Illuminati

[GravyFingerz]

Ok, today I am running the first session of my Illuminati campaign using Call of Cthulhu d20 rules with a few minor tweaks.

The story so far is each of the PCs are police officers in the 23rd precinct of the NYPD. On a Friday, they were having lunch at an Italian diner outside when a dying agent of the Bavarian Illuminati approaches them and says the recognition word. One of the PCs says it back, but in a questioning tone. The agent, too wounded to tell the difference between different tones, hands the PCs the package and he dies. The PCs begin investigating the surrounding area while another agent (the one who was supposed to receive the package) watches in horror as the drop is messed up.

That evening, the MiBs come to the PCs place of residence. They question them for a while, and then hold them down and administer some mind altering drugs. They implant memories of the PCs being on vacation for a week, hiking in the Appalachian Mountains. They change the records in the NYPD to reflect all this (since the Bavarian Illuminati controls the NYPD), so it is all legit.

The session begins when the PCs wake up on Monday morning to go to work. That is when the weirdness begins.

What I would appreciate from all of you is either:

1) Tips on running an Illuminati game.
2) Information on how the NYPD works and precincts and such.
3) Tips on developing a power structure for the Bavarian Illuminati.
4) Misc. comments and such.

Right now, I pretty much plan to introduce a bunch of weird events (subtle and not subtle) just to induce some paranoia and weirdness; to set the mood.

On Monday, the PCs will participate in a SWAT operation to confiscate from illegal substances from a known marijuana dealer. The purpose of the operation is to actually confiscate some records and scare the people in the house, because they are dangerous close to stumbling upon the working of the Bavarian Illuminati.

I am using Call of Cthulhu d20 as the rules set, but with the following changes:

PCs cannot choose Psychic Feats or learn magic normally; there are exceptions to this rule.

Instead of HP, we are using Wound/Vitality from SWd20, but there is no vitality; so any hit does wound damage. Normal crits are used. So on a crit, a Glock Model 17 does 3d10 wound damage.

There is a new feat; but it cannot be chosen, it must be given. I have already determined that because of the mind-altering drugs administered to the PCs, if they ever go below 0 wound and manage to survive and be brought back to 1 wound or more, they will receive this new feat. The trauma of near death and the drugs open up parts of their mind they have never used before.

Illuminated [Special]
You are one of the illuminated, one who has become enlightened.
Benefit: This feat gives you a number of benefits:

• You may reroll any one dice roll once per hour of real time. You must keep the new result if you choose to reroll, and you cannot save up rerolls. If you do not use it, you waste it.
• You can automatically discern if another person is also illuminated with no chance of failure.
• You know intuitively whether the illuminati is behind a certain event or situation. This requires a successful Intelligence check vs. DC 10.

Special: You may select Psychic feats and learn magical spells.

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

Reading the Illuminati Trilogy would be a good thing to do, it starts off in a very similar way.

That feat seems incredibly powerful, by the way, and an awfully easy way to become Illuminated. I presume no one knows that this works, since if they did, Illuminati Agents would all be Illuminated within a few weeks...

A suggestion I heard for a real mind-bender of a game would be to simply throw lots of weird stuff at them, and then let them try and figure out. Listen to their discussions, and simply adopt whichever one they go for as the truth. Then twist it a bit.

Oh, and throw in as many references to 23 Skidoo, Fnord, the JAMs and Eris as possible.

 

[bwgwl]

if you don't already have GURPS Illuminati, it's got plenty of ideas on how to run an Illuminated campaign.

 

[BiggusGeekus@Work]

Tips on running an Illuminati game.

"There is no Illuminati!" Repeat that to yourself over and over as you design. That'll keep you from getting lazy and having NPCs "slip" information when they really shouldn't. The players should be pretty much the second smartest people about the Illumanti (the big I being the first, of course).

Also, cheat. Have the Illuminati occasionally react to player decisions as if they had anticipated them. Don't do it too often or it becomes an obvoius DM trick. But just do it every now and then so the players get freaked out about how knowledgeable the Illuminati are.

Information on how the NYPD works and precincts and such.

Hey, if you don't know odds are strong your players won't either. Watch a lot of cop shows. They'll never know. That being said I did a google search and came up with some interesting books/links.

Tips on developing a power structure for the Bavarian Illuminati.

Don't develop it. Develop the first tier. If you figure out who's in charge in Barvaria Central you'll be tempted to bring them into the plot too soon.

Misc. comments and such.

Fnord.

 

[Tom Cashel]

Never whistle while you're pissing.

 

[Angcuru]

Fnord!

 

[Tom Cashel]

Strive to be scary and humorous at the same time.

An Illuminati campaign that takes itself too seriously is just...well...kind of pathetic.

GP: Is Eris true?
M2: Everything is true.
GP: Even false things?
M2: Even false things are true.
GP: How can that be?
M2: I don't know man, I didn't do it.

 

[teitan]

Well, for a power structure should be easily difficult, ie. it should only make sense when not thought about to any degree. Also, no one should really know who is in the Illuminati. The Masons may think they are the Illuminati, but so does the Ordo templi Orientis (who actually ascended from A Bavarian Illuminati run by Theodor Reuss and this Illuminati is still quite active in Switzerland as Ordo Illuminatorum). The titular head should never be identified and MANY people should ASSUME they are the head, when in fact it is your neighbors dog...

Jason

 

[haiiro]

if you don't already have GURPS Illuminati, it's got plenty of ideas on how to run an Illuminated campaign.

I'll second this recommendation -- GURPS Illuminati is an excellent resource. GURPS Warehouse 23 is also a great book, even if you're not running a Warehouse-centered campaign (it's full of cool ideas and nifty tidbits).

In terms of fiction, I'd check out Robert Anton Wilson's Illuminatus! trilogy (a classic source of inspiration) and Foucalt's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco. FP isn't entirely relevant, but it too is full of good ideas -- and the twists and intricacies are unbeatable.

If your group can handle it without becoming bogged down, I recommend throwing as many small "coincidences" at them as possible. You'll wind up mentioning a lot of tiny details, and they'll wind up adding up (or do they? only you'll know for sure) very quickly -- which also avoids making it clear when you're mentioning significant "coincidences." This creates a mood of futility and implies an all-reaching power behind the visible world -- and everything they uncover about the BI will reinforce this impression.

 

[ichabod]

In general, the subtler the better. If you can't be subtle, be really confusing.

Don't develop a power structure, let the power structure develop based on the onion. No matter how much you peel, there's always another layer. But be careful, because the onion has pitfalls. If there is not some useful information at each layer, the players will catch on and become bored. Why investigate when there is nothing to find?

Play off real life. The more you can tie it to the actual new york, the weirder the differences will seem. Watch the news papers for ideas, and be as paranoid as possible when doing so. If you don't live in NY, get a guidebook to the city, and use it for ideas.

I'd drop the third power of the illuminated feat. The Illuminati are behind everything. The question is which one and how. Personally, I'd drop the feat and make it a prestige class, where each level has requiments, mostly roleplaying ones.

The more detailed you can get character backgrounds the better. That's the best way to hit em where it scares em.

And never forget the Crimson Scrod.