yume is just horrified. Seeing their undisguised anger and horror, Alamennowyth tries to persuade them that diplomacy is the best option for fear of what might happen if Margritte turns on them. But Luitpold is having none of that. He explains that he would rather express his anger than suppress it, and Elrick also openly ridicules Alamennowyth's position. Gerhardt claims he is impressed with the quality of the furniture to break the building tension, but is only partially successful.

• Lukas arrives. As Gerhardt tends Alamennowyth's wounds, Lukas arrives and says Lady Margritte has looked after him well, and that she is 'quite the character'. He also explains that her ladyship is uncertain what to think of them because of their 'antics' — which include assaulting her outer bailey, killing almost everyone out there, then raiding the inner keep.

• Emperor Wilhelm III. Lukas then drops a bombshell. He claims that Emperor Wilhelm III charged the Wittgensteins to study mutation, Chaos cults, and other matters by writ. And he says he has seen the writ. Is this true? Yes, it is. The Wittgenstein can of worms is about to be opened.

• 'As suspected.' Alamennowyth, who had suspected since arriving at Castle Wittgenstein that something had to explain all the oddities the party had encountered, shrugs that Lukas's revelations were 'as suspected.' Gerhardt, who is still tending her, finds that ridiculous. Nothing in this castle is acceptable or expected by him.

• Sigrid a Wittgenstein! Lukas also claims that Sigrid is Margritte's sister, back for revenge against her family. Is that true? No. Lukas gets this very wrong (which he admits may be the case). However, Sigrid is directly tied to Dagmar (she used to work with him up north, where he discarded her). Indeed, her knowledge of Dagmar is a primary reason why the Outlaws were so successful for so long: inside knowledge of how Wittgenstein works.

• Greta Arrives. As Lukas unburdens, Greta then turns up, having spoken with Margritte about the party's arrival. Once in the room, she starts with her belief that the 'woman is insane'. This is no act. She finds Castle Wittgenstein utterly horrific, and Margritte, at its heart, is utterly mad in her eyes. Not long after arriving at Castle Wittgenstein, Greta, ever the survivor, seduced Margritte and managed to get her to open up. But Greta did not like what she saw in Margritte at all: extraordinary intelligence and determination married with inhuman morals and an extreme belief in a cause, all of which was supported by an Imperial Writ from 'Wilhelm the Wise' that included the 'right to kill anyone who investigates' Castle Wittgenstein. All without limit. Margritte is, she believes, a fanatic. Greta is horrified that such a writ of that ilk from Wilhelm III could possibly exist, as it could be used to 'legally' kill witch hunters or Sigmarite Inquisitors! Which does not sound wise at all. Greta concludes the writ must be a forgery.

• Shemtek's Prophecy. Greta also explains that the Wittgensteins' duty originally stemmed from a previous Supreme Patriarch of the Eight Colleges of Magic, Shemtek of the Celestial Order, who foretold that the world would end soon in a great storm. The Wittgensteins were to divine ways to hold off the 'Storm of Shemtek' through the use of warpstone; i.e, by using Chaos to stop Chaos. The family have pursued this goal for over a century, investigating how warpstone and Chaos can be used to create soldiers and maybe even wizards, and finding ways to avert the incoming 'storm'.

• Ancient Research. Greta also managed to get Margritte to open up about her personal studies, which apparently rely on research 'thousands of years old' and involve maintaining 'flesh that never dies'. To be clear what this means: Margritte is studying the Books of Nagash, ancient tomes of necromancy that contain the knowledge of the Great Necromancer, Nagash.

• Prime Estates Vote. Greta also confirms that the Wittgensteins believe that the Empire's Prime Estates voted on the Wittgenstein Writ and approved it. But is this true? Did the representatives of the Empire's most important noble families debate and vote on the Wittgenstein writ during Wilhelm the Wise's time? Yes, they did, but none were fully aware of what they were voting for, or what the ramifications of the vote would be. Much like the Annexation of Ubersreik passed the Reikland Diet vote (more on that in a later blog), such votes can be forced under the correct circumstances.

• Dagmar is Still Alive! Greta also confirms that Dagmar, Margritte's grandfather, is still alive. He has extended his life long past what is normal in his quest to find ways to prevent the End Times by using warpstone. Is that true? Hell, yes. Magritte runs Wittgenstein; Dagmar runs things elsewhere, and it's all gone a bit bad...

• Do We Do Dinner? So, the PCs have an option: be polite and have dinner with horrific Margritte, or run? The party is unsure how to proceed.

• Creating Witches. Birdie wonders if the Wittgenstein research may be behind one of the Imperial family suddenly becoming a witch? A great question from Birdie, there. However, it is likely to be a very long time before it is answered. What happened to Immanuel-Ferrand in Dunkelburg is not yet known. Later episodes will mark out Dunkelburg as a place of importance, lending credence to this theory. But, as always, more on that later.

• 'I Use Legally Appointed Sorcery!' Elrick says this to claim that what he is doing with magic is fine, but what Margritte is doing with magic is not. It's a super weak position as they are both using 'legally appointed sorcery', but it is said with some passion, as Elrick does not like what is happening in Wittgenstein.

