Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: The Thames Murders & Other Cases
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: The Thames Murders & Other Cases Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Object of the Game
You take on the role of members of the unofficial gang of the "Baker Street Irregulars", founded by the famous Sherlock Holmes to keep him informed about the word on the street and help him in mysterious cases. This set contains ten mysterious cases which will be up to you to solve.
For each case, you'll have a series of leads to follow, a map of London, a directory, and the local press.
You also have a list of informants which contain some very qualified people who will assist you in your research (medical examiner, criminologist, sources…).
Armed with all these elements and with your imagination, you'll walk the streets of London looking for clues which will allow you to solve the enigma and answer a series of questions about the case. But nothing's ever as simple as it seems, and you will have to be wise if you don't want to be ridiculed during your final confrontation with Holmes!
Will you surpass the master?
Contents
Map of London
This map represents the Victorian city of London in a simplified way. During the game, the map will allow you to locate, for example, a specific place or verify an alibi. For practical reasons, London is divided into 5 areas (North West or NW, West Centre or WC, South West or SW, East Centre or EC, and South East or SE) divided by blue lines and the Thames. Each area contains numbers which correspond to the addresses of people you will go and question. This division is also used in the book's chapters and in the directory. For example, the address of Hyde Park is 95 NW (abridged form, used in the booklets or in the directory), or otherwise 95 Park Lane NW (long form including the street name, used in the newspaper). On the map, the places marked in red represent specific locations (such as the British Museum), and the places marked in black are police stations. Other places aren't fixed and a given address can thus change ownership from one case to the next. In addition, numbers indicate a housing block. Thus, the hotel Dacre is located at 62 EC, but it is possible that a character could also have that address, but without actually living at the hotel.
In one of the corners of the map is a travel time scale. That scale will sometimes allow you to check the movements of some suspects and thus verify their alibis. To simplify the game, we'll consider their speed to be fixed, no matter which transport method is used. Of course, the travel time of the players is never taken into account.
London Directory
This booklet presents the addresses of people living in London. Thus, when players wish to meet someone, they can consult the directory to find their address and then head over to that address by reading the corresponding lead. To simplify the game, the address system uses the map's division system. Thus, for example, Sherlock Holmes' address (which will be found in the directory under "Holmes, Sherlock") is 42 NW. If the players want to head over to Holmes' during the case, they must therefore read chapter 42 NW from the current case.
Note: found in the directory, in addition to the standard alphabetical list, are entries by profession.
List of Informants
Located on the back of this booklet, this list offers Sherlock Holmes' recurring informants, as well as their addresses. These informants will be able to help you in most cases, some being more useful than others depending on events.
Newspapers (10)
For each case, you'll have at your disposal the day's newspaper, as well as all of the newspapers published on previous dates. In these newspapers you'll sometimes find articles or ads which will point you at new leads.
Case Books (10)
These ten booklets contain the ten cases you will have to solve. The cases are sorted by date and are all structured the same way:
- Introduction: in this text the title and date of the mystery are presented to you, as well as the details of the case (generally during an interview with Holmes).
- Leads: this part of the text represents all of the leads (in the form of chapters) which you may follow during your investigation. By following the leads and making the right deductions, you will be able to solve the mystery offered by Holmes. Each lead corresponds to a geographic area (see Map of London and Directory). The leads are sorted by area and, in each area, the leads are sorted in ascending order. The illustrations which accompany the text are purely decorative.
- Questions: as soon as you think you have solved the case, you will be faced with two series of questions. The first series is always in direct relation to the case. The second series will allow you to score additional points for the discovery of events which are related to the case.
- Solutions: Holmes will detail for you the way he unravelled the threads of the case.
- Score: in this final section (located in the envelope placed at the end of the booklet), you'll get the answers to the questions and will tally your final score, which you'll then compare to Holmes'.
Note: questions and solutions are printed upside down at the end of the booklet.
