Doors to Elsewhere: A Heart Sourcebook

28 Pages·2020·4.197 MB·English

by  Grant Howitt, Chris Taylor

DOORS TO
ELSEWHERE
GRANT HOWITT & CHRISTOPHER TAYLOR
ILLUSTRATED BY FELIX MIALL
D•oorstoElsewhere
WrittenbyGrantHowittandChristopherTaylor
IllustratedbyFelixMiall
Editedby HelenGouldandMaryHamilton
LayoutanddesignbyMinervaMcJanda
ProducedbyMaryHamilton
Copyright©2020byGrantHowittandChristopherTaylor.
PublishedbyRowan,RookandDecardLtd.
FirstEdition(2020)
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybe
reproduced,distributed,ortransmittedinanyformorby
anymeans,includingphotocopying,recording,orother
electronicormechanicalmethods,withouttheprior
writtenpermissionofthepublisher,exceptinthecaseof
briefquotationsembodiedincriticalreviewsandcertain
othernoncommercialusespermittedbycopyrightlaw.
Forpermissionrequests,writetothepublisheratthe
addressbelow.
Rowan,RookandDecard
15TufnellCourt,OldFordRoad
E35JJ,UnitedKingdom
www.rowanrookanddecard.com
Contentwarnings:Heartisahorrorgame,andassuch,
therearesomeunpleasantthingsinthetext.These
includebutarenotlimitedto:violence,druguse,
addiction,ghosts,unwantedbodilytransformation,and
monstersthatusedtobepeople.Wecanassureyouthat
thereisnorapeorsexualassaultinthisgame.
2
DOORS TO ELSEWHERE 2
Life in the city Elsewhere 5
LANDMARKSINELSEWHERE 8
FACTIONS 12
THELIVINGCITY 12
THEGUILDOFCARTOGRAPHERS 13
THEGENTLEMEN 14
THEVERMISSIANCOLLECTIVE 15
THEHOUNDS 15
THESPIRALCOUNCIL(ANDTHEMINISTRYOFOURHIDDENMISTRESS) 16
UNALIGNED 16
DIMENSIONAL THEORY 17
Appendices 22
BeatsandMinorAdvances 22
RUNNINGDOORSTOELSEWHERE 23
ElsewhereRandomTables 24
DoorstoElsewhere is a campaign frame for the Heart RPG.You’ll learn about
the strange living city of Elsewhere (a dimensional crux between other‐
worlds), the inhabitants within, the worlds connected to it and the danger
lurkingintheshadowsatnight.
Tousethisbook,you’llneedacopyofHeart:TheCityBeneath.Giventhatthe
DoorstoElsewherescenariofocusesontheappearanceofmysteriousdoors,you
candropitinthemiddleofanongoinggametoaddalevelofcomplication(and
maybetiesomeofthefactionstoexistinggroupsinyourstory).Or,youcanset
itupasafree-standingadventurewheretheplayercharactersholdthefateof
boththeCityElsewhereandtheCityBeneathintheirhands.
1
D
o
o
r
s
t
o
E It’sbeensixweekssincethefirstdooropened. WHERE ARE THE DOORS?
l
s InacrumblingwalloftheTempleoftheMoon
e
w Beneath, a nondescript door appeared and Anywhere you want them to be! They’re concen‐
h opened of its own volition, revealing a street trated around Tier 1, because if a load of them
e
r beneathastrangesky,thesmellofrichfoodand openeduponTier3itwouldn’tbeweirdenough
e
thecriesofmarkettraders.Beyondthosestreets to justify writing an entire adventure about it.
lay portals to other dimensions.It was a door to Herearesomeideasforlocations:
Elsewhere: a crossroad between worlds, a great • Put one in a landmark where the characters
andancientandinscrutablecity. have bonds or regular haunts; it appears,
Sincethen,peoplehavefounddozensmore,and someone goes through and they don’t come
the whispers have spread throughout the Cities back. Pretty soon, one or more organisations
Beneath and Above. Power blocs are doing what listed in the factions section below will
they can to control these valuable resources and approachtheplayercharacterswithanofferof
limit the damage while the Interstitial – darkling workintheworld(orworlds)beyond.
