Pine Hill, Prepping the first game.

[Kaare Berg]

Having ploughed trough the Pdf and eagerly awating the book I am gong to run a game this saturday. Appriciate any feedback on the following town:

Pine Hill

Image:
The tall mountains to the east, their peaks covered in eternal snow, a God made barrier against wickedness and sin. Yellow cornfields bordered by intense green. The brown temple on Pine hill with the large old pine next to it silhouetted against the painfully blue sky.

Pride
Brother August wants to marry Kesiah, he yearns and lusts for her as well as he seeks praise and worth by taking a poor widow for his second wife.

Injustice
Brother Deleth who has been courting Kesiah for the last year, helping her at the farm and all has come under pressure from the community to not court a woman sought by his betters. Without his help Kesiah and her son Esiaha struggle to keep the farm.

SinAt first Deleth would not relent. Peer the Steward tried to talk to him. Deleth became guilty of the sin of disunity as he began to speak out against the steward and his brother. August then convinced two of his farmhands to teach the wayward brother his place and they beat him to silence, committing the sin of violence.

Demonic Attacks
The demons laugh greedily. They fan the fire under August Pride by making him and his righteous brothers farms bountiful and thriving, and the lands of the dissenter Deleth and his brother Isaac blighted, fueling their hatred and sense of injustice. Kesiah's lands are bountiful and rich, but most lies fallow since without help she can not tend to them. Something both sides use against the other, questioning each others motives.

False Doctrine
August and Peer are blessed by the King of Life for their righteousness.
Deleth and Isaac are being tested by the King of Life, they must not be found wanting.

Corrupt Worship
The Steward leads the congregation at mass on the Sabbath. His words are tainted by pride subtly spreading the belief that the King of Life rewards those that look out for themselves, reducing charity among the community.
Deleth and Isaac meet at night on the Sabbath to pray for guidance and help. Kesiah joins them in secret and now she leads her own mass. They have become three.

Skip to 6.

Townsfolk:

Steward Peer Poppelson – the elder brother and under the influence of August who he has always protected.

Brother August Poppelson – the pillar of the community, the stewards right hand.

Brother Deleth Vrandthorst – an unmarried young man who lives at his brother's farm
Brother Isaac Vrandthorst – a man who has been too kind to his wayward brother.

Sister Keisha Landslage – the widow of Tomas Landslage

Little Esiaha Landslage – the only son of Tomas.[/list:u]

Others:

Sister Marilla Poppelson – Augusts first wife

Sister Athena Vrandthorst – Isaacs wife.

The violent farmhands, Loek and Arno.[/list:u]

What do the townsfolk want from the Dogs.

Peer wants the Dogs to confirm the authority of his office and make the dissidents conform or be driven from town.

August wants the Dogs to command Kesiah to marry him, proving his worth. He hopes they will bless his marriage by performing the ceremony.

Deleth wants the Dogs to punish August and bring him to his knees.

Isaac wants the Dogs to consecrate his lands and help his brother.

Kesiah wants August to leave her alone so that she can marry the man she loves, Deleth.

Esiaha want the Dogs to make his mother happy.

The town expect the Dogs to either punish the Vrandthorst (those with plenty) or to side with them against the Poppelsons (those struggling).

What do the Demons want

They want the town to polarize into those who have and those who do not, eventually for the town to tear itself apart come winter and the need grows great.
They love to see the Dogs punish Deleth for upping against his betters, further enforcing the split between the haves and the have nots. They do not want him dead though.

What will happen if the Dogs never appear

The spilt will continue to widen. Kesiah will propagate the false belief that she can lead prayer meetings and mass as well as the Steward, becoming a focal point for the have-nots. Eventually falling into sorcery. August will be even more driven to get what he wants and eventually the rift between the two different sides will degenerate into violence, with the survivors creating a new blasphemous branch preaching an amalgation of the two beliefs led by Kesiah.

The Dogs will first meet Esiaha, who will be the first indication that something is wrong (a child playing on the Sabbath and not attending mass?), who will in his innocense tell what he knows.

I'll drive it hard from here.

I guess what I am aiming for is a town with no clear innocents other than Esiaha and a town where the players have to tread a bit carefully lest they escalate the sitaution. I am thinking about a few Bangs, but will try to ride the wave a bit before I initiate any.

however my worry is:
Is the conflict clear?