Café de Nuit

That's actually a much better way to go about it Roit. Good idea

Although we might want to toy a bit more with it. Looking back to the exp table in the DMG, this would only apply for a level 9 party killing 2 level one commoners. Really, two first level commoners wouldn't stand a chance against a party of 6th level characters either (I'd even argue a party of 3rd level).

The DMG table is set to encounters where 20% of all resources are used at an equal challenge rating encounter encounter. The idea here is that you are using excessive force by killing your opponents when really there was little/no chance of them killing you. Assuming that halving the CR instead makes it 10% (a number that would either never or almost never kill a pc), we may rule that an encounter of half your Party level or less would provoke the check, provided the attackers were merely NPCs with commoner levels.

Emphasis being on the commoner levels though. Experts and warriors have other options than to mug people, let alone aristocrats or PC classes. If you take a look at the commoner class, there is really no way the class is going to kill any one any time soon.

Just got Dragon #341
It got a tin golem. Mayve we can use it as a basis for the Paridonian tin golem?

Other lesser golems from the issue might be appropriate as well: fungus golem (a primitiv timoran golem?) and the wax golem (already a Ravenloft monster).

On the note of Golems, I think we should tackle Technology.

Factories were mentioned in the canon material, and so a factory district is included in the Riverside borough. As is a clock tower (once again, from the canon material). What else do we add?

I know that when I picture Shadewell, I can picture rich businessmen or women occasionally getting around on Bicycle for an 'afternoon strole' (the 19th century style ones with the massive wheels). Infact, it being the location of the university as well as numerous intellectual societies, Shadewell might be more advanced than the rest of the city. Keep in mind that however Shadewell is a relatively large part of the city, it only accounts for not even a fifth of the population.

How advanced should surgical techniques be? Once again, I argue fairily advanced, for reasons obvious (the realm is inspired by Jack the Ripper).

I think we have more flexibility here than we think. The DMG said 'renaissance', but keep in mind that the DMG has already been proven to have slight errors, as well at the time the writers may not have been thinking ahead towards fleshing out Paridon. Perhaps not with anything monumental, such as firearms or trains, but other stuff that the canon material doesn't specifically deny would be available.

Nathan, David, any official rulings on this?

I put my vote in for a rather high level of medical skill, perhaps the greatest in all of Ravenloft due to the overabondance of cadavers. Paridon seems to have one of the highest rates of death per capita and all those bodies would be a playground for early medical practitioners.

I even had the thought of having a shady group prepay families for the bodies of thier family members so they can then sell them to universities for a greater proffit.

hmm... we like selling bodies for profit...

question (and I am sure the answer lies somewhere around here, but I've just spent an hour catching up on the thread): When are we hoping to have this done by?

answer: no set date. Technically we're still brainstorming as we shouldn't begin serious writing until the Souragne gaz is out and people see how we did things.

@ Jasper: I agree Paridon would have a high level of medical expertise, but think Lamordia is still highest, thanks to Mordenheim. Considering how small/compact Paridon is, could we assume that the doctors who cater even to the poor to be of unusually high quality?

Something else- considering the tunnels and sewers, and lack of surrounding land, would burial still be that common as compared to cremation?

How are the police regarded by the general populace? I get the feeling that they'd be respected despite having to fulfil laws concerning the arrest of debtors and evicting bankrupt tenants (or would they do this?). The canon mentioned that one of the most popular laws passed was the raising of guards to three per patrol. These guys are risking a hell of a lot, and the prisons are supposed to be some of the best (if not the best) in the Land of the Mists. There probably would be corruption in certain groups, but I don't think it would be widespread. Ideas or opinions?

The inclusion of Dragon's latest tin golem would be cool- but are we required to contact the magazine? I have no idea how these copyright issues work. At the very least, there should be a note to refer readers to it.

Something else- considering the tunnels and sewers, and lack of surrounding land, would burial still be that common as compared to cremation?

Provided they found the body (not always a garuantee in Paridon), Cremation may be better. However, there would still be a few lingering cemetaries for those that could afford to be buried in the ground. Paridon may have underground cellars with bodies buried into the walls.

Now personally, I'd like to see a few people dropping the bodies of dead children near Paridon Bridge's foundations...if only in few cases.

Right, so Medicine seems pretty settled. We shouldn't outshine Mordenheim's niche, but Paridon could be tagging right behind. Keep in mind that Mordenheim is capable of doing things that we can't really do today (trust me, I'd be the first one to reanimate something if we could).

