[DCtRPG] – Hi Lee, thanks for taking the time to talk to us here at DCtRPG.info. Before we start the interview proper, care to tell the readers a bit more about yourself?

[Lee] – I’m a slightly atypical working-class English bloke, as I don’t like football (soccer) and I know what atypical means! Seriously, I am 46 and from more or less the middle of England. Always been into science fiction, fantasy, thrillers and so forth. Apparently I could read unaided without talking out loud from the age of 3 or so, which has to have some bearing on my lifelong love of reading and other general geekyness!

[DCtRPG] – Always good to meet another geek! I guess also that you’re a life long roleplayer?

[Lee] – I was in a wargaming club as a teenager, and one day I saw this bunch of people sat around a table talking their way through a fight rather than shifting models around. This intrigued me greatly, so the following week I had a chat with one of the guys and he explained what it was all about. Soon, I couldn’t get enough roleplaying! The very first session I was in was original AD&D, and somewhere I still have the character sheet. He was a second level fighter I think. Not long after this, I purchased my very first RPG, which was the classic Traveller three-books-in-a-box. Never looked back since!

[DCtRPG] – Another one hooked by the bug I see. But what about Dark Conspiracy, how or when did you discover this great little game?

[Lee] – I had seen ads for the game in Challenge magazine and just thought it looked kind of interesting. A few months later my friend Dave (aka Ferret) organised a game weekend at his place, and Dark Conspiracy was on the agenda. He happens to be one of the best gamers I have ever met, both as player and GM, and the game combined with his home-brew scenario to grow into something special. Within weeks I had ventured to Dungeons & Starships in Birmingham and bought every Dark Conspiracy book that had been released by that time. On reading the main rulebook it struck me that there was a similarity to classic Traveller, in that the rules were a framework upon which you could build your own individual take on things.

[DCtRPG] – And so what was/is it about DC that really appealed?

[Lee] – More than anything else, it is the wide spectrum of styles that the game supports. Low-life drug dealers slaughtered by monsters from outer space? Check. Corporate espionage and dodgy deals in the boardroom? Check. Escaped genetic mutations just trying to survive? Check. Facing off against eldritch horrors from twisted alternate dimensions? That too! It’s all there waiting to be used. Of course, as Lester Smith himself said, GDW’s basic premise behind the original game was “monsters blow up real good”. He gave us plenty of other avenues to explore though, and that is where we as fans have gone with it.

[DCtRPG] – Damn straight! But it does lead me to ask, what was or is the least appealing aspect of the game or its system?

[Lee] – Hmm, well I guess we all know which of the rules are fiddly and over-complicated (automatic fire, I’m looking at you!) or just slightly too simple (Initiative). We should remember that the rules were held over from Twilight: 2000 v2 and a later version, used in Traveller: New Era and T2K v2.2 fixed a couple of things. Hopefully the optional rules we have in mind for the 3 Hombres edition will help things. As for the setting, the only problem I ever had was that there are so many disparate parts to it that they don’t really gel together at first.

[DCtRPG] – As I stated in the introduction, you are a well known contributor to the Dark Conspiracy line. What was it exactly that got you to start contributing?

[Lee] – When GDW went bump I just started to jot down anything that came to mind that could be dropped into a DC session or adventure. After reading a few novels the idea of the Republic of Britain came to mind, so I started laying that out just for myself. I happened across Demonground just after issue 2 was released, having only just discovered the internet at that time. The reason my name was all over the next couple of issues is because you guys were kind enough to accept EVERYTHING I had written for DC over the previous 4 or so years! After issue 4 or so I started writing brand new material, which was most enjoyable. I met a lot of good people through Demonground and still keep up with most of them. That’s all down to yourself Marcus, and I can never thank you enough for that late night phone call!

[DCtRPG] – Aw, shucks! Thanks for the kind words. Getting back on track, however, I have to ask, out of all the writing you have done, what would you say is your favourite?

[Lee] – People still tell me their favourite thing of mine is the Republic of Britain, but for me that is just something I wrote! I don’t really have anything that stands out to me, but what I enjoy most is creating new equipment. I’m not a rules person, but inventing items and writing background is where I am most comfortable.