Game Setup
- The players choose a case they all agree on. For practical reasons, we suggest that the cases are played in chronological order (notably in order to avoid finding clues in the newspapers which may spoil the surprise, and in so doing, the fun).
- The map of London is placed in the middle of the table.
- The London directory and the list of informants (at the back of this booklet) are placed near the map.
- The players also place nearby the newspaper whose date matches the case's, as well as all previous newspapers. Important: newspapers with a date following that of the case will not be used.
- The players may choose to grab blank sheets of paper and pencils to keep notes during the investigation. Note: the players may delegate the task of keeping notes to a specific member of the group.
- A player is chosen as the "lead investigator". That player takes the booklet, reads the case's introduction text, and the game begins!
Game Overview
The players all cooperate to solve the case. The game plays over a series of turns.
The lead investigator chooses a lead from the current case (they can for example declare "I want to go visit the crime scene," find the address in the directory and go there). If the lead doesn't exist in the booklet (meaning there's no corresponding paragraph in the current case for the location the player wanted to visit), the player simply chooses another lead.
When they have found their lead, the player reads the paragraph out loud, then notes that this lead has been followed. Their turn is now over.
Note: to keep intact the pleasure of discovering the answer, avoid looking too closely at the other leads on the page you're reading!
They then pass the book to the player sitting on their left, who becomes the new lead investigator and chooses in turn a lead of their own. The players continue this way, until they believe they know the solution to the enigma. The players can follow as many leads as they want, but on their turn a player can only read a single lead.
Newspapers, already visited leads, directory: on their turn, all of the players have a free and unlimited access to the directory as well as the case's newspapers. They can also reread the leads already visited as much as they want.
Discussions: of course, the players can discuss as much as they want to talk about the case or to debate the next lead to follow. But if there's a disagreement between them about their next destination, it's the current lead investigator who has the final word.
End of the Game
The players can decide to stop following leads as soon as they want to. They then move on to the "Questions" section of the case and answer the two series of questions given to them.
Players then head over to the "Solutions" section and one of them reads Holmes' conclusions out loud. Finally, the players open the envelope to evaluate their score and compare it to Holmes'.
Score
To tally their scores, the players add the points obtained by answering the questions, then total up the number of leads they followed. Then, they compare this number of leads to the number of leads followed by Holmes.
Note: in some cases, some leads are considered to be "free". These are given at the end of the "Solutions" section of each case. If the players have followed some of these leads, they do not count them among their followed leads.
If the players have followed more leads than Holmes, they subtract 5 points from their score for each extra lead. If they've followed fewer leads than Holmes, they add 5 points to their score for each fewer lead. They obtain their final score this way.
Example: the players have followed 8 leads and scored 95 points by answering the two series of questions. They realise that Holmes has, for his part, finished the case with 6 leads. As they followed 2 extra leads, they deduct 10 points from their score and finally only score 85 points.
Holmes
The players may then compare their score to Holmes'. Holmes' score is always 100 points. Defeating the Master is clearly hard, but not totally impossible!
Holmes's Lecture
Also found among his papers were notes from an 1886 lecture given by Holmes to Wiggins and other members of the Baker Street Irregulars. The lecture covers Holmes' view of London and the many personalities who were of help to him and who would be of help to the Baker Street Irregulars. We have reconstructed this lecture for your edification. Holmes stood next to a map of London which hung on the wall of the sitting room at 221B Baker Street. Watson intermittently surveyed the scene over the pages of his book, while Holmes paced back and forth in front of a group of attentive youths, his black brier in his right hand, his left in the pocket of his mouse-coloured dressing gown.
"London is not a beautiful city," began Holmes. "Under the soot that covers its buildings is the residue of the Empire, a teeming mass of four million souls trying to survive, mostly off of each other. Behind this assemblage is a force of evil, a legion of scoundrels weaving their web of iniquity over the city, and in the centre of the web is the master criminal himself, Professor James Moriarty, the greatest schemer of all time, the organizer of every deviltry, the controlling brain of the underworld — a brain which might have made or marred the destiny of nations. That's the man! But so aloof is he from criticism, so admirable in his management and self-effacement that his true character is unknown to the public and police. This face must be kept in mind in all your investigations."
