TEXT: BROTHERHOOD 
  OF THE RAT
  STORY ENCOUNTER
  
   
  
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  2005-2016, Wyrd Miniatures, LLC. All rights reserved. This book is a work of fiction; any resemblance 
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  MALIFAUX is a trademark of Wyrd Miniatures, LLC 2005-2016. The Wyrd logo, the MALIFAUX 
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  and copyright © 2005-2016 Wyrd Miniatures, LLC. The Malifaux game system is patent pending, 
  serial no. 12/821,427
  BROTHERHOOD 
  OF THE RAT
  &
   
  
  Credits
  Lead Design & Writing
  Mason Crawford
  Additional Writing
  Aaron Darland
  Creative Direction
  Nathan Caroland
  TTB Logo Artist
  Patrick Guinane
  Art
  Hardy Fowler & Jorge Gomez 
  Graphic Design
  Jorge Gomez
  Layout
  Aaron Darland
  Editing
  Mason Crawford
   
  
  Introduction ............................4
  Brotherhood of the Rat ........................................ 6
  Encounters .....................................8
  Infestation (1 Player) ............................................ 9
  Swarmed! (2 Players) .......................................... 14
  The Piper’s Call (3 Players) ................................ 16 
  Adventure.....................................20
  Prologue ............................................................ 21
  Scene 1: Harlequin Tavern ................................ 24
  Scene 2: The Rat Warren .................................. 28
  The Blighted Condition ..................................... 33
  Stat Blocks ......................................................... 34
  Contents
   
  
  Introduction
  Rats!
  Introduction
  Welcome to the Brotherhood of the Rat! This boxed set that is 
  intended to be used in three different ways. 
  First and foremost, the models included in this boxed set - Rat 
  Catchers, Rat Kings, and Malifaux Rats - can be used in the Malifaux  
  Second Edition skirmish game. These models can be used in the 
  Outcasts faction in order to bring the overwhelming numbers of the 
  vermin inhabiting Malifaux's sewers to your tabletop. Matching stat 
  cards for each of these models have been included in this box. 
  Secondly, the models in this boxed set can be used as part of the 
  scenarios presented in this booklet. Each scenario makes use of 
  these models in different ways, either as allies willing to assist you in 
  achieving  your objective or as new adversaries that must be defeated 
  at any cost. 
  
  Introduction
  Introduction
  There are three scenarios in this booklet. The first is Infestation, a 
  solo encounter that includes solitary rules for defending the player's 
  hideout against a wave of plague-infected rats! This scenario is 
  essentially a puzzle: what combination of crew and tactics will allow 
  you to score the most points? Can you score higher than your friends, 
  or will the rats eat well tonight?
  The second scenario is Swarmed, a two-player encounter that is 
  guaranteed to get some use out of your Malifaux Rats. Whenever it 
  rains, the rats boil up from the sewers and river like a black tide to 
  escape the rising water...and sometimes, that means that a skirmish 
  ends up with a few dozen extra participants!
  The third scenario is The Piper's Call, a three-person encounter that 
  works well for players who only have a handful of models but still want 
  to play a game with their friends. In this encounter, one player plays 
  the role of the defender, while the other two attack from opposite 
  sides in an attempt to overwhelm 
  the defender's forces. 
  Finally, we've included a 
  brand new Through the 
  Breach adventure in this 
  booklet! In Extermination, 
  the 
  players 
  will 
  find 
  themselves elbow-deep in 
  diseased rats and in need 
  of a professional to help dig 
  them back out! Fortunately, 
  the city's rat catchers 
  have 
  fair 
  and 
  reasonable 
  rates...
  
  Introduction
  BROTHERHOOD  
  OF THE RAT
  The outer walls of the Guild Enclave are plastered with dozens of 
  Wanted posters, each displaying the name of a hardened criminal 
  that the Guild wants dead. The posters change from week to week as 
  old bounties are claimed and new bounties are placed, but a few never 
  seem to change: Seamus, the Red Chapel Killer, Lilith, the leader of 
  the Neverborn resistance, and Som’er “Teeth” Jones, a Gremlin boss 
  of particular influence among his kin.
  The oldest bounty, however, belongs to a much more pervasive and 
  dangerous threat: the Malifaux Rat.
  The vermin are nearly the size of a large dog and are not afraid of 
  attacking small children or - in greater numbers - full grown adults. It 
  only took a few days in the reclaimed Malifaux for the Guild to realize 
  the rats were going to be a problem and post their first bounty, which 
  offered a single scrip for each dead rat brought to them. This proved 
  to be an enticing offer for some of the less sophisticated people 
  that came through the Breach, and soon the vermin population was 
  engaged in a war with the city’s vigilant rat catchers.
  It proved to be a lucrative business; there were always plenty of rats in 
  the city’s sewers, and clever rat catchers could often take a job to clear 
  out a house, get paid for their work, and then take the rats’ corpses 
  to the Guild to collect a bounty on top of that. Sure, there was a 
  chance that you might catch a disease or loose a few fingers here and 
  there, and the stench of the sewers never really seemed to leave their 
  clothes, but it was good money (and even better money if you started 
  breeding rats and releasing them into the cellars of rich folks).
  Everything changed during the Piper’s Plague. Almost overnight, the 
  rats became more violent and bloodthirsty. The rat catchers were 
  unprepared for this unexpected aggressiveness and many lost their 
  lives beneath a tide of beady eyes and biting teeth. Worst yet, some 
  
