TEXT: 36 
   
   
  © Copyright John Large 2020 
   
   
   
   
  Come in for a quick snip and the cut might be closer than you 
  would like. 
  
  2 
   
    
   
  1. Entrance: A non-descript but sturdy wooden door with a sign 
  hanging from it which reads Stroude’s Barber Surgeons. Providing 
  a smooth cut to suit all pockets and treatments for minor 
  maladies. If some-one knocks on the door, if Aston is present 
  then he will appear 1D3 turns later to show them to the waiting 
  room. 
  2. Kitchen: A well-equipped kitchen that also serves as a storage 
  area for the various lotions that Stroude used regularly. 
  3. Hidden Staircase: A wooden staircase accessible via a sliding 
  panel in the kitchen, it leads up to the First Floor and down to the 
  basement. 
  4. Waiting Room: A spacious waiting room with half a dozen comfy 
  chairs, those clients not currently being seen by Mr Stroude are 
  instructed to wait here until called. 
  5. Staircase to First Floor: A wooden staircase leading up to the 
  Cutting Room on the first floor. 
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  BARBERSHOP GROUND FLOOR 
  35 
   
    
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  1. Staircase: A wooden staircase that leads up to a concealed area 
  behind the Kitchen on the ground floor. 
  2. Main Cellar: A largely deserted cellar that has a few barrels and 
  crates in it containing supplies that are only used occasionally 
  (more frequently used supplies are stored in the Kitchen on the 
  ground floor). There is a strong smell of lye in the air, due to the 
  frequent scrubbing and cleaning that Marley Aston does in order 
  to remove the bloodstains. 
  3. Curtained off Area: A large, thick cloth curtain stretches across 
  the length of the basement, behind it is a wooden table in the 
  centre of the room upon which rests a horrendous creature 
  constructed of hair and viscera. Covering the walls are various 
  anatomical drawings, there is also a shelf on the wall containing 
  jars of human hair, each neatly labelled with the name of their 
  donor and the time it was cut. 
  4. Hidden Trapdoor: Below a loose flagstone, the trapdoor drops 
  down 30’ into an underground stream. 
   
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  BARBERSHOP BASEMENT 
  
  34 
   
  THE CAST-OFF 
  GOLEM 
  A huge, artificial 6’-8’ creature 
  constructed of lashed together bones 
  and mismatched, bloody organs covered 
  in a coating of hair, fingernails and 
  saliva-like slime. 
  CAST-OFF GOLEM 
  6’-8’ humanoid construct made out 
  of bloody, organs and bones. 
   
  AC 6 [13], HD 11* (49hp), Att 1 × 
  fist (3d10), THAC0 11 [+8], MV 60’ 
  (20’), SV D10 W11 P12 B13 S14 
  (5), ML 12, AL Neutral, XP 1,900. 
  NA 1 (1), TT None 
   
   Mundane damage 
  immunity: Can only be 
  harmed by magical attacks. 
   Magical weapon immunity: 
  Only harmed by slashing 
  magical weapons. 
   Energy immunity: 
  Unharmed by cold and 
  elecricity. 
   Vulnerable to fire: Cast-off 
  golems are haphazardly 
  constructed and take 
  double damage from fire. 
   
  BEHAVIOUR 
  The Golem requires feeding with 
  fresh blood and body parts at least 
  once a week; as long as the Cast-off 
  Golem is being fed then it will 
  remain in an inert state until blood, 
  hair or fingernails from a target are 
  placed in the misshapen mouth of 
  the creature. Once this happens the 
  creature will activate, attempting to 
  seek out and kill its target. 
  Should the golem not be fed fresh 
  blood and offal then—after a period 
  of seven days—the golem activates, 
  lurching to life with a screeching cry 
  of “FEED ME!”  
  Without a target the monster will 
  attempt to make its way towards the 
  nearest signs of life, once there it will 
  randomly select a target and attempt 
  to devour it. If the golem is attacked 
  then it will awaken and defend itself, 
  attempting to kill its attacker before 
  returning to an inert state. 
   
   
  3 
   
    
   
   
  1. Cutting Room: Where most of the business of cutting and blood-
  letting takes place, if there is at least one customer present then 
  Stroude will be in here tending to them. The walls are lined with 
  shelves, groaning under the weight of jars containing various 
  tonics, leeches and herbal poultices. 
  2. Hidden Staircase: Accessible via a concealed door in the west 
  wall of the Cutting Room, this wooden staircase leads down to 
  an area behind the Kitchen on the ground floor. 
  3. Sleeping quarters: Two fairly small rooms, each contains a bed 
  and personal effects, the larger of the two rooms is claimed by 
  Mr Stroude the owner whilst the smaller is used by his assistant 
  Marley Aston.  
  4. Staircase to Ground Floor: A wooden staircase leaded down to 
  the Waiting Room on the ground floor. 
   
  1 
  2 
  3 
  3 
  4 
  BARBERSHOP FIRST FLOOR 
  
  4 
   
  CREDITS 
  LAYOUT, WRITING AND 
  PRODUCTION 
  John Large 
  COVER IMAGE 
  Jost Amman, A barber’s shop 
  https://wellcomecollection.org/works/w2
  736822 
  Used under under the Attribution 4.0 
  International (CC BY 4.0) licence. 
  https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by
  /4.0/ 
  Credit: Jost Amman, A barber's shop.  
  Credit: Wellcome Collection.  
  ADDITIONAL IMAGES 
   
  Book Image 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/book-
  reading-education-knowledge-
  2022460/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
   
  Scroll Image 
  https://www.needpix.com/photo/downlo
  ad/175621/scroll-parchment-old-free-
  vector-graphics-free-pictures-free-
  photos-free-images-royalty-free-free-
  illustrations 
  Used under Public Domain license. 
   
   
   
  Scissors Image 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/scissors-
  vintage-sewing-old-barber-2795641/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
   
  Vintage Scissors Image 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/vintage-
  scissors-line-art-cut-4290490/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
   
  Yeti Monster Image 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/yeti-
  monster-creature-155836/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
   
  Bag and Coins Image 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/bag-string-
  gold-coins-treasure-3193388/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
   
  Demon/Devil Image 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/devil-
  demon-satan-reclining-evil-33932/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
   
  Beast Devil Evil Face 
  https://pixabay.com/vectors/beast-devil-
  evil-face-1296157/ 
  Used under Pixabay licence. 
  MAPS CREATED BY 
  John Large 
  ALL ORIGINAL CONTENT 
  © Copyright John Large 2020 
   
  33 
   
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  32 
   
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  5 
   
  TABLE OF 
  CONTENTS 
   
  Layout, writing and production ... 4 
  Cover Image ............................ 4 
  Additional Images .................... 4 
  Maps Created by ...................... 4 
  All Original Content ................. 4 
  Old School rules ...................... 7 
  Levels 1-3 ................................ 7 
  Campaign Assumptions ................ 7 
  The Adventure in Your Campaign .. 7 
  What if I Don’t Have any Cities? ... 7 
  Naming Conventions ................... 8 
  Lord Warwick Appletone ........... 9 
  Stroude’s Barbershop ................ 9 
  Secret Warlock ......................... 9 
  Barber Surgeon ...................... 10 
  Menaced by Thugs ................. 10 
  Hairy Retribution ..................... 10 
  The Ritual Book ......................... 11 
  Cast-off Golem Manual ...... 11 
  What it looks like .................... 11 
  Ancient Lore ........................... 11 
  How Does it Work? ................ 11 
  Hired by the Watch .................... 12 
  What the PCs experience ........ 12 
  What Grimes knows ............... 12 
  Hired by Lady Appletone ............ 12 
  What the PCs experience ........ 12 
  What Lady Appletone knows.... 12 
  Floating Clues/Events ............. 13 
  Rumours ............................ 14 
  The Estate ................................. 15 
  Scene of the Crime ................. 15 
  Servants ................................ 16 
  Heriot Smith, Manservant .... 16 
  Emily Grant, Maid .............. 16 
  William Bothum, Gardener .. 16 
  The Staff ................................ 17 
  Holden Brye, Landlord ........ 17 
  Lillen Brye, Landlord’s Wife .. 17 
  The Locals ............................. 17 
  Ewart, Disgraced Noble ....... 17 
  Chancey Harlane, Bard ....... 17 
  Illegal Gambling .................... 18 
  Haralda, Guild Lieutenant ... 18 
  Artair O'Brian’s Bazaar ........... 19 
  Local Watch Station ................ 20 
  Neighbouring Nobles ............. 20 
  Local Craftsmen ..................... 20 
  Clay Morgan ...................... 20 
  Trade & Craftsman District ...... 21 
  
