So I shared on a Facebook Group the set of campaign diaries I’ve been doing with this game and thought I’d share them here as well and also get everyone else’s input. We play every fortnight on Friday and the game has shifted from concentrating on a single group of 4-5 people to becoming almost a “West Marches” type of campaign where everyone is part of the same world and crew but each session is a single episode “score”.
The group has decided to be a bunch of Smugglers (their name didn’t come until after Session 2, they are known as the Unionizers of Illicit Goods). Started off with the standard scenario but changed that the leader of the Crows had mysteriously disappeared rather than murdered. Group consists (currently) of The Whisper, The Cutter, The Slide, The Leech, The Hound, The Spider.
Session 1- The Clearwater Affair
Made a map of the manor and discovered that although useful, was ultimately just too irrelevant for the players since many of the rooms weren’t used. They used a two prong approach to get into the manor while a party was happening, front group distracted guards with a deception plan while the back group used stealth to go into the cellar. Deception was good outcome while Stealth was a mixed outcome. During the party an “annoying college girl” came upon the Leech, when she pulled him into the library he attempted to leave. Made a bargain that the Leech would have to state to her that he was there with his the Slide in a relationship with him he wanted an additional die to get out of there, he took the bargain. Mixed result, he was able to get out of there but the college girl revealed herself to be a member of the Forgotten Gods, a group the Leech had done a lecture about disproving their gods. Leech and Slide were in the papers for saving Lady Clearwater, upping the group’s notoriety just a bit… Overall the score was a success as the players did try to get a hold of what to do in the game, they are slowly getting their toes wet with the new system.
World Clocks: Lampblacks (Destroy Red Sashes [1/8]), Red Sashes (Destroy Lampblacks [1/8]), Crows (Restablish Control of the District [1/6]), The Unseen (Infiltrate Spirit Wardens [2/8])
Session 2- The Dockmaster’s Removal
Amy has left the game making it a 4 player game now. This week the scoundrels had to break into a warehouse and remove the Dockmaster in order to get a friendly Dockmaster for their client installed. Dockmaster is in the pocket of House Maroden (the Slide’s family who threw him out of their house). Group split up again: Assault on front was Good Outcome, Stealth on the roof was Mixed Outcome. Stealth group dropped stealth after failing to get inside by grenading the room the Dockmaster and her Bodyguard Carissa Keel. The assault in the front was TOO successful, the Cutter convinced Dockworkers to rebel against the Dockmaster and they successfully took over the Warehouse. The Cutter is now deemed to be the leader of a worker’s rebellion [will incorporate the goals of “The Lost” into this now]. Dockmaster is actually a vampire; the Whisper learned this the hard way when she attempted to resist a bite only to gain a trauma. Dockmaster was killed by the Cutter. Cutter and Whisper stayed behind to speak with the Spirit Wardens. Slide and Lurch kidnapped Carissa. Crew got two new cohorts (Carissa and Union Dock Workers) and changed their reputation from Professional to Ambitious. Slide used his true name in order to gain leverage in the situation, House Maroden will remember this…
World Clocks: Lampblacks [2/8], Red Sashes [2/8], Crows [3/6], The Unseen [3/8], The Hive (Dominate Contraband Market [2/6]), The Lost (Destroy Cruel Workhouses [2/8]), Worker’s Revolution [3/12], House Maroden (Discover who was behind the warehouse break-in [1/6]
Session 3- The Egg in the Crow’s Nest
Bob missed the session, playing with 3 players for this one. Group wanted to do a job for The Hive and were tasked with smuggling IN a package (they weren’t supposed to open) into the room of Bliss, a lieutenant for Belden (current second in command). Used two prong approach to enter the Nest: Cutter and the Union Dock Workers Assaulted the front with Mixed Outcome (had the Red Sashes infilitrate this group before they went in; Cutter successfully had Red Sash members join in assault), Whisper & Lurch used a spirit door and key to go Sealth onto the roof with Mixed Outcome (vengeful spirit came out of door and began killing Crow members). Cutter fights his way through the first floor, discovers Bliss might be his missing younger brother (turned sister). Leech failed Study check and became high for most of the Score. Whisper was successful in catching the vengeful spirit. Leech and Whisper hear rustling in Bliss’ room, they gas the room with a high concentration of Drowning Powder; almost killing Lyssa who was going through Bliss’ room. Cutter knocks out Bliss successfully and intends to interrogate them during downtime. Leech and Whisper save Lyssa’s life and are able to successfully leave the box behind. For Entanglement they got “Demonic Notice”, I will have to think of a very good dark offer for the group.
