Wulin (V2)

After a first one-shot of Wulin, édition du Lotus Pourpre at the end of 2018, a second team of Youxia came to test their mettle against the inextricable intrigues of yours truly, the Mengzhou on duty. Our adventure is an implementation of the "Retour de Flamme" scenario, offered in the Les Chroniques du Jiang Hu supplement. In this article you will find a report of our sessions, followed by a review and a few suggestions for running the scenario.

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Retour de Flamme is one of the eight scenarios offered in Les Chroniques du Jiang Hu. They share a plot revolving around eight celestial swords and their bearers, noble Youxia devoted to carrying out the will of the Heavens (fighting a perfidious conspiracy that threatens the Song Empire). According to the author's explanations, these scenarios reward certain participants in the crowdfunding of the game's first edition, Wulin, Chronique du Pinceau et de l'Épée, by offering their custom-made Youxia a dedicated adventure. Each script therefore rests on a "pre-created" PC, with, as a corollary, a choice for your table:

• You can ask a player to play the scenario's "official" PC. Simpler in terms of preparation, this option risks disinheriting the player of their character. It is always more fun to play one's own creation!
• You can present the PC as a major NPC whom the Youxia assist. This option can leave memorable memories if you manage to bring the character to life, although they risk stealing the spotlight from your PCs.
• You can also rewrite the scenario's hook, the option that demands the most work. Even starting from this principle, some scenarios are so involving when it comes to the background of the main Youxia that rewriting the entire plot may well be necessary.
• Finally, you can adapt the background of one of the table's PCs to the scenario's needs. If your players accept the deal, it is in my view the best solution. Think of a television series where you get to know the protagonists little by little. With this solution, each scenario deepens one particular Youxia.

We opted for the last option, which promised to enrich the characters of our table. Thus Ah Shi De — the brigand from our 2015 one-shot who was signing up again for a second adventure alongside the nimble Da Long — had a past "grafted" onto him, in keeping with the background his player had sketched at the time.

The plot of Retour de Flamme revolves around the Vierge de Glace, a blade for hire, an anarchist, and a mystic of a thousand faces, who delights in assassinating people of power across the Empire. Her latest contract differs in nature: an obscure patron has asked her to track down the legendary Imperial Seal in Luoyang. She therefore travels in person to the old capital, accompanied by four fervent disciples. According to her information, the seal is patiently waiting to be found within the Palais du Sud, the residence of Magistrate Lan Suyi. She carves out a place at his side so she can investigate calmly, until her past catches up with her.

Indeed, the Vierge de Glace's arrival in Luoyang did not go unnoticed, so much so that a high official dispatches his crack Imperial Investigator, Meng Feng Feng, to hunt her down. One thing leading to another, Feng Feng enlists the services of Wang Xian, a disowned son of good family, then of Da Long, the brigand Ah Shi De's last known contact, whom rumor claims was once the Vierge de Glace's husband. Having exiled himself at the foot of Mount Wutai, he is sought by the Investigator, who hopes to obtain from him a way to identify the Vierge de Glace.

Our sessions

The full summaries can be read on our forum. For a more condensed read, I offer you here a summary of the summaries.

The first session consisted of an improvisation leading the PCs from Mount Wutai to Luoyang, crossing the famous Passe de la Cage du Tigre. When the action begins, Da Long and Ah Shi De meet again, the former convincing the latter to help Inspector Feng Feng and Xian. Together, the crack quartet crosses Jin territory, not without sowing, then frightening off, bounty hunters in pursuit of Shi De. The crossing of the pass is settled through a few ruses from our Youxia, who systematically choose the peaceful option over physical confrontation.

The following sessions were devoted to the scenario itself. Arriving in Luoyang, the Youxia head to the Yamen, where Feng Feng tries to convince Lan Suyi to let him investigate the Vierge de Glace. The governor does not seem aware that there is an anarchist in the city, but he can only acknowledge the young inspector's determination and good faith. He therefore assigns him his eldest son, Lan Yan, to help him discover the place. Lan Yan informs the group of the presence of a smuggling network that is relatively under control, but whose two factions seem to be clashing. As a former laborer, Shi De quickly gains acceptance among the boatmen of Lentille d'Eau, one of the two factions. Meanwhile, the Youxia discover that the second group has specialized in trafficking black powder to the Jin border, and that it seems to be led by Madame Ting, the madam of an establishment devoted to every vice — gambling, alcohol, and sex. One thing leading to another, our investigators also discover that the magistrate recently married a dignitary from Dali, because his first wife is dying. Feng Feng arranges for the invalid to recover from her ailment and suspects poisoning. The group convinces Lan Suyi to let Da Long infiltrate his residence to watch for the activity of any potential wrongdoers.

Facing this multitude of leads, Xian joins Madame Ting's ranks with the intention of spying on the smuggling network from the inside. Once night has fallen, he enters at the top of the building, thwarts the vigilance of the madam's girls, then steals incriminating information from them. It is enough to condemn Madame Ting, who, wily as she was, had skipped town before dawn, narrowly escaping execution for high treason. Her girls are less lucky and answer for their crime before justice, following a grandiose interrogation led by Inspector Feng Feng. Until then, the Youxia thought the Vierge de Glace was coordinating her actions with Madame Ting, in the service of the Jin invaders: the smuggling strengthens the enemy, and the Maiden is probably waiting for the right moment to assassinate the magistrate and paralyze Luoyang. This theory gains an alternative when Xing le Furet Désinvolte explains to the Youxia the legend surrounding the Imperial Seal. The investigation tightens around the governor's entourage.

