Dark Continent Redux: The Last Bridge

Dark Continent Redux

A Fantasy Core Adventure

© Jerry Harris 2016

Published here as Open Game Content.

(This link will take you to the Fantasy Core Playtest Rules.)

Dark Continent Index

Interior Index

The Last Bridge

No doubt the Players are wondering about their mission.  “What about our next contact?”  “Are we going in the right direction?”  “What’s going on?”  At least, the Characters will now all be fully healed and well-provisioned the next day (give each 2 full Healing potions, 5 days rations, and a waterskin).     

At dawn, they’re personally roused by Colonel Killgore for a little hike.  The river isn’t navigable further up river.  Four hours away by portage path from Inner Station is the narrowest, shallowest part of the river, which is next to Leon Falls.  There is a nearly ruined bridge and two small forts on either side of it, Forts Stanley and Livingston.  Fort Stanley is on the Characters’ side of the river and is still being held.  The Fort Livingston, on the other side, has been abandoned for the moment.   

During the trip, Killgore will be constantly chatting to the Characters.  “You hero boys faced down a dragon?  I love the smell of dragon breath in the morning.  It really clears up the sinuses.”  He’ll pepper them with questions about their adventures, what they’re doing in Africannes, and “What’s this Kurtz fellow like?  I’ve never actually met the man, but I’m sure he’s magnificent if half of what I’ve heard about him is true.”  Play up that the Commander is not only nuts, but he’s also a fanboy of Kurtz.  (You really should watch Apocalypse Now for help in setting the tone for this scene.) 

No doubt the Players will likely be looking for some means of escape from this chicken outfit.  Unfortunately, they are surrounded by 50 extremely wary troops and are travelling through deep, uncivilized jungle, so desertion is not a wise idea.  If they’re getting truly uncomfortable, you’re doing your job correctly, but you might give them a wink, letting them know this situation isn’t going to be lasting long.   

The Commander and his troops arrive at the fort with the characters in tow.  The troops being relieved are completely shell-shocked from constant attacks.  The Commander’s first task, as he sees it, is to re-take the fort on the other side of the river.  He’ll order a two-pronged frontal assault over the bridge and fording the river at its lowest point.  The troops already at the keep will strongly advise against it (“That’s native territory, sir.  We can’t hold it.”), but he’ll only chastise them for not doing it themselves (“It’s our damn river, son.  It’s already ours!”). 

If the Characters ask around among the local troops about Kurtz (or more likely the troops will ask them about him, hearing from Killgore that they know him), they know that Kurtz is somewhere in the Interior.  Sergeant Randal knows the landscape fairly well.  The only way to get on the trail to Kurtz’s plantation is to get up the Falls and hook up with a friendly native tribe.  However, at the top of the Falls is an old native temple held by unfriendly natives and lead by (slight quiver in his voice) “some demon creatures.”  There is a narrow portage path up the side of the Falls on the other side of the river.  It’s suicide to try it.  There is also a hidden tunnel behind the Falls that leads up to the temple.  It’s guarded by something dangerous.  There’s also another option, which the Sergeant doesn’t know about, that we’ll discuss shortly.

The Colonel asks for volunteers to join him on a recon of Fort Livingston before the attack.  In other words, he orders the Characters to escort him and his guards and personal staff.  If the Players are smart, they’ll recognize this as a great opportunity to escape.  The party will ford the river.  It’s only ankle deep here.  Large stones on the bottom make the crossing fairly easy.  The guards are alert, the aides nervous, and the Characters bewildered, as Killgore strides in front of them, certain of impending victory.        

[This map works for either of the forts.]

The front gate of the small fort has been smashed open.  The inner bailey is partly submerged from a flash flood of the river during the initial attack upon it.  Everything is ominously quiet within.  The keep itself is actually nearly deserted, but for a few dead bodies floating in the water.  Seeing it deserted, Killgore will want to start moving troops over at once and attack the temple at the Falls tomorrow.  Then there is a series of high-pitched shrieks outside overhead.

If you own a copy of Ride of Valkrieyes, this is where to start the music.  Taking off from the top of the Falls, a squadron of 30 red-eyed Chimp-men riding giant bats attack the other fort.  They begin firebombing the battlements with primitive Molotov Cocktails and then dive crapping it for good measure.  A large force of 100 red-eyed Ape-men comes howling down the stone steps of the portage path beside the Falls.  They charge across the low part of the river and begin a frontal attack on Fort Stanley.  Colonel Killgore is flabbergasted.  He and his men begin running for the other Fort.  He tells the Characters to hold this position in a rearguard action and to await reinforcements.  At this point, the Characters are finally back on their own. 

Though investigating Fort Livingston was the trigger for the attack, the flooded keep is actually fairly safe from it.  There aren’t enough troops there to bother attacking it.  How the battle goes on the other side of the river is irrelevant to the Characters’ mission.  They may choose to wait it out, join the battle, or perhaps (hopefully) try to find a way up the waterfall to get to the temple.  While they’re deciding, mention that 6 of the Giant Bats will lose their riders and decide to rest on the fort’s towers.  They seem docile enough and have riding harnesses attached to them.  Hmm.  

[You’re wondering why I’m not providing stats for Killgore (8^th level Knight, by the way) and didn’t key the fort map (which was reused from another adventure I’ve posted and isn’t even original either).  Simply, this is a cut-scene encounter.  You’re free to key the map, which is why it’s included.  Perhaps stock some undead troops inside and a few Ape-men and Chimp-men (stats follow in the next encounter) and let the Characters earn a couple of cheap XP.]