predatorsfromElsewhere–creepintotheHeart. • Onadelve,theplayercharactersfindadoorin
Why all the doors? What secrets hide behind awallofrockwhichleadstoElsewhere.Oneof
thebright,cleanwallsofElsewhere?Andhowcan thefactionshaveusedittotravelthroughand
the player characters make some cash and fur‐ there’s evidence of their passing. If the group
thertheirownobsessionsbytakingadvantage? follows them,they’ll spot agents disappearing
intothecitystreets.
• An Interstitial arrives in the landmark where
WHAT’S REALLY GOING ON?
the player characters are and starts eating
TheCityElsewhereispanicking,andallitknows people.It’seasyenoughtodriveoff(ifnotkill)
is doors. The crystals that support its galvanic once they work out its aversion to light, but
lightshavebeenstolenonebyone;nowtheplace following the trail of fading liquid darkness it
is growing dim, and some districts are entirely left behind reveals a door to Elsewhere in the
withoutpower. dirt.Itswingsopenintotheground,revealing
The Interstitial, which are unable to move in arooftop.
patchesoflight,aretakingmoreandmorepeople • Amysterioustravellerandtheirfamily(rollon
everynight.Bythrowingopendozensofportalsto the “THIS PERSON IS….” table in the
the Heart, Elsewhere is hoping to attract motiv‐ appendix,p.25)arriveinalandmarkviaoneof
ated individuals to solve the mystery of who or the doors. They speak of Elsewhere: a once-
what stole the crystals (and maybe distract some great city between worlds, brought low by
oftheInterstitialbygivingthemafoodsource). darkness. They’re looking for a place to stay
Ifno-onereturnsthecrystalstotheCity,thedoors untiltheyfindtheirfeet,andtheymightbeable
willstayopen–buttheInterstitialwilleateveryone toserveasaguideinElsewhereduringtheday.
inElsewhere,breedlikerabbitsandtheninvadethe
Heart.Iftheplayercharacterscareaboutanyoneat
all,they’reatrisk,whethertheyknowitornot.
2
EXAMPLEDOORSTOELSEWHERE HOW DO THE DELVERS FIND D
o
• AnunfinishedpaintingoftheElsewheresky‐ OUT ABOUT THE THEFTS? o
r
line–thespiresandgantriesaresketchedin s
t
pencilandthecoloursareallroughblocks.As Have an NPC tell them – any faction powerful
o
time passes an unseen hand completes the enough to hire them will have an inkling as to E
l
paintingtoaphoto-realisticlevel,andwhen what’s really going on. Bear in mind that the s
e
it’sfinished,itbecomesafunctioningportal. lower-ranked an NPC is, the less solid an idea w
• A corpse, slumped in a seated position they’ll have.For example,the head of the Carto‐ h
e
againstawall,hasblossomedintocoral-like graphers will know all about the thefts, but an r
e
growthsthatformadoorway.Observerscan inquisitive Vermissian clerk who pokes their
stillmakeouttheskull,aswildandfragmen‐ nose where it doesn’t belong only suspects that
tedasitis;it’sasthoughthecorpsescreamed someoneistakingsomethingfromthevaults.
thecalcifiedportalintoexistence.
• A door that opens onto another door, and
WHO TOOK THE POWER
that onto another, and that onto another,
untiluntolddoorsdeepitopensintoaback-
CRYSTALS?
roominElsewhere.
