Hey all,

This is both my first post on the Forge, and my first crack at town design.  So without further ado, here is Canine Bluffs for your reading pleasure (and hopefully review and feedback).

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CANINE BLUFFS

Canine Bluffs is a small village of about a dozen homesteads nestled atop a ridge overlooking a large lake.

Brother Zachary is a Dog who watches over the region alone, since his partners died some time ago.  The towns in this area are small, so a lone Dog working the region isn’t uncommon.

Nevertheless, the Players’ Dogs are sent to the region to check up on him, and if necessary to join him in performing his duties if it should appear he needs help.

Something's Wrong:

PRIDE: Brother Zachary, a Dog assigned to the border region of Faithful lands that includes Canine Bluffs performs his duties well, but feels entitled to special recognition. He has begun bedding women-folk, saying that the King of life recognizes the pressures of being a Dog so far from the Faith’s centre, and rewards him for his service by allowing him to enjoy the carnal pleasures of women without need of love, or marriage.

INJUSTICE: Sr. Emily has been shirking her chores in order be with Br. Zach when he is in town; her younger siblings (infants and toddlers) have, unknown to Sr. Emily’s mother and father, gone without food for days at a time.  In addition to neglecting her duties to her young siblings, she has been ignoring righteous attempts to court her. Emily has drawn some attention for spending so much time with Br. Zach; but she claimed that Br. Zach has noticed her as a potential Dog and has been talking to her about what goes on at the Dogs’ Temple.

SIN: Sex - Br. Zach is having sinful sex with Sr. Emily.
Deceit – Sr. Emily is lying about why she’s spending so much time with Br. Zach.

DEMONIC ATTACKS: The Demons see inroads through Sr. Emily’s neglect of their duties, and through Br. Zach’s sinful sexual relations.

They know that promoting the sinful sexual practices would eventually drive the town to destruction.  As a result, they’ve given dreams to Br. Zach, reinforcing his beliefs that it is alright for him to have sex with many women (without love or being married to them) as a reward for his service as a Dog.  Playing right into the Demons’ hands, Br. Zach has viewed these dreams as messages from the King of Life.

The Demons have also been working hard to corrupt other women in town, so that they will fall into sin by bedding down with Br. Zach; these attacks are finding success, as Sister Innocence (daughter of Br. Elmo, a fisherman), Sister Chastity (daughter of Br. Asher, a farmer), and finally, Sister Temperance (Br. Jeremiah’s wife, and Sr. Elspeth’s mother) agree to have sex with Br. Zach and Sr. Emily.

The Demons have convinced Sr. Temperance that sex with Br. Zach is virtuous, and that the ultimate act of virtue for a young woman is to give her virginity to a Dog.

FALSE DOCTRINE: Br. Zach and his concubines now believe that “The Watchdogs of the King of Life should be rewarded for their service, through the pleasure of sex”.

Sr. Temperance also believes “A Dog’s best reward is the honor of deflowering a virgin”.

The Demons have convinced Sr. Temperance, and she in turn has convinced her cult followers that “The King of Life rewards those who give of themselves to reward the Dogs with the pleasure of sex.”

Sr. Temperance is also starting to believe that the husbands of the town are not needed, and that Br. Zach (i.e.: a Dog) is capable of taking care of them on his own.

CORRUPT WORSHIP: They consider every sexual encounter a divine act that rewards and reinforces Br. Zach’s service as a Dog, and in turn increases their favor with the King of Life.

As result of the False Doctrine the Demons have cultivated in Sr. Temperance’s mind, she plans on offering her daughter, Sr. Elspeth to Br. Zach.

FALSE PRIESTHOOD: Sr. Temperance has become the head of a cult devoted, essentially, to Br. Zach’s sexual gratification, and that of the women of the cult.

The cult members are Sr. Temprance, Sr. Emily, Sr. Innocence, and Sr. Chastity.  Technically, Br. Zach is also part of this cult.

SORCERY: Sr. Temperance knows that the fathers of the young women of her cult, and most especially her husband, the Steward, would have very serious objections to what is going on in the town.