  6 
   
  Regular Watch Patrols ......... 21 
  Rumours ............................. 22 
  Morning ................................ 23 
  Afternoon .............................. 23 
  Evening ................................. 23 
  Night time.............................. 23 
  The Ground Floor ...................... 24 
  1. Entrance ............................ 24 
  Signpost ............................. 24 
  Knock and Enter ................. 24 
  2. Kitchen .............................. 24 
  Sliding Panel ...................... 24 
  3. Hidden Staircase ................ 24 
  4. Waiting Room .................... 24 
  Waiting Customers .............. 24 
  5. Staircase ............................ 24 
  The First Floor ........................... 25 
  1. Cutting Room ..................... 25 
  Place of Business ................ 25 
  2. Hidden Staircase ................ 25 
  3. Sleeping Quarters .............. 25 
  4. Staircase ............................ 25 
  The Hidden Basement ................ 26 
  1. Staircase ............................ 26 
  2. Main Cellar ....................... 26 
  A Pungent Odour ................ 26 
  Crates and Barrels .............. 26 
  3. Curtained Off Area ............ 26 
  Construction Table .............. 26 
  Anatomical Drawings .......... 26 
  Jars of Human Hair ............. 26 
  Locked Chest ...................... 26 
  4. Hidden Trapdoor ............... 26 
  Normal Procedure .................. 27 
  Sympathetic Link ................. 27 
  Hairy Rage! ........................... 27 
  Stroude Unmasked ................. 28 
  Rewarded by Grimes .............. 28 
  Rewarded by Lady Appleton .... 28 
  The Ritual Tome ..................... 29 
  Spirited Away ...................... 29 
  Servant Becomes the Master 29 
  Return of Camdyn Kerrye ..... 29 
  More Golems ........................ 29 
  Thieves Guild ..................... 29 
  Evil Sorceror ....................... 29 
  Stroude’s End-Game .............. 30 
  What Did Aston Think? ........... 30 
  What to do with the Golem? ... 30 
  Behaviour .............................. 34 
   
   
   
   
  31 
   
  OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a 
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  Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is 
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  30 
   
  UNANSWERED 
  QUESTIONS 
  Some questions thrown up by this 
  adventure have been left deliberately 
  vague because those questions aren’t 
  the central focus of this adventure and 
  so a GM doesn’t feel obligated to use 
  our ideas. A few questions are offered 
  below with some possible suggestions. 
  Please note: You are not obligated to 
  use these at all in your game, pick which 
  ones you like or make some up of your 
  own, it’s your game. 
  STROUDEÊS END-GAME 
  In the short-term Stroude was using the 
  book to remove threats to himself, he 
  may have had a longer term goal in 
  mind though. 
   
  Power behind the throne: The 
  eventual aim was for the 
  business to become so 
  prestigious that royalty would 
  visit, Stroude would then use 
  his wealth to buy a title and 
  influence in the City. 
   
  Found a society: Stroude 
  realised that his knowledge of 
  the arcane is incomplete, he 
  hoped to use evidence of his 
  power to attract other magic-
  users and create a secret 
  society dedicated to plumbing 
  the secrets of the mystic arts. 
   
  WHAT DID ASTON THINK? 
   
  Mystic reward: Aston believed 
  his reward would be to 
  become Stroude’s apprentice. 
   
  Revenge: Stroude promised 
  Aston that—when his own 
  business was done—he would 
  use the ritual to take revenge 
  on the people who mocked 
  Aston for his deformities. 
  WHAT TO DO WITH THE GOLEM? 
  The golem has likely been destroyed at 
  the conclusion of the adventure, 
  however this might not be the case. 
   The golem remains inert: If the 
  golem was in an inert state 
  then it can easily be destroyed 
  by fire, otherwise it will rise 
  after a week of not being fed 
  (see the Activating the Golem 
  section for details). 
   
  The golem is going berserk: If 
  the golem ends the adventure 
  by going berserk and 
  rampaging through the city is 
  could continue rioting and 
  causing havoc for a 
  considerable length of time 
  depending on how the dice 
  roll. If this is the case then the 
  Watch will be mobilised to stop 
  and will either destroy the 
  golem during one such 
  rampage or when it returns to 
  the shop. If they are friendly 
  with the Watch the PCs may be 
  involved in this. 
   
   
  7 
   
  INTRODUCTION 
  Little Barbershop of Terror is a short 
  adventure that begins with an 
  investigation surrounding the 
  mysterious murder of a nobleman 
  called Lord Warwick Appletone. The 
  investigation leads to a small 
  barbershop run by one Henley 
  Stroude, a businessman who 
  borrowed money from Lord 
  Appletone to establish his business 
  and is struggling to pay it back. 
  Exploring the barbershop leads to 
  the discovery of a dark ritual and a 
  creature created from sacrificed life-
  essence and body parts that does 
  the evil bidding of Stroude. 
  OLD SCHOOL RULES 
  This adventure is designed for use with 
  Basic/Expert version of the world’s most 
  well-known fantasy RPG or similar 
  retroclones. 
  LEVELS 1-3 
  Little Barbshop of Terror is a short, 
  location-based adventure designed for a 
  party of PCs of levels 1-3. Embracing 
  the old-school philosophy, encounters 
  are not necessarily balanced for a 
  particular party. Players will need to use 
  cunning and forethought to triumph. 
   
  CAMPAIGN 
  ASSUMPTIONS 
  This adventure assumes an urban setting 
  with numerous businesses operating, 
  and people wealthy enough to support 
  them. It also assumes the presence of a 
  noble class who are concerned with 
  physical appearance and an organised 
  Watch who keep law and order. 
  THE ADVENTURE IN 
  YOUR CAMPAIGN 
  Referees wishing to add this adventure 
  into their own campaign world can 
  easily slot it into a large urban centre in 
  their campaign world. We suggest 
  placing the barbershop in a slightly less 
  wealthy district that is adjacent to more 
  affluent areas of your city, this gives it 
  access to a wealthy customer base and 
  also the anonymous masses necessary 
  for the dark deeds that Stroude performs 
  in the adventure. 
  WHAT IF I DONÊT HAVE 
  ANY CITIES? 
  If your campaign doesn’t have any large 
  urban areas then the adventure may 
  require some more tweaking to fit it in, 
  however barber-surgeons have existed in 
  the real world since the Middle Ages so 
  there is certainly a place for them. 
   
   
  
  8 
   
  NAMING CONVENTIONS 
  In this Little Barbershop of Terror we 
  use the following naming 
  conventions to refer to certain 
  background elements of the implied 
  setting. These can be replaced with 
  appropriate names and terms as 
  befits the needs of your campaign. 
   The City: Where the main 
  part of the adventure takes 
  place; a large urban setting 
  with a number of different 
  districts, some rich and 
  others poor. 
   The Watch: An organisation 
  of law-men, funding by city 
  taxes, that is composed of 
  equal parts investigators 
  and malicious thugs. 
  Although useful in keeping 
  a lid on common crimes 
  they are somewhat out of 
  their depth in this adventure 
  causing their Captains to 
  look elsewhere for 
  assistance in unravelling the 
  mysterious murder. 
   The Noble Families: A 
  group of inter-related 
  people of high birth and 
  substantial means who hold 
  great influence, wealth and 
  power within the City. 
   
