SPIT IN THE DIRT

Campaign Dossier

Lead Writer
vich
Vladimir Brato

Writing
Henry Coates
Michele Lee
Sarah Orr Aten
Kyle Osterberg

Art
Charles F erguson-Avery

Editor
Sarah Orr Aten

Layout
ici
Matthias Bonn

+One System
n
Brandon K. Ate
Matthew Orr
Never Going Home: Bile in the Streets Campaign Dossier
Copyright © 2024 Wet Ink Games, LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted

or stored in a retrieval device, in any form or by any means, without the prior
permission of the publisher. This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to
actual people, places, or events is purely coincidental.

Never Going Home and the +One System are trademarks of Wet Ink Games, LLC.

Produced in Louisville, Kentucky, the ancestral homeland of the Eastern Band of

the Cherokee, the Osage Nation, and the Shawnee (including the Absentee-
Shawnee Tribe, the Eastern Shawnee Tribe, and the Shawnee Tribe).
Kentucky itself is currently home to tens of thousands of Indigenous people.

First published in 2024.

First printing.
Published by Wet Ink Games, LLC
Louisville, KY
WetInkGames@gmail.com
ISBN: 978-1-959956-17-4 (Softcover)
ISBN: 978-1-959956-18-1 (Digital)

WIG-212

Printed in U.S.A. by Jostens.

Contents

Introduction.............................................................................................................. 2

Soldier’s Dossier....................................................................................................... 4
Weapon Innovations ............................................................................................. 4
Whisper Paths........................................................................................................ 5
Trinkets................................................................................................................... 9

Narrator’s Dossier.................................................................................................... 11
Antagonists............................................................................................................. 11
Nightmares............................................................................................................. 14

Campaign Dossier.................................................................................................... 16
Mission 1: To the Front......................................................................................... 19
Mission 2: Hold the Line....................................................................................... 28
Mission 3: The Unspeakable Beast...................................................................... 33
Mission 4: Grave Duty........................................................................................... 41
Mission 5: All Hallows Fire................................................................................... 48
Mission 6: The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month......................... 54

This project was made possible by the

781 people who pledged their support.

Thanks to Kevin “Doc” Wilson for additional advice

on the manuscript.
Again, in the same address Washington explicitly says, in reference to his
policy of neutrality, that “with him a predominant motive has been to gain
time to your country to settle and mature its institutions, and to progress
without interruption to that degree of strength and consistency which is
necessary to give it the command of its own fortunes.” These are highly
memorable words, gentlemen. Here I take my ground; and casting a glance
of admiration over your glorious land, I confidently ask you, gentlemen, are
your institutions settled and matured or are they not? Are you, or are you not,
come to such a degree of strength and consistency as to be the masters of your
own fortunes? Oh! how do I thank God for having given me the glorious view
of this country’s greatness, which answers this question for me! Yes! you have
attained that degree of strength and consistency in which your less fortunate
brethren may well claim your protecting hand.

-Lajos Kossuth, Speech at the Corporation Dinner, New York,

Dec. 11th, 1851.
 To Etienne Kult, Editor-in-Cheif, Zücher Post Zurich,
Switzerland

April 6th, 1918

the
Etienne — e U n it ed S t ates entering
th
nniversary of than
On this, the a rite a b o u t anything other
cannot w gs on ,
Great War, I ft b eh in d . A s the war dra
o have been le o the fray, th
ose
the people wh ic a n m en in t
to drag Amer rothers, sons
,
and continues fr o m th ei r b
wait for news re wondering:
who anxiously rs a n d fr ie n d s a
ands, neighbo
fathers, husb
ing home? uite distresse
d.
is he ever com er ef o r e, is q
homefront , th bsent men have
The American s th a t th ei r a
to fill the hole as young as
5 are
As women try u ch . Ch il d r en
ome too m ld be left to o
lder
left , it has bec ks th a t s h o u
res and tas g in where thei
r
seen doing cho a re s t ep p in
the older ones there is a gen
eral
youths. But ew Y or k Ci t y ,
ere. Here in N shington
fathers once w ’ve b ee n d o w n to visit Wa
the air. I me there, espec
ially
malcontent in it is th e s a
t month, and saw a group
of
D.C. in the las d in g . I eve n
e capital buil e House
surrounding th s ilen t ly o u t side the Whit
women there,
standing “B r ing him home.” I see
at rea d
inted signs th time to time.
When
with hand pa Y o r k fr o m
gs here in New ust be windin
g
the same thin d s u r el y , it m
nally over—an is is the
this war is fi m en w ill s t ill be alive? Th
w many icans I
down now —ho o n th e m in d s of the Amer
g question
most pressin
have met .

wn
Harvey P. Bro st
Corresp ondent , Zürcher Po
American

1
The American Expeditionary Force
The United States of America officially joined the First World War in 1917, ultimately in
response to German U-boat attacks. Despite the war having been on for years and many
Americans already in uniform under the various belligerents, it took months to put
the country on a war footing. General John Pershing, in charge of the operation for the
Americans, wanted to get enough American troops to Europe and into position so that
a proper knock-out punch to Germany was possible. The first Americans to arrive in
Europe—in American uniforms—supported operations along British and French lines
beginning in April 1918.

In the 7 months of heavy conflict which followed, the numbers of U.S. wounded and
killed in action were brutal. Out of the 4.3 million service members sent “over there”,
51,822 were killed in action, 4,434 became prisoners of war, and a staggering 230,074
were wounded in such a short time. These casualties were attributed to the way the
Americans fought. From the Marine corps getting their nickname of “Devil Dogs,”
to the awe-inspiring bravery of soldiers like Pvt. Henry Johnson, whom the Germans
called the Black Death, the mentality of the soldier was one of no quarter, no retreat,
and never stopping the push forward. The Americans fought, much to the surprise of
the German forces, up to the last minute of the war.

To sum up the method of war which the U.S. forces used, take the example of one
Capt. Lloyd Williams. On 11 June 1918, when the French told Williams’ unit to retreat,
his response was, “Retreat hell! We just got here!” After the long years of
carnage in the Great War the best way to speak about the American
contribution is this: The ferocity the American forces brought to bear
did not win the war, it ended it.
 Letter to Arthur Sims, U.S. Army Signal Corps
From his wife, Mary Sims

April 15th,
1918
Artie—
Jerry brou
ght home a
science exa perfect sco
m this wee re on his
of himself k. He is ver
for memor y proud
ent parts o iz in g all the diff
f a plant. H er-
the functio e t ol d m e all about
n of flower
dinner. Janie s last night a
had another t
last week, b ou t of fevers
but she see
now. I had ms to be be
the doctor m tter
keep her st ix her a tonic
rength up. to
today, but s S h e w ent to school
he still see
have to kee med ill. I
p an eye on will
came by th h e r . Y our sister
is evening.
nothing fro She said sh
m Johnny fo e’s heard
know anyth r m onths. If y
ing of wher ou
is, please l e t h e 15 th Division
et us know
day that sh . She’s afra
e’ll be next id every
that he’s mis to receive a
sing. letter

I love you
,
Mary

3
 Soldier’s Dossier
Weapon Innovations
U.S.A. Dean Modern Combat Armor
The pinnacle of armor for the period, weighing in at only 15 pounds (6.8 kg) and
providing good protection, this armor is made of “Vulcanized Rubber sponges” and
alloys, this setup was so well made if it was given out in mass it could have cut casual-
ties by as much as one third.
Capability: 3 Armor
Weakness: Cannot be worn with other armor.

Rifle Scope
An add-on for long gunners, the scope has helped create a new era of covert combat.
Capability: May activate the Aim Weapon Ability for free.
Weakness: Must have at least 2 training in Ranged to use accurately.

Spotter’s Scope
With the beginning of the new age of snipers, this is invaluable for any help in getting
that hard to hit shot.
Capability: If used in conjunction with an ally using a scoped rifle, may roll Ranged:
TN 2 to add one die to an ally’s next Ranged roll. If the spotter has a least 2 training in
Investigation, may roll Ranged: TN 3 to add one die to an ally’s next Ranged roll with
any rifle.
Augments: +1 die to ally’s next Ranged roll (2)

4
 Letter to Walter Davis, U.S. Army Infantry, 31st Division
From his mother, Gloria Davis

April 21st, 1918

Walter,
th er an d I ha ve be en so wo rr ie d about you. We
Your fa
th e pa pe r th at yo ur Di vi si on was caught up in a
saw in ys an absurd
e Ge rm an s. Th er e ar e al wa
bad scrape with th we are always
ti es in th e re po rt s. Of co ur se
number of casual mi ssing are
ar e am on g th em . Th e li st s of
afraid that you it ing for news of
ch lon ge r. It is no t ea sy wa
also getting mu ur father has
wa ys an xi ou s for th e pa pe r. Yo
you. We are al
in g it to me wh en it co me s. I almost can’t
taken to read rn, Walter.
ev er y da y for yo ur sa fe re tu
bear it. I pray

With love,

Mom

Whisper Paths
Bloodlust Pushes (Brawn)
As the name states, this is the Whisper Path about pure carnage. Once the caster lets
the rage of battle take hold, they push their bodies to inhuman levels, negating wounds
and causing more and more damage to others, but it becomes harder and harder to
stop fighting. For each Bloodlust Push, the caster must forgo any card (and the mem-
ory associated with it), losing something of themselves due to either anger or fear. The
card grants 1 automatic success.

After a caster chooses their second Whisper from this Path, bloodlust has a chance to
5 overwhelm them every time they Push in combat. From then on, during each combat,
after casting a Push they will have bloodlust, meaning their next action must be an
attack or another Push. At the start of their turn the caster may make a Whisper skill
roll. If successful, they may act normally on their turn. The base TN for this boodlust
roll is the number of Pushes the caster knows. For every Push cast during the combat
so far, add +1 TN. For every 2 mobs killed, add +1 TN. Example: a caster knows 3
Bloodlust Pushes and has cast two already. They must roll Whisper: TN 5 to calm their
rage. If the caster fails the roll and no other enemies are left, then allies become targets.
If it seems appropriate, allies may grant automatic successes to the caster’s roll by their
presence or actions.

Fortitude: By yelling out and pushing their bodies far past what would normally fell
them, the caster harnesses the chaotic energy of war to make them formidable in com-
bat. The caster gains Armor equal to one half (round down) current Brawn.
+1 Armor (2)

Carnage: Chaos of battle engulfs the caster, forcing them to inflict massive damage
to those near them. As part of this action, the caster may immediately make a melee
attack (rolling either Melee or Whispers). If the attack deals Brawn damage, 2 enemies
in short range take 1 Guts damage from witnessing the horror involved.
Spray (1), inflict an additional 1 Smarts damage (2)

Wounds: Giving over to the base desire to survive, the caster forgoes the ability to do
ranged combat to inflict more primal damage. Add +1 damage to all melee hits until
the end of combat.
Inflict an additional +1 damage (2)

Rush: The thrill of combat overcomes the caster. For the remainder of the combat,
melee attacks targeting them are -2 TN, but they gain an additional attack during each
round of combat (they will be selected twice in the initiative order). They make their
first additional attack the same round this Push is cast.
+1 additional attack per round (5)

Scrum: With superhuman speed, the caster rains blows onto opponents. As part of
this action, the caster may immediately make a melee attack (rolling either Melee or
Whispers). If the attack deals damage, the caster may immediately make another at-
tack against the same or a different target in range. Once the Scrum attacks begin, they
may continue to make melee attacks as long as they deal damage each time, up until
they make as many total attacks as their current Brawn.
This ability remains active each round until the end of the combat (5).