• A swarm of insects – flies, some iridescent Whoeveryouwant!Therearereasonsformostof
beetles, some glow-bugs, some fat and wrig‐ thefactionsactiveinElsewheretostealthecrys‐
glingmoths–flutterandbuzzintheairinsuch tals, so pick one of the groups that your players
awayastodescribetheshapeofadoor.When haveinteractedwithanddropsomecluesthatit
they’redispersed,thedoorceasestofunction. wasthemallalong.Youcanlearnmoreaboutthe
• An iron door with a brass plaque on it that factionsonp.12.
reads“ELSEWHERE”inalavishfont.It’sbeen
knockedoffitshinges;ifyoufixittoanother THE INTERSTITIAL definitely seem like they
surfaceandopenit,itfunctionsasaportalto should be stealing the power crystals, but it
Elsewhere.It’saboutasportableasanyother wasn’tthem–theycan’teveninteractwiththe
irondooris,whichistosay:notvery. crystals, since they emit light. However, you
• Apropdooronstageinanabandonedtheatre canandshouldmakeitseemasthoughthey’re
fromamoreprosperoustime;itseemslike,by responsibleforthethefts,becauseitmakesfor
changing the set-dressing, you can modify agoodtwist.
where the door leads to in the city of Else‐
where.Butit’snotanexactscience,andyou’re THECARTOGRAPHERShavestolentheminan
notsureallthedestinationsarefriendly. efforttoholdElsewherehostage.Theywantto
• Acentralpressurisedcylinderthatrotatesin waituntiltheinhabitantsarereallydesperate
placetorevealanopeningthatallowsaccess andthenclaimtheyaloneknowthesecretsof
for one person at a time; climb in, activate understanding the city, raising themselves
thepressureplateonthefloorandtheentire fromlogisticalexpertstoarulingtheocracy.
thing spins to face the opposite direction
and,conveniently,Elsewhere. THELIVINGCITYdidn’tstealthem–it’stheone
who lost them in the first place. However, if
the players try to return the crystals,it’ll help
as best it can. Usually that means opening
beneficial routes or closing off passages to
delaypursuit,butitmightsendoutaTicker(p.
12)toassistthemonaparticularlydangerous
mission.
3
D
THE SPIRAL COUNCIL don’t much care about
o HOW DOES IT END?
o the citizens of Elsewhere and need power to
r
s sustainIncursion42.Iftheystolethecrystals, If the crystals aren’t returned to their housings
t
they’re using them to build a path of light andthetheftscontinue,Elsewheredescendsinto
o
E across the city from their access routes to the a desperate, dark place. The Interstitial run
l
s Incursion point,reinforcing them and bring‐ rampant and most people move out; those who
e
w ingdownsquadsoftroopstoinvadeNujab. stay are scared, violent and unwelcoming. The
h doors stay open and Interstitial creep through
e
r THE MINISTRY OF OUR HIDDEN MISTRESS everynightuntilthey’reclosed.
e
arecollectingpowercrystalstobuildamassive Ifthetheftsarestoppedbutthecrystalsaren’t
psychic explosive, which they will detonate returned, Elsewhere turns to the Cartographers
underneath Amaranth – the aelfir district in forguidanceonhowtopleasetheCity.Elsewhere
theupperlevelsofSpire.Theybelieveitwould becomesatheocracyruledbytheCartographers,
leave the structure intact but kill everyone and great fires are built with fuel forcibly taken
inside. It’s more of a bargaining chip than a fromotherdimensionstokeeptheInterstitialat
realsolution. bay.Asabove,thedoorsstayopen.
If the thefts are stopped and the crystals are
THE VERMISSIAN COLLECTIVE are stealing returned, everything goes back to normal – as
the crystals to restart the Vermissian, or at normalasitwasbefore,anyway–andtheplayer
least force it to occupy only one dimension at characters have probably earned the favour of
once.Theorganisationasawholewouldnever one faction and the ire of at least one more.The
admit this, and most operatives aren’t even doors close,but the characters know the trick of
awareoftheplan.ThesacrificeofElsewhereis gettingbackhere:theCitygivesthemkeyswhich
consideredafairpriceforprogress. turnanydoorintoanaccesspointatacostofD8
stresstoFortune.