   
   The Ruler: The person who 
  is in overall charge of the 
  city, it may be a 
  King/Queen or simply a 
  prominent member of one 
  of the Noble Families. The 
  Ruler has great influence 
  and is wealthy beyond the 
  imagining of most men and 
  women, the Watch report to 
  them via a chain of 
  command. 
   The Thieves Guild: A 
  shadowy organisation with 
  its fingers in most of the 
  crime that happens in the 
  City. You don’t have to be 
  a member to be involved in 
  thievery but even the 
  lowliest vagabond knows 
  that it’s in their best interest 
  to make sure that the Guild 
  gets 10% of any money they 
  make. The Guild is run by 
  secret guild-masters who 
  rarely show themselves, 
  acting through lieutenants 
  and various ruffians. 
   The Ritual Tome: A battered 
  old book that details the 
  rituals necessary to create a 
  Cast-off Golem. 
   
   
  29 
   
  EXPANDING THE 
  ADVENTURE 
  There are a number of different ways 
  that the game can be expanded, 
  some suggestions are offered below. 
  THE RITUAL TOME 
  If the player party did not destroy or 
  end up in possession of the Ritual 
  Tome, you may wish to consider 
  what happened to it and whether it 
  will rear its ugly head again in your 
  campaign. 
  SPIRITED AWAY 
  When the Watch search the premises 
  they find the Tome and hand it over to 
  local scholar of the occult for examining. 
  The scholar pronounces it of little 
  importance and secretly squirrels it away 
  for their own future use. 
  SERVANT BECOMES THE MASTER 
  Aston has stolen away the tome and 
  disappears into the night, with plans to 
  unravel its mysteries and become a 
  master of the occult in his own right. 
  RETURN OF CAMDYN KERRYE  
  Camdyn Kerrye, the original warlock 
  who created the book (with demonic 
  assistance) survived and has been 
  searching for the ritual tome for years. 
  When he hears news of the trial of 
  Henley Stroude he heads to the—now 
  abandoned—barber shop and begins 
  the search for his book. Camdyn is a 
  ruthless magic-user who is willing to go 
  to whatever lengths are necessary to 
  recover his property. 
  The sorcerer may also have summoned 
  demonic assistance. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  MORE GOLEMS 
  The Ritual Tome contains the rituals 
  necessary to construct Cast-off Golems, 
  if a low-level magic-user like Stroude 
  can figure out the procedures necessary 
  then there will be other people in the city 
  able to do likewise. 
  THIEVES GUILD 
  The Thieves Guild steals the Ritual Tome 
  away, they plan to employ/blackmail a 
  magic-user into creating a golem for 
  them. It will be used as an assassin to 
  target the enemies of the Guild, these 
  enemies include Captain Grimes. 
  EVIL SORCEROR 
  An evil sorcerer obtains the Ritual Tome 
  and plans to use it to construct their own 
  creature to carry out their dark designs. 
  
  28 
   
  EPILOGUE 
  The assumed ending of this min-
  adventure is when the PCs discover 
  what Stroude is up to and stop him; 
  although this is certainly not the only 
  way for the adventure to end such 
  elaboration is left to individual GMs, 
  although some suggestions are 
  offered in the Expanding the 
  Adventure section that follows this. 
  STROUDE UNMASKED 
  If Stroude survives the adventure and 
  his diabolical actions are bought to 
  light then he will be arrested by the 
  Watch, the trial is swift with the 
  evidence of his guilt being clear. He 
  is denounced as a sorcerer and is 
  quickly sentenced to death by 
  execution. 
  After 1D4+2 days Stroude will be 
  put to death, his servant Aston 
  (assuming he lives) disappears in the 
  confusion and is never seen again. 
  REWARDED BY GRIMES 
  If the player party were hired to 
  investigate by Captain Grimes then 
  they will be rewarded as promised. 
  In addition to this they will have 
  made a friend on the Watch who 
  may be able to provide them with 
  future employment and missions. 
  REWARDED BY LADY 
  APPLETON 
  Once Stroude is brought to justice, 
  Lady Appletone will return to the City 
  from visiting her sister in the 
  country.. If the player party was 
  hired by Lady Appletone then she 
  will reward them as promised at the 
  start of the adventure. 
  If the PCs have ingratiated 
  themselves with Lady Appletone then 
  she may be willing to act as a 
  wealthy patron to the player party in 
  the future, perhaps hiring them as 
  bodyguard or for missions of a 
  delicate nature. 
   
   
  9 
   
  GM BACKGROUND 
  LORD WARWICK APPLETONE 
  The adventure begins with the murder of 
  a prominent member of the Noble 
  Families known as Lord Appletone. 
   
  Old money: The Appletone 
  family are descended from a 
  long line of influential nobles 
  and can trace their lineage 
  back many hundreds of years 
  to the founding of the City. 
   
  Wealthy Investor: Lord 
  Appletone is a shrewd 
  business-man who maintains 
  his wealth by investing in 
  promising businesses in return 
  for a cut of their profits. 
   
  By any means necessary: Lord 
  Appletone is not above using 
  underhand means to make 
  sure he gets a return on his 
  investments, retaining the 
  services of a gang who harass 
  those who do not pay on time. 
  STROUDEÊS BARBERSHOP 
  When Henley Stroude first opened his 
  business he was not able to afford an 
  expensive premises nor did he have the 
  reputation to establish a well-paying 
  clientele. 
   
  Borrowed Money: In order to 
  set himself up in a fashionable 
  area and attract the right 
  customers, Stroude borrowed 
  an extremely large sum of 
  money from Lord Appletone. 
   
  New Premises: Using the 
  money Stroude was able to 
  purchase clean premises in a 
  prosperous area of the City. 
   
  In Debt: Although his fortunes 
  have improved, Stroude could 
  not meet the large repayments 
  owed to Lord Appletone and 
  the noble’s agents were 
  starting to chase him for the 
  money owed. 
  SECRET WARLOCK 
  Unknown to most, Stroude is also a 
  practicing magic-user, but he keeps his 
  abilities secret for fear of rousing a mob 
  against him. 
   
  Sympathetic Magic: Stroude 
  specialises in sympathetic 
  magic, using items associated 
  with people to gain influence 
  over them. 
   
  The Ritual Tome: Whilst 
  exploring a poorer part of the 
  city, Stroude stumbled across 
  an occult tome that claimed to 
  show how to create a creature 
  from cast-off body parts and 
  imbue it with life energy. Ever 
  the avid collector of curiosities, 
  Stroude purchased the book 
  merely as a curiosity. 
   
   
  
  10 
   
  BARBER SURGEON 
  The owner of the barbershop is also 
  skilled—as many barbers were at the 
  time—in performing minor surgeries, 
  blood-lettings, etc.  
   
  Accidental Death: During a 
  blood-letting on a relatively 
  poor patient, Stroude 
  accidentally killed the patient 
  and—fearful of the 
  consequences to his fledgling 
  business—concealed the body 
  in the basement below his 
  barbershop. 
   Getting away with it: For 
  weeks, Stroude was paranoid 
  that his crime would be 
  discovered. Time passed and 
  the Watch hadn’t come 
  knocking on his door; Stroude 
  realised that—due to the low 
  social class of his victim—he 
  seemed to have got away with 
  the murder. 
  MENACED BY THUGS 
  Eager to ensure a swift return on his 
  investment, Lord Appletone sent one of 
  his thugs to make clear to Stroude the 
  danger of not making repayments. 
   
  Beaten: The thug, a man by 
  the name of Bartleby Grupt 
  roughed up Stroude. 
   
  A way out: After the thug had 
  left Stroude discovered a chunk 
  of hair that had been pulled 
  from the man’s head during 
  the struggle. 
   
  A creature born: Taking the 
  hair to his basement, Stroude 
  used the body of his earlier 
  victim and the hair from Grupt 
  to construct a creature that 
  would carry out his bidding. 
  HAIRY RETRIBUTION 
  The hair golem tracked down Bartleby 
  Grumpt and killed him. 
   
  Worrying death: Lord 
  Appletone heard about the 
  death of his agent and was 
  quite affected by it (although 
  he wouldn’t publically 
  acknowledge his connection to 
  the man. 
   
