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Developing WFRP
Ever wondered what the collective noun for a grim and perilous gathering of WFRP developers is?
The answer to that question and more can be yours when, for the first time ever, WFRP developers from all four editions of the game – Graeme Davis, James Wallis, Chris Pramas, Jay Little, and Andy Law – gather to answer your questions.
So, mark this date in your calendars: Wednesday 27th October at 21:30 UK time.
If you want to pre-submit questions, head over to the Rookery Discord: https://discord.gg/KGzxJw7Taw
Or, turn up on the day and comment on Facebook, Twitch, or YouTube. Our host, WFRP writer and editor Lindsay Law, will take your questions live and put them to the panel.
If you want to see our previous streams, head over to YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheRookery
If you want to know more about Inside the Rookery, head over to our Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/InsideTheRookery
The Gong Farmer: A Career for All Editions of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay
Updated Feb. 22nd, 2020.
With thanks to the following commenters: Onno Maat and Peter Tracey (WFRP 4th edition group, Facebook); Simon Landry and Ricky (via WordPress); and @RoderiHamilt (Twitter).
Ever since Our Heroes ventured into the sewers of Nuln in “The Oldenhaller Contract” way back in 1986, WFRP has had a certain association with the grimier, less pleasant (and less pleasant-smelling) aspects of life in a medieval fantasy world. Rat Catchers have come to define the anti-heroic ethos of the Old World, but there are greater heroes, as yet unsung: the silent night-time armies of gong farmers and nightsoil men (and women) who nightly move uncounted tons of human waste from those homes which have no sewer access.
A while ago, I posted a version of this career for WFRP 1, 2, and 3. Here is an improved and corrected version, with details for 4th edition added. Enjoy – and leave comments below. I’d love to have your ideas on how this career might be improved.
The gong farmer has the least enviable job in the Old World. In towns and other settlements without a sewer system, the gong farmer gathers up all human waste and deposits it in a communal dump or cesspool outside the walls. Often permitted to work only at night, gong farmers are also known as nightsoil men.
Owing to the nature of their profession, gong farmers are able to remain calm in the face of things that would disgust and even nauseate ordinary folk. They are also well able to resist disease and poison through long exposure to the most noxious of substances.
The job is not without its compensations, but they are few and unreliable. Gong farmers have access – albeit at night and well supervised – to the houses of the great and good and can find themselves privy (pun intended) to household secrets as well as having a unique insight into their state of health. In addition, the by-laws of many communities allow gong farmers to keep any coins, small pieces of jewellery, or other items of value that they may find in the course of their work.
FIRST EDITION PROFILE
Advance Scheme
| M | WS | BS | S | T | W | I | A | Dex | Ld | Int | Cl | WP | Fel |
| +2 | +2 | +10 | +10 |
Skills
Immunity to Disease
Immunity to Poison
Very Resilient
Trappings
Ragged clothing
Shovel
Wheelbarrow
Lantern
Career Exits
Agitator
Beggar
Grave Robber
Labourer
Rat Catcher
Rogue
SECOND EDITION PROFILE
| Main Profile | |||||||
| WS | BS | S | T | Ag | Int | WP | Fel |
| — | — | — | +10% | — | — | +10% | — |
| Secondary Profile | |||||||
| A | W | SB | TB | M | Mag | IP | FP |
| — | +2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Skills: Common Knowledge (local community), Perception
Talents: Night Vision, No Sense of Smell (see above), Resistance to Disease, Resistance to Poison, Strong-Minded
Trappings: Ragged clothing, Shovel, Wheelbarrow, Lantern
Career Entries: Bone Picker, Peasant
Career Exits: Agitator, Bone Picker, Grave Robber, Rat Catcher, Rogue, Sewer Jack (Ashes of Middenheim), Vagabond
THIRD EDITION PROFILE
Basic Career: Human, Halfling
Basic, Menial, Social, Urban
Primary Characteristics: Toughness, Willpower
Career Skills: Athletics, Discipline, Folklore (local area), No Sense of Smell (see box), Observation, Resilience
Talent Slots: Focus, Resilience
Stance Meter: 3 Conservative, 1 Reckless
Advances
| Action | Talent |
| 2 | 1 |
| Skill | Fortune |
| 2 | 1 |
| Conservative | Reckless |
| 2 | 1 |
| Wound | |
| 1 | |
Typical Trappings: Ragged clothing, Shovel, Wheelbarrow, Lantern
Career Ability: Your Resilience checks gain 1 fortune die when resisting disease.
FOURTH EDITION PROFILE
This four-level career is based on an account of the “nightmen” of medieval Leiden in the Netherlands (see “Further Reading” below). The “hole-man” climbed into the cess pit and scooped out the waste, passing it up to two “tub-men” who transferred it to their barge under the supervision of their foreman. The city of Ghent employed an official known as “the King of Dirt” to ensure that all sanitation regulations were followed.
The gong farmer is a Burgher class career. If random generation is being used, a player who rolls a beggar may choose a gong farmer instead if the GM agrees.
