"Here There Be Vampires"

The Adventure

It was once said that the hardest thing in the world to keep hold of is a secret. Well, the desert town of Thomaswell has it's fair share of secrets and it's up to the posse to dig them up and shine the bright light of day upon them, in a very literal sense...

This is not a linear adventure and the events may occurr at any time that is convenient for you, The Marshal. Players can be stubborn and unpredictable so be prepared to change what happens to suit you own interpretation of this adventure.

Chapter 1 - The Crossroads Burial

The posse arrive in Thomaswell, witness a vampire attack victim being buried, and talk to a few of the townsfolk

Night is falling as you approach the desert town of Thomaswell, the sun has all but fallen and the whole area is bathed in red light. At a crossroads a handful of people have gathered, some of them holding lanterns, as a priest intones funeral rites and a coffin is lowered into a freshly dug pit. Obviously Thomaswell's cemetry is full...

The Burial

The body being buried is that of Sally Anne Fuller, the whore that died in the Gordon Hotel, drained of blood by John Greely. If the posse approach then they see there are 5 people here; Sian York - the town priest who is an old man with stern features. The town lawman - Sheriff Wilson. A man who looks like he may be the doctor - Yeardly Philips, short, fat and grey haired. And two coffin bearers. Nobody will answer questions until the funeral is over.

Who died?

The posse will no doubt want to know who died and how, Sheriff Wilson will take them to one side and tells them it was a saloon whore who died in her sleep, unnatural causes has not been ruled out but he and his deputy are working on it - he makes it clear that it is town buisiness only and it will take a Persuassion (9) to get out of him that he's not sure how she died, only that Doc Philips said it was owed to blood loss.
If the posse want to talk to the doc they may do - he can only tell them that he's not sure how the young lady died, she was in bed and her body had been completey drained of blood, all talk of Vampires he regards as nonsense. Asking to see the body is met by outrage by the Priest who asks the posse to leave, he also adds that the body must not be taken from these crossroads as it will then not be safe from evil. Anybody passing an Occult(5) check will know that burying a body at crossroads is suposed to stop it from rising again, not exactly standard practice in Christian religions.
If the posse think to ask the doctor for a look at his autopsy notes, or somehow get a look at the body anyhow then they learn (on a Medicine (5) pass) that the woman did indeed die of blood loss and the only marks on the body are a single pair of punture wounds on her neck, possibly made by fangs.

Where's Nolan?

Asking for the whereabouts of Nolan Edwards leads the posse to the Gordon Hotel, where Nolan is staying. Father Sian York has met the fellow and describes him only as "odd". the sheriff and other folks present have heard of the nocturnal man of the cloth in town but haven't really met him

Bounty
Learning the identy of the deceased: 1 white chip
Learning she died under suspicious circumstances: 1 white chip
Getting a look at the doctors report/body: 1 red chip