  In fear of his life: In the last 
  week of his life, following the 
  murder of Grumpt, Lord 
  Appletone became increasingly 
  paranoid about his safety and 
  refused to venture far from his 
  luxuriant home. 
   
  Fear realised: Once he’d 
  secured another victim to 
  animate his creature, Stroude 
  dispatched the creature to kill 
  Lord Appletone. It broke into 
  Appletone’s mansion and 
  killed him. Lady Appletone 
  caught a brief glimpse of the 
  creature as it left. 
   
  Investigation: The Watch were 
  called on to investigate, but 
  are having little luck with 
  finding a suspect. In 
  desperation, and pressured by 
  the Noble Families they are 
  looking for outside assistance. 
  27 
   
  ACTIVATING THE 
  GOLEM 
  If the player party are indiscrete with 
  their investigations then Stroude may 
  try to active the golem that currently 
  lies inert on the Construction Table 
  in the basement of his shop. 
  See the Cast-off Golem section for 
  full creature stats. 
  As noted earlier the Cast-off Golem 
  requires regular infusions of fresh 
  blood and body parts in order to 
  “feed” it (at least once a week); 
  should the Golem not receive this 
  then it will awaken and go berserk. 
  NORMAL PROCEDURE 
  As long as the Cast-off Golem is 
  being fed regularly then it will 
  remain in an inert state until blood, 
  hair or fingernails from a target are 
  placed in the misshapen mouth of 
  the creature. Once this happens the 
  creature will activate, attempting to 
  seek out and kill it’s target. 
  SYMPATHETIC LINK 
  The hair/fingernails forge a 
  sympathetic link between the Cast-
  off Golem and it’s target; as long as 
  the hair/fingernails are fresh (less 
  than a month old) the golem will be 
  able to unerringly track the target as 
  long as they remain within five miles 
  of the golem. Obstructions pose no 
  difficulties to the golem, it will seek 
  to take the most direct route to the 
  target, eliminate it and then return to 
  its starting point, at which point it 
  once more becomes inert. 
  HAIRY RAGE! 
  Should the golem not be fed fresh 
  blood and offal then—after a period 
  of seven days—the golem activates. 
  Without a target the monster will 
  attempt to make its way towards the 
  nearest signs of life, once there it will 
  randomly select a target and attempt 
  to devour it. Once this person is 
  dead there is a 1-in-6 chance the 
  golem will return to its starting point 
  and become dormant, otherwise it 
  picks another target. 
  If the golem is attacked then it will 
  awaken and defend itself, 
  attempting to kill its attacker before 
  returning to an inert state. 
   
   
  
  26 
   
  THE HIDDEN BASEMENT 
  1. STAIRCASE 
  A wooden staircase that leads up to the 
  concealed area behind the Kitchen on 
  the Ground Floor of the building. 
  2. MAIN CELLAR 
  The main area of the cellar is a deserted 
  stone chamber, there is a slight 
  dampness to the air and the stone walls 
  caused by ground water seepage. 
  A PUNGENT ODOUR 
  There is a sharp, ammonia-like smell of 
  Lye in here due to frequent cleaning. 
  CRATES AND BARRELS 
  Three barrels and an equal number of 
  crates are scattered around the room, 
  most of these contain little of value, a 
  PC searching diligently will find the 
  following: 
   
  5d4 gems. 
   
  2d6 pieces of jewellery. 
  These items were donated by wealthy 
  patrons and/or stolen from victims. They 
  can be rolled using the Treasures section 
  of the Core Rules book. 
  3. CURTAINED OFF AREA 
  A heavy cloth curtain on a metal rail 
  sections of this portion of the cellar, 
  behind the cover of the curtain is where 
  Stroude conducts his work on the golem. 
   
  CONSTRUCTION TABLE 
  In the centre of the room is a large 
  wooden table, the golem lies on top of it 
  surrounding by buckets full of blood, 
  hair and viscera. 
  ANATOMICAL DRAWINGS 
  Covering the north wall are numerous, 
  detailed anatomical drawings created by 
  Stroude as he attempted to figure out 
  the construction process. 
  JARS OF HUMAN HAIR 
  On the east wall, a shelf houses 1D6 
  jars filled with human hair, each is 
  labelled (in the same handwriting as the 
  note on the front door) with a name and 
  date. 
  These samples are used by Stroude to 
  aim his golem at its target, the GM 
  should feel free to add whatever NPC 
  names make sense for their game. 
  LOCKED CHEST 
  Hidden in a drawer in the base of the 
  Construction Table is the Ritual Tome 
  that first set Stroude on his path to 
  wickedness. Once discovered the drawer 
  must either be broken open or unlocked 
  with a key (Stroude always wears the key 
  around his neck on a thin chain). 
  4. HIDDEN TRAPDOOR 
  Below a loose flagstone, the trapdoor 
  drops down 30’ into an underground 
  stream, Stroude uses the stream to 
  dispose of his “leftovers”. 
   
  11 
   
  THE RITUAL BOOK 
  CAST-OFF GOLEM MANUAL 
  WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE 
   
  Ancient and stained with 
  blood: The book is an old 
  crumbling tome written in a 
  pigeon of various dead and 
  current languages, it is clear 
  that many people have 
  possessed—and added to—
  the book over time. 
   
  Medical diagram: Although 
  most of the book is cramped 
  text, in a variety of hand-
  writing, some of the pages 
  contact detailed anatomical 
  drawings of the human body, 
  clearly created by someone 
  with great medical knowledge. 
  ANCIENT LORE 
  Adventurers skilled in Ancient Lore or 
  Arcane Mysteries may be able to 
  research the book, although it will be a 
  difficult task. 
   
  Sorcerous Origin: The book 
  was created by an ancient and 
  paranoid Warlock named 
  Camdyn Kerrye. Worried that 
  his underlings would betray 
  him, Camdyn began 
  researching a way to create a 
  perfect servitor to carry out his 
  evil designs. 
   
  A demonic bargain: In his 
  desperation to achieve his 
  aims, Camdyn summoned and 
  consulted various demons, 
  who revealed the necessary 
  arcane formulae to him. 
   
  Demonic double-cross: 
  Inevitably his demonic patrons 
  betrayed Camdyn leaded to 
  him being possessed and 
  eventually put to death, but 
  when he was executed the 
  book was nowhere to be seen. 
  HOW DOES IT WORK? 
  The Manual details the method of how 
  to use cast-off body parts and hair to 
  construct a creature. Once created a 
  part of their target must be placed in the 
  golem’s mouth, it will then unerringly 
  hunt down and kill the person before 
  returning to its starting point and once 
  more becoming inert. 
  The golem slowly falls to pieces and 
  must be regularly repaired using 
  humanoid body parts. 
   
  Type of Golem: Cast-off 
   
  Construction Time: 1 month 
   
  GP cost: 30,000 
  Stroude has been using hair from his 
  customers and the bodies of his poorer 
  customers—at least those he can 
  dispose of without bringing the Watch to 
  his door—in order to repair and animate 
  the creature. 
  Once a week the golem must be “fed” 
  with fresh blood and body parts, thus far 
  Stroude has used the bodies of his 
  victims to feed the golem. If it is not fed 
  then the golem will go berserk (see the 
  Activating the Golem section for details). 
  
  12 
   
  HOOKS & RUMOURS 
  HIRED BY THE WATCH 
  WHAT THE PCS EXPERIENCE 
   
  A Watch Captain by the name 
  of Grimes has been placed in 
  charge of investigating Lord 
  Appletone’s death. 
   
  He is currently drawing a blank 
  with his investigation and is 
  under pressure from the Ruler 
  and the Noble Families to 
  bring the guilty party to justice. 
   
  Grimes will offer the player 
  party 100SP each to 
  investigate the matter and—
  should they find the guilty 
  party—a bonus of 500GP to 
  split between them. 
  WHAT GRIMES KNOWS 
   
  Grimes tells the PCs that Lord 
  Appletone was a rich investor 
  in local businesses. 
   
  According to Lady Appletone 
  he recently became very 
  concerned with security 
  fortifying his home. 
   