[DCtRPG] – Well we should do what we enjoy the most, as they say. And was it through your writing that you got involved with 3 Hombre Games and DC III?

[Lee] – After TGC’s [that was The Gamers’ Conglomerate – DCtRPG] effort sadly came to nought (and it was a damn fine attempt!) things were in limbo for a while. Once again it looked like Dark Conspiracy was cursed, but eventually Norm Fenlason chased the licence and managed to cut a deal. Right away he asked me and Tad Kelson if we would go with him on the journey to DCIII. Having known them both for some time, I jumped at it, and having collaborated with them both in the past we know which of us is the best at certain tasks. For DCIII I am mainly a proofreader and editor in practical terms, as well as being a sounding board for the others to bounce ideas off. In fact we all do that to each other.

[DCtRPG] – Excellent! Where there is a will there’s a way, as they say! So, what can we expect to see from the new DC?

[Lee] – Right now we are concentrating on the rules and setting material for DCIII. We have several adventures already written and on the back burner, which will be released when DCIII is finished. This is so they can be statted for the new rules rather than being new material for the old version, as our previous material has been. There will be cross-compatibility of course. There is also a slight chance we may develop our own simple ruleset, which would enable us to offer non-DCIII material in future.

[DCtRPG] – Well I for one am looking forward to what this new era in DC will bring! Finally, before I let you go, I just have ask, if you have a free hand, and an unlimited budget, of course, where would you ultimately like to see Dark Conspiracy go?

[Lee] – If Call of Cthulhu was D&D then I’d want DCIII to be Pathfinder! Apart from that…I don’t know really. I guess I just want it to carry on and for new material to be done properly. The ability to offer things like full colour hardback print versions would be cool though.

[DCtRPG] – Thanks, Lee! It has been great having this chance to chat about the past present and future, and I’m sure that the readers will all join me in wishing you and the rest of the team the best of luck in your endeavours!

In terms of production style and format, Detour mimics the folio structure as seen in Ice Deamon and Nightsider (minus the card covers and maps). This includes such things as the adventure-related banner art on each page, the standard Dark Conspiracy footer and a single column of text, all which are great ‘nods’ to the previous editions and the continuity of the line. The art, all of which is provided by David Lee Ingersoll, is grey-scaled illustrations (except the front cover, which is full colour). These do a good job of invoking the atmosphere of the adventure, and ranges from average to good in terms of quality. That said nothing stands out as distinctly Dark Conspiracy in style or subject matter, although it makes up for this with a sheer quantity that far surpasses most other RPG products (for any line or system) of this size.

Structurally Detour is divided into eleven scenes although it should be pointed out that a few of these are more background and setting frameworks rather than being actual scenes to be played out in game. The first five of these detail the backdrop to the adventure and the information needed to involve the characters in the story, while the final six describe events within the plot and their likely outcomes during play.

The Hook

As Detour endeavours to detail life outside of the metroplexes and controlled zones, as much as it attempts to provide an actual playable scenario, it is not surprising that the adventure’s hook sees the characters, hired, coerced or forced into signing up with a group that frequents such places. In this case, the Minion Hunter’s potential employer is Salvage Incorporated (or SI), a company that earns a living as rubbish collectors and ‘refurbishers’ of old and abandoned goods.

The scenario’s first scene Taking the Road Less Travelled, offers a number of ways in which the characters might find gainful employment with SI, from the typical – the characters are on the trail of a missing friend or colleague and discover that SI are about to travel through the last place they were seen (deep in the Outlaw) – through to the one I could see being used most readily – the characters need to get away from the city as soon as possible, and the contract, as dangerous as it might seem, offers just that. It is also pointed out that, SI controls ‘a fair amount gray market activities’ in the community and this is yet another way of getting the characters involved in the story. It is great that Detour suggests a range of ways of being brought into an existing DC campaign, and these all gel well with the scenario’s style. Especially as I personally see the best use of this adventure being played out while the Minion Hunters are at a loose end or on the run from someone or something much more dangerous.

