Wednesday, April 13, 2016

Dark Continent Redux: Amusements/Afterward

Dark Continent Redux
A Fantasy Core Adventure
© Jerry Harris 2016
(This link will take you to the Fantasy Core Playtest Rules.)




Amusements
The Guff offers the Characters free room and board at the Inn in the meantime.  While they’re waiting, the group should have several options for finding trouble.  On some level, these are all optional.  Certainly the Players should have the option of turning these down (definitely the Bounty Hunters encounter).  Feel free to disregard these, change them, or add to them.


Fight Night
1 XP for any takers that survive.  2 XP for killing Immortal.

A bright idea of the Colonel.  He’ll even invite them that night to witness a fight.  A captured member of the Demon Host is being held in a pit-fighting arena.  He has this interesting ability to come back to life if killed.  After strongly restraining him with ankle chains, the Colonel has all comers to try their luck at killing him. 

It’s a 100 GP prize, but the contenders are only allowed in one at a time, but anything else goes.  It’s 10 GP to enter.  You have to kill him to claim the prize money.  If the contestant cries for help, soldiers will charge in to save them.  There have only been a couple of accidental fatalities.  

Immortal (Restrained)
HD 5 (d12), Hp 60, AC 10
Fort +9, Ref +0, Will +5
Melee: 2 x Punch +9 to hit 1d8+4
Special Defense: If reduced to 0 Hp, after 2 rds, Immortal comes back to life with full Hp.  Knocking him past the -10 hp limit is the only way to finish him.
Special Weakness: Immortal is completely helpless for those 2 rds when killed and can be restrained or otherwise creatively dealt with.        
Description: Powerfully built unarmed man.


Bounty Hunters
1 XP for putting down these losers.

The nearly famous Eldorado Exploration Company frequents the Inn.  They are looking for some muscle to check out a possible gold deposit to claim it and approach the Characters.  They are offering a 50% share of any loot.  This may not interest them, but their Captain, Marr, mentions that they think it’s a stash stolen by one of “Those Demon creatures.”  “They’ve got unnatural powers and are scary as hell.”  This might get their attention. 

About an hour outside of the town in the jungle, the Characters and the Mercenaries come to a small set of falls with a cave behind them.  Marr will want to the split the groups to attack from either side.  At this point, the Players will likely begin to argue.  Whether or not the Characters go along with it, the Mercs will make their move to sneak attack them. 

If these guys actually manage to kill (or if you’re feeling ambitious in setting up this encounter, capture) any of the Characters, they’ll immediately make a run for it.  More likely, these cretins are going to get slaughtered, in which case they’ll run if two or more are killed.  [The group may be meeting any survivors later.]  The possible permutations of this encounter are rather varied.  You’ll just have to wing it.  If asked (or as a death speech), Marr will say that his group is after the bounty on the group’s heads.  He received the offer from a Demon Host member (Immortal, before he was captured).  Marr doesn’t know anything about Kurtz’s betrayal.   

4 Merc’s (Ham, Ernie, Dude, Boo) Equivalent to Commonwealth Sgt’s
Merc Wizard (Kade) Equivalent to an Arcane Specialist
Merc Captain (Marr) Equivalent to Commonwealth Lt.


Showgirls
2 XP for stopping the girls and Immortal.

A traveling girlie show comes to town.  (WTF!)  They have been invited in by the idiot Colonel and are promoted to the Characters by him.  (He’s not working for the enemy.  He just isn’t taking the rebellion seriously.)  This is, of course, a rouse by the Demon Host to break out Immortal.  The girls will be putting on an artistic strip show next to the arena.  At some point, Gunpowder will detonate several mouse bombs in the crowd, scattering the large assembly.  With Snake Woman covering her, she’ll blow open the gates of the arena, and then blow up Immortal’s manacles, freeing him.  Next, she’ll give him his armored sleeves.  Finally, the two women will join hands with Immortal and teleport away. 

Of course, this all assumes that the Characters aren’t there and don’t interfere.  This is primarily a rescue mission, but they’ll both stop and fight as needed.  Certainly, they’ll prioritize freeing Immortal to help.  If they group teleport, they’ll go last in the rd and won’t attack.  [What happens if they get away?  Good question.  They’ll show up again up river in the worst possible situation.]
After this encounter, the group should be looking forward to getting back on the trail.   

Gunpowder
HD 5 (d6), Hp 20, AC 14, Enhanced Init +4
Fort +1, Ref +5, Will +1
Melee: None
Ranged: Small Bomb +9 to hit 1d10 + Stun 1 rd.
Spray: Once per encounter, Gunpowder can spray everyone in S range with powder.  The next rd, she lights a match and sets it off for 2d10 + Stun 1 rd for everyone hit with powder.
Bomb: Gunpowder typically starts off combat with a rat bomb that causes 2d10 damage + Stun 1 rd to all in S range.  It takes 2 rds for the rat to get into position before going off (AC 18, Hp 1, Saves +0). 
Special Weakness: Getting wet prevents her gunpowder from going off.  Takes double damage from fire and will explode for 2d10 + Stun 1 rd to all in S range if she takes 10 fire damage in 1 rd.
Teleport Contingency: Upon being reduced to 10 or less hp, getting wet, or catching fire, Gunpowder teleports away on her turn.  Her Hp will be healed for next meeting.
Description: Tall, skinny woman wearing a feathered cloak with a wide-brimmed hat.

Snake Woman
HD 5 (d6), Hp 30, AC 14, Enhanced Init +4
Fort +4, Ref +5, Will +1
Melee: Snake Swarm +5 to hit 1d4 x 4 + DC 12 Fort Sv or poisoned 1 hr (0 Ability Bonuses), cured with DC 18 Healing skill or magical healing.
Ranged: Fling Snake +9 to hit, 1d6 + DC 12 Fort Sv or poisoned 1 hr (0 Ability Bonuses), S.  Cured with DC 18 Healing skill or magical healing.
Special Defense: Can create a Cast off skin decoy once per encounter after her turn in combat.  It is destroyed on any hit.  Snake Woman can reappear anywhere in the immediate area after doing so, preferring to hit attackers from behind. 
Teleport Contingency: Upon being reduced to 10 or less hp, Snake Woman teleports away on her turn.  Her Hp will be healed for next meeting.
Description: Beautiful naked woman with snakes coming out of various orifices.  (If you haven’t seen the anime movie, Ninja Scroll, this description probably won’t make any sense.)

Immortal (Unrestrained)
HD 5 (d12), Hp 60, AC 18 (Armored arms), Enhanced Init +4
Fort +9, Ref +5, Will +5
Melee: 2 x Punch +9 to hit 1d8+4
Special Defense: If reduced to 0 Hp, after 2 rds, Immortal comes back to life with full Hp.  Knocking him past the -10 hp limit is the only way to finish him.
Special Weakness: Immortal is completely helpless for those 2 rds when killed and can be restrained or otherwise creatively dealt with.        
Description: Powerfully built unarmed man with armored sleeves.


Afterward

Maddox will send word to the Characters after two days that he’s ready to leave as soon as they’re ready.  Guffey will meet with the Characters on the dock (certainly they should be looking for him before they leave) and give the group their next contact, Captain Verity.  She’s in charge of a small military galley that patrols around Inner Station.  She can set them up with a trusted native tribe, who can take them into the Interior, somewhere close to Kurtz.  He has a barrel of the Dagger Inn’s best beer put aboard for them and the crew’s enjoyment.   

No comments:

Post a Comment