ZEITGEIST [ZEITGEIST] The Continuing Adventures of Korrigan & Co.

Session 12

Session 12

• The unit had a bit of trouble bringing in the House Elf, what with the hazardous environment, drowning tanks, etc.
• Blander Waryeye also had an empathic link with Danisca Wareye, thanks to their ritual bonding during marriage. Each was an accomplished magic-user, skilled in the art of deception. There were also apothecary guards and honey badgers to contend with.
• Finally, the unit brought them down, and in exchange for a plea bargain established that the wand smuggling would take place in two nights' time (4th Summer), led by a local criminal named Deorn Feldman. Feldman and his accomplices planned to rendezvous with a Crisilliyri ship somewhere out in the Ayres.
• The Waryeyes were arrested as a precaution and Rumdoom put the feelers out with his contacts in Bosum Strand.
• The following day, Malthusius detailed his dreams to the unit: in the first he saw himself (possibly as Nilasa) being attacked by a shadow creature which slashed at his face; in the second he (and his allies) paid gold for a chest which turned out to contain vipers.
• The unit chose to spend the 3rd day of the investigation travelling to Nevard Sechim's henge in the Cloudwood.
• On the way they intervened in an apparent brigand attack. It turned out, though that the 'victims' were Kell Guilders (minions of crime boss Lorcan Kell) who had kidnapped the lover of brigand leader Renard Woodsman in reprisal for non-payment of dues Kell felt he was owed...
• In return for the rescue of his girlfriend (and despite the death of one of his men) Renard agreed to escort the unit to Nevard.

The fight on Two Fronts was insane. I really wanted the Waryeyes to get away, but the unit handled the combat so well they managed to capture them. I would advise all DMs to pay close attention to the workings of the traps in this encounter, in particular the razzle dazzle traps in the rehearsal area, which can get a bit complicated and bog things down.

I upped the ante by making Blander an elite and having the badgers resist 10, and jump back up the round after they were first dropped. I kept the Cloudwood encounter as written to give the unit a chance to kick some criminal butt.

Still nothing out of the ordinary or unexpected. Malthusius' visions imparted a clue as to the nature of Nilasa's murderer, and warned of the treachery of Lorcan Kell should they decide to pay for access to the Doctor.

Session 13

A new player joined this week. I was expecting him, so foreshadowed his character by including the flamboyant Saaladoor Saan in Jered Lawman's band, establishing a connection with Nilasa, and having him promise El Perro that he will do anything he can to help.

(What the team don't realise is that Saladoor is an undercover RHC operative. He is a human bravura warlord with the docker theme.)

Session 13

Lots to report this week!

• Escorted by Renard Woodsman, the unit arrived at Nevard's Henge, meeting up with Jered Lawman and Saaladoor Salan along the way.
• Saaladoor told the unit that he had been an original accomplice in the Wand Smuggling caper. Now that he could not get anyone he cared about in trouble (such as the Waryeyes) he was prepared to admit his involvement. Saaladoor knew that Nilasa's local contact was named Deorn Feldman.
• In an audience with Nevard Sechim, Malthusius learned that the old man was dying. His last wish was to bring unity to the rival factions within Risur by pursuing a Skyseer vision. In return for setting up a meeting with Gale, he asked the unit to escort him to the top of Cauldron Hill. Malthusius agreed.
• On the way down the mountain, Korrigan collapsed - his condition worsened by the elemental magics wielded by the Cloudwood Falconer. The unit took him straight to Isaac, while Malthusius tried (unsuccessfully) to speak with Mayor of the Nettles, Reed Macbannin, who controlled access to the peak of Cauldron Hill. Malthusius then contacted Governor Stanfield and asked him to affect an introduction.
• Back at RHC HQ, the unit found Doctor Camp waiting for them, bearing a letter from Wolfgang von Recklinghausen. The letter said that he was in hiding and said he should reply via Professor Lynn Kindleton. Malthusius brought Kindleton to the headquarters. She remained reluctant to cooperate, out of concern for Von Recklinghausen (whom she clearly adored). The group toyed with the idea of sending him a fake message to draw him out of hiding, but were concerned when they learned that he was being harboured by the Kell Guild.
• Saaladoor bluffed the captured Kell Guilder - Caleb Locke - into thinking he was a Kill Guilder too. The unit decided to pay crime boss Lorcan Kell a visit to see if they could persuade him to hand over Von Recklinghausen.
• That night, Rumdoom managed to find out the location of the wharf where Deorn Feldman would sail from.
• The following morning they received an invitation from Reed Macbannin to discuss Nevard's request at his estate. Saaladoor, Rumdoom and Leon went with Caleb to negotiate with Lorcan Kell, while Malthusius went with Uru and El Perro to speak to Macbannin.
• Deep in Kell territory, the unit gave chase to some kidnappers who lured them into a darkened building. They found themselves on the stage of the Theatre of Scoundrels, Lorcan Kell's headquarters. Entertained by Leon's impromptu dance routine (for which he should, on reflection, receive a Benny) Kell invited the squad into his box. There, he offered to sell out Von Recklinghausen for 1000gp. Irked at their refusal, Lorcan suggested they stay for a comedy (having otherwise come all that way for nothing). This 'comedy' saw poor Caleb beaten to death on the stage, while Lorcan roared with laughter. He intimated that the squad could stop the play by paying up, but again they refused. Kell threw them out (and his henchman Rufus Hammerton gave Saaladoor a short-arm jab to the belly for good measure).
• Meanwhile, following an encounter with an unusally philosophical courier, the rest of the unit met with Reed Macbannin. Though initially serious, Macbannin turned out to be very jovial and light-hearted - a frame of mind he recommneded to anyone dealing with the dark arts. Aware of their reputation, he agreed to the unit's request on the condition that they publicise his involvement should some good come of the attempt. They planned the ascent for the following day; Macbannin insisted they come early enough that he could perform protective rituals.
• Reunited, the unit headed to a wharf in northern Pine Island, where Deorn Feldman and his crew (including Saaladoor) would set sail. They followed the Silvo to its rendezvous with a much larger seagoing vessel - Li Griffoni Grinyandi. Confronted by the RHC, Captain Ambia Banda ordered her men to break out their cache of wands and open fire.
• The unit overcame both captains and their crew. Unfortunately, they also killed all of their potential leads...