The main plot elements in Detour is SIs attempt to retrieve of a large backhoe (or, as they are often referred to outside of America, a JCB) that has either been put up for salvage in a small out-of-the-way place known as Crystal Lake. Of course Crystal Lake sits deep within the Outlaw and with trusted manpower in short supply the Minion Hunters are just the sort of individuals SI is looking for to complete its Sweep (group assigned to the task of retrieving the backhoe).

The events leading up to this opportunity, as well as the standing Salvage Incorporated and its owners – ‘Judge’ Darien Carter and Doug Wiley – has within the local community are detailed in next few scenes. The Urban Ecosystem, Making a Living from Society’s Scraps, Salvage Inc. and The Backstory and the Interview, all add greatly to the atmosphere of Detour and brings to life how society has changed with the onset of the Greater Depression.

The introduction portion of the adventure is rounded out with Scene Six – Salvage Incorporated’s Road Contracts – which explains just how Salvage Inc operates on the road. This is an excellent insight into how organisations like SI have to prepare for travelling in the Outlaw, and could easily be turned into a full scene where the characters are introduced to the team and told what to expect once out of the safety of New BosWash.

The Chase

At last the adventure proper starts with Scene Seven, The Trip, which covers the initial part of the outbound journey facing the Sweep and again highlights just how much life has changed in Dark America.

Scene Eight, Idle Chatter?, covers just the sorts of stories and rumours you’d expect a team of hardened ‘collectors’ to have gathered after years on the road. As with some of the earlier ‘scenes’, scene eight does a lot to add to the atmosphere to the game and would act as an excellent introduction to the world of Dark Conspiracy for the uninitiated. Approached as on the premise of someone positing the question of ‘what’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen on the road’, it covers things like the discovery of weird road-kill through to the appearance of strange new roads and beyond. It is a great scene, and the material introduced here alone could spark a dozen more Dark Conspiracy adventures.

Scene Nine, A Night in the Woods, returns to the main goal of the adventure, the retrieval of the backhoe, and details both the night the Sweep spends in the Outlaw, and how the group will approach Crystal Lake (or more importantly the lake’s lodge). The scene also provides the potential for an encounter with a group of Rock Gargoyles, although this both seems out of place and is easily avoided as presented.

The real crux of the story is played out in Scene Ten, Breakfast at the Crystal Lake Lodge, and it is here that we discover the real reason that SI (or, if the characters are there because of them, their friend or colleague) was lured to such an out of the way place. Suffice to say that Darkling lurking in the lodge is both conniving and cunning, and has the tools to achieve what it wants – yet more bodies and minds. Unfortunately this scene is somewhat of a letdown compared to the others, a real disappointment when it should have really been the focus (or climax) of what has been other wise a very immersive experience up to this point. My main complaint is that beyond the general motivations and ‘tools’ at the Darkling’s disposal, no real plan or goals beyond the collection of more bodies are mentioned. Worse still, what is presented is likely to quickly become a nothing more than a simple shoot-out and combat scene, with little chance of the players ever really discovering who, what or why the creature is in the Lodge (unless the Referee does a lot of plot development themselves).

The Day After is the eleventh and final scene of the supplement. A collection of further challenges that might face the Sweep as it returns with its prize to New Boswash, these range from encounters with gangers through to discovering another party interested in the Darkling the Minion Hunters have just encountered. Again, while these are well thought out, they seem all too brief and lacking details to really drive any further stories. That said, I think the one idea that does directly relate to the events at the lodge is very, very good, and has the potential to spawn an very interesting and perhaps different sort of Dark Conspiracy campaign.

Extras

Detour only provides a few extras, game stats for two weapons (a generic 12 Gauge Revolver Shotgun, and M1919A4 Machinegun) and an updated version of standard body armour (the Spectra Vest with Armour Inserts). In addition, the Darkling from the lodge is detailed in all its gory greatness, although disappointingly its personal minions are not (in fact, it is a bit of a serious error that the reader is pointed to the Dark Races Compendium for details on these, as other than that this scenario is nicely self contained).

