Cafe Prost and the Little Red Notebook

The Jackalope is here, and requires a SACRIFICE.

Anne requested the following gift:

The Coffee House - Cafe Prost!

It is well known in Regensburg, city of culture, that revolution is brewing. The Duke’s tyranny can only continue for so long, and the Secret Police can only stamp down so hard. The Coffee Houses are the breeding houses of these anti-establishment ideas, the most famous of which were penned by the Revolutionary thinker Jedermann Prole.

The Secret Police know this; Jedermann Prole is the pen-name for maybe a dozen authors, and their names are shared in the so-called ‘Red-Ledger’. If they can find this ledger, the beating heart of the revolution can be torn out, and the growing movement will be set back decades.

Cafe Prost is to be the scene of the pivotal moment, an exchange that will see the Red-Ledger disappear out of the city, unless the Secret Police can snag it first!

Rollen das Schauspiels

Offizer Armand Schnekt

Commander of the Secret Police, head of the Sting operation. Undercover as Ernando Teste.

Normally finely polished and pristine, but becoming more frazzled as the handover time approaches. Highly competent, if paranoid, and has a tendency to charge off alone and leave his supporting team behind.

He knows the Handover will be at the Cafe Prost!, and soon, but the exact time and the people involved are as yet a mystery to him.

Accompanied by two other officers, Yurgen Tauwen, and Thurn Ingmar; both reasonably competent, but crack under pressure.

Comrade Lucia Moll

The leader of the local resistance chapter. Will hand over the ledger to Comrade Neimor.

Tall, dark, confident. She dares not wear any Resistance iconography, and has slowly built up a believable pretence of being a struggling artist trying to write a book.

She knows who Neima Opell is, and will wait patiently for the perfect time to make the delivery. However, her over-caution might make her wait too long, and have to perform the delivery quickly if any trouble breaks out.

Utterly dedicated to the cause.

Comrade Neima Opell

Arrived on horseback this morning; is relaxing in the Coffee house before continuing on her journey, will carry the ledger out of the city in the morning.

Wiry and light, she can’t wait to be out of the city. She knows no-one in this town, or its chapter of the Resistance, she only knows she will be delivered a Red Notebook today, and where she needs to take it.

If trouble breaks out, she will wait for as long as she can to receive the Notebook, but will leave if forced; she won’t risk her chapter being exposed.

Utterly dedicated to the cause.

Comrade Karl Queitz

Having second thoughts, might sell out the resistance to the Secret Police.

Doing his best to keep it together, but his paranoia grows daily, and exponentially.

He doesn’t know who will take the ledger, but does know Lucia currently has it. As the Handover approaches, he will seek out the Secret Police and try to give them the information he knows in exchange for safety. However, he doesn’t know who the secret police are. He could well end up approaching the gangster Hanz Frommel, or the Party, if they look like what you might expect undercover secret police to look like.

Citizen Hanz Frommel 

Member of a local crime ring, the Blackstreet Brigade. Is attempting to intercept the Ledger to either ransom to the Secret Police, or extort the resistance, whichever pays better.

Slicked back hair, confident half-smirk, a couple of tasteful face piercings. Perhaps a little too punky to be obviously Secret Police, a little too much cruelty in his eyes to be convincingly Resistance. 

From an informant in the Secret Police, Hanz knows as much about the Handover as Officer Armand Schnekt.

Other (Unaffiliated) Characters Of Potential Interest

1 - Brother Antalli and Brother Humvei: Foreign ascetic monks who have traveled far to meet each-other half-way between their respective homes. They sip curious beverages while they describe all the many wonders they have contemplated in their hermitages. Due to their shaky hold on the local language, and the esoteric topics they discuss, they could well sound like they are talking to each other in code. 2 - Citizen Shamvoelli: In the decades to come, he will be recognised as a titanic genius of literature. For now he is recognised as someone who pours his coffee on the floor if it isn’t brewed to his precise requirements. When he isn’t scowling out the window, he scribbles in note books. Today, it is a red notebook. 3 - The Industrial Spy: An Agent of Cafe Prost!’s biggest rival Cafe Enchante, out to discover the secret to Cafe Prost!’s success. Scours the room with their eyes, drinking in every detail, considering every possibility. In truth, there is no secret, the Revolutionaries picked it arbitrarily, with the side-effect of boosting Cafe Prost!’s prosperity. 4 - The Charming Cardsharp: Though well dressed, beautiful, and dripping with deliciously honeyed words, the Cardsharp runs a dreadful racket. Slowly, they will build up friendships with other gamblers, before viciously rinsing them for all they’re worth. Having finished their most recent con, they are on the lookout for new rubes. 5 - The Exhausted Baronette: Just, everything is going wrong for this guy, and his desperation is reaching a tipping point. He will tell anyone who will listen to the cavalcade of disaster that has befallen him, and eventually he’ll even tell the people who won’t listen. If prodded in the wrong way, he will cause quite the scene. 6 - The Merchant Venturer: Hardship has drawn harsh lines on their face, even as their sumptuous dress and expensive effects speak of a life of luxury. They seek couriers for a long and possibly dangerous trek, taking valuable documents to a distant country. It's merely schematics for an invention, but they are deadly secretive about it, on today of all days.  

