Quill: White Box
By Scott Malthouse
Cover art by Georg Janny
1
Introduction
Quill White Box (referred to from now as QWB) is a supplement for the Quill letter-writing
roleplaying game themed around old school fantasy RPGs. Using this book, you will be able to
head off on fantasy adventures as brave fighters, sneaky thieves, elegant elves and more. Of
course, in true Quill fashion, this isn’t a game about bashing skulls in with maces but writing
letters that put you in a better position to bash someone’s skull in with a mace. QWB takes some
of the elements that we love from the original fantasy game such as character classes and
treasure, allowing players to keep a character for multiple adventures, finding and buying
equipment along the way. Now you can earn magical items like enchanted ink, perfumes and
quills to give you an edge in the game.
QWB plays more like a traditional campaign, allowing players to take the same character
through a series of adventures, gaining treasure and shopping at the market. Classes have their
own special abilities, from thieves being able to forge handwriting, to holy clerics blessing their
parchment. These abilities will give players an advantage as they play through their own solo
campaign.
Also true to the game that inspired it, you can actually die as a result of a bad letter - making
writing that bit more intense as you wonder whether your score will keep you alive, or whether
you will have to create a new character.
So prepare to step into a world of power hungry necromancers, hideous beasts and paper that
can literally hypnotise someone. Prepare...for adventure!
Note: you must have Quill: A letter-writing roleplaying game for a single player to use this book.
2
Character Creation
Like any game of Quill, before you set out on your letter-writing adventures you must first
choose your character. Because QWB is themed around old school roleplaying, you will be
selecting from a number of classes that echo those featured in the famous roleplaying game from
the 1970s. Each has its own class skill, which is a special feature unique to that class which can
offer an advantage when writing letters. This class skill is used in place of the skills from the
core Quill rules.
When creating a character, note down their names, class, attributes, class ability and starting
gold pieces (gp). This will be your character sheet where you will add any new equipment, alter
attributes and adjust your monies. It’s also a good idea to create a short background for your
character, including some personality traits to help you get into the role when crafting your
letters. This all adds to the immersion of the game.
Characters begin with 1d6x10 gp, a mundane ink pot, a mundane quill and 20 parchments (one
parchment is used for one letter).
Fighter
The fighter knows pain and bloodshed like no other. She is a soldier, a mercenary, a killer. She
knows little else than how to act on the battlefield, or the best methods of eviscerating a
rampaging hill orc in a matter of seconds. When she retreats to her rooms for the evening her
dreams are filled with blood-stained chaos, screams echoing in her mind.
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Fighters aren’t the finest linguists, but they are accurate and passionate. In their letters they
excel at description due to their keen perception and they can also be quite persuasive when they
need to be.
Heart: Good
Penmanship: Average
Language: Poor
Class ability
Persuasion: the fighter can be an incredibly persuasive writer. They may automatically pass up
to two Heart rolls per letter.
Magic-user
Cloistered in their paper-strewn offices, often working deep into the night, magic-users are
scholars of the great magical web that spans the known universe. Intelligent and often
eccentric, magic-users tap into the fine threads of sorcery innate in reality and manipulate them
to help and hinder others. They often use magical inks and enchanted paper to help them craft
letters in order to receive a favourable response.
Heart: Poor
Penmanship: Average
Language: Good
Class Ability
Enchant ink: At the beginning of a letter a
magic-user may enchant a mundane pot of
ink by expending a magical ingredient. If
they do this, all Language rolls gain a +1.
This enchantment wears off after one letter.
Cleric
The cleric comes from a holy order of righteous warriors who seek to destroy evil beings and
spread the word of their deity. They do not fight for gold and glory, but for that which is right.
Their letters are written with the passion of the righteous and blessed by their hands to ensure a
safe passage for the missive.
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Heart: Good
Penmanship: Poor
Language: Average
Class Ability
Blessed parchment: At the beginning of a letter, a cleric may bless a non-magical parchment by
expending a use of holy water. If they do, all Heart rolls gain a +1.