Opinion

It is difficult to sum up what I think of Detour. The reason I say that is because in the end I don’t think it quite knows what it wants to be – an atmospheric setting piece or an example DC adventure. Personally I think it does better as the former, with some interesting and diverse ideas, and a style that really highlights the Dark Conspiracy setting. As an adventure it doesn’t have, in my opinion, much substance beyond the vignettes and core set-up.

Despite these rather negative sounding comments, Detour definitely hits some hit notes. The writing is excellent and, as I’ve said, it is probably the best example of atmospheric prose I’ve seen for the line. It is also interesting to see the author’s take on the Outlaw, a perspective which gives a feeling of it being part ‘wild west’, part ‘post apocalyptic’ in nature . Likewise the scenario does a great job in offering options for bringing the player characters into the adventures, being flexible enough to allow the adventure to be used by players of any DC style game. I also really enjoyed the design and layout of the adventure (a nod to the original supplements that to me says that 3 Hombres Games both respects and wants to build on Dark Conspiracy’s history), and the art, on reflection, is much better than one should really expect from a start-up game publisher releasing their first product.

While there are some editing errors in the text (for example, paragraph 2 on page 7 repeats the same information about the ‘trunk monkey’ – a truck’s tail-end gunner – twice in two different ways) and punctuation seems inconsistent throughout (a few missing fullstops, etc.), nothing really stands in the way of one enjoying the supplement for what it is – a damn good setting and kick-off point for Dark Conspiracy. In fact that is exactly what Detour is, an atmospheric look at ‘what Dark Conspiracy can be’ and how its themes make stand out from other conspiracy or horror games.

In the end there are just three things that in my opinion hold Detour back from great. The lack of details around the darkling creature (its goals and motivations beyond adding new victims), the absences of any sort of investigation (that the characters are limited to essentially entering a running battle with the Darkling once they are aware of its presence*), and the failure to provide the stats for the Darkling’s own minions (in my opinion, a publisher shouldn’t expect a potential player/Referee to have to purchase further material to use a supplement). As I said, none of these are ‘show-stoppers’ but if 3 Hombres Games ever decides to revisit Detour, they could do worse than add these few simple things to the PDF.

I like Detour, it is a great little product and it really showcases just what 3 Hombres Games brings to the line. I definitely look forward to reviewing more of their material in the future.

* although equally one could point out that this lack of investigation actually reinforces the themes of Dark Conspiracy and is probably more honest to its source than many of DC products.

Clear Credit

Detour, 2011 3 Hombres Games (11001DC2)
Author: Captain Obvious (an ‘obvious” nom-de-plume)
Cover & Illustrations: David Lee Ingersoll
Editing: Lee Williams
Graphic Design and Layout: Norm Fenlason
Additional Material: Kevin O’Neill

Ice Daemon is a 16 page adventure published in 1992 by GDW for the Dark Conspiracy gameline. It is the first of a new type of folio style adventures produced for the company (a format that would be used in one other Dark Conspiracy adventure – Nightsider – and at least one of the company’s adventures for the MERC: 2000 gameline). With a pretty typically average level of gaming art (for the period), the illustrations, both cover and interior, are a little below what GDW usually produces in its products (whether this was due to the lower price point of the adventure, or the way in which it was produced, I can not speculate). Fortunately the cartography is still top-notch and the entire adventure’s presentation does have a good ‘unified’ style and theme; ice blues mixed with washed out colours on the cover and end pieces, and easily read black & white text.

The Hook

I love the introduction to this adventure, to me it brings out one of the best aspects of horror gaming – the ability to throw the characters in the deep in at any time, and in any place. Ice Daemon does just that, starting the adventure in Texas during what could easily be one of those cut scenes when the Referee says – you head out from X and arrive in Y a few days later. Sure you’re tired, and a little short on ready cash, but you made it in good time. In particular the characters here are travelling in the desert heat, likely bored, hot and more than a little irritated.