Soften: With a threatening gesture, the caster selects an opponent to target. Their at-
tacks against this opponent are -1 TN. attacks gain an additional -1 TN (2), this ability
remains active until the opponent is destroyed (3)

6
 Letter to Aaron Pennel, U.S. Army Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps
From his sister, Meredith Pennel

April 27th, 1918

Aaron,
e wi th on e of th e ar my wi ves at the grocer today,
I spok u.
. We got to talking about yo
buying treats for May Day ng
s pr ou d to tel l th em of th e bravery of my brother, servi
I wa
ia ti on Se ct io n. Th ey we re all so impressed with
in the Av excit-
e wo rk th at th e ar my is doing in aviation. It’s so
th
th in k of it — th e tec hn olo gical marvel, the airplane,
ing to lucky you are be one
me n lik e yo u Aa ron ! How
being flown by
e pi on ee rs. Ju st lik e th os e boys with the tanks. This
of th
of su rp ris es — no t al l of th em good, obviously—but
war is full ates
wa s ni ce to th in k of ho w much better the United St
it
is ga me . Th e wo ma n I me t told me they are still
is at th I
tors. She recommended that
looking for switchboard opera
, gi ve n my ba ck gro un d. I think I’ll give it a shot. It
sign up at
king about it! I just know th
gives me a thrill just thin ll
at ev er yo u do ov er th ere , you’ll triumph Aaron. You’
wh
wa r so on en ou gh an d th en everyone will know how
end this rk
t so proud of you. Do good wo
strong the USA is! I am jus
ere, bro th er an d I wi ll se e you when you get home.
over th

Yours,
Meredith

Conviction Beliefs (Guts)

This Whisper Path drives the caster to put themselves in harm’s way for the chance of
rallying and protecting those around them. It is a Path most often learned by idealists
and the particularly driven. A sense of purpose and rightness is not required to learn
these Beliefs, but it helps. The Path also allows, in fact compels, casters to push aside
their fears and focus on their goals, instead of on the dangers between where they are
and where they want to go.
To cast each Conviction Belief, the caster must discard a card, which grants them 1
automatic success. The memory they give up with the card will always be of a time
7 they were afraid. If they cannot shed any more fearful moments, they cannot cast these
Whispers.

Savior: With selfless disregard for their own safety, the caster makes some kind of
gesture to attract attention. If successful, for one round all attacks targeting a chosen
ally target the caster instead. To determine TN the caster chooses any one of their ally’s
attributes.
Pull attacks from another ally (1), effect lasts until the end of the scene (3)

Rally: In the thick of a fight, even one step back may start a rout. With a few inspiring
words or a rallying cry, allies within earshot become immune to Guts damage for the
round. The caster may maintain the effect of Rally by forfeiting their action to concen-
trate. This may be done for as many consecutive rounds as the caster’s current Guts.
Allies gain +1 Guts until Rally ends (2), allies gain +1 Brawn until Rally ends (2)

Fortify: In a moment of distress, the simple presence of a friend can be a healing force.
The caster must touch the one they wish to heal, they cannot target themselves. They
must also take one damage to any attribute as an additional sacrifice. The TN is the
target’s current rank of the Attribute they wish to heal. If they succeed the target
heals 2 damage to the targeted attribute.
+1 healing (2), heal another attribute at the same time (3)

Rote: By calling an ally’s mind back to their training, the caster can inspire better perfor-
mance in their fellow soldiers. A few spoken words or a simple gesture is the only sign of
the Whisper in action. The caster selects a skill. The TN is the ally’s current rank in the
governing attribute for that skill. If successful, for the remainder of the scene that skill
can be performed as if the character had no damage to the governing attribute.
Apply effect to another skill governed by the same attribute (2), apply effect to another
skill governed by a different attribute (4)

Reverse: When the caster can lead by example, they can inspire their allies to greater
feats. The caster targets themselves with this Belief. The TN is the current rank of one
of their own attributes. If cast successfully, the next time they deal damage they will
heal their chosen attribute equal to the damage dealt.
deal +1 damage on the attack as well (2), allies in close range heal 1 as well (4), effect
lasts until the end of the scene (3)

Heroics: The stories that live on are often about things which are so unlikely they
shouldn’t have happened. The caster can make some of those improbable events more
likely with this Belief. They may target themselves or an ally. The TN is always 4. If
successful, the target may remake one skill roll. The reroll is made after seeing the
final outcome of all the dice and resets the attempt completely, including resetting any
resources spent on the first attempt. Once reset, the roll must be rerolled. The effect of
Heroics lasts until the reroll is made.
+1 reroll (4)
8
 Trinkets
The strange influence of the Others on soldiers’ memories is causing something new to
happen to the memories of the dead. Sometimes memories of a soldier seem to lodge
in a physical object. Coins, buttons, photographs, religious objects, thimbles, knives;
in short, the sort of pocket-sized mementos soldiers have always carried into battle
may now contain one last memory from a departed soul. Any item taken from a dead
soldier could be one of these unusual Trinkets. Perhaps the memory is of the moment
which made the object important in the first place, or a memory of the current war
giving the Trinket a new significance. Is it simply a random memory from the per-
son’s life? Was it that last memory the person held onto against the Others? Was it
their dying thoughts? As long as a Trinket is carried, the one who has it can recall the
memory the Trinket contains as if it were their own. The French soldier will remember
that baseball game in Chicago. The American will remember singing German carols at
Christmas as child.

For each Trinket a soldier recovers, they draw a card. The memory in the Trinket
becomes one they can give up just like all their others. Cards representing Trinkets do
not count towards the normal 7 card hand limit. When a soldier sacrifices a Trinket
card and the memory which goes with it, the final part of that soldier will be gone
from this world and the Trinket becomes a mundane object again.

9
Letter to David Jones, U.S. Marine Corps, 4th Brigade
From his wife, Amy Jones

David, May 13th, 1918

I went out to the farm to see my
parents this weekend.
My mother insisted I get out to
the country for the fresh
air. Said it would be better for
the baby. It was nice to get
out of the city, if I’m honest. N
ot everyone is happy with
the way the war is going. They say
it’s going on too long,
that too many are missing, that too
many have gone silent. I
know you just left a month ago,
but it feels like you have
already been gone for ages. Mayb
e that is because I have
been so tired and ill lately. The mid
wives say that should get
a little better, now that I’ve reach
the 5th month. I know it’s
silly to hope for you to be home for
the birth, but sometimes
I dream about it. I miss you, Dav
id. That’s another reason
I liked being at the farm with my
parents this weekend. My
little brothers don’t seem so little any
more, and though I loved
being with them, I couldn’t help bu
t think that they might also
be sent off to Europe in a few yea
rs if this war goes on. The
papers are not clear if the USA
is making any measurable
difference towards an armistice.
What have you heard about
it, David? Jenny said she never hea
rs anything from Anthony.
He used to send her letters once a
week, but she’s received
nothing for a month. That usually
means one thing—the thing
we all dread.
I’m back home now, writing this
letter at my desk. The sun is
streaming in the window this morni
ng, and I can hear birds
outside. It is warm now, spring
slowly turning to summer.
I look forward to the longer day
s. It is so hard to think
that by summer’s end I will be a
mother! And you will be a
father, David. You’ll be coming hom
e to a sweet little baby—
our baby. I will tell him or her
all about you until you can
be here with us. I promise.
I love you, David.

Love, Amy

10
 Narrator’s Dossier
Antagonists

Rage
More of a malevolent force than a creature,
a Rage is a vile spirit which has taken up
residence in an object. It feeds on hate,
so like a gardener, it sows anger and mis-
trust. The Rage speaks and whispers to any-
one nearby. It will lie and try to manipu-
late anyone it can speak to, even turning a
person’s memories against them. The negative
feelings accompanying its words bring even
the smallest fears, slights, and misunder-
standings to the surface and magnifies them.
As long as the creature exists, those within
range of its influence will slowly gain more
Corruption and their hatreds will eventually
become the only thing they truly care about.
The primary danger in dealing with a Rage
is not fighting it, but surviving its influ-
ence long enough to find and destroy the item
where it hides.
Type: Solo Initiative: 4 Armor: None
Brawn: 3 Smarts: 5 Guts: 5
Weapons: None
Skills/Abilities:
- Communication * * * *
- Knowledge * * *
- Whispers (Smarts) * * *
- Instill Hatred:The Rage sends whispers
out into the nearby area (starting off
with people close enough to touch their
host item). Roll Whispers to infect each
person the first time they come within
range each day. The TN is the target’s
lowest attribute. For every 10 people
infected, its radius of power grows by
20 feet (6 m) and the Rage gains 1 Brawn
(its item is its body). Each infected
person gains 1 point of Corruption per
week infected and slowly succumbs to
their most hidden dark violent tenden-
cies.
Weakness: The only way to damage a Rage is
to destroy its item. Usually a book, or
symbol which was itself created with malice.
If the item is destroyed, so is Rage.
Reward: Everyone involved draw 2, keep 1,
plus heal 2 points of Corruption.
11
Dispair
A floating creature about the same size as a
human torso. They appear as a mass of tiny
worms or tendrils, usually all one color,
white, gray or black. It has no distinguish-
ing surface features, but those who have
encountered them swear the Despair looked at
them. The creature is mainly a psychological
threat with the ability to temporarily bring
back memories of all the soldiers gave up
(when spending cards) to tease them, torment
them, and show them how pointless the war
is. They seem to feed on the anguish they
cause. Or perhaps they just enjoy it.
Type: Solo Initiative: J Armor: None
Brawn: 3 Smarts: 5 Guts: 2
Weapons:
- Collide: 1 Damage
Skills/Abilities:
- Melee *
- Communication * *
- Weeping Gaze (Smarts) * :
This attack targets Guts. Victims suffer
1 Guts Damage and lose one random card
from their hand, if possible. For each
card discarded this way, the Despair
gains +1 automatic success on all future
Weeping Gaze attacks during the combat.
Weakness: Any Whispers that target Guts for
healing or protection can be used to do
double their effect in damage to a Despair.
Reward: Everyone involved in the combat
draws 1 card.

12
 Letter from Mary Sims to her mother-in-law, Anna Sims

May 18th, 1918

Anna,
d from Arthur
Please tell me that you’ve hear
letter since late
recently. I haven’t received a
he wrote to
March. When was the last time
ery time there
you? I am growing anxious. Ev
if it will be
is a knock at the door I wonder
ing the news.
the men from the army, deliver
ive a letter
Please let me know if you rece
from him.

Mary

13
Nightmares
Maybe nightmares are just the products of the sleeping mind revisiting the worst
moments from life. Maybe they come from somewhere else; somewhere beyond the
individual. Maybe nightmares are sent by the Others to further torment humanity.
Wherever they come from, sleep is not always a respite from the war. When Narrators
want to use nightmares as an ongoing part of the story, here are some optional rules to
consider.

After some dramatic or emotionally resonate events, such as facing a great danger, or
discovering the worst people can do to each other, or when the Unit has come un-
der the notice of a powerful Antagonist, the result can be nightmares each time the
soldiers sleep. When characters with Nightmares are sleeping, the Narrator may give
them 1 face down card each night. These cards represent the bad dreams as well as
their lingering effects. The nightmare cards stay on the table in front of the player until
they are removed (see below). The player may look at the card, the Narrator may not.
A player cannot have more than 2 Nightmare cards at a time. As long as any Night-
mare cards remain on the table in front of a player, the dream still troubles the charac-
ter. Each time the character prepares to make a skill roll, one die from their dice pool
must be placed on each Nightmare card in front of the player, negating those dice.
The sleepless and troubled nights mean the character is worse at performing all their
skills. This may make some skills impossible to use! 14
 There are three ways to remove Nightmare cards. Once a Nightmare card is removed
from a player, the player puts the card into their hand.
- The Narrator may remove the card, by forcing the player to remake
a skill roll they have just made. This includes returning any discarded resources to
the player’s hand so they can make the roll over from the beginning.
- The player may choose to remove the nightmare card at any time. If
they do so, they take a chance on Corruption for each card removed.
- The character may make an opportunity to talk about their dream
with another character. This could be an NPC or a fellow player character. When
they do this, they reveal the card, then describe the dream and why it was a night-
mare based on the card suit. If the black Joker is revealed this way, it does not count
as being played, so the player does not yet have to make a Corruption check.

