A City Called Hell
Intro
I'm going through Line-Ways #1 with a mind for editing, and since I've already shared the city of Hell on the blog before, I think it would be cool to show what it looks like when it's fleshed out a bit more. Most of this should make its way into the final zine, so if you're a fan of what you read here keep an eye out for the zine when it releases!
Hell
Hell hosts a horde of 423 stuffed into a large cavernous chamber. The station is crowned with rusted catwalks and hanging red lights that bathe the whole place in a sickly red. A hunk of meat on bloody catwalks is harnessed for power, viscous blood sizzling loudly and steaming vapors rolling off its body make the entire place uncomfortably humid. Thick tubes direct the flow of the demon's bodily fluids across the station, for use in food and central heating. At least a little of all food and drink in Hell comes from the meat creature. As a result, every meal is equal parts chalky, bitter, and spicy, like eating coffee grounds garnished with pepper dust and ash.
The children of Hell have a song about the creature, which they sing on occasion during their play:
It bleeds and bleeds but cannot die,
it sits and grows and cries and cries.
When all that was has come to pass
The Catwalk Devil gets last laugh.
Hell's Factions
- The Carvers: A religious order of police-barbers that tend to the creature. They carry over-sized meat cleavers and wear large brown butcher's smocks to the exclusion of other articles of clothing. Carvers fetishize the act of cutting flesh, and as such are often referred to pejoratively by residents of Hell. They live in a pit directly beneath the catwalk creature and maintain the lights and pipes of the city. They value their independence, but are bound by tradition to listen to The Eight Circle.
- The Red Priests: The most pious penitents of Wayfinder Rory, who runs the Red Line. In the style of their Wayfinder, Red Priests wear 19th century cowboy clothing and make bad attempts at American Southern accents. Their hats, which are uniquely made for each acolyte, always have a bright red brim. Largely uninvolved with the politicking of the city of Hell, but they know a lot about the happenings among both sides of the city.
- The Eight Circle: The upper crust of the city lives among the catwalks, close to the creature and far away from their serfs. Tradition and inertia means that they direct, oversee, and exploit the people who live below them in exchange for "protection" from the creature. They want to maintain the status quo, and look to use the Carvers and the apolitical Red Priests to make it stay that way. They will crush Niamh's Rebellion if they find her.
- Niamh's Rebellion: The discontent in the lower half of the city has manifested into a violent terrorist organization. They want to dismantle the catwalks and force everyone to live on equal footing. If that fails, they'll bring down the creature onto the Carver's Pit and doom the city like the children's song.
Hell's Happenings
The Priests of Wayfinder Rory are holding a festival this week, parading through the streets and empty terminals of the station controlling a giant puppet of the eponymous Wayfinder. Penitents follow behind and make "choo choo!" noises at the top of their lungs and blast little fireworks fashioned to resemble revolvers.
There's a new exhibition at The Devil's Maw, titled Tender is the Flesh at the End of Days that is incredibly popular. Most of the Eighth Circle nobles flock to the gallery during the day, babbling about the profundity of this flayed flesh fresco or that meat mural.
The Carvers have put out a call for new initiates. Young adults practice beheadings in the streets with blocks of wood and draw cut charts for various animals in the dirt.
A particularly virulent STI has left a good portion of the city of Hell bow-legged after a wild weekend. The infection will cause 68 casualties over the next two months. The deaths will cause tensions between Niamh's Rebellion and the Eight Circle to boil over into active rebellion in the streets.
Hell's People
Ar Gular (HD 1), a stocky middle-aged man with a beard to his waist, oversees the station. He is harsh, as if the red lights and humid nights have shortened his temper over the years. Gular stalks around the catwalks at all hours of the day and rarely sleeps.
Niamh Bee (HD 1), an eloquent young woman who is organizing the under-served parts of the station to revolution. Militant communist, but will have no idea what to do if her revolution succeeds. She hides in the Redder-Light district during the day, and organizes secret meetings to talk logistics and strategy at night among the bustle of the nightlife.
Archinal (1hp), an archivist from Babel, is ruddy-faced and in constant awe at the bustling city-station of Hell. He's here to study the catwalk creature, but his efforts thus far are unsuccessful.
Rechile (HD 1), a young pimply woman and hereditary member of The Eight Circle. She has a fascination with the Carvers and carries an elaborate rapier at her waist in imitation of them. Naive when it comes to the machinations of the City of Hell. Spends most of her days in The Demon's Maw studying the elaborate flesh-work.
Lug-Nut (HD 1), an Osseo-Maton from the central stations looking to join a group of grave robbers to go to the Tomb of the GreenBoards (Hex 19)
Hell's Places
Mephisto's Saloon sells fire brandy, the only hard stuff in the Line-Ways.
Madame Mysteria's Fortune Forum peddles esoteric wards, charms, bells and whistles of varying levels of effectiveness. Madame Mysteria has a secret supply of anti-coagulant which she's been selling to Carvers or Carver-hopefuls at an exorbitant price.
The Demon's Maw is a fine arts gallery held in a cavity carved into the flesh of the demon. Any art displayed must be waterproof or risk destruction from the fluids that coat the room. A single janitor named Novell Tee is overworked, underpaid, and absolutely enthralled with the high art business. If he gets his hands on some anti-coagulant, he'll give the party some of the clippings from the catwalk creature and tell them about the bone merchant (See Hex 8).
The Redder Light district opens for business in the nighttime hours and is deserted during the day. All vices are provided for at fair prices.
The Red Priest's Temple is a massive replica steam locomotive converted into a chapel. The majority of services, sermons, and special events take place within the barrel. The Red Priests live in the conductor's box.
The Landing is a strip of flat cement bisected by the Red Line. Wayfinder Rory arrives at the station every 1d6 days; The Red Priests know a day ahead of time if Rory is set to arrive and collect a tithe of 50gp per passenger looking to travel the Line-Ways.
Hell's Encounters
| 1d6 | Catwalk Encounters |
|---|---|
| 1 | Ar Gular (HD 1), in a fouler mood than normal due to the untimely death of his Rat Pigeon. |
| 2 | An intimidating Carver named Apollinar (HD 3) awkwardly stalks the party. If hailed, he will nod and say nothing else. Trails the party like a dog and is treated as a hireling unless dismissed. |
| 3 | 2d6 haughty Eight Circle nobles (HD 1) in a cluster walking through the catwalk. |
| 4 | Archinal (1hp), gaping at the creature in the catwalks and completely absorbed in his work. |
| 5 | Novell Tee, late to his shift at the art gallery. |
| 6 | Madame Mysteria (1+1HD), strolling the catwalks and smoking a long pipe with both hands. |
| 1d6 | Hell Encounters |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1d6+2 Ruffians |
| 2 | 1d6 - 1 secret revolutionaries having a clandestine meeting under an awning. |
| 3 | Lug-nut, wandering about the city of Hell. |
| 4 | Children run up and down the street firing off fireworks shaped like rifles at each another. Their parents chase them with shoes in hand. |
| 5 | A procession of 1d6 Red Priests carrying large bundles of denim fabric. |
| 6 | Niamh, scurrying from one safehouse to another. |
Hell's Surrounds
The land surrounding Hell is a badlands shaped by the rush of a billion blackened grains of green silicon sand. the wind is ever present and drowns out all conversation quieter than yelling. When it matters, the wind blows east. In the cracks and crevices carved by the sand, brave little trees and shrubbery make a final stand against erosion. They are losing the battle.