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The folio format itself deserves some explanation, especially as, in my opinion, it is quite an innovative and interesting design during a time when most game companies were looking more and more towards full colour hard-backed supplements. The basic design is similar to the old Dungeons and Dragons adventures one might recall from the early 1980’s; a tri-fold cardboard cover which wraps around (but otherwise unattached) to the staple-bound adventure text. This ‘cover’ is full colour and on one side has the end pages (what one would call the traditional cover and back of the product), while on the other are the full colour maps of the important area(s) described in the adventure. The third panel details important information from the adventure, be it additional maps or statistics and descriptions of key Dark Lords or Minions. This panel is also perforated allowing the Game Master (GM) to remove it prior to play. By doing so, they are actually creating an adventure specific GM’s screen, which is a definite added bonus when running the scenario.
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Into this comes a strange weather pattern – high cumulus cloud – that at first sight seems to indicate a welcome thunderstorm. But, as they soon find out, and is reported on the local news, this storm quickly brings colder than expected weather that soon has the group reaching for the car heater!

This style of ‘surprise, you’re in an adventure now’ setup, as I said, really appeals, especially in Dark Conspiracy, where the evil facing the world is usually only encountered in seemingly chance encounters by most of the population. Here you get the mental image of a Dark America, which, while it might be bad by our standards, is still a place where you can life; work and raise a family in ignorant bliss– unless you luck out and have an encounter like this.

The Chase

The adventure proper starts when the group are forced to seek shelter from the worsening storm, which as you can well imagine, is causing havoc on the usually parched country side.  Here the party meets Albert Vincent, a helpful though cowardly young man who will assist the group in getting better prepared to face the sudden change of weather. Within this shelter the characters will have a chance to discover that the weather system seems to be focused a few miles north of their location, and centres (as the reporter or weather channel graphs will report) on a spot which seems to blink like a beacon on the weather radar.

Here Albert’s role comes to the fore and he can be used to prompt the characters to investigate this strange occurrence, either getting them out into the weather, or dying a horrible death at the jaws of the Ice Wolves. Once outside any suggestion that the weather might be natural is dispelled when the group encounters the aforementioned Ice Wolves. These large, aggressive beasts will attack immediately, and once killed will reveal tracks heading off in the direction of the blinking beacon seen earlier.

Following this, the characters come across an odd mound clouded in ice and snow, and more impressively a collection of creatures that could only be described as Yeti! These shaggy beasts seem to originate, although with the wolves from within the mound, and as they seem not aggressive or even to interested in the characters, access to this ‘complex’ is easy enough.

Once within the characters will quickly realise that they in the midst of some odd research facility, and will find a Greenhouse growing hydroponics, Mess and Bunk halls, and a storeroom. Exploring this complex is easy enough, until the group encounters either more wolves, or one of the humans who work along side the Yeti. If this does happen, a sharp and deadly firefight is likely to quickly break out, and the chances of the party ever discovering the truth behind the complex and the weather are remote. On the other hand, if the group succeeds in keeping from being discovered, they will soon discover what can only be called the Portal room.

This chamber houses numerous databanks and computer stations, and is dominated by a strange platform through which Yeti seem to suddenly appear. Here also is a small alien, the titular Ice Daemon, who with its empathic powers has infiltrated a corporation and is now funnelling its resources to create the complex and the dimensional platform. As the group watches the ‘parade’ of arrivals, it soon becomes clear that some sort of invasion is in progress, one that must be stopped!

It is likely that the climax of the adventure is one large battle, from which the Ice Daemon will flee, escaping through the portal (in a rather Deus ex machine moment). After its departure the real threat to the party appears – the Ice Wyrm. This massive creature is described as “is 1O meters tall and has a snake-like shape. Its long muscular body is armoured with sharp, chitinous plates. and ends with a spiked tail that it lashes as a weapon” and much too small for the room started to destroy the complex.

After what is likely to be a long and bloody fight, the characters must then stop or destroy the beacon – the now obvious source of the increasingly cold weather. Once achieved, Texas will slowly return to normal, although the Ice Daemon still remains at large.