General Patrons of the Cafe Prost!

	1	2	3	4	5	6
1	A well dressed couple, a pampered puppy at their feet.	A bald priest, reviewing a new edition of a prayer book.	A pair of young lads, eyeing up the pretty ladies.	An elderly gentleman, enjoys a cigar and a newspaper.	A group of financiers, haggard, downing coffee after coffee.	A sleeping nightwatchman, fresh from his duties, cold coffee.
2	A distressed alchemist, pouring over pages and pages of notes.	A member of the city guard, dressed in armour, off duty.	A doe eyed man, enraptured by a ruthless seductress.	Two illicit lovers share a pot of coffee, their time is nearly up.	A cat curls contentedly on a table with a well chewed fish.	A very nervous man, has been stirring his coffee for hours.
3	A natural philosopher, drawing a painstaking diagram of a butterfly.	A blind man and his caretaker clean up a spilled cup, apologising.	A small woman and a very large dog both sit politely at a table.	A stern eyed hawk sits proudly on the shoulder of its handler.	A stern man informs his younger friend, the letter must make it out.	Three elderly women, playing an unknowable card game.
4	Two young, recently married women, gossiping scathingly.	An elderly gentleman quietly reads, as a cage rattles beside him.	A pair of young ladies pour over a book of puzzles, engrossed.	A man, impeccably dressed, endlessly adjusts his attire.	A severe lady sips her tea, thin lipped, as her "friend" rambles on	A plain man and dull women, staring blankly at each other.
5	Two tired financiers, arguing over the details of a contract.	A widow, sadly sipping across from an empty chair.	An Artiste, sketching a delicate scene of the Coffee House.	Rich, young gents loudly bragging of the vast range of their travels.	A cold woman, a teary-eyed man, it will be their final meeting.	Two elderly men, playing an intense game of chess.
6	A heart- broken man, red rimmed eyes, cold coffee.	A factory worker, no coffee, whittling wood with a large knife.	Three school-age boys, buzzed off their first real coffees.	A demure mother and two demure daughters, sipping softly.	Clearly exhausted, barely presentable, staring at the wall.	A gaggle of university students, playing cards, bets of shots.

Moods of Cafe Prost!

1 - Light Rain, dark clouds. Punters pushed in by the cold and the hubbub drowns whispers. Everything is slightly too crowded, everything smells just a tiny bit damp.

2 - A Fresh Delivery. The rich, deep scent of coffee suffuses the air, and a little smoke has leaked from a roaster. A fine grain haze settles in the air.

3 - Beaming Sun outside means many customers sit outside at small tables. A few remain inside, but it is sweltering, even with the windows thrown wide.

4 - Thick Cloud has settled over the city, and the humidity has risen to just become uncomfortable. Less coffee is being served, but they are making a killing on chilled drinks.

5 - A Slight Chill in the air means that pots of steaming coffee are being ferried out at a prodigious rate. With all these servers rushing about, it's a wonder no-one’s fallen yet. 

6 - A Quiet Day, for whatever reason. The loyal regulars remain of course, but the floor is mostly empty, and the staff are relieved to have a chance to clean things properly.

What the Party May Know

In general, they should have the general idea of what’s going on. They probably won’t know who is who, but given that the most likely way they will be brought into this is through one of the Factions involved, they will probably know those people.

If brought in by the Secret Police - they will know Armand Schnekt. They won’t know the appearance of the Notebook.

If brought in by the City Resistance - they will know Lucia Moll, and might know Karl Quietz.

If brought in by the Resistance from outside the City - they will know Neima Opell.

If brought in by the Gangsters - they will know Hanz Frommel. They won’t know the appearance of the Notebook.

It should be about 3 days before the handover when the party first discover it. For each day of reconnaissance performed, roll on the following table.

If a result indicates something the party already knows, they then discover that their foes have found this out as well.

D6\D6	1, 2, 3	4, 5, 6
1	The identity and motives of an Unaffiliated Character, ruling them out.	The identity and motives of an Unaffiliated Character, ruling them out
2	The Secret Police are sending three undercover officers. Their leader doesn’t work well in a team.	The Secret Police are sending three undercover officers. The two lackeys crack quickly under pressure.
3	The Leader of the local resistance is the one handing over the Notebook.	The Leader of the local resistance is disguised as an artist of some kind.
4	The Resistance Courier is called Neima Opell, but her appearance is a mystery. She is paranoid about being caught.	The appearance of the Resistance Courier, but her name and role are a mystery.
5	Karl Quietz is a member of the local resistance, but is beginning to have doubts about the whole thing.	One of the Resistance members is looking for a way out, and is willing to trade valuable information for it.
6	One of the Gangs of Regensburg have learned about the handover, and want to intercept it.	Hanz Frommel is out to collect the Notebook, but no-one really knows which side he’s on.

When the day comes, each faction should know some people of the other faction, but no-one should have all the information.

Everyone wants the Notebook, and everyone is willing to do desperate things to ensure they are the ones to get it.

Eventually, chaos must break out, and the future of the Duchy will rest on one small, red notebook.