Beneath the Battlements - A Shot & Splinters Adventure

JUNE - 1805. With Napoleon's conquest of continental Europe complete, his eyes have turned to England. The invasion fleet has been massing in Normandy and the Low Countries, and anxious minds at Whitehall and Horse Guards are searching for a solution. The Breton coastline is awash with assassins, spies and revolutionaries, many converging on the walled town of Guerande...

Beneath the Battlements is a city-crawl for Shot & Splinters, thrusting your crew of hapless sailors into a hotbed of civil unrest and sedition. Emerging from the sucking salt marshes, the town of Guerande looks to have been lifted from the pages of a fairy tale. 

Since the 15th century, Guerande has been a centre of judicial, military, and religious power, extending its influence over the surrounding area. Lawyers and priests rub shoulders with salt farmers and shepherds, their fates intrinsically linked to the town and its prosperity. 

Though the salt trade has propped up the town’s economy for the better part of a century, the turmoil of the Revolution and the success of rival farms in the south has sent the town spiralling into decline.

Using a combination of random tables and detailed points of interest, Beneath the Battlements allows players to easily explore Guerande, pursuing whatever mission takes their fancy. They might get into a shootout with the gendarmes across the nave of the church of Saint Aubin, or pursue a gang of grave robbers across the Place Saint Anne. 

The Porte Saint-Michel's formidable gatehouse has been extensively detailed, providing a focal point for the climax of your adventures. 

With over seven thousand inhabitants, the humble citizens of Guerande will feature heavily in your games. A selection of random tables gives you the tools to quickly generate citizens on the fly, complete with various aspects of their character. 

The adventure also contains six key NPCs, from veteran cavalryman of the Imperial Guard and spymaster Major Armand Narcisse Durant, to the affable but macabre disgraced Doctor Antonin Lapointe. 

Guerande is being fought over by five different factions, each with its own agenda and goals. From the fractious criminals of the Brotherhood of Saint Anne, to the secretive partisans of the Society of the Sevent Towers, each presents a unique challenge.  

This adventure is designed for use with Shot & Splinters, but could be easily adapted for a system of your choice.