All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide

Keeper Guide
Backstory
Traces of human presence at the site of All Saints Asylum go back centuries, perhaps even millennia,
before the coming of the native American tribes. Then, it was a place of worship dedicated to the
obscure deity Azathoth, mentioned in only the rarest of occult manuscripts as "the blind idiot god who
rests at the center of infinity accompanied by the vile beating of drums and the mad piping of flutes".
Knowledge of who prayed and sacrificed at his altar is forever lost, but remains of their horrid practices
are still to be found in the etensive and now mostly collapsed network of caves and tunnels deep
below the asylum.
!f certain stories are to be believed, the worshipers of Azathoth conceived of the insane as living
gateways to worlds beyond our own. They were kept in vast underground structures known simply as
the cities of the insane. "nce a year, on the day now known to us as All Saints# $ay, rifts would appear
in the fabric of reality, and worshipers would break open the seals to the cities below, and let the insane
roam the countryside at will. %eople would consider themselves blessed if a madman strayed into their
settlement, and they were under strict obligation to treat them with respect and reverence. Some
sources even say that whoever was touched by a madman would have to sacrifice his sanity at the altar
of Azathoth. The high priests would ritually cut open his skull and physically alter his brain before
sending him down to his new brethren below.
&ver since the coming of the &uropean settlers, the region has been troubled by fre'uent occurences of
mental degeneracy. !n the early days, many families abandoned their homes and left, accusing native
Americans of having cursed the soil. "thers stayed and endured the trials of an angry god, and in ())*
the All Saints +hurch was built as a sign of atonement. ,ut not -ust with the .ord. "ne of the sealed
entrances left in place by the ancients of the land had been discovered by a local minister, and it was
decided by him and his trusted few that the church should be built directly above it.
They had hoped that the mere presence of the church would dispel the evil influences from below, but
deep in their hearts they had known all along that something more was called for. And so the seal was
removed, and the terrible worship of old begun once more. After Sunday services, the small group of
initiates would carefully lock the church doors from inside before continuing down below to an ancient
altar of Azathoth which marked the entrance to the subterranean cities of the insane. "nly thus could
sanity be upheld in the region.
The blasphemous practices continued for the better part of a century until (/01 when a defector from
the then minister#s inner circle led an angry mob in an attack against the church. The attack, however,
had been epected, and the ancient seal which had once been removed to make peace with the land was
hurriedly put back into place. The body of the minister was never found. Some say that he was
consumed by the same flames that damaged parts of the church. "thers that by the great madness of the
ancient god Azathoth the entrance to the underground cities could only be sealed from below.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
2hatever the truth, even though the roof of the church was rebuilt at great cost to the local community,
members of the congregation soon began reporting strange eperiences and sightings unheard of since
the days of the early settlers. Some even went mad and had to be incarcerated. !n the end, services were
discontinued, and the place became shunned by the locals. "nly after an outbreak of mass insanity in
(/34 was the church put back into use. This time as an institutional chapel to the All Saints Asylum
which was built to take care of the sudden surge in mental patients. "pposition in the area was
naturally strong, but died down when a handful of prominent locals were granted land elsewhere.
Throughout the (355s the region has seen plenty more going than coming. Today only a few farms and
ghost6like villages remain. The asylum was shut down at the turn of the century, and locals see $r
7auser#s attempt to revive it as yet another testimony to the evil influences of the place. And they are
about to be proved right. The doctor has taken the name of science in vain and proceeded to open up
the gates of madness once more. As the myriad dreams and nightmares of Azathoth enter through, the
veil will be torn from the eyes of the world, and reality become undone. !f the seal that protects man
from the true horror of eistence is not replaced soon, he shall be plunged into such terrifying depths
that not even the blessings of ignorance shall be able to pull him back up.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
Setup
As Keeper you should make yourself acquainted with all the different cards and handouts provided
with the scenario before play begins. This will make it easier for you to set the scene and create the
right mood during play and also to make strategic decisions based on future events.
Component Setup
Clue Cards: %rint and cut out the +lue +ards provided with the scenario. 8ote that they are referenced
by location only. They need not be discovered se'uentially. Keep them face down in front of you, and
seed the map with +lue +ards from any scenario provided with the original game instead. 2henever
the investigators discover one of the seeded +lue +ards, remove it from the game, and read out the
custom6made +lue +ard in front of you marked with the corresponding location instead.
Interrogation Cards: %rint and cut out the !nterrogation +ards provided with the scenario. Keep them
face down in front of you. 2henever the investigators interrogate an 8%+ 9see Special !ules:, read out
the !nterrogation +ard corresponding to that 8%+. ;or ease of reference, the !nterrogation +ards are
marked with both the name<number and starting location of the 8%+s.
