Good day, Guardsman! A critical part of your job is using your Guardsman Toolkit™ to its full potential. These tools come to us thanks to the amazing magical and technological advances happening in the Sprawl today! The Council wants to make sure you are well versed in the ‘ins and outs’ of these powerful items in order to keep all of the Sprawl safe through your diligent work at the castle gates.
– From the desk of Councilwoman Ashe
Hey Lil –
“Magical and technological advances” my arse! We get the mages guild’s hand-me-downs and whatever scavenged tech the dwarves can’t sell to private collections. They do the trick, though, especially if you can afford to upgrade them and keep them loaded with good crystals (don’t get me started on the low-budget, yellow ones). This is the most sentences I’ve written since my guardsman exam. Love you lots kiddo. See you down at the pub after your first shift!
Love, Dad.
____
In Lil’ Guardsman you’ll use a handful of tools to interrogate a cavalcade of fun and weird characters trying to gain entry to The Sprawl. You have three action points to use in each interrogation, which can be spent talking (and then responding with trust/doubt/tease), calling one of the advisors, or using one of your tools. Often, a perfect 4-star result is only possible if you use the perfect tool for the situation, so here is a breakdown of your arsenal as you prepare to embark upon Lil’ Guardsman.
DECODER RING
In your work as a castle guardsman, you will be presented with letters, permits, and many other kinds of documents. If you think there might be more than meets the eye, it’s best to use the Decoder Ring.
Although its magic is a few generations out of date, your decoder ring sure comes in handy when you’re going cross-eyed trying to work out something in code. From simple substitution ciphers to complex foreign languages, this user-friendly finger shackle is sure to satisfy. To use the Decoder Ring, simply TObhogHWqxCP the QgMvwuGVWv IuYeLDan, then UiTkwtuQaiJm the eaNGULffbA and enjoy!
X-Ray
While working a shift down at the guardshed, there is often more than meets the eye. Get a closer look at who’s coming through the gate with your X-RAY machine. Peel back the layers of clothing, flesh and bone standing between you and your would-be visitor.
Excerpt taken from the research notes of Dr. Beatrix Von Matterhorn:
“The X-Ray model that is now standard issue as part of the Guardsman Toolkit uses technology created by the mad gnomish inventor Gunther Thrax. While generally very useful, the gnome seems to have had a hatred for trolls, which he seems to have built into the workings of all of his inventions. Avoid using on trolls – field research of the device has demonstrated FATAL consequences for trollish test subjects.”
Truth Spray
You gotta love a tool that does exactly what it says on the bottle: spray this at someone at the gate, and they are gonna tell you the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. How’s it made? We are keeping our mouths shut. But suffice to say: it works.
Bullwhip
When a problem comes along, you don’t HAVE to whip it, but you certainly can! Although it lacks the technological or magical heft of some of the other tools, the bullwhip is refreshingly simple to use. Grip the handle with a firm hand, pull your arm back and let fly! Guardsmen aren’t generally encouraged to whip people willy-nilly, but sometimes it’s the best tool for the job!
Metal Detector
Timeless. Classic. The original guardsman tool. The metal detector is as useful today as ever at finding out what someone’s got on them. So long as it’s made of metal. Use this tool and fill your pockets with coins, weapons, and any other metallic contraptions you may find on people arriving at the Sprawl.
P.S. “Guardsmen are expressly forbidden from stealing from visitors coming to the Sprawl.” – Captain of the Guard, Lt. Stryker
P.P.S. “What the eye don’t see, the chef gets away with…if you catch my drift” – Malcolm, Court Jester to the Stars
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How to Power Tools: Crystals
Guardsmen receive their sanctioned allotment of crystals every shift. Due to budget cutbacks, you will not receive enough crystals to power each tool, so make good choices with your loadout. However, you can procure your own extra crystals, as well as upgrade the capacity of each tool.
Good luck, keep striving for 4-star results, and keep the Sprawl safe!
We hope you are excited for Lil’ Guardsman’s full release. In the meantime there are a few things you can do:
◦ Wishlist Lil’ Guardsman on Steam
◦ Join our community on Discord
◦ Follow our socials for news, behind-the-scenes content & more
◦ Tag us on socials when you post about Lil’ Guardsman
💜 GLHF,
Versus Evil Community Manager – Rezza/Sydney