Now another note for Technology: 18th-19th century gadgets.

How industrial age are the factories? Do we have large, expansive machines? Between industrial machines, and mechanical irons golems (let alone many of Mordenheim's creations), the machines are a lot more reasonable, and wouldn't really affect game play.

Are there Bicycles invented? Keeping a horse must get awefully expensive, and bicycles aren't that hard to invent (Divinci had similar gadgets I recall). Of course, should the players get any funny ideas, these bicycles would probably break easily, and be utterly useless in combat.

The fortune of several residents in Shadewell might be riding on the creation of one gadget. Of course, everyone would love to get everyone else's monopoly on a device. Many inventions might be stolen ideas from treachorous partners.

Any one have any other ideas?

Undead Cabbage wrote:
Now another note for Technology: 18th-19th century gadgets.

How industrial age are the factories? Do we have large, expansive machines? Between industrial machines, and mechanical irons golems (let alone many of Mordenheim's creations), the machines are a lot more reasonable, and wouldn't really affect game play.

Large yes, but not technicly advanced. I see massive looms that needs to be worked by twenty women at a time with only one out of ten factories having the top of the line automlooms. The clothing factories are just as simple with the earliest forms of petal driven sowing machines in long rows with the women and young girls working on them 14+ hours a day in dimly lit warehouses.

The mens factories would be the last to still resist technolgical advancements. The iron works and maufacturing shops would still be done the old way by hand and by sweat. Only the best shops have any sort of safety features and loosing a finger or whole limb is common place.

Are there Bicycles invented? Keeping a horse must get awefully expensive, and bicycles aren't that hard to invent (Divinci had similar gadgets I recall). Of course, should the players get any funny ideas, these bicycles would probably break easily, and be utterly useless in combat.

The fortune of several residents in Shadewell might be riding on the creation of one gadget. Of course, everyone would love to get everyone else's monopoly on a device. Many inventions might be stolen ideas from treachorous partners.

Any one have any other ideas?

I see no problem with bikes as that would open up a way for the Blackchapelites to earn some coin. I invision a small group of cabies driving rickshaws and taking people on tours of the city. They know every nitch and cranny of the city and can, for a silver or two, tell you the dirt on just about anyone, anywhere in the city.

As for the people in Shadewell I forsee a "clockwork culture" sprining up amoung the wealthly. Skilled artisens from Shadewell create both simple clockwork toys like flying birds or tiny soldiers all the way up to vast Rue Goldburgesque autodressers and instant breakfast makers for the rich.

all the way up to vast Rue Goldburgesque autodressers and instant breakfast makers for the rich.

"So Ray,you mean Lord Goldnsteyn was..."
"Yes my dear Sedgewick, he was murdered by his own paridonian instant breakfast maker..."
- The Case of the dreadful Animator, from 'The Adventures of Alanik Ray"

So, the butler isn't always the killer?

Bikes could also be the simple celeriferes, which was invented in 1790/91. Very bizarre- you couldn't steer them.

I've been reading Elizabeth Gaskell's Mary Barton recently. I prefer her to Dickens; she gives more details about daily life during that time. One of the horrible things she relates is the prominence of opium in the first half of the century. It was very cheap and legal. Mothers unable to feed their kids 'soothed' them with the drug and it was apparently one of the major sources of infant mortality.

There was also gin in the baby bottle, and I remember how smoking tobacco was also good for your health at the time. Any other bits of 'medecine' and folk remedies anyone can think up?

Slightly off topic, as this was brought up in another thread.

What are your thoughts on Paridon's relation with Mordent? William had a neat idea on the 'collonies' theory. Could Mordent have been a section of Paridon's old farmlands? Should Mordent and Paridon have any relations?

A quick note on policemen.

Take this and make what you want with it.

Back around the time of the Ripper murders, policemen weren't a very effective force. They used to handle battered wives and their husbands, small thieves and things like that.

I read (and I forget where, sorry) that one of the reasons they never caught Jack was because they were pretty inefficient. The culprit wasn't an obvious one for once. And with no witnesses...

If someone can find a way to introduce that element to the Survey, I think it could be interesting. After all, Paridon just figured out they have a Dopple problem...

Patrick

Victorian police also had to be invited to private estates and requested/allowed to persue investigations. They didn't have the right to simply investigate without permission. Nobles could deny the police access to investigate matters such as theft and dismiss them if they felt progress was not satisfactory. Hence the number of private investigators.