  Introduction
  new plague had gotten into the rats, and now each bite carried with 
  it a chance of contracting a disease that could kill a healthy man 
  within hours. There were even stories of the rats tangling up beneath 
  discarded clothing and trying to walk the streets as people.
  As the death toll among the rat catchers (and the city) spiralled 
  out of control, a man named Warwick gathered his fellow rat 
  catchers together for a meeting. Under his leadership, the formerly 
  independent rat catchers came together in brotherhood of mutual 
  support. Warwick shared what small scraps of magic he had learned 
  to keep the rats pacified and under his control, and soon the rat 
  catchers were back in the game, fighting against the hordes of vermin 
  to keep the city safe. The Guild doubling the price of the Rat Bounty 
  was just a tidy little bonus.
         This week’s meeting is in the Penitent Viaduct,
     down by the Dead Man’s Cistern around second bell. 
  Warwick’s right and bloody pissed that some of you ain’t 
  coming to the meetings, so consider this one mandatory. You 
  bring yourself and your dues - and any back dues,
  for those of you that have been missing meetings - and 
  he’ll let it slide. Miss the meeting and yer rat food.
  Meeting’s gonna be about the Piper. I know some of you 
  ain’t been taking this seriously, but he’s real and he’s out 
  there, and Warwick wants us all on the same page. Too 
  many of us are disappearing lately, and there ain’t no 
  bones showing up, if you catch my drift.
  -Nickers
  
  Encounters
  MALIFAUX ENCOUNTERS
  While the Rat Catchers, Rat Kings, and Malifaux Rats often find 
  themselves under Hamelin’s direct influence, the Tyrant’s reach is 
  not quite as long as He might hope, and as a result they can often be 
  found working alongside anyone willing to pay them for a job (in the 
  case of Rat Catchers) or with a bit of moldy cheese (in the case of Rat 
  Kings, Malifaux Rats, and particularly desperate Rat Catchers).
  Included in the next few pages are three Malifaux Story Encounters 
  that showcase the contents of this box. Infestation is a single player 
  encounter that plays out almost like a puzzle, Swarmed! is a two-
  player encounter that focuses on the endless tide of rats that show up 
  on both sides of the battlefield, and The Piper's Call is a three-player 
  encounter that allows two players to square off against a third. 
  Whether you enlist the aid of the rat catchers and their minions or 
  take up arms against them, these Story Encounters present you with 
  challenges that are not only a good way to learn the game but also 
  unique tests of skill.
  Warwick,
  We got some problems over in the Industrial Zone. 
  Geissel Metalworks is out - they’re saying that they’ve 
  got some new clockwork mousers to take care of their 
  rats and they ain’t gonna be needing our services no 
  more. I caught a glimpse of one of them things, and 
  they ain’t just pushing for lower rates - the thing 
  killed three rats in the blink of an eye!
  We gotta do something before they start spreading 
  those things around to the other factories. Can you 
  imagine what will happen if they get ‘em into mass 
  production?
  - Jimmy the Hand
  
  Encounters
  infestation
  Malifaux is a dangerous place that is filled with dangerous people, and 
  sometimes it’s just not worth risking your own life to put someone else 
  into the ground. Fortunately, there are plenty of mercenaries and other 
  nefarious types that can be hired to take on such risks themselves. One 
  such group is the Brotherhood of the Rat; this federation of rat catchers 
  has been hired to kill everyone in your safe house. Rather than resort 
  to guns or blades, however, they’ve chosen to just herd a few packs of 
  diseased rats in your direction and let nature take its course.
  There’s no opponent in this scenario, so it’s just you and the rats! 
  Whenever one of them gets into your safe house, it will start making your 
  Crew sick, so be careful and keep them out!
  Description
  The rats are swarming all over the area, and your safe house is in danger 
  of being overrun! Grab whatever weapons you can and stop them before 
  the vermin can get inside!
  If Geissel’s trying to shove us out of business, then we’ll 
  shove back harder. Get Rosco and Dylan and as many 
  sacks of rats as the three of you can carry and go 
  pay the factory a visit tonight. Flood the whole bloody 
  building with the little biters, and when the clockwork 
  comes around to do its thing, tangle up some of the rats 
  and send ‘em right at it. Bloody mouser might do alright 
  against rats, but I ain’t seen the machine yet that can 
  stand up to a few pissed off Kings.
  - Warwick
  
  Encounters
  Set Up
  This is a Story Encounter for a single player.
  The table should contain five pieces of terrain. Each is a 6” x 6” Ht 5 
  square piece of terrain with the Impassable and Blocking traits. One is 
  placed in the center of the table; this is your Safe House. The other terrain 
  pieces are placed flush with each board corner.
  Place two Malifaux Rats in base contact with each piece of corner terrain, 
  one on each side, so that both Malifaux rats are touching the board edge.
  Encounter Size
  The player has 25 Soulstones with which to hire a Crew led by a 
  Henchman. Do not flip for schemes.
  Deployment
  The player deploys all of her models in base contact with the Safe House.
                                      Rosco,
                   I’ve been hearing that you’re still 
  talking with that Tina woman. You know that she’s one of 
  the Piper’s girls, and that means she’s off-limits. I 
  ain’t gonna tell you again, stay away from her, got it? 
  She may look cute on the outside, but she’s got the plague 
  in her body and the Piper’s tune in her head. You ain’t 
  getting nowhere with her.
  Tell you what, how about you and me head down to the 
  Star tonight, instead? That fancy French lady owes me 
  after we cleaned out her basement on the cheap, and she 
  said she’d let me watch the show from the back rafters 
  if I didn’t let anyone see me. Won’t that be more fun 
  than skulking around in search of some guttersnipe?
  - Warwick
  