Exploration Cards: Ae, ,rass Key, +eremonial Skull, +olt .13, +rucifi, +ult =obes, $e >ermis
?ysteriis, .antern, Saturnian 2ine, Sedative, Shotgun, Silver Key, Sledgehammer, Stone Seal. %lease
note that the Stone Seal 9artifact: is a custom6made &ploration +ard that should be printed and cut out
before play begins.
Obstacle Cards (?): .ocked +abinet, %uzzle ,o, Suitcase.
Lock Cards (L): $ark =oom, $readful %assage, &lectric .ock, @ammed $oor, .ocked $oor,
%adlocked $oor, =unelocked $oor.
Build Mythos eck: %rint and cut out the ?ythos +ards provided with the scenario. %lease note that
the Keeper may only hold up to * ?ythos and * Trauma +ards 9see Special !ules:.
!eeper "ction Cards: %rint and cut out the Keeper Action +ards provided with the scenario. %lease
note that some of the cards are slightly altered versions of cards provided with the original game.
E#ent Cards: %rint and cut out the &vent +ards provided with the scenario. The &vent +ards have
been separated into Timed &vent +ards and "pen &vent +ards. 2hile Timed &vent +ards are revealed
eactly liked ordinary &vent +ards in the original game, "pen &vent +ards can be revealed at any time
9even during an !nvestigator Turn: when the re'uirements stated on the cards are met.
Ob$ecti#e Cards: %rint and cut out the "b-ective +ards provided with the scenario. %lease note that the
two ob-ectives must be achieved se'uentially.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
%tarting Cards and &hreat: 8one. %lease note that the Keeper only receives Threat e'ual to the
number of starting investigators divided by * and rounded up 9see Special !ules:.
'(Cs: Aou will need 0 inmate 8%+ models to play the scenario. !nmates B(61 can either be
represented by investigator models not chosen by the players, or by a similar set of models 9e.g. from
;antasy ;light Cames# Arkham "orror:. !nmate B0 should be represented by the model of the
investigator chosen by the players as their old friend and colleague during setup 9see #nvestigator
Guide:.
)andouts: %rint out the handouts provided with the scenario, and keep them within easy reach. They
can be discovered by the investigators as a result of eploring certain rooms. &ach handout is clearly
referenced by both title and location.
NPCs
The following information is also given in the appropriate places throughout the scenario$
In*ate +, (-ra#eyard): !nmate B( is a wild6looking young man. 7e appears in the central space of
the Craveyard during the %rologue 9see %rologue:.
In*ate +. (-arden): !nmate B* is an old drunkard. 7e appears in the Carden space right outside the
&ntryway during the %rologue 9see %rologue:.
In*ate +/ (Ca#e .): !nmate B1 is an old spinster. She appears in +ave * when the investigators
eplore that room 9see the corresponding +lue +ard:.
In*ate +0 (%torage Closet): !nmate B0 is a friend and colleague of the investigators chosen by the
investigator players during setup 9see #nvestigator Guide:. 7e or she appears in the Storage +loset
when the investigators eplore that room 9see the corresponding +lue +ard:. See Special !ules below
for information on how the inmate may be taken over by an investigator player whose own investigator
is killed.
r )auser (Chas*): $r 7auser is the young psychiatrist in charge of All Saints Asylum. 7e is now
hopelessly insane and dying. 7e appears as a +orpse ?arker in the +hasm when the investigators
eplore that room 9see the corresponding +lue +ard:.
Seed Cards
Crypt: +lue +ard 9+rypt:.
Chas*: +lue +ard 9+hasm:, =unelocked $oor 9.:.
Chapel: +lue +ard 9+hapel:, +rucifi, .ocked $oor 9.:.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
%torage %hed: Sledgehammer.
%torage Closet: +lue +ard 9Storage +loset:.
-uest Bedroo*: +lue +ard 9Cuest ,edroom:, 8othing of !nterest, @ammed $oor 9.:.
Mud 1oo*: $e >ermis ?ysteriis, Saturnian 2ine, %adlocked $oor 9.:.
Entry2ay: +lue +ard 9&ntryway:.
Ca#e ,: +lue +ard 9+ave (:, $readful %assage 9.:.
Master Bedroo*: +lue +ard 9%uzzle ,o:, %uzzle ,o 9D:, Shotgun, .ocked +abinet 9D:, +lue +ard
9?aster ,edroom:.
Base*ent %torage: ,rass Key, 8othing of !nterest.
Base*ent %tairs: &lectric .ock 9.:.
