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Austin House |
| Note: Text pertaining to ghostly activities will be colored like this. |
Austin House was built in the late 19th century. Architecturally, it is pure Gothic, even though other styles were more fashionable when it was built. Located a couple miles west of town, Austin House is set at a reasonable distance from the other houses on this road. A low brick wall, trees and shrubs help maintain privacy. Currently, there is no power, no phone, and no water. |
| The remnant furnishings in the house are just what one might expect from an elderly garden club president; the astute and researched investigator will notice that it doesn’t reflect the later tenants of the house. |
| The Grounds |
| The grounds cover around four acres. A toolshed/woodshed and small garage are the only outbuildings still standing. In the back is a large, elaborate flower garden (mostly overgrown with weeds and small trees). On the far side is a small gravestone: “Emma Austin, 1894-1909” |
| Ground Floor |
| The house is eerie. Even Mundanes can feel it – an unsettled vibe that suggests the house knows you’re there, and is considering what to do with you |
| Emma will observe intruders when they first enter the house. She may let them enter and leave freely. When it is clear they are intent on staying and exploring or burgling, she will start the haunting. Distracted investigators may look up and suddenly realize it is night outside |
| If they’ve done any research at all, investigators will see that the furnishings and decorations seem more like those of Mrs. Simmons than that of the family which moved in later. |
| Porch The paint is peeling from the posts, and some of the boards give more than they used to. Otherwise, it is sturdy enough. |
| Hall A small table with a phone on it, and a chair. |
| At some point, someone hears a girl’s giggle behind them in the hall. No one is there, but mixed in with the adult footprints in the thin dust layer are the bare footprints of a child |
| Parlor An easy chair, couch, coffee table – all have sheets on them; the couch is only half covered, as if someone had moved it recently. The fireplace is brick, with a small mantle, on which are two unburned candles, a small jar of potpourri, and the footprint of a mantle clock. A mirror over the mantle is old, dull and fogged. |
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The Mirror When looking at the mirror indirectly, the images seen are different from perceived reality. Sometimes this can be rationalized – the antique’s distortion or the poor light – but as time goes on even direct stares will result in the odd visions. Some possibilities for what the character sees include: The mirror reflects the room, but not the character. The mirror reflects the character, but in a different room. The mirror reflects the same room, but at the time the mirror was placed there (c.1900) The mirror reflects the character doing something different. The mirror reflects the character lying on the floor The mirror reflects someone else looking back, as shocked as the character. The mirror reflects another member of the group, staring murderously from behind the character. The mirror reflects the character at a very advanced age. |
| Dining Room Still has a very fine wooden dining table and 8 chairs. A setting of dried flowers is the centerpiece. A closer inspection will reveal a black widow lurking among the flowers. |
| Kitchen Stove is where the fireplace used to be. Refrigerator is empty. Some forks, spoons, knives, (no silver in the silverware), a couple old kitchen knives, spatulas, and other utensils. The adjoining washing room is quite dirty and empty. |
| Office/Craft Room Contains lots of crafty stuff, like yarn and ribbons, styrofoam rabbits and vine wreaths. The closet is empty except for a few coats and sweaters on hangers. |
| Stairs Several photos line the wall in the stairway. One shows an elderly lady showing off her flower garden. Several more show flowers, and the last one has a group of women; one (from the first picture) holds a blue ribbon. At first glance, the photos on the wall look quite different: the flowers look wilted, and the women look. . . odd, with bulbous eyes, nasty teeth, and slighty misshapen bodies. But all looks normal upon closer examination. |
| First Floor |
| Chamber A: Study Desk, comfortable chair, small sofa. There are several bookshelves, feature a 1970 encyclopedia, books on botany and travel, local and world histories, and assorted volumes of no great interest. Oddly, the closet contains several bottles of cognac (Simmons was fond of the stuff). |
| Chamber B: Floor Room A table and shelves are loaded with dried flowers, vases, and other flower-arranging supplies. |
| Chamber C: Master Bedroom The room is mostly empty. The bed is gone; a couple bed tables and a vanity are left. |
| Chamber D: Bedroom Alarge chest sits against the far wall, next to the outline of a bureau on the faded wallpaper. The closet has some Christmas decorations. The single bed has a grungy mattress. Two dolls lay on the bed; another lies on the floor by the chest. The south window is broken from an impact (little bits of glass can be found on the floor in front of the window). The other window has several cracks. The first time anyone looks into this room, they will see a perfectly preserved Victorian-style girl’s bedroom. Several dolls lay on the bed, and a locked chest sits at the foot of the bed, with half a dozen stuffed animal dolls atop it. If the investigators search the room immediately, they find: The closet has old-style girl clothes, shoes, bonnets. Under the bed is a 1’x 8” music box filled with ribbons and beads. A small bureau with a hand mirror, small oil lamp, combs and other girly stuff is on the south wall. Under the pillow is a book with half the pages written in an increasingly confident hand. The girl’s diary begins in September 1902. The words grow faint and disappear altogether Oct 25th. Brief reading will suggest it is Emma’s. |
