Describe your last RPG session in more than 5 words.

Sun Jackals...
Natakan killed for being thieves...

Wait, wrong thread...
They head from the town they're in towards Sentem, the largest town in the region.
They interact with locals at the watchtower a day out from Sentem.
Three camp with a Gerwa Merchant; the fourth, having fumbled the storytelling, gave offense, and so stayed in the "inn"...

I have them roll perception at night, planning to have the three Natakan each steal 1d6 bracelets from each (at two sheckles of silver each, that's a lot but not a damaging lot)... but at both Zamir (the Luathi spellcaster) and Philon (a Melkoni swordsman) both woke, and each avoided the thefts and two of the three Natakan lay dead by the merchant's rugs...

We cut short by about 30 minutes... but it was a good session.
 
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It ended with a bang. ;)

Literally. 😋 Last night my party encountered some Yuan-Ti while in search of a cultist wizard in the tomb of another wizard. There were a couple of Yuan-Ti purebloods, some of the snake-headed Yuan-Ti and one Abomination Yuan-Ti (who was holding a dagger to the cultist wizard's throat). At first my party tried to get the Abomination Yuan-Ti to give us the cultist peacefully, but the latter was only willing to hand the dwarf over for something of equal value. While the party's Empath (homebrewed class) did the negotiations, the party's Rogue/Fighter took a small sack and filled it with gunpowder and a vial of alchemist fire (which he hid by covering them with precious gems). He then took the 'offering' to the Abomination Yuan-Ti and pretended that he was giving himself up to the Yuan-Ti in exchange for the cultist. He was hoping to get close enough to get ahold of the cultist and use his scroll of Dimension Door while the latter took his offering.

The encounter almost went pear-shaped if it wasn't for the Empath casting a powerful form of Sanctuary to ensure that the party got out of the room and into the adjoining hallway. They couldn't attack us and we couldn't attack them while the spell was in effect. The Rogue/Fighter was successful in using Dimension Door to teleport away with the cultist just before my character, a Ranger/Rogue, shot and deliberately missed the Abomination Yuan-Ti in order to make it think it was under attack. It tried to avoid the arrows my character sent its' way and while doing so, threw the bag with the gems, gunpowder and alchemist fire onto the ground in the center of the room. Where it detonated. 😋

All of the Yuan-Ti in the room received damage from the Rogue/Fighter's improvised bomb. A lot of damage. Lingering fire damage from the alchemist fire, piercing damage from shrapnel (the precious gems) and bludgeoning damage from the explosion itself. All of the pureblood Yuan-Ti died almost instantly from the explosion, leaving just the snake-headed Yuan-Ti and the Abomination Yuan-Ti alive but very hurt. They tried to hurt us, but the Sanctuary spell was still in effect. When the spell dropped the next round, we finished off the rest of the Yuan-Ti, found some treasure and then left the tomb. :)
 

AD&D1e, Avalon campaign:

Rescued an ancient petrified warrior.
On a hill outside the borders of Fairie, we found a very lifelike stone statue, in warrior's gear of ancient style, with no plinth and significant wear on exposed parts like ears and nose. Historical information is quite interesting in Avalon, because it's subject to occasional cataclysms that tend to destroy records.

So we tried Stone to Flesh. It took two attempts, because the first was resisted. We found out why when he turned back: the sword he was holding was "Cold Iron" the really anti-magical kind that exists in Avalon. Whoever petrified him must have been quite powerful. It wasn't done by a Basilisk, Cockatrice or Medusa, they create a different kind of stone.

He collapsed, so we hit him with a Heal spell, moved him behind the hill out of sight from Fairie, and put up a summoned house. We put him to bed in front of the fire, made soup and let him recover. He's from about 2,500 years ago, and speaks an archaic version of the local Common. The village where he was born is now a major city, where we are based. He was a guard to a lord of the time on a diplomatic mission to Fairie. The last thing he remembered was fighting something he hasn't described clearly yet.

We're going to let him recover a bit, look at the site to see if there is any trace of his comrades, and then take him back to the city to get bits regenerated. The School of Ancient Knowledge will want to talk to him a lot.
 

Nefertiti versus the mob! based on “The Doorway of Cats” by Peter Schweighofer.