Laboratory: +lue +ard 9Suitcase:, Suitcase 9D:, 8othing of !nterest.
Operating 1oo*: +lue +ard 9"perating =oom:.
3ree4er: Sedative, $ark =oom 9.:.
Ca#e .: +lue +ard 9+ave *:.
'othing o5 Interest: %lace a "8othing of !nterest" card in each of the remaining rooms ecept
Craveyard and Carden.
Exploration Cards 3ace o2n in 3ront o5 the !eeper: Ae, +eremonial Skull, +olt .13, +ult =obes,
.antern, Silver Key, Stone Seal 9artifact:.
!eeper "ction Cards 3ace o2n in 3ront o5 the !eeper: $isciples of Azathoth.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
Special Rules
Map
)idden 1oo*s: The four underground rooms 9+ave (, +ave *, +rypt, and +hasm: should not be
visible to the players at the beginning of the game. They should only be added to the map when
discovered by the investigators. 2hile the +rypt can only be discovered by interrogating !nmate B(
9see #nterrogation below:, the other underground rooms are considered discovered when an
investigator enters a room directly connected to them 9e.g. the +hasm is discovered and added to the
map when an investigator enters the +hapel:. %lease note that +ave ( is only discovered when an
investigator enters the ,asement Storage, and not when an investigator enters the ?aster ,edroom.
%ecret passage: 2hen +ave ( is discovered, it becomes possible to move between +ave ( and ?aster
,edroom.
n!esti"ators
In#estigator eath: !nvestigator death is final. %layers are not allowed to enter the game with a new
investigator. 7owever, the player of the first investigator to die is allowed to continue playing as
!nmate B0 when placed on the map 9see #nmate &' below for more details:.
%pecial "bilities: Cloria Coldberg#s "%sychic Sensitivity" and Kate 2inthrop#s "Test Theories" special
abilities have no effect in this scenario. .ikewise, @oe $iamond#s ".ucky ,reak" special ability has no
effect against the Spawn of Azathoth 9Shoggoth:.
&rade "ction: !nvestigators can spend ( action to hand over one or more items to another investigator
in their own space. This is in addition to the !nvestigator Trading Step at the beginning of the Keeper
Turn.
Interrogate "ction: !nvestigators can spend ( action to interrogate an 8%+ model or marker in their
own space. ?onster models can never be interrogated. 2hen an 8%+ model is interrogated, read out
the corresponding !nterrogation +ard. %lease note that !nmate B0 is automatically interrogated when the
Storage +loset is eplored 9see the corresponding +lue +ard:.
NPCs
Mo#e*ent: !nmates B(61 can only be moved by the Keeper after they have been replaced with +ultists
9see (pen )vent *ard$ The +ast ,alt-:. !nmate B0 can never be moved by the Keeper, but may be
taken over by a player whose own investigator has been killed 9see #nmate &' below:. $r 7auser
9represented by a +orpse ?arker: can never be moved.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
In*ate +0: !nmate B0 is an investigator chosen by the players during setup 9see #nvestigator Guide:.
The inmate is placed on the map when the Storage +loset is eplored 9see the corresponding +lue
+ard:. An investigator player whose investigator is killed can assume control of the inmate any time
after the inmate has appeared. Cive the player the appropriate +haracter and Trait +ards. The inmate
enters play with full 7ealth, 0 Sanity, * Skill %oints, and a +olt .13, but without any Starting !tem or
Spell +ards.
$%ploration Cards
(u44le Box 6 %uitcase: !f the %uzzle ,o and Suitcase "bstacle +ards are not immediately solved
when discovered, they can be picked up and carried around 9together with the undisclosed +lue +ards
they contain: as if they were ordinary &ploration +ards. !t costs an investigator ( Action to attempt to
solve an "bstacle +ard he or she is carrying.
Lantern: An investigator carrying the .antern can move between any revealed underground rooms
that lead off the board 9+ave (, +ave *, +rypt, and +hasm:. !t costs * moves 9or ( move and ( action:
to do so.
&'reat ( Myt'os Cards
1educed &hreat: The Keeper initially only receives Threat e'ual to the number of starting
investigators divided by * and rounded up. After The .ast 2altz 9"pen &vent +ard: has been revealed,
he receives Threat e'ual to the number of starting investigators. %lease note that even though
investigators are not replaced if they are killed 9see #nvestigator .eath above:, the Keeper continues to
receive Threat based on the number of starting investigators.
1educed Mythos Cards: The Keeper may initially only hold up to * ?ythos and * Trauma +ards.