  Encounters
  Special
  At the end of each Turn, each Malifaux Rat Activates and moves its full 
  speed towards the Safe House. If necessary, the Malifaux Rat will attempt 
  to disengage from its opponent in order to reach the Safe House.
  If a Malifaux Rat touches the Safe House (for any reason), each of the 
  player’s models gains the Blighted +1 Condition. Then, summon 
  a Rat King into base contact with the Malifaux Rat, as close as possible 
  to the nearest enemy model, and sacrifice the Malifaux Rat. If there are 
  already two Rat Kings in play when a third would be summoned, the rats 
  overwhelm the player and she loses the game.
  After all Malifaux Rats have activated, any enemy Rat Kings Activate as 
  per the Rat King Actions section on the adjacent page. Once every enemy 
  model has finished Activating, each model in play takes damage equal to 
  its current Blighted Condition. 
  Victory
  The game continues until either all of the Malifaux Rats and Rat Kings are 
  killed or until all of the player’s models are killed. At the end of each Turn 
  after the first, you gain 1 VP if you still have at least one model in play. 
  If there are no Malifaux Rats or Rat Kings in play at the end of the game, 
  the player gains +2 VP. 
  A score of 5 VP is good, but 
  can you do better?
  
  Encounters
  Flipping for Enemy Models
  Since Infestation is a single-player scenario, you’ll need some rules for 
  how to handle flips for the Malifaux Rats and Rat Kings.
  When an enemy model in this scenario makes a flip, it’s assumed to 
  have flipped a 9. For every - it would receive, it lowers the assumed flip 
  number by 2. For every + it would receive, it raises the flip number by 2.
  When an enemy model deals damage, it is assumed to flip Moderate 
  damage. This is lowered to Weak if it had one or more -, and improved 
  to Severe if it had one or more +.
  Enemy models will attempt to make disengaging strikes against any model 
  attempting to disengage from them (if possible). Enemy models cannot 
  Cheat Fate and never declare Triggers.
  Rat King Actions
  When a Rat King in this scenario activates, follow these steps each time 
  the Rat King is able to declare an Action:
  1) If the Rat King is engaged, either attack the closest enemy (if possible) 
  or Walk towards an enemy (if an attack is not possible). The Rat King will 
  always attempt to Walk towards an enemy it is engaged with in a manner 
  that results in the least number of disengaging strikes, or just toward the 
  closest enemy model if it is not engaged.
  2) If the Rat King is not engaged, Charge the nearest enemy model with the 
  Blighted Condition. If there are no enemy models with the Blighted 
  Condition, Charge the nearest enemy model.
  3) If the Rat King cannot Charge an enemy, it Walks towards the nearest 
  enemy by the shortest means possible.
  
  Encounters
  
  Encounters
  swarmed!
  Many of Malifaux’s rats live in the city’s expansive sewers, out of sight and 
  out of mind. Sure, they’ll sometimes gnaw their way into a building’s walls 
  or basement, but these are small infestations that a rat catcher can usually 
  remove without too much hassle. The rats only truly become a problem 
  if one ventures into the sewers or the Quarantine Zone, which few sane 
  people ever do.
  When it rains, however, all bets are off. The rats come up out of the 
  sewers so quickly and in such numbers that they can push aside manhole 
  covers, and anyone standing in their path is doomed to be overwhelmed 
  by the tide of vermin. It’s even worse along the river as the rats flee up to 
  dry ground, which often results in a swarm of biting rats barreling up a 
  house’s steps in a frantic attempt to get to the upper floors and attic.
  Description
  The recent rainfall has flooded the sewers and swollen the rivers, forcing 
  the rats out of their lairs and into the streets! What starts as a fairly typical 
  battle soon becomes a fight to keep the hungry rats from running off with 
  whatever fingers and toes are within their reach.
  Deployment
  Flip for random deployment as usual.
  Special
  Every non-Peon model in play gains the following Ability:
  Voracious Rats: If an enemy model or a model with the Blighted 
  Condition within a6 of one or more friendly models with the Voracious 
  Rats Ability is killed, summon a Malifaux Rat into base contact with the 
  model before it is removed.
  Victory
  At the end of each Turn after the first, a Crew earns 1 VP if it has at 
  least two friendly Malifaux Rats or a Rat King within 1” of a single 
  enemy model.
  
  Encounters
  The Union boys are saying this storm is going 
  to break tomorrow, so I want everyone out 
  of the sewers and up on the streets with as 
  many traps as you can carry. We’re going to 
  make our scrip hand-over-fist on this one, 
  so there’s no sense staying below and getting 
  washed off to who-knows-where when the 
  cisterns start to overflow. Downtown’s the 
  priority here, ‘specially if the rats get into 
  the Guild Enclave, so I want plenty of people 
  waiting there in case they call us in. This one’s 
  all on the up-and-up, so just do the job and 
  get paid.
  Industrial and New Construction Zones need 
  some people, too. Go in pairs so that you don’t 
  get overwhelmed and take your time. And hey, 
  Geissel’s still blacklisted, so if I hear about 
  any of you sods setting foot in his factory, I’ll 
  toss you into the river myself.
  - Warwick
  