• Spades: Knowledge. Learning, growing, overcoming suffering.

• Clubs: Things. Overcoming obstacles, action, adventure.
• Hearts: Relationships. Emotion or connection.
• Diamonds: Self. Ambition or hopes.

It is left up to the players to work out together what the characters must do to end their
nightmares for good. Perhaps they must face a fear or fight the Antagonist causing the
bad dreams. Perhaps the nightmares will be with them forever.

15
 Campaign Dossier
Spit in the Dirt
Spit in the Dirt presents two sides to the United States’ involvement in the war. On one
hand, the heroic efforts made by American soldiers of all backgrounds are memorable
and commendable. Consistently, people put themselves in danger and pushed them-
selves forward in the face of true horror. The Missions put the players onto the battle-
field alongside some of these memorable figures. On the other hand, the pressure of
war allowed people to indulge their worst aspects in the name of expediency. The Mis-
sions offer a vision of what the worst of humanity could look like given the supernat-
ural influence of the Others. The campaign follows a path between these extremes. It
invites the characters to excel and gives them opportunities to fail. This overall theme
is explored in a few specific ways. Each of the topics listed below can be tailored to suit
the needs and desires of all the players. Remember, Narrator, you are a player too.

Part of tailoring the game for your group is using safety tools at the table. The X-Card
described on page 57 of Never Going Home, is a good basic tool. Lines and Veils is
another useful method for determining just how much you, as a group of players,
want to engage with unpleasant and uncomfortable elements during this campaign.
To set up Lines and Veils, every player may name events and story elements which
are “over the line” and will not be part of the story. It’s up to all the players to make
sure these topics are excluded from the storytelling. Other topics may be put “behind
a veil”, meaning they can happen and impact the events of the story, but they are not
described in detail. You can learn more about these safety tools and many others with
an internet search.

Brutality - Unquestionably, the soldiers of the American Expeditionary Force helped

create the image which, to this day, defines what an American soldier is. Aggressive,
lethal, and known for a “Guts and Glory” approach. From the trench gun to the make-
shift close-quarter weapons which were handmade to inflict the highest damage in the
most brutal of fashions, the First World War showed the world that there must be new
rules for war in the modern era. But that came later. During this campaign the soldiers
are subjected to horrible violence and must often commit it themselves. The characters
are asked to push harder, fight more ruthlessly, and not ask too many questions about
who they are looking at down their gun sights. What does that do to them? What
drives them to continue? The violence is not just the knives and bullets of the enemy.
Training strips away individuality to make the army into a force that thinks and fights
the same. Then, the orders to attack come from officers the soldiers rarely, if ever, see,
who, in turn, are trying to achieve objectives set by politicians who have never seen
the battlefields. The driving momentum of “war aims” crushes all before it. The sol-
diers have to keep moving forward, regardless of pain, regardless of the damage done
to themselves or to others. The war is meant to be a brutal environment, but need not
overwhelm the players. Discuss with the players how graphic they want the impact of
physical and emotional violence to be.
16
 Corruption - Along with their fresh equipment and naive enthusiasm to “whip the
Kaiser”, Americans also brought along the darker parts of America. Other combat-
ants, both allies and enemies, saw American racism, sexism, and more laid bare. The
prejudice within the Expeditionary Force is alluded to in several of the Missions, but
is not directly forced into the story. In the game, as the influence of the Others spreads
Corruption across the battlefeilds of Europe, it may seem like an obvious choice to
directly equate prejudice with Corruption. Do not bring these all-too-real negative
aspects of humanity into your game casually, if at all. Be mindful of the other people
you are playing with and discuss the sort of story you want to tell together. It may be
helpful to remember within Never Going Home, soldiers can be of any gender, eth-
nic background, and sexual orientation. There are other ways to explore losing your
humanity than to rage against another group of people. The Corruption factor might
be the final stress which activates shell shock, or confuses friend and foe, or makes a
character unable to see themselves as a human being. The threat of Corruption makes
this a fantastic setting for cooperatively roleplaying the story of a found family. From
their different backgrounds, the characters are together here now. Can they hold each
other together and keep their humanity in the face of all they must go through?

Outcome - The assumption of the game is that the soldiers didn’t change the politics
of the war. Things unfold in this campaign much as they did in 1918, at least from a
big picture perspective. The battles and the dates are essentially what really happened.
In turn, however, the characters are certainly changed by the events of the war as their
efforts to fight and to survive take their toll. Since every card spent represents a mem-
ory burned away, by the time the soldiers end the game they are not the same people

17
they were. Cards come fast at times in these Missions, but opportunities to spend
them come faster. What does a character hold on to? What are they willing to let go?
Who are they after that? This fundamental threat to memory and identity is one of
the hallmarks of Never Going Home. Even this can be moderated to meet the players
where there are. Maybe you as a group are ready to portray emotional ruined people
who barely remember their own names, and maybe that isn’t what you are interested
in. Again, discuss the story you all want to tell before the game begins. And what hap-
pens after the Armistice? Do those who survive the war get to go home after all? Why
did the war end? What happens next? This campaign ends without answering those
big questions.

Letter to Walter Davis, U.S. Army Infantry, 31st Division,

from his father Jack Davis
May 20th, 1918
Walter,
good this year.
The garden is looking quite
yo ur he lp wi th th e pl an ting, but of course
I miss ed
itments this year. I’ll
I know you had other comm time to start har-
y m iss it wh en it co m es
especiall
mom is planning to
vesting the vegetables. Your the storeroom.
m uc h as we ca n fi t in to
can as
ve up some food, if
Probably a good idea to sa
r go es on . I ha d th ou gh t it would be over by
the wa
coming home. The pa-
now, and that you’d all be
ak e it so un d li ke th er e is n’t much fighting
pers m
over there, Walter? We
left to do. What is going on
se em to ge t an y su re wo rd about any of it.
can’t
up bits of conversa-
When I go into town, I pick
re an d th er e— th e m iss in g, the dead, the de-
tion he
fighting, how are they
serted. If the soldiers aren’t
M ay be th e E ur op ea ns ju st aren’t willing
dying?
with us. Is that it?
to share much information
we ha d a be tte r id ea of what you’re going
I wish
it’s just a few lines.
through. Write to us, even if
We miss you son.

Love,
Dad 18
 Mission 1: To the Front
Kyle Osterberg

“Almost two weeks of this. I don’t know how much more I can stand. We sailed past
Lady Liberty three days ago. Most of us were on deck watching as she and the rest of
New York slowly faded behind us. The voyage started off well. I was in high spirits and
ready to march to Berlin and shoot the Kaiser personally. But then half the ship got
seasick, including me. Soldiers started turning the same shade of green as their uni-
forms.
The deck of the America was the vilest thing I have ever seen. Or smelled for that
matter! Worse than the slums and tenement houses I had seen in Manhattan’s Lower
East Side. When I was eight, my mother sent me to visit my uncle’s hog farm in Ohio.
Those swine kept a tidier and better smelling pigsty than this ship.
I had to traverse the deck slowly and carefully. Many who failed to do this slipped and
fell into the mess. Even then, I couldn’t escape the horrible squishing sound made by
my boots moving through the utter foulness. The really bad ones had to be held up
by their slightly less sick comrades. They had no more strength to stand. One poor
bastard fell before anyone could grab him. No one wanted to pull him up. Eventually
an officer ordered some “volunteers” to help the poor fellow.
One of the ship’s crew went out of his way to be hated by all the troops, O’Brian. O’Bri-
an was a short ruddy crewman who had worked on this ship for months and was well
accustomed to the rough seas. His favorite pastime was to find a wretch just barely
holding down his rations and smack him on the back. After spotting his mark, the
sailor would stroll over to his victim and strike up a conversation discussing the most
stomach-turning subjects he could think about at that moment. He would not quit
until his mark lost it and added to the mess on the deck. Then it was off to find a new
mark. The best moment of the voyage was when the captain caught him and ordered
O’Brian to swab the deck. Cheers rang out everywhere. You’d have thought we had
already won the war.
At least I was luckier than Walters whose uniform was coated in vomit that was not his
own. The storm the next day washed the foulness off the deck at least. The mess in the
ship’s hold was another matter. I am sick of playing cards and listening to Jackson tell
his grandfather’s sea stories. How many times can we hear about ghost ships, mer-
maids, or the time the Kraken gripped onto the ship, trying to pull it down? It’s been at
least seven so far.
I miss my mother and Janice and Norma. But I miss Alice most of all. God, I wish
I could have married her before I left. If only her father was more reasonable. We
supposedly have three more days to go. Good. If I have to go through another two
weeks of this, I would rather the Jerries sink us. Or have Jackson’s Kraken pull our ship
under.”

Mission Briefing
After training, the first challenge for the American soldier was to survive crossing the
Atlantic. First there were the natural challenges: rough seas, storms, boredom, and
19 seasickness. The North Atlantic is also frigid, falling overboard added the potential of
dying from hypothermia. Then, there was the risk of being sunk by a U-boat. Finally,
you have the “new” added danger of sea monsters. Perhaps the old sea stories were not
so far-fetched as the modern world would have us believe. With the tearing of the Veil,
what new horrors await in the watery depths.

Mission Objective
Survive your voyage to Europe.

The Journey
The characters have boarded a ship headed to the battlefields of Europe in April
1918. For many of the soldiers this is the first time they have traveled farther than a
few miles from their hometowns. Talk of “This is the adventure of a lifetime” and “I
want to personally punch the Kaiser in his big ol’ ugly face” is common among those
aboard. While spirits generally ring high, not everyone is 100% excited. Some are
scared, some miss their loved ones, and some are already homesick. Most of the sol-
diers have a mixture of emotion.
Requirements: Majority of the cards must be red. Players need to contribute at least
two cards. One must come from their hand, the other(s) may be drawn from the deck.
If there is an even number red and black cards played, one additional card is added
from the deck.
Narrative: Describe how your character is feeling (red cards are positive, black cards
are negative). Is it a mixture, or one overwhelming emotion?
Failure: Your group is feeling demoralized. In a future Incident (Narrator’s choice)
fives do not count as a success.

Incidents
Seasick: Your ship is tossed about in the rough seas of the north Atlantic. The up and
down motion is causing many soldiers to lose their lunch. The fortunate ones make it
to the side of the boat. The unfortunate ones puke onto the deck. The very unfortunate
ones get covered in someone else’s vomit.
First Roll Athletics TN:2 to see if the character gets seasick. Failure means the
character takes 1 damage to Guts until arrival in Europe

Second Roll Athletics TN: 2 to avoid getting covered in another soldier’s vomit.
Failure means the character must roll against Athletics to see if the character
gets seasick again but this time with a TN: 3

Storm and Song: Your vessel veers into a fierce gale. The pounding rain feels like it
is coming in from all sides as the ship slices through the waves. Visibility has been
severely limited, and any movement made on deck must be done very slowly and very
carefully to avoid being washed overboard. Amidst the chaos of the squall, a sound
can be heard in the distance. As the ship makes its way through the storm, the sound
gets louder. Eventually it appears to be a song: a pleasant happy one. As they get closer,
the singers present themselves. A group of a dozen Sirens begins singing to the sol-
diers on the vessel. After half of the Sirens are defeated, the rest flee. 20
 May 22nd, 1918
Aaron,
I thought about you today when I was in line at the
grocer. They were all out of butter and bacon, and
everyone says it’s because all the butter and bacon is
being sent to the front. I hope that’s true! At least
you’ll be having good breakfasts. Dad says his ciga-
rettes are getting too expensive, and I’ve noticed the
price of coffee is outrageous recently. Well, that just
means that they are treating you doughboys right, I’d
say. Aaron, what is it like? I enlisted in the Sig-
nal Corps this week! They are still looking for Hello
Girls. Isn’t that a charming name for them? I’ll be a
switchboard operator for the US Army! I can’t wait
to help support the war in a real way—not just giving
up coffee and butter and bacon either! I don’t know
if Mom and Dad are as thrilled, seeing as how we
haven’t heard from you at all, but I try to tell them
that you are just so busy shooting down enemy planes
that you can’t be bothered to write home. We’ll hear
news of you soon, I’m sure. I know you haven’t forgotten
us. Maybe when you come home, we can take a picture
together in our uniforms. That will look smart, won’t
it?