  A week ago a large assailant 
  broke into the Appletone estate 
  and killed Lord Appletone 
  before fleeing. 
   
  Lady Appletone caught a brief 
  glimpses of the intruder and 
  several large tracks were found 
  nearby, but the leads seem to 
  have gone cold. 
  HIRED BY LADY APPLETONE 
  WHAT THE PCS EXPERIENCE 
   
  Lady Lana Appletone is the 
  wife of the deceased Lord 
  Appletone, she may try to hire 
  her own investigators, since the 
  Watch appear to be getting 
  nowhere. 
   
  Lady Appletone lives on a 
  secure estate in an affluent 
  part of the City. 
   
  She can reward the PCs with 
  1D3 gems, each worth 100GP 
  and 1D8 pieces of jewellery 
  (each worth 3D6x100GP) if 
  they find the killer. 
  WHAT LADY APPLETONE KNOWS 
   
  Her husband was having some 
  trouble with a business he 
  invested in not paying him 
  back (she doesn’t know which 
  business it was). 
   
  Just over a week ago her 
  husband heard about the 
  death of a man called Bartleby 
  Grupt and it seemed to affect 
  him greatly. The man was a 
  low-life with reputed ties to the 
  Thieves Guild, however Lady 
  Appletone doesn’t know why it 
  bothered her husband so and 
  is unaware of the connection 
  between the two men. 
   
  On the night of the murder she 
  heard a scream and found her 
  husband dead, she caught 
  sight of a huge figure escaping 
  across their lawn. 
  25 
   
  THE FIRST FLOOR 
  1. CUTTING ROOM 
  PLACE OF BUSINESS 
  This is the room where the business of 
  the establishment takes place, there is a 
  large plush chair in the centre of the 
  room where the client sits and a number 
  of small shelves containing the tools of 
  Stroud’s trade. 
  If there are customers in the building 
  Stroude is normally here. 
  Henley Stroude: Level 3 Magic-User 
  A tall, lanky figure with slicked hair who 
  stares, unblinkingly from behind small 
  round spectacles. 
   
  AC 9 [10] (none), HP 8, Att 1 × pair of 
  shears, count as dagger (1d4), THAC0 
  19 [+0], MV 120’ (40’), SV D9 W10 
  P12 B14 S12, AL Neutral, STR 10, INT 
  13, WIS 11, DEX 16, CON 10, CHA 
  15, Spells Charm Person, Hold Portal, 
  Locate Object. Potion of Healing, 17gp 
  Stroude keeps his spell book locked in 
  his quarters and the ritual tome in the 
  basement (the keys to both chests are 
  always worn around his neck). 
  Should Stroude realise what the player 
  party are up to he will attempt to acquire 
  some hair from a PC and then head to 
  the basement to activate the golem (see 
  the Acitivating the Golem section). 
  HIDDEN PANEL 
  In the western wall of the room is a 
  concealed catch providing access to the 
  hidden staircase. 
  2. HIDDEN STAIRCASE 
  A small corridor leads from the 
  concealed panel in the Cutting Room to 
  a staircase that leads down to a hidden 
  area behind the Kitchen on the Ground 
  Floor of the building. 
  3. SLEEPING QUARTERS 
  Two small rooms containing bedrolls 
  and personal effects, the smallest room 
  belongs to Aston the larger to Stroude. 
  ASTONÊS PERSONAL EFFECTS 
   
  1000CP secreted in various 
  places around the room. Aston 
  hopes to save enough to 
  eventually leave the city and 
  settle somewhere quiet. 
  STROUDEÊS PERSONAL EFFECTS 
   
  Spell book: Stroude’s spell 
  book is locked in a chest (it will 
  need to be broken if a key is 
  not possessed). 
   
  3000SP (also locked in the 
  chest below the bed). 
  4. STAIRCASE 
  A wooden staircase leading down to the 
  area near the Waiting Room on the 
  Ground Floor. 
   
   
  
  24 
   
  THE GROUND FLOOR 
  1. ENTRANCE 
  SIGNPOST 
  A small canvas sign hangs from the 
  sturdy wooden door. 
  KNOCK AND ENTER 
  If someone knocks on the front door 
  then 1D3 turns later Marley Aston will 
  appear and escort them to the Waiting 
  Room on the Ground Floor. 
  Marley Aston 
  A stooped man with a lazy-eye and slow 
  wits, he was saved from frequent abuse 
  by Stroude and is fiercely loyal to him. 
   
  AC 9 [10], HD ½ (2hp), Att 1 × weapon 
  (1d4 or by weapon –1), THAC0 20 [-1], 
  MV 120’ (40’), SV D14 W15 P16 B17 
  S18 (NH), ML 6 (8 if Stroude is present), 
  AL Neutral, XP 5. NA 1), TT P 
   
  2. KITCHEN 
  There is a shelf on the northern wall full 
  of jars and other supplies, there is also a 
  wooden crate pushed against the 
  southern wall of the Kitchen. 
  WHATÊS IN THE BOX? 
  Amongst various hair oils there are 1D3 
  random potions on the shelf. These 
  potions can be rolled using the Potions 
  section of the Classic Fantasy: Treasures 
  book. 
  Inside the crate is 1D4 days of rations, 
  neatly packed. 
  SLIDING PANEL 
  On the western wall is a concealed 
  catch that causes a panel to slide to the 
  left, revealing the Hidden Staircase. 
  3. HIDDEN STAIRCASE 
  A concealed wooden staircase that leads 
  up to a hidden area behind the Cutting 
  Room on the First Floor and also down 
  to the Basement. 
  4. WAITING ROOM 
  WAITING CUSTOMERS 
  Depending on the time of day there will 
  be a number of customers in here 
  waiting to be seen. The chatter of the 
  customers is a god place for the GM to 
  insert rumours/gossip for the ongoing 
  campaign. 
  5. STAIRCASE 
  A wooden staircase that leads up to the 
  landing outside the Cutting Room on the 
  First Floor. 
   
  13 
   
  BEGINNING THE 
  INVESTIGATION 
  Investigation scenarios can be incredibly 
  frustrating for both players and GMs, 
  sometimes a clue is missed or a 
  connection that seems obvious is entirely 
  ignored. When running the investigation 
  portion of this scenario please keep the 
  following in mind: 
   
  It’s supposed to be fun and 
  dynamic: Don’t leave the 
  players agonising over a clue 
  or a red-herring, throw in an 
  additional event or an 
  encounter to move the action 
  along a bit. 
   
  Sometimes your players will 
  miss things: It’s very easy—as 
  the GM—with all the pieces set 
  out in-front of you to think an 
  investigative scenario is 
  obvious, but it may not seem 
  that way to the characters. If 
  necessary ask for a couple of 
  rolls then drop in some 
  additional events or hints to 
  keep the game moving. 
  FLOATING CLUES/EVENTS 
  A number of events/clues that can be 
  dropped into the scenario are suggested 
  below, this can either be used randomly 
  or when your player party is struggling. 
   
  Another murder: Stroude sends 
  out his golem to kill another 
  person. The reason for this is 
  left to the GM but Stroude 
  should gain by their death. The 
  circumstances will be similar, a 
  large, shadowy figure seen in 
  the area, huge footprints 
  found, perhaps a few bits of 
  hair or viscera shed from the 
  golem are discovered. 
   
  A blade in the dark: The PCs 
  cross paths with a group of 
  thieves were are trying to find 
  the person responsible for the 
  death of Bartlebey Grumpt, if 
  the PCs can persuade them 
  they may arrange a meeting 
  with one of the heads of their 
  organisation. See the write-up 
  on the Thieves Guild for further 
  detail. 
   
  Appletone’s missing money: A 
  noble acquaintance of Lord 
  Appletone recalls that he was 
  out of sorts recently because 
  he had sunk a lot of money 
  into a local barbershop and 
  the owner had been unable to 
  pay back his investment. 
   
  Golem attack: If the PCs are 
  really struggling or they have 
  been indiscrete in their 
  inquiries then Stroude will send 
  the golem after them. If the 
  PCs seem to be winning the 
  golem will return to the 
  barbershop, or perhaps they 
  can follow it’s trail should they 
  defeat it. This can only occur if 
  Stroude has some hair or other 
  link to the player party. 
  
