What follows is session 6 of my ongoing Masks of Nyarlathotep game that I am running for four players. Nick Jones – Investigative Reporter. Sam Switch – Mechanic (who has a deep dislike for Henry Ford), Daisy Elizabeth Tillinghast – Cat Burglar (her cover is governess/nanny) turned businesswoman, John  Bigbeautea – Occultist. Daisy has been replaced by Clancy O’Hara – Beat Cop

SPOILERS AHEAD

This latest session of Masks begins with a delivery arriving at the Greenwich Village apartment that Daisy maintains for convenience reasons. It’s Sunday morning, the 18^th of January, 1925 and a courier is at the door with a box. Daisy, forever the skeptic, is unsure of the courier and the box but takes it nonetheless. Looking at the notecard attached, she quickly realizes this is most likely the speedy delivery of Sam’s custom made outfits—you know, something more appropriate than coveralls. Our investigators then head out to Harlem to scope out a shop called the Ju-Ju House after being clued into it by Dr. Lemming.

Sam’s driving skills are challenged but her ability to handle road vehicles even with snow on the road is amazing. They arrive and park Daisy’s car, a green Packard Opera, at the mouth of the alley and scope it out. All is quiet and not a soul is around. The tenements that rise high on either side of the alley, above the street-level shops, all seem to be in good repair with the occasional person flitting in front of a window from time to time. The four of them exit the car and briskly walk to the door of the Ju-Ju House only to find it locked and no one answering the door despite their knocking. What did they expect to find on Sunday afternoon?

We open the next scene on the following day at Carlton Ramsey’s office. Ramsey was Jackson Elias’ personal attorney and they have arrived along with four other individuals for the reading of the will. The will is read to all in attendance but not before a belt of bootleg whiskey is had by all in honor of Jackson Elias. By the end of the will, those assembled, realize that they have, if they are willing, been drug further into Jackson’s Elias research. The will lays out that Mr. Ramsey is the executor of Jackson Elias’ modest accounts. As such, those that take up where Elias left off will be reimbursed for their expenses so long as they are valid. He will also serve a variety of roles with regards to connecting investigators with specialists if the need arises and other such things. The reading of the will concluded with a personal letter from Jackson Elias being read. In it, Jackson Elias pleads with his good friends that are assembled to continue his work and put a stop to what he has already uncovered.

It is at this point that the players are allowed to change their primary character. The other four in attendance are their backup investigators. The outcome of my offer was that Daisy has returned to New Jersey and her replacement is Clancy O’Hara, a beat cop from the Bronx.

As they leave the lawyer’s office, they venture into the bitter cold of New York City. They hail a cab and make their way to the Prospero House Publishing office to see Jonah Kennsington, proprietor and Jackson Elias’ personal editor for his numerous published works. It is here that they learn that Jackson Elias had sent numerous correspondences, updates, and stacks of documents to his editor for safekeeping and to give him a little insight into where he was at those times and also where he was headed next. The investigators were easily able to coax copious amounts of documents from the “Jackson Elias file”. It’s through these documents, photographs, and other ephemera that they get some insight into what Jackson Elias was researching. Despite what they have learned, they are left with no clear picture.

 

Leaving the Prospero House, the investigative team has loads of new clues to track down and chase around the world. Their current plan is to trace three stateside leads. The first is to travel to Harvard to inquire with the Harvard Library about a book Jackson Elias was requesting. Second, a quick jaunt over to Arkham to talk to Professor Cowles about a recent lecture he gave. Lastly, they want to talk to Erica Carlye about her late brother’s expedition.

To be continued…

We’re using the amazing Mask of Nyarlathotep – Gamer Prop Set from The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society

Previous installments:
The Journey: Masks of Nyarlathotep Session #1
The Journey: Masks of Nyarlathotep Session #2
The Journey: Masks of Nyarlathotep Session #3 (Peru Comes to an End)
The Journey: Masks of Nyarlathotep Session #4 (New York Begins)
The Journey: Masks of Nyarlathotep Session #5 (New York Part 2)

~ Modoc

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