Murder Mystery Help [Archive] - Wizards Community

Murder Mystery Help [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Beleriphon
05-20-06, 10:27 PM Hello all,

I plan on killing one of my recurring NPCs that the PCs have become attached to, but I want to set up a murder mystery around the death. I've already decided on why, and who by working backwards, but I'm having a hard time trying to come up with red herrings for the other suspects, so I hoping that you could all help out a bit.

To provide some background.

My dead guy is Dorian Bronhome, a dwarf professor/scholar at the Library of Korranberg. The PCs have been researching a strange byshek crystal club (basically a +1 aberration bane club, but they don't know that yet). Dorian has been helping them out, I've implied that he's more important than he seems, but haven't decided if I ultimately want him to be a low level member of the Aurum or not. I don't think the PCs entirely trust his motives, but they seem to like the character at any rate.

My murderer is going to be Kal Elmod, a local member of Korranberg's guard force. The reason that he kills Dorian is that his masters in a Cult of the Dragon Below/ Dalkaeyr want Dorian gone. The PCs have already foiled two plots, one where Dorian rants about Vorpal Tribbles (thanks to the poster of the same name for the idea), monsters only in Dorian's mind, plaguing the dwarf. The second was a direct strike once they managed to get Dorian out and cured. I've already had Kal threaten to arrest the group on trumped up charges, but a local member of the Aurum, Gustav d'Kundarak, got them off. I've set Gustave up as a distant relative of one of the PCs, also a member of House Kundarak, so they have a connection there as well. I', sure I want to make him suspect but can't figure out the reason he'd want Dorian dead.

The other suspects include Mora Bronhome, Dorian's harpy of a wife. Lionel Sivis a minor official at the Library whom Dorian has a running rivalry, and Marl ir'Korran, the local owner and operator of one of Korranberg's finest inns. Lionel is also an agent of the Trust and has threatened/bargained with the PCs into watching the other characters for him. They think its for a blackmail plot, not some all encompassing plot.

I have the library receptionist, Morana Dolar, as a witness along with a student of Korranberg University who were both at the library after hours. Perhaps seeing each other. :D

Ultimately I want to try and setup some kind of all encompassing plot, by linking the broken splinters of the Cults to the Inspired and Dreaming Dark for the soul reason that I want to use psionic content in my game. :)

So far I've come up with the following clues to link Kal with the murder. Kal always wears a glamerweave shirt under his uniform, he aspires to be much more than he actually is, thus dresses extremely well. A scrap of glamerweave if found at the scene. The problem is that Mora has a fine glamerweave cloak that she got caught in a carriage door, and is thus torn.

What I'm looking to do is have about a half dozen clues, any two clues will point an two characters, but Kal will have 4 clues pointing at him. So what I need are some ideas about clues, motiviations, and some ideas about how the PCs might go about collecting those clues.
Kid SixXx
05-21-06, 09:24 AM Was the carriage door scenario an accident? Perhaps you could include the carriage driver in your plotline.

Have the carriage driver be an agent of the Cult & have him slam the door on purpose in order to get the scrap of glammerweave for Kal to plant at the scene of the crime.

There is an immediate clue that will point directly to Mora, but could be beaten depending on how much of the murder that you allow the receptionist to see. If she gets a good look at the killer, she could provide Mora's alibi.

Of course, that might also sign the receptionist's death warrant if Kal finds out that she is a material witness.

If Kal is smart enough to use an illusion in commision of the crime (or if Kal is secretly a changeling) then perhaps he took the shape of a female dwarf and the receptionist will actually further implicate Mora instead of clearing her, and maybe Mora will have to confess to some dirty secret (dreamlilly addiction or some such) in order to remove her name from the list of suspects.

Inclusion of the carriage driver as an accomplice also serves as a time waster / distractor. If the PC's bother to track down the carriage driver in order to question him, it might provide Kal with the opportunity to tie up a loose end and silence the receptionist.