Thief
With daggers drawn in the night, the thief makes her move. Out of the shadows cast by
flickering candles they strike - whether stealing a sacred idol from an aristocrat’s abode, or
stabbing a corrupt official in the back. Thieves are always wary of the way they present
themselves, which also goes for the way they write letters. They are able to deftly forge
documents to seem like the letter was written by another hand.
Heart: Average
Penmanship: Good
Language: Poor
Class Ability
Forgery: Thieves can modify handwriting to make it seem as if they are someone else. Three
times per letter they may use Penmanship in place of another attribute.
Elf
Hailing from the great world forest of Kathoon, elves are as surreal as they are beautiful. They
seldom stray from their arboreal realm, but those that do struggle to adapt to human society,
unable to empathise with humans they way they can with other elves. Their natural grace shows
in their beautiful flowing handwriting, making their letters a thing to behold.
Heart: Poor
Penmanship: Good
Language: Average
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Class Ability
Illumination: Elves create beautiful letters, illuminated with illustrations of plants and beasts.
They may choose to use a second parchment to gain +1 to Penmanship rolls.
Dwarf
This squat, gruff people reside deep in the darkness of mountains around the world - emerging
for trade and adventure. Dwarves are natural craftspeople, hewing rock into magnificent cities
and turning raw ore into the finest mail ever seen. Their runic writings are mesmerising but
writing in common script proves difficult for them. They are however excellent treasure hunters
and barterers, discovering hidden gold nobody else could find.
Heart: Average
Penmanship: Poor
Language: Good
Class Ability
Treasure seeker: Dwarves are extraordinary adventurers, especially when it comes to dungeon
crawls. Dwarves gain a 5gp bonus at the end of every letter, no matter what the outcome is.
6
The Marketplace
Unlike the original Quill game, in QWB you are able to shop in market in order to purchase
new equipment for your letter-writing adventures. Unless stated in the rules of correspondence,
you may visit the market before an adventure to stock up on supplies. Some adventures may
modify the marketplace to make certain items unavailable, alter the price of items, or add
unique items for that place. You may sell items in the market for half their cost.
Item Description Cost
Parchment (x10) Ten leaves of ordinary parchment 1gp
Holy Water Blessed water. 10 uses 5gp
Magic Ingredients A mixture of magical reagents. 10 uses 5 gp
King’s Parchment A leaf of superior parchment. +1 to Penmanship rolls when 5gp
writing a letter on this parchment.
Cinder Ink The finest ink from Cinder. Reroll any number of 80gp
Penmanship tests up to the number of uses you have left
and keep the highest number. 10 uses
Rose Sealing Wax Scented wax for sealing a letter. You may add 1 point at the 20gp
end of a letter for each use (once per letter). 10 uses.
Velur’s Magnificent Thesaurus Velur is the greatest linguistic scholar working today. 200gp
Thesaurus grants +1 to Language rolls
Pelon’s Perfume A delicious scent for any occasion. You may reroll Heart 90gp
tests up to the number of uses you have remaining, taking
the highest number. 10 uses.
7
Magic Items
As you adventure, you will come across various magical items that will enhance your writing.
Magic is rare and powerful, so it is rare that you will have lots of enchanted equipment, but a
single item could mean the difference between failure and success. Magic items cannot be
bought on the regular market, but an adventure may allow you to purchase one from the Moon
Market - a seldom-seen place that appears at midnight, filled with wizards selling their wares.
Item Description Cost
Ink of Correction Enchanted ink allowing you to change an inferior word 120gp
into a superior word. 6 uses
Ink of Masking A favourite of thieves. Use at the beginning of a letter to 140gp
gain one benefit from the rules of correspondence, even if
you do not qualify for it. 6 uses
Ink of Coercion This ink has a fiery quality to it. Gain an extra 2 points at 150gp
the end of a letter for every use. 4 uses.
Enchanted Perfume of Litheen The most beautiful perfume ever crafted. Automatically 140gp
succeed a Heart test.. 6 uses
Elven Scribe Quill A quill crafted by elven mages. +1 to penmanship rolls. 20 160gp
uses
Hypnotic Parchment Casts a hypnotic spell on the reader. Gain an extra 5 points 100gp
at the end of a letter. 1 use.
