THE TOGA DETECTIVEIT ALL STARTS WITH A TRIP TO ROME…THE INTERACTIVE GAME BEGIN

GRATA ROMAM!Stepping off your litter, you arrive in the bustling city of Rome. Everyone today seems pretty unsettled, as the Emperor Caligula has just announced everyone to call him a god, because he claims he is one now. True, you’re quite a believer in the gods– worshipping the once-Emperor Augustus is no problem to you either– but this is just ridiculous. From the start, you knew this man was going to be completely mad, and practically deifying himself is not so much of a surprise.No one pays much attention to you or your wine-stained toga (trying to drink while on the bumpy road in a litter is not a good idea) and let you pass through them. But now is the question of where to go. Being born in the remotest province, you’ve never seen such splendour and vastness in any city. There is so much to see, but what first?The forum The amphitheatre The Circus Maximus

THE FORUMHaving always been interested in trading and exotic goods, you head off in the direction of the huge forum, where at the moment people are gathering around a man standing at the top of the steps to the temple. Usually the matters of the civilians and plebs don’t bother you, but today you hear wild shouts coming from the crowd, and it intrigues you. You’ve never seen anyone this mad before– save for the Emperor (although you’ve never actually seen him before). However, a gold ring with a sparkling jewel set in it catches your eye and you are tempted to go over and take a closer look. You’re torn between whether to go and see what the group are doing or buying that ring before some cocky Alexandrian gets it.Go look at the ring Go and see the crowd

THE RINGYou ignore the crowd and go see the ring. It is exquisitely made, a gold band with a blue jewel in the middle. On it is engraved a horse– you guess this is someone’s seal. However, your signet ring was lost a few weeks ago, and documents are piling up for you to sign. You make an offer for it, asking how the vendor came about such a wonderful item.“It was off a man called Helva, who got run over by a chariot in some kind of publicity stunt. Don’t like to get involved with it. But still, I was given this ring in his will, but I want to sell it… for personal reasons.”You decide not to pursue that line of conversation any further.After buying the ring, you decide to see what the crowd is up to. Go

THE CROWDPushing your way to the front, you ask the speaker what he is shouting about. He doesn’t take notice of you and keeps on screaming: “Down with the Emperor! Join the Blue Horses!”You can’t have any ‘down with the Emperor’ stuff while you’re in Rome– another case for you to solve on your only holiday would be annoying. True, you enjoy a good anti-Emperor group from time to time, but now just isn’t the time. Knowing Rome, they’d be in contact with you as soon as they found out about any crime. You decide to get the attention of the speaker by poking him repeatedly. He stops his crazy shouting and looks down at you, asking what you want. You just ask him what this ‘Blue Horses’ group is and enquire after more information. Continue

THE BLUE HORSESAs soon as you say that you are a detective, the crowd goes crazy, pulling togas and tunics over their faces and running out of the forum. You try to explain you’re not here to arrest them, but no one listens and you are left standing alone on the temple steps. Angrily, you decide what to do next.Go see the amphitheatre (some of them might have run off there) Go to the Circus Maximus (you hear that’s the perfect place for groups to meet) Go to the insulae where the plebs live (they could have gone home) Go to an inn or wine shop to have a drink (you can’t be bothered to find out any more about these ‘Blue Horses’ just yet)

THE AMPHITHEATREToday many people have gathered to see what has been advertised as the bloodiest spectacle in the whole of the Empire. Caligula himself financed these games, and it’s the opening ceremonies at the very time of your visit– what great luck! Although not such a fan of the gladiatorial games, you do enjoy a particularly gory one from time to time and can’t resist following the crowds of people pouring in.After a mad struggle to get your seat as near to the arena as possible, you settle down and wait for the procession to begin. As soon as the first signs appear through the gates, the crowd is on their feet, screaming and clapping. You join in, excited for what is to come.After a few mediocre matches, you are ready for the main advertised match of the day: two of the best gladiators in Rome in a tight, ferocious battle. As they come out, your heart beats frantically.Continue