“You look the opposite of hung over!” said Devi. Steel Eagle tilted his cowboy hat.
“I know maybe you don’t wanna hear it, but partying is good for you.”


The Irish mob does not have 50-year-old leg breakers. It's an organization where you move up steadily or you run into problems. Thaza was ready to move up.
That's why she was searching the wall safe of Italian patron Paulino Gambartzi. The rest of the party was knoshing in the next room. They (actress Lala Santinella, photographer Javid Kulfi, Steel Eagle the Tibetan spirit of Brooklyn) were happy to shmooze. They persuaded Paulino to ignore Brooks Belasco and not revive No, No, Nanette, and made him swear to look for a new play.

Thaza’s burglary showed Gambartzi was spreading his money a bit too freely, funding some unsavory factions (unsavory in the eyes of Clan O’Rourke, anyway). This gave her an idea… She could clean up Cairo for the family, and get the party to help.
The ZSS was smarter than she gave them credit for. They figured out the plan, but because it involved exclusively going after black market smugglers, they agreed provisionally. But there was no way they were going to confront Zahir Adwani without a gift. so they spent a lot of time and effort making a pecan pie.
They were very excited to give this pie, with the minor setback that Advani was dead with his ears cut off, his nose removed, and his stomach impaled. Thaza decided to go through his safe (a very profitable endeavor; she looted a solid gold bar with a Nazi insignia and some illegal grenades.) Lala distracted a nearby police patrol by offering them the pie… and Steel Eagle distracted the shop boy, who was returning with firewood.
“Who are you, mister?”
“I'm Steel Eagle from the Bronx, New York City, America.”
Hard to say you're not involved in a crime when you say your full name to witnesses!
Back at base, Professor Callahan was peeved to see the group. He thought he would use the Cairo base for privacy.
He had a lead though, that the social types might like: there was going to be a huge party, held by art snobs and blue bloods just north of the city. Not that he would go … Unless they invited him, or even if they didn't.
The group mollified the police (mostly through haranguing) and put on their best clothes, excited for the shindig.
Peter Schweighofer said:
The host’s secluded home consists of a walled estate with several gardens surrounding a modest but well-appointed house. The public rooms contain a quaint mix of ancient Egyptian and Islamic artwork. The servants have set up one parlor for refreshments while the library contains several comfortable chairs surrounding a central pedestal upon which sits the figurine of Isis and the infant Horus. A small crowd of interested people from Cairo’s upper society gathers for cocktails before the auction.

There were a few familiar faces, including Stavros “the Bull” Papadopoulos. The Turkish smuggler decided to pick on the wimpy Callahan, much to the delight of the rest of the party! The Brit barely kept from crying as his hand was crushed in the grip of the former wrestler.

Some social interactions went better. Steel Eagle partied hard with Ernest Hemingway. And Lala was wooed by the mysterious, cape-wearing Count Vladimir Korga. The actress looked into the eyes of the white Russian and asked what he wanted at the party.
“You.”
How dreamy! Unfortunately, she had to rush to another room, where her adopted daughter Devika was bidding like a maniac. She stood up to the 13-year-old, telling her that buying things she didn't want was classic spoiled behavior.
Meanwhile, Thaza stole the priceless necklace off the Georgette de Crussel, the Duchess d'Uzes.
Because Devi stopped bidding, the auction was won by Stavros. He didn't have long to celebrate though, since he was in a car accident an hour later that cost him his nose, ears, and life. And guess who he was last seen arguing with? Professor Callahan of course!
The rest of the case went a bit better. The artifacts were being taken from a nearby tomb by an incompetent group of childhood friends, led by locals Hanna and Giram. Someone tried to run the gang down in an alley (only the clumsy Callahan was hit). The group headed into the tomb.
Callahan and Giram agreed to watch the car, which everyone agreed should be parked far away. Unfortunately, that meant they didn't catch the perpetrators who caved in the entrance tunnel!
Thaza, after making sure the chambers didn't have any traps, blew up a plaster wall with (stolen) grenades. The medjays behind the killings might've been prepared for criminals… But they stood no chance against a professional stunt driver and a sniper. Thaza could barely get into position before the fight was over.
---
Back in the states, Naomi was more than impressed.
“An entire underworld taken over in less than two weeks. You ain’t no gam.”
Uptown, the Cotton Club was jumping. Brooks had a brilliant idea, an All-Star winner. He could pay a lot of money to Javid and Lala to help. The Gray Gargoyle musical!
 