  14 
   
  RUMOURS 
  If the player party ask around in the City 
  concerning the recent occurrences or 
  Lord Appletone then they may discover 
  some of the following rumours. 
  1D10 
  Roll 
  Rumour 
  1 
  Rumour: Lord Appletone 
  became very security 
  conscious just before his 
  untimely death. 
  Truth: This is related by a 
  craftsman who worked on 
  installing bars and other 
  measure at Appletone Manor. 
  2 
  Rumour: The Thieves Guild 
  are stepping up their 
  operations in the City. 
  Truth: The Guild are reaching 
  out to their contacts and 
  people to find the identity of 
  Grupt’s killer. 
  3 
  Rumour: A giant man has 
  been seen roaming the city. 
  Truth: This is true, a result of 
  vagrants catching passing 
  glimpses of the golem. 
  4 
  Rumour: A man recently set 
  up a small shabby shop in the 
  district selling odd items and 
  knick-knacks. 
  Truth: The shop in question is 
  Artair O'Brian’s Bazaar. 
  5 
  Rumour: A local barber-
  surgeon by the name of 
  Henley Stroude has made a 
  stir by offering free haircuts to 
  the less fortunate. 
  Truth: This is true, Stroude 
  uses some of these 
  unfortunates to repair and 
  animate his creature. 
  6 
  Rumour: There has recently 
  been a plague of rats 
  menacing the City. 
  Truth: This can be true or not 
  depending on this needs of 
  your campaign. 
  7 
  Rumour: There have been a 
  recent rash of disappearances 
  among the homeless. 
  Truth: The people who have 
  disappeared are those 
  Stroude has murdered to 
  repair his creature. 
  8 
  Rumour: Strange creatures 
  have been seen roaming the 
  poorer districts of the city. 
  Truth: This may refer to the 
  golem, but could just an 
  easily refer to other creatures 
  as suits the needs of your 
  campaign. 
  9 
  Rumour: Old Bartleby 
  Grumpt has been trying to 
  get out of the Thieves Guild, 
  said he’d found himself a 
  nice cushy job. 
  Truth: Since Bartleby was 
  acting as a paid enforcer for 
  Lord Appletone he no longer 
  wanted to share a cut of his 
  takings with the Thieves Guild 
  and was trying to leave. 
  10 
  Rumour: Lord Appleton was 
  slain by a curse from his 
  political enemies. 
  Truth: This rumour is false. 
  23 
   
  DAILY ROUTINE 
  The maps provided with this adventure 
  show the static shape of the locations, 
  however the shop featured as the central 
  location is a working business with 
  people coming and going at various 
  hours. It is not possibly for us to 
  anticipate how the calendars and clocks 
  might work on every campaign world so 
  I have split the day up into segments. 
  Whenever the players visit the 
  establishment, check the time of day and 
  then roll to determine the number of 
  customers and location of the key NPCs. 
  MORNING 
   
  Number of customers: 1D6 
   
  People in the area outside the 
  building: 1D6 
   
  Henley Stroude: Either talking 
  to clients in the waiting room 
  or in the cutting room (equal 
  chance of each) 
   
  Marley Aston: Either preparing 
  food in the kitchen or sweeping 
  up downstairs (equal chance of 
  either). 
  AFTERNOON 
   
  Number of customers: 2D6 
   
  People in the area outside the 
  building: 2D6 
   
  Henley Stroude: Cutting room. 
   
  Marley Aston: Assisting in the 
  cutting room or out buying 
  suppliers (equal chance of 
  either option). 
  EVENING 
   
  Number of customers: 2D4 
   
  People in the area outside the 
  building: 1D6 
   
  Henley Stroude: Cutting room. 
   
  Marley Aston: Assisting in the 
  cutting room or tidying up 
  downstairs (equal chance of 
  either). 
  NIGHT TIME 
   
  Number of customers: There is 
  a 1-in-6 chance there is a 
  single customer with a late 
  appointment. 
   
  People in the area outside the 
  building: 1D4 
   
  Henley Stroude: Cutting room 
  (if customer present) or 
  studying in room (if not). 
   
  Marley Aston: Asleep in his 
  room or making food in the 
  kitchen (equal chance of either 
  option). 
   
  CHOOSING A VICTIM 
  If there is a single customer in the 
  building, there is a 50% chance Stroude 
  will target them as a victim to repair his 
  creature. If this is the case then he will 
  slit the person’s throat whilst they are 
  getting a haircut and will have his 
  assistant Aston help him take the body 
  down to the hidden basement. 
   
   
   
  
  22 
   
  RUMOURS 
  If the player party as around or try to 
  find out some more about the Barber 
  Surgeons before entering then they may 
  find out some of the following 
  information. 
  1D10 
  Roll 
  Rumour 
  1 
  Rumours: Thieves and 
  cutpurses have been lurking 
  in the area. 
  Truth: Some members of the 
  Guild know Grupt had an 
  altercation with the owner of 
  the barbershop. They are 
  lurking round hoping to 
  question him. 
  If the GM wishes to bring this 
  more into the game, should 
  thieves accost Stroude, he will 
  first try to bribe them and—
  should that fail—he will 
  attempt to unleash the golem. 
  2 
  Rumour: The owner of the 
  barbershop inherited a lot of 
  money and used it to set up 
  his business. 
  Truth: This rumour is false. 
  3 
  Rumour: The owner has a 
  stash of treasure hidden 
  below his shop. 
  Truth: Partially true, there is 
  no stash of treasure but the 
  golem is in the basement.  
  4 
  Rumour: The barbershop 
  owner borrowed money from 
  a noble. 
  Truth: This is true. 
  5 
  Rumour: Henley Stroude has 
  made a stir in the area by 
  offering free haircuts to the 
  less fortunate. 
  Truth: This is true, Stroude 
  uses some of these people to 
  repair and animate the Cast-
  off Golem. 
  6 
  Rumour: The owner of the 
  barbershop has a demonic 
  imp that serves him. 
  Truth: This is false and comes 
  from a drunken catching site 
  of Aston standing at the 
  window by the light of a 
  flickering street lamp. 
  7 
  Rumour: The barbershop has 
  been attracting wealthy 
  customers from the area. 
  Truth: This is true, word of 
  Appletone’s patronage has 
  lured some of his 
  contemporaries to visit the 
  barbershop. 
  8 
  Rumour: Strange smells 
  sometimes emanate from 
  around the shop. 
  Truth: Stroude burns strong 
  incense to mask the smell of 
  blood in his basement. 
  9 
  Rumour: The barbershop is a 
  front for the Thieves Guild. 
  Truth: This rumour is false. 
  10 
  Rumour: A forgotten, 
  underground stream runs 
  below the area. 
  Truth: This rumour is true. 
   
  15 
   
  THE APPLETONE 
  ESTATE 
  The player party may wish to examine 
  the scene of the crime and converse 
  further with Lady Appletone. She is 
  planning to go to the country to stay with 
  her sister until this ghastly business is 
  resolves but will allow the PCs to explore 
  the estate and examine where her 
  husband was murdered, although the 
  Watch have already been through 
  everything and she is starting to become 
  a little exasperated with the constant 
  questions and examinations. 
  Lady Appletone 
  A middle-aged woman dressed in 
  expensive mourning clothes of darkest 
  hue. She wears a veil and is extremely 
  saddened by her husband’s passing, 
  however she has a fierce resolve that the 
  culprit should not go unpunished. 
   
  AC 9 [10], HD ½ (2hp), Att 1 × weapon 
  (1d4 or by weapon –1), THAC0 20 [-1], 
  MV 120’ (40’), SV D14 W15 P16 B17 
  S18 (NH), ML 6, AL Lawful, XP 5. NA 1), 
  TT V x 3 
  THE ESTATE 
  The Appletone Estate consists of a large 
  mansion decorated in lavish style and 
  surrounded by acres of well-kept 
  gardens. A wall runs around the edge of 
  the grounds with two sturdy metal gates 
  providing access to the front and rear 
  paths to the house. 
  SCENE OF THE CRIME 
  The study where her husband died has 
  been left untouched (save for the 
  investigations of the Watch), since Lady 
  Appletone cannot bring herself to go in 
  the room. If the player party want to go 
  in, she will gladly let them do so, but will 
  not accompany them. 
   