  Encounters
  the pipers call
  It began with a few distant notes of lilting melody, but as the piping grew 
  louder, those listening to the song began to slowly nod their heads in time 
  with the beat. By the time they realized what was happening, it was already 
  too late; they had fallen under Hamelin’s thrall and become His servants.
  In only an hour, the entire slum was under Hamelin’s control...or just 
  about, at least. As the piping shifted its cadence, His newly enthralled 
  servants stumbled their way towards the final pocket of resistance...
  Description
  You were able to stop up your ears with wax when the piping started, but 
  the others weren’t so lucky. Now they’re marching to the Piper’s tune, 
  leading a pack of hungry rats and enthralled rat catchers to deal with you 
  once and for all. You’re surrounded on all sides...good luck!
  Hey, boss...
  We lost Dylan and Nickers. Me and them were 
  down by the Starlight Saloon, real good business 
  around those parts after the river starts to flood, 
  you know? Anyways, Dylan and Nickers were making 
  a show of killin’ the rats and stacking them up in 
  these sacks out front, an’ we didn’t have to stuff 
  the bottoms full of cloth or nothin! And there I 
  was around back, trying to club the bigger ones and 
  shove ‘em into traps so that we could come back in 
  week or two, if’n it didn’t rain again.
  
  Encounters
  Set Up
  This is a three player scenario. Choose one player to be the Defender and 
  two players to be the Attackers. 
  The Defender has 40 Soulstones to hire a Crew. 
  The Attackers may choose to single Henchman of any Faction to lead 
  their Crew, but their Crew lists are predetermined: one Rat King, one 
  Rat Catcher, and five Malifaux Rats. The Attackers may not purchase 
  Upgrades for their Crew. The Attackers each begin with a Soulstone 
  Cache equal to their Henchman's printed Cache.
  Each Crew chooses its own Schemes from the pool. The Attackers may 
  only choose models from the Defender's Crew as valid targets for their 
  Schemes that target an opponent's models, and visa versa. 
  Deployment
  The Defender deploys first, with their Leader in the center of the board. 
  The rest of the Defender’s Crew must be deployed within 6” of their 
  Leader: this is the Defender’s Deployment Zone. Then the Attackers 
  deploy using Standard Deployment.
  Special
  The Attacking Henchmen gain the following Attack Action:
  (1) Bleeding Disease (Ca 5C / TN 10C / Rst: Wp / Rg: 12): 
  Target suffers an amount of damage equal to the value of its Blighted 
  Condition.
  Victory
  Each time the Defender kills an Attacker’s Rat Catcher or Rat King, the 
  Defender's Crew immediately earns 1 VP (to a maximum of 4 VP).
  At the end of each Turn after the first, if one of the Attacking Crews killed 
  or sacrificed one of the Defender’s models with the Blighted Condition, 
  the Attacking Crew immediately earns 1 VP. The Crew with the most VP 
  at the end of the game is the winner!
  
  Encounters
  Anyways, I started hearin’ this weird piping, all 
  going up-and-down-like with the sound, you know? So 
  I starts to panic and stuff my ears full of the wax 
  you gave us, and that worked pretty good. But then 
  I went around front, and I guess Dylan and
      Nickers weren’t fast enough, cause they was
      walking off to the west with all these rats 
  following after them...the people in the Saloon, too.
  I never thought the Piper was real. Figured it was 
  just an excuse for people gettin’ rid of those
  they don’t like, but I’m sure thinking he’s real now. 
  I only grabbed one sack and ran off...you want to 
  send someone back for the rest? 
  I ain’t going back. I can’t go back.
  - Rosco
  
  Encounters
  
  Adventure
  extermination
  This is an adventure for Through the Breach, the tabletop roleplaying 
  game set in the Malifaux world. The players take on the role of the 
  Fated, men and women with the exceptional ability to cheat fate in 
  order to write their own destinies. 
  More than anything, Through the Breach is a game driven by the 
  Fated. During character creation, each character also generates their 
  destiny, a list of vague and cryptic clues which tell the player just what 
  Fate has in store for them. The Fatemaster then uses the destinies of 
  the Fated to weave together a story, and at each step along the way, 
  the Fated have the choice to either embrace their destinies or to cheat 
  Fate and change their futures. 
  Whether it's as loyal agents of the Guild, power-mad Arcanists, or 
  ruthless mercenaries, Through the Breach lets players explore the 
  world of Malifaux and rub shoulders with all their favorite characters 
  from the skirmish game!
  In this adventure, the Fated will be faced with overcoming an infestation 
  of Malifaux Rats in the basement of one of the Guild's newly claimed 
  strongholds. The rats are infected with the plague, which is enough 
  of a reason to send the Fated to recruit a professional rat catcher to 
  deal with the problem...but matters soon escalate beyond even their 
  capable hands. 
  Extermination makes for a good entry-level adventure for players new 
  to Through the Breach, but it should still prove interesting for more 
  experienced Fated as well. The models included in this boxed set 
  show up in this adventure, so if you are fond of using miniatures to 
  keep track of everyone's positions during combat, you'll have all the 
  miniatures you need to play through this adventure (save for whatever 
  the players are using to represent their own characters, of course). 
  Good luck and have fun!
  