THE HOUNDS, or a rogue faction within the
Hounds,arestealingthecrystalstosellformoney
ontheblackmarket.Theythenspendthemoney
toreinforcedefences,buygunsandarmourand
livelikegoddamnundergroundkings.
THE GENTLEMEN are stealing the crystals to
powertheshowtoendallshowsatL’EnferNoir;
acosmicburlesquewheretheheadlineactwill
beanuclearstriptease.Thefactthattheircous‐
insinElsewherewillbeabletooverrunthecity
withoutthepresenceofthecrystalsisnothing
morethananafterthoughttothem.
4
L
i
f
e
i
ELSEWHERE BY DAY ELSEWHERE BY NIGHT n
t
h
Elsewhere is in between worlds. It is a vast city The streets are deserted because the Interstitial e
filledwithpeopleandlightandcolourandnoise; have arrived: insidious, maddening, ravenous C
i
awarrenofpathwaysandalleys;ahundredmar‐ thingsofpatchworkdarknessandliquidshadow. t
y
ketsandathousandworkshopsallbuiltatopone They cannot step into the light. Within the E
l
another. The buildings rise four or five storeys boundaries of Elsewhere, light doesn’t have a s
e
high, and bridges are built between them from penumbra – the shadows are razor-sharp and
w
wroughtironandstoneorwoodandrope. ink-black,becausetheInterstitialarepushingas h
e
There is a sun overhead,as you would expect; closeastheycanget.
r
itrainsintherainyseasonandit’shotinthehot Therearen’tmanytheoriesonwhattheIntersti‐ e
season. But the boundaries of the city are the tialactuallyare.Peopletrynottothinkaboutthem,
boundaries of the plane it resides on: there’s otherthanavoidingthem,andit’sperfectlysafeas
nothing beyond the city limits that can be per‐ longasthelightsstayon.Commonwisdomstates:
ceivedbytheeyesofmortals.It’sjustnot.There’s
not a blankness, a void, a wall or anything like • Don’t look at them: you go mad, and they can
that.There’sjustnothingthere. smellattention.
Uniquetoallplacesyetdiscoveredinthemul‐ • Don’tletashadowtouchyourbed.
tiverse,Elsewherenaturallycreatespassageways • Shinealamponyourkeyholebeforeyougotobed.
tonearbydimensionswithinitself(thoughmost • Never be more than three feet from a lantern
dimensionsaresolitarycreatures,andavoidcon‐ oncethesungoesdown.
tact with others in case they’re absorbed) and
forms a nexus for interdimensional travel. You Theydon’tseemtohaveagrandscheme;theyjust
can get to pretty much anywhere from here, if eatpeoplewhogointothedark,andthey’revery
you know the route or can compel the Carto‐ goodatit.They’reinvisibleintheirnaturalhabitat,
graphersintorevealingit. andtheonlywayyou’llbeabletotellthey’vefound
During the day, Elsewhere whips up into a you is the sound of too many feet clicking on the
flurry of activity as traders, craftspeople and cobblestones as you’re surrounded. Even people
map-makers spread through the streets. At whocanseeinthedarkcan’tregistertheIntersti‐
night,itislitupfirework-brightbythousandsof tialonanysensiblewavelength;atbest,theyshow
colouredbulbsfizzingwithelectriclight,andthe upastexturedshadoworglisteningdark.
streetsaredeserted. Sincethetheftofthepowercrystals,wholedis‐
tricts have been plunged into darkness. People
huddlearoundwhatlightsourcestheycanmuster
– candles, lanterns, galvanic lights running from
experimentalhand-crankedgeneratorsandsoon.
DrowandSunlight Thecityisevenmoredangerousthanusual.
