I’m running Legend of the Sky Raiders for my regular group. Last time was session #3, this is session #4.
The Travellers
Our players and their characters:
Jon is playing ex-Scout Timo Sosak 8A9B84 Age 38.
Terry is playing ex-space pirate Sir Sidderon Dubois 775ACC Age 34.
Thomas is playing drifter Felix "Dusty" Pygrin 478CB7 Age 34.
Tom is playing Zhodani prole Mustafa Lama Doka 586333 Age 38.
Alongside our heroes, I have six NPCs who are part of the party: Lorain Messandi (their patron), Drew Kensing (who fancies Lorain and whose dad financed the expedition), Tallia McKenzie (Lorain’s friend), Hal Lewis (a guide), the hovercraft drivers Dan and Kelli, and two unnamed support chaps.
Prepping the session
After session #3, the more I thought about what is coming up, the more I realised how much is actually missing from Legend of the Sky Raiders.
Stats for the natives: I mentioned in my earlier post that the adventure doesn’t provide much detail on the alien natives. But I’ve just realised it doesn’t even give them any stats or skills.
Maps: I can see I will need more maps. At least one more, possibly two and maybe even three. I have got my crayons out.
Yes, I can make this stuff up, but surely it should be in the adventure?
De-railroading and scenes
I’m trying not to railroad the PCs. The Travellers should be ambushed and captured as soon as they reach the archaeological dig. However, instead, I had them spot it (and human activity) from a distance so that they could plan what to do. I’m not ruling out their capture, but I don’t want it to be the fait accompli the adventure presumes.
I’ve also thought up a handful of scenes between the players and the NPCs, dropping in some of the things they need to hear.
Starting the session
It’s the end of day 6, and the Travellers are camped in a native village (Sanalaysa), trying to find out if there is a government spy. They decide to get people drunk to see if anyone reveals anything they shouldn’t. So we set up a task chain: Mustafa served alcoholic apple tea (Steward), Sir Sidderon encouraged everyone to drink (Carousing), while Dusty watched for skulduggery and deceit (Deception). They fail…
Scenes
- Their guide, Hal, told Sir Sidderon that he thinks the scout hovercraft has developed a whine.
- Drew told Dusty that he is ever so grateful for saving his life.
Day 7
Worried about the scout hovercraft, Timo spends all day looking at it and discovers the main rotor bearing was cracked and about to break. Had it happened while they were travelling, it could have been catastrophic. He can’t repair it out here, but he could probably swap a bearing over from the other hovercraft. Either way, they are one hovercraft down.
(Timo rolled snake eyes while trying to fix the problem… Rather than suggest he broke the bearing while trying to fix it, I suggested that the problem was much worse than anticipated.)
The Travellers elected to abandon the scout hovercraft. They can just about fit everyone into the other, larger hovercraft.
A second attempt to find a government spy fails. (I can’t exactly remember how they did this, just that it failed.)
Scenes
- Lorain Messandi (the Travellers’ employer) discussed the Sky Raiders with Timo.
- Kelli (one of the hovercraft drivers) told Mustafa that she had talked to the natives. It seems that natives will grow more hostile as they go deeper into the swamp. Apparently, the natives fear that humans will awaken ancient, terrible gods.
Day 8
The Travellers packed everything up into their remaining hovercraft and set off, finally leaving Sanalaysa. Their planned route took them around the site of activity and into the jungle so they could approach it from cover.
Entering the jungle, they encountered their first hostile native village—angry natives firing arrows at them. An hour or so later, they encountered a pair of bear-sized carnivores trying to shake something loose in a tree. It’s a lone native.
The bear-sized carnivores were no match for the Travellers’ high-tech weaponry, and they rescued the native, who was very grateful and told them about the "Strangers from Beyond" who caused great destruction before disappearing underground, where they wait sleeping. The jungle natives believe that humans are harbingers of the Strangers from Beyond – and must be driven off. (Hence their hostility.)
The native told the Travellers about a ruined city (Tlaynsilak), but it is a long way away, and the native does not go there. But there is another village closer to Tlaynsilak, that he/she/it can guide them to.
(This encounter isn’t in Legend of the Sky Raiders, but I realised I wanted the players to know why the jungle natives are so hostile. Maybe I could have made the encounter less cheesy.)
When they reached the native village, the Travellers found signs of a massacre. Dead aliens and shell cases. The bad guys have been here.
The Travellers made camp, and this time their plan to draw the spy out worked. (At last!) Dusty spotted Dan, one of the hovercraft drivers, heading into the jungle for his nightly ablutions, carrying his rucksack. (Very Ice Cold in Alex.) Dusty realised that Dan always keeps a close eye on his rucksack.
But the Travellers were content to wait and observe, for now.
Day 9
In the morning, the Travellers came up with a plan. They explained to the expedition that they have a change of plan and will head east, across the lake, to look at a section of coastline. They waited for Dan to disappear into the jungle with his rucksack, and when he returned, they confronted him and found a radio.
And that’s where we left it.
Next week
The plan next week is to start with a recce of whatever is going on, from the safety of cover.
I already have my map ready, so I think I’m more or less prepared. I wonder how the players will surprise me?
Coming soon: City of the Golden Walls
Previously: Session #3: The Trail of Stone or start here with my review of Legend of the Sky Raiders.
No comments:
Post a Comment