Gorean Adventures - Black Daggers - 05 (PDF)

Gorean Adventures 05: Black Daggers

Tyrtaeus is wealthy, powerful and extremely well connected.

He is also a slaver, so the list of people who might wish him dead is unlikely to fit comfortably upon a single sheet of parchment.

Unfortunately, somebody has done more than wish.

Tyrtaeus has been marked for death by the Black Caste, the secretive Gorean society of professional assassins. Once they accept a contract, they are expected to fulfil it or die in the attempt. Bribery, appeals to compassion and strongly worded objections are therefore unlikely to resolve the matter.

The characters have been charged with keeping Tyrtaeus alive.

This would be difficult enough against an ordinary killer. The Black Caste are anything but ordinary.

DEATH HAS TAKEN COIN

The Caste of Assassins has passed through decades of decline, disgrace and gradual recovery.

Once respected as grim but honourable instruments of death, its members became objects of suspicion and ridicule, skulking in hiding while their numbers dwindled. Now the caste is rebuilding its reputation, returning to the shadows as killers whose skill rivals—or exceeds—that of the warriors of the Scarlet Caste.

They possess their own traditions, restrictions and professional code. They are not common cut-throats, however much easier that distinction may be to appreciate when they are murdering somebody else.

Once coin has changed hands, the life of the mark belongs to them.

TYRTAEUS MUST LIVE

Tyrtaeus is more than a prosperous merchant in human flesh.

He is a friend and ally of the agents of the Priest-Kings. His death would damage their interests and weaken their position in the secret struggle taking place behind the familiar politics of Gor.

The characters must protect him against opponents who may already be watching, planning and waiting for precisely the moment when everyone believes the danger has passed.

Stopping one assassin may not end the contract.

Killing several may merely establish that the caste needs to send somebody better.

INSIDE

• A complete adventure for Tales of Gor: Gorean Roleplaying

• A protection mission centred upon Tyrtaeus, a wealthy and influential slaver

• The mysterious traditions and deadly reputation of the Black Caste

• Assassins governed by professional codes rather than casual villainy

• Intrigue connected to the agents of the Priest-Kings

• Opportunities for investigation, vigilance, deception and violent defence

• Games Master material and statistics for running the adventure

• A practical demonstration of why protecting one stationary target can be considerably harder than assaulting a fortress

THE BLACK CASTE

Most Goreans assume that anyone able to attract the attention of an assassin must have become involved in crime, espionage, treachery or some other profitable variety of skulduggery.

Contracts are expensive. Assassins are rare. Their presence suggests that somebody considers the victim’s continued breathing a serious political or commercial inconvenience.

The characters may therefore find that saving Tyrtaeus is not simply a matter of defeating attackers. They must contend with the reputation of the caste, the secrecy surrounding the contract and the uncomfortable possibility that their employer has neglected to tell them why somebody paid an exorbitant sum to have him killed.

Clients are often strangely reticent about that sort of thing.

REQUIREMENTS

Black Daggers is an adventure supplement, not a standalone game.

You will need:

Buy Tales of Gor: Gorean Roleplaying

The broader setting reference is also useful for information on Gorean castes, slavery, the Priest-Kings and the hidden forces shaping the Counter-Earth:

Buy World of Gor – Gorean Encyclopaedia

FORMAT

Digital PDF download.

This listing is for the electronic edition. No physical book, black dagger or professionally contracted murderer will be dispatched.

HARDCOPY EDITION

A separate 38-page paperback edition is available through Lulu:

Buy Gorean Adventures 05: Black Daggers in paperback

CREDITS

Written by: James Desborough
Published by: Postmortem Studios

MATURE CONTENT

This supplement is intended for adults.

It contains Gorean slavery, assassination, violence, sexualised social customs and other mature elements of the setting. The central character is a professional slaver being protected from professional killers; moral simplicity has not been invited.