Drow have an ancestral trait where sunlight
causes them pain and physical harm; in Spire, MOVINGTHROUGHTHECITYATNIGHT
theymarkstressifthey’reevercaughtoutinthe If you’re outside when the sun goes down, you’ll
sun. Elsewhere’s sun has a similar effect on need to dash between islands of light (many of
drow,butfortheeaseofplay,it’snotworthusing whicharedyingasthecitystrugglestopowerthem)
mechanics to represent the threat of sunlight to reach your destination. As such, moving from
damage. Assume that drow characters take onepointtoanotherinElsewhereduringthenight
sensible precautions against it and are able to functionsasadelve:Resistance5forthelengthofa
avoid getting anything worse than minor sun‐ highstreet,Resistance10tomovebetweendistricts
5
burnwithnoin-gameeffect. andResistance15or20totraversetheentirecity.
L INTERSTITIAL
i
f
e NAMES:None
i
n DESCRIPTORS: The smell of curdled milk; The
t sound of mandibles inexpertly but tirelessly
h
e picking open the lock on your door; The sensa‐
C tionofgreasyliquidshadowbeneathyourboots
i
t MOTIVATION:Tostayoutofthelight;toeatyou
y
E DIFFICULTY: Standard in well lit-areas, Risky in
l
s dimly-litareas,Dangerousinabsolutedarkness
e
RESISTANCE:6
w
h PROTECTION:2
e
RESOURCES: Liquid darkness (D6, Harmful,
r
e Occult)
EQUIPMENT: Claws, spines, teeth, etc. (D6,
Piercing)
SPECIAL: Interstitial cannot exist in light. In
theirhomedimensionthere’snosuchthingas
penumbras,and the shadows are shorter and
clean-edged. In the Heart, things are a bit
looser – brave Interstitial can try to lunge at
lightsandsnuffthemout.Inaperfectlywell-
lit area with a minimum of shadows, you’re
safe;butsettingsomethinglikethatupinthe
Heartisnearlyimpossible.
DOMAINS:Occult,Warren.
FALLOUT: SHADOWED. [Minor, Fortune] The
Interstitial put out one or more of the lights in
the area, increasing their difficulty to Risky
unlessyoure-lightthemorrelocate.
FALLOUT: BLACKOUT. [Major, Fortune] As
SHADOWED,but the Interstitial increase their
difficultytoDangerous.
6
L
ELSEWHERE AS IT STANDS THE POWER CRYSTALS if
e
i
The city is in turmoil. People are abandoning Each of these is about the size of a drow’s head n
their homes and workshops to flee to areas that andirregularlyshaped.Theyemitlight,butmore t
h
still have access to electric light. They’re setting importantly, they wirelessly transmit energy to e
up makeshift camps in town squares,sheltering resonant bulbs when connected to the city’s C
i
around flickering lamp posts, sharing candles metallicsuperstructure.Theknackofmakingthe t
y
andscavengingfuelforexperimentalgenerators. bulbsisuniquetoElsewhere,althoughthereare E
l
In the abandoned areas, looters are stealing ahandfulofpeopleintheHeartortheCityAbove s
e
whatevervaluablestheycanfindbeforefleeingto smartenoughtofigureouthowtodoit.
w
litislandsofsafety. They’restoredinsecretbeneaththecitystreets, h
e
Tensionsarehigh;toomanypeoplehavebeen and the City doesn’t especially want people to
r
forced into too small a space. Some people have know where they are.But there are clues: certain e
fledtootherdimensions–afewhavecomeinto patternsofroads,glyphscarvedintoancientstone
the Heart, and many have fled to Quinn and andsensesbeyondthestandardfivecanallpoint
Hollow(p.18).TheylooktotheCartographersfor totheexistenceofacrystalnearby.
aidandassistance,butnoneofthemknowwhat’s Getting inside isn’t easy. There are traps to
going on (or they’re not telling). The buildings bypass, and on occasion walls must be entirely
where the power crystals are stored are kept destroyedtoallowaccess.What’smore,handling
secrettomostofthepopulace,andnotalloftheir the crystals themselves isn’t safe. They thrum
locations are known. The Cartographers are with barely-contained energy, which can cause
doingtheirbesttokeepaneyeontheknownloc‐ nosebleeds, organ malfunction and hallucina‐
ations,butthey’reoverworkedandunderstaffed. tions. Still, they’re powerful enough that
someone’swillingtopitchElsewhereintoafatal
blackouttogettheirhandsonthem.
