The Successful Conclusion of the Dark Before Dawn One Shot

The Ordo Dracul are a lively bunch!

On Saturday, 5th December, we finally completed our main event of 2014 with an occult mystery set in Adelaide and involving a dozen different vampires who all expected a different event, location and even era.  There were folk in lab coats, police uniforms and masquerade ball gowns, and each vampire was shocked and confused at the location they found themselves within.

After the initial confusion, the vampires quickly realised that the location held many clues in the artwork, alchemical solutions and even spirit-possessed shrines that populated the location.  They also found a warning, or perhaps a threat, written on both the chalkboard and even projected onto a screen at various points.

Four possessing spirits of darkness would be released into the venue to possess one of the vampires every hour and twenty, give or take.  These spirits would have vital information they would be compelled to provide to the vampires in their own way but they would also be vicious threats if allowed to linger too long.  Should the vampires fail to root them out and exorcise them, they will find themselves quickly overwhelmed as each additional one is released to possess another vampire.

The vampires were informed that they had been provided with several exorcismal techniques which lurked within the hall but each technique could only be used on one person and if the wrong person were chosen, that technique would cease to work on the actual possessing entity in play at the time.  In other words, if you used a classic chant to exorcise one fellow when it turns out that the fellow next to him is the one possessed, that other fellow would now be immune.

The unafflicted vampires performed admirably under pressure, though the first possession turned to be a very tricky beast indeed, but as their own secrets began to come to light they started to turn their attention back to the greater question: Why had they been brought here?  Who was the person who had done this to them?

Things finally came to a head when a mysterious stranger arrived with a choice for those present.  Will they allow the ghostly figure to remain within the machine (the same ghostly figure that had brought them all to the strange metaphysical hall) or would they allow an ancient deity to regain control of the city.  A few picked the ghostly figure, still fewer picked the deity.  Most chose to walk their own path and refused to choose at all.

In the end, the ancient occultist, Yzador, of the Circle of the Crone made a final deal with the angelic messenger that was, in truth, an abjuration in disguise and she was banished from the realm.

The doors to the outside world finally opened and the vampires were allowed to leave.  Many did so in silent contemplation, a great contrast to the chaos and confusion that had reigned for hours earlier.

(Many of the players have chosen to reprise their roles for the campaign LARP that begins in January.  If you would be interested in an occult mystery game following the tales of the pseudo scientific Ordo Dracul and pagan occultist Circle of the Crone in a city damaged by a plague of sentient shadowy entities, leave a comment below or contact me via email at laraqua_sandgate@hotmail.com)