  Smashed desk: Next to where 
  her husband fell (visible by 
  bloodstains on a thick rug) lies 
  the remnants of a smashed 
  wooden table. Examination of 
  the table reveals it was 
  shattered by a single blow of 
  tremendous strength, judging 
  from bits of flesh and blood on 
  the broken wood the assailant 
  struck the blow bare-handed. 
   
  Broken window: A window at 
  the back of the house was 
  smashed by the murderer to 
  gain entry to the building. It 
  has now been boarded up, but 
  the metal security bars that 
  once covered it were bent 
  aside with tremendous force. 
   
  Strands of hair: Clinging to the 
  edge of the broken window 
  frame are a vibrant red hair 
  strands, they seem to have 
  been cut neatly rather than 
  torn out but have a sticky 
  saliva-like substance on them. 
  Lady Appletone can confirm 
  that the hair belongs to her 
  husband but says his body was 
  found in the centre of the room 
  away from the window. These 
  
  16 
   
  strands of hair were in the 
  golem’s mouth when it 
  attacked and fell out as it 
  escaped. 
   
  Ledger book: If the party 
  search the remnants of the 
  desk they can find a tattered 
  ledger detailing that a year 
  earlier Lord Appletone sunk a 
  great deal of money into a 
  location business (referred to 
  simply as SB shop in the 
  ledger) and had not yet seen a 
  return. A scribbled note at the 
  bottom of the page says: 
   
  “Need return on investment, 
  have BG pay a friendly visit to 
  HS to remind him of the 
  importance of prompt 
  payment.” 
   
  This is note was written before 
  Bartleby Grumpt paid his visit 
  to Henley Stroude as his 
  barbershop. 
  SERVANTS 
  Like most of the Noble Families, the 
  Appletone Estate maintains a staff of 
  servants to see to its upkeep, whilst stats 
  are not provided for them, some useful 
  information can be gathered from the 
  servants who were working on the night 
  of the murder, although persuasion or 
  money may be required. 
  HERIOT SMITH, MANSERVANT 
  Heriot had been Lord Appletone’s loyal 
  manservant for many years and is keen 
  to find his master’s killer, although he is 
  worried about his own future. 
  On the night of the murder Heriot was in 
  the kitchen making his master an 
  evening meal when he saw a large 
  shape pass by the kitchen window and 
  then a crash from the study. By the time 
  he arrived Lord Appletone was dead and 
  Lady Appletone had fainted away. 
  It was Heriot who summoned the Watch. 
  Heriot knows about Appletone’s link with 
  Grupt since he used to pass messages to 
  the thug on his master’s behalf, meeting 
  the thug at the Red Lion tavern. 
  EMILY GRANT, MAID 
  A superstitious young woman who has 
  been in Lady Appletone’s service for 
  three years. 
  Emily was purchasing provisions a 
  couple of weeks before the murder, she 
  saw the struggle between Grupt and 
  Stroude, she heard the ruffian mention 
  Lord Appletone’s name as he left but had 
  been too afraid to tell anyone. 
  WILLIAM BOTHUM, GARDENER 
  A gruff, no-nonsense man who is 
  employed to tend the gardens on the 
  Estate. He lives in the poorer parts of the 
  city and can often be found propping up 
  the bar in the local drinking 
  establishments. 
  Bothum frequents a tavern called the Red 
  Lion that is a front for the Thieves Guild, 
  Grupt also drinks there and has been 
  seen by Bothum meeting Heriot outside, 
  exchanging messages and gold coins. 
  21 
   
  STROUDEÊS 
  BARBER SURGEONS 
  The investigation should eventually 
  lead the player party to Stroude’s 
  Barber Surgeons, a two storey 
  wooden building situated in a 
  moderately affluent district near to 
  the Appletone Estates. 
  TRADE & CRAFTSMAN DISTRICT 
  The district where the barber 
  surgeons is situated is a trade 
  district, occupied by shops 
  belonging to various craftsmen and 
  specialists who deal in semi-precious 
  or complicated items. A cut above 
  the poorer district, but less affluent 
  that the nearby noble districts it 
  occupies a strange middle ground, a 
  place where the burgeoning 
  merchant class rub shoulders with 
  people from the poorer district 
  selling tatty wares from wooden 
  carts, and lesser nobles who cannot 
  afford the higher prices of the richer 
  districts of the City. 
  The GM is encouraged to add 
  whatever shops and stores they may 
  wish to this district, but most should 
  be trades that require specialised 
  talents or that appeals to the tastes 
  of the idle rich. 
   
  A few suggestions are offered below: 
   Artists 
   Chandlers 
   Gemcutters 
   Jewellers 
   Sculptors 
   Silversmiths 
   Tailors 
  REGULAR WATCH PATROLS 
  Due to the importance of trade as the 
  lifeblood of the City, there are regular 
  Watch patrols that police the area, 
  ensuring that crime is kept to a minimum 
  (or at least occurs away from the public 
  eye). 
  At any time of the day there is a 2-in-6 
  chance of their being a Watch patrol 
  nearby when an encounter occurs in the 
  district. 
  Guard patrols normally consist of 
  1D6+2 guardsmen, if there are more 
  than 4 guards they will be lead by a 
  captain. 
  City Watchmen 
  AC 9 [10], HD ½ (2hp), Att 1 × weapon 
  (1d6 or by weapon), THAC0 20 [-1], MV 
  120’ (40’), SV D14 W15 P16 B17 S18 
  (NH), ML 6, AL Neutral, XP 5. NA 
  1d6+2, TT U 
   
  Watch Captain 
  AC 2 [17], HD 1 (4hp), Att 1 × weapon 
  (1d6 or by weapon), THAC0 19 [0], MV 
  60’ (20’), SV D12 W13 P14 B15 S16 
  (F1), ML 9, AL Neutral, XP 10.NA 1,TT V 
  
  20 
   
  LOCAL WATCH STATION 
  If the player party decide to visit the 
  local Watch station, they find a 
  small stone building adorned with 
  slightly tatty emblems of the Watch. 
  The station is staged by normal 
  guards who are all desperately trying 
  to look busy in the hope that they 
  won’t be blamed for a lack of 
  resolution in the case of Lord 
  Appletone’s murder. 
  City Watchmen 
  AC 9 [10], HD ½ (2hp), Att 1 × weapon 
  (1d6 or by weapon), THAC0 20 [-1], MV 
  120’ (40’), SV D14 W15 P16 B17 S18 
  (NH), ML 6, AL Neutral, XP 5. NA 
  1d6+2, TT U 
  The PCs can find out the following: 
   We’re getting the blame: 
  The watchmen aren’t happy 
  that they’re being blamed 
  for not finding the killer. 
   He must have been 
  massive: The guardsmen 
  have heard about the large 
  footprints and broken bars 
  on the Appletone Estate. 
   We’ve questioned the usual 
  suspects: They have pulled 
  as many known criminals as 
  possible, but none of them 
  have the strength or size to 
  have committed the murder. 
   Not their style: The guards 
  know that a crime of this 
  magnitude is not the 
  Thieve’s Guild style, and 
  they don’t think the Guild is 
  connected to it. 
  NEIGHBOURING NOBLES 
  There are other estates belong to the 
  Noble Families surrounding the 
  Appletone Estate, these nobles are 
  mostly concerned with themselves 
  and fortifying their homes in-case 
  they should be the next target. They 
  will only help the player characters if 
  they are attacking in an official 
  capacity but cannot reveal much 
  useful information other then they 
  heard the piercing scream when 
  Lord Appletone was murdered. 
  LOCAL CRAFTSMEN 
  The local craftsman, particularly 
  iron-workers and builders, are 
  experiencing a boom in business as 
  the Noble Families frantically rush to 
  increase the level of security on their 
  various estates. Although the 
  craftsmen are wary they are enjoying 
  the increase in business. 
  CLAY MORGAN 
  Clay is the man who fitting the iron 
  bars to the Appletone Estate, he 
  swears that they were the strongest 
  he had in stock and that no normal 
  man could have broken through 
  them bare-handed. 
  17 
   