Still no massive diversions, but their refusal to cooperate with Lorcan was a bit of a surprise. They left really hating him. To blow my own trumpet somewhat, I played Lorcan to a tea, with a gruff cockney accent and ferocious underbite. He was eating lychees too, to up the unpleasantness. The unit had grown quite fond of Caleb, so I had Lorcan beat him to death.

On the flipside, they liked Macbannin, who I gave an effusive Glaswegian accent, much like Billy Connelly. (Quite apart from the sober expert in the dark arts they were expecting.)

The philosophical courier also made a real impression on them. I wonder if they'll remember him later in the campaign?

They did have the idea of sending a letter back to Wolfgang through Lynn Kindleton. Not sure how that would pan out though, and there's no mention of how Wolfgang would react in the adventure.

Smuggler's Night. Saaladoor had already met Deorn Feldman, and so he managed to get on board the Silvo. The combat was great fun.

Tip for DMs: Pre-roll the random wands used by the unscrupulous sailors.

What I liked here was that the unit went completely off the rails, egged on by Saaladoor, and massacred the Family contacts. Malthusius was furious (as will be Stover Delft), but it fit with the absence of unit leader Korrigan. I made them feel that they had caused a huge dead-end in the investigation (which of course isn't true).

Next session... Night on Bald Mountain. Can't wait!

Now that's what I'm talking about. Thanks a ton. It's hard spending weeks writing these adventures and then wondering how people are enjoying them.

RangerWickett said:

Now that's what I'm talking about. Thanks a ton. It's hard spending weeks writing these adventures and then wondering how people are enjoying them.

Click to expand...

Tell me about it. We have exactly one review so far, despite it being sent to several dozen rpgnow reviewers. I'm gonna stop sending product to rpgnow reviewers - over the last few years, we've sent (in total) thousands of dollars worth of product out and gotten maybe 3-4 reviews in as many years. It appears to be a systemic way of simply getting free stuff. Even if they didn't like the product and said why, at least we'd learn something from it, but the deafening silence? That's hard to deal with.

If I may, the campaign is still pretty new. A lot of people who plan on playing may still be wrapping up old campaigns, or organizing their players. Plus it's the holidays. I can't wait to start posting my adventure log, but coordinating it all, especially at start, is hard work.

Not as hard as writing these modules, granted. Don't worry guys. You have created something truly extraordinary here. In six months or so I predict you'll be inundated with feedback.

Agreed! Think of it this way Morrus and Rangerwickett, you have two groups actively running the AP at the moment (mine and gideon's) and both are vociferously reporting how much they're loving it.

In fact, before pretty much every session I get an email from at least two of my players saying how much they're looking forward to it. I've NEVER experienced that before in my life.

I'd echo the comment - we're just putting characters together, but this is clearly something different and innovative. I'm not sure a review of one module from a read through is as useful as the results of the adventure as a whole in play.

How often do you find your experience at the movies backs up what the movie reviewers say - and there we both watch the same movie in the same period of time.

Ditto

I'd like to reiterate the sentiments of the last few posts and note that my experience of player involvement is akin to Colmarr's.

Attendance is at an all-time high (with sessions missed only for postgraduate exams and childbirth - fair enough, I guess) and players are actively emailing me with development points for their characters, and compliments on the last session. Unheard of!

I should also add that playing these adventures has raised my game too. I've never put as much effort into differentiating NPCs. In other adventure paths, NPCs are presented with a single line of text, or a stat block. The vivid decsriptions you have bestowed upon the dramatis personae of Zeitgeist deserve a bit of 'rehearsal' from a DM.

I'm sure that you will have a lot more positive feedback in the months to come.