  Adventure
  prologue
  The Guild has recently taken control of a previously abandoned tower 
  in the eastern slums, which they have aptly named the “East Tower.” 
  The building is four stories tall, making it ideal both as a vantage point 
  and a symbol of the Guild’s strength in the area. The Guild hopes to 
  use the East Tower as a staging point for pushing back the gangs of 
  the slums and stabilizing the area.
  Beyond the Guild
  If the Fated do not work for the Guild - either because they are 
  involved with another faction or are neutral mercenaries - you 
  can still use this adventure with some minimal adjustments.
  The first scenario is the easiest; just change the Guild to the 
  Union, Arcanists, Ten Thunders, or whatever faction the 
  Fated happen to be aligned with. Just change the text boxes 
  as appropriate to describe members of the relevant faction 
  instead of Guild guards and drop the “Sergeant” from Ms. 
  Clayton’s name (the Union and Arcanists aren’t big on 
  military titles).
  If the Fated are of a more mercenary bent, consider allowing 
  them to join up with a mercenary group before this adventure 
  takes place (perhaps even with the Freikorps or the Viktorias). 
  Alternatively, maybe the Fated are attempting to rid the East 
  Tower of vermin so that they can claim it for their own. In this 
  case, just have the natives of the slums suggest that they find a 
  rat catcher to help with their vermin problem.
  
  Adventure
  The Fated are among the first to be assigned to East Tower. As they 
  arrive to report for duty, read the following text:
  Sergeant Clayton puts the Fated to work hauling crates and boxes 
  from the cart and into the tower. The tower is square-shaped and 
  about 12 yards on a side, and the ground floor has been given over to 
  defense, with heavy desks and large metal gun lockers that can serve 
  as cover in the event of a gunfight. The second floor is being turned 
  into an office for Sergeant Clayton and her support staff, while the 
  upper two floors are still empty but will eventually become lookout 
  posts and sniper nests. The basement is still stacked with old crates 
  and moldy tarps, but the Guild intends to clear it out and turn it into 
  a storage area eventually.
  It’s a cool day and the city still smells like water from last night’s 
  rains. Thick clouds blanket the sky as if threatening more rain, and 
  you find yourself pulling your coat tighter around your body as a 
  cold wind picks up.
  Up ahead, you can see your new assignment towering over the 
  other crumbling buildings of the slums: the East Tower. It rises 
  to a height of four stories, making it one of the tallest buildings of 
  the neighborhood. A half-dozen men and women in red and gray 
  Guild uniforms are unpacking crates of supplies from a large cart: 
  paper, pens, typewriters, ammunition...lots and lots of ammunition.
  A uniformed woman with a blonde ponytail breaks away from the 
  group and approaches you. “Welcome to East Tower,” she says, 
  offering you a salute. “Sergeant Kaitlynn Clayton. I’m your new 
  commanding officer.”
  
  Adventure
  Fortunately, the heavy furniture was moved into the tower earlier this 
  morning, so the Fated won’t have to carry anything heavier than a 
  few crates of ammunition. Midway through the unpacking, however, 
  one of the guards is attacked by a rat. Read the following text:
  Unpacking the cart doesn’t take too long, but no sooner is it empty 
  than another cart with more supplies rolls up, then another...the 
  Guild doesn’t seem to be cutting corners when it comes to making 
  sure the East Tower is well-stocked with supplies, though the 
  amount of ammunition that is being unloaded is enough to give 
  you pause.
  You’re just heading back out to the cart to get another crate of 
  bullets when there’s a sudden shriek of surprise from the basement. 
  Everyone immediately drops whatever they’re doing and draws 
  their weapons, and a moment later one of the guards stumbles 
  up from the basement, clutching at her bleeding arm. “Rats,” she 
  groans, her face scrunched up in pain and disgust. “There’s a whole 
  nest of them down there. Big as cats...”
  Sergeant Clayton swears beneath her breath, then motions to the 
  injured woman. “Get that cleaned up.” She turns to the rest of you, 
  pointing towards your group with one gloved hand. “You all, you 
  have a new assignment. Go hire a rat catcher and get this taken care 
  of. We’re on a schedule, and I’m not going to tell Captain Dashel 
  that we were delayed on account of a few rodents of unusual size.”
  
  Adventure
  SCENE I:
  Harlequin Tavern
  The Fated are tasked with finding a rat catcher to deal with the 
  infestation in the East Tower’s basement. If the Fated offer to deal 
  with the rats themselves, read the following text:
  The Plague
  The wounded guard is Danette Butler. If the Fated attempt to aid her, 
  it requires a TN 8 Doctor Challenge to get it cleaned up and properly 
  bandaged. If the character tending to her wound achieves a Margin 
  of Success on the Challenge, they notice some discoloration around 
  the bite that looks like an infection...an alarmingly fast infection, given 
  how recently she was bitten. 
  If the infection is mentioned to Sergeant Clayton, she’ll mutter 
  something about “the Piper’s Plague” and order an immediate 
  amputation to deal with the infection. Butler will be less than willing 
  to go through with this, but Clayton is insistent; She can’t allow the 
  plague to spread. She’ll ask the character that discovered the plague 
  to perform the operation (TN 10 Doctor Challenge) but will draw her 
  saber and do it herself if necessary. Butler passes out from the pain 
  and is shipped back to the Guild Enclave to recover (and eventually 
  be fitted with a pneumatic replacement).
  Sergeant Clayton shakes her head. “Absolutely not. I’m not 
  going to risk the safety of any more of my men just to chase 
  rats around in the darkness. Besides, they could be plagued.” 
  Behind her, the wounded guard goes pale and casts a horrified 
  look down at her arm.
  