  THE RED LION 
  The Red Lion is a small tavern in one of 
  the poorer districts near to the Appletone 
  Estate. It is a simple one-storey building 
  that offers little in the way of rooms or 
  decent food, serving mainly watered 
  down ale and spirits of dubious quality. 
  The Watch offer raid the place due to 
  the illegal gambling that goes on there 
  and suspect it may be a front for the 
  Thieves Guild although they have no 
  hard evidence to back up this suspicion. 
  THE STAFF 
  HOLDEN BRYE, LANDLORD 
  Holden Brye is a large, middle-aged 
  man with a pot-belly whose face has 
  turned red from too much drink.  
  He doesn’t know anything about the 
  current affair, although he has heard 
  about it, but doesn’t like to involve 
  himself in those sort of matters since he 
  is worried that any attention from the 
  Watch may see him ruined if his 
  affiliation with the Thieves Guild is 
  proved. 
  LILLEN BRYE, LANDLORDÊS WIFE 
  A young, headstrong woman who does 
  much of the actual running of her pub 
  whilst trying to prevent her husband 
  drinking the profits. She is a ribald sense 
  of humour but is not adverse to clouting 
  someone with a tankard if they cause 
  too much trouble. 
  Although she doesn’t know anything 
  directly about the matter, if persuaded 
  Lillen can point them in the direction of 
  Old Ewart, a disgraced nobleman who 
  may be able to tell them more. 
  THE LOCALS 
  EWART, DISGRACED NOBLE 
  A once statuesque figure, now bought 
  low by the demons of drink and 
  gambling debts, he currently owes a 
  great deal of money to the Thieves Guild 
  after losing heavily on their illegal 
  gambling tables (held in the back room 
  of the Red Lion). 
  If given monetary incentive Ewart can tell 
  the PCs that he had some dealings with 
  Lord Appletone a couple of years ago. 
  Although Appletone had a spotless 
  reputation, Ewart is aware that he hired 
  thugs and enforcers to collect his debts, 
  including Bartleby Grupt. 
  CHANCEY HARLANE, BARD 
  Chancey Harlane is a beautiful young 
  woman with long blonde hair plays a 
  flute to entertain the locals. In-fact she is 
  a member of the Thieves Guild and 
  regularly reports on any suspicious 
  activities in the area. 
  Chancey knows that Grupt was trying to 
  leave the Thieves Guild, he was in the 
  pub months ago, drunkenly bragging 
  about being employed by “a proper 
  gentleman.” She also knows that the 
  Thieves Guild are not responsible for the 
  killing of either Grupt or Appletone, if 
  persuaded she may make an 
  introduction to the Thieves Guild. 
  
  18 
   
  THE THIEVES 
  GUILD 
  This branch of the Thieves Guild (since 
  there are many branches distributed 
  throughout the City) operates out of the 
  back room of the Red Lion where they 
  run their illegal gambling tables. 
  ILLEGAL GAMBLING 
  The small back room of the Red Lion is 
  filled with crates and boxes, these serve 
  as tables for the illicit gambling but can 
  quickly be disguised as simple storage if 
  the Watch decide to pay a visit. 
  If your player party want to get involved 
  in some gambling here to ingratiate 
  themselves with the Thieves Guild we 
  encourage you to add whatever games 
  you think appropriate to your setting. 
  Gaining access to the back room 
  requires either being accompanied by a 
  known customer (like Old Ewart) or a 
  recommendation from a member, such 
  as Chancey Harlane. 
  HARALDA, GUILD LIEUTENANT 
  Haralda is the Thieves Guild Lieutenant 
  in charge of the illicit gambling at the 
  Red Lion, and also of collecting the 
  Guild cut from the various footpads and 
  cutpurses who prey on the local area. 
  She is a talk, muscular woman sporting 
  a number of tattoos on her arms, and 
  what looks like a duelling scar on her 
  left cheek. She has a fearsome 
  reputation amongst local thieves. 
   
  Haralda Winter, level 4 Thief 
  A strong woman with a ruthless streak. 
   
  AC 8 [11] (leather armour), HP 8, Att 1 
  × two-handed sword (1d10), THAC0 19 
  [0], MV 90' (30'), SV D13 W14 P13 B16 
  S15, AL Neutral, STR 7 INT 8 WIS 10 
  DEX 7 CON 9 CHA 11, Items 17gp 
  There are always 1D6+1 low-level 
  members of the Thieves Guild in the 
  back room. 
  Thieves Guild Ruffians 
  AC 6 [13], HD 1 (4hp), Att 1 × weapon 
  (1d6 or by weapon), THAC0 19  [0], MV 
  120’ (40’), SV D13 W14 P13 B16 S15 
  (T1), ML 8, AL Neutral, XP 5. NA 
  1d6+1, TT U 
  WHAT HARALDA KNOWS 
   
  Guild not responsible: The 
  Guild were not responsible for 
  either the death of Grupt or of 
  Lord Appletone although they 
  want to find the culprit. 
   
  Grupt was working for 
  Appletone: Haralda knew that 
  Grupt had taken up working 
  for Lord Appletone as an 
  enforcer. 
   
  Trying to buy his way out: 
  Grupt approached Haralda 
  about buying his way out of the 
  Guild, he said that Appletone 
  sent him to rough up a barber 
  and that—once the man paid 
  up—he’d have enough money 
  to make good with the guild. 
  19 
   
  OTHER PLACES 
  Although the clues point to a local 
  barber being involved somehow and 
  a little asking around should yield 
  the location of Stroude’s Barber 
  Surgeons the player party may wish 
  to look into some other places. 
  Whilst beyond the scope of this 
  adventure to detail the entirety of the 
  City, some suggestions for other 
  locations are offered below. 
  ARTAIR O'BRIANÊS BAZAAR  
  This is the place where Stroude 
  originally purchased the Ritual Tome 
  that allowed him to create the Cast-
  off Golem. 
  The Bazaar is a small, shabby shop 
  full of musty old books and strange 
  items from a variety of places 
  around the world. The owner of the 
  shop is an elderly, hunched figure 
  whose body is covered with bizarrely 
  designed tattoos. 
  Artair O’Brian, level 1 Magic-user 
  A hunched, elderly man with tattoos and 
  a distinctive accent. 
   
  AC 10 [9] (unarmoured), HP 3, Att 1 × 
  dagger (1d4) or 1 × spell, THAC0 19 
  [0], MV 120' (40'), SV D13 W14 P13 
  B16 S15, AL Neutral, STR 5 INT 16 WIS 
  10 DEX 7 CON 10 CHA 11, Spells 
  magic missile, Items None 
   
  If asked about his recent sales and 
  provided with monetary incentive, 
  Artair will tell them the following 
  information (depending on what the 
  player party ask): 
   Heriot Smith, Lord 
  Appletone’s manservant 
  visited shortly before his 
  master’s death: Appletone 
  sent his servant to the shop 
  looking for a talisman or 
  token that could protect him 
  from the enemies the may 
  have been targeting him 
  following Grupt’s death. 
   Henley Stroude purchased 
  an old book from the shop 
  a week or two before 
  Grupt’s death: Stroude is a 
  collector of old books, 
  particularly those with 
  anatomical diagrams in 
  them. When he discovered 
  the Ritual Tome he was 
  clearly very excited and 
  purchased it straight away. 
  O’Brian claims not to know 
  what the book was about, 
  but sold it anyway. He has 
  a bill of sale that provides 
  the address of Stroude’s 
  Barber Surgeons. 
   
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Old-School Essentials BX Essentials/Old-School Essentials Adventures & Settings/Little Barbershop of Terror (OSE)/Little Barbershop of Terror [v4 booklet] (OSE).pdf