Things to Do in Carroburg Before You Die

A WFRP Campaign run by Tim Eccles

(Note - This campaign has now finished. For my latest campaign, Priests Check the Schedule Page - Link to Follow Soon)
Introduction

The game is based around the craft city of Carroburg in the year 2512 IC. The PCs live and work in the city. All are members of a
small Ulrican fellowship, the Way of the Wolf. This is a networking group, whose aim is to promote Ulrican beliefs in family, friends
and community. It need not imply a strong Ulrican belief, since membership might derive from the schools, social clubs and other
good works that the group carries out. It is through this group that the PCs originally knew each other.

The City of Carroburg: What You Know

Overview
Background
History of the City
Geography
The Schlaefanstieg
City Wards
The Living City
Religion
Government
Trade
Politics
Environs
Note on Titles
Rumours
You

Summaries Updated 13.01.08

Contact Details

Overview [top]
This campaign is set in and around the city of Carroburg. It is a low fantasy game, in which PCs must expect to remain poor and dirty
for all of their lives. Unless they fall in the river. Then they will be slightly cleaner, but a lot colder.
This campaign is different than anything that I have run before because it is set in the one place. This will have one major effect on
gameplay. You cannot move away from your mistakes or enemies. Normally adventurers drift around, and this allows them (and you)
to act outside of social norms. Here you stay put. Break your word even once, and everyone will know about it. Upset a guardsman, a
trader, a guildsmen or a noble - and they will remember it, and pay you back. With interest.

Background [top]
As a default, your PCs are born and bred in Carroburg, or have lived/ traded here for some time. You will also all be young, which
gives me another excuse to have you known to each other. We will roll age normally, but with a maximum of 19. We will arrange
personal details for each of you individually, with who you know and what groups you have relations with. I will want each of you to
write up your character in two parts; what the others know about you (and I will post these up) and what I need to know about you.
Based on these, I will provide you with some contacts, friends, acquaintances, family etc.
You each know the following broad background of the city and its people. I have written this as a general common knowledge. If your
PC has a particular skill or contact, you might know more.

History of the City [top]

This is all a bit muddled in your minds, but the Empires people trace their roots back to a number of tribes (which Sigmar was to
unite and lead). This area is variously linked with Teutognens and Kruebi. None of this means much to you, but some of the guilds

have holidays or festivals where this sort of stuff is mentioned. Carroburg is very proud of its craft traditions, and there is a certain
parroted pride in the citys "heritage of the craft-orientated Kruebi". This is slightly distanced from the farming hinterlands, who lay
claim to a hunting/war-orientated Teutognen ancestry. This might not mean much, but there is a rural-urban split in most things. You
will need to decide if your character is a true Carroburg townie or from the village and farming hinterland. The city was founded by
Carrolus, tribal leader and ally of Sigmar.
The city also reflects this craft background in a less powerful nobility and a general disdain of merchants who simply buy and sell,
rather than those who actually make things (and then sell them). Powerful craft guilds dominate the running of the city, although they
pay lip service to the ruling family. There is also a profound dislike of the merchants of Marienburg, but this is for modern business
reasons as much as historical ideological ones.
One further historical note concerns the 'Greatswords', a famous infantry regiment from Carroburg who wield great two-handed
blades. Legend tells that at some point the city was under siege by an army of goblinoids, during which the famous gate to the palace
was defended by Prince Karad von Carron and a unit of Greatswords. This is a celebrated event in Carroburg history and a statue of
von Carron and two Greatswords stands in the main platz. Prince Karad von Carron himself is buried in a magnificent mausoleum in
the Skaag Hills. A gate is also the heraldic device of the city.

