Ok I’ve decided to run my first Pulp Era adventure game at the end of October. Sometimes my group likes to run holiday theme campaigns so I’m choosing to do one for Halloween. The title will be “Sky Pirates and The Castle of La Belle Dame Sans Merci. It will be set somewhere in Northern Europe either on a costal Island or in the depth of a thickly forested area perhaps in the Baltic Sea Region or even the Orkneys (I’m open to suggestions here) and will be based on the
Poem by Keats. The game will be set near the end of “The Great War” in October 1918.
The background of the story is basically the same as that of the poem. A beautiful but evil fairy lady “La Belle Dame Sans Merci” lived in the area some time in the past. Though the locals of the area knew of her they avoided her territory. From time to time however foreigners would travel through her territory and become ensnared b y her dark charms. Such was her beauty that it was said any man who looked upon her would be dumbstruck. It was her habit to hang any women who ventured into her territory. She would use her magic to twist the common, old or ugly men into bestial servants to guard her realm. She would cast powerful love spells over any handsome nobles or warriors then she would determine if they were worthy. The unworthy she would abandon though soon after they would often go mad and continue to search for her hidden castle so they could prove themselves to her. Driven by this madness many wandered their territory until they died or exhaustion. It is said some continued to wander even after death. Those men she determined were worthy would remain her personal guardians forgetting their past lives and devoting themselves to her service in her castle that was said to be laden with riches and artifacts from ages past.
Eventually in the late 18th century the locals decided she had to be dealt with. They knew no man could resist her magical charms so they set out to find women who were brave and skilled enough to put a stop to her dark reign. Eventually they gathered a band of 7 highly skilled women from around the world. An American Sharpshooter, a Japanese Samurai ko, an Italian witch, a German nun, an African warrior woman, an English pirate, and a French Occultist. (I don’t have names for these women yet. Perhaps you can make some suggestion.) The women were partially successful. The Italian witch and French Occultist were able to bind the fairy in a stone monolith however they were unable to complete the ritual before being driven off by her body guard of worthies. The American, English, German, and African women were all killed during the escape. Because of their inability to complete the binding ritual the fairy is able to escape from her stone prison for a few days each month when the moon is full. The local people then constructed a thick barrier (a thick hedge if it’s a forest, not sure what if it’s an island) to keep people from wandering into the fairy’s realm.
During the War a French Pilot who had heard the local legend happened to fly over the fairy’s realm and saw a large castle like structure. He took it to be the fairy’s castle and as soon as he could he set off with a band of French Foreign Legionnaires to capture its fabled treasure. They found and penetrated the barrier and set off to become rich men. The made a fatal mistake however. They set out during the full moon. Days later a single Legionnaire stumbled into a nearby village with a sack of artifacts spanning several centuries but before he could do anything with his small fortune he went mad. He was captured by the authorities and put into a hospital but he escaped shouting that he had to return and prove his worthiness to his “Belle Dame”.
That’s basically the background. Now various factions and treasure hunters are all trying to find the castle and recover its riches. The Sky Pirates will be hired by the descendent of the French occultist who is determined to finish what her ancestor started. I’m looking for feedback as well as any suggestions you might have for a location of the fairy’s realm.
Welcome, Guest. Please 
May 21, 2024, 06:34:43 AM
April 12, 2011, 07:08:48 PM