  Adventure
  The revelation that the rats are plagued only reinforces Clayton’s 
  desire to let a rat catcher handle the problem. The East Tower is 
  evacuated until the Fated return.
  Hiring a Rat Catcher
  Sergeant Clayton gives the Fated 5 scrip, which should be “more than 
  enough” to procure the services of a decent rat catcher. It’s not too 
  hard to find one; a few questions of the local population will point the 
  Fated towards the Harlequin Tavern, or “the Harley” as the locals 
  call it. It’s about a ten minute walk from the East Tower; read the 
  following text when the Fated arrive:
  The Harlequin Tavern is the sort of place that makes you feel 
  as if you need a bath just for walking past it. It’s a short, squat 
  building with boarded up windows and the odor of despair clinging 
  to its stained walls, but a relatively new-looking sign on the door 
  proclaims it to be open despite the early hour. As you approach the 
  door, a pair of startled rats dart out from behind the building and 
  scurry down a nearby sewer grate.
  The interior of the tavern isn’t much better than the exterior. 
  The lighting is dim, likely from the grime that covers the lanterns 
  hanging from the ceiling, and the entire room smells like mold and 
  body odor. Two men in tattered clothing are passed out at the bar, 
  and another stands behind it, looking in your direction as he wipes 
  down dirty glasses with an ever dirtier rag. 
  “Help you?” he asks, his tone implying that he doesn’t have much 
  interest in doing anything of the sort.
  
  Adventure
  The man behind the counter is Lycus “Hamstring” Spalding. He’s 
  been the owner of the Harlequin Tavern for about six months, ever 
  since he stabbed the previous owner and dumped his body in the 
  sewers. He’s actually cleaned the place up a bit since then.
  Spalding doesn’t care for the Fated’s type (no matter what that type 
  might be) and is rude and unhelpful. Anyone asking for a drink gets 
  overcharged and served in a dirty glass. A TN 9 Barter or Bewitch 
  Challenge is enough to knock the price down to normal, but they still 
  get the dirty glass (there are no clean glasses).
  Anyone asking about a rat catcher can attempt a Social Skill Challenge 
  against a TN of 10. On a failure, Spalding says that he might know 
  one...but won’t part with the information without something to make 
  it worthwhile. Three scrip (or a TN 8 Intimidate Challenge) is enough 
  to loosen his tongue. On a success (or after he’s bribed), read the 
  following text:
  The bartender gives a rough nudge to one of the two derelicts passed 
  out on the bar. “Hey, Shaun! You got yerself some customers.”
  The man grumbles something unintelligible as he stirs and sits up, 
  revealing a scarred face and bloodshot eyes. “Wha...er...” He blinks 
  twice, then offers you a tired grin as he holds out a hand wrapped 
  with soiled cloth. “Mornin’ to ya. Name’s Shaun Douglas...guessin’ 
  you folks got a rat problem?”
  
  Adventure
  Presumably, the Fated will explain the situation to Shaun. He’s more 
  than willing to do the job (business has been slow), but he’s also 
  hoping to squeeze some extra money out of the Fated. He asks for 
  10 scrip initially but doesn’t expect to actually get paid that much; 
  he’s expecting some haggling on the part of the Fated. Since they 
  were only given 5 scrip by Clayton, the Fated have a choice: either 
  pay the excess Scrip out of their pockets (which might not be an issue 
  for wealthy characters) or attempt to haggle Shaun down to a more 
  reasonable price. If they just pay him, Shaun takes the money and 
  happily follows them to Act II.
  If the characters decide to haggle, have one of them make a TN 7 
  Barter Challenge; other characters can assist, which will grant the 
  haggling character a + to her flip. On a success, Shaun’s asking price 
  is lowered 2 scrip, plus 2 scrip per Margin of Success.
  If, after haggling, the Fated still don’t have any extra scrip to pay his 
  asking price, he offers to charge the excess amount to the Guild “with 
  a wee bit of interest.”
  Let’s Find Someone Else
  If the Fated decide that Shaun isn’t worth their time and 
  attempt to look for another rat catcher, have them make TN 
  11 Bewitch Challenges as they ask around the neighborhood. 
  On a success, they locate Karma Blake, a more reasonable 
  rat catcher whose prices start at 8 scrip. Any attempt to find 
  additional rat catchers is doomed to failure; after Shaun and 
  Karma are both turned down, they put the word out to the 
  rest of the Brotherhood. From that point onward, the other 
  rat catchers claim to have too much business to help the Fated 
  and direct them back to Shaun or Karma. If the Fated hire 
  Karma, the adventure otherwise proceeds as written, with 
  Karma taking Shaun’s place.
  
  Adventure
  Scene II: 
  THE RAT WARREN
  When the Fated return to East Tower with Shaun, he’ll whistle in 
  appreciation for the size of the building and get right to work in the 
  basement with his traps and poison.
  If the Fated head down into the basement to keep an eye on Shaun as 
  he works, read the following text:
  The basement is strewn with splintering crates and mouldering tarps 
  that must have belonged to the tower’s previous occupants. Shaun 
  spends a good while creeping around in the basement, sometimes 
  getting down on his hands and knees to peer into a small hole in 
  the wall, other times banging on the wall with his fist. The longer 
  you spend in the basement, the more you notice an unpleasant 
  urine-like odor that clings to the room.
  “Well, you’ve got rats, alright.” Shaun stands up and holds out his 
  hand, which contains a few small brown pellets. “There’s droppings 
  all over the place, but the walls seem pretty solid, so I don’t think 
  they’ve gotten in there yet.” He motions back to a stack of crates. 
  “There’s a trap door under one of them boxes. Near as I can figure, 
  you’ve got yourselves a subbasement under this one, and the nest 
  is down there.”
  