I'm sure I could work the library receptionist's affair in there some kinda way so that she appears to be a suspect (Maybe she's trying to worm money out of Doran to finance early retirement for herself & her student / lover? Perhaps Gustav d'Kundarak knows about the receptionists' knowledge of Doran's affiliation with the Aurum? Maybe the receptionist is working with Lionel Sivis?), but I'll need more coffee.
Syltorian
05-21-06, 09:39 AM Well, a motive for Gustav d'Kundarak could be that Dorian has found out about his connections to the Aurum, and is blackmailing Gustav. If superiors at House Kundarak find out about him being a member of the Aurum, he's in trouble. Perhaps a clue or other could lead the PCs to this. Could be interesting if they take up the blackmail themselves.

A letter of the victim making veiled allusions and threats to Gustav, or an IOU or cheque or something similar paid by Gustav (both a clue, but also a clue to his innocence; were Gustav the murderer, he would have taken the cheque back home or destroyed it, to keep his money). Perhaps Dorian himself was afraid Gustav would kill him, and left his precautions ("if something should happen to me, a letter will go to Kundarakhold as soon as my will is read"). Which, in turn, might lead to Lionel Sivis, who as a member of the House of clerks could have known about this. You'd also get a side quest, as Gustav will want to stop that letter reaching his superiors, while trying to hide why he wants this favour (of PCs or someone else, who might again do something wrong or run into the PCs).

On the other hand, someone else might have blackmailed Gustav. Maybe some Goblins want the artifact back, and tried to get someone to do it for them - Gustav. Who didn't get around to it, of course, but maybe there are clues that he was about to. He may actually have tried, incognito, to acquire the byeshk artifact by offering money. Once the PCs find out who the mysterious bidder was (completely illegal, of course, since it's not for sale), and that Dorian refused to sell, they could easily jump to the conclusion that Gustav now tried different methods. And maybe he even planned, though someone got there first.

As for Mora Bronhome, maybe she has an affair with one of the other suspects, or witnesses. The student, for example. She was the last person to see Dorian alive (except for the murderer, of course), but Morana Dolar knows about her affair with the student. The student, in turn, will want to hide Mora's presence, and could be caught out by forgetting to confirm the receptionist's sighting of the now-widow. Perhaps he could even come up with a story of an affair between Morana and Dorian, just to blur the tracks even more.

Lionel Sivis, as an agent of the Trust, could be dangerous to Kal. So, possibly, Kal could try to frame him. That might explain some of the clues present on the scene.

How was Doran killed? Poison? That could point to the Trust - who else could acquire it? It could also lead to some other confusion. If you somehow manage to delay the acting of the poison, a contact poison on a pen, for example, you get even someone completely different in the room with him while it occurs. If Dorian then fell down to actually hurt himself, and provide the head wound that might people overlook the death-through-poison first.

Especially useful if, before touching that pen, he was having a dispute with someone else in the room. Witnesses know there was a loud argument. Inside, Dorian takes the pen and begins writing something that will break the career of the other person in the room. Then the poison acts, and he dies. The other person panicks, takes the writ that would compromise him apart from the bit stuck in Dorian's hand, and flees the scene.

Of course, that scenario doesn't explain how Kal lost his scrap of glamerweave, so I assume he was killing his victim more directly? Is Kal, given his short name, a changeling? If so, he could have taken on the appearance of whoever he wants to frame, possibly Lionel, and prepared some clues pointing at Lionel (who might have other information that the Cult of the Dragon doesn't want anyone to have).

If he's not a changeling, maybe he has aquired a headband of disguise (and left it at the scene, torn off him in a fight?). That way, they know they can't trust their witnesses. Whoever was seen last with the victim could have been everyone. If he is a changeling, he could still have lost a headband of disguise - that is, intentionally lost it to deflect from himself. After all, if you found that magic trinket, are you going to go after the changeling who doesn't need it - wouldn't it rather point at one of those who do not already have the innate ability to change form?