THE FIGHTThe signal to fight is sounded and the two men hurl themselves at each other, blood immediately spilling from a small gash sustained by the retiarius, the fisherman, with his light armour and classic trident and net. The secutor against him has the advantage of more armour, but this is also very heavy. The crowd go wild at such quick blood, so the gladiators push on. Neither of them are giving up as more wounds are made. The retiarius spears his opponent’s leg with his trident, ripping all the way through. The secutor drops to the ground, finding the energy to stab with all his might at the other man’s chest. It finds its mark, bleeding profusely, and the retiarius has to put his finger up to signal he is finished. The crowd are shocked at this turn of events and the editor, the Emperor himself, stands up to give his verdict. The crowd have already turned their thumbs. What do you think you should do?Missio Kill him

MISSIOYou turn your thumb with the rest of the crowd, wanting the retiarius to be free, and if he did die, die with the satisfaction of knowing he didn’t get ordered to it. The Emperor looks around at the arena, looking bored, and turns his thumb the other way. The whole amphitheatre explodes with boos and jeers, and a surge of people rushes towards the box to get revenge on the Emperor. Meanwhile, the secutor dispatches the fallen retiarius quickly and leaves. You decide to follow suit, not wanting to get caught up in a possible brutal murder of Caligula. You are the one who is usually supposed to solve murders, not commit them. After all, you are the esteemed detective Q. Lucretius Vespillo! Hurrying to the nearest exit, you get out of the scene. Where should you go now? The forum The Circus Maximus

KILL HIM!The crowd seem in a bloodthirsty mood today. They are all screaming for a kill, and the Emperor is equally wild with bloodlust. He turns his thumb and the secutor deals a violent death: clubbing the retiarius repeatedly with the pommel of his sword until his skull cracks. The crowd loves it and you have to look away, bile rising in your throat. Sometimes you wonder how the most civilised city in the world can enjoy such brutal entertainment. Since the first day’s games are done, everyone leaves, and you follow. Where should you go now?The forum The Circus Maximus

THE CIRCUS MAXIMUSNever in your life have you seen such a massive structure. It can seat 250,000 spectators, and you will be one of them. As you join the crowd of people walking in, a man comes up to you with an array of coloured souvenirs. “Sir, do you want to buy some lovely ribbons for your lady to show her team colour? Or perhaps a new tunic for yourself?” He holds up different coloured tunics– one green, one blue, one red and one white.You reply that you like the look of the white one.“A White supporter, eh? Not such a popular team nowadays, but whatever works for you.”You are confused. You’ve never heard of these different teams. You ask the man more questions. Continue

CHOOSING A TEAMYou learn that there are four teams: Blue, Green, Red and White. Green and Blue are the two main groups, with Red and White being smaller and having somewhat nicer fans. Blue and Green are always opposed to each other, and joining either of those factions means entering into a bit of a feud. The man says it’s wise to join a team now. You don’t know which one to choose. After a lot of deciding, you choose…Red Green Blue White

REDYou pick the Reds, thinking the colour is the nicest. You purchase some Red souvenirs.“Good choice. Although a Green on the outside, it’s said the Emperor favours Red. It’s always better to be on the right side of him nowadays.”You go in with the tide of people finding a seat. You see a group of red-clad men and you join them, finding a place under your seat to change into your newly-purchased red tunic. You cast your toga aside like the others, for it’s too hot with all these people around you. You are excited for the race to start and wait impatiently. Continue

GREENYou choose the Green team, thinking they have the best chariot racers. After purchasing a few Green souvenirs, the man tells you that the Emperor favours the Greens. You don’t really know what to think of this. The Emperor is definitely the craziest one Rome has ever had, so being in his faction may or may not be a good thing.You sit in the huge section of the Circus populated by Greens. You slide on your gold and green bracelet and put on your green tunic under the seats, taking your toga off as it’s too hot. As the last of the spectators arrive, you wait for the race to begin and hope that the Greens will win. Continue

BLUEYou decide on the Blues, remembering that they’ve already won hundreds of races and are the best team out of the four. You purchase a blue tunic and some other blue souvenirs and the man tells you that Blue is a wise choice, as you’re likely to win all the bets you place on them. Thanking him for the items, you walk in with the other Blue supporters, who welcome you to their faction. When you sit with a nice-looking man called Helva, he tells you about the Blue team’s achievements, saying that he has bet 100 denarii on one of the racers. You are surprised he’d waste that much on one chariot race, when he could have bought a good pair of sandals or something. Well, that’s what you would have done. Soon it’s time for the race to begin. Continue