Resurrection Talisman Characters who die wearing the talisman are immediately 450gp
resurrected. 3 uses
8
Adventures
You are now ready to embark on your letter-writing adventures. The following five adventures
can be undertaken in any order - strung together into a single campaign. Be sure to make a note
of any items you collect along the way.
The Demon-Haunted Tower
Nothing has been the same since the appearance of the obsidian tower near Swanvale village.
Crops have spontaneously combusted, animals are running amok and people are growing weak
and pale. Landlord Reginald Finnegan says a wizard lives there. Others say it's a demon spirit in
the form of an old man. They do agree that he must be stopped.
To gain entry, you must discover what aura of magic surrounds the tower. For this you require a
certain book on magical fortifications for the city library.
Profile: you are writing to the librarian Guhlo Chom, and old acquaintance who holds many a
rate book. The Spire Libiris is one of his prized books and this is just what you need. You must
try and convince him to lend you the book, which is not strictly for lending, explaining the
situation and possibly trying to appease his ego.
Rules of correspondence: a fellow magical scholar has an advantage here. +1 to Language rolls
for Magic-users.
Ink pot:
Building/ Obsidian tower
Trees/ Haunted Forest
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Village/ Swanvale
Magician/ Weaver of magics
Book/ Tome
Scared/ Drenched in fear
Dead crops/ Scorched wheat
Magic defence/ Glyph-based aura
Librarian/ Keeper of Tomes
Kill/ Slay
Outcomes
Fewer than 5 points: Guhlo does not return your letter and certainly doesn't send you a book for
your sloppy letter that offended him greatly. You decide against your better judgement and
head to the tower. No sooner have you tried to enter the door than your bloody body is
propelled away from the door, hitting an oak trunk hard, splitting your skull open. You are
dead - create a new character.
6-9 points: Guhlo wishes you well but cannot send you the book. Instead he has scratched out a
relevant page from the book to help you. This should be enough to get you in, but you worry
about once you're inside. You gather your equipment and head to the tower. At the great black
door you use the page to dispel a Rune of Dread Propulsion and enter. You fight several shadow
beasts before falling into the pit of a monstrous dire bear. You manage to just escape with your
life and ascend the tower. Because you didn't have the book, you were unable to identify all the
magic traps in the tower, so found yourself being burned, stabbed and gassed, but managing to
stay alive to meet your enemy. The showdown with the wizard Zenkhit lasts seemingly an age as
he floats through the room, eyes sparking, hair aflame, lobbies bolts at you. You learn he is a
wizard with aspirations of becoming the first interdimensional being, but must use his tower to
feed in the life force of all around him to power its engine. Despite his power you finally best
him and he agrees to leave and never return. You gain 10gp.
10+ points: Guhlo is ecstatic with your letter and sends you the book at once. After a night of
study you head out to the tower, deftly dealing with the Rune if Dread Propulsion on the black
door. You dispatch of several shadow beasts but soon find yourself in a pit with a dire bear. Or is
it that it is trapped in there with you? You make short work of the hairy hulk and climb out. You
ascend, taking care of a range of magical traps, from flamethrowing statutes to wards that keep
away warm blooded creatures. Eventually you reach the wizard's room. The showdown with the
wizard Zenkhit is quick. He floats through the room, eyes sparking, hair aflame, lobbies bolts at
you. You learn he is a wizard with aspirations of becoming the first interdimensional being, but
must use his tower to feed in the life force of all around him to power its engine. Despite his
power you make short work of slaying him. You gain 30gp and a leaf of King’s Parchment.
10
The Elven Princess
One night, as you sip on a fresh tankard of dark ale, you are visited by a hooded figure. He
ushers you into a back room and unveils his hood revealing a young man, no older than twenty
years, with scruffy brown hair and watery eyes. He introduced himself as Winslow Herrington,
the Prince of Cornbury. Speaking in hushed tones he makes it apparent that he shouldn’t be in
this part of town, but he had no choice, for, you see, he is in love. Winslow explains that a week
ago his father, King Robert Herrington III, received a group of elvish ambassadors from the
great forest. Among them was the princess Elenda, the most beautiful being he had ever laid
eyes on. He tells you that he fell instantly in love with her, but his father has forbidden a
relationship between human and elvenkind - being a staunch traditionalist. Winslow has heard
that you have helped people before and wishes your help with this matter.