Geography [top]
Carroburg is located at the point on the River Reik where the River Bogen flows into its slow-moving waters. The land is relatively
flat, with the city rising gently away from the northern bank of the river. However, at the point where the Bogen joins the Reik is a
steep cliff, atop which stands the Elector's Palace. The Reik here is very busy and still navigable by ocean-going vessels consequently the city has come to rely almost solely on river traffic. As a result, the roads to and from the city are poor.
Surrounding the city are the trees of the southern Drakwald Forest. Its oak, ash and elm trees are fairly sparse, allowing more light
through the canopy than in the northern reaches of the forest. The low-lying land to the east of the city walls is marshy and prone to
flooding; while the vast swamplands of the Furdienst lie only a few miles away. Local legends tell of sinister gangs of pirates and
demons that dwell in the mist-swathed bogs and tales of the area are used by mothers to frighten unruly children.

A poorly maintained track leads away on the southern bank of the Reik towards the village of Schattenlas, while a better road
accompanies the river to Weissbruck and beyond. North of the city are the Mirror Moors, so-called because of the large number of
shallow lakes that reflect the sky upon their still surfaces. On the southern banks of the Bogen a gradual gradient rises gently through
the forest towards the Skaag Hills and Weidmarkt.

The Schlaefanstieg [top]

Carroburg is dominated by the low hill known as the Schlaefanstieg, the location of the original settlement that grew to the city of
today. In historic times this formed the old town - the remains of ancient city walls are still in evidence around the foot of the hill and
until the quays were built in the second millennium, the area around was flooded every winter. At the highest point of the city are two
large squares - the Heiligplatz and the Carronplatz. The former is the location of the city's larger temples; the imposing Cathedral of
Sigmar stands on the west side of the square opposite the sturdy structure of the Temple of Ulric. In between on the north side of the
square stands the smaller Temple of Verena, facing towards the river. In contrast, the Carronplatz is the hub of the city's secular
administration - it is here that the magnificent Guildenhaus can be found adjacent to the City Hall and Courts.
The remaining buildings of the Schlaefansteig district are those of the wealthy and important citizens. Many important guildsmen have
townhouses on the eastern slope, alongside the homes of priests and senior public servants. It is here that some of the Empire's finest
examples of the unique Carroburg architectural style can be found. Although the Schlaefanstieg is little more than an area of elevated
land, it is the only part of the city to stand well above the water table, and consequently the buildings are far more likely to have
cellars than those closer to the river.

City Wards [top]

The Dockyards is an important and bustling area, where docks are available for naval, private and commercial purposes. Admiralitt,
the Admiralty building, is located here, overlooking the naval dock. This is the Empire's naval headquarters.
The Palace District is located on the cliff above the Bogen-Reik split. It consists of the palace and high-class residencies of the minor
nobility and guildsmen. The entrance to the district is the famous fortified gate that was defended by Prince Karad von Carron and his
Imperial Greatswords - familiar to visitors through being immortalised on the city's crest. The housing here is not actually the grandest

in size, indeed much of it is quite small and irregular as the houses seek to cram in close to the palace buildings. Whilst some
government buildings related to the craft guilds are located inside the palace, most are found inside the various wards. The area also
contains a small private museum (the Bibliotheek), owned by the Prince but supported by 'public subscription'. For the price of a
shilling, visitors can look upon both artefacts and mundane archaeological items.
The Market Square is actually a number of small squares, surrounded by craft workshops. Each of these tends to specialise in a
particular craft and is also the location for a guildhouse for that craft. The most central of these is the Weights and Measures
Courtyard, where local guilds and the Cult of Verena attempt to solve trade disputes amicably.
There are six city wards recognised by the government apparatus and a 'phantom' seventh, the latter being an administrative glitch.
These are called the zuerst, zweit, dritte, vier, fnfte, sechste and siebente. The city regards the wards as cosmopolitan and integrated,
without zoning. This reflects its attitude towards craft and industry. In reality, of course, this is far from the truth. Like everywhere
else, the rich prefer to keep apart from the rest, despite the proclaimed equality of craftsmen.
The main roads running through the city are not so much thoroughfares as places to meet and do business. Most routes are crammed
with traders and inhabitants going about their business. It is often said that Carroburgers are rude, in that they barge through people,
but in effect this is the only way to get anywhere in the city.

