[Outgunned Adventure] The True Cross Road

[ArPyx]

Hey everyone! We're super excited to kick off our OG Adventure campaign. This is our first time using the system, so we'll probably make many mistakes along the way.

Characters:

Fitz is a 44-year-old WWI veteran and hunter born in South Africa. He was an orphan from the Second Boer War adopted by a British officer. Currently, he works in the security of a construction company building a railroad in Slovenia and has found archaeological remains.

Liz is his step-sister, a 22-year-old actress who was on vacation in Alexandria with him. She tagged along mainly because she was interested in the drama involved.

Milan is a 28-year-old Slovenian archaeologist who called when the remains of Ottoman soldiers were found in Slovenia. They were trapped in a basement during the Ottoman retreat. He’s a little reticent about the implications of the find. He heard many stories about the Balkan wars in the 1910s and his biggest fear is that it might happen again.

Lotte is 28 and part of the German resistance. She knows about their interest in finding the true cross and comes to warn the authorities. She was supposed to meet a contact at the museum to gather more information.
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Setting: March 1934, National Museum of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Our adventure kicks off in Slovenia’s National Museum, where Fitz and Liz arrive to watch the artefact presentation. Their vacation is interrupted by a telegram from Fitz's employer asking him to come and ensure the security of the finds.

As Fitz talks with the museum curator, Dr Radic, Lotte approaches Liz, mistakenly thinking she is her contact.
As Dr Radic starts the exhibition, he presents Milan, the archaeologist who had accompanied the excavation. Suddenly, three strange figures arrive at the museum. The group springs into action when an artefact, a Ledger containing the inventory of the Ottoman Grand Vizier's belongings, is stolen by a shadowy man with a vested interest in the ledger’s secrets. Fitz confronts one of the intruders and, with Liz's help, manages to knock him out using his cane. As Fitz and Liz attempt to slow down the intruders, Milan and Lotte rush to intercept the leader, hoping to cut off their escape.

The rest of the scholars panic, blocking the main access and preventing the museum guards from assisting them, so Fitz, Liz, Milan, and Lotte are left to fend off the thieves alone.

A chase ensues, with Lotte and Milan following the boss and his accomplices into the museum’s dark corridors. Milan manages to knock out the second goon using a halberd replica, but the leader escapes with the ledger. Fitz and Milan reach the museum’s back exit, greeted by a warning shot. The leader escapes in a car, taunting them as he departs with the ledger.

Following the heist, Fitz, Liz, Milan, and Lotte regroup with Dr. Radic, the museum director. Exhausted and hurt, Fitz reflects on the fight, and Dr. Radic commends them for their bravery. At this moment, Lotte reveals her true identity: she’s working undercover for the resistance. Her encounter with the team was lucky for her as it seemed the thieves might be connected to the dictatorship being established in Germany. She overheard that they have some sort of plans involving archaeological artefacts. Milan was able to see before the Ledger was stolen that it mentioned the "Hattin Treasure". They believe that it refers to a piece of the cross where Jesus was crucified and lost during the Battle of Hattin in 1187.

At Dr. Radic’s invitation, the group retires to the museum’s lodge to rest and plan their next move. There, they meet Milan’s colleague Fatma, who reveals that another document, an Ottoman field diary from the same military campaign, also mentions the "Hattin Treasure", opening interesting developments for the next session.

If you want the whole session transcript, I've started a blog at Explorers of the Lost Worlds

We'd love to hear from you if you have any comments, suggestions, or ideas.

 

[ArPyx]

A summary of the Second Session of the game:

A Trip to Croatia

Fitz, Liz, Lotte, and Milan travel from Ljubljana to Osijek in pursuit of new clues about the Hattin Treasure—a powerful relic rumoured to be a fragment of the True Cross. After an emotional goodbye to Dr Radic and Fatma, to whom they pledge to continue translating the Ottoman field diary, the group embarks on a long, reflective train ride. Along the way, they share memories from childhood, deepening their bond and revealing pieces of their pasts.

Late at night, they arrive in Osijek, where they are greeted by Dr. Zudmar, an acquaintance of Dr. Radic, who promises to take them to the site of an ancient Ottoman fortress. The following morning, Dr. Zudmar leads them to the Tvrđa, Osijek’s citadel, built atop the remains of an Ottoman stronghold. Here, the group hopes to discover traces of the treasure’s journey—specifically, the relic’s purported passage through Osijek during an Ottoman campaign toward Vienna in the 17th century. Dr. Zudmar’s recounting of the area’s layered history and Ottoman past enhances the mystery surrounding their mission, bringing the location’s complex history to life.

As they survey the fortress, the team is caught off guard by the presence of a German archaeological team conducting a mysterious excavation. Lotte grows visibly uneasy upon spotting Dr. Sigmund Becker, a Nazi-affiliated historian she recognizes from Germany. His presence in Osijek is no coincidence: Becker has been investigating relics of potential political and cultural power, raising concerns that his interests align with Nazi ambitions. Fitz and Milan cautiously approach Becker, hoping to gather more information, but he reveals little beyond vague descriptions of his “historical research,” leaving them with a sense of growing menace.

With no significant findings in Osijek, the team ultimately decides to return to Ljubljana, hoping for new clues in Osijek, having reached a dead end. On the train ride back, they lighten the mood by swapping stories of youthful adventures and mishaps, reinforcing their sense of camaraderie. However, this brief reprieve ends abruptly as they arrive at the museum in Ljubljana, only to find it surrounded by police and staff in a state of distress. Fatma, shaken and tearful, informs them that Nazi agents have attacked Dr Radic and stolen the Ottoman war diary from his safe—a devastating blow to their mission.

Realizing the stakes have only intensified, each team member feels a renewed determination to protect the Hattin Treasure from falling into the wrong hands. Now more than ever, they understand the danger they face as they prepare to go head-to-head with Nazi operatives who will stop at nothing to claim the relic’s power for themselves. With time running short and the enemy closing in, Fitz, Liz, Lotte, and Milan must devise a plan not only to recover the stolen diary but also to thwart a threat far larger than they’d imagined.

Read the complete episode in: A Trip to Croatia