Love, Meredith

21
Overboard!: Several of the passengers (as possibly some of the characters) fell under
the spell of the Sirens. They believed they could walk on water and are now fighting to
keep from drowning. Quick thinking and rapid action are required if you are going to
save the poor devils.

U-boat: The next night the lookout spots a periscope on the horizon. Screams of
“U-boat” ring out on the ship. Two torpedoes glide through the water hitting the
U.S.S. Dartmoore, your sister ship in the convoy. The sound of the explosion is deafen-
ing. The destroyers begin firing on the U-61 as the rest of the convoy begin rescue op-
erations. The submarine begins to dive as the destroyers let loose their depth charges.
Challenge Athletics: TN 4 to help pull survivors from the water. For every
2 successes above TN, the group saves an additional passenger of the U.S.S.
Dartmoore.
About ninety minutes later, the U-61 surfaces again and fires its machine gun
at the deck of your vessel. Several of the crew are killed in the gunfire of the
surprise attack. The captain asks the characters to help man the machine guns,
launch depth charges, or help navigate.
Challenge Transport, Ranged TN: 6
Success: Players fend off the U-61 long enough for the destroyers to finish it
off. Failure: The U-61 manages to spray you with its machine gun before the
destroyers finish it off. Everyone takes 2 damage to Brawn.
While you trade fire with the U-61, you hear the song of the Sirens return.
Crew from both the German U-boat and other ships in the convoy begin
jumping into the water.

Counterattack: The Sirens return and swim right up to your hull. There are about
twice as many as before. They begin rocking the ship attempting to get more people
to fall overboard. If this fails, they will begin punching holes in the ship in the hope it
will sink. Once again, when half of the Sirens are defeated, the rest flee.

After several days and a harrowing journey filled with seasickness, storms, Sirens,
and U-boats, someone shouts, “Land!” Nearly everyone rushes to the bow of the ship.
In fact, so many people lunge toward the bow that some of the passengers fear they
would tip the ship over. Luckily, the ship remains upright and through the fog in the
distance, you can see the shores of France. A great cheer rises from the soldiers on
board. The next few hours are the longest of the trip as the shore gets closer and closer.
Finally, your ship ties up to the dock and the gang plank is lowered. A mob of soldiers
push and shove to be the first ones off the ship. An officer is forced to step in before a
riot breaks out. He orders everyone to form a line and retain composure. You get in
line and wait your turn like everyone else. As you approach the gang plank, you see
soldiers in the distance step off the docks and kiss the ground.

You suppress a chuckle and look to your left as you navigate your way to the docks.
Another ship is unloading their cargo. At first you think they are just wooden crates,
but then you realize those aren’t crates. They are coffins. The ship is full of them. There 22
are enough already unloaded for your unit and every soldier that voyaged with you on
the ship, and there are still more on the cargo ship…a lot more.

Decoration
- One card for the Unit for each passenger of the U.S.S. Dartmoore the Unit rescued.
- One card if they avoided being attacked by U-61.
- One additional card if they stopped anyone from jumping overboard to get to the
Sirens.

Letter to Mary Sims, from Arthur Sims, U.S. Army Signal Corps

June 4th 8
Belgium
Mary, Belgium.
n d in g th is to y ou fr om
I am se ow when
fo r n ow . I d o n ot k n
I am safe er here
a ga in , ev er y thin g ov
I will write the chil-
a n d d a rk n ess . T ell
is madness
dren I love them.

Arthur

24
 Antagonists

Sirens
Since humanity began to venture beyond the
safety of the shore and sail into the vast
blue horizon, stories have been told about
encounters with Sirens. These are some of
the oldest creatures to ever threaten sail-
ors. According to old legends, they lived
in Earth’s oceans centuries before the
Great War. They are only known to inhabit
the water, unlike their land-based cousins
the Comfort Siren. They most often take on
the visage of a young beautiful woman but,
they can assume any form a potential victim
would find appealing. The song of the Si-
rens enchants the listener and draws them
closer to the Sirens. Those under a Siren’s
spell often believe they can walk on wa-
ter and attempt to walk out to the Sirens.
The Sirens then swim under their victim(s)
and pull them beneath the water’s surface
until they drown. Then these cruel beasts
enjoy eating the flesh of their victims. But
they have also been known to kill for mere
pleasure. They prefer to work together as a
group to increase their deadliness.
Type: Mob Initiative: 8 Armor: None
Brawn: 3 Smarts: 6 Guts: 3
Weapons:
-Bite: 2 damage
-Claw: 2 damage
Skills/Abilities:
- Athletics * * * * *
- Melee * *
- Stealth * * * * *
- Communication * * * * *
- Siren Song (Smarts) * * * * * :
The Siren sings a beautiful melody
that entices the listener to get closer
to them. Those under the song’s spell
often have delusions of grandeur, be-
lieving they have special abilities like
being able to walk on water. They will
stop at nothing to get closer to the
singer. They will fight or kill any

25
 one who gets in their way while they
are under its influence. Those who are
unable to hear the song are unaffected
by it. This attack targets Guts. If it
hits, the victim falls under the
influence of Siren Song. On the victim’s
next turn, they move toward the Siren,
jumping into the water if need be. The
Siren may forfeit its action to main-
tain the song’s influence on a victim.
Weakness: Easily frightened when their num-
bers become diminished.
Reward: One card per individual Siren
killed.

26
 Letter to Walter Davis, U.S. Army Infantry, 31st Division
From his mother, Gloria Davis

June 7th, 1918

Walter,
I’ve stopped reading the papers. They say nothing
about
Europe that we haven’t already read. I may be ima
gining
things, but it does feel that no information is rea
ching us,
not even Washington. Your father said they haven’
t men-
tioned anything about Pershing at all since Janua
ry. The
absence of any word from you makes me nearly sic
k. I’m not
the only mother who is worried. Even as I write thi
s, I am
thinking of Betty, Marie, Laura and Darla. I can
’t think
when the last time they heard from their boys wa
s. There
is a theory that the mail isn’t reaching you, an
d that if
you are sending letters, something is stopping the
m from
reaching the United States. Absent any news, I sup
pose all we
can do is wait for you to return. We pray for you
boys in
church every Sunday. I miss you so much, son.

With love,

Mom

27
Mission 2: Hold the Line
Vladimir Bratovich

“There wasn’t anything so fine about it. Just fought for my life. A rabbit would have
done that.”
- Private Henry Johnson

Mission Briefing
On the night of May 18, 1918, German soldiers launched a raid on a U.S. Encampment
in the Argonne region. The intent was to capture and kill American soldiers. What
they met was only two men, members of the “Harlem Hellfighters,” stuck alone on the
line. Upon hearing the firefight, American and French forces charged ahead to bring
aid to the embattled soldiers. This Mission is set during the rush to reach the encamp-
ment, make sure the line holds, and save the troops stationed there.
While the Unit moves forward, the historical Private Henry Johnson is making the
stand which made him remarkable. He became known as “the Black Death” for con-
tinuing to fight on, despite suffering 21 wounds. Almost single-handedly, Johnson held
off the German offensive until help arrived.

Mission Objective
“Did you hear that? Sounds like heavy fire at the forward encampment. But we don’t
have anyone out there at the moment, do we? What do you mean there is a foxhole
with two members of the 369th? Grab your gear people, we have a war to fight!”

The Journey
You are awakened by distant gunfire and shouted orders. You have to reinforce the
line, but the forward position isn’t exactly close. You will have to pick up your gear and
rush to the distant line.
Requirement: One Heart for each player, it takes heart to rush out into the night to
defend your own.
Question: Where is your mind as you hear about what is going on and the orders to
give aid? Do you want to help the Harlem Hellfighters?
Failure: Each member of the Unit takes 1 Guts damage.

28
 Letter to David Jones, U.S. Marine Corps, 4th Brigade
From his wife, Amy Jones

June 15th, 1918

v id , h o pe th is letter finds
Da ut I
ll n o w o rd from you. B t is getting throu
gh
Sti th e po s m
is sure if ny letters fro
you. No one e rec ei v ed a
ing of
seems to hav at the beginn
since no one oved to th e fa r m
pty of men,
gh b o y . I m m o re— s o em
a dou ke the city a
ny
June. I c o u ld n ’t ta
e, w a itin g for news. It
gil
e w o m en h ollow and fra u c h b et ter to be here in
th . M
a sn ’t g o od for me, David and brothers. And Mom
w
c o u n tr y w it h my parents o u s h o u ld see how big
the e. Y
b een s u c h a help for m o n e is gro wing well.
has ttle
elly is no w David! Our li w y ou are safe.
my b d to k no
please. I nee
Write to me,

Love, Amy

Incidents
What Was That?: As the first volley is heard, it shakes the nerve of some of the soldiers
relaxing behind the front line. As the Unit arrives, they may attempt a Communications
+ Investigation Challenge: TN 6 to help these other soldiers push through their panic
and form up to support the advance. Success grants the Unit an automatic success on a
future roll. Failure will give the Narrator a +1 TN penalty to use at their leisure.

The Horror of War: As the Unit goes toward the sound of explosions and the cries of
conflict, they spot in the dark a small group of soldiers also moving towards the firefight.
This is a group of Disfigured, equal in number to the Unit. The Disfigured will attempt
to avoid notice by simply marching toward the sound of conflict. If not spotted with
an Investigation roll (vs. their Stealth roll), the Unit comes into close quarters with the
creatures and they attack. If the Unit spots the impostors first, they may either spring an
ambush (the Disfigured will not act during the first round of combat), or they may sim-
ply avoid the creatures with either an Athletics or Transport roll. If there is a combat, the
Unit may search the corpses afterward and recover a Trinket from each Disfigured.

That is Not Thunder: As the Unit continues the march to the front lines, all becomes
29 quiet. Shortly after they notice this, cannons can be heard in the distance. With an
Investigation or Ranged: TN 3 they can determine that the cannon fire is aiming at their
present location. If someone is successful, each member of the Unit must roll Stealth: TN
2 to find some kind of cover before the shelling starts. If no one succeeds, they will need
to roll Stealth: TN 4. Anyone who successfully gets to cover negates damage, but those
who fail suffer 3 Brawn damage.

The Silence is Deafening: As the Unit digs themselves out of the debris and begin to
tend to the wounded, a low clicking sound can be heard. Any soldier who makes an
Investigation: TN 2 roll will be alert to the impending danger. Anyone who fails is sur-
prised. Crawling through the debris is a small group of Corpse Feeders looking for food.
There will be one more than the number of Unit members. This encounter happens
immediately after the shelling ends.

And Death Rode with Him: As the surviving Unit members crest the hill and see the
line where the Harlem Hellfighters stood you are faced with an arresting sight. Outlined
in fire, smoke and flare lights, Pvt. Johnson is still standing, holding the remnants of his
Bolo knife, and protecting the injured body of his bother, Pvt. Roberts, as images of the
last of the Germans fleeing can be seen in the unnatural light. Multiple bodies lay every-
where while Johnson is somehow still in the fight. It is an incredible and inspiring sight
to behold. A roll of any Whisper: TN 2 will reveal that he has used magic to keep stand-
ing. Those who glimpse Johnson at this moment of victory in battle may heal 2 damage
across their attributes.

