Devolver: GM guide

By: Zechariah Winters

This is to help GMs new to making these murder mysteries. This is a step by step
guide to set up cases for your players.

The Crime
The first thing to decide is what crime is going to be committed. Is it a Murder, kidnapping,
burglary, theft, etc. For the examples in this guide we will choose a murder since these are the
most complex.

Victim
Who is the victim? Is it a woman, man, or child? Most common murder victims are women;
where as men and children are not as common.

How old is the victim- is the victim a teen, collage student, middle age, or in there elderly
years?

How where they killed- where they beaten over the head, stabbed, shot, or any other cause
of death?

Why where they killed- was it over money, marriage, legal allegations, out of anger, etc.
Who killed the victim- most people are killed by someone they know- brother, sister,
boyfriend, husband, wife, etc.

Where did the victim die- was at the victim’s home, a public park, parking lot etc.
Example: A middle aged woman was killed by her mother-in-law in the victim’s home. She was
shot twice in the stomach. The mother-in-law killed her because the victim recently went
through a divorce with her husband and a few months later the husband committed suicide and
the mother-in-law blames the victim for her son’s death. When the mother-in-law went to
confront the victim; the victim didn’t want any part of it and things got heated.

Boby Bob (Order #17877284)

 Evidence
What was the suspects approach- was the suspect forceful or discreet?
Weapon of choice- did they use a gun, blunt object, or sharp object? If it was a gun, who’s
gun is it. Is it stolen, or a relatives. Did they suspect even leave a weapon?

Did the suspect leave any DNA, or finger prints behind? It could be on a glass, door
knob, wall, etc. Make sure you create a list of evidence at the crime scene, so you don’t forget
anything.
What will test on the body tell the detectives- will there been any abnormal things in the blood,
any injures after death, time of death etc.

Example: The suspect was discreet and gained entry to the home by the victim. The suspect at
some point fired 2 rounds into the victim with a Glock G29 leave 2 casings behind with the
finger prints of the suspects husband on them. The suspect left finger prints on the door when
they left the home. No other DNA or finger prints to be found than the victims. Tests on the
body will show nothing abnormal in the blood and no injuries after death. The time of death
was 1:43 p.m.

The only other thing to do is to generate a list of people that the victim knew and people that
others think could have done the crime a list of possible suspects that they players may want to
talk to. Don’t give this to them they need to investigate the victim’s life to find these names.
Example: (make first and last names)
Brian- 20 son of the victim
Sandra- 54 mother in law of the victim
Tom- 56 father in law of the victim
Sara- 52 Mother
Dean- 58 Father
Mia- 32 Sister
Dan- 42 employer
Jordan- 28 Handyman
Etc.

Boby Bob (Order #17877284)

 Now your prepared to give your first case.

Serial Killers
Serial killers are much more complex in how you create their scenarios. When you do serial
killers, you will need to provide a map to help the players piece the case together.

Victim type- Most serial killers victims have some sort of connection to the killer. The killer
could like just married couples, young blonde girls, athletic men, families of 4, etc. It could also
not even be related to the person and just be something as simple as the car they drive, or
someone cut them off on the highway. The victim can also provide insight

Stressor- This is what made the killer start killing. It could be loss of a loved one, abusive
childhood, a traumatic situation such as being mugged, car accident, shooting or even fear of
losing someone or something. They are trying to regain a since of control, dominance, or even
power.

The Ritual- This is something the killer is compelled to do every time. They can leave the body
in a position, take something a trophy, or even revisit the body. There is a long and wired list of
what serial killers have done to their victims.

How they kill- This is something that can evolve over time as they learn their craft. If the killer
starts off by strangling with a plastic bag the could change to their bare hands or the belt the
person is wearing. If they killer uses a gun they may start in a quite alley and eventually move to
public parks.

How often the kill- This varies greatly from killer to killer. They can start off at once a month
and move up to as fast as once a day.

Where they dumb the body- This is important as it can tell a lot about the killer. It can tie
into the ritual if the killer is revisiting the bodies or if the killer is killing them somewhere else
and dumbing them next to the highway.

Devolving- Killers tend to devolve when their patterns are interrupted or thrown off course.
This makes them highly agitated and more likely to make mistakes when killing.

Job- This is important as it provides a timeline into the killer’s day of when they are free to kill.
If they have a job most of the time in a menial desk job or service job such as electrician,
plumber, etc.

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 Organized- Organized killers tend to be smarter than their job requires. They are very clean
and smart with their approach of how they plan out the killing. They may even stalk their victim
for weeks before the kill.

Disorganized- Disorganized killers can kill spontaneously, and usually have menial jobs. They
do very little to no planning of their killing. They tend to leave more evidence.

Geographic Profile- There are two types of killers for this one most of the time. There is the
close to home killer, who is not very confident and kills only near where they live, and the bold
killer who is willing to travel miles to kill.

If you have any questions tweet me @Epic_Sax_Dude. If you have any important inquiries
email me at zechariahwinters@gmail.com

Boby Bob (Order #17877284)