Bullrich and Partners Ltd (Blades in the Dark)

This is the wiki page for a Blades in the Dark campaign following the exploits of a daring gang of smugglers, with the alias Bullrich & Partners Ltd., in the haunted city of Doskvol. Players, feel free to edit and add details as the campaign progresses.

The Crew

The gang known as Bullrich and Partners Ltd are a small group of smugglers based in Crow's Foot. Their first main haul has included obtaining a full crate of demon larvae from a Dagger Island merchant (the shipment was originally intended for the Dagger Islands embassy). The larvae are known for their hallucinogenic properties and are used as exotic drugs among the upper echelons of Doskvol. The main distributor of the drugs is a shifty disgraced Iruvian nobleman called Rolan (he has ties with the Red Sashes).

The crew has recently acquired a front operation (formerly in possession of the Fog Hounds) in the form of an import/export company (re-)named Bullrich & Partners Ltd. This company is operated by Arvus Bullrich (a veteran of the Skovlan wars, fan of musical concerts and the opera).

Tocker Vale

A former Akorosi factory worked with Union ties. He has turned to crime after the unjust treatment he received at the hands of Lario Tellis the owner of the factory. He murdered Lario and his mother, Roslyn Kellis, has put a price on his head. He has a sister, who still works at the Kellis steel factory. Moreover he has ties to the fledgling Steelworker Union.

Zamiro Jayan

An Iruvian moustachioed gentleman. Works undercover in a hotel in Brightstone. Easily makes friends and many people have fallen for him. Alas, he is still searching for his one true love.

He has earned the scorn of Nyryx, a Dagger Islander courtesan, for not rebuking her advances. Bazso Baz took an instant liking to him and sees him as his personal protégé. Most recently, Emeline, an officer of the Imperial Army and good friend of Arvus Bullrich, has fallen for him.

Others

The Students: A small group of (mostly) chemistry students at the local Charterhall University. They are responsible for the refinement of the demon larvae juices, as well as their handling and breeding. However, they have started using their own product and are occasionally found in drug-addled stupor. Notable members: Vassily (leader, Skovlan), Abbas, Igor

The story so far

The crew was caught up in a perilous (and possibly profitable) situation in the Crow’s Foot district. Roric, the ward boss who ran the criminal operations in Crow’s Foot, has been killed. People say it was his second-in-command, Lyssa, who did it. She now controls Roric’s impressive gang of cutthroats, who call themselves the Crows.

When Roric died, the peace he had brokered between two enemy gangs fell apart. The Lampblacks and the Red Sashes have once again exploded into open war on the streets. At the start of the story the gang was summoned to Bazso Baz's office to declare for or against him. With some skills and a considerable amount of luck the gang managed to avoid declaring for either side (though Tocker Vale managed to rub him on his wrong side, and his patience is finite..). But, nonetheless, as a matter of personal favour (and due to his history with Zamiro) he asked them to do a job for him: due to the war it has become difficult for him to pick up his shipment of drugs from the Docks, with all the Red Sashes watching his movements. The crew agreed to do the job for the price of 4 coin and Zamiro managed to talk him into getting a cut of the drug's sales as well.

Mayhem at Peddler's bridge

The plan was to pose as simple transportation workers with a cart of goats and get the goods in the quiet hours of Doskvol from the warehouse. A contact of Bazso's let them in and the rest was up to the crew. At the specified warehouse at the Docks, they easily managed to get past the single old watchman, and took the crate through the toll inspection as well, however not without attracting the attention of a handful of Red Sashes thugs (who were on the a lookout for any such activity).

They tried to corner the gang in the winding alleys surrounding the harbor, but they managed to escape by running their leader down with the goat cart (but he managed to shoot through Tocker Vale's shoulder). Followed, by the rest of the thugs, the gang spurned the goat cart at breakneck speed towards Peddler's bridge (which connects the Docks to Crow’s Foot and Bazso Baz’s turf).

On the bridge the first stalls were being set up for a busy day at the market, and a Bluecoat patrol was checking all incoming traffic. With no time to waste, Zamiro staged a diversion, while Tocker spurned the goats to burst through on to the bridge. The bluecoats blocked the bridge, but through a flashback we learned that the plan was to drop the wares all along into the waiting gondola prepared by the Students. However, due to the Vassily's drug stupor, the gondola was running somewhat late. With the bluecoats closing in, Tocker pulled two pistols, took cover behind the cart and opened fire. He just managed to hold them off (downing two) until the boat arrived under the canal. The crate was lowered into the boat and both smugglers jumped after, making a quick escape through the familiar winding canals under Crow's Foot.

Downtime

The payoff consisted of 6 coins (2 for the additional sales from Bazso) and a considerable gain in reputation, for both tangling with the Bluecoats and the Red Sashes. This of course also led to significant heat for the crew, after an operation that left the Peddler's bridge market in chaos, one member of the Red Sashes dead and two Bluecoats heavily injured. The Bluecoats promptly increased patrols in the area and Zamiro was picked up (among other thugs) for some questioning and got roughed up in the process.

In between jobs, Zamiro met up with Bazso Baz and after some drinks asked him for recommendations for a surgeon (to treat the wounds of Tocker). Bazso was feeling particularly cheerful and had one of his thugs introduce them (with his personal recommendation) to Dr. Cawl Coleburn, based in Six Towers, back alley surgeon used by his gang (acquire asset). Tocker visited the physician, who turned out to be a staunch supporter of Union and worker rights agendas. He explored novel electroplasmic treatments on Tocker's shoulder (healing).

After this, Tocker decided to meet up with his childhood friend Darmot, who works for the bluecoats. He managed to get him to redirect the Bluecoat's inquiries (reduce heat) into the recent shooting on Peddler's bridge, but not without receiving one of Darmot's usual sermons about how he is headed down a dark path. Meanwhile, Zamiro decided to seek out his true love in high circles (indulge vice). He stole an invitation from a fine gentleman at the hotel he works at (though this raised some suspicions...) and sought his love among the guests of the party (without success).

The Bullrich murders

After the previous score, the gang has decided that they would like to keep a low profile. In fact they would like to acquire a cover operation, which would help them avoid any unwanted and additional attention from the authorities. After some inquiries, it turned out that a rival smuggler gang called the Fog Hounds, have an import/export company called Bullrich & Son Ltd. as a cover. They have some leverage over the well-known and legitimate businessman Quess Bullrich. Some further inquiry, especially among the criminal elements involved with the merchant (with the help of their drug distributor Rolan), yielded the information that Vellyn Bullrich (Quess's son and groomed heir), who is married to the most noble Arlina Strangford, has frequented the brothels of the Fog Hounds and has significant gambling debts with them. Release of this information would destroy the family.

The gang has decided that their best way in would be to befriend the unloved second son Arvus Bullrich. He fell into disfavour with his father after signing up (in a fit of patriotism) for the Skovlan wars. He has since returned from the war, retired from the military and frequents concerts and the Doskvol opera. Zamiro and Tocker (in the guise of two merchants) easily managed to make his acquaintance, though his good friend Emeline started to favour Zamiro a great deal. After a series of concerts and meet-ups, the gang started influencing him against his brother and father, by stoking old wounds and ambitions. The plan was to provide him evidence of his brother's incompetence and to get him to sign up on the murder (and thus take over the family business with a clean slate).

After two weeks of dates and concerts, Tocker decided that things were moving too slow. He stole into Quess Bullrich's house at night, stabbed the old man in his bed and cut the throat of the only witness (the family butler). At the incineration of the old man (in Bellweather Crematorium), the crew was approached by Tick-Tock and Bear, members of the Fog Hounds. They warned them away in clear terms, while the trust of Arvus Bullrich was also somewhat broken. However, the crew managed to get into the funeral party of the Bullrich family. Zamiro broke into Vellyn Bullrich's office and obtained definite proof of his mismanagement of finance and his abuse of the family name. He confronted Arvus with this, who broke down and after weeks of manipulation, signed off on the murder of his hated brother. Tocker killed him within the fortnight, but not without arousing the suspicions of his widow Arlina Strangford. With this, the gang managed to break the Fog Hounds hold on the company and had managed to get leverage over Arvus Bullrich, by having a signed order of murder for his brother in their hands.

Factions

The Lampblacks (Tier II)

The former lamp-lighter guild, turned to crime when their services were replaced by electric lights. Their HQ is located in the office of a coal warehouse in Crow's Foot. Bazso Baz is the notorious boss of the Lampblacks. He is known for being charming and ruthless, as well as for his passionate hatred of Mylera Klev, the leader of the Red Sashes.

Bazso Baz took a liking to Zamiro Jayan. He treats him in an amicable manner and fancies him as his protégé.

The Lampblacks have the shady surgeon Dr. Crawl Coleburn on their payroll. He is known for his skills of treating gunshots and stabwounds throughout the underworld of the city.

The Red Sashes (Tier II)

Originally an Iruvian school of swordsmanship, expanded into criminal endeavors. Their leader is Mylera Klev. Most of their students come from rich Iruvian families. They have recently started a war for dominance with the Lampblacks.

The Crows (Tier II)

An old gang with new leadership. Known for running illegal games of chance and extortion rackets. Historically they have been the Wardens of Crow's Foot for a long time and some of their elements have taken over parts of the administration of the district. Most gangs in the district pay fealty to them. This is about to change, however, as they are currently embroiled in a vicious civil war, after their former leader Roric was viciously murdered by his second in command Lyssa.

The Fog Hounds (Tier I)

A crew of rough smugglers looking for a patron. Most of them were former cargo haulers on steamships, who got put out of work by the new cargo rail lines. They used the import/export company Bullrich & Son Ltd. as their front (leveraged through dirt that they had on the family). Rumor has it that another smuggler gang took this from them. If true, they are sure to look for revenge.

Notable members: Tick-Tock (hardened Skovlander thug, cold, brutal, volatile), Bear (second, fierce, moody, brash)

Dagger Islands Embassy (Tier I)

A loose confederation of rivalling merchants, hailing from the mist soaked Dagger Islands. Rumor has it that someone lifted a crate of exotic contraband (containing illicit drugs or something even worse) from one of their warehouses. Word on the street is that they pay well for any hints.

Bluecoats (Tier III)

The City Watch of Duskwall, tasked with upholding the law. Known as the meanest gang in the city. Corrupt, violent, and cruel.

Recently they increased their presence around Crow's Foot, after some of their rookies were attacked on a routine patrol at Peddler's Bridge, leaving two of them seriously injured.

Notable members: Officer Dalmot, childhood friend of Tocker Vale (trusting, patient)

Doskvol

The city of Doskvol was established over 1000 years ago as a coal mining settlement on the cold north coast of Akoros. It has withstood the breaking of the world, an attack by a titanic leviathan, massive fires, a plague, a civil war, and legions of angry ghosts. It is a community of survivors. The city is densely packed inside the ring of immense lightning towers that protect it from the murderous ghosts of the blighted deathlands beyond. Every square foot is covered in human construction of some kind—piled one atop another with looming towers, sprawling manors, and stacked row houses; dissected by canals and narrow twisting alleys; connected by a spiderweb of roads, bridges, and elevated walkways.

Doskvol is one of the most important cities in the Imperium, since it is from its port that the metal steamships of the leviathan hunters are launched. The hunters brave the far northern reaches of the Void Sea, far out of sight of land, to grapple with titanic demons of the depths and extract their precious immortal blood—the substance refined into electroplasm, the power source of civilization. All powerful noble families operate hunter ships, each commanded by the scion of their line—and it is by their fortunes at sea and the bounties of blood they capture that the fortunes of the empire wax and wane. The savvy and the ruthless of Doskvol do well to position themselves to profit from this crucial enterprise upon which so many depend—either as an ally or servant of the aristocracy, or by preying upon the corrupted rich and privileged elite.

Crow’s Foot

The district is a crossroads, merging many qualities of its neighboring districts: the illicit vices of Silkshore, the labor and trade of the Docks, the poverty of Charhollow, and the classic architecture of Charterhall. The district is a patchwork, both held together and threatened to be torn apart by the menagerie of competing street gangs and Bluecoat squads that claim every avenue and corner as territory in an endless turf war.

The most striking feature of the district is the central high stone tower, called the Rookery, which serves as the fortress of the Crows. The headquarters of the Red Sashes is located here in a fortress-like sword school. Also the Lampblacks are based in Crow's Foot, their HQ is in the office of a coal storehouse.

The hidden HQ of Bullrich & Partners Ltd. is located in the back of a small accounting firm. The gang uses the surrounding alleyways and canals as smuggling routes.

The Docks

This district of Doskvol is ancient, going back to the days before the cataclysm, when the area was a colony town of the old Skov kingdom. Today, some commerce has shifted to the new electro-rail lines of the Imperium, but the docks are still bustling with cargo haulers, fishing boats, and the prestigious leviathan hunter ships that provide the raw material that keeps the city running.

Silkshore

Criss-crossed by dozens of narrow canals, Silkshore is a district best navigated by gondola, as most visitors to this “red lamp district” do. The brothels, vice dens, food stalls, and exotic shops all perch at the waterside, ready to satisfy the appetites of their clientele, no questions asked. Silkshore is a place of public indulgence and private indelicacy, catering to every pleasure imaginable—as well as some that strain the bounds of fantasy.

Coalridge

The home to most of the machinists, industrial laborers, and factories of the city. It’s cramped, soot-choked, and loud—spewing dense clouds of black smoke, showers of sparks, and burning cinders. The old elevated train lines that once hauled coal now carry heavy equipment and raw materials to and from Gaddoc Station, though many of the ancient tracks and cars have been abandoned to squatters who’ve converted them into makeshift homes.

Brightstone

Home to many of the wealthiest and most in influential citizens of Doskvol. Its streets are broad and paved, under bright electric lights; its canals are sparkling and clean, with perfumed water; its houses are all of fine, pale marble blocks, rich timbers, and intricate ironworks. There are cultivated parks fed by radiant energy; lavish restaurants and cafes; jewelers, tailors, and other luxury shops. Street-side vendors are forbidden here, resulting in a serene, spacious atmosphere, punctuated by the occasional carriage or marching Bluecoat patrol.