It’s 1942 and the war rages on in Europe and “N” and his network of operative and cells have been actively working in tandem with other SOE operatives cells. You find yourself taking in the sights and sounds of the seaside village of Southwold where you wait for your next assignment from “N”. A young lad of maybe 12 or 13 joyfully approaches and you see a dispatch clutched in his hand. “Guv’ner this just arrived for you.” He delivers a sealed envelope from Rose Galbraith of Dumfries. You are immediately suspicious…
Cautiously, you open the envelope; instinctively knowing it is all too likely your next assignment. The letter is written in a very familiar hand. Your adrenaline begins to flow when you see the cipher; your assignment has arrived.
“Blf ziv gl yv rmhvigvw rmgl gsv zivz hfiilfmwrmt Svrwvoyvit Xzhgov. Blf droo gsvm olxzgv “Ilhv” zg Uilsv Hxsdvrmvgilt. Hsv droo trev blf ufigsvi rmhgifxgrlmh zh gl blfi gzitvg zmw vcgizxgrlm klrmg. M”
You and your associates quickly decipher the message with little trouble and it reads ”
“You are to be inserted into the area surrounding Heidelberg Castle. You will then locate “Rose” at Frohe Schweinetrog. She will give you further instructions as to your target and extraction point. N”
I have two deeply rooted interests-all things historical and roleplaying games. The game pitch above is a first in a series of World War Cthulhu missions I am writing. My hope is that some of you reading this will have your interests piqued. I am a fan of collaborative works; to that end, want to help shape how this mission or future missions get written? Please leave a comment [on the blog] and suggest one or more of the following if you’d like to contribute.
What is it the investigators will have to retrieve from Heidelberg Castle and why it is important to N?
Who is in possession of this object and why do they covet it?
Where is the extraction point and why is it a dangerous location?
Who is Agent Rose? What additional part might she play in the mission or future missions?
How does Heidelberg, Germany play into some large plot concept (the sky is the limit)?
Any other suggestion you want to propose.
~ Modoc
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PS. Please, only comment here on the blog so I have a single location for your comments and suggestions. In the event that this ever gets published (pipe dream to say the least) anyone contributing to the final product will be given credit.
Rolling Boxcars 
Heidelberg Castle is a holding facility and distribution center for stolen paintings and sculpture. Masterpieces stolen from occupied territories are gather and transported to Heidelberg Castle where they are cataloged and sold. The cream of the crop going to Hitler’s Elite. Herr Gottfried Friedrich Hegel is the curator of facility. He meticulously catalogs each item that passes through the castle walls. Where it was appropriated, in-depth description and insight into the piece itself and who it is eventually sold to. Ledgers after ledgers are filled with copious amounts of useful information that can help reunite the stolen masterpieces back to their original owner once the war is over. But the greatest information is the location and the people whom the items were sold to. Many high ranking elite’s private and secrets residences are cataloged within the pages. N wishes for the investigators to acquire as many of these ledgers as possible so they can be studied and later used future missions.
Agent Rose has been able to confirm the location of where Herr Gottfried Friedrich Hegel stores these ledgers. You are to rendezvous with Agent Rose in the hamlet that Heidelberg Castle over looks. There Agent Rose will give you more information on the location of the ledgers and instruction on how to infiltrate Heidelberg Castle.
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Excellent response! Some initial thoughts that come to mind after reading the part about the artwork storage. Is there a specific item within the collection that currently resides within the confines of Heidelberg Castle or that has already been parsed out to a collector that is of interest?
~ Modoc
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There is such an item that will grab the attention of the investigators. A mysterious early medieval tapestry that appears within the ledgers but it’s origin of procurement is unknown. Not even the date of when it was brought to the castle is written within the ledgers. The only notes of the tapestry present in the ledgers is an artistic critique by Herr Gottfried Friedrich Hegel. He notes that the tapestry style is French in origin and not original to the castle. If the investigators dig further into Herr Gottfried Friedrich Hegel personal journals they will discover a chilling tale of strange occurrences involving the tapestry once it was first discovered within the castle walls.
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