Anyway, just a few mismatched ideas. Hope some of them help...
NeoSamurai
05-22-06, 01:19 PM One good thing that always works with murder mysteries is a plethora of suspects with different goals and enmities against the victim. If possible, you may want to set up a very visible and near violent confrontation with one of the PCs to make him look like a suspect as well. Additionally, with a plethora of suspects, you can have them perform suspicious acts that have nothing to do with the main mystery but are none-the-less important.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Beleriphon 05-20-06, 10:27 PM	Hello all, I plan on killing one of my recurring NPCs that the PCs have become attached to, but I want to set up a murder mystery around the death. I've already decided on why, and who by working backwards, but I'm having a hard time trying to come up with red herrings for the other suspects, so I hoping that you could all help out a bit. To provide some background. My dead guy is Dorian Bronhome, a dwarf professor/scholar at the Library of Korranberg. The PCs have been researching a strange byshek crystal club (basically a +1 aberration bane club, but they don't know that yet). Dorian has been helping them out, I've implied that he's more important than he seems, but haven't decided if I ultimately want him to be a low level member of the Aurum or not. I don't think the PCs entirely trust his motives, but they seem to like the character at any rate. My murderer is going to be Kal Elmod, a local member of Korranberg's guard force. The reason that he kills Dorian is that his masters in a Cult of the Dragon Below/ Dalkaeyr want Dorian gone. The PCs have already foiled two plots, one where Dorian rants about Vorpal Tribbles (thanks to the poster of the same name for the idea), monsters only in Dorian's mind, plaguing the dwarf. The second was a direct strike once they managed to get Dorian out and cured. I've already had Kal threaten to arrest the group on trumped up charges, but a local member of the Aurum, Gustav d'Kundarak, got them off. I've set Gustave up as a distant relative of one of the PCs, also a member of House Kundarak, so they have a connection there as well. I', sure I want to make him suspect but can't figure out the reason he'd want Dorian dead. The other suspects include Mora Bronhome, Dorian's harpy of a wife. Lionel Sivis a minor official at the Library whom Dorian has a running rivalry, and Marl ir'Korran, the local owner and operator of one of Korranberg's finest inns. Lionel is also an agent of the Trust and has threatened/bargained with the PCs into watching the other characters for him. They think its for a blackmail plot, not some all encompassing plot. I have the library receptionist, Morana Dolar, as a witness along with a student of Korranberg University who were both at the library after hours. Perhaps seeing each other. :D Ultimately I want to try and setup some kind of all encompassing plot, by linking the broken splinters of the Cults to the Inspired and Dreaming Dark for the soul reason that I want to use psionic content in my game. :) So far I've come up with the following clues to link Kal with the murder. Kal always wears a glamerweave shirt under his uniform, he aspires to be much more than he actually is, thus dresses extremely well. A scrap of glamerweave if found at the scene. The problem is that Mora has a fine glamerweave cloak that she got caught in a carriage door, and is thus torn. What I'm looking to do is have about a half dozen clues, any two clues will point an two characters, but Kal will have 4 clues pointing at him. So what I need are some ideas about clues, motiviations, and some ideas about how the PCs might go about collecting those clues.
Kid SixXx 05-21-06, 09:24 AM	Was the carriage door scenario an accident? Perhaps you could include the carriage driver in your plotline. Have the carriage driver be an agent of the Cult & have him slam the door on purpose in order to get the scrap of glammerweave for Kal to plant at the scene of the crime. There is an immediate clue that will point directly to Mora, but could be beaten depending on how much of the murder that you allow the receptionist to see. If she gets a good look at the killer, she could provide Mora's alibi. Of course, that might also sign the receptionist's death warrant if Kal finds out that she is a material witness. If Kal is smart enough to use an illusion in commision of the crime (or if Kal is secretly a changeling) then perhaps he took the shape of a female dwarf and the receptionist will actually further implicate Mora instead of clearing her, and maybe Mora will have to confess to some dirty secret (dreamlilly addiction or some such) in order to remove her name from the list of suspects. Inclusion of the carriage driver as an accomplice also serves as a time waster / distractor. If the PC's bother to track down the carriage driver in order to question him, it might provide Kal with the opportunity to tie up a loose end and silence the receptionist. I'm sure I could work the library receptionist's affair in there some kinda way so that she appears to be a suspect (Maybe she's trying to worm money out of Doran to finance early retirement for herself & her student / lover? Perhaps Gustav d'Kundarak knows about the receptionists' knowledge of Doran's affiliation with the Aurum? Maybe the receptionist is working with Lionel Sivis?), but I'll need more coffee.
