STAR WARS - Dawn of Defiance

[Nebulous]

Adventure #6: Gangs, Goons and a Hutt

Part 1


We had all 5 players today, and the adventure started with a brief recap from last time.

The PCs have rescued Admiral Varth, who is feeding them snippets of secret Imperial information from the Nebulon freighter, Resurgence. Their task: dig up information about the Sarlaac Project, and the only one who might know is a Hutt gangster named Darga, who rules from a shattered palace on Cato Neimoeida. The Hutt has been laundering Imperial money and possesses knowledge of the Sarlaac Project. Just don’t actually mention it to him; that would be bad.

The group has already traveled to Zarra, and Arno Silvermine, Crash and the Banshee wait for them at the spaceport, although it might take several days before the PCs return. The group has snooped around for leads, hoping to find a certain Hutt who might buy their stolen heavy blaster rifles, and they turned up the name of Warrick Raden, a Neimodian scoundrel who might know him. Warrick Raden can be found in a warehouse in a decrepit part of Zarra, so the group heads off to find it.

They haven’t gotten far from the spaceport though when they find themselves walking down shattered streets. Holes are blasted through the permacrete, and a bass wind blows up from the dizzying depths below. Peering down, A’ath sees that it would be a fatal drop. After the Clone Wars, Zarra’s city maintenance hasn’t been doing their job very well.

But then they hear the whine of swoop bikes!

Six bikes approach them from multiple directions, all bearing male human riders, but a female voice rings out from a black-clad helmeted biker:

“You there! We saw your ship arrive in port, but you didn’t pay our docking fee. The Vipers demand 1000 credits a piece. So pay up!”

Naturally, the group isn’t keen on paying the money, and most of them don’t even have it anyway, not after upgrading their equipment on the Resurgence. But a bluff to get closer to this armored thug leader sounds like a good plan, so they agree to pay. The six Vipers are all armed, and a writhing green snake is clearly visible on all of their swoop bikes. Nahee in particular is relieved to learn that the bikes don’t come equipped with cannons like the speeder bikes, which nearly killed him.

The leader has a blaster in one hand and a datapad in the other hand to accept their credit sticks. All the Vipers have readied actions to shoot if anything goes wrong, but the group keeps delaying, and arguing with the woman, demanding to know what she’ll do if they don’t pay, and so on and so forth. The group is able to cleverly (metagamey?) bypass the readied actions the Vipers had, and they launch into regular initiative!

Guns whip out, and the Jedi ignites his lightsaber and Damage Reduction, sprinting toward the closest Viper. But the swoop bikes are fast, much faster than the PCs, and they easily pull back, the riders rattling off shots with their pistols from a distance.

Nep’Tuk the sullustan and Nahee the Duros duck into a shattered tenement building for cover, firing off shots at the Vipers in the streets, aiming specifically for the riders and not the bikes themselves.

“KILL THE JEDI!” shrieks the leader, and all the Vipers comply, pointing their pistols at Tomla the Ithorian. Red blaster bolts streaks toward him, but they either miss or do only enough damage to make him angry. Tomla retaliates by Force Slamming two of the bikes away, killing one of the injured riders.

The heroes concentrate their firepower on the helmeted female leader, and she goes down fast, slumping over the handlebars of her swoop bike. It grinds to a slow halt and stops.

“Kessra!” screams one of the human bikers. In revenge, the biker tries to run Tomla over and knock him into one of the pits. A glancing blow injures the Jedi, and the swoop bike effortlessly glides over the hole.

[GM Note: I had intended to use Bantha Rush to knock PCs around, and use the holes for a tactical advantage that would be genuinely frightening, but I forgot that Bantha-Rush is a feat you have to take in Star Wars, not a general combat option like in D&D. Which sort of sucks. Messed up my fight, and I didn’t want to houserule it on the spot].

The battle continues, but the bikers aren’t a match for the heavily armed newcomers, and the surviving bikers try to flee. One of them races down the street at top speed, but someone picks him off. He loses control of the bike and slams into a building, bursting into a ball of flame. The last biker flees, but Tomla uses the Force to grab his bike, slowing him down to a crawl, and starts pulling him back! The bewildered biker frantically revs the engine to full power, trying to break the grip, but he’s killed before he can make any progress.

About five or six rounds after the first shot was fired, the battle is over. And now they have swoop bikes!

Yes indeed, the party hops on their vehicles like Wild Hogs, ready to terrorize the streets of Zarra with unlawful shenanigans. Oddly enough, their fight didn’t seem to attract much attention, so they putter down the avenue unhindered, continuing their search for a warehouse and a Neimodian named Warrick Raden.

 

[Nebulous]

Adventure #6: Gangs, Goons and a Hutt

Part 2

Half an hour later they find themselves at the address. The warehouse looks unused, falling apart in some places and completely rusted through in others. A wall is partially shattered where a speeder slammed into it. Outside, an excavation droid is picking through the rubble. There are two gun turrets overgrown with moss and rust.

A’ath the zabrak approaches the door, asking if Warrick Raden is here. There is no answer from inside, but Thanatos the Chiss soldier notices the excavation droid seems to be watching them. Nep’Tuk makes a check, but doesn’t think this model of droid is designed for combat. The sullustan snoops around the flipped speeder, but it is very dark inside the warehouse. Eventually, he hacks into the control panel at the front and opens the bay door.

“Hello? Anyone here? We’re looking for Warrