Quest Line · Original Adventure · Blades in the Dark
Score · One-shot
The crew has been hired by a mysterious patron to sabotage a blind auction at the exclusive Silverpoint Gallery. Six lots will be auctioned, including a locket containing a bound demon—though no one knows which lot it is. The crew must ensure that Lord Cavanaugh, a ruthless collector, walks away empty-handed while navigating rival thieves, occult dangers, and the auction house's formidable security.
Setting: The industrial city of Doskvol, focusing on the upscale Silverpoint district where wealthy collectors gather.
Player Knowledge: The crew knows their employer (a veiled figure calling herself "The Broker") wants Lord Cavanaugh prevented from winning any auction lot, but not why. They've been given credentials to pose as legitimate bidders or staff. The existence of the demon-bound locket is rumored but unconfirmed.
Content Warnings: Occult horror, potential violence, moral ambiguity regarding demonic artifacts.
Starting Resources: The crew has 4 Coin to use for bribes or emergency bids, plus forged credentials for the auction.
Choose one approach or let players decide:
Hook 1 - The Broker's Offer: A mysterious woman known only as The Broker approaches the crew through an intermediary. She offers 6 Coin to ensure Lord Cavanaugh leaves the Silverpoint Auction without acquiring any of the six lots. She won't explain why, but pays 2 Coin upfront. Her desperation is obvious—she's outbid normally but needs assurance.
Hook 2 - Hostile Leverage: Lord Cavanaugh recently seized property belonging to one of the crew or their close ally. The Broker approaches with intelligence that embarrassing or bankrupting him at the auction will force him to liquidate assets—including the seized property. Revenge and profit aligned.
Hook 3 - Occult Threat: A contact in the Spirit Wardens whispers that a demon-bound artifact will be auctioned at Silverpoint. If Lord Cavanaugh acquires it, he'll have power to devastate the crew's territory. The Broker is actually a front for a Spirit Warden faction that can't act officially.
The Silverpoint Gallery occupies a converted manufactory, all steel beams and gaslight chandeliers. Electroplasmic lamps bathe the viewing hall in cold blue light. Security is tight: Bluecoats at the doors, private guards (former mercenaries) patrolling inside, and a hull automaton stationed near the vault where lots are stored before presentation.
Key NPCs Present:
Investigation Opportunities:
Players can Survey the vault (Risky/Standard) to learn the lots are stored in individual lockboxes with numbers matching the auction catalog—but the catalog doesn't describe the items, only their lot numbers. A Consort approach with other bidders (Controlled/Standard) reveals rumors: Lot 3 is allegedly Tycherosi jewelry, Lot 5 might be an ancient weapon, but Lot 2 has everyone nervous—"something occult."
The crew can establish their approach:
The Hull Guardian: Tier III opponent, heavily armored, programmed to protect the vault. 3 armor, devastating electroplasmic weaponry. Engaging it directly would be Desperate.
The auction begins. Madame Tessaro presents lots in numbered sequence, covered until revealed. Bidding is conducted with numbered paddles—bids are silent, recorded by assistants.
Lot 1: Antique musical instrument (a viola). Light bidding. Cavanaugh doesn't participate.
Lot 2: A silver locket on a black chain. When revealed, some bidders gasp—those with occult knowledge feel a prickling wrongness. This is the demon-bound artifact. Cavanaugh's eyes gleam. Bidding starts at 2 Coin.
The Critical Choice: The crew must decide immediately:
Interference Options:
Sabotaging Cavanaugh's Credentials: A Tinker or Prowl check (Risky/Standard) can corrupt his bidding paddle's authorization, invalidating his bids. However, he has assistants who might notice (complications: they raise alarm).
Social Manipulation: A Consort or Sway check (Risky/Standard) can convince another bidder to artificially inflate prices against Cavanaugh, draining his resources. The risk: that bidder might win instead and become a new problem.
Creating Chaos: Wrecking the electroplasmic lamps (Wreck/Desperate) plunges the room into darkness, halting the auction but triggering security response.
Lots 3-6: Continue quickly:
The crew must ensure Cavanaugh wins nothing. Each lot he wins is a failure of their contract.
Escalation: If the crew acts overtly, Lord Cavanaugh's bodyguards (Tier II thugs, 2 armor each) move to intercept. If the crew damages auction property, the Hull activates.
The auction concludes. Depending on the crew's actions, several endings emerge:
Ending 1 - Clean Victory: If the crew successfully prevented Cavanaugh from winning any lots without major violence, Madame Tessaro closes the auction professionally. Winners collect their purchases. The Broker appears in the aftermath, pays the remaining 4 Coin, and disappears. Cavanaugh storms out, humiliated but unharmed. If the crew acquired the demon locket, they must decide whether to keep it (dangerous), sell it (profitable but risky), or destroy it (Attune/Desperate action to unbind the demon safely).
Ending 2 - Violent Confrontation: If the crew resorted to chaos or direct conflict, Bluecoats arrive as the scene devolves. The crew must escape (a desperate flight through Silverpoint's alleys) while managing whatever lots they've stolen. Cavanaugh might pursue personally if sufficiently enraged. The Broker still pays if the contract is fulfilled, but heat with the Bluecoats increases significantly.
Ending 3 - The Demon Breaks Free: If the locket is damaged or opened carelessly, the bound demon manifests—a Tier IV entity of shadow and rage. It attacks indiscriminately, creating pandemonium. The crew can attempt to rebind it (Attune/Desperate, requires group action), flee and let the Spirit Wardens handle it (generates massive heat but removes the problem), or bargain with it (Consort/Desperate, risky but potentially rewarding). Cavanaugh's fate becomes secondary to survival.
Resolution Questions:
The Broker: Veiled woman with aristocratic bearing. Speaks little, pays well. Motivation: Prevent Cavanaugh from acquiring dangerous artifacts—reason varies by hook chosen.
Lord Cavanaugh: Ruthless collector in his sixties, grey beard, expensive coat. Former military officer turned occult antiquarian. Motivation: Acquire power through dangerous artifacts, maintain dominance over rivals.
Madame Tessaro: Auction house director, forties, severe black dress, steel-grey hair. Reputation for absolute honesty in a corrupt city. Motivation: Preserve the Silverpoint Gallery's reputation at all costs.
Rendrik (Cavanaugh's Lead Bodyguard): Skovlander veteran, scarred face, heavy pistol. Loyal but not suicidal. Motivation: Protect Cavanaugh, collect his paycheck.
Whisper Marlon: Nervous young man who bids on Lot 2 (demon locket). Actually a Spirit Warden informant tracking dangerous artifacts. Motivation: Prevent occult catastrophes, survive if things go wrong.
Pacing the Auction: Move quickly through Lots 1, 3-6. Focus attention on Lot 2 (the demon locket) and whichever lots the crew actively contests. Don't let bidding drag.
Encourage Creative Solutions: Blades in the Dark rewards clever plans. If the crew proposes bribing staff, impersonating Cavanaugh's agent, or other creative sabotage, set position and effect appropriately rather than defaulting to combat.
The Demon Locket: Use it as dramatic tension. Reveal its nature early enough that players can make informed choices, but not so early it dominates all other considerations.
Heat and Consequences: Track heat based on profile—subtle sabotage generates little heat, violence in an upscale gallery generates significant heat. Cavanaugh makes a persistent enemy if directly humiliated.
Flexible Opposition: Adjust Cavanaugh's resources based on crew tier. Higher-tier crews face more bodyguards or better-prepared opposition.
Payment: 6 Coin total from The Broker (2 upfront, 4 on completion).
Potential Additional Rewards:
XP Triggers:
Story Rewards: Potential alliance with The Broker for future scores, or permanent enmity with Lord Cavanaugh creating future complications.
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