After Timed &vent !! has been revealed, he may hold up to 0 ?ythos and 0 Trauma +ards.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
Su""ested *ouse Rules
n!esti"ators
Choosing In#estigators: As the scenario has been written with the eight investigators from the original
game in mind, investigators introduced by way of epansions or otherwise may have unbalancing or
even game6breaking starting items and<or special abilities. +arefully eamine such investigators before
allowing players to choose them.
Monsters
Locked oors: ?onsters cannot move through locked doors before they have been unlocked by the
investigators.
+,-ecti!e Cards
1e#ealing Ob$ecti#e Cards: 2hen revealing "b-ective +ards, do not show them to the players. @ust
read out the first paragraph eplaining how the ob-ective is achieved.
*orror
Line o5 %ight: !nvestigators are only sub-ect to horror tests if they can trace a line of sight to a monster
within two spaces of themselves. This is only relevant in "utdoor spaces.
Multiple )orror &ests: An investigator only has to make multiple horror tests against monsters on the
same turn if he encounters multiple kinds of monsters 9e.g. if an investigator enters a room with * or
more +ultists, he only has to make a single horror test against them:.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
Strate"y &ips
Mythos Cards: As you can only hold * ?ythos and * Trauma +ards until Timed &vent !! is revealed,
make sure that you do not waste space on your hand holding on to cards that you have no current use
for.
isciples o5 "4athoth: The $isciples of Azathoth Keeper Action +ard should be used with some care.
!t will be most effective if you focus on reducing the sanity points of -ust one or two investigators right
from the beginning of the game, and then start using the card against them when you get it at the end of
Turn ) 9see Timed )vent ##:. 2hile there is certainly no point in wasting Threat by using the card before
sanity levels are low among the investigators, you should also be aware that you can only use the card
until "b-ective B( is achieved, after which you must discard it 9see (b/ective *ard &0:.
&he Last 7alt4: This is not so much a strategy tip as a reminder. ,e sure to play The .ast 2altz 9"pen
&vent +ard: the very moment an investigator enters the +hapel. !f you are afraid you might forget, !
recommend that you put the card on top of the +hasm tile which should also be revealed and added to
the map when an investigator enters the +hapel.
8nderground 1oo*s: ,e aware that +ave (, +ave *, and +rypt disappear when the investigators
achieve "b-ective B( 9and that +hasm becomes sealed off for the rest of the game:. ?ake sure that you
move your ?onsters out of those rooms before then as they will otherwise be automatically killed. !f,
on the other hand, you can keep an investigator pinned down in one of them, he or she will die, too.
3acilitate %tory: =emember that your main role as Keeper is to give the players a good eperience.
Try to plan your moves and play your cards as thematically as possible. 2hile you certainly should not
give the investigators an easy time, neither should you eploit rules or cards to make things
unnecessarily hard on them, or -ust plain silly 9such as constantly using the Encontrollable Erges
Keeper Action +ard to make them drop specific items:.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
012
,9 :: +an the Keeper move the ?i6Co in the +hasm 9see Keeper 1ap: before the room has been
revealedD
": 8o, and neither can the ?i6Co move into the +hapel before the .ock +ard in the +hasm has been
solved by the investigator players.
.9 :: +an the Fombie placed on the $isciples of Azathoth Keeper Action +ard 9see the corresponding
card: be attacked by the investigatorsD
": 8o.
/9 :: +an the Keeper attack or otherwise harm !nmate B0 before he or she is taken over by an
investigator player whose own investigator has been killed 9see Special !ules:D
": 8o.
09 :: !n the unlikely event that "b-ective B( is achieved before Timed &vent !!! is revealed, should the
&vent +ard still be revealedD
"9 8o.
;9 :: 2hat happens to the investigator who discards the Stone Seal 9artifact: to seal the entrance to the
+hapel from the +hasm below 9see (b/ective *ard &0:.
": 7e is killed together with any other models in the +hasm.
<9 :: 2hat happens if any models are present in the three underground rooms 9+ave (, +ave *, +rypt:
when they are removed from the map 9see (b/ective *ard &0:D
": They are killed.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
Prolo"ue
8ovember (, (4*3. All Saints# $ay.
Aou arrive at the asylum late in the afternoon after having spent a few hours getting lost on small
country roads. The ground is covered with a carpet of yellowed leaves, muffling the sound of your feet
as you leave your car and walk towards the gate. =ereading the letter from your inmate friend one last
time, you wonder whether you have been summoned all the way out here by an overwrought
imagination. The sun is sinking low, and a sudden crispness fills the air.
