Roses of Saint Germain

Chateau de Saint Germain is famed for having the finest rose garden in France. Its beautiful blooms, long nurtured by Countess Saint Germain, are famous for their beauty, perfect scent and razor-sharp thorns. Today great nobility, with their escorts of King’s Musketeers and Cardinal’s Guard, come to attend the annual thorn dance, to intrigue and perhaps find love.

Roses of Saint Germain is a Three Musketeers-esque game of swordplay, romance, intrigue and murder. Most characters will be duellists of varying skill levels.

Team

Authors: Tony Mitton

Referee: Tony Mitton, A J Smith

Players

This is a game for 21 to 25 players featuring 10 to 12 male characters and 11 to 13 female characters.

Premise

Chateau de Saint Germain, about a day's ride from Paris, is famed for having the finest rose garden in France. Its beautiful blooms, long nurtured by Countess Saint Germain, are famous for their beauty, perfect scent and razor-sharp thorns. Today the young noble ladies who learn deportment and other cultured pursuits from the Countess are agog at the arrival of both the Queen and the King's mistress, each with their escorts of Cardinal's Guard and King's Musketeers. It is wonderful to have such grand nobility attend the annual thorn dance; and both guests of honour are likely to recruit Ladies in Waiting today.

But blood paints the roses, with King Louis' Lord Chancellor found brutally murdered in the Chateau's grounds at first light. The killer must be found and their motive revealed. Love, jealousy, fear hatred and greed. All these and more will come to light amidst the Roses of Saint Germain, and the future of France will be decided.

Roses of Saint Germain is a Three Musketeers-esque game of swordplay, romance, intrigue and murder. Most characters will be duellists of varying skill levels. Some want love, some revenge for past slights or to show their value to their potential patrons.

Player preparation

The game is pre-written and tightly plotted. Character sheets will be provided in advance and 12 to 16 pages in length, plus about 12 pages of background,  who's who and rules. (These are A5 pages, around 12pt text, but can be printed as A4 on request).

Content Notes

Terminal illness, dying children. There’s also an off-stage murder, a bit of lust, theft and romance but nothing worse than PG-13 or so.

Safety rules

We will use Traffic Light andThe OK Check-In systems to ensure all players have a fun experience. These systems will be explained at the game.

Referee Bios

Tony Mitton (he/him)

I'm old. I've been writing LARPs since 1990 and haven't looked back since (mostly because my old games were rubbish).