WHITEYou choose the White team, wanting to support an underdog. Hopefully they’ll get more famous in time. The man says you are clever to pick that team. He says he supports the Whites too. You decide to only purchase one or two white souvenirs, as your clothing is already white (save for the embarrassing wine stain on your toga). With the small group of White supporters, you find your seat and put on the ring with a clear jewel set in the middle, one of the souvenirs you bought. Eventually the Circus fills up and the race is going to start. Continue

THE RACEThe four chariots line up at the start, ready for the seven gruelling laps. They begin, and after a few minutes, the Red chariot crashes out. The whole Red section boos. After another four laps, the race is almost over, and there are still three left in. Suddenly, a man runs onto the track and shouts “Support the Blues! Bring down the Emperor!” and is immediately run over by the Green racer. The whole Circus is in shock. The race continues and it’s a victory for the Blues. Bets are collected, but there is a bet to be returned of 100 denarii (now 400), and no one claims it.Back out in the main city, you wonder what to do next.Go to the forum Go to the amphitheatre

THE INSULAEAs you walk around the neighbourhoods, you are reminded how well-off the plebs actually are, compared to you. You were born in the coastal edge of Gaul, into a half-Roman, half- Gaulish family. You lived in the classic Gaulish-style house, a small and humble dwelling. Your family were very poor and you learned to make do. You weren’t even a Roman citizen for your connections with Gaul, until you proved yourself to be a great detective, solving the murder of a senior senator. From then on, you lived in a huge villa (after inheriting lots of money from deceased relatives) in Gaul.Thinking of your initial poverty, you wander through the streets and see shops of all kinds. A wine shop beckons you with its alcoholic scent and you walk in. Go

THE WINE SHOPThis wine shop is the best you’ve seen, you think. You drink a few cups of a local wine, feeling rather happier after the encounter with the Blue Horses. You think that really, they were just stupid. The Emperor is never going to get killed by them. They were just really, really, really, really…You collapse onto the floor, drunk and confused.Later on, you wake up in a pool. You have no idea where you are, but all you know is that you are stark naked. Water rushes up your nostrils as you drop back off to sleep, but you are immediately alert when you hear noises coming towards you. You duck down underneath the surface and listen in. There are voices. What do you do?Stay under the water and listen Make yourself known

UNDERWATERThe voices come closer and closer, until you look up and see two faces. They are blurred, but you can make out blue paint on their cheeks. One of them speaks:“Oh dear, looks like this one’s not made it. Oh well, there will be more.” Hands grab you out of the pool (which you now realise is the impluvium) and lay you down on the floor, a white cloth now over your body.You realise what the two people are thinking. Should you…Go along with it Sit up and tell them you’re alive

I’M ALIVE!You sit up, pushing the cloth off. The two people scream with shock, but congratulate you on surviving their initiation.“You’re a Blue Horse now.” one says.You ask them what is going on. They tell you that you are now part of a group that will give back the rightful ruler their power. You are a novice to the cult of the Blue Horses. So this is what the Blue Horses is… Continue

DEATHThe two people roll your body onto a stretcher and take you somewhere else (you can’t see where it is as your eyes are closed and covered). “We’d better make sure he’s actually dead…” one of them says. Suddenly, there’s unbearable pain as your throat is slit open. The last thing you hear before your death is—“Hey, look here. He had a blue-horse ring. I guess he was already one of us.” Continue

HADESYou arrive in a dark, featureless place, a denarius in your hand. Hades himself comes to greet you.“Sorry, but somewhere along the way, you managed to get yourself killed. I’m feeling pretty nice today, so before you pay your coin to get across the River Styx, I’ll let you have a choice. You can go back to the beginning of this whole trip to Rome, or you can come along with me to hell. What do you want to do?”Go back to the beginning Go with Hades

SALVE!!!With an almighty splash as the surface of the water breaks, you jump up, screaming “SALVE!!!” at the top of your voice. The people standing before you jerk back in shock, before regaining composure. “What a lively young novice we have here. Well done for passing the initiation ceremony.”Initiation ceremony? For what? You ask them where you are and what is going on. “Welcome to the Blue Horses, my friend.” the first man says, smiling.“You have been chosen out of many to join our select group to bring the rightful ruler to power.”So this is what the Blue Horses is… Continue