Now Lay Your Burden Down: Even as the Unit sees Pvt. Johnson, other allied units
begin to appear to reinforce the line. The crisis has been averted, thanks to the efforts
of one man. But the trouble isn’t over. Over the field of death a strange groaning sound
can be heard as some of the soldiers Johnson killed begin to twitch and struggle to their
feet. A number of Unfallen equal to the number of the Unit +2 approach to continue the
fight. Johnson is too wounded to fight on, but he will willingly be escorted away from the
line to receive the medical attention and rest he needs and deserves. The Unfallen will
focus their attacks on Johnson, but any member of the Unit may shield him from any
undead attack. If this fight is wrapped up quickly, and the Disfigured from the Incident
“The Horror of War” were left alive, they could reappear now and pose a final threat to
getting Johnson back to safety.

Decoration
- All those surviving gain 2 cards as they return Pvt. Johnson to the rear.
- If the Unit makes sure to evacuate Pvt. Needham Roberts, the other Harlem
Hellfighter, they get 2 more cards.
- Those that either heal Johnson or keep up his morale can now learn either the Whisper
Path Conviction Beliefs or Bloodlust Cries from Johnson.

30
Letter to Aaron Pennel, U.S. Army Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps
From his sister, Meredith Pennel

June 30th, 1918

Aaron,
Today was my first day at the board! I was
so pleased
to be sitting the re, waiting for calls to roll
in. It was
different than I thought it would be. I was
expecting
it to be hectic, harried, hurried you know?
Anyway,
it wasn’t like that at all. The re was a lot
of waiting,
and eve ry time I got to speak to a person,
well, I hate
to say it, but none of them sounded like
they were
proud of what they were doing. They were
all tired. Too
tired, almost. I tried not to let it get my
spirits down.
I’m in France, after all, and doing good wor
k here. But
Aaron, I would feel better if I heard from you
. I haven’t
heard from you in so long. I’ve asked around
about you,
but no one seems to know exactly where the
Aviation
Section is currently ser ving. Eve rything
is so
different than I thought it would be. Wri
te to me
when you get the chance. I’m in Chaumont
now. I like
to imagine it makes me closer to you.

Love, Meredith

32
 Mission 3: The Unspeakable Beast
Michele Lee

“As soon as you got over the top, fear has left you and it is terror. You don’t look, you
see. You don’t hear, you listen. Your nose is filled with fumes and death. You taste the
top of your mouth. . . . You’re hunted back to the jungle. The veneer of civilization has
dropped away.”
- Leading Seaman Richard Tobin

Mission Briefing
After their initial battles at Argonne, the Unit has spent some time on R&R around Paris.
Now it is June and new marching orders have come in, even though the characters still
haven’t recovered from their last mission. The team is ordered to head northeast to help
reinforce the line at the Somme ahead of a push the British are planning. While there
shouldn’t be any opposing forces along the way, no one knows what new horrors lie in
wait for even careful travelers. After all, there is a war on.

Mission Objective
Make it to Somme alive.

The Journey
As they follow the map given to them by their superiors over beautiful land torn apart
by monsters and madness, and as their rations become increasingly unappealing, the
players notice a gloomy cloud rising in the distance. After several more miles of steady
marching, two things become clear; the cloud is a giant mass of flies and beetles, the
kinds of which are drawn to dead flesh; second, the path they are marching on skews
west of the suspected killing fields, allowing the Unit to circumvent the portents of
doom.
Players must make a decision: Investigate by contributing any red card, or avoid the situ-
ation by contributing any black card.
Requirements: Red cards must outnumber black cards.
Narrative: Each character must explain whether they want to investigate and why or
why not.
Failure: The Unit chooses not to investigate. First, the Journey cards are reshuffled and
dealt back out and any player who gets a black card must make a Corruption check. Sec-
ond, confident they have avoided danger by continuing down the main road, the group
is surprised by a group of Unfallen numbering twice as many as the Unit. The creatures
drive the Unit east, where they end up at the west gate of a seemingly abandoned Amer-
ican military camp. Skip to the Incident “A Few Ominous Clues.” The troop of Unfallen
may reappear later to menace the Unit if it seems appropriate.

Incidents
Omens: The players move east, toward the great cloud of insects, sure something un-
pleasant awaits them. They come to the south gate of a semi-permanent camp with all
33 the signs of an American occupation.
The smells of faint wood smoke and carnage waft toward them on an otherwise
pleasant breeze. There are no sounds of camp life, and they cannot see any movement
within the gate.

After a moment of hesitation, or if anyone enters the camp, 3 Blight Worms inhabiting
corpses shamble out of a nearby tent and attack
the Unit (Tome of Corrupted Beasts, page 9). Alternately, use 2 Corpse Feeders with the
ability to cast the Rotten Trick Poison.

A Few Ominous Clues: After surviving the enemy attack, and gaining the appropriate
rewards, the Unit can begin exploring the camp. The camp appears to have been here for
at least several months. One wall of the square camp faces each direction, and each wall
has a gate. Whatever is beyond the north gate is the main source of the cloud of flies and
insects. The walls of the camp are made of little more than barbed wire and sand bags.
Well-worn paths connect each gate, quartering the camp. Most of the space is given over
to barracks tents. Several of these tents are using U.S. flags for doors; or have hung them
along one side. Each quadrant has one building of interest: a med bay, intelligence tent,
mess tent, and a large wooden structure of unclear purpose.

The camp seems unremarkable at first, except for being an abandoned installation. Out-
side the main camp buildings, the Unit can roll Investigation: TN 3 to find a few scat-
tered signs of violence, like a severed finger next to the barracks, a bloody knife on one
of the pathways, and a severed arm in a smoldering refuse pit.

The Unit can investigate each area of the camp in any order. If they rest or spend too
long in any place within the camp, they will eventually be attacked by Blight Worms,
Corpse Feeders, or Unfallen, encouraging them to move along.

Medical Disaster (Southwest): The med tent has 3 main chambers of decent size, a sick
bay, a field surgical suite, and an office/private space for staff. It also has cabinets with
supplies (Investigation: TN 2 to find enough to treat several wounds), and a small, 2-bed
sleeping chamber off the office. One of the beds in the main clinic area is overturned
and an IV is laying exposed and has drained out into the ground (Investigation: TN 2 to
notice this).

The surgical space and treatment area beyond is a mess. An operating table has been
toppled over and it looks like several large supply chests were used in an attempt to bar-
ricade the doorway to the staff space, but this heavy pile, which likely weighs in excess of
300 pounds (136 kg), has been shoved aside to allow access.

Gaining Intelligence (Southeast): The intelligence tent also offers little in the way of
clues to the disappearance of the soldiers stationed here. Investigation: TN 2 can turn
up orders to remain in a support position, maps of the front lines, and a receipt from
a delivery of fresh foods from a nearby town; all of which are dated just over a month
ago. No roll is needed to locate a locked file safe, but it requires either Athletics: TN 4 34
 or Mechanics: TN 3 to open the safe. Inside is a package with simple enlistment cards
and dossiers on the soldiers with this regiment. The package reveals a total of 63 people
camped here, mostly support personnel to take food to and rescue the injured from the
front lines.

On a desk are personal care packages that had been sent to officers (the finder of this
extra tasty resource can either draw a card, or gift a teammate with this boon). There is
no other sign of the officers or their personal effects anywhere in the camp, and their
records are not in the file safe.

Mess in the Mess (Northwest): There are also signs of violence in the mess hall. (Inves-
tigation: TN 2, more successes give more details.) The tables used for eating are shoved
together around the edges of the room and both spent cartridges and dried blood,
crawling with flies, can be found. The kitchen area is destroyed. The ground is littered
with crushed and decaying food. Pans are dented and crumpled, prep tables are broken
to pieces, and the massive cooking pots have been beaten and shoved or possibly thrown
around by something with ferocious strength.

With an Investigation: TN 4 players can find a hand-dug cellar off the kitchen where
someone or something has stacked nearly a hundred severed limbs like firewood along
the walls. If playing with the optional Nightmare rules, entering this cellar may provoke
nightmares.

An Empty Cage (Northeast): At the northeast corner of the camp, past the barracks
and refuse pit, the players will find the wooden structure turns out to be the remains of a
cage made of a crate. The cage has been busted open and crushed food and cigarettes can
be found on its floor, along with smears of blood and half a hand. A small painted name
plate on the cage reads “The Beast.”

Town of the Dead: A well-maintained road runs from the north gate, running north and
slightly east, to a nearby town. As the Unit draws closer, they startle the insects which fly
up and into the sky in a haze of gray. The town is barely more than a strip of buildings
along a road, framed by farms and loosely fenced pastures. The place reeks from half a
mile away (800 m) and when the players arrive, they immediately notice that not only is
everyone here dead, but someone has posed all the corpses in a grisly caricature of town
life. Some bodies are sitting at a table outside a small restaurant complete with rotting
food on plates sitting before them. A cluster of human bodies along with a cow and two
pig cadavers are hung on a fence near a building that was most likely a farmer’s market.
Inside, more dead attend to their stalls and the Unit finds the bodies of many soldiers are
posed as patrons. A corpse in a law officer’s uniform stands, one hand raised in greeting,
in the window of the police office.

The scene becomes more disturbing the more the characters study it. Children are posed
kicking a ball, with pieces of wood holding them standing. Candy and other sweets are
35 stuffed into their pockets. Many of the bodies here are missing fingers or limbs, with
some of the damage (Knowledge: TN 3, or Investigation: TN 4) having occurred before
they died. Further investigation only reveals more hideous scenes throughout the town.

Eventually, the Unit will come to the main street through town where they find a body in
an American officer’s uniform, propped up by a wooden post. The body’s arm is posed
to point toward a cafe at the end of the street. The face has been stretched and pinned
with nails to maintain a gruesome smile. Looking at the cafe, they catch sight of a human
shape disappearing into the restaurant.

Meet Me at the Cafe: This is the Beast’s lair. The cafe is little more than a kitchen and a
storeroom with a tiny front lobby space for patrons. All the seating is outdoors. Inside,
someone has hoarded a bizarre collection of treasures from the town and laid them out
in the glass case that once displayed the baked goods. Odds and ends such as jewelry,
candelabras and silverware sit with a variety of molding sweetcakes and candies, and
even a few carved or hand-sewn toys. Behind the case all manner of pillows and blan-
kets form a nest. In the doorway to the kitchen stands a man, a dirt-smeared American
officer, whose head and back are enmeshed in a shiny, white, branched proboscis which
disappears into the darkness of the kitchen beyond. The soldier sees the Unit and twitch-
es, his eyes blank and unfocusing, but he makes no other move.

The players can attempt to communicate with the Beast (see his weaknesses below), but 36
 more than likely, he will drop his victim (still alive, just drained of his will), and charge
out from the kitchen to attack the players in a rage.

What Happened Here?: After the Beast is defeated the mouths will still hiss, move, and
churn, trying to find purchase on a new victim. They can still bite up to an hour after its
death. The Beast wears a leather collar with ID tags and a serial number. There is not any
match for the numbers among the personnel files from the American camp. However,
with an Investigation: TN 3 they can find a leather messenger bag among the wreck of
the cafe. Inside are dossiers for the 5 American officers from the camp. There is also an
incomplete field report on “The Monster” with notes on his strength and usefulness, as
well as observations on his strange affection for people, particularly children. The report
mentions the Beast being used to move large, heavy crates of materiel and being overall
good-natured. There are also handwritten notes such as “Likes to eats cigarettes” and
“Hoards candy for children”. How he became corrupted in the first place is unknown,
but the materials heavily imply that he was in a state close to what the Unit found him
before he became attached to this regiment.

Upon further inspection of the scene, two additional “drained” victims of the Beast are
present. With the one on the street, there are 4 U.S. officers accounted for. Players should
decide what to do with the corpses here in the village. Though alive, the Beast’s other
victims are totally drained of will and can do nothing for themselves. What to do with
them will also be up to the Unit.