I'll jump on the bandwagon as well. My players love the campaign; and the only people who've dropped have had to do it because of insurmountable scheduling issues; and my players are putting real effort to developing their characters in and out of the session.

And I've been practicing with the NPCs as well; trying to differentitate their accents and inflections so I can give each one a unique voice. The pictures help too; whenever I introduce a NPC with a mugshot from the adventure; I hand it out.

Session 14

• Day 5 of the investigation began with a dressing down from Stover Delft:
• Malthusius was blamed for involving the unit in the Gale investigation and then letting things get out of hand.
• El Perro was told to 'cool his heels' by keeping an eye on Lynn Kindleton.
• Saaladoor Saan was deputised to ensure that the unit did not go up Cauldron Hill short-handed.
• Korrigan and Delft appointed Leon to second-in-command of the unit, promoting him to Sergeant.
• The unit prepared for the ascent, picking up climbers kits, rituals, and brightly coloured hummingbirds.
• They went to Nevard's Henge and took part in Pazamu's ritual of bonding. Then they escorted Nevard to Macbannin's manor.
• Mayor Macbannin gave them rusted iron amulets to prevent possession, kegs of goats blood to paint a circle around their camp, and instructed them to pass through his manor again on the way down, to undergo purification rituals.
• The unit made the ascent in daylight, set up camp in a ring of stones, and scouted the area (finding a magical cauldron). They placed traps, snares and magical wards.
• As night fell, while Nevard and Malthusius star-gazed, all were subjected to the horrible cries and disturbing sights of Cauldron Hill at night. Soon they were surrounded by dozens of spirits, distracted by the ring of blood.
• Much later, everyone bound to Nevard shared a vision of Nilasa who warned them that the man who killed her was coming. "His face is scarred," she said, "so he wears many disguises."
• Then they had another vision: of Sechim's Alakhest & Etchings ablaze, then in ruins.
• Just after midnight, Malthusius spotted a dark figure on the other side of the hilltop, moving purposefully, unlike a spirit. The dark figure threw a sunrod into the unit's camp. At once, they were beset by horrible monsters.
• After a tough fight (during which the dark figure fled after throwing more sunrods into their midst) the unit managed to put out the lights and defeat all of the monsters.
• They gathered together in the ring of stones, at which point, Nevard suggested casually, as if recommending a coat for cold weather, that now might be a good time to leave...

Beginning most sessions in a debriefing with Stover Delft is a great way to recap what has happened, focus the players' minds on the immediate future and let the DM 'have a go' at his players in role...

Malthusius was the original Gale investigator, given the go-ahead to cherry-pick resources by Governor Stanfield (with whom, as a deva, is shares a past). This led to Korrigan's unit being brought in to support Malthusius.

Mal's player, however, has made the slight error of referring to this as 'my investigation' on a number of occasions. So it was amusing to see what happened last week (session 13) when the stabilizing force of Korrigan was removed (as his player couldn't make it). The group was unruly, refused to follow orders and didn't take prisoners.

This week, Korrigan was back, but El Perro was away. (So he was 'punished' for dropping Deorn Feldman by being assigned to stake out Lynn Kindleton). But Malthusius was given a dressing down by Delft for trying to take 'tactical control' when his talents were for investigation. Malthusius was mortified (as was his player, an inveterate wargamer). Delft and Korrigan chose Leon Veilleux (another level-headed player) to be Korrigan's 2IC.

Noteworthy moments from the session:

Uru buys a clutch of brightly-coloured hummingbirds to keep in a cage on the mountain. He intends to release them to distract the spirits with 'a burst of colour and life'. Great idea. He gets a benny. (In particular, for describing the way in which their 'rapid little heartbeats' will attract the monsters.)

Leon earns one too, for bearing in mind Macbannin's advice to 'keep their spirits up with a lightness of heart and good humour'. Just as Korrigan fails his check to avoid the psychic depradations on the mountain, and sobs aloud for fear, Leon leans close and whispers, "What did the leper say to the prostitute? Keep the tip." Genuine, full-throated laughter from the rest of the table ensued, for an undeniable bonus to fend off the ill effects.

Rumdoom learned alot from Nevard Sechim. Nevard told him that 'the icy end of the earth' is not a mere possibility or an illusion, but a 'scientifically demonstrable inevitability'. All skyseers can foresee it; but it is so far off as to be irrelevant, and 'to live your life obsessed by the knowledge of it is a terrible waste'.

Word of advice to DMs: My group is finding the encounters presented in the adventure to be something of a cake-walk, even when I up the ante to compensate for the extra player. I think this stems from the fact that in a traditonal adventure, the party may face two or three encounter in a day (possibly capped with a 'BBEG' at the end); whereas in an investigative adventure, the party spends most of its time piecing together clues and roleplaying - none of which drains their resources. As a result, they have everything to throw at the single encounter they have that day. Even though next week's session will begin with Alkahest & Arson, (a rare second encounter without an extended rest) my players have barely broken a sweat. If your players enjoy challenging combat - as mine do - you might like to consider ratcheting up the encounter levels quite considerably.