THE CULTThe two men lead you to a different room, where they give you back your new signet ring and your money-purse, still with 200 denarii inside. However, your tunic and toga have been thrown into the fire heating up the hypocaust, and you are quite irritated by this.“The Blue Horses are a widespread cult dedicated to the rightful ruler of the Empire. You must understand that Caligula has abused him for many months now, and we must take urgent action.”You ask them who the ‘rightful ruler’ is.“It’s Poseidon, of course.” Continue

POSEIDON?You try not to laugh. They are a cult trying to get rid of the Emperor and replace him with Poseidon! It’s ridiculous. You highly doubt that the god himself would come out of the water and proclaim himself ruler. Poseidon, or Neptune, would never do such a thing at the whims of a cult. You ask them how they are going to get rid of the Emperor.“It’s simple. We are going to divert some of the water from the aqueduct, flood the hypocaust and wait until the water bursts through the floor, drowning the entire Imperial Palace. Then the god will rise from the waters, and with our help, rule the Empire.”Now seems to be the time to act on the Blue Horses. So you…Arrest the lot of them Join the cult and play along

ARRESTFinally revealing your detective status, you grab the two men, pulling the hoods of their blue robes off. You put their hands behind their backs and begin to march them to the headquarters of the Praetorian Guard to bring them to justice. Before you can do this, one of the men swivels around and kicks you in the stomach, and the other man pounces on you and stabs you. However, it’s not deep enough to kill just yet, so you struggle to your feet. By this time, they have run away, no doubt taking their other Blue Horses with them.Sapped of all your energy, you collapse and pass out. Blood pours from the wound, and you eventually die. Continue

WELCOME TO THE CULTYou now know a lot of information, but you can now collect more and tell the Praetorian Guard this threat to the Emperor, winning his favour and your fame. You ask the man who he is.“I’m afraid I can’t tell you my real name– after all, we can never be sure if there’s a traitor in our midst– but you may call me Cilo.”You ask him what you are supposed to do now.“You must give an offering to Poseidon. Come this way.” He takes you to a huge room where a shrine is placed. You are forced to empty your entire purse into a bowl full of money.Continue

NOVICEAfter the offering, you are given a long blue robe to put on, and your face is painted with patterns of the same colour. Then the man takes you to a tiny room, where he produces a needle and dark blue ink and tattoos a horse-like symbol on the inside of your wrist– the symbol of the Blue Horses. As this is done, you try to stop him, but he holds a knife to your throat and threatens to kill you if you don’t obey.Then you have to choose a nickname, as a new member of the cult. You have a choice of the following names. Which do you choose?Bestia Capito Dives Galeo LaenasMaro Nasica Ocella Ralla Varro

YOUR NEW LIFE“A good choice of name; it really reflects your own self.” the man says.Now you settle down to your life as a novice. You don’t forget that you have a duty to perform, but as each day passes you feel more like the Blue Horses are doing the right thing. After weeks in the cult, the High Priest tells you that you have been selected to perform a dangerous task in getting the Emperor killed. You are supposed to go into the hypocaust and let in the water by knocking a hole through the wall. The High Priest says you may die, but a priest (as you have already risen in rank) of Poseidon should be willing to die for the Horses. Do you agree to it?Yes No way, far too risky

THE PLANThe High Priest is pleased that you have agreed.“The aqueduct’s course has slowly been moved closer to the hypocaust of the Imperial Palace. Tonight there is a huge feast– all Imperial people and possible Emperors will be there, so it’s the perfect time to strike. Here is a bag of provisions. You must hide in the hypocaust today and when the time seems right, you must use your hammer to break through the wall and let the water in. It would be better for you to be unseen, as they would surely arrest and torture you, revealing the Blue Horses to everyone. So try to make a quick getaway amongst the chaos.”You leave the temple quietly, wondering what will be in store for you. To the hypocaust

NO WAY!You are appalled that the High Priest would ask you to do such a dangerous job. You refuse to do it, and he simply shakes his head. “This is not something you can back out of. You are going to do this, and that’s final. Unless you want me to kill you.”Stand your ground Agree to do it

NO, STILL NOSadly, the High Priest acts on his words and you are swiftly killed. Continue