He does not have a way with words, but believes a stunning love letter to the princess will win
her over. Winslow plans to run away with her to the Shimmering Lands beyond the Wold and
there they will be happy away from his tyrannical father. He asks that you craft this letter and
cross the Thundering Wilds to deliver it. He will pay for a job well done.
Profile: You must persuade Elenda to run away with Winslow, but must make it look like the
writing has come from Winslow himself.
Rules of correspondence: you must craft a beautiful letter for an aristocratic elf. Elves gain +1 to
Heart tests in this adventure.
Moon Market: The Moon Market is open for this adventure.
Ink pot:
Good looks/ Radiant beauty
Skin/ Celestial skin
My father/ The tyrannical king
Your home/ Splendorous Kathoon
Flee/ Elope
Woman/ Fair lady
Sneak out/ Slink away
The pit/ The Bowels of Damnation
Flower/ Sun orchid
Another country/ The Shimmering Lands
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Outcomes
Fewer than 5 points: Upon delivering the letter to the princess, she becomes affronted by this
insulting letter. She tells you that the prince is a foul creature who only wishes to wed her for
political gain. Her royal guards imprison you in the great canopy and she tells her mother that
any trade negotiations with the king are to be stopped immediately. You eventually manage to
escape after three days and return to the city where you are tracked down by a furious prince,
who berates you for what you have done. You receive no payment for this adventure.
6-9 points: You deliver the letter to Elenda and watch while she opens and reads it, smiling. She
thanks you for delivering the message and is flattered by the prince, but knows that she cannot
leave her home, for too many people depend on her. However, she agrees that she will see the
prince in secret to kindle a relationship. She signs a letter to this effect and seals it with royal
elven honeywax. When the prince gets the news he is overjoyed that he has earned her affection,
but disappointed she won’t run away with him. Still, he thanks you for your help and gives you
10gp.
10+ points: You deliver the letter to Elenda, and watch her face beam as she reads it. She laughs
merrily and dances, telling you that as soon as she saw the prince she too knew he was the one
for her. She will pack in secret and meet him by the Bull’s Rock tomorrow night when the moon
is full. You relay this information to Winslow, who could not be happier. He gives you 30gp and
some rose sealing wax for your help.
12
Uncharted Waters
You are visiting the port town of Blackwater along the Spearfish Coast - a wretched place full of
traitors and scallywags. While you’re strolling by the water’s edge, breathing in the salty aroma
of the sea, you’re approached by three sailors. One of them, a woman with a peg leg and glass
eye, introduces herself as Captain Greystroke, owner of the Salty Dog, which she points out
enthusiastically. She appears to be on the drunk side and slurs her words considerably. She tells
you that she is looking to hire someone for a particular job. She’s looking for a map that shows
the legendary Isle of Bloodfyre, a place that you’ve never heard of. Greystroke tells you that a
century ago the pirate Rumbeard hid his booty on the island, but before he could return he and
his crew were struck down with a fever and died. The captain believes that Rumbeard can be
brought back from the dead to help them plot the map, but she is in need of a necromancer to do
the work. As you’re clearly an adventurer, she will pay you in treasure if you can get a
necromancer to raise Rumbeard’s body to tell her the whereabouts of Bloodfyre Isle.
Profile: You know of one necromancer who may be up for the job. Irina Raveneye is an
acquaintance from many adventures ago who lives in Rookton. You didn’t part on the best of
terms, after vanquishing her undead minions, so it’s likely she will be cold to you to say the
least. You must persuade her to raise Rumbeard’s body, but you don’t necessarily have to tell her
the truth about why.
Rules of correspondence: Deception is a powerful tool here. Thieves gain a +1 to Language rolls
for this adventure.
The Market: Blackwater’s market is limited. They do not stock items worth more than 20gp.
Ink pot:
Undead/ Shambling ghouls
Death/ The void
Plead/ Beseech
Hidden/ Shrouded
Sea/ Mysterious waters
Booty/ Riches
This woman/ Captain Greystroke
Grateful/ Beholden
Adventure/ Expedition
Boat/ Galleon
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Outcomes
Fewer than 5 points: After three nights you are greeted by the necromancer Irina Raveneye.