To keep the fathers from learning about the situation, Sr. Temperance has used sorcery to get the Demons to undermine food crops, weaken livestock, reduce fish stocks in order to force the fathers to work harder and longer to provide the necessities for their families; thus keeping their attention focused away from the sins in town.

To keep her husband from learning too much about the current situation, the demons at her command have been poisoning his food; he has been getting progressively more ill with every passing day.  Br. Zachary has tried repeatedly to heal Br. Jeremiah, but the strength of the cult always dooms the attempts to failure.

What do the Townsfolk want from the Dogs?

Brother Jeremiah wants the Dogs to heal him.  He believes that his affliction is too strong for only one Dog to heal.

Brother Zachary believes he is doing a fine job on his own and doesn’t need help.  He wants to the Dogs to carry on to another town or region.

Sister Temperance, and the women of her cult, want the Dogs (the males, at least) to accept their “reward”, and sleep with the cult members so that they can receive further favor from the King of Life.

The fathers of the cultists want the Dogs to bless the fields, livestock, and the lake so that the King of Life will restore them to the bountiful production they once knew.  They have also noticed the neglect that has happened in their households, and want the Dogs to ensure their daughters faithfully execute their duties within the home.

What do the Demons want the Dogs to do?

The Demons want Sr. Temperance’s cult to grow and prosper.
Ideally, they want the Dogs to succumb to the cult’s way of thinking, and accept their ‘reward’, thus cementing a rapid demise to this town’s Faith.

Alternatively, if the Dogs are too strong to be swayed from the Faith; they want the Dogs to go away and leave Sr. Temperance and her cult to their devices.  It means a slightly slower demise to the town, but it would ensure its demise nonetheless.

What Would Happen if the Dogs Never Came?

If the Dogs never came to discover Br. Zach’s corruption, Brother Jeremiah would finally succumb to his illnesses and die, leaving the town without a Steward.

The cult would grow and prosper.  The fathers and other men of the town would slowly be overworked to the point of exhaustion and death.  Eventually the town would become populated only by women, all serving theirs, and Br. Zach’s hedonistic appetites.

All of this is assuming the cult could remain secret long enough.  If the cult were exposed, the menfolks’ rage would result in rioutous bloodshed and the demise of the town would be swift and certain.

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That's it.  Simple, and with a minor twist that the problems involve a Dog.  I think the way I'd try to play this one is to have one of the players actually play Br. Zachary.  This would likely increase the shock and surprise of seeing a Dog being involved in the town's problems.

Thoughts?

Generally, it sounds interesting.  I wouldn't use it with a new group, but I *would* use it a little further in.

Hm...

...Does Sr. Temperance know that she's using sorcery?

Does Brother Zachary know that the women consider these sexual 'services' to be worshipful in nature?

Is anyone pregnant as a result?

I certainly agree with you that I wouldn't use it with a new group.  If anything, I'd probably run it immediately after a Dog died in an already active game.  I'd have the player, whose Dog just died, play Br. Zach.  Whatever the outcome of Canine Bluffs, I'd then allow him to create a new Dog for the next town; unless he finds Br. Zach a compelling enough character to want to keep him.  There'd be some interesting traits on his character sheet as a result, I'm sure. :D

I'm gonna deal with the questions in reverse order.

I would play that the demons are currently preventing pregnancies from happening, as a pregnancy would interfere with the cult's activities, and would risk prematurely exposing the cult.

I believe Br. Zach would be aware that the women believe the sex to be worshipful.  He believes the King of Life wants to reward him, and I expect that he would agree that to do the King of Life's bidding in 'sexing up' the Dog as a reward would bring favor on the women.  Obviously Br. Zach's perception of duty is a bit skewed now; but by and large he's still doing his job.

Whether or not Sr. Temperance knows she's using Sorcery or not is a good question.  My instinct here is to suggest that anyone who used this town should go with what they feel works best in that respect.  Obviously, if she is actively sorcerous, or unwittingly sorcerous impacts the dynamic of the situation; but I don't think that's a bad thing. :)