Extras

Ice Daemon rounds out with notes on awarding experience, and a couple of pages of descriptions on the main enemies in the adventure; the Yeti, Ice Wolves, Ice Daemon and Wyrm, although details on their stats are listed on the third panel of the wrap-around cover (see below). Included here also, is information on the various item of Ice Dimension Darktek the group might have seen in action or have come to possess. None of this is very new or interesting, but it is good to see it collected together like this.

As I described earlier, Ice Daemon was published in a folio format, and for the most part follows the format I mentioned there. In particular the third panel deserves a special mention; perforated it detaches from the other section (which forms the front and back cover of the product when closed, and on the ‘inside’ a full colour map of the Ice Daemon’s complex), and details all the stats for the Minions and the Dark Lord. This is extremely handy and removes the need to flip back and forth between statistics and location description when actually running the game.

Opinions

I have fond memories of Ice Daemon, having run it a couple of times. It is a brief (4 or 5 hours in my experience) adventure that gets right to the point and into the action. Players have said that it is atmospheric (especially when run in winter) and has a nice climatic ending.

From a personal point of view, the scenario does what it says on the cover, and I could only gripe about a few things. The way Albert is used in the set-up confuses me a little, and I get the feeling he might have been a bit of a late inclusion aimed at ensuring the players get quickly on with the plot. I’ve always used him as a bit more of a more rounded character, having his own motivations and needs to both assist and hinder the party, this moves him away from just be a simple ‘trigger’ (i.e. get on with the adventure or more die) and more of a ‘red herring’ and plot devise (i.e. could he have something to do with the sudden snow fall).

In this I’ve also always set the beginning of the adventure in a small town ship, demonstrating how ill equipped the townsfolk are in dealing with the snows and sleet. This, I feel, helps place a sense of urgency, between the rapid collapse of the town and the attacks of the wolves, on the characters to solve the mystery. I’m probably being a little harsh here, as Ice Daemon is only 16 pages long, and does a good job of creating enough of a narrative to at least build on with ideas like this.

That said, one aspect of the plot I can never abide by is the ‘miraculous’ escape of the Ice Daemon needing to trigger the arrival of the Wyrm. Suffice to say that there are a myriad of options a Referee has to make this scene feel a little less ‘contrived’, but personally I’d have preferred if they were included in the adventure. Beyond that, however, I think Ice Daemon is a pretty good example of an adventure of this sort, and demonstrates one style of plot that is, in my opinion, sorely missed in this day and age of gaming.

Clear Credit

Ice Daemon, 1992 GDW (GDW 2111) – ISBN 1-55878-124-2
Design: Creede and Sharleen Lambard
Development: Nick Atlas
Editing: Dave Nilsen and Lester Smith
Cover and Interior Color Illustrations: Allen Nunis (pencils & inks), Steve Bryant, and Kirk Wescom (colors)
Interior Illustrations: Rick Harris
Art Direction: Steve Bryant
Graphic Design and Production: Amy Doubet, LaMont Fullerton, Rob Lazzeretti, and Kirk Wescom
Typesetting and Proofreading: Steve Maggi
Proofreading: Stephen Olle

Among the Dead is an 82-page adventure published in 1992 by GDW for the Dark Conspiracy game line. Complete with GDW’s higher than average layout and art standards (at least for the time), this scenario is one of the best produced in the series. A good read, it brings Russia—in the world of Dark Conspiracy—to life, but fails to provide a completely compelling story at points.The adventure itself is divided into seven main sections, five which describe the storyline and events the characters will find themselves encountering, while the final two detail the setting and history of the plot’s two main locations – New York and Moscow.

The Hook

Probably one of the best, and arguably most interesting, aspects of this scenario is its hook – or how the characters get involved in the story. Here the group are approached by a rich Russian immigrant, Alexander Lobov, and are asked (or hired) to discover what has happened to his niece, Annya Makasheva. Annya is one of Lobov’s few remaining relatives, and was working her way to be with him, when she suddenly vanished in New York. While this is not an overly original introduction to an investigative adventure, it is the presentation of this initial lead—a series of hand written letters—that really brings the players into the story, and adds that little bit of ‘something special’ to the hook.