  Adventure
  If the Fated left Shaun alone in the basement, he’ll come back up to 
  share this same information with them. Either way, he needs some 
  help moving the crates out of the way so that he can get down into the 
  subbasement. This shouldn’t be too difficult (TN 8 Labor Challenge); 
  up to two people can assist the character moving the boxes (each one 
  granting a + to the flip). On a failure, the boxes still get moved, but it 
  ends up taking over an hour and one of the assisting Fated (determined 
  randomly) is bitten by a rat for 1/1/2 damage. Fortunately, it isn’t 
  diseased (though the Fated likely will not know this).
  Once the boxes are moved, read the following text:
  The trap door is partially rotten and chewed through in multiple 
  places, and Shaun leans over it, his dirty fingers brushing against a 
  few strands of dark hair that are caught in the wood. “Yeah, this is 
  it, alright.” He tries to open the trap door, finds it stuck, and gives 
  it a good yank. The wood splinters as it opens, revealing an ancient 
  padlock on the trap door's underside and a rotten ladder leading 
  down into the darkness. 
  More noticeable, however, is the foul odor that wafts up from 
  the subbasement. It's rancid, a sickly combination of rotting meat, 
  mildew, and urine that brings tears to your eyes. Shaun catches it 
  first, and you can see his nose scrunch up as he raises an arm to 
  shield himself from the stench. “Wow! Something sure went ripe 
  down there,” he laughs.
  
  Adventure
  Shaun will pull out a refurbished mining hat, light the flame within, 
  and descend into the darkness. Read the following text:
  Shaun’s light grows fainter and fainter as he moves away from the 
  ladder. He’s only been gone a few minutes, however, when you 
  hear his muffled scream from below. 
  Let’s Go Together!
  It is possible that the Fated will insist on accompanying Shaun 
  into the basement. If they do so, just cut right to the text box 
  describing their descent into the subbasement, add a few 
  mentions of Shaun leading the way forward, and remember 
  that they won’t find Shaun’s remains in the warren. 
  
  Adventure
  If the Fated choose to descend into the subbasement after Shaun, 
  they’ll need some light (which can be easily obtained from the Guild’s 
  provisions). When they are ready, read the following text:
  The eight Malifaux Rats (see page 36) here waste no time in attacking 
  the Fated. Their bites don’t deal too much damage, but the real threat 
  is that of the plague. The Fated could choose to flee back up to the 
  basement, but the rats will still be down in the subbasement and will 
  continue to make regular trips up to the surface to scrounge for food 
  until their nest is destroyed.
  At the end of the second round, a second wave of rats will swarm into 
  the room to reinforce their brethren. This wave consists of four more 
  Malifaux Rats and two Sickly Rat Kings (see page 37). 
  The ladder leading down into the subbasement is rotten and 
  swollen, but still sturdy enough to support your weight, so long as 
  you descend slowly. The ladder leads to a small alcove adjoining a 
  larger room; the walls are stone and covered with slime, and the air 
  is stale and tastes foul.
  Pressing forward, the alcove opens up into what seems to be a dry 
  sewer cistern. The floor of the circular room is covered in chewed 
  bones and discarded clothing, and dirty rats – each the size of a 
  small dog – paw through the grisly refuse. As your light strikes 
  them, they initially shrink away, but then regain their courage and 
  scamper towards you, eyes gleaming in hunger.
  
  Adventure
  When the reinforcements arrive, read the following text:
  When either of the Sickly Rat Kings is destroyed, it collapses into 
  a mess of rats and scatters in every direction. After the last of the 
  Malifaux Rats and Sickly Rat Kings have been destroyed, the Fated 
  will be faced with the task of cleaning up the rat warren.
  If Shaun is still alive, he’ll suggest torching the refuse and then putting 
  down (lots of) poison and traps at the cistern’s entrances to discourage 
  the rats from coming back. If Shaun’s been killed, the Fated can 
  attempt to come to this same conclusion with a TN 9 Husbandry 
  Challenge; there’s plenty of poison and traps on Shaun’s corpse.
  With the rats dealt with, the Fated can return to Sergeant Clayton 
  and inform her that the rats are no longer a threat. If the Fated 
  took precautions to ensure that the rats won’t return, then the East 
  Tower will be unbothered by rats from now on. If not, the rats will 
  gradually return over the course of two weeks, at which point they 
  will surge upwards into the tower, biting and clawing the guards 
  within. The vast majority of the outpost will come down with the 
  plague, which will force the Guild to abandon the East Tower 
  despite all the effort put into its restoration.
  More rats spill into the cistern from holes in the cracked stone 
  walls. Some of them rush towards you, eager for an easy meal, but 
  others end up becoming tangled together in the clothing of one of 
  their prior victims. As you watch, the mounds of rats and tattered 
  clothing rise up into crude approximations of hunched humans, 
  both of which lurch towards you in hunger.
  
  Adventure
  The Blighted Condition
  Characters that have contracted the Blighted Condition have 
  the plague, which is generally a bad thing. The symptoms 
  of the plague become more pronounced as the character’s 
  Blighted Condition increases, as shown on the following table 
  (all symptoms are cumulative):
  Blighted Value & Symptom
  0 
  None (not infected)
  1-4:  The character suffers from fever, headaches, and chills. 
  The character can only heal damage with magical 
  healing; magical or mundane healing is ineffective. 
  Others who come into contact with the character must 
  pass TN 10 Toughness Challenges at the end of the 
  day or gain Blighted +1.
  5-8:  Weakness and exhaustion overtake the character, 
  along with sporadic bouts of dizziness. The character 
  suffers a - on all Skill Challenges.
  9-12:  Weeping pustules and sores appear on character’s 
  body. The character gains Slow at the start of every turn 
  during Dramatic Time.
  13+:  Acute fever and the vomiting of blood mark the final 
  stages of the plague, The character suffers 2/3/4 damage 
  that may not be reduced at the start of each day.
  A character with the plague can be treated once per day 
  with a TN 11 Doctor Challenge. This requires one hour of 
  examination and the proper tools for the Doctor Skill, and on 
  a success it lowers the value of the Blighted Condition by -1 
  plus -1 per Margin of Success.
  
