Overview
A working-class tavern and lodging house on the Taborstrasse in the Leopoldstadt district, across the Donaukanal from Vienna’s inner city. The Black Bear is the kind of establishment that asks no questions and charges by the week. It serves watered beer, cheap sausage, and indifference.
The Bauer brothers — Klaus and Werner — lodge here in a second-floor room overlooking the street. They drink in the common room most evenings. The tavern is their base of operations for Brotherhood work: body procurement, intimidation, and the assassination of Colonel Moreau.
Physical Description
A narrow four-storey building wedged between a chandler’s shop and a pawnbroker. The ground floor is the tavern — low-ceilinged, smoky, lit by tallow candles. A wooden bar runs along the back wall. Six tables, most occupied by labourers, canal workers, and men who don’t want to be asked what they do. A steep staircase at the back leads to the lodging rooms above.
Ground Floor (Tavern):
- Common room seats roughly thirty
- Bar with a surly proprietor (unnamed — develop if needed)
- Rear door to a narrow yard with a privy and a gate onto a back alley
- The Bauers’ usual table is in the far corner, backs to the wall, with sightlines to both the front door and the staircase
Second Floor:
- Four lodging rooms, rented by the week
- The Bauers occupy Room 3 — a cramped space with two cots, a washstand, and a locked trunk containing their payment from the Brotherhood (approximately 200 gulden in mixed coin), a set of grave-robbing tools, and a bloodstained coat that Werner has not bothered to clean since the Moreau killing
- The corridor is narrow and creaks badly — Stealth (Hard) to move without alerting occupants
Upper Floors:
- Third and fourth floors house other tenants — canal workers, a journeyman cobbler, a woman who may be a prostitute. None of them want trouble and none of them will talk to strangers.
Approach and Surveillance
The Taborstrasse is busy during the day — foot traffic, carts, market stalls. The Black Bear is easy to approach without attracting attention during daylight hours.
At night, the street is quieter but not empty. The Donaukanal bridge crossing is the main route from the inner city — the Bauers would see anyone crossing on foot if they happened to be watching from their window.
Surveillance Options:
- The pawnbroker next door has a first-floor window with a direct view of the Black Bear’s entrance. A bribe or a cover story might gain access.
- The back alley can be reached via the chandler’s yard. The privy gate is not locked.
- The common room is the simplest option — go in, order a drink, and watch. The Bauers are not subtle men and they are not expecting to be watched.
The Bauers’ Routine
- Mornings: Sleep late. Rarely visible before noon.
- Afternoons: Out on Brotherhood business — deliveries, surveillance, occasional intimidation work. Their movements are irregular.
- Evenings (from ~7 PM): In the common room, drinking. Klaus is the quieter of the two. Werner is louder, argumentative, and drinks more. They leave the common room around 11 PM and go upstairs.
- They do not go out at night unless specifically tasked by Brotherhood contacts. They are not night workers by habit.
Connections
- NPCs: Klaus Bauer, Werner Bauer
- Related Locations: Anna Lindqvist’s apartment (site of Moreau’s murder)
- Intelligence Source: Leopold Fischbein provides the location to Freddy Cavendish at the Session 8 masquerade