The Youxia infiltrate the palace by night to observe Lan Suyi's new wife and her ladies-in-waiting. When Shi De spots a mark on the back of one of the maids, he confronts her and ends up cutting her down, provoking the horror of the witnesses. A few explanations are needed before Suyi understands the reason for so brutal a gesture, at the end of which he absolves Shi De and thanks the Youxia with a banquet held in their honor. In the early morning, the heroes quickly lose their illusions: a rumor claims that Lan Yan has been murdered and that the new wife, along with her maids, has fled the palace, taking personal effects belonging to the governor's son. Helped by Xing, the Youxia follow their trail into Jin territory. Someone beat them to it: they find only the remains of the real Vierge de Glace and of her maids, without the Imperial Seal. Their employer double-crossed them all, Maiden and Youxia alike, and his identity unfortunately remains a secret.

Review and tips

Of all the scenarios offered in Les Chroniques du Jiang Hu, Retour de Flamme seemed to me the richest. On the one hand, one of the PCs fit rather well with "the exile" around whom the plot is built. On the other, I have always had a soft spot for the Three Kingdoms references (what can you do, you cannot be remade!). The intrigues within the Court of an old palace also looked promising, all the more so as the potential mixed-up identities concerning the Vierge de Glace can only spice up an already complicated plot. Add the smugglers' red herring on top of that, and you can easily imagine an adventure halfway between classic Wuxia exploits and Judge Dee investigations. Very fine prospects, only partly delivered in practice.

While the description of the palace and of its workings aims to be complete and usable, many steps are needed before the Youxia enter it. In my case, my table scattered along credible alternative leads that it would have been ungracious to short-circuit. The investigation itself does not spell out certain essential aspects of the plot. Among those that caught me off guard:

• The exact circumstances in which the First Wife fell ill remain rather vague, as does the process by which the Vierge de Glace obtained her position as Second Wife. These points will inevitably intrigue the PCs, so you had better prepare to answer them. In our case, I did not have to dwell too much on how the Vierge de Glace could have poisoned the First Wife, but I did have to improvise explanations about the new lady's arrival at the palace. A practical idea consists of introducing the conspirators present in the other scenarios of the campaign. For example, a conspirator might have presented the Vierge de Glace as a princess from Dali, introducing his "protégée" at the very top of Luoyang's hierarchy.
• The conflict between the smugglers is likewise not sufficiently described. Admittedly, the scenario is not truly meant to confront the Youxia with Luoyang's low society, but the hook seems so much more accessible to the PCs that you must expect them to follow it mechanically. You will therefore have to embroider to meet your group's expectations. If this situation arises, take the opportunity to steer them back toward the real plot. Perhaps Madame Ting has contacts with the Magistrate's new wife?

This scenario suffers from another drawback, which I also observed in Pour quelques Fleurs de chrysanthème. The throughline hangs on very little; it is hard for players to follow it, despite their good will. Indeed, the scenario's premises suggest that the Vierge de Glace is an assassin, and therefore that she probably got close to power in order to gun down the governor, for the benefit of the Jin invaders, who could at last take Luoyang. Until the end of the plot, everything points to this solid hypothesis: the past of the main party involved, the presence of the Jin not far away, the rows between the smugglers, the governor's tenacity and success. So many reasons that will prevent your team (like mine) from seeing the real plot concerning the Imperial Seal. If you develop the smuggling red herring to give your players "investigation material", take care to bring them quickly, very quickly, beyond the rivalry between the boatmen and Madame Ting. I waited too long before introducing the Furet Désinvolte character, who dropped in like a hair in the soup at the very end of our second session. A tempo rather poorly mastered on my part.

Even if your players were to take an interest in the Imperial Seal, the scenario provides no lead to find its trace. Who would think of rummaging through an old wooden box in the Magistrate's son's possession, a true needle in a haystack? You should therefore plant clues, but which ones? An antique dealer who happens to have an old volume? A fresco depicting the flight of Dong Zhuo, on which a soldier carrying a familiar box would appear (the one containing the Seal)? I favored this solution, offering the PCs the chance to examine an ancient bas-relief dating from the Three Kingdoms. They did not find the desired information there, so I finally decided that Xuehua got ahead of them: the scenario had to keep its pace, and after all, Mademoiselle Fleur Hivernale knows the furniture of Lan Yan's bedroom well, given their relationship. The Youxia paid no attention to the doings of the palace's residents during their last night there, leaving the Vierge de Glace free to accomplish her mission. A slightly unfair outcome, considering my table's efforts to discover the end of the story.

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But let us sulk no more over our pleasure. Despite a certain internal imbalance, Retour de Flamme gave us three pleasant evenings, full of adventure, twists, and daring deeds. Besides, there is no finer way to botch an investigation than when you are convinced you have solved it, that you are victorious: losing while racking up successes. Thanks to convoluted schemes, the enemy proved smarter than us; a rematch is owed. My only regret remains not having offered Ah Shi De a sprawling, dramatic confrontation with his wife. Beyond the plot, this very positive feeling stands as the very hallmark of the game Wulin, whose praises (and a few squeaks) I will sing in a future article.