The Living City [top]

Carroburg is inhabited by a complacent populace that sees their city as safe and prosperous place to live, and is a typical petit
bourgeois city of craftsmen and shopkeepers.
Geopolitically, its location is more precarious - should Marienburg adopt expansionist policies the city is under threat both
economically and physically. It is no surprise that the Marienburg situation influences all that happens within the city. Whilst the
inhabitants dislike merchants who have no craft (and thus the Marienburgers), they also fear its economic prosperity and the danger it
poses. That aside, there is a strong sense of rivalry with Marienburg and a common view is that the people of Carroburg are superior
because they actually make what they sell.

Religion [top]
Geography and history have conspired to make Carroburg a culturally cosmopolitan place. No one god dominates life in Carroburg,
although Middenland is still largely Ulrican. There is a pragmatic disinterest in religion in the city and although prejudice between
cults is known it is not as common as elsewhere. There are large temples to Ulric, Sigmar and Verena, and also a number of small
shrines to localised craft patrons (variously regarded as gods, spirits or saints). The nobility are traditionally pragmatic Ulricans recognising the importance of tolerance in the city's prosperity and unable to impose religion (even if they wanted to) due to the
influence of the guilds. The city is also something of a pilgrimage site for a number of faiths due to relics held in the temples, but
locals are far more impressed by the money brought by these visitors than the items themselves.
Sigmar
As the first major stop along the River Reik for visitors into the Empire, the Cult of Sigmar realised that it needed an impressive
display of power and so the Cathedral of Sigmar was designed and built to impose. The Cathedral looks down on the river from
the Heiligplatz and its spires are visible for many miles around. It is the seat of a Lector, the Baron Klaus von Meyer, an
aristocratic priest.
The city also recognises Saint Kurt, the smith who served Sigmar and who is responsible for dutiful craft workers. The
cathedral contains a number of relics relating to the saint and also a horseshoe said to have been thrown by Sigmar's horse and
which struck a local woman, slaying her. There was much consternation at this, until it was discovered that she carried a dagger
and had sought to slay Sigmar. This was then praised as a most fortuitous event and the shoe is said to bring about misfortune to
all those of ignoble heart or seeking to bring down The Empire. The church also contains a finger bone, cut from Carrolus' hand
by an orc axe during the battle of Blackfire Pass and later returned by one of his followers. Carrolus jokingly said that he had
little use for it anymore and gave it to the man. It has been rumoured that a dishonest priest sold the true relic centuries ago.
Nevertheless, it is housed in a reliquary of exquisite craftsmanship, provided by a forgotten Grandmaster of the Guild of
Goldsmiths in centuries past.
The church also contains a glassware set of the most beautiful decanter and goblets. It was claimed that Sigmar once owned
these, a concept now accepted as impossible. However, what was once a source of abuse by Ulricans seeking to debunk the
church's other claims has now become a great asset in a city where glass is a major source of trade - the set is accepted to be
perfect. The decanter is used at certain guild ceremonies, but the glasses are securely hidden away now at all times. The items'
true origins remain unknown.
There are three additional Sigmarite shrines in the city, one specifically to Saint Kurt.

 Ulric
On first sight, the temple to Ulric is less imposing than the Cathedral of Sigmar, but it is much better loved by the ordinary
people of the city. This is because it is primarily wooden, built upon a stone first storey, and utilises local craft skills in carving
the superstructure. The current upper frame is some 300 years old, but inside is retained earlier parts of the building and the
church maintains a good relationship with local guilds that send their apprentices to services in order to appreciate the work.
The temple also exhibits on holy days a very tired wolf pelt, slain by Carrolus on a hunt with Sigmar. A bronze axehead is also
located here, Carrolus' axe used at Blackfire Pass. There is competition between the Ulricans and Sigmarites over the validity of
their relics.