Gong Farmer Advance Scheme
| WS | BS | S | T | I | Agi | Dex | Int | WP | Fel |
| ✠ | ✠ | ⚒ | 💀 | ✠ | ⛊ |
Career Path
✠ Hole-Dropper — Brass 1
Skills: Athletics, Climb, Consume Alcohol, Cool, Dodge, Endurance, Melee (Basic), Perception
Talents: Beneath Notice, Night Vision, Resistance (Disease), Very Resilient
Trappings: Bucket, 20ft Rope, Shovel
⚒ Tubber — Brass 3
Skills: Drive or Sail, Gamble, Gossip, Haggle, Stealth, Swim
Talents: Coolheaded, Hardy, Resistance (Poison), Sturdy
Trappings: Leather apron, Barrow, Lantern and Oil
💀 Foreman — Brass 5
Skills: Bribery, Charm, Evaluate, Intuition
Talents: Acute Sense (Sight), Blather, Coolheaded, Dealmaker
Trappings: Gong Farmer Crew, Boat or Cart, Hand weapon (Boat Hook), Leather Jack
⛊ King of Dirt — Silver 2
Skills: Intimidate, Leadership
Talents: Commanding Presence, Etiquette (Guilder), Read/Write, Wealthy
Trappings: Badge and Diploma of Office, Crew of Assistants (Tax Collectors)
No Sense of Smell (Optional Rule)
The character literally has no sense of smell. Their olfactory sense has been completely destroyed by long exposure to foul-smelling substances or through some other circumstance. They automatically fail any dice roll that depends upon smell — but they are also unaffected even by the most nauseating smells they encounter, or by alluring scents that might be used to entrap others. Poisonous gases and drugs in vaporous form affect the character normally.
FURTHER READING
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gong_farmer
2nd edition version by Colin Chapman: http://www.scribd.com/doc/156852704/Warhammer-Fantasy-2nd-Edition-Gong-Farmer
Archaeology Magazine — “Of Cesspits and Sewers: Exploring the unlikely history of sanitation management in medieval Holland”: https://www.archaeology.org/issues/327-1901/letter-from/7205-letter-from-leiden
Images taken from 18th century nightmen’s cards (Wikimedia Commons).
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay and WFRP are trademarks owned by Games Workshop Ltd. This article is a fan work and is not intended to be official or to challenge any trademark or copyright of Games Workshop or any of its licensees.
Troll à la Morceaux: A Warhammer Recipe
This short piece of fiction was written in 1989 or 1990 for a never-published sourcebook on Ogres and Trolls in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay. Marcel de Morceaux is mentioned in the adventure collection Rough Nights and Hard Days, and I might use him in some future adventure if the opportunity presents itself.
Marcel’s cookbook Adventures in Gastronomy includes some of the most ambitious – and dangerous – recipes ever published in the Old World. It is banned in many places, and of all its contents, Troll à la Morceaux is considered the riskiest. Even if every precaution is taken to ensure that the Troll does not regenerate back to life during the cooking process, one can never be sure….
Very few are brave or foolish enough to try this dish, but there are some in the Old World who will venture beyond the limits of convention and common sense in search of new and unique experiences.
Picture from Lure of Power: Nobility in the Empire (Fantasy Flight Games, 2009). Used without permission. No challenge intended to copyright holders.
The preparation of the flesh of the Troll requires the greatest care and the most trustworthy of assistants, but if the many pitfalls can be overcome, a chef who can present his lord with a dish such as Troll à la Morceaux will never want for employment. But you must remember, mes amis, that one mistake can lead to disaster, and such a disaster can lead to the gallows or worse.
Firstly, your Troll must be absolutely fresh. Do not trust those robbers who will sell you venison at ten times the price and tell you it is Unicorn or Troll. Great cookery demands that no short-cuts may be taken.
The butchering of a Troll presents several unique problems, but a chef who is truly dedicated to his art may be daunted by nothing. The Troll must be securely bound, with its head held in such a way that it cannot eat the ropes that bind it. As each cut of meat is removed from the carcass, it must be placed immediately in a strong marinade of vinegar – the strongest vinegar you can find, for the presence of acid will slow down the process of regeneration.
Any waste and off-cuts must be burned immediately, or if you have arranged to sell pieces to a wizard or alchemist, he must be on hand to take them away tout à l’instant. Remember, and drum constantly into your servants, that not even the smallest scrap of the carcass must be left lying about.
You must be extremely careful when cleaning the carcass, Remember the great size of the stomach, and the immense power of the acid it contains. If at all possible, seek the guidance of a wizard or alchemist in carrying out this process; it is not too much to offer him the stomach in payment for his supervision, for a mishap with a Troll’s stomach can be a catastrophe véritable.
After the meat has stood in the vinegar marinade for two hours, inspect it closely; if it shows the slightest signs of regeneration, add more vinegar. Keep the meat in the marinade for as long as you can – the longer it stays there, the more tender it will be when cooked – but take no chances.
Enfin, we come to the cooking of the meat. This requires the greatest of care, and must be carried out in two stages.
First, the meat must be seared to prevent it regenerating once it is removed from the vinegar marinade. Use a large skillet of cast iron, and heat it until it literally begins to glow. Drop the meat in, turning it repeatedly until all sides are seared black.
This done, the meat is roasted, fried, or stewed in the same way as beef or venison, allowing double the normal cooking time.
A final word of warning. Do not – jamais, never – undercook Troll. When le patron demands his Troll medium rare, it is perhaps time to consider a change of employment.
If something goes wrong, the result could be like this – but not as funny.
Graeme Davis 