  Adventure
  stat blocks
  This section contains the stat blocks for the enemies and allies the 
  Fated will encounter during this adventure, from Shaun Douglas the 
  Rat Catcher to the Malifaux Rats and Rat Kings which serve as this 
  adventure's antagonists. These stat blocks are slightly truncated from 
  the full versions that will appear in the upcoming Under Quarantine 
  book, but they should still be perfectly serviceable for the purposes 
  of this adventure. 
  The Malifaux Rats in this adventure carry the Blight, which could 
  have dire repercussions in the future for anyone unlucky enough to 
  get bitten. Watch out! 
  
  Adventure
  Shaun Douglas, Rat Catcher
  Might
  2
  Grace
  0
  Speed
  1
  Resilience
  3
  Charm
  -3
  Intellect
  -1
  Cunning
  3
  Tenacity
  3
  Minion (5), Living, Nihilist
  Defense
  5 (10)
  Walk
  5
  Height
  2
  Initiative
  4 (9)
  Willpower
  5 (10)
  Charge
  6
  Wounds
  8
  Skills: Evade 3, Husbandry 3, Lockpicking 3, Melee 3C, 
  Notice 3, Pick Pocket 2, Stealth 2, Toughness 2, Track 3
  Moldy Cheese: This character can control a maximum 
  number of Malifaux Rats equal to his Rank Value. He does 
  not need to use a (1) Order Action to command these rats.
  Voracious Rats: When a Living non-Vermin character is 
  killed within a6 of this character, summon a Malifaux Rat 
  within 1 yard of the killed character and under the control of 
  this character.
  (1)  Rusty Trap (Melee) 
  AV: 5C (10C) == Rg: y1  ====== Resist: Df 
  Target suffers 1/2/3 damage. 
  C Rusted Shut: After damaging, the target gains Slow.
  
  Adventure
  Malifaux Rat
  Might
  -2
  Grace
  2
  Speed
  2
  Resilience
  -1
  Charm
  -5
  Intellect
  -1
  Cunning
  1
  Tenacity
  1
  Peon (4), Living, Vermin
  Defense
  4 (8)
  Walk
  5
  Height
  1
  Initiative
  3 (7)
  Willpower
  3 (7)
  Charge
  6
  Wounds
  3
  Skills: Acrobatics 1, Athletics 2, Martial Arts 2C, Notice 1, 
  Stealth 3, Wilderness 2
  Plagueborn: This character is immune to the Blighted and 
  Infection Conditions.
  Puny: This character may not make disengaging strikes.
  (1)  Yellow Teeth (Martial Arts) 
  AV: 4C (8C) === Rg: y1  ====== Resist: Df 
  Target suffers 1/1/2 damage and gains the following 
  Condition: “Blighted +1: At the end of each day, 
  increase the value of this character’s Blighted Condition by 
  exactly 1.” 
  C Swarm: Immediately increase the final duel total of 
  this attack by the number of other Malifaux Rats that are 
  engaged with the target.
  
  Adventure
  Sickly Rat King
  Might
  0
  Grace
  -1
  Speed
  2
  Resilience
  3
  Charm
  -5
  Intellect
  -1
  Cunning
  1
  Tenacity
  2
  Minion (6), Living, Vermin
  Defense
  5 (11)
  Walk
  5
  Height
  1
  Initiative
  4 (10)
  Willpower
  6 (12)
  Charge
  6
  Wounds
  8
  Skills: Centering 4, Martial Arts 3C, Notice 2, Toughness 2, 
  Wilderness 2
  Drawn to Contagion: This character may take the (2) 
  Charge Action as a (1) Action when targeting a character 
  affected by the Blighted Condition.
  Into the Swarm: At the start of this character’s turn, it may 
  absorb all Malifaux Rats within 3 yards to heal 1 damage 
  for each Malifaux Rat absorbed in this way.  The absorbed 
  Malifaux Rats are effectively killed.
  (1)  Swarm of Yellow Teeth (Martial Arts) 
  AV: 5C (11C) == Rg: y1  ====== Resist: Df 
  Target suffers 2/3/4 damage and gains the following 
  Condition: “Blighted +1: At the end of each day, 
  increase the value of this character’s Blighted Condition 
  by exactly 1.” If this character has half or more of its 
  Wounds remaining, it gains a + to the attack flip. 
  t Overwhelm: After damaging, take this Action again 
  against the same target. This attack has -1 AV for each 
  other time this Trigger has been declared this turn.
  
  beware
  THE RATS!
  The rats rule the dirty sewers beneath 
  Malifaux City, their numbers beyond 
  counting. They lurk in the darkness, 
  waiting to swarm over anyone unfortunate 
  enough to enter their domain. 
  Normally, they are content to cling to the 
  shadows, but now something has brought 
  them up from below. The teeming masses 
  of rats swarm out into the streets, as if 
  guided by a singular malign will...
  Brotherhood of the Rat is a story box that 
  contains three Malifaux Encounters and a 
  Through the Breach adventure.
  WYRD-GAMES.NET
  © 2005-2016 Wyrd Miniatures, LLC
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Through the Breach/Through the Breach - Story Encounter - Brotherhood of the Rat - Extermination.pdf