I have a vague recollection that some DMs had taken the time to detail the Last Laugh organisation in their campaign.
Does anyone have such a detailed organisation and would you be willing to share it? I'd hate to start from scratch, but my CN rogue has determined to meet with them. Artus has already accepted 1000 gp for it up front (plus another 1000 on the day of meeting) so I'd hate to not have something prepared!
I was thinking of expanding them as well. The drow rogue/sorcerer in my party is interested in getting involved with them but is kind of at odds right now after the attack at the beginning of Life's Bazaar. I think I might just let her play it as she wishes and flesh it out beyond the adversarial role they play as needed. When the party goes in after the guild later in the game I might let her take over, she likes to kill and take over things. First the Last laugh, and then the world...
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In my campaign the Last Laugh is structured a bit like a Pyramid with the Jester (yes, only one) sitting at top with groups of underlings that are slightly larger the lower down the pyramid you get. I used DelvesDeep’s alternate plot-line as an inspiration for this.
The Last Laugh was founded by a former assassin, “Fish”, (or however you spell his name), as a cover for early Cagewright activity within the city. The over-arching goal of the organization is to serve the agenda of the Cagewrights, but it does this by dominating the criminal world of the city. Directly below The Jester are four Harlequins. The Harlequins are essentially each in control of one aspect of The Last Laugh and are the highest any other member of the organization ever actually deals with. The four aspects of the organization are:
Assassination (Harlequin Velior)
Smuggling/Theft/The Black Market (Harlequin: Jarym [campaign specific])
Prostitution/Information/Blackmail (Harlequin :????)
Counterfeiting/Extortion (Harlequin: ????)
The Harlequins and only the Harlequins have ever seen the face of the Jester, and only they know all the information about their part of the Last Laugh. Their true names and even faces are hidden and the city guard does not know who they are. Each of the Harlequins has an invisible mark voluntarily placed upon their forehead called the “Brand of Loyalty”. This permanent spell effect causes their body to turn to liquid foul when they are killed or become aware of being captured. Because of this no Harlequin has ever been captured alive.
Below the Harlequin are assorted “Clowns”, people who are life-time members of the Last Laugh and who want to move up in the organization. When the campaign begins, Jil is a clown as is Artus and other members of the organization that show up in the Brass Trumpet. Adrick Garthun is not a clown, but rather an associate who deals with the Last Laugh. Clowns are aware of who they work for, but often only know the name of the Clown directly above them in the organization. Most never learn the name of their Harlequin nor what the big picture of their job is. Some clowns eventually advance and receive the “Brand of Loyalty”. During this process they are confined and questioned heavily by their Harlequin who claims they have piles of evidence that the Clown is actually an undercover city guard. Actual undercover guards often believe this lie, feel captured and thus melt into goo…true loyal members of the organization are not affected (usually).
The vast majority of the Last Laugh is made up of individuals referred to as “Fools”. These are the people who are paid for simple jobs and have day jobs doing other things. Some of them are not aware they work for the Last Laugh, while others only do the jobs for some coin. The guards beating up Rufus in chapter 1 are “Fools”. Adrick is also technically a “Fool” because he does not actually work for the organization itself.
Clowns and fools are sometimes intentionally sacrificed to the city guard to keep the guard happy and to make people underestimate how deep and organized the Last Laugh is.
He is how the campaign is unfolding in my world….Jil starts as a clown in the Black Market portion of the Last Laugh. She is actually a young woman named Rydia Weer, the granddaughter of Vortimax Weer. She uses her grandfather’s shop as a front for some of the Last Laugh’s work. However, she does not stay in this position long as she has high ambitions within the group. Long ago, “Fish” came to kill Vortimax after the wizard managed to survive several other assassination attempts. Sneaking in through Rydia’s window he awoke the girl and she attempted to fight him. He beat her soundly, but realizing she was a member of the organization and a very skilled individual he chose to help her advance in another wing of the organization.
In order to become one of the assassins, she had to prove that she was able to bring about the death of a powerful person using only skill and guile and without it being able to be traced back to her. She chose to kill her Harlequin, Jarym. During “Drakthar’s Way” she hinted that the party should go to a certain warehouse that she knew Jarym was using as a base. The party surprised the Harlequin and despite his considerable abilities, they killed him and thus triggered his transition into goo. The party was blamed for the Harlequin’s death, but the Jester knew that it was an assassination by Jil and thus decided she was worthy of being in the assassins wing.
She is currently working her away up the chain of command within this particular part of the organization, but she finds herself repulsed by her new Harlequin Velior. His constant sexual advances are pissing her off and when she spurns him he only makes her advancement that much harder. She intends to soon bring about his death in a similar manner to Jarym. What she does not know is that Velior is an apprentice Cagewright to “Fish” and that the Cagewright’s plans are about to take center stage over the Last Laugh’s own benefit. As she comes to realize this information she, as well as others like Artus, may make a desperate plea to the PCs for help. In the end I intend to have her rat out Velior at the big party in Lords of Oblivion. She will then lay low and wait until she can take over whatever is left.
Still kicking aroung this site Sean? ;)
I like your write up. I have followed along a similar vein but have made Jil the eventual apprentice to Fish though your rationale behind her progression to the higher ranks of the organisation are very clever.
My party has just resumed playing after a length break and recently completed the Siege of Redgorge. The next chapter will begin to unlock much of the conspiracy behind the SCAP plot and I am very much looking forward to it.
The Last Laugh will feature heavily in my own side plot revolved around the rogue of the party and his involvement in his 'guild' - the Acquirers (posted on theRPGenius.com site if anyone is interested). The Last Laugh have already made an assassination attempt on the leaders of this guild and will make another on the party and the rogues leader with the assistance of the Chapter 7 'Assassins'.
'The Fish' himself (and his 'twin' of course :)) will make an appearance to kill the leader of the good guild himself with Jil providing enough distraction and the party thoroughly engaged in saving their own skin at the time.
The aftermath will not only provide plenty of motivation to hunt down the Church of Wee Jas but also the Last Laugh guildhouse.
One thing I don't have written up as yet is the LL guildhouse so if anyone has a possible map or ideas for it please let me know.
Well done Sean and good luck GermanyDM with your expanded use of the LL
Delvesdeep
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Haha, after spending so many years PLANNING the SCAP, I'm finding getting a chance to run it so I'm happy to share all the things I've come up with since Dungeon 97 gave us the first adventure.
Originally Jil was going to be the apprentice like your document said, but once one of my PCs started to use her as a romantic interest I decided she would not be aware the whole plot her guild was involved in until LoO, otherwise the party would pretty much have to kill her outright. They may still kill her, but at least in her last moments she can honestly say that she was never a Cagewright.
Still kicking aroung this site Sean? ;)
Haha, after spending so many years PLANNING the SCAP, I'm finding getting a chance to run it
Hi guys, happy to see you are still around with your great ideas !
After two years I'm Dming Demonskar Legacy for my two different groups. I had also to flesh out a little bit the LL and went (thanks to DD first hints)with (almost) the same type or organization Sean is describing.
Perhaps you can play with that idea also.
Be creative.
Wow, all excellent ideas, guys. This gives me a lot to work with.