You breathe a sigh of relief when she agrees to help you in this endeavour. That night, you, the
captain and Irina sneak into the graveyard where Rumbeard is buried and exhume his skeletal
body from the ground. Irian speaks a lengthy incantation, the clouds circling above and lighting
flashing menacingly. But you notice that something isn’t right. Other graves begin to move as
boney hands reach out of the dirt and the undead claw their way to the surface. The
necromancer cackles as a horde of skeletons are upon you. Try as you might to fend them off,
they just keep coming and soon they are piling on you. The last sight you see is the skull of one
of your assailants laughing raucously in your face. You are dead - create a new character.
6-9 points: Two nights later you hear a tapping at your window in the room you’re renting. You
pull back the curtain to see a large raven looking at you inquisitively. “Let me in,” it croaks.
Obeying the beast, you open the window and with a hop it descends into the room, morphing
swiftly into a pale woman cloaked in black. Irina cocks her head and smiles. She tells you that
she will help you with your quest, but requires a higher share of the treasure than you originally
wanted. After agreeing, you, the captain and Irina head to the graveyard where Rumbeard was
buried and exhume his skeletal remains. The necromancer casts a fearful incantation, causing
the clouds to swirl and lightning to flash. The dead captain awakens with a gasp. After some
time, Irina coaxes him to draw the position of Bloodfyre Isle on the map.
Before long you have sailed with Greystroke, tackled the hyena men of Ulth, fought an
elephant trolls and found Rumbeard’s buried treasure. Greystroke divides it up, with Irina
getting a hefty share. You receive 10gp.
10+ points: Two nights later you hear a tapping at your window in the room you’re renting. You
pull back the curtain to see a large raven looking at you inquisitively. “Let me in,” it croaks.
Obeying the beast, you open the window and with a hop it descends into the room, morphing
swiftly into a pale woman cloaked in black. Irina cocks her head and smiles. She tells you that
she will help you with your quest and is willing to let bygones be bygones. You, the captain and
Irina head to the graveyard where Rumbeard was buried and exhume his skeletal remains. The
necromancer casts a fearful incantation, causing the clouds to swirl and lightning to flash. The
dead captain awakens with a gasp. After some time, Irina coaxes him to draw the position of
Bloodfyre Isle on the map.
Before long you have sailed with Greystroke, tackled the hyena men of Ulth, fought an
elephant trolls and found Rumbeard’s buried treasure. Greystroke divides it up, with yourself
getting a hefty share. You receive 50gp and an enchanted perfume of Litheen.
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Fane of the Underking
You are drenched in blood. Panting, you reach the gates of Varadur, City of Plenty and stagger
towards The Leaping Fox inn. Patrons eye you as you sit on a stool and demand a long drink of
water, draining it in one glug as soon as the barmaid hands it over. “Where have you been?” An
elderly dwarf asks, his eyes locked on your bloodied face. You release a heavy sigh.
“The Fane of the Underking,” you say, grimly. There is silence in the room - you could
hear a quill drop. Then the old man cracks a smile and the whole place bursts into laughter.
“Pull the other one,” he cries, wiping a tear from his eye. You’re dumbstruck. Well, you
knew it would be a tough sell.
The Fane of the Underking is a famously devilish dungeon, survived by nobody save yourself, so
it’s no wonder nobody believes you. The temple stands at the edge of the Darkholt Wood - an
ancient monument to evil gods and the monsters in their domain. You decided to take it upon
yourself to head in searching for adventure. Despite eventually defeating the great Underking
in combat, you escaped with nothing to show for it aside from your story. You decide that if you
couldn’t profit from the adventure, you will profit from the tale itself. You know the editor of a
local gazette, so you roll out a parchment and begin to recount your story.
Profile: The editor is Lana Mulberry, a hard-nosed writer who’s as warm as an ice cube.
However, your paths have crossed from time to time, but you know you’re going to have to
impress her with a rip-roaring tale. Pull out all the stops to describe your adventure in the Fane
of the Underking.