$r 7auser does not answer your call from the phone outside the gate. Aou try the small wooden door in
the wall net to it. Surprisingly, it swings open. +rossing the asylum grounds you recognize the doctor#s
private 'uarters at the far end, located in the only remaining part of the original madhouse. The rest has
been torn down and used to create simple outhouses for his patients. They seem more dismal and
dilapidated than they did -ust a year ago. Aou cannot even seem to recognize the outhouse where your
friend used to stay.
As you pass by the old stone chapel, predating the asylum by a hundred years or more, you notice a
young man, bare6foot and wild6looking, digging frantically in the graveyard.
2%lace #nmate &0 in the central space of the Graveyard.3
Aou 'uicken your pace and call out the doctor#s name to comfort yourselves and let him know that you
are coming. An old drunk, solemny wrapped in dirty linen, emerges from one of the outhouses. 7e eyes
you suspiciously while humming a strange tune.
2%lace #nmate &4 in the Garden space right outside the )ntryway.3
Aou knock forcefully at the doctor#s door. As you wait for an answer that does not come, you find
yourself wishing that he was here to tell you, as once he did before, that the insane are only so by
definition.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
$pilo"ues
$pilo"ue no4 1
2To be read out if all investigators are either killed or go insane or if the Spawn of A-athoth breaks
open the seal between the *hapel and the *hasm below$3
The disappearance of $r 7auser, his inmates, and a small group of visitors remains a mystery to this
day. "ne morning in early 8ovember the mail man arrived to find them simply gone. !t looked as if the
place had been left in a hurry. There were no signs of any preparations having been made for the
departure. The outhouses were unlocked and found to contain numerous personal belongings. +lothes
and foodstuffs were still in their cupboards and drawers. The only hint as to what had actually
happened the night of that fateful All Saints# $ay was the occasional traces of blood and violence. Still,
without any bodies or survivors turning up, it only seemed to deepen the mystery.
There are only few locals left in the area old enough to remember the night it all happened. They rarely
talk about it, and never to outsiders. Those who have heard their stories remember the terrified looks on
their faces better than the words that accompanied them. 8aked human forms, deathly pale and
monstrously blinded, gliding by windows, scraping clawlike nails against fragile glass. %igs s'uealing
in their sties, horses crashing through the walls of their stables, fields littered with mutilated sheep and
cows, partly eaten while still pumping hot blood. And then, finally, that strange, formless monstrosity
that howled across the land like an eye ripped out of some devastating storm, its nerve fibers still
attached, whirling all around it.
The asylum was never properly closed down by the authorities. !t was -ust boarded up and abandoned.
These days nothing much remains ecept for the partly collapsed doctor#s 'uarters and the old stone
church which was used as a chapel by the inmates. ?adness, however, has never been more prevalent
in the area. 2hole families have been known to lose their minds overnight. Such incidents naturally
make people think twice before moving there, but land has become scarce, and prices are among the
lowest in the state. Some have even begun talking about buying up the old asylum grounds, and turning
the place into something more cheerful. A luury getaway, or an amusement park, perhaps.
$pilo"ue no4 2
2To be read out if the investigators kill the Spawn of A-athoth before it breaks open the seal between
the *hapel and the *hasm below$3
Aou will never forget your mad flight back to Arkham that night. The shuffling bodies and the moaning
cries soon receded into the background, but the horrible tricks of your mind kept catching up with you.
The musty smell of damp earth and stale air clung to you every painful step of the way, and there were
times when you could have sworn that the moonless sky above was in fact the roof of some gigantic
underground cave. Still, so many years later, you wake up from half6remembered nightmares with a
choking taste of dirt in your mouth.
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All Saints Asylum - Keeper Guide
7ad you not managed to get back to Arkham sometime early net morning, and convice the hospital
staff that you were not as mad as the story you told them, many more inmates would probably have
been gone by the time the police arrived at the scene. As it now happened, the few that had left the
premises during the night were soon caught and returned to the tiny windowless cells in the Arkham
Asylum from which they had originally come. "nly $r 7auser was never found. The police suspected
foul play, and though you tried to tell them otherwise, the file on him has never been closed.
The All Saints Asylum was demolished within weeks of the incident, and only the old stone church left
standing, eactly as it had been before the original asylum was built in (/34. =ecently, plans of
renovating the church and turning the grounds into a museum park were put on hold by the discovery
of yet another entrance to what archaeologists have long believed to be a larger network of
subterranean caves underlying the whole area. ;urther ecavations are due to commence net month,
and ecept for a few elderly locals, seemingly opposed to changes on a matter of principle, the
scientific community and the public alike are generally ecited at the prospect of this rare chance to
deepen their understanding of yet another prehistoric culture.
13