We tend to do things… differently… here at Ravenwood Castle. I think it’s part of our charm. You may think we’re just crazy. Who knows, maybe we’re both right!

One of the many things we do differently are our Murder Mystery Weekends.  We often have people ask what’s so special about our mysteries.  They wonder why guests get so excited about them, and why they tend to sell out so quickly.  In most cases, these people have a picture in mind when they hear “Murder Mystery”.  They may be thinking of something out of a box containing a few clue cards, a fake police report and perhaps a character card or two; or they may be picturing a cast of actors putting on a play over dinner.

Remember when I said we do things differently?  Yeah, our Murder Mystery Weekends are nothing like that.  First of all, they are weekends.  This isn’t a four hour dinner mystery.  When you attend one of our events, the mystery starts at dinner Friday night and the final clues aren’t wrapped up until breakfast on Sunday.  The intervening 40 hours or so are filled with activity.  You will be gathering evidence, searching for clues, solving puzzles, making dead drops, avoiding the killer (unless you ARE the killer!), and a myriad of other activities that you just can’t fit in a box.

Another thing that won’t fit in a box is the nice Mr. Denham and the Shadow Stalkers.  (We know, we’ve tried… )  They are the engine behind these mystery events.  They write the story for each murder mystery, create the puzzles, facilitate the team activities, bring their own skeleton, and generally ensure that everyone is following Rule Number One – You are here to have FUN!

But the Shadow Stalkers aren’t presenting the mystery.  They’re not actors delivering dialogue.  That’s on you, the guests and members of the Ravenwood Detective Agency.  You see, that’s the final and most important part of our events – YOU.  You as a group bring the fun, and you as a group drive the weekend.  You can create your own character, bring life to a character suggested by the Shadow Stalkers, or just be yourself.  Wear a costume if you’d like. (Why yes, that IS a Starfleet officer sharing a table with a pirate in the picture below.  Why do you ask?)  It’s all up to you, as long as you obey Rule Number One – You are here to have FUN!

But don’t take my word for it, come on out and see for yourself!  We already have a full roster for our next three murder mystery events (Night of the Living Dead, Night of the Living Dead Encore and From Ravenwood With Love) but we still have a few spots left for January’s Young Frankenshteen Murder Mystery.

And be sure to keep your eyes peeled here on Quoth the Raven.  It’s no mystery that we will be putting on more of these events, and as always we’ll announce them here first.

Jim Reed

Jim Reed is a lifelong gamer who started with the original red box Dungeons & Dragons. After spending 20 years in the corporate world, he decided it was high time that work be fun and struck out on his own. Jim now owns and operates Ravenwood Castle, and spends his days ensuring his guests have as much fun as he does.