| After a short period to examine the room – a noise in another part of the house – the voice of a lost companion, breaking glass, a fallen book or whatever – will draw the searchers’ attention. When they return, the room will look as described above. |
| Loud scratching, along with muffled sobs, come from the chest. After a moment, all goes silent, and attempts to communicate with the occupant fail. |
| The chest is locked, but a key on the floor will spring it with some difficulty. Inside, there is nothing except a porcelain doll, with brown spots staining its dress and face. The floor of the chest is likewise brown. The lid of the chest is covered in scratch marks and bloody partial fingerprints. |
| Chamber E: Bedroom/Storeroom A single bedframe, sans mattress, and some empty boxes. This is the room where Mary finally died; the exact spot (just inside the door) has a small dark stain on the hardwood. |
| Hall Besides providing access to the bedrooms, The hall contains a linen closet and the stairs to the attic. Three small frames hang on the walls: a Home Sweet Home sampler, a sepia photo of a severe old woman, and a faded color picture of the Smoky Mountains. At the stair-end of the hall is an oval mirror 2’ long. |
| Apparitions in the Hall: At a dramatically-appropriate point, the faint form of a young teenage girl appears, bound to the rail post at the top of the stairs. She is silently pleading and crying, struggling with the rope around her wrists. Red spots splatter all across the walls, and more drops lead towards bedrooms C and D. The apparition of a much younger girl lies halfway across the doorway to D. Meanwhile, the chest comes alive again with muffled sobs and thumps (it can’t be opened, key or no, while this performance continues). |
| The girl at the rail struggles, wide-eyed, shudders and gives a silent scream, and after another minute, slumps and is still. A red puddle spreads slowly from where she is, until all manifestations fade away a few moments later. |
| If, while this is going on, an investigator stands before the mirror and looks in, he will see the events as they took place – no sound, and he will have to move a bit to see everything since his head is visible and in the way. Unless a player specifically says she is looking in the mirror, a Notice Test (at –3) will be necessary to notice anything unusual about the mirror. |
| A Seer with Mindtime can attempt to see the grisly act. If he makes the attempt when one of the apparitions is visible, the attempt receives a +2 bonus and +1 effective Strength. |
| Attic Stairs A dangling light bulb with a pull chain to turn it on would be the only illumination here if the power was on. The steep stairs end in a solid wood door with a brass knob and lock. The Haunt will seek to prevent investigators from going to the attic until they are few and thoroughly spooked. The door will be locked and sturdy, and the stairs will seem to telescope, or seem about to break. When the time is right, however, the door will open readily and the stairs will be firm. |
| The Attic |
| The room has several trucks and boxes along the walls, filled with clothes, old photo albums, newspapers and other assorted detritus from past lives. In the center of the room is a beautiful dollhouse that opens down the middle. |
| The Dollhouse: Curiously, the outside of the dollhouse is an exact replica of the house - down to broken windows and the state of the furnishings. Any rooms with lights (lanterns, candles) are lit. Anything the characters have done is reflected in the dollhouse. Standing in the tiny attic are replicas of the investigators (Anyone the observers consider missing – whether just wandering the grounds or trapped in the cellar – are represented in the garden by fresh graves). As the investigators look on, a horrible laugh comes from the dollhouse, the dollhouse light will go out and screams will come from that room, along with sounds of something being torn to pieces. Seconds later, the lights come back on - the investigator dolls have been torn to pieces, with splatters of blood covering the wall. |
| A few moments later, she hears a deep, evil laugh coming from one end of the room, which seems about 100 yards away. Then whatever light she has goes out, and she hears the rapid thumping of running feet coming closer through the darkness. |
| Assuming the characters don’t score a hit on Emma or damage the dollhouse at this point, the ghost will attempt to possess one of the group, who will attack the others in the darkness. When all are subdued or sufficiently addled, Emma will take them to the cellar. |
| The Cellar The chief entrance to this peculiar structure used to open outside next to the kitchen. It was buried under a raised vegetable bed in the sixties. The only remaining entrance is a concealed trapdoor in the floor of the craft room closet. An 8’ ladder puts you on the concrete floor of the 20’x40’cellar. The walls are also concrete paneled with wood, and two lines of metal support pillars run through the length of the room. Is wood packed with insulation, making it hard for sounds to carry into the house. At the far third of the room, the concrete floor gives way to loose earth. Half-covered by the loamy soil earth are several skeletons wearing rags – a pair of hoboes and two vandals. |