"How has he managed to stay so unknown, Mr. Holmes?"
"That is a good question, Wiggins. Moriarty insulates himself from the crimes he controls and the public with an organization of underlings and thugs who make sure that no thread of evidence can be traced to him. So you can see that we are not dealing with the ordinary criminal mind and we will need all the help we can get.
"Today we will discuss some of the people who will be of help to you in your investigations. At the start of any investigation you must keep in mind that it is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts. The people that I will introduce you to at this time will help you collect the facts.
"Our first stop will be St. Bartholomew's Hospital or Bart's." Holmes pointed to 38 EC on the map with the tip of his pipe. "Bart's is one of the oldest and greatest of London's hospitals and is one of the medical schools of the London University College. Located here is the office of the Coroner's Chief Medical Examiner, Sir Jasper Meeks. He is London's greatest forensic pathologist. You can depend on him for all the technical details that can be obtained from a corpus delicti."
"Will the bodies of murder victims always be taken to Bart's, Mr. Holmes?"
"Yes, Wiggins. All deaths that have questionable causes must be examined by the Chief Medical Examiner.
"Our next stop is the Scotland Yard Criminology Laboratory, located at 22 SW. Here we meet H.R. Murray, Head Chemist. It is rumoured that Murray lives in the lab; any time of day or night you will find him bent over one of his tables trying to extract the history of a crime from the physical evidence available to him. You can learn much from old H.R. if you can follow the twists and jumps of his thinking; there is no better mind when it comes to interpreting the physical evidence from a crime."
"Wouldn't it be easier just to go to Scotland Yard, Mr. Holmes?" asked Wiggins.
A smile came over Holmes' face as he lowered himself into the wicker chair. "Yes, let's talk about Scotland Yard. If the Yard would read the reports or knew how to look at the evidence, then there would be no need for our services. Yes, they will get the reports and sometimes they may even read them, but that doesn't mean that they will know how to interpret them. Gregson and Lestrade are the pick of a bad lot, but you will find that they often twist the facts to fit their preconceived theories. But you are right, Wiggins, Scotland Yard, at 13 SW, is a very valuable source of information. The professional police have methods for gathering facts and information that are not open to us.
"At this time I would like to mention another invaluable source of information, The Office of Records at number 14 WC. This huge fire proof Tudor-style edifice contains legal records, both criminal and civil, as well as state-papers. Your contact there is Disraeli O'Brian, Head Clerk of the Land Records Department, whom you will find a walking, or should I say sitting, encyclopaedia of the office's affairs over the past thirty years.
"Another records office you should know about is Somerset House on the south side of the Strand at 17 WC. The Office of the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages and the Probate Registry are located there. You will also find the Commons Will Office which is a great repository of testamentary writings of all kinds."
"Who should we contact at Somerset House?" asked Simpson.
"The records are open to the public so you will need no special contact."
Holmes rose from his chair and stood facing the map while lighting his pipe. When it was started he turned again to his audience and resumed his lecture.
"Let's talk a little about the courts of justice. We will have little to do with the official law enforcement establishment, but it is a source of information. The Criminal Court, or "Old Bailey" is located at 36 EC, and should be kept in mind when dealing with known criminals. You can pick up a lot of information hanging around Old Bailey.
"When I was studying at Bart's, I would run to Old Bailey and watch the trials of the day in progress. It was seeing the unimaginative nature of our criminal and legal classes that made up my mind to become a consulting detective. Small cases that show some degree of imagination and challenge are more rewarding than big crimes that lack anything new.
"There is one young barrister, Edward Hall, whom you will find most days at Old Bailey, who is a cut above the other unimaginative members of his profession. You will find him of assistance."
