Jack-of-Smiles

"Jack-of-Smiles. The murderous buffoon, plaything of the press, and London's most notorious killer."

Jack-of Smiles is London's most prolific serial killer.

Let's Get Stabby

"Jack-of-Smiles, Fallen London's premier lunatic murderer, has been known to hide inside snowmen until passersby come within reach. 'We award this exploit three marks of ten,' the Magazine Formerly Known As The London Magazine opines. 'Smiles' exploits increasingly tend more to the novel than the genuinely ghoulish.'"

Jack-of-Smiles began his killing spree roughly 20 years ago, around the 1880s, but wasn't given that infamous moniker until a decade later. The name stemmed from his grisly habit of slashing throats and his unsettling, humorless demeanor. Jack has captured both the press and public imagination, inspiring a wealth of literature. Writers who craft sufficiently ghoulish tales of his exploits even receive a personal token of appreciation from Jack himself. However, it's more likely the work of an admirer rather than the killer himself.

The knives Jack uses are cheap, varied in form and material. He primarily hunts in the poorer districts—Spite, dim alleyways, near flophouses, from wanted posters and anywhere suitably disreputable. He has been confronted and stopped numerous times by brave citizens and furious mobs. Hunting Jack has even become a grim pastime. Still, he continues to haunt the city.

Whether this persistence is due to multiple people assuming the role or because the personality of Jack somehow jumps between bodies remains unknown. One thing is certain: Jack does not appreciate being called 'Smiles.' He avoids open confrontation, fleeing when faced with direct resistance, yet he takes revenge on those who vex him—by targeting their friends and family. Though commonly referred to with masculine pronouns, Jack has been known to take female forms, though less frequently.

His combat prowess and agility vary; sometimes he is a skilled and formidable foe, while other times he is dispatched with relative ease. Some accounts even suggest he appears in multiple locations simultaneously. Victims who have been "Jackified"—those overtaken by his influence—can sometimes recover. Some recall little of their time as Jack, while others regain their memories with time.

The constabulary has battled Jack-of-Smiles for years, with 37 investigators assigned to his case—only for all of them to eventually become Jack themselves. The devils, well-versed in the marks left on a soul by violence, claim that the Jacks they have captured and abstracted bear no such stain. Whatever causes people to become Jack leaves no physical trace on the body either.

Who is Jack?

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"It's the knives. Jack's in the knives."

Jack is not a single person but a set of sentient, bloodthirsty Polythremean knives. These knives share a single, relentless personality. Anyone who wields one becomes increasingly violent until their own mind is entirely consumed by the knife’s will.

The origin of these cursed blades lies in a failed scheme by Mr Spices, one of the Masters of the Bazaar. Spices sought to create more "flavorful" love stories for the Bazaar, but the plan failed—the Bazaar does not accept artificially manufactured tales of love. To execute the scheme, Spices tricked a man in Polythreme into consuming a special brand of honey that allowed the Master to communicate with him through dreams. Spices convinced the man that his wife was unfaithful. Enraged, the man dreamed of burning down his town; in his honey-mazed state, he had done so in reality.

The Jack knives were forged in an ironworker’s shop that perished in that very fire. The murderous passion that fueled the inferno warped the workshop itself, and every knife forged there emerged imbued with an insatiable thirst for blood. Though Spices' original plan failed, Jack’s resulting infamy proved useful—so the Master allowed, and even encouraged, Jack to persist.

Historical & Cultural Inspirations

Jack-of-Smiles is inspired by Jack the Ripper, the unidentified serial killer who terrorized London’s Whitechapel district in 1888. The Ripper’s victims were primarily impoverished women, many of whom were sex workers in the East End. His murders were particularly gruesome, involving deep throat slashes and severe abdominal mutilations, leaving behind scenes of shocking brutality.

The horror of these crimes gripped Victorian society, and more than a century later, the mystery still captivates the public. Sensationalized media coverage at the time not only fueled widespread fear but also transformed the Ripper into a grim cultural figure. While the murders were undeniably tragic, they became a tool for reformers to highlight issues of poverty, crime, and the failures of law enforcement in London’s most vulnerable communities.

The Ripper’s identity remains one of history’s most infamous unsolved mysteries, spawning a dedicated subculture of amateur criminologists known as "Ripperologists." These enthusiasts meticulously analyze evidence, theories, and suspects, keeping the case alive through endless speculation. Over the years, the Ripper’s story has been adapted into countless books, films, and television series, securing his place as a dark but enduring cultural icon.