It’s session one of our Urban Shadows: Reykjavik 1-on-1 campaign! For a little bit more context and the starting character sheet, check out this index post 

Session One: The Field Guide to Icelandic Fae and Mysteries

Curtis Scanlon has been plagued by strange dreams as of late. Seeing grim visions of the future is nothing new for Oracles. These particular dreams foretell of a Reykjavik where the supernatural community yields to the rule of a single figure. In all of the dreams, this tyrant who seized control of the capital effortlessly is just a bit off screen or slightly out of focus.

As the dreams grow more intense, Curtis realises that this potential ruler of Reykjavik is himself.

—

Einar Huldr is preparing to release his first book, the “fictional” Field Guide to Icelandic Fae and Mysteries. Of course, the vibrant literary community of Reykjavik doesn’t realize that Einar is an Aware; a mortal private investigator clued into the local supernatural community.

Despite that experience and his past tangles with horrors fantastic and otherwise, the very idea of a book launch makes Einar anxious. Helping him along are his close friends Curtis, a Oracle turned Scholar and the hero of our story, and Fjola, a Wolf with some mystical talents.      

Curtis is a member of The Varðturn Buyers Group, an arcane network based out of Reykjavik. The Buyers Group used to stage elaborate events and deal in high ticket relics, but shifts in the supernatural community have resulted in Varðturn becoming more secretive. Still, Curtis has enough experience to organize a book launch; he arranges for the launch to be hosted at Cafe Haiti, a popular spot in the Old Harbour and fills the guest list by inviting trusted members of the Buyers Group and encouraging them to bring their friends.

As Fjola and Curtis prepare the cafe space and try to reassure Einar, the power blows.

It’s a clear spring day outside and the power lines to the cafe are buried. There’s no question in Curtis’s mind that something terrible is about to happen. His first instinct is to reach out with his oracle powers and search for traces of the supernatural. The presence lurking under the surface is uncomfortably familiar: goblins.

Months ago, the Buyers Group included a mortal Scholar, Valberg Stefánsson, who made a name for himself by keeping several goblins on payroll. Goblin magic and technology was key to Valberg’s success, allowing him to securely move and store dangerous artifacts. While Valberg and Curtis were close for a brief while, they didn’t separate on good terms.

That Curtis is searching with his oracle powers isn’t lost on Fjola. Curtis mentions that the power issue is probably connected to goblins and therefore Valberg, thus he’s best suited to deal with it. Fjola cautiously reminds Curtis of the strange dreams he’s been having; Fjola has been a sounding board for Curtis’s own concerns about the visions. Curtis tells Fjola to guard the cafe while he goes out to, hopefully, quickly deal with Valberg.

There’s no Valberg outside. Nor any goblins, for that matter. Curtis is greeted by a flock of Ravens, fae minions of Gammur, Landvættir of North. The Landvættir are four powerful fae who act as the guardians of Iceland.

The Ravens explain that Gammur wanted to inform Curtis that Valberg was going to interfere with the book launch. Obviously, the Ravens arrived too late, but they can sense there’s goblins in the building right now. Fearing for the safety of his friends, Curtis requests help from the Ravens.

The Ravens are fairly simple fae and their assistance is scatterbrained at best. They claim they can’t directly help, but they come up with an offer: two magic silver feathers in exchange for a party where they can be human for an evening. They’re a little annoyed they weren’t invited to the book launch and thus want a party that’s all about them. The feathers, they explain, can use reflected light to pierce through glamors and disguises.

Meanwhile, the power is still off inside Cafe Haiti. The cafe owners have found a stash of candles. It’s just enough light for Curtis to use the feathers. A woman new to the local supernatural community, Eyþóra, is talking with Einar and Fjola. Curtis discovers that Eyþóra has connections with the local fae, as the reflected light from the feathers reveals hidden pointed ears. Otherwise, the woman appears to be mortal.

Eyþóra reveals that she’s concerned about being blamed for the technical issues. Curtis tries to reassure her that she’s probably not the target, given what he’s discovered so far. Eyþóra asks for Curtis’s protection. She implies that it’s not something she is expecting as a favor but rather that it’s Curtis’s responsibility to protect the city and its residents. However, as a gesture of good faith, she’ll look into fixing the power.

The book launch is getting into full swing, even without the power. Curtis mingles in the crowd and uses the feathers again. This time, he has more luck: the feather reveals the cracks in the human masks of a respectable looking Icelandic couple. Curtis has met these two goblins before: they’re Geir and Ardis, associates of Valberg.   

Geir locks eyes with Curtis while Ardis slips off to the kitchen. Curtis assumes that Ardis is trying to escape; he hasn’t inspected the kitchen and it’s quite possible that might be the location of an escape tunnel. Curtis demands to know why the two showed up and Geir explains that they were invited, just like all of the other guests.

Smoke starts bellowing out of the kitchen and Geir gives Curtis two options: either let the goblins remain at the book launch to cause chaos and ruin the repulations of everyone involved or have Curtis throw them out. Curtis slams his hands on Geir’s table and tells the goblin to leave. Geir doesn’t flinch and tells Curtis to use his supernatural powers to properly uninvite the goblins and cast them out of the gathering.