THE HYPOCAUSTYou manage to find the entrance to the hypocaust just round the back of the Palace, and after a lot of moving of rocks, you slide in. Since it is the middle of the day, the fire is not lit, so you can walk around without discomfort. Armed with a detailed map, you make your way to the spot where the water has been led. It is just below the massive triclinium and the perfect spot for the plan. As you wait for the sounds of a banquet in full swing to reach your ears, you think of whether you should actually be doing this. You were never that opposed to the Emperor. You realise that during the dinner, you could chisel a hole in the roof and jump in, explaining to all the guests the plot to kill the Emperor. It could work. Continue

CHOICESHours later, you hear noises from above you. The banquet has begun. However, you do not realise that this is only the slaves setting it up. You think it’s time to let the water in, which has made the wall bend with the pressure of holding it back. At the last second, you wonder whether you should go along with the plan. After all, you had something else you could do.Carry out the plan Reveal yourself

FIRESuddenly, you feel heat coming towards you. It is unbearable. The hypocaust must be on! As the entire place becomes boiling hot, you realise the dinner hasn’t started yet. However, you don’t have long left in here. It’s now or never. If you let the water in, hardly anyone would die. If you didn’t, you would die. What should you do?Let the water in Wait Reveal yourself

THE FLOODWith your hammer, you frantically pound at the wall. Cracks appear and with a sudden crash, water comes flooding in. You hardly have time to prepare as you are carried by the immense flow. More and more comes, until you are pressed against the ceiling. Using your elbow, you break a hole above you and the entire floor of the triclinium explodes with the flood. Slaves and Romans scatter in all directions as water fills up the room. You are thrown against a wall, breaking your skull, and you wish you hadn’t got into this mess. Continue

HEATIt doesn’t take long for you to have to take your clothes off. You are hot everywhere, sweat literally pouring out. You can’t take it. You don’t even have enough energy to let the water in. You die of the heat, ashamed you couldn’t do your duty to anyone.Continue

REVEALINGYou smash the roof open, tiles falling on your head, and you hoist yourself into the triclinium. Everyone there screams and panics at this blue-robed, painted man coming through the floor. You assure them you’re a detective– Q. Lucretius Vespillo. They eventually believe you and calm down. A slave takes you to the head of the Praetorian Guard to explain yourself. After an hour of giving evidence (the banquet has long finished), the Praetorian is satisfied he has enough to go by to arrest the Blue Horses. He lets you go to the Imperial Baths to clean up and gives you a brand new tunic and a (not stained) toga. However, you want to be there to see the Blue Horses get arrested. You…Go to the baths anyway Go with the Praetorian

THE BATHSYou are treated to a thorough scrub down (one perk of the cult is that you never wash– water is Poseidon’s property) and heavenly massage by trained (and very beautiful) female slaves. Then you go to all the rooms of the baths and, by chance, meet some Imperial faces, including a very annoyed-looking Claudius. You ask him what’s wrong. With many stammers, he replies:“I’m really poor at the moment and have nothing, but Caligula said that I’ve still got my clothes, so auctioned them off to the guests at dinner just now! I was only left with a napkin covering me up! It was horrible!”You sympathise and promise to help him out. He seems like he could go far in later years. Continue

A REQUESTAs you walk back to see what has become of the Blue Horses and the Praetorians, an exhausted slave runs towards you and says that the Emperor himself has requested to see you. There is no choice other than to accept, so you follow the slave to the Emperor’s private quarters. See the Emperor

ARRESTChanging into your new, more Roman, clothes, you follow the Praetorian to the temple. He has brought a huge group of other Praetorians, not knowing how many people there could be in the cult.When you arrive, all seems quiet. No one is about. The Praetorians split off into a few corridors to search. Suddenly the entire cult comes bursting out of the impluvium (it’s a massive impluvium) and attack you. The Praetorians are faster and arrest all of them. You go back to the Imperial Palace for your bath, happy that the Blue Horses have been brought to justice and the Emperor’s life saved. (Sometimes you wonder if it would be better if the plan had worked, however.) Before you can go back, the Emperor himself asks to see you. See the Emperor

AUDIENCE WITH THE EMPERORCaligula is sitting on the table as you walk in. He puts down the pot of ink he was dipping his hair into and looks down at you.“So you are this detective then?” he asks.You reply quietly, almost lost for words. You are actually in the presence of the Emperor!“Your speech amuses me. You speak like a pleb.”You ask how this can be.“Your Latin is so… rubbish. You have a funny dialect.”Somewhat offended, you explain that you have grown up in Gaul with a Gaulish/Roman family.“That explains why. But anyway, I needed to see you for a reason.”Continue

A PRESENT“Since you’ve stopped those weird people from killing my divine self, you deserve a present.”Knowing Caligula, it would probably be getting thrown off the top of a cliff.“So do you want a present?”“Uh… Ita vero, I suppose.” “Minime. It’s alright.”