Verena
This is a large building frequently used by the city to hold 'public' meetings. Like the temple to Ulric, wood is evident
throughout the building although less ornately worked. In addition, the temple exhibits the work crafted by former Counts as a
ceremonial requirement of their accession to power. Not to be outdone on the relic front, the temple holds what is believed to be
Carrolus' helmet given to him by the dwarfs in thanks for his part in their alliance.

Handrich
Worship of Handrich is quite popular within the city, but only because the god is presented in the aspect of a guildsman rather
than a merchant or financier. A temple and a number of shrines are found throughout the city offering devotion to Handrich as
the patron of a particular guild or craft.

Manaan
Within the Admiralty building there is a small temple to Manaan, although this has little impact on the city at large. A shrine is
located in the dockyards for those seagoing sailors who spend a little time here.

 Local Deities
A large number of statues and 'shrines' are found throughout the city. These are the work of powerful (or, more precisely, rich)
people within the city over the centuries, who wished to exhibit memorials to themselves. These take many forms from selfportraits to works concerning the history of the city or the gods. The knstlerichpolitzist, a private militia, are employed to
protect the works from theft or violence.

Government [top]
The city government is dominated by the guilds, especially the craft guilds.
The city has two tiers of government, both of which are elected. The first is the town council, whose members are elected by the
guilds and other recognised organisations. The second is the wards, whereby councillors are elected by voters determined on the basis
(and mass) of property ownership.
On the larger scale, Carroburg is the seat of the Elector for Middenland and capital of the province. The crest is a portcullis indicative
of stalwart defence and is a good general indication of the nature of the town and people. Open to all, but at the same time capable of
dogged obstinacy when provoked.

Trade [top]
The city is a centre for trade due to its geography. The River Reik is navigable at this point and access for those upon the River Bogen
is controlled here. This makes the city the gate to The Empire, and ensures that the city is an important location for those wishing to
trade out of The Empire with Marienburg and, to a lesser extent, Bretonnia. Accommodation and provision of services for travellers is
an important source of employment, and taxation on their goods is a major source of income.
The city remains known for glass and pottery. Whilst there are many small businesses in Carroburg, major families run most of the
trade. Glassware is run by the von Pilkinton, Govain and Krippon Glass businesses. Pottery has only two main players, though neither
is as dominant as those within glassware; these are the Hohrnsee and Dohlton families.

Wood from the nearby forests furnishes raw materials for the skilled craftsmen. It also provides a cheap source of fuel for glass
manufacturers - though charcoal is preferred to timber itself.
Gnome trade with the city has resulted in its reputation as a famous centre of clock manufacture, particularly cuckoo clocks. Two
merchant families have a duopoly for this trade concession. They are the noble von Roalekz family and the silversmith Kwartz family.
The Merchants Guild is largely irrelevant. Merchants remain members of their manufacture guilds since the value of craftsmanship is
an important theme of the city. Marienburg is seen as the antithesis of this as it puts profit before craft, and so the Merchants Guild
remains small and useless.

Politics [top]
Although the city is technically the seat of Middenland, there is little love between town and country. Many Carroburgers are very
wary of what they see as the extremism and bigotry that they find in the region, whilst those in the outlying villages and farmsteads
see Carroburg as rather irresolute and weak.
The city has diplomatic ties with the local gnome community. Carroburgers have a tendency to dislike dwarfs, who they see as
arrogant and bigoted in their assurances of their natural superiority as craftworkers. Carroburg is unusual in that most of those in the
city will clearly exhibit xenophobia towards that race.
Internal city politics are controlled by the guilds, who effectively determine who is elected to all city posts. This allows them to
control the demand for their work and so monopolise its supply to their own membership.
Grand Duke Leopold von Bildhofen has been a distant figure in the running of the city. While the guilds press for greater standing and
trade protectionism, the Grand Duke has expressed no interest in politics at all. A disinterested figure, he has always taken part in the
city's ceremonies with an undisguised blankness. His chancellor Arnold Von Schacht carries out most of his official duties. A more
interesting character has been his "personal adviser" (or Meister), a foreigner with an unpronounceable name - Han Su Lou. However,
Leopold appears to have dismissed his adviser and begun to interest himself in city, and Empire, politics.