7
L LANDMARKS IN
if LANGUAGE
e
i ELSEWHERE
n AlotofdifferentlanguagesarespokeninElsewhere
t – far more than in the City Beneath. The city has
h
e developeditsownpatoisconstructedfromthemost At night, these landmarks will function as out‐
C commonlanguagesneartheentrypointstoaltern‐ linedintheHeartcorerulebook–they’reislands
i
t atedimensions,andalotofpeopleusepictographic of stability, or at least interest, in an ocean of
y
E shorthandorelaborategesturingtogettheirpoint flickering dark. During the day, travel between
l
s across.Folkareusedtohavingtomaketheirinten‐ them is much easier,and won’t require any kind
e
w tionsknownwithoutrelyingonlanguage. ofdelvemechanicstoresolve(unlessyouthinkit
h But: that’s pretty difficult to represent in a wouldbeinterestingtousethem).
e
roleplaying game, and it isn’t very engaging to
r
e have a load of NPCs that the player characters CROWDSWALLOWMARKET
can’t talk to. If you think it’d be interesting, you DOMAINS:Haven,Occult,Warren
canhaveaplayermakeaDiscern+Occultcheckto DEFAULTSTRESS:D4
makeheadwayinconversations–onafailureor HAUNTS:
partial success, they get taken advantage of, • Heshbet,amanwhotradesfutures(Fortune,D8)
causeoffenceorbuythewrongthing. • Awidevarietyofmarkettraders(Supplies,D12)
It’s fun the first couple of times, but when the
playerswanttotalktosomeoneimportant,youcan Crowdswallow Market is perpetually busy. Each
assumethattheyhavesomekindofworkaroundfor of the seven streets that it encompasses are
thelanguageproblem.Belowaresomequickideas: packed with people bartering and yelling at one
• A magical hookah in the centre of the table another, and only at night when the darkness
allows everyone smoking from it to beginstoencroachontheedgesofthemarketis
communicate telepathically (and it only gets iteverseenempty.But:itisanillusion,atrickof
youslightlyintoxicated). themarketwhichitissaidusedtobeatravelling
• An unremarkable-looking book is handed to merchantcaravanfromunderstrangestars,and
the character, which details both sides of the thecrowdsarenotrealpeopleatall.
conversation that they’d have with the NPC if Atfirstit’shardtorealisethis;manyvisitorsto
theysharedalanguage.TheNPCsmilesquietly Elsewherehavebeenthroughthemarketwithout
andwaitsforthedelverstoreadit. noticinganythingoutofplace,especiallyifthey’re
• Golden coins of Azur, the god of plenty, allow in a rush. The market’s illusory crowds are made
anyone who carries them to speak and up of people that visitors have seen in the past –
understand any language. They rust away the no-one who they’d know by name, but people
morethey’reused,eventuallybeingreducedto who’ve caught their attention for a moment and
aredsmear(whichisweird,butthereyougo). vanishedintothedepthsoftheirmemories.
• A listening-trumpet that translates almost all Theseillusionsaresubstantial,inasmuchthey
thewordsyouhearintoyournativelanguage. feeljustlikearealcrowd:visitorsbumpandjostle
against as they move through a group, for
example, rather than simply passing through
them like insubstantial ghosts.But observe them
forlongenoughandyou’llseethattheyneveractu‐
allybuyanything–alltheirmovementsareapan‐
tomimeofsomeonegoingtomarket,moneynever
changeshands,andtheirbagsneverbecomemore
full.Theircoinsarefake,theycan’tholdaconver‐
sation, and while they all seem busy they don’t
seemtobegoinganywhereinparticular.
8