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Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Golden Bee" data-source="post: 9811933" data-attributes="member: 7041055">Surprise in Siberia"Don't try and intimidate me," said the Captain. "In the war I protected your grammar school."In uncivilized countries, Captain Semya Ivanova is sometimes looked on with suspicion. But in Russia, she has great pull. She used that pull when her former colleague Sokolow went missing. She, along with her companions, headed to the port City of Vladivostok. Unfortunately, they were accompanied by freshly minted NKVD agent Commissar Pavel.Along on the mission were battle-hardened Javid Kulfi and Calvin Davino, and less expectedly, stuntwoman Giula "Lala" Santinella. The Captain quickly investigated the city (going from train station master to hostel owner to dog sled rental) while her teammates kept the NKVD agent in the dark. Sokolov and a group of his geology students had headed into the hinterlands, which wasn't inherently suspicious; the Soviet government had been expanding industrial capacity in the area due to rare earth metals. Still, being incommunicado for a month was abnormal.Despite Calvin only hiring "the cutest" sled dogs, Lala was able to traverse the tundra at speed. On their first night of travel, photographer/sniper Javid noticed a scope in the dark. It turned out to be an American, who not only slashed at the captain with a knife, but was unrepentant in his hatred of Commies. (He also thought it was 1920.)The next day, the group reached Poyushchaya Dolina, AKA "the Singing Valley." Javid, who had spent years as a tour guide, noted that the more literal native translation was "the place where the Earth speaks to you." His caution was eclipsed by his curiosity, when he saw that the multi-ethnic people there had vintage rifles going back 100 years.The valley had a ramshackle village at the base of an abandoned, boarded-up gold mine. Sokolov was there, but his students had died or been injured on the expedition, and he had no interest in returning to civilization. Javid befriended the too-friendly population. The Captain kept up her suspicions.After dinner, the group organized a talent show. Lala sang some Italian songs, then brought Pavel up to the stage. While he delighted the crowd with his tales of "interrogation bloopers," the adventuring quartet infiltrated the mine.Calvin had suspicions that extraterrestrial forces had been acting on the people. He was delighted when, down a broken and deserted passageway, he found a pile of distended, bizarre human bodies. In fact, the creatures were still around! One swung a strange curved blade at Lala, who easily ducked it. Calvin, with his lightning reflexes, sliced the creature in half. [With his +2 bonus while fighting one-on-one using Filipino weapons, he managed to get a confirmed kill every single time he attacked this session.]The group didn't have much time to savor their victory. There was a horrid smell, and sounds of rats running in the walls.At the bottom of the mine was a bizarre site: An ancient Agarthan temple with an alien artifact. Javid moved to photograph the scene, when more creatures emerged! The Afghan sniper had his back slashed by the creatures, and retreated. Lala and the Captain set up Calvin, who made quick work of the opposition. It was like a pair of matadors leading bulls into a wheat thresher.Unfortunately, taking the artifact infuriated the aliens. The group fled the mines (with the Captain offering "motivation"), and collapsed the entrance with some spare dynamite. The villagers were dazed; Lala came up with a lie about a gas explosion. The group grabbed Sokolov and fled back towards civilization.Once there, the geologist seemed de-hypnotized. He had no idea why he was so unwilling to leave before...Pavel wanted the artifact brought to his superiors immediately. The Captain proved that she was immensely capable socially, getting the artifact analyzed (radioactive, not-of-this-Earth) and remanded to her custody... in Science City 7. Javid sold the photos.The Captain:[ATTACH]423725[/ATTACH]</blockquote>

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