Environs [top]
Notwithstanding the poor infrastructure described above and the consequent difficulties in communication overland, Carroburg does
maintain a network of small thorpes and hamlets in which a variety of manufacturing takes place in the form of many cottage
industries. These are all obligated to leading guildsmen within the cities and are in reality little more than wage slaves to the large
industrial families in the city. Life in these settlements is monotonous, hard and short. That said, employment remains relatively full
and, whilst poor, the locals are not starving. Most of these hamlets lie along the river, but they are also spread out for about a day's
travel encircling the city. Others form satellites to the few 'major' settlements noted above, including Dunkelbild, Schattenlas, Punzen
and Anseldorf. These have noble overlords and outside guild control.

Note on Titles [top]

WFRP is extremely variable on noble titles, the only two specific ones to Middenland being the Grand Duke and his brother, a
"baron". In order to add flavour and give some consistency, I have adopted the following hierarchy of titles:
Gross Herzog (Grand Duke). There is only one of these, Leopold von Bildhofen.
Herzog/ Herzogin (Duke). This applies to Leopolds brother (and heir), Siegfried. Note that in some places he might still be referred to
as Baron Siegfried (which is the title WFRP gives him).
Markgraf/ Markgrafin.
Landgraf/ Landgrafin.
Freiherr.
Ritter. (Also, Eberitter and Burggraf).
There is the odd other title that you might come across, including Prinz and Baron. Normally, your characters will understand none of
this. Unless your PC is a noble you must show the appropriate deference to all these natural superiors to yourself. Indeed, all your
social betters will need treating with the appropriate respect.

Rumours [top]
This is general stuff that you've heard going the rounds.
Increased orc and goblin incursions have been occurring to the east in Ostermark. These are more than raids, since they are now
standing to fight against local militia sent against them and holding land. Our dwarf allies recently routed a raiding party near the
village of Wilhelm V. By all accounts, it was an organised goblinoid warband that had easily swept away the local militia. About time
our dwarf allies did something useful.
Erengrad has appointed Ekaterina Bushinov as commander of their armed forces and given her the task of permanently cleansing the
region of outlaws and pirates. She began by defeating the self-styled Count Vladimir Rosporov and his mob of looters.
Let the goblinoids have the eastern lands. I would much rather have lands to the north - they are more fertile and have greater natural
resources. Let the dwarfs deal with the goblins in the mountains; about time they pulled their weight in this so-called alliance we have
with them.
Pirates have been operating with free abandon along the downriver section of the Reik. However, the authorities recently had a
success against them, destroying or capturing two boats.
Someone has stolen Altdorf's walls. They way I heard it, is that builders have been taking stone from the walls for a few years. No one
noticed, or they were paid not to notice until one wall actually fell down.
A tribe of wood elves in the Laurelorn Forest, known as the Laurelornalim, have apparently seceded from The Empire and agreed a
mutual defence pact with Marienburg. Nordland incursions into their traditional lands have reached crisis point. This can only mean
trouble for Carroburg.
A shadowy cabal of elves is creating a northern alliance against The Empire. They have stirred up the local Laurelornalim tribe into
attacking human inhabitants in the Nordland tracts of the Laurelorn Forest and are the true power behind their human puppets in
Marienburg. Some of Baron Niksz's advisers are also in their pay. Once they control the northern ports, they will make their move
against the entire nation. That makes us next!