Decoration
- Each player receives a card, and the group can recover a total of 2 Trinkets from
either the American soldiers or the townspeople.
- Each player receives a second card if the Unit makes an attempt to clean up the mess
left by the Beast in the town.
- If the Unit manages to befriend the Beast (for now), they have the option to learn
Bloodlust Pushes from him.

37
Antagonists

Unspeakable Beast
The Beast is built wide and thick, 7 feet
tall (2.1 m) and at least 5 feet (1.5)
around its stalwart chest. It appears to be
made of globs of mud, or dark flesh shaped
like melting wax. Dozens of pseudo-mouths
are tucked into the folds of its body. These
fleshy pits are of varying sizes and lined
with multiple rings of razor-sharp teeth.
The Beast uses them to disable its targets,
primarily through severing appendages. These
mouths along the Beast’s body are literally
the Corruption escaping through its flesh.
They change position to catch items or sever
limbs and always hiss in anger, expressing
the Beast’s amorphous rage.

The Beast’s actual mouth is a proboscis that

rises up from its chest and stretches sev-
eral feet (1.5 m) toward its target, which
then fires a venous, many-forked tongue which
envelopes a target. Then, with a maimed and
captured victim, The Beast feeds off the
target’s Guts, slowly draining it over sev-
eral hours. Completely drained, The Beast
then leaves behind an empty, still living,
shell of a person which often attracts other
corrupted beasts which are only too happy to
raise a brood in these husks.
Type: Solo Initiative: 9 Armor: 3
Brawn: 4 Smarts: 2 Guts: 4
Weapons:
-Bite: 2 damage
-Claw: 2 damage
Skills/Abilities:
- Athletics: * * *
- Melee: * *
- Investigation: * *
- Dual Attack: This ability is always
active. The Beast will be enraged in
most combats, giving it two
attacks a round. (See Weakness.)
- Numbing Saliva: This ability is
always active. The Beast’s saliva

38
 contains a numbing and sedative agent
akin to morphine. After two rounds of
the proboscis being attached to a tar-
get’s skin (one round if the proboscis
attaches over an open wound) this agent
begins to take effect and the target
must begin making a special Athletics
roll modified by Guts every round, on
the Beast’s turn, to avoid falling prey
to the pleasant, serotonin-based high.
If the victim fails, they cannot act
on their turn. The TN to resist this
increases every time the target fails
(for example, if the target fails the
first time around they can make the roll
again the next round, but now the TN is
2 instead of 1.)
- Regeneration: This ability is always
active. If severed or damaged, the pro-
boscis will withdraw for the remainder
of the round (releasing any target it
has caught) but will reform the next
round due to its branching nature.
Weakness: The Beast was human once and still
craves human connection and approval. While
it can’t communicate and is being driven mad
by the corruptive mouths on its skin, it
will respond positively if spoken to kind-
ly or approvingly, preventing it from being
enraged and getting the Dual Attack. It will
also not attack a target that speaks kindly
to it, unless no other targets are avail-
able, and may even protect that person.
(Important note: The Beast was once tamed
and attached to its compatriots in the pla-
toon, but has become too corrupted to remain
tamed. Players may try to re-tame it and re-
strain it, but they will only succeed tempo-
rarily and the Beast will eventually turn on
them and break free.)
Reward: Two cards to distribute among the
players who fought the Beast, one card to
the player who landed the killing blow.

39
Letter to Arthur Sims, U.S. Army Signal Corps
from his mother, Anna Sims

July 1st, 1918

Artie,
Mary and the children came for a visit on Saturday.
We talked a lot of you. It is such a strange thing,
having had no letters from you all these months, and
no
news from the Army about your whereabouts. Wh
en
your father served in the Navy, he always used to tell
me
that loose lips sink ships. Perhaps this silence should
be
expected, but it is so hard, dear. Especially on the chil
-
dren. We all miss you, Artie. We pray for your safe
ty.
The vegetables are growing nicely this year. The gar
den
is quite lovely. I was thinking over the weekend how
you
used to help me with the canning after your dad and
you
picked all morning. The smell of the tomatoes brings
back
those sweet memories, and I can almost see you brin
ging
in armloads of them through the backdoor, and dum
ping
them on the kitchen table. I think I’ll do ketchup with
some of them. I haven’t made ketchup in years! But
maybe Jerry and Janie will like it.

Your father went to see Mr. Crimm this afternoon.

He
hasn’t heard from his boy either. If you hear anythin
g
of the 42nd Division, send word with your next lette
r.
Love you,
Mom

40
 Mission 4: Grave Duty
Henry Coates

“A hand lying on the duckboards, a Bosche and a Highlander locked in a deadly embrace
at the edge of Highwood; the ‘Cough-Drop’ with the stench coming from its watery bot-
tom; the shell-holes with the shapes of bodies faintly showing through the putrid water
– all these things made one think terribly of what human beings had been through.”
- William Orpen

Mission Briefing
In the late summer of 1918, Généralissime Foch, the Supreme Allied Commander, con-
vinced General John J. Pershing to allow American forces to be under the command of a
foreign power for the first time in its history. The 27th , raised in New York State, and the
30th, raised in the mountains of the Carolinas and eastern Tennessee, Divisions of the
U.S. II Army Corps were attached to the British 3rd Army, under the command of the
legendary Australian general, Sir John Monash. So the Americans, come to Europe to
crack the Hindenburg Line and fight the Germans, found themselves in a British army,
led by an Australian.

The Unit is attached to the 27th New York “O’Ryan’s Roughnecks” or to the 30th “Old
Hickory” Division. Instead of the typical training for the battle to come, their command-
ing officer, Iowa-born Major General George Windle Read, has selected them to guard
a small convoy of British Empire grave detail workers as they travel into territory until
recently held by the German Empire. The land is well ravaged, seeing as it is the site of
the place the British call the Somme, which they have only read about in the newspa-
pers but not seen with their own eyes. The detail is a crew of five—three diggers, their
captain, and a cook. The Unit is to protect them as they travel to a mass grave between
Pozières and Thiepval. What the Americans do not know, but the Australian captain,
Talbot Hobbs, leading the grave detail does, is one of the bodies in the mass grave is a
British 2nd Lt. named John Kipling. On this Kipling’s body is a Princess Mary Tin which
Hobbs has been ordered to retrieve at all costs. Hobbs has told nobody this but his cook,
MacKenzie, whom he takes everywhere with him. Why Read and Monash are wasting
time, effort, and soldiers to find a proverbial needle in a haystack, Captain Hobbs doesn’t
know, nor does he care. Orders are orders.

Mission Objective
Escort the grave diggers, guard them while they work, and ultimately get them back
home safely.

The Journey
You have the rifles, they have the shovels. Uncle Sam didn’t send you all “over there” to
guard a couple of corpse mongers, but here you are. You’re in a blasted out hellscape,
but you’re not fighting or killing or cracking German lines, you’re escorting a bunch
of people who are going to dig around in a mass grave for some reason you don’t fully
41 understand.
Requirement: Every American must contribute 1 card (not the same as having 1 card
for each soldier).
Question: Pershing ordered you to be under British command. Do you feel betrayed by
your fellow Americans?
Failure: The Incident “Starving German Soldiers” cannot be resolved peacefully. The
starving German soldiers won’t stop following the Americans.

Incidents
Corpse River: This area of the Somme River is flooded—stagnant and full of human and
animal debris. How will you get across?
The obvious skill roll is Athletics to simply swim the river. However, the players can
think creatively on how they will cross the river. Mechanics to build a haphazard tem-
porary bridge, or Transport to scramble up a ferry. No matter what choice the players
make, the Narrator may determine the risks and potential consequences.

Starving German Soldiers: Beyond the river is a German strongpoint, obviously built
after the successes of the spring 1918 Kaiserschlacht, stands battered and broken from
the recent battles liberating this area of the Somme valley. Outside lay bodies of dead
German soldiers in various stages of decomposition. Close examination of the bodies
will show what appear to be teeth marks amid torn pieces of flesh. A Whisper or Knowl-
edge skill roll: TN 3 can determine the marks are made by human teeth. Inside the
strongpoint lie more dead, yet also six unarmed living German soldiers. They seem too
weak to move. They seek to surrender to the Americans, but will fight if attacked. Use
the stats of 1 Officer, 1 Common Soldier, and 4 Shell Shocked Soldiers. All are un-
armed, except the officer has a trench knife hidden in his greatcoat.
If the Unit will discard 2 cards, they are able to share supplies and calm the soldiers.
These soldiers will not be a threat again during this Mission.

Destroyed British Headquarters: Beyond the line of furthest German advance is a for-
mer British headquarters smashed in the fighting of October 1916. The headquarters was
in a chateau and the ruins seem unoccupied. With a slight nod of the head of Captain
Talbot Hobbs, the three diggers begin scrounging the wreckage, seemingly looking for
something. They will find nothing. However, if the Unit joins the search, they will find a
basement. Not the wine storage area you imagined, but rather a British occult library. If
the Unit spends at least two hours here examining the texts, they may roll Knowledge or
Whispers: TN 2 to discover that the area where the mass graves are located is supposedly
an ancient Celtic sacrificial basin.

If the players entered the cellar, but did not feed the starving German soldiers, they have
had time to follow the Unit while they searched the headquarters and they are waiting to
ambush them once they emerge from the cellar. Change one of the Shell Shocked Sol-
diers to a Common Soldier. Half have located melee weapons.

Unexploded Ordinance: Once past the chateau ruins, unexploded artillery shells are
everywhere. One unlucky step; they’re all dead. One particular section they have to cross
is filthy with bombs. How do you safely get across? 42
 Letter to Walter Davis, U.S. Army Infantry, 31st Division
From his mother, Gloria Davis

June 7th, 1918

Walter,
We had our annual party for the 4th of July. It was so nice to see
everyone from around town. The heaviness certainly weighed on us
though. So many young men were not there, and I could see how missed
all of you were. It is a strange thing, seeing all the beloved friends
of the community, without their men in tow. Unless they are too old,
or too young. This must be what all the European women are thinking
too, I suspect.
I read something new in the papers this week though. The war is head-
ed into a stalemate they say. Too many dead. Too many wounded.
Too many missing. I wish I knew if you were among them. Maybe this
letter will never reach you. But if that were true, I would think the
letters I sent would be returned to me.
I made a flag cake, the blueberries and cherries all perfectly placed
atop the cream. It was a hit, just like it always is. Gillie Masterson’s
children were here, although Gillie wasn’t. They said she was feeling
too ill to come. I heard from Mr. Cramer that she got a visit from
the Army last week. Poor dear. Of course, it is the thing all of us
fear. The children ate two huge pieces of cake. The dears.
Your father is picking things faster than I can get them canned. I
need another pair of hands to help me! Maybe I should have Gillie over
to help. I’m sure she’d like something to take her mind off things.

With love,

Mom
43
The players can think creatively on how they will pass the shells. Stealth will help to
carefully pick their way through the area. Investigation may locate an area without or-
dinance. No matter what choice the players make, the Narrator may determine the risks
and potential consequences.

A failed roll will usually mean time spent without progressing. If the players roll more
than two failures, did not feed the starving German soldiers, and have not faced them
already, the Germans catch up to the Unit and attack. Change 2 of the Shell-Shocked
Soldiers to Common Soldiers. Half are armed with pistols or rifles.

Trouble among the English Speakers: On the edge of the mass grave, the question
comes to the fore: who is in command? The Australian Captain with a shovel? Or the
American soldiers with a rifle? Captain Hobbs is not inclined to share with his American
escorts where they are going, what they are looking for, and why. Outside of the Austra-
lian’s cook, the other three diggers don’t talk much, or at all. The Americans don’t know
that Hobbs has a pistol hidden in his boot.

The player with the most Corruption doesn’t trust Captain Hobbs. Unless the Americans
are able to hash out “who has to listen to who” once and for all, the whole Unit must
draw for Corruption because of the intense distrust.