CHOOSING YOUR PRESENT“Since I’m the Emperor and everything, I can offer you a few choices. Take your pick of the best one out of these…”“You can have a seat next to me at the public execution of the Blue Horses.”“You can have a ride on my favourite consul, Incitatus.”“You can have a share of the Imperial Purse– how about 200,000 denarii a year?”“You can have a lovely villa overlooking the sea in the Bay of Neapolis.”“Or you can choose any of the Imperial family’s women to marry.”

DECLINE“You smelly little half-Gaul! How dare you reject a present from the Divine God Caligula Himself! Well you’ve got the tattoo of the Blue Horses, so I think I’m going to send you off for execution with them. Guards, take him away and lock him up with the rest of the cult!”You are grabbed by the ankles and hands and taken to the cells where the Blue Horses await execution. The next morning, you are thrown out into the middle of the amphitheatre, where the crowd execute the Blue Horses by chucking rocks and other items at you. A flaming ball of poo hits you on the head (thrown by the Emperor, actually) and your skull gets cracked open. You die in agony. Continue

THE EXECUTIONAs you walk into the amphitheatre where the Blue Horses are to be executed, a rock is placed in your hand by an attendant who tells you that you can throw it at the victims to kill them. When you take your seat in the Imperial box with Caligula, he greets you warmly. There is a basket of objects in front of you and you are allowed to pelt the Blue Horses with them when the time comes.When the victims come out onto the sand, you grab a rock and hurl it at the High Priest. You miss, so you pick up an old discus and get it in the side of his neck. Then Caligula grabs a ball of animal poo, sets in on fire with a flaming torch and throws it into the arena with shocking speed. You laugh as it splatters all over the sands, and are happy that this whole trip went OK. Finish

INCITATUSYou sit on the horse and start to ride. Thankfully, your years of experience pay off and you race around the field, the Emperor (who’s riding with you on a horse called Turdus– meaning ‘thrush’ in Latin, you’re told) lagging behind. Suddenly, he pulls out a bow and arrow and, with precise aim, shoots you in the back of the neck. You fall off the horse, get trampled and die. Continue

RICHESYou jump at the chance to be 200,000 denarii better off every year. True, it’s about what you earn for a good case, but from the Emperor, it seems a lot better.Sadly, after your first payment, you are required to pay extra taxes in excess of 1,000,000 denarii every year– a cruel trick from Caligula, you assume.Your money supply becomes lower and lower and you are forced to earn a living as a gladiator. In your first match, you are killed within a minute by a sword thrust to the genitals. Continue

THE BAY OF NEAPOLISYou are glad to be living in such a wonderful house. Every day you wake up and make an offering to your lares– your household gods– who include Cardea (goddess of hinges), Penates (god of cupboards), Robigus (god of mildew), and of course Caligula, who you’ve set up a little temple for next to your house. After his out-of-character kindness, you’ve grown to worship him as the god he claims to be.One day, as you sit outside, looking at the mountain in the distance, you are happy you solved the case of the Blue Horses.Finish

YOUR NEW WIFEIn the end, you decide on a lovely girl called Agrippina, who turns out to be a loving wife. You live for a very long time together and have lots of children: Marcus, Julius, Lucretia Major, Lucretia Minor, Titus, Lucius and Brutus.When the children grow up, they decide they hate their father and poison him with hemlock. Continue

THE ENDCongratulations, you have brought the Blue Horses to justice and survived your time in Rome (and Caligula’s possibly fatal present). If you want to play again, click on the right link, or click on the other to finish.Iterum! That was fun! I’m off. See you later!

VALE!The game has now ended for you, Q. Lucretius Vespillo. Rome wishes you a fond farewell and hopes that you will come back and once more be The Toga Detective.

The End(Click again to end the slideshow.)