Syltorian 05-21-06, 09:39 AM	Well, a motive for Gustav d'Kundarak could be that Dorian has found out about his connections to the Aurum, and is blackmailing Gustav. If superiors at House Kundarak find out about him being a member of the Aurum, he's in trouble. Perhaps a clue or other could lead the PCs to this. Could be interesting if they take up the blackmail themselves. A letter of the victim making veiled allusions and threats to Gustav, or an IOU or cheque or something similar paid by Gustav (both a clue, but also a clue to his innocence; were Gustav the murderer, he would have taken the cheque back home or destroyed it, to keep his money). Perhaps Dorian himself was afraid Gustav would kill him, and left his precautions ("if something should happen to me, a letter will go to Kundarakhold as soon as my will is read"). Which, in turn, might lead to Lionel Sivis, who as a member of the House of clerks could have known about this. You'd also get a side quest, as Gustav will want to stop that letter reaching his superiors, while trying to hide why he wants this favour (of PCs or someone else, who might again do something wrong or run into the PCs). On the other hand, someone else might have blackmailed Gustav. Maybe some Goblins want the artifact back, and tried to get someone to do it for them - Gustav. Who didn't get around to it, of course, but maybe there are clues that he was about to. He may actually have tried, incognito, to acquire the byeshk artifact by offering money. Once the PCs find out who the mysterious bidder was (completely illegal, of course, since it's not for sale), and that Dorian refused to sell, they could easily jump to the conclusion that Gustav now tried different methods. And maybe he even planned, though someone got there first. As for Mora Bronhome, maybe she has an affair with one of the other suspects, or witnesses. The student, for example. She was the last person to see Dorian alive (except for the murderer, of course), but Morana Dolar knows about her affair with the student. The student, in turn, will want to hide Mora's presence, and could be caught out by forgetting to confirm the receptionist's sighting of the now-widow. Perhaps he could even come up with a story of an affair between Morana and Dorian, just to blur the tracks even more. Lionel Sivis, as an agent of the Trust, could be dangerous to Kal. So, possibly, Kal could try to frame him. That might explain some of the clues present on the scene. How was Doran killed? Poison? That could point to the Trust - who else could acquire it? It could also lead to some other confusion. If you somehow manage to delay the acting of the poison, a contact poison on a pen, for example, you get even someone completely different in the room with him while it occurs. If Dorian then fell down to actually hurt himself, and provide the head wound that might people overlook the death-through-poison first. Especially useful if, before touching that pen, he was having a dispute with someone else in the room. Witnesses know there was a loud argument. Inside, Dorian takes the pen and begins writing something that will break the career of the other person in the room. Then the poison acts, and he dies. The other person panicks, takes the writ that would compromise him apart from the bit stuck in Dorian's hand, and flees the scene. Of course, that scenario doesn't explain how Kal lost his scrap of glamerweave, so I assume he was killing his victim more directly? Is Kal, given his short name, a changeling? If so, he could have taken on the appearance of whoever he wants to frame, possibly Lionel, and prepared some clues pointing at Lionel (who might have other information that the Cult of the Dragon doesn't want anyone to have). If he's not a changeling, maybe he has aquired a headband of disguise (and left it at the scene, torn off him in a fight?). That way, they know they can't trust their witnesses. Whoever was seen last with the victim could have been everyone. If he is a changeling, he could still have lost a headband of disguise - that is, intentionally lost it to deflect from himself. After all, if you found that magic trinket, are you going to go after the changeling who doesn't need it - wouldn't it rather point at one of those who do not already have the innate ability to change form? Anyway, just a few mismatched ideas. Hope some of them help...
NeoSamurai 05-22-06, 01:19 PM	One good thing that always works with murder mysteries is a plethora of suspects with different goals and enmities against the victim. If possible, you may want to set up a very visible and near violent confrontation with one of the PCs to make him look like a suspect as well. Additionally, with a plethora of suspects, you can have them perform suspicious acts that have nothing to do with the main mystery but are none-the-less important.