It’s clear to Curtis that Geir’s real plan was corner Curtis into an impossible choice: loose social standing either through an apparent lack of control or a selfish display. The Oracle takes a step back, unsure of what to do. He fumbles, telling Geir that he’ll meet with Valberg and entertain a request in exchange for the goblins leaving. Geir is underwhelmed by the mention of his employer and turns the offer back on Curtis: the goblins will leave but only if Curtis will honor a future request from them. Not seeing a better solution, Curtis accepts.

The power comes back on and order is mostly restored at the cafe. Letting Einar have a moment in the spotlight, Fjola and Curtis hang out in the back of the cafe. Curtis is baffled at the strange powerplay. To him, what happened Geir and Ardis was Valberg acting on old resentments. Fjola suggests that true power is what’s given by others: “what value does money have if people don’t believe that it has value?”. Her theory is that Curtis’s value in the city is that people believe he’s trying make the city a better space. That, in turn, results in power.

—

It’s the morning after the book launch. The patio of Curtis’s apartment is a mess of feathers and water as the Ravens are frolicking in the “birdbath”, aka the hot tub. Curtis comes out onto the patio in his robe, cleans up the tossed patio furniture, and waits for the Ravens to realize they’re being watched. It takes them a moment.

The Ravens eventually all settle down on the patio railing and tell Curtis the party they want to be human for: Cake! Dancing! Hot dogs! Presents! Basically, the type of birthday party a 12 year old would want.

The biggest hurdle is turning the Ravens into humans for an evening. There’s one person Curtis can think of to help: Vigdis Hallgrímsdóttir. Vigdis is a Hallowed with ties to older knowledge and practices. Curtis heads over to Gömulueiðir, a restaurant that serves as a front for Vigdis’s flock. He finds the restaurant strangely locked tight. Not seeing another honest way in, Curtis knocks.

Berg, a younger member of the flock, answers the door. Although he tries to hide it, Berg isn’t particularly thrilled to see Curtis. He asks Curtis to wait in the front room while he goes to get Vigdis. There’s the noise of a muffled, intense conversation behind closed doors. The voices of Vigdis and Brigitta, another member of the Buyers Group, can just barely be heard through the walls. Curtis uses his Oracle senses to listen in, discovering that his powers allow him to listen back through time to the start of the conversation:

A member of the Buyers Group stationed in Seyðisfjörður, Madam Moorelove, has issued a formal complaint against Curtis. She claims that Curtis has maliciously shaped the arcane market to favour his business dealings in Reykjavik. This has crashed the market outside of the city and hurt her sales. Clearly, this is an attempt to freeze her out. According to the laws of the Buyers Group, a third party arbitrator must be brought in to handle the complaint and provide resolution. Brigitta wants the arbitrator to be Vigdis, given that Vigdis is outside of the group and a respected member of the supernatural community.

Curtis is brought into the meeting room and debriefed formally on the situation. According to the Buyers Group charter, both the accuser and the accused are entitled to an auditor to aid in the investigation. Curtis in encouraged to consider hiring an auditor. Unfortunately, Vigdis has accepted the role of arbitrator. Until the investigation finishes, Vigdis and Curtis can no longer have casual contact. That includes assisting with the Ravens.

Thankfully, Curtis happens to know a private investigator: Einar. The two meet at the coffee shop Stormasamurhvass, a popular location in the supernatural community. Einar is happy to offer his services as a private eye, although to his rates have gone up since the last time Curtis hired him. Before accepting the case, Einar asks if Curtis is honestly trying to force out Moorelove. Curtis explains that he would never consider such a thing and Einar jokes that Curtis is barely in control of his own life, so the idea of him trying to control someone else is ridiculous.

Einar thinks this is will be a simple case. That’s great for him, because that all of the spare time will come in handy for starting his next book.

Curtis is slightly more concerned about his situation. The session ends with him wondering what kind of investigator Moorelove will be sending to Reykjavik.

Session 1 Thoughts:
The Ravens are an extreme case of “Your players will gravitate towards things you wouldn’t expect” and, if memory is correct, grew out of a very successful social roll in the first Iceland campaign and have existed in the background since. They don’t have any serious stakes, politics or investment in the city, but they help flesh out the world with interesting… people, for lack of any better word. In our Debt chart, they exist as a collective unit.

Rob has been fond of The Ravens as they remind him of minor supporting characters in urban fantasy fiction. The story will never really be about them and they’ll be frustrating if they’re they’re on-screen for too long. Controlled amounts are key.

It helps that The Ravens tied to Gammur, one of the Wild faction powerhouses. The Ravens appearing means larger powers are playing political games just off camera, even if the Ravens’ wants and needs are relatively small. They also indirectly triggered the storyline with Moorelove coming to the surface in the first session. Curtis sought out Vigdis through a Hitting The Streets roll and discovered that she was juggling her own problems. The investigation will be a driving force of the next session.

Cafe Haiti is a real place in Reykjavik. Stormasamurhvass is inspired partly by IÐA Zimsen and Gömulueiðir is inspired partly by Cafe Loki.