I’ve personally used this hook, and the handout letters, on a number of occasions; it is, in my opinion, a great way of getting a group of players invested into a plot. The addition of something physical (in this case the handouts), which lays out the first logical steps in the investigation really helps the game get over the ‘hump’ of an initial session (where the players generally are still getting into character and are usually a little lost as to the goal of the story that confronts them!).

The Chase

Once the characters accept the job for Lobov, they quickly discover that Roosevelt Island Children’s Hospital—the hospital where Annya worked as a nurse—is covering up some rather suspicious activities. The sections The Big Apple and the Hospital detail the investigation into these leads, and draw the characters deeper into the mystery.

Suffice to say that the party should quickly discover that Annya’s disappearance isn’t the only thing of interest going on at the hospital, and that they are now on the trail of some larger, more sinister, conspiracy. Amongst such discoveries are crates labelled BPX, which will quickly become the ‘white rabbit’ (i.e. consistent lead) for the rest of the adventure.
This part of the adventure also concludes with one of the ickiest revelations I’ve read in a role-playing game, and when you throw in the characters suddenly being trapped in Moscow (I won’t spoil why or how these two events occur) you can be assured that I was suitably ‘creeped out’.

Into the Light is a very brief section which deals with the direct aftermath of the characters arrival in Moscow. This is likely the first opportunity the group will have to draw weapons and cause a little mayhem in the adventure, although, equally, they might be a little cautious as to the motivations of the various parties they will encounter here. However, once the goals at least of one of these groups are clarified, it becomes obvious that the characters are now deep within Russia with little chance of an immediate return to New York (nor any other place in the US in general!). Probably more than a little lost, and with Annya’s trail gone cold, the characters are directed to discover the meaning of the BPX labelled crates.

This investigation is the subject of the next section, Down Amongst the Dead Men. Again this part of the story is quite open, with a number of avenues of exploration available to the players. Eventually, all clues lead to one project; the upgrade of Moscow’s underground rail system by the Metro 1 company, and more importantly their work on the former Proletarian Square station. Once inside they discover that something very sinister is happening underground and that the abomination that resides within must be destroyed. Fortunately for the characters there is plenty of help available to them in their adventures in Moscow: Major Vladimir Samsonov, case officer of the Aliens’ Board (the only  government organisation offering any hope of the group returning to America); Zhao Qing, an employee of Metro 1 who has become highly suspicious as to the purpose of its project; and others who help to ensure that players don’t get too lost in this strange new world. After the (likely) destruction of the underground station, the characters come to the  attention of the city’s controlling committee (which likes to call itself – Committee for the Salvation of the Motherland) the results of which are the subject of the section labelled Steel Angel.

With the fate of the characters’ exit visas in the hands of this committee it probably doesn’t come as a surprise that, in return for the appropriate signatures, the group is asked to undertake one further task. This mission takes the characters to Kazan (a city politically aligned to Moscow), where it is soon revealed that not only have some 200–odd people disappeared, but reports of werewolves run rampant! This portion of the plot is much more linear than those previous, and the characters quickly discover that a Gulag and a powerful Dark Minion are responsible for the rising fear within the city. Again, it is up the party to destroy this evil, a task that once more allows the characters to display some military finesse. Upon their return to Moscow, they will learn that Samsonov has located Annya, who is currently sedated and in a sanatorium! Her release and the entire group’s return to America sees a successful conclusion to the adventure.

Extras

As noted, the final couple of sections of this supplement detail aspects of the main locations presented in the adventure. The New York section notes the city’s founding and how the metroplex has grown to become New Boswash. With a focus on Manhattan island (map included), it briefly describes the island’s key neighbourhoods, and provides examples of some of the types of encounters one might have there. Further notes detail the city’s government and police structures, as well as its transportation systems.

The Moscow section is considerably more comprehensive (which is unsurprising given that the supplement’s target audience is likely to be much more familiar with New York than  Moscow. This includes an overview of the city in the Dark Conspiracy setting (again with a large map) and describes how the Red Army is organised in running the city.