Monsters have appeared downriver of here, attacking lone river workers and small outlying farmsteads.
Traders are refusing to accept Marienburg Guilders without an independent check on the quality of the coinage. Apparently a large
amount of debased coinage has been traded in Erengrad and has started to appear here.
Grand Duke Leopold von Bildhofen has sacked his erstwhile Meister, Han Su Lou. Su Lou was appointed by the Grand Duke's father
and has been in post for years, ever since he returned with Leopold's father "from the East". Some think that the Chancellor, Arnold
von Schacht, was behind the move, which means that the Guildenhaus was behind it. Others point out that the Meister was simply a
pension for the old guy anyway, with no job to perform. He was just one of those hangers on the Grand Duke has, who claim to be
inventors and alchemists. Its all politics!
Klaus von Pilkinton has apparently bought himself a noble title out east somewhere in the hope that it will buy him respect from the
local nobility. No chance!
There has been an upsurge in street violence recently. Frijtore workers have been fighting craft workers; the former are mostly nonguild workers and the firm undercuts official pay rates. Street gangs have also been fighting it out for territory whilst the Watch sleeps
on the job.
The knstlerichpolitzist are a private watch service protecting the monuments and shrines in the town. They are useless, taking the
easy money plus a few bribes to look the other way occasionally.
Leif Aelfricson is a mad Norscan, wandering around with a drinking horn, two-handed axe and horned helmet. He must scare the City
into employing his building company, Frijtore, since they undercut guild rates and employ scab labour. They are currently building a
turf fort and boom on the northern bank. Theres bound to be trouble over this!
Marienburg supported investment in the small river navy now based in Carroburg through the cancellation of certain debts contingent
upon its construction and operation. Apparently they fear a Bretonnian attack. However, they are now complaining because we armed
the boats with small cannon and created a floating gun platform. They think that these are siege weapons rather than a fast defence
force to be used in their interests. Seems to me that a modern field force needs artillery and that cannon are a primary deterrent against
a force of heavy cavalry, such as that which would be likely fielded by Bretonnia.

These river pirates that everyones been going on about. If you ask me, its those damned Reiklanders across the way up to no good
again. They have always envied Carroburgs dominance of river trade.
You can always tell when a new year has really started, and thats when we have the guild and city festivals, and the tourney. Our
knights are the best in the land. And well show those backwards rural Middenlanders what modern fighting looks like.
Marienburg supported investment in the small river navy now based in Carroburg through the cancellation of certain debts contingent
upon its construction and operation. The boats are armed with small cannon and there is even a floating gun platform. They look
impressive, but my brother tells me that you can't fire a cannon from a raft. He says that most of the cannon on the ships are wooden
fakes and that much of the money loaned by the Marienburg Directorate has been spent on re-paying loans owed to a cartel of gnomes.
River workers out along the downriver section of the Reik are disappearing and report that Bretonnian rebels are hiding out there after
another failed coup against some tyrannical overlord.
A number of rakers and rat catchers have apparently gone missing, according to the Rechengild, which represents them. I hear that it is
all politics. The populist Herbert Marcuse is using it to gain votes from certain guilds and interests, and Balderman Stoll, a rat catcher,
is making a play for power against the guildmaster Wilhelm von Ellfenstein. Jorgen Maskowic, a lead raker, is voting with the rat
catchers.

You [top]
Well develop backgrounds relevant to what you create. The one point to note at this point is that you are embedded in the city. You
have family, friends and an employer. You will probably wear appropriate livery. And you might well find yourselves mingled in with
existing animosities and alliances.

Summaries [top]

The following are summaries written for the players after each session of play.
Summary 01

Summary 02

Summary 03

Summary 04

Summary 05

Summary 06

Summary 07

Summary 08
Summary 15

Summary 09 & 10

Summary 16

Summary 11 Summary 12

Summary 17

Summary 18

Summary 22 New!

Summary 13

Summary 19

Summary 23 New!

Summary 14

Summary 20

Summary 21