"Mr. Holmes?"
"Yes, Simpson?"
"Could you tell me the difference between a barrister and a solicitor?"
"Yes, of course. A solicitor handles the routine legal business of our society. If you do not have to go before a court, then you will have no need for a barrister. If you must go before a court, then your solicitor would engage the services of a barrister. A barrister is a member of the highest class of lawyers who have the exclusive right to plead in superior courts. The particular business of the barrister is the advocacy of causes in open court and, except in criminal cases, he may not undertake a case without the intervention of a solicitor who actually prepares the case for trial.
"Now that we have looked at the top of the judicial system, let's lower our sights a little and look at some other resources available to us. The first is Porky Shinwell."
"I must say, Holmes, you would have to lower your sights a great deal to find Porky Shinwell." Watson laid his book down on his lap and looked up at Holmes for the first time.
"It all depends on where one keeps one's eyes, my dear Watson. Porky is not a pillar of society, I dare say. But he is a man who has learned from his mistakes and is trying to start a new life on the right side of the law. He has been of great help to us in the past as I expect he will be again in the future. Shinwell Johnson, known as Porky, after two terms at Parkhurst has given up his life of crime for that of innkeeper. He is now the proprietor of the Raven and Rat Inn, 52 EC."
"Whose patrons once filled Parkhurst, Millbank and every other prison in the Empire," interjected Watson before returning to his book.
"Right, Watson. But what better patrons could you have to keep an ear on the underworld of London? You can always get a case, or help on a case, from Porky Shinwell.
"Speaking of the underworld we should mention Fred Porlock. 'Fred Porlock' is the alias of a member of Moriarty's criminal organization who has been of great help on a number of occasions. I don't know who he is or why he informs on his master, it is enough to know that he does. He communicates with me by post or by leaving a message, usually in code, at Parsons and Sons Toy Shoppe, 18 NW."
"A toy shop?"
"Yes, at times Porlock's sense of humour shows through.
"Now for one of the most valuable sources of information available to you, the newspapers. Approximately 570 newspapers are published in London and its environs. As you know, I have filled one of the upstairs lumber-rooms with back issues of newspapers and I consult them regularly. The press is a most valuable institution, if you only know how to use it. I read nothing but the criminal news and the agony column. You will find the agony columns to be most instructive, and the private consulting detective will not be lacking work so long as they exist."
"But aren't most of the things covered in those columns insignificant, Mr. Holmes?"
"Insignificant? Perhaps, Mr. Simpson, perhaps. But it has been more important to me to choose a case for its uniqueness and interest than for its significance. The strangest and most unique things are very often connected not with the larger but with the smaller crimes, and occasionally, indeed, where there is reason to doubt whether any positive crime has been committed. One of the reasons I am training you in the art of detection is to enable you to take over part of my case load.
"Remember, the more information you get out of the newspapers the more time you will save in solving your case.
"I have also found two reporters to be of assistance from time to time. They are Henry Ellis of The Times and Quintin Hogg of the Police Gazette.
"Mr. Ellis is the foreign news editor and is a great reservoir of information of what's happening on the continent. He also has an interest in crime news and is always happy to help when he can, but you must be careful of what you tell him or you might find what you confided to him in the next day's Times. He can be found at his office at 30 EC.
"Quintin Hogg is a crime reporter for the Police Gazette. He is an ex-police inspector who found the environment of Scotland Yard less than stimulating. He is a good reporter with a strong deductive mind. A very good resource to keep in mind. His address is 35 EC.
"Any questions?"
"Don't you think you should mention your brother Mycroft?" asked Watson. "After all, he has been of great help to you in the past, Holmes."
"I would rather think that I have been of great help to him, my dear Watson. But you are right, I should tell them something of my brother. He is a great resource when it comes to information about the government."
"He is the government," said Watson, imitating Holmes' manner of speaking, which presented the young men seated in front of Holmes the challenge of trying to conceal their mirth.