• 'Your people live in filth and squalor and torment.' After hearing everything that is apparently happening in Wittgenstein, Alamennowyth concludes it's no worse than what humans suffer elsewhere. She then goes further. She claims Wittgenstein is more honest and discriminating in its actions because it targets Chaos and seeks to combat the End Times, which is also a goal she shares. Unbeknownst to the party, Margritte is listening to all of this (although the party suspected this may be the case) and finds herself hugely impressed with Alamennowyth's passion and direct tone. The elf is standing up for Margritte and her work so completely and with such certainty against those who clearly disagree with her, and Margritte's dead soul is touched. Margritte will never mention this — she's had her heart broken before and has bigger fish to fry — but Alamennowyth's speech changes how Margritte responds to the party from that point on. She now actively wants to win them over. Or, more simply, she wants Alamennowyth to like her. A simple human response to being seen.

• 'Kill her.' 'Ally with her.' Elrick says the first, which is illegal but he believes is moral; Alamennowyth says the second, which is legal and she believes is the best outcome. Which do you think is right? Kill or ally with Margritte?

• 'She stands against the Ruinous Powers.' Lukas attempts to play daemon's advocate to his personal position (he believes the Wittgensteins must be stopped), and explains that Margritte made it clear what her intentions were: to stop the Ruinous Powers. He believes it is why she lives and breathes — much like, in many respects, Alamennowyth. But, in the pursuit of that goal, how far is too far? That will be a question that we return to again and again as the campaign progresses, as it's not just the Wittgensteins and Alamennowyth asking it. Margritte concluded to Lukas that, 'when it comes to a final battle, would you rather be weaker or stronger?' Again, what's the correct answer here? Is there one?

• 'Studying an ancient form of Necromancy that was studied by the Elves?' Margritte told Lukas she didn't study Necromancy, per se, but an ancient form of it that the Elves passed to humanity. Is that true? In short: yes. But it's a long, complicated story that won't be covered until far later in... a later campaign? If we ever get there. For now, just know that Margritte doesn't use Nagash's Necromancy, but an older form. By comparison, Dagmar does use Nagash's Necromancy, and he likes it.

• Petition to Legalise Mutation. Did Margritte petition Karl-Franz four years ago to have mutation be declared legal, as Greta suggests? Yes, she did. Margritte came to the firm conclusion that the Cult of Sigmar was wrong about mutation, that it did not represent corruption by Chaos. She believes that mutant souls are not lost and damned, and that mutants should not be killed merely for existing. Her reasons for this are long, and she admits they are weighted by her 'father' being a mutant. But, yes, she is the initial source of the Emperor's first thoughts on legalising mutation.

• Clammed Up. Greta notices the first hints that Margritte is concerned about her 'grandfather', Dagmar, because Margritte clams up whenever Dagmar's name or deeds are mentioned. There is clearly tension there. And, in this, Greta is spot on. Margritte knows Dagmar has fallen to Chaos, though she has no desire to admit it, especially because she is responsible for him becoming very powerful. More on that in a mo'.

• Gerhardt is angry. Eventually, Gerhardt breaks and calls out Alamennowyth's argument in support of Wittgenstein as complete bullshit. However, he doesn't explain his position because it's dinnertime. So that tension hangs in the air as the party heads out to meet Margritte.

• Necromancy or End Times. At the table, Luitpold receives a vision that a choice will come that offers Necromancy or the End Times, and that both are completely unacceptable. So, is this accurate? Well, kinda, yes. But that won't make sense for a long time. Let's shelf this one until later. SIGMARWATCH! So, is this Sigmar? Nope. Luitpold the Shadowguy directed it.

• Yume's Mum Agrees? Yume considers what her mother — who is a follower of Fudokyo, the Way of the Unmovable Heart, a Nipponese religion — would think of Wittgenstein, and concludes that she would think it is necessary. Yume is not only correct in her supposition, but unbeknownst to her, Magritte and Ume's mum have met, agreed on many matters, become lovers, and shared much more besides. That's why the Nipponese artefact Ume stole was in the Main Hall — it was a gift from Yume's mum to Margritte as a token of her enduring affection.

• My father has fallen. At dinner, Margritte opens with a speech aimed at getting Alamennowyth fully on side, and starting the process of breaking down the rest of the party's resistance to her. Part of that is by opening with a huge admission, one that makes Margritte anxious: her grandfather, Dagmar, has fallen in Chaos, and Margritte knows it. In her nervousness, she makes an error and calls Dagmar 'father', but there is a reason for that. Dagmar liked Margritte calling him 'father', and she often refers to him as father when she's less careful. As for why, we'll get to that in a much later blog. For now, the key takeaway is that Margritte claims Dagmar, an ancient necromancer, has been a member of a Chaos Cult for almost 15 years, and that at least two of those years he has fully fallen to Chaos. And Margritte would like to do something about that.

Phew! Long one. If you spot mistakes, tell me, and I'll fix 'em.

And that's us done with another episode of LAWhammer. Up next will be Episode 20: Morr, Resplendent in Green, and we'll also do a brief review of Episode 19.1: The Storm of Shemtek.

As always, if you have any comments or questions about this blog or feel I missed some important stuff from Episode 19 that needs to be discussed, post here on Patreon, where the PCs can't see, or in the #all-access-lawhammer channel in LAWhammer, where, it's worth noting again, the PCs can't see!

Until next time!

Andy