AIR DEVILS OF THE SOUTH SEAS by Matt Riggsby
“So you’re not posing on an active volcano?” asked the lawyer.
“The volcano can do what it wants, I’m active enough for both of us.”


We had five adventurers today, and four hours of action. So, after a brief overview, I'm going to break it down by character.

Things were going wrong for American-Pacific Agriculture corporation and instead of waiting by the phone, the gang took initiative! Solving this problem would mean great publicity, and a working vacation in Micronesia. Of course, this case would draw the ire of the deadly and possibly supernatural White Devil of the Pacific.

Now that we’re properly situated: This was a Rafe Lancaster session all the way through. He started it by evicting an orchard so he could expand a munitions factory.

“This orchard has been operating for more than 100 years!”
“So?” asked the tycoon. “Means their deed’s probably bad.”

Mr. Lancaster acted very differently on vacation. Not only did he do his own flying (he's rarely the best pilot in the group), but he wore a short-sleeved Hawaiian shirt with no tie. And while he was arrogant, he came to a startling revelation: his obnoxious mentee Devika was his best friend. (After he admitted this, Devi immediately demurred. She was beginning to realize it was weird to have so many adult best friends who weren't friends with other people! Although she didn't renounce the codependency she developed as a preteen goddess, she did ask a favor of the other four characters: please become friends with Rafe.)

1930s hipster Saeki "Zelda" Yoriko was the best at it. Who better to talk tech with than a guy who spent all his time creating it?As an actual detective, Saeki was responsible for investigating the crime scenes left behind by the Devils. (She was equally effective socially with a stunt that gave her a persuasion bonus during apologies. The rest of the group made plenty of faux paus. Saeki was amazingly good at soothing whoever they offended, whether it was the harbor master or a local tribe.)

Of course, General Saeki, Zelda's father, casts a large shadow. When an imperial intelligence officer raided her hotel room, she had to trade secrets without the rest of the group finding out… that she was doing it, or that she had deep ties to a prime suspect, the empire of Japan!

Aldous, once a butler, has become more of a logistics specialist. He excelled at his new job, dock organizer for the APA. Of course, that didn't mean he couldn't cut loose. When the group located a smuggler vital to their investigation, he challenged the fellow to a boat race, and whooped him.

Tácito played it more thoughtfully. When it was time to put clues together, he was the first to recognize them for what they were. Like when a witness claimed the white devil had an earless white skull…Instead of thinking “horrible monster”, he thought "Luchador mask.” Not that the Jade Jaguar let his agility go to waste. He saved someone from a burning building, lowering the Great War ace down to the ground as flames whipped around them.

Giovanni Barbossa Lima made time for work, posing for Christian Starker (from Gallery of Souls!), on a dormant volcano. Physical strength got him a lot further than good looks on this case: the man he flirted with, Ramón, turned out to be a major part of the crisis. And when Gio went to confront him, he got sidetracked flirting… Because he is a himbo.

The physical strength did help though, when he needed to burst into a burning building, and his charm helped him convince a very large, yappy dog to follow him to safety. He then tried to nickname the dog Pepito which nobody was buying because the dog was already named.

Together, the group figured out the conspiracy. Members of the APA were devastating local targets to try and get Uncle Sam involved. They were operating out of a forbidden island, which the fearful locals had kept off their maps.

The raid was two-pronged. Lancaster and Saeki went by air, the other three by sea. It was a hard target!

Matt Riggby said:
The base was on a slightly unusual atoll, consisting of an outer ring, an enclosed lagoon, and an inner island. The outer ring was 100 to 200 yards thick, with a diameter of about three miles. Most of it was sandy beach, but it had a thin screen of palm trees all around. The inner island had a diameter of about two miles, rising gently to a point about 50 feet above high-tide level. The lagoon was very shallow, and it was possible to wade several hundred yards into it. There were a few gaps through which a ship (or surfaced submarine) could sail. An aerial survey revealed several small buildings, a camouflaged radio tower, several floatplanes in the lagoon, and two ships: the Betty Sue Borden and Northumberland Belle. The buildings had the look of residential shacks or small storehouses rather than fortified positions.