World Clocks: Lampblacks [4/8], Red Sashes [4/8], Crows [3/6] (lowered their Tier level by 1 due to score and removed all of their progress on this clock due to successful score), The Unseen [5/8], The Hive [3/6], The Lost [3/8], Worker’s Revolution [4/12], House Maroden [2/6]
Session 4- Returning the Bees to The Hive
Bob missed the session again. Calvin’s friend Gabe has joined in as The Hound. Dark Offer was for the group to ultimately overthrow the government entities of Duskwall. In exchange all members were given access to a special move called The Devil’s Influence (Once per score, each crew member may reroll any number of dice in a single roll. Be wary, the Devil always remembers when his influence is used.) The crew has decided to stake their claims with The Hive, Hive has asked them to help smuggle and transport two of their own (Mara and Naria) from Ironhook Prison. Crew decides to do another two prong approach: Occult for the Whisper and Cutter to knock down part of the spirit barrier around the was met with mixed Outcome they decided to let the planned small portion of the barrier be cut for an unspecified amount of time. Transport for the Hound and The Leech had a mixed result. The Hound had to knock out a guard for the prison in order to get to their location and pick up Mara and Naria. Ultimately this lead to a car chase through the streets of Duskwall where The Hound and The Leech threw grenades, live owls, and fired guns to get rid of their tail. Cutter & Whisper bumped into an old enemy of the Whisper’s from their Cipher days. Tried to get away via Spirit Door and Key only to wind up in a realm where Whisper’s enemy Nyryx (a possession ghost) trapped them. Cutter and Whisper are successful in capturing Nyryx and escape into the night. The spirit barrier around Dunslough Ghetto is still down.
World Clocks: Lampblacks [6/8], Red Sashes [5/8], Crows [4/6], The Unseen [7/8], The Hive [5/6], The Lost [5/8], Worker’s Revolution [5/12], House Maroden [3/6], Ironhook Prison (Discover who was behind the prison break [2/6], Dunslough Barrier Closed [2/4], Dunslough Ghetto Abandoned [3/6], Dimmer Sisters (Dominate Spirit Trade) [4/6] {Catch Up w/ 3 Rolls}
Session 5- A Wild Night at the Wild Ingot
The Slide and The Cutter could not make it tonight. Introduced The Spider to the crew. Her introduction and the resolution of downtime did take about 90 minutes, but it was fine. We learned about Skovland Potatoes and the importance of making proper Potato Vodka (our version of Skovland is just going off the rails). The Whisper and The Hunter both overindulged on their vices… Whisper was brought in for questioning pertaining to the part of the barrier in Dunslough being brought down, she tried to be clever by telling me that one of the Spirit Wardens that interrogated her is the same one that questioned her when she was bit by a vampire. I let it happen…at a cost. I started a 6-step clock that read “Soul Corruption” and marked it forward with one box. She was very happy about finding a loophole and amused as to the cost…there is always a cost (She knew I was gonna use the vampire bite at some point in the future, she didn’t expect it to be this way. Later she called me a “magnificent bastard”, music to my ears). Gabe the Hunter overindulged with his family and was brought upon demonic notice, the rifle his father had given him is actually possessed and has requested that he kill a person that was thought to have disappeared but is actually alive. The only person who might know this is their prisoner, Bliss. Who could also be Brandon’s sister…the race for those two will be on as to who will be able to question Bliss first.
The score this time was to steal some vital information about The Unseen’s efforts into infiltrating the Spirit Wardens (their clock is now 7/8). For tonight they are in a fancy inn and bar for the higher class where the information is located behind a vault on the third floor. They decided to use The Spider’s Social connections to get inside. Inevitably a bar fight nearly happens while The Whisper and The Spider went to the higher floors to find that information. The two of them are successful in using a flashback to time an electrical outage, forcing one of the two guards to check it out making their infiltration of the third floor easier. The Hound and The Leech decided to entertain everyone in the bar…had them put up coin for an interesting mini-game that they would have won had they not been so cocky (hubris brings everyone down). The Hound then uses the cover of darkness to get up to the third story; Hound sneaks past the remaining guard on the third story by edging himself off on his ledge, only to find himself inside of a room with a woman screaming her head off about this intruder. Said guard comes rushing in and is summarily killed by The Hound. I ask, “What do you do with this defenseless woman in her bed?” He responds, “I shoot her.” OOC everyone at the table was shocked by this. The Whisper spends more stress to temporarily use her key to become slightly incorporeal and enter the vault (she didn’t have the move, but it sounded like a good idea so I let her do a flashback). Only to get into a fight with a guard and for her to release a killing ghost she had smuggled in via Ghost Passage. Said ghost kills guard in room, they group is successful in finding only half of the documents pertaining to the Unseen’s efforts to infiltrate the Spirit Wardens and they had a ghost possess the big boss of the place…with seemingly unknown side-effects. For their downtime they went up a whole Tier (Now their Tier I) and they now have to deal with a rival…so many to choose from…
World Clocks: Lampblacks [8/8] {Red Sashes are successfully destroyed}, Red Sashes [6/8] {Now gone from the game}, Crows [6/6] {Went up a tier, now will concentrate on who hit their base}, The Unseen [3/8] {Successful Score removed progress from this clock}, The Hive [6/6] {Now in control of the contraband trade}, The Lost [5/8], Worker’s Revolution [5/12], House Maroden [6/6] {They know who is behind the Warehouse incident}; Ironhook Prison [5/6], Dunslough Barrier Closed [3/4], Dunslough Ghetto Abandoned [4/6], Dimmer Sisters [6/6] {Now Dominate the Spirit Trade}
At this point, there are so many lingering threads that I can tie together against this group…so much fun to decide how they’ll hang themselves.