"Yes, Watson, I have made that statement in regards to my brother," answered Holmes, less than amused. "He has an extraordinary faculty for figures, and audits the books in some of the government departments. Mycroft lodges in Pall Mall, and he walks round the corner into Whitehall every morning and back every evening. From year's end to year's end he takes no other exercise and is seen nowhere else, except only in the Diogenes Club, which is just opposite his rooms. If you ever need his help, you will find him available at the Diogenes Club at 8 SW.
"Another person I would like to mention is Langdale Pike, a person who usually gets in the last word. He's a human reference work on social scandal, especially of the London scene. He contributes bits of gossip to the 'garbage papers' that cater to an inquisitive public. His working hours are spent at the Societies Club at 2 SW."
"What about the Central Carriage Stables, Mr. Holmes?" asked Wiggins. "I've always had good luck getting information there."
"That's a good one, Wiggins. The Central Carriage Stables is located at 5 WC. It is at this location that all of London's cabs are stabled and dispatched. I have gotten much valuable information on people's movements by talking to the cab drivers. A good one, Wiggins, a good one."
Holmes again set himself down in his wicker chair. "I guess that is enough for today. Can you think of anything I missed, Watson?"
"What about Lomax at the London Library?"
"Yes, he can be of value. Lomax is a wealth of information and can find anything you need on the full shelves of this great library.
"I think that is enough for today, but I must tell you again that it is of the highest importance in the art of detection to be able to recognise, out of a number of facts, which are incidental and which are vital. Otherwise your energy and attention must be dissipated instead of being concentrated.
"Well, gentlemen, if you will move over to the table, I will ring Mrs. Hudson and have her bring up some tea and biscuits."
"Thank you, Mr. Holmes."
"My pleasure," responded Holmes.
"I am sure we will soon be able to put your talents to work."
Informants
Informants are recurring characters, with specific skills. From time to time, you will need their assistance to progress in your investigation. Of course, not all informants will be of use in each case, and they will sometimes be absent. It's up to you to decide when to use a lead and to call on one of them…
- Sir Jasper Meeks (38 EC) — Head Medical Examiner at Saint Bartholomew's hospital. He performs the autopsies on all bodies found during the investigations.
- H.R. Murray (22 SW) — Criminologist. He analyses all items and substances found during cases.
- Scotland Yard (13 SW) — Police (represented by Inspectors Lestrade and Gregson). They have reports and details relating to the case.
- Disraeli O'Brian (14 WC) — Archivist with the Office of National Archives. Compiles legal and criminal records.
- Somerset House (17 WC) — Records of births, deaths, marriages, and wills. Free access.
- Edward Hall (36 EC) — Lawyer at the Old Bailey court. Source of information on court cases and legal affairs.
- Porky Shinwell (52 EC) — Owner of the Raven and Rat pub. Source of information on all illegal affairs and underworld figures.
- Fred Porlock (18 NW) — Member of the criminal underground. Leaves coded information about the activities of Moriarty (leader of the criminal underground and sworn enemy of Holmes) at the Parsons & Son toy shop.
- Henry Ellis (30 EC) — Reporter for the London Times. Source of information on current events, mainly on foreign affairs.
- Quintin Hogg (35 EC) — Reporter for the Police Gazette. Source of information for criminal cases.
- Mycroft Holmes (8 SW) — Eminence grise. Source of information on all things relating to politics and government.
- Langdale Pike (2 SW) — Social columnist. Knows all London society gossip.
- Central Carriage Depot (5 WC) — Meeting point for London cab drivers. Source of information on the movements of suspects.
- Lomax (5 SW) — Librarian at the London Library. To be consulted for any encyclopedic research.
- Sherlock Holmes (42 NW) — If you're stuck in your investigation, Sherlock Holmes will set you back on track with some good advice. Be careful, that help could spoil the fun of investigating!