London Fog:or
'Sherlock Holmes and the Rules with No Name' or
a combination of; the wild west, Sherlock Holmes, and Jack the Ripper. Please bear with your humble correspondent in what will surely be a futile attempt to describe the zany (wacky didn't seem quite British enough) events of the last game.

The scenario consisted of three villains (Professor Moriarty, Col. Sebastian Moran, and Jack the Ripper), three law enforcement organizations (Sherlock Holmes, Scotland Yard's Special Branch, and a plethora of Bobbies), and Mr. Lusk's Whitechapel Vigilance Committee. More of the committee later, but as events developed they didn't quite fit into either the category of 'good' or 'evil.' Perhaps loose canon might have been more appropriate.

At right, a view of London from the 'east end' of the table. A white chapel (get it?) can be seen in the foreground, with numerous urban blocks in the background. Both the umpire and the TBC web master spent an inordinate amount of time building 19th century London using; scanners, Photoshop, foamcore, white glue, any Styrofoam. AND we forgot to take a photo of the 'forced perspective skyline' that we built for the other side of the Thames!

The umpire's cunning plan was that the game would represent three nights. Mr. Ripper would have to 'accost' at least 3 feminine entrepreneurs over the three nights in order for him to win. Members of law enforcement needed to 'prevent crime' in order to win. Moriarty and Moran were each pursuing their own fiendish plans, in order to meet their own criminal victory conditions. However, Lusk and the vigilance committee just needed to hang as many suspects as possible.... Everybody got that? On with the game.

Above, a suspicious looking gentleman approaches a 'lady out for a stroll.' To the right of the couple is the side edge of one of those time consuming Styrofoam office blocks, with one of the club's wild west signs applied to the wall. Behind the couple is 221b Baker St.

Top right, a mere two feet away from the doomed pedestrian in the turquoise frock is the west side of 221b, a hansom cab, and the railway station. At the far end of the street can be seen the Tower of London, and the white trousers worn by one of the club members.

Above right, on the roof directly across from 221b Colonel Moran takes aim with his air rifle. Despite the weapons slow loading time, we treated it like a muzzle loading musket, he managed a respectable 4 shots over the 3 nights, hit Holmes twice, Dr. Watson once, and was never discovered on top of the building. Not by Watson, not by Holmes, not by the police... If the Grenadier Guards had been in the game they probably wouldn't have found him either.

At right, early in the game Sherlock Holmes deduces that Moriarty plans to steal the Crown Jewels (a stunning deduction by the player with no clues what so ever), then becomes apprehensive and hurries to the railway station... Instead of the Tower. But that's OK, because he then returns to Baker St. where he is shot twice on his doorstep, and spends the rest of the game writhing on his front porch whilst all the other characters rush past him, chasing after Jack the Ripper like the demented finale of a
Benny Hill episode.

Above, Professor Moriarty (it actually IS the Moriarty figure from Wargames Foundry) gloats after clambering up the wall and into the Tower of London. He barely missed making an entry on night #1, came back and broke in on night #2, hid within the castle grounds throughout day #3, then escaped (to eventually win the game) during night #3.

Above right, the corner of The Tower scaled by the crafty Moriarty. There are very few people/figures in evidence. There is a hansom cab in the street and a Bobbie walking the beat on the other side of the street.

Right, down on the docks an enraged Mr. Lusk harangues a mob over the recent murder from the previous turn. He will eventually incite them to violence and they will spend the rest of the game careening around the table looking for a likely suspect to hang. They got very close a couple of times, and at the end of the game it actually was the Ripper, but they never succeeded in 'apprehending' any suspects.

Beneath Lusk is one of the numerous hansom cabs that circled aimlessly (none of the players ever actually hailed one) for the majority of the game. This one is just about to run down a very poorly focused Dr. Watson who has been cut out of the photo.

Below, a quick tour around the table on night #2.
Left, Inspector Lestrade (brown bowler and tan overcoat in the background) wanders about Hyde Park, at the opposite end of the table from all criminal activity, accompanied by detectives that all bear a striking resemblance to the nefarious Haciendados from the club's Wild West Campaign.

Second from left, Lusk rushes down an alley towards the screaming victim from night #3

Above second from right, the suspicious gentleman approaches a 'female pedestrian' on night #3. When she screams it will bring all characters, with the exception of Holmes and Moran, rushing to her aid.

Above right, Lestrade and the detectives continue on yet another stroll, shortly before hearing the scream that will send them pounding back up the street behind them.

Right, Jack has just exited to the left of the photo, but his die roll was not sufficient to get him off the board. Lusk and the vigilantes haven't rolled high enough to catch him and glower at him over the low garden wall the edge of which can just barely be made out to the left of the wooden crates. Lestrade and his detectives are rushing up behind the vigilantes, Watson is approaching from behind the camera position, and Holmes is writhing in the gutter in front of 221b Baker St. while Moran fumbles with his air rifle for another shot.

At the beginning of the next turn Jack will roll high enough to exit the board. He will not have met his quota of 3 victims in three nights, and thus cannot win the game. Lestrade was hoping that this meant he had won by 'preventing crime,' however, the end of the night meant that all characters immediately snapped-back to their starting points. This was true for Professor Moriarty, who was in the process of sneaking away behind the mob, heavily laden with the crown jewels. Thus, once again, the Napoleon of Crime takes the day.

A grand time appears to have been had by all, and we better bloody well play this game again, because I don't want to think that we made all these buildings for some sort of a one off.