| The room’s construction makes it practically soundproof. A pair of fresher corpses, dried black flesh and hair present, lie together in an embrace of terror. Three of the pillars have handcuffs attached to them. As one might expect, this cellar was built at Emma's direction for the purpose of tormenting and disposing of intruders. |
| Resolution |
| Dollhousewrecker: For many, this may be the only viable way to survive. Burning or smashing the representation of Emma’s Anchor, the dollhouse, will drive the ghost into a fury while at the same time disrupting her power for a few minutes. Given a day or two, the house will be back as it was, but the petulant spirit won’t forget who wrecked her toy. This is a good way to escape the house, but not a good way to get on her good side. |
| Stand-up Fight: Some may try to blast the ghost with Soulfire, salt-loaded shotguns or whatnot. This might work once, but Emma is clever enough to keep out of the way, and will endeavor to take down anyone trying such stunts. If the firepower is too formidable, she will retreat and go into hiding until the attackers leave or let their guard down. |
| Diplomacy: Talking to the ghost, while possible, won’t make her go away. It may mollify her, and give the incoming owners some idea of what will keep harmony, but the house will stay haunted. Remember, she is a very smart girl. She will resist any attempt at flattery with a Simple Intelligence Test (modified based on how convincing the character sounds). Ultimately, Emma wants the house to be cared for, and to often be on the owner’s mind. Her developing taste for fear has made her more of a threat to the inhabitants, a fact the characters should be aware of. |
| The Only Way To Be Sure: To permanently take care of Emma, burn the house down and sow the ground with salt (but see Ramifications) |
| Ramifications |
| Few characters will simply leave the house alone; even if dealing with it is beyond their abilities, the place has an evil streak that cannot in good conscience be ignored. If the characters have access to resources, they may simply buy the property. The land can then be quarantined, or perhaps a covenant wants to study the haunt or use the house as a training ground. The spirit is quite intelligent, however, and heavy-handed attempts to control her may be met with spiteful retribution. |
| Burning down the house may end the haunting, but can cause any manner of problems with the authorities. If the characters leave a paper trail in the course of the investigation, they become prime suspects. |
| Emma Austin/Austin House, Haunt |
| Str:1, Dex: 2, Con: 3 |
| Int: 5, Per: 4, Will: 5 |
| Essence: 50, Life Points: 30, Speed:10, |
| Qualities: Attractive +2, Essence Channeling 1, Ghost |
| Drawbacks: Covetous (Attention) 2, Cruel 2, Greater Anchor |
| Skills: Intimidation 3, Investigation 1, Notice 2, Singing 2, Smooth Talking 3 |
| Powers: Animate, Banshee, Curse the Living, Haunt (Mansion), Possess Mortal, Terror Leech |
| Appearance: Young girl, around 13 years old. Pale, plump, with dark brown curls. Dress from the turn of the century, but usually too indistinct to be recognized. Emma seldom appears in her human form; usually she is a part of the house. |
| Personality: Emma was a very intelligent and very demanding girl. She couldn’t abide not being the center of attention. Like the girl, Emma/Austin House is a jealous spirit; she wants to be paid attention to, talked to, doted on. Tasteful renovation and general prettifying is good, but kind words also mollify her for a while. Of course, she has learned how satisfying fear is. Those who own the house had better not have anyone to share the love; children or new relationships are not tolerated for long. |
| Notes: Emma/the house can affect the entirety of the 4-acre lot; however, she seldom does any major haunting outside of the house. Her modus operandi is pretty straightforward. The casual explorers will get enough strangeness to make them edgy – creaking stairs, objects moving when no one is looking, and whispers. For the more determined investigators, those who go deeper into the house, she will ramp up the fear. She will exert her control to divide the group, winnowing out the weakest first. These victims she uses to strengthen herself for the struggle against the remaining investigators’ sanity. When she thinks she’s strong enough to subdue her prey, she will lock the doors and harden the windows so that there is no escape. As the explorers search the upstairs, apparitions of the dead girls begin showing up. |
| Only when her power and their fear has peaked will she let them enter the attic (the door unlocks, and she will provide whatever auditory coaxing – the voices of the disappeared, for example – is required). She will drink up the Essence they shed, and then attempt a possession. |
| All possessed characters will travel to the cellar where in the darkness she will raise their fear to mindbreaking levels. There she may let them die, or pick at them for days before they expire. |
| Emma seldom treats with intruders. If she senses they are Gifted, she will be more wary and more determined. She will hide herself from them as much as possible. No attempts to initiate communication will work unless through coercive powers. Yet she may make brief contacts in unsettling ways. What she wants is their fear, their Essence, and their end. Those who anger her and escape may find themselves Cursed. |