A final couple of subsections round out the book; Russian Nightmares, details six Russian legends as Darklings to add your adventures, while Weapons and Vehicles details 10 Russian weapons (some of which have previously appeared in the Twilight 2000 supplement Infantry Weapons of the World) and two Russian vehicles (the
Volga Sedan and GAZ Sportabout). Both of these make good additions to the core adventure and they add much to the feeling of the Moscow setting.

Opinions

It’s hard to exactly say what I think of Among the Dead. On the surface it is a pretty interesting adventure set in a totally new location (the core setting of Dark Conspiracy being very American-centric), but as much as the setting is inspiring, the actual adventure is not. After, as I noted earlier, after a fairly good introduction, the scenario breaks-up into what feels like three loosely connected adventures; each of which could have rightly deserved an eighty page supplement all to themselves. The first section is definitely the strongest in my opinion, with enough investigation in New York and the hospital to really drag the characters into a ‘conspiracy’. The second section, the investigation in Moscow, is almost as good, although I’ve experienced players feeling a little lost and confused when they reach this point, especially with the immediate change of focus within the plot. Unfortunately, the third section, in Kazan, is by far the weakest, with a story that feels very linear and a plot line that is not very exciting at all. The fact that the motivation is quite contrived (i.e. do as we demand or you don’t get home!) just adds to this for me, and it is a rather disappointing way to finish up what has otherwise been a very entertaining story.

While that might have brought a low note to the supplement, the worse sin in the book has to be the sudden dropping of Annya’s story line from the main plot. From experience, this just confuses the players, and adds considerable work to the Referee in the attempt to focus the players on the BPX angle. I get the feeling that the first section, the one I like the
most, was actually added to the Russian plot after it was submitted to GDW (hence Loren K. Wiseman’s credit – although don’t quote me on that, this is pure conjecture!). However, I can understand why something like this might be; most Dark Conspiracy characters (let alone their players) would be US based, and getting them involved in a Russian story line would be immensely difficult without some solid hook. I don’t want to sound too down on the Russian portions of the adventure, the author Mark Galeotti obviously knows his stuff (in fact looking him up on the web, it seems that he is currently Academic Chair of the Center for Global Affairs at New York University and an expert on Russian security), but
these never quite flow as nicely – both in depth and quality – as the first part in New York.

On a more positive note, I do appreciate the open structure of the core story, and the way which information is readily accessible. It rarely feels as if the plot is being ‘railroaded’  (apart from the ‘directive of the committee’ of course), with information and leads available in a natural progression and important plot points presented in such a manner as to be easily inserted when and where the Referee feels most appropriate. It is rare (outside of Call of Cthulhu) for adventures from the 80’s or 90’s to follow this open structure, and here
it adds much to the quality and sustainability to the story.

Finally, on a personal note, I’ve run this adventure a couple of times now, and in both instances have found it difficult to progress the story past the character’s arrival in Moscow. I don’t know why, perhaps being thrust unknowingly into chaotic and corrupt Russia is too much of a shock for the players? Despite this, I do recommend Among the Dead to any Referee looking to change up the traditional Dark Conspiracy setting, and take their game in a totally different direction. I would liked to have seen a few more suggestions about other types of adventures characters could have in Moscow (or Russia in general), and potential Referees should look closely at expanding the final portions of the plot, but beyond that it is a solid addition to the Dark Conspiracy game line. As in any roleplaying game with a modern or futuristic setting the game is set in North America,
especially with the United States being the default country to build from. Later on, if
As in any role-playing game with a modern or futuristic setting the game is set in
North America, especially with the United States being the default country to build
from. Later on, if we are lucky, the game picks up and sourcebooks begin to appear
giving finer detail on aspects of the world.

Among the Dead, 1992 GDW (GDW 2107)  ISBN 1-55878-107-2
Design: Mark Galeotti and Loren K. Wiseman
Development: Lester W. Smith
Cover Art: Nick Smith
Interior Art: Paul Daly. Earl Geier and Rick Harris
Art Direction: Kirk Wescom
Graphic Design and Production: Steve Bryant. Lamont Fullerton, Ami
Jontz and Rob Lazzaretti
Typesetting: Michelle Sturgeon
Anne Bedard and Michelle Sturgeon