Rules of correspondence: The story is going to seem more trustworthy coming from a person of
the cloth. Clerics gain a +1 on Heart rolls for this adventure.
Ink pot:
Poison darts/ Curare-tipped shurikens
Strange gas/ Toxic vapour
Beast men/ Warthog-faced warriors
Smart/ Shrewd
Big chair/ Crystalline throne
Bomb/ Vortex bomb
Hole/ Pit of a thousand spears
Statue/ Shrieking totem
Cursed glove/ Murderous gauntlet
Baby dragon/ Blackscale wyrmling
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Outcomes
Fewer than 5 points: You giddily tear open a letter stamped with the editor’s seal. Your face
drops as you read the words on the parchment and slump onto your bed. A rejection letter. Lana
didn’t think much to your tale - calling it turgid and sloppy. You screw the letter into a ball and
throw it across the room.
6-9 points: You giddily tear open a letter stamped with the editor’s seal. Lana has accepted your
story for the gazette! You let out a loud cheer and read onwards. Unfortunately because you’re
just a beginning writer you will be paid a minimum fee- but better than nothing. Gain 6gp.
10+ points: You giddily tear open a letter stamped with the editor’s seal. Lana has accepted your
story for the gazette! You let out a loud cheer and read onwards. Lana was so impressed with
your tale that she has passed it to other gazettes she owns from other cities to print. Soon word
spreads about your story and you become the talk of the town - the hero that slayed the dreaded
Underking. You get 40gp for the story, and gifted an Elven Scribe Quill in the hopes that you
will write more adventures.
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The Beast of Nightwood
It has been three nights since the scholar Pellis Ward discovered you drowning your sorrows in
the Cat and Fiddle in Daggerton. An affable gentleman, Pellis came to you with a proposition.
He had heard of your adventuring prowess through the grapevine and wished to hire you for a
mission to aid his studies. For many years he has studied the flora and fauna of Nightwood and
believes there is a beast of myth that resides there. Most people don’t believe in the Beast of
Nightwood, but Pellis wants to be the first to discover and document it. However, the wood has
become dangerous with bandits and so is asking you to spend a week in the wood in search of the
beast. You agree and set off on your wilderness journey in search of a living myth, promising
Pellis that you will document your findings in your journal.
Profile: You are writing an entry in your journal, documenting what you have discovered in the
wild. Describe the wildlife you come across and, of course, your eventual encounter with the
legendary Beast of Nightwood.
Rules of correspondence: Pellor demands accuracy in your notes. Fighters have great
perception, so gain a +1 to Language rolls for this adventure.
Ink pot:
Trees/ Wiry sycamores
Bandits/ Brothers of Coldsteel
Deer/ Bluehorn stag
Footprints/ Bestial impressions
Eyes/ Serpent-like optics
Mouth/ Gaping maw
Spines/ Vertebral barbs
Dead body/ Mutilated corpse
Jumped/ Sprang
Nest/ Drey
Outcomes
Fewer than 5 points: You return to Daggerton in a weary state and fine Pellis in his lush abode.
He is pleased to see you and is visibly excited when you hand over your field journal. After
reading through it his eyes dart up at you, his brow furrowed. “This is balderdash!” he cries. “I
can’t submit this to my peers. No, no, this will not do at all.” He fishes out some coins from his
purse and tosses them to you. “For your trouble, but I will not be asking for you again.” Gain
2gp.
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6-9 points: You return to Daggerton in a weary state and fine Pellis in his lush abode. He is
pleased to see you and is visibly excited when you hand over your field journal. He pores
through it and nods his head, muttering to himself. “Well this is good - not perfect, but I think
I can work with it.” He thanks you and throws you a purse of moneys. Gain 15gp.
10+ points: You return to Daggerton in a weary state and fine Pellis in his lush abode. He is
pleased to see you and is visibly excited when you hand over your field journal. He immediately
begins reading your notes, enraptured by your report. After a while he grins and embraces you.
“My friend, you have done me proud. This is exactly what I’ve been after for all these years.”
He fishes out a purse of money and hands it to you. He also removes something from a drawer
and offers it to you enthusiastically. Gain 30gp and Ink of Correction.
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