The butler was steady as he hit the beach at 52 knots. Los Angeles traffic didn't have sea mines, but the Lomitas/Canon intersection was great training.

Yoriko was a hell of a tail gunner, laying down withering cover fire and chopping the radio tower in half. Rafe got to the island safely, but was tagged by surface-to-air flak. Hope he could land this thing!

On the ground, the Jade Jaguar and the physical specimen took the beach. The pilots had to get to the planes, and that wasn't happening when these two had anything to say about it. Giovanni outmuscled the crooks and slammed their heads together like coconuts. Tácito fought off mercenaries with a trench shovel.

Aldous, after carefully parking the boat, snuck into the building… by walking backwards. He worked for the company, so instead of creeping around, he grabbed a clipboard and looked serious. He was beyond reproach as he rifled through file cabinets for evidence.

Outside, Rafe had nothing but luck to rely on… and landed perfectly. (Later, his buddies would tease him it wasn’t a big deal because "the ocean is as big as target as you can get.”) Without their planes and munitions, the Devils’ conspiracy was over… and when the newspaper stories came and went, it would be clear who were the true daredevils of the South Seas.
Of course, Rafe and Zelda would spend the rest of their vacation fixing the plane…

Yoriko:
 

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Tomb of the Serpent Kings has a surprise in the basement: A species of fungal goblin people created by a serpent person lich who's since mostly lost interest in his experiment.

The fungus goblins, if greeted without violence, eventually will declare one an adventurer as their new king, which at first seems great -- free passage through the fungal goblin caves! -- but the goblins will want to sacrifice their new ruler at the next solstice or equinox or full moon, whatever.

My Shadowdark players figured out what was up and the goblins told the PCs flat out that if their new queen didn't return on the appointed day, they would raze the nearby town to get her. No hard feelings, but this is what's necessary for the continuation of the fungal goblin people, you understand.

Over the course of two more sessions, the PCs have explored the rest of the complex (which is full of interesting stuff) while figuring out what to do about their situation. (There are far, far too many fungal goblins for low level Shadowdark characters to just slaughter.)

Finally, on the day of the summer solstice, they hit upon the solution: Instead of using the queen's sacrifice to ensure fertility for the fungal goblin spores (her corpse would be the incubation site for more shroom babies), the party negotiated for the town to trade surplus fertilizer from local farms to the goblins in return for artifacts from the depths, of which there are a relative lot and which the goblins don't really care about.

And beyond that, the party has adopted the first fungal goblin they met (an optional NPC in Skerples' default version of the adventure) and will be taking Smee all over the world to arrange for transport of exotic fertilizer to be sent back to the home of the fungal goblins. Alpaca feces! Rhino feces! Moose feces! A smorgasbord of poop!

In addition, after three sessions, the group figured out how to get the key to the treasure vault off of the neck of the dinosaur-sized elder basilisk chained up in the basement of the tomb, letting them walk away with a (serpent) king's ransom in treasure.
 

Sunday Jackals
  • Philon, Melkioni (≈ Mycenian) male, dual-weilder swordsman
  • Diocles, Melkioni (≈ Mycenian) male, Swordsman with shield
  • Amayas Ashan Haluzanrab, Trauj (≈ Beduin) Rememberer (≈ bard/cleric) and horseman
  • Zamir, Luathi (≈ Proto-Jewish/proto-Canaanite) Hasheer (≈ sorcer/rabbi; Qabbalist?)

Taking the job to return the missing kids, they head west out of Sentem (setting equivalent to Jerusalem), to the coast where the teens were sent to harvest periwinkles and murex snails... it's a three day hike, so they take up an offered coracle instead... A crit on sailing has Philon guiding them down the creek, the horses and camels making good speed ashore, tied to the coracle as well. (Amayas failed to coerce his steed aboard.)
spoiler for published
At end of the day, they find a campsite...
And a dead body... And an entrance to some caves... Almost too small for them.
They go in, they find some caverns, and hear some Takan... Amayas proceeds to sneak foreward and hears 6 talking....
whom get lured into an a trap.
 


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