The Company Bloodhound

The Hunter  

Hendrick “Bloodhound” Van Daalen works indirectly for the Dutch West India Company. He is not technically an employee of the company, rather he is a licensed Recovery Agent, hired through Company officials tied to the States General of the Netherlands. In practice he is a bounty hunter specializing in stolen cargo.

Among sailors he is known as “De Bloedhond” the Bloodhound, because he is famous for tracking deserters across colonies, recovering stolen cargo, and bringing thieves back alive for trial. He has recovered stolen goods from smugglers in Barbados, pirates operating near Tortuga, and deserters hiding in New Netherland.

The Bloodhound and His Team 

Tall, lean, and weathered, Van Daalen is calm, disciplined, and pragmatic. He speaks English with a heavy Dutch accent. Van Daalen is not cruel, but he believes thieves deserve punishment. His real loyalty is to his 10% recovery fee. He travels with a clerk, two Iroquois scouts, and a light riding horse.

Hendrick Van Daalen: Armor 16 (leather + Dex), Move 120’, 4th Level Specialist, 20hp, Rapier 1d8, Dagger 1d4, Pistol 1d8, Morale 11.
Skills: Bushcraft 4, Languages 4, Search 5
Languages: Dutch, English, German, Iroquois 

Equipment: Leather armor, rapier, 2x daggers, 2x pistols, shot bag, powder horn, manacles, lock & key, Investigator’s Tools, journal, wide-brimmed hat, cloak, maps (Maryland, New Netherlands, New Sweden), whistle, candle, soap, chalk, ink

Josie, gray riding horse: AC 12, Move 240′, 2 Hit Dice, 6hp, Hooves 1d6, Morale 5. 

Equipage: Riding gear, 2x saddlebags, mancatcher, manacles, 50 ft. rope, waterskin, tinderbox, crowbar, grappling hook, 4sp.

Paulsen Klopstock, Clerk: Armor 14 (leather), Move 120’, 4th Level Magic-User, 14hp, rapier 1d8, dagger, 1d4, pistol 1d8, Morale 7. 

Skills: Languages 2 

Languages: Dutch, English, German, Welsh 

Equipment: Leather armor, rapier, dagger, pistol, shot bag, powder horn, spellbook, blank book, 2x lamp oil, lantern, ink & quill, 6x candles, wooden cross, maps (Maryland, New Netherlands, New Sweden), 5x paper, pipe, whistle, soap, wolfsbane, 2x empty vials 

Spells: 2/1st, 2/2nd

Iroquois Scout (2): Armor 14, Move 120’, 3rd Level Fighter, 11/22hp, musket 1d8, tomahawk 1d6, short bow 1d6, Morale 10/5 (not willing to die for a Dutchmen). 

Skills: Bushcraft 3, Wilderness Stealth 5 

Languages: Algonquin, Dutch, Iroquois 

Equipment: Leather armor, musket, tomahawk, short bow, shot bag, powder horn, 20x arrows, hunting knife, pouch.

 

 

 

Overland Pursuit in the Colony of Death

For tracking parties across the Colony of Death. A simple overland chase system for use with any old school or traditional RPG.  

 

Use 10-mile hexes to cross the Maryland frontier. 

  

 

Travel speed is determined by terrain. This table assumes travel by horse or canoe.

Terrain	Travel Speed
Road/Trail/Waterway	5 hexes/day
Forest/Hills	3 hexes/day
Swamp/Mountains	2 hexes/day

There are few roads in the colony except for in or around one of the major settlements (St. Mary's, Kent Fort, or Providence). 

Forest hexes are Green, Hill hexes are light brown, Mountain hexes are brown. Any hex between rivers (blue lines) may be considered Swamp hexes.  

Tracking Roll

At the end of each day the pursuer makes a tracking roll. The base chance for this roll is 4-in-6. Possible modifiers might include:

+1         if the PCs left obvious evidence behind
+1         if locals saw or spoke to them
-1         if it has rained
-2         if the PCs deliberately covered their tracks

If successful, the pursuer moves 1 hex closer.

 

Closing the Distance

With each day of pursuit, the pursuer will get closer. Consult the table below to close in and trigger a confrontation. 

 

Distance Categories

Far	10+ hexes
Trailing	5-9 hexes
Closing In	1-4 hexes
Contact	Same hex

 

Confrontation

Once the distance is at Contact, a confrontation will occur. When the hunter finally catches up, roll or choose how to handle the confrontation. 

 

1	Night Ambush
2	Parley
3	Attempt Capture
4	Shadow the Party

 

 

 

The Sword Lives!

 

I've been dormant, but the sleeping one stirs.

I had intended to get back to sharing RPG ideas on here, and then got side-tracked for a year or two, you know how it is. I've been gaming at least, if nothing else. So, with the new year and some new opportunities what better time to shake off the dust and get back into it.

I'm running a weekly game with some new friends and one old friend, my Colony of Death setting. An LotFP compatible setting guide for the Colony of Maryland in 1650. 

I'm writing a new adventure supplement for said setting which will see New Sweden as a new adventure location.  

I'm also working on a revised and expanded second edition of Colony of Death.

As well as some other non-RPG projects. It's gonna be a good year for creativity and fun.

I must give some credit to my new friend Mike Necrofent for digging me out of the Appalachian mud and rekindling the fires of inspiration. And my brother, Jason Hess and Tim "Samwise 7"Harper for their collaborative efforts. 

Roll Initiative and Let the Dice Fall Where They May!