If the argument goes on for a while, the Unit did not feed the starving German sol-
diers, and have not faced them already, the Germans catch up to the Unit and make a
last-ditch attack. Change all of the Shell-Shocked Soldiers to Common Soldiers. All 6
Germans have all their normal weapons.

The Mass Grave: Finally the grim work can begin. Three pits, filled to the brim, mixed
with corpses in grey, khaki, and blue uniforms. The pits are not shellholes, but seem to
be purposefully dug giant holes. The wind doesn’t blow here. The dead don’t rot here.
The grounds are luscious and green—it is as if battle completely bypassed this one
section of the front. It would seem more like an archaeological dig site if it were not for
the dead. No human soul is seen alive, but rabbits are everywhere. Those with Whis-
pers, can feel supernatural power thick in the air. The three diggers quickly throw down
their shovels upon entering the vicinity of the graves, and each dive into a respective pit,
swimming through the corpses, tearing open the cloth collars of the dead as if to see
what is hanging from their necks. They eventually disappear, descended into the mass of
the dead. Captain Hobbs seems unphased. This is the work they came to do. What else
can the Americans do?

While the diggers work, the Unit notices there are three huts constructed by the Impe-
rial War Graves Commission, seemingly abandoned. If they investigate, one is, in fact,
occupied by a deranged elderly French soldier, wearing an “old time” uniform. A Knowl-
edge: TN 3 roll can identify this Poilu as wearing a uniform of 1871. He is rocking on his
haunches in a corner, as he watches over a deep dugout built to survive artillery bom-
bardment. Next they hear guns firing in the distance. Is a German push coming soon? It
was supposed to be weeks out, so what is going on? 44
 At the same time as the guns
begin, about half an hour since
the diggers disappeared, the
ground begins to rumble. Out
of the central pit ascends the
digger who descended. In his
teeth he holds a bright silver
tin. Tendrils emerge from his
body, slowly spreading outward
in every direction and down.
Small sharp protruding nee-
dle-like tubes on the tips of the
tendrils attach themselves to
the innumerable corpses below.
The tendrils begin to pulse—
they begin to suck the black
blighted blood of the dead. The
digger soon becomes bloated
and unrecognizable. If playing
with the optional Nightmare
rules, the sight of this wavering
mass of tendrils may provoke
nightmares.

The Australian shouts, “They

found it!” He draws his hid-
den pistol, aims, misses, and
promptly dies as a tendril
shoots up out of the ground into his chest. The cook flees. The fate of the world suddenly
seems to depend on hitting that tin out of the mouth of the godlike bloat that now floats
before them. They don’t have long.

The pulsing mass in the sky won’t harm the Unit unless they try to attack it. It continues
to consume the blood of the dead, equally unaware of the distant guns. Direct attacks are
likely to lead to a fate like Captain Hobbs’. However, a successful Ranged: TN 5 shot will
be able to knock the tin loose from the creature. Once it is free, the digger’s lifeless body
will crash to the ground, the tendrils bristling and shattering like desiccated leaves. There
is enough time to recover the tin now, if anyone wishes to do so.

Soon after the creature appears, an artillery bombardment begins from the east. If the Unit
makes it to the dugout in the hut in time, they will survive. The mass graves are pulverized,
the corpses pulped, evidence of the diggers and Hobbs destroyed. The silver tin, however, is
still on the surface, glinting in the sun. Practically inviting someone to pick it up. If they do,
to whom do they return it? Or do they keep the tin for themselves?

45
Decoration
- The survivors draw and share 7 cards.
- If anyone mentions getting MacKenzie, the cook, to safety or searching for him after
the bombardment, they can now learn the Whisper Path Conviction Beliefs.
- If the Unit keeps the silver tin, they gain the Princess Mary Tin Fetish.

Princess Mary Tin Fetish: In October 1914, George V’s 17-year-old daughter, Mary,
Princess Royal, launched an appeal to fund every member of the armed forces receiving
a Christmas gift. Each tin was decorated with an image of Mary and other military and
imperial symbols and typically filled with an ounce of tobacco, a packet of cigarettes in
a yellow monogrammed wrapper, a cigarette lighter, and a Christmas card and photo-
graph from Princess Mary. Some contained sweets, chocolates, and lemon drops. For
Christmas 1914 400,000 were delivered, with millions more delivered by the war’s end.

This particular Princess Mary tin is from 1914. At some point it was used to bury bone
fragments – the only remains of soldiers wiped out by artillery fire their comrades could
find. Thus the spirits of many dead people are linked to the tin. It is a mass grave unto it-
self. The tin has become a high-powered fetish, more from accident than from intention.
The tin appears to be battered by years of normal usage, but is now
indestructible.
Materials: A silver-plated brass box filled with bone fragments.
Requirement: The strange circumstances which created it cannot be replicated.
Benefit: The one who carries this tin has memories from all the people whose bones are
inside, and possibly from everyone buried in the same cemetery, or maybe from every
cemetery. The memories are distant and confusing at times, and distinct and over-
whelming at others. The player may spend cards from the top of the deck as if they were
cards in hand, burning through other people’s memories as they go. Each card used this
way provokes a draw for Corruption.

46
 Letter to Meredith Pennel, U.S. Army Signal Corps,
Female Telephone Operators Unit, from her mother, Julia Pennel

August 31st, 1918

Meredith,
I’m surprised we haven’t heard from you. You’ve been away to
France for a few months. I was hoping for a letter by now.
I miss you.

I have some bad news. The army came to the house yesterday.
Aaron has gone missing. No one has seen him for weeks.
He is recorded as a deserter but the men who came with the
news seemed to think there was something else going on that
could explain it. I pressed them for more information, but
they could not say. Your father is very unwell from the news.
I wish you could come home for a visit. It would do him well.

Love, Mom

47
Mission 5: All Hallows Fire
Vladimir Bratovich

“We have made partners of the women in this war. Shall we admit them only to a part-
nership of suffering and sacrifice and toil and not to a partnership of privilege and
rights? This war could not have been fought if it had not been for the services of the
women, services rendered in every sphere wherever men have worked and upon the
very skirts and edges of the battle itself.”
- President Woodrow Wilson

Mission Briefing
The Signal Corps enlisted a volunteer group of brave women affectionately called the
“Hello Girls” to operate the telephone systems of the command staff. More than 2000
women, most of whom spoke French and English, became the voice of comfort to
soldiers, both on the switchboards and while off-duty, going into hospitals to give so-
lace. The Hello Girls broke boundaries in an age when women serving in uniform was
unheard of, being considered not only equals but part of the family only war creates.

Late on the 30th of October, 1918 at the U.S. Headquarters, a single German POW,
who has been corrupted by a Whispering Horror, kicks over a stove starting a massive
fire inside the HQ. The Unit must act quickly to stop the fire before it takes out the
38th Signal Corps switchboard connecting many of the units in the field.

Mission Objective
“That fire is going to tear through the whole building! Stop the flames if you can, but
make sure you get the Signal Corps out of there.”

The Journey
As your Unit is sitting in the barracks telling stories of home about what you were do-
ing during Halloween last year as well as taking the moment to write home, the alarm
bells ring out as you can hear people yell out fire! It is time to drop all you are doing to
rush out and tend to the growing flames engulfing the base.
Requirement: a single Jack.
Narrative: Describe how you prep and what you grab out of your rack to rush out and
tend to the growing flames.
Failure: If a Jack is not present Add a pack of Trench Gremlins to the final battle try-
ing to get to the wiring of the switchboard.
Success: The Unit is more aware of what is going on and therefore can take a little
more time to plan their actions out. The Unit begins the Incident “Mess Hall” with 6
rounds before that area is engulfed, instead of 3.

Incidents
The HQ is already on fire. Each Incident gives a number of rounds the Unit may act
in that area before the heat and smoke become too much for them to handle and they
must shift their efforts to the next Incident. If they resolve an Incident in less than the
number of given rounds, the time rolls forward and they have bonus rounds to com- 48
plete the next Incident.
 Mess Hall: Near the point of origin of the fire, this area is being engulfed with flames.
The Unit has 3 rounds to stop the flames with a special Challenge roll which requires
10 cumulative successes, using the relevant skills listed below. It will likely take several
rolls to accumulate the successes needed to douse the flames.
• Using blankets to beat the flames requires Athletics.
• A bucket brigade will take one round to set up but provides two successes for
every success rolled. The effort requires a special Athletics roll modified by Smarts
instead of Guts.
If 10 Successes are accumulated before the rounds expire, each players draws 1 card.
Medic!: A group of three soldiers are trapped by burning timbers and their Brawn
will lower 1 per round (Brawn 3). The Unit has 5 rounds to extract and stabilize their
fellow troops. On round 2, a 4th is found needing attention. This Incident is in three
parts. First to free the wounded, second to stabilize them, and last to introduce the
Unit’s first experience with the Whispering Horror.

- Part One
To get each person freed, at least two soldiers must Challenge Athletics: TN 5. Fail-
ure means 1 Brawn damage to the Unit members involved in the attempt. They may
forgo protecting themselves to lower the TN to just 2, but then each automatically
sustains 2 Brawn damage. Successfully extracting each trapped soldier heals one
point of Corruption for one of the characters involved in the rescue.
- Part Two
Once the four trapped soldiers are rescued, they will need immediate medical
attention. Healing is done by any means the players have at their disposal. For this
Incident, soldiers may spend a card to stabilize a burned soldier. They may also roll
Knowledge: TN 3 to apply basic first aid.
- Part Three
During this Incident, the Narrator may have up to two Unit members (whomev-
er has the highest Corruption) be attacked by the Whispering Horror’s Possession
ability. If the attack succeeds, it will force them to
perform one of these actions:
• Drop a timber while helping to cause 1 addi-
tional brawn damage to the victim.
• Misuse healing art and hurt the person for 1
additional brawn damage.
If all 4 soldiers are rescued or lost before the rounds
expire each players draws 1 card. If all 4 soldiers
survive, draw a second card.

We Are Not Going: When entering the hall where

the switchboards are set up, you are shocked to find
the Hello Girls still answering the calls, even with
smoke all around and the flames beginning to burn
the room. The Unit has just 2 rounds to try to evacu-
ate the Signal Corps. The women do not respond at
49 all at first. The Unit may Challenge Communication:
TN 8 to receive an answer from Chief Operator Berthe Hunt; they cannot leave without
an order to do so. “You have a job to do, and so do we. Now stop wasting our time and
make use of yours!” Anyone who listens to the headsets the telephone operators are
using can hear strange mumbled words on the line.

Grabbing a Commander: The commanding officer the Unit needs is in a nearby

office, slumped against the wall. Smoke is already collecting in this room. The Unit has
3 rounds to rouse the officer. The chaos of war, plus what has happened today, with
a little further push from the Whispering Horror, has caused him to become a Shell
Shocked Soldier. The Unit must use rules for a Shell Shocked Soldier’s weakness to
rouse the officer.
During this Incident, the Whispering Horror may again try to twist the minds of the
Unit, keeping them silent, or forcing them to shout at the officer unhelpfully.
Once the Unit brings the officer back to his senses, the commander of the 38th will go
with them to pull the operators away from the switchboard. If they rouse him before
the rounds expire, each player draws 1 card.

Time to Go: Back in the burning switchboard hall, the Unit has just 1 round to act.
Thankfully, the commander gives the Hello Girls the order to evacuate under threat
of court martial. Make sure the players understand that not a single woman wants to
leave her post and gruffly tell the soldiers to get their job done so that they can go back
to their job.

A POW in More Ways Than One: The German POW who started the blaze is actually
a victim of the Whispering Horror and not in control of his faculties. As the Signal
Corps operators file orderly outside, the possessed soldier confronts the Unit in the
still-burning building. The Unit has 4 rounds to eliminate the threat. Use Common
Solider for the POW’s base attributes. If the POW is severely injured (reduced to 1
rank in any attribute), the dark shadow of the Horror will leave the body visibly and
the prisoner will come to with tears thanking you for stopping him. The Horror will
also try once per two rounds to control another unit soldier, and if possible, will pos-
sess them and leap from the prisoner to the player character.

Make a Stand: By this point, fire suppression teams are at work on the building, the
blaze is under control, and the acute danger is passed. As the fires are being put out,
Operator Hunt and the other Signal Corps women rush back to the board to fix the
system and get back on calls to keep the lines of communication open.

If the Journey failed, then Trench Gremlins have found the shiny wires and knobs
from the switchboards first. The creatures will need to be destroyed or disbursed be-
fore normal operations can resume.

Decoration
- Each survivor draws 2 cards.
- If all 6 characters survived (4 trapped soldiers, the commander, and the POW) each
member of the Unit heals one Corruption as well. 50
 Antagonists

Whispering Horror
Before the laughing madness of a Cackling
Horror begins to claim lives and reap de-
struction, there often comes the whining,
jeering influence of a Whispering Horror. If
these two entities are growth stages of the
same creature, or if they are altogether
different is something for folks in the Spe-
cial Trainings Department to debate about.
On the fighting lines, the important thing to
know is that if someone is acting strangely,
they may be under the influence of a Horror.
The first sign of a Whispering Horror is usu-
ally the odd babbling a victim can hear. The
sound is soporific or hypnotizing, depending
on what works best on the target. Once the
creature has lulled a victim into a trance,
they can take control like the person was a
marionette on strings. Then they use their
puppet to sow confusion and create general
mischief for as long as it suits them.
Type: Solo Initiative: 9 Armor: None
Brawn: 2 Smarts: 5 Guts: 5
Weapons: Punch or Weapon
Skills/Abilities:
- Stealth: * * *
- Communication: * * *
- Investigation: * *
- Elemental Rituals: * *
Mental Anguish
- Possession (Guts): * * * :
This attack targets Guts. Usually
directed at someone who is alone. If
successful, the victim takes 1 Guts
damage and performs one action the
Horror dictates. If a victim is reduced
to 1 Guts by this ability, the Horror
takes full control of the victim until
the victim dies, or until the Horror is
killed, or chooses to leave. It does not
have access to the victim’s memories or
skills.

51
 - No Body – This ability is always ac-
tive. Whispering Horrors are not really
“there.” At most, they appear as a
shadow as they pass from one victim to
another. When in possession of a victim,
the Horror adds the victim’s Brawn to
its own, and uses its own Smarts and
Guts. It is likely to flee a body, rather
than be killed.
Weakness: Babbling: Whenever a Whispering
Horror is influencing an area, their mumbling
whispers can be heard by anyone listening.
The noise will be generalized, seeming to
come from random directions. But will be
centered on any victims of their Possession
ability as long as the Whispering Horror
remains in control. Anyone with training
in a Whisper Path will notice the babbling
right away and others may use Communication
or Investigation.
Healing Magics: The Healing Word Healing
Aura will keep the creature (or one it
possesses) away for 10 rounds. Any super-
natural healing done to a character the
Horror possesses, instead counts as Brawn
Damage to the Horror. Once damaged in this
way, the Horror is banished away for the
rest of the Mission.
Reward: 2 cards for the Unit.

52
 Letter to David Jones, U.S. Marine Corps, 4th Brigade,
from his father-in-law, Orin Babcock

September 17th, 1918

David,
Amy delivered a healthy baby girl last
night, September the 16th. Amy has
named her Emily, as she said was
discussed. Both are doing well. Amy asked
me to write to you to share the happy
news. We are all looking forward to your
return. Until then, Amy and Emily
will remain here on the farm. Janice is
taking good care of them, so don’t worry
about a thing. We have a midwife in the
village who will come to check on them
for the first few weeks as well.
Take care David. Come home well. We will
look for news from you. Please send Amy
a note to let her know you’ve received this.
She is very distressed without any word of
your whereabouts.

-Orin Babcock

53
Mission 6 :
The 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month
Vladimir Bratovich

“For a young man who had a long and worthwhile future awaiting him, it was not easy to
expect death almost daily. However, after a while I got used to the idea of dying young.
Strangely, it had a sort of soothing effect and prevented me from worrying too much.
Because of this I gradually lost the terrible fear of being wounded or killed.”
-Reinhold Spengler.

Mission Briefing
It is a cold rough night on the 8th of November, 1918 near the village of Chau-
mont-devant-Damvillers near Meuse. Both sides know the war is coming to the end, but
neither side is willing to back down. The weary soldiers of the 79th Infantry Division,
313th Regiment, keep pressing on. Their instructions from the officers are clear enough,
“When this war is over, where we stand is where the line could be drawn. Don’t give
them an inch!”

Mission Objective
Keep the pressure on the front lines and do not give any ground, while serving alongside
one Pvt. Henry Gunther.

The Journey
You are all tired. The war has been unlike anything you could have dreamed. The expec-
tation that the war will end soon blankets the trenches. Until that moment arrives, this is
still a very dangerous place to be.
Requirement: 2 Clubs, 2 Spades
Question: What do you do to keep yourself going after all this?
Success: You are hardened from war. Each Unit member receives a temporary +1 Guts
rank for the duration of this Mission.
Failure: The horror of war, of the cold, and the sickness of others has gotten to your
resolve. For the duration of this Mission each Unit member makes all Guts-linked skill
rolls as if they have one less Guts rank. This is not damage and cannot be healed.

Letter to Arthur Sims, U.S. Army Signal Corps, from his children,
Jerry and Janie

November 11th, 1918

Daddy,
ddy. Love Jerry.
I love you. You are the best da
Daddy, e? I love you. Love Janie.
ming hom
When are you co
54
Incidents
Meet the Outcast: The Unit is attached to the 313th Regiment to keep their numbers
up as the war teeters toward its end. The first night there, on the 8th, they meet a loaner
in the regiment, a courier by the name of Pvt. Henry Gunther. Challenge Investigation
to see what they can learn about Gunther. With 2 successes, they find out that he was
removed of the rank of Sergeant over a letter. With 3 they learn the letter was
condemning the U.S. Military and how the war is going. With 4 they find out that Gun-
ther being a German-American caused concerns within leadership that he was a Ger-
man sympathizer. This was also a key reason he lost his rank. If the Unit rolls 5 or more
success, they also learn the fallout from this letter caused Gunther’s fiancée at home to
break off the engagement. Gunther is primarily disheartened by all this, but if
questioned about anything connect to his demotion, he will be aggressive about his love
of country and how he believes himself an honorable man.

Scouting Run: In the morning, on the 9th, the Unit goes on a small scouting run to
see what the German blockade looks like. At the same time, they come across two
columns of French guards marching
toward them from the forward line in the early morning fog. With an Investigation
roll: TN 2 they notice the column contains not only the heavily-wounded but the
walking dead! A number of No-Men equal to the Unit are mixed into the column
(Tome of Corrupted Beasts, page 34). Alternately, use Unit x 2 Unfallen. If the Unit
misses the spot, the No-Men begin attacking the French troops. After two rounds of
combat, Pvt. Gunther appears on the battlefield, attacking wildly,
forgoing his own safety to draw enemy fire away from the Unit. This recklessness
provides 2 automatic success to all attacks made by the Unit for two rounds. After two
more rounds of combat, the French troops have organized themselves and join the
battle, quickly
dispatching any remaining No-Men. If the Unit remembers to check the corpses of the
No-Men they can recover 1D3+3 Trinkets from
the bodies.

Memories Never Leave: The night of the 9th, once they are back in camp, the Unit’s
sleep is broken by a member of the 313th having an attack of shell shock due to the ac-
cumulation of what they have seen. Someone must deal with the Shell Shocked Soldier.
Unfortunately, the soldier cannot be calmed by normal rules. After anyone in the Unit
(or an NPC, if they fail to act) fails to calm the soldier, Pvt. Gunther comes over and as
an acquaintance he is able to help break the soldier free of their shock. If playing with the
optional Nightmare rules, the terrified fit of this solider may provoke nightmares.

Hold For Just One More Day: On the 10th, word comes down that the war will be over
as early as tomorrow. While many cheer and rejoice, this is stifled quickly by the com-
mander with orders to engage the German forces and try to break the blockade before
the war is over. The Unit is given the order. They have 12 hours left of fighting and aim
to fight to the last minute. As the attack begins, shelling from the German side slows
down and stops as well as all blockade fire. They soon realize why. A pair of Trench- 56
 stalkers have worked through the lines and have engaged the 313th on their way to press
the blockade. The Germans are forgotten for a moment as the Trenchstalkers become
the priority. Even after the battle is won, ammo is expended and PCs are depleted. Pvt.
Gunther will urge the troops on to continue to the front lines, even after day has broken,
leaving only a couple hours until the war is officially over.

For Some, War is Never Over: As the minutes tick down to 11 am, the Unit prepares
for one last offensive. The tension is thick as people are not wanting to fight in these final
minutes. On both sides, the soldiers hope no more orders to advance come. During this
time characters’ thoughts are of making it home. Players may spend a card to prevent the
final order to attack for a little longer. Those who discard a card may describe something
about home they miss or want to do first thing when they return. In this moment, even
these precious memories are lost as normal when discarding. Time barely seems to pass.
After each character has an opportunity to discard a card, Pvt. Gunther looks to every-
one, mumbles about not ready to go, He says they still have to prove themselves. Finally
the order to advance comes and the Unit mounts their bayonet and begins a charge
against the German line one more time. As they advance, Gunther takes the lead and
the Unit can hear the Germans begging him to stop until they eventually open fire in a
single heavy gun blast just 2 minutes before the clock ends the war.

Decoration
All players that survive should be happy enough to have made it to the end of the war.

Epilogue
What the end means to the soldiers that survive is twofold, they never fully go home and
they bring some of that corruption back with them. The soldiers left their homes, busi-
nesses, family, and friends. They left for Country, for Duty, and mainly for each other.
But as the title states, even with the Great War now over, they can never go home.
The reason is simple. Soldiers give so much of who they are and destroy it to survive in
an environment that no one else but their fellow soldiers can understand. Those pieces,
those memories, stay with you forever. So a good part of you will always be over there, in
the muck and blood.
For the setting, the Others are attracted to corruption. For most it is nigh impossible to
make it through the war without some darkness on one’s own soul. So those soldiers,
men and women of the front line that walked through a true Valley of Death take with
them that connection to the Others back home.

57
To Etienne Kult, Editor-in-Cheif, Zücher Post Zurich,
Switzerland

November 20th, 1918

Etienne—
The mood here in Washington D.C. is electric. I’ve talked with
many wives and mothers who simply cannot wait for their
soldiers to come home. The clean up effort will be long, I’m
sure. Europe is in a sorry state, from what the Pentagon is
reporting. As I was asking around this morning, one of the
army wives, a woman named Amy Jones—who was at the
celebration with a new baby—told me that she had finally
received a letter from her husband after nearly 8 months of
waiting for news. The things he reported to her are almost
too fantastic to believe—creatures, midnight disappearanc-
es, magical transformations. She was rather worried by the
letter, thinking her husband was suffering a bit of shock. But
there was a certain look about her as well, a look that told
me she knew her husband must have been telling the truth.
She mentioned—a throw-away comment that I’m sure she
didn’t mean for me to pick up—that her husband had spoken
to her of a book he had seen while in Belgium. She seemed to
suggest that it was this book which started the whole war.
I have no way to verify any of this from my post here in
Washington, of course, but I’m passing it along in case there
is anything to it. If there is, I’m sure the other correspon-
dents can hunt down the story.
I’ll be writing again after the President has his next press
conference. There are still many unanswered questions
about how long our doughboys will remain over there. I’ll
send you the information as soon as I have it.

Harvey P. Brown
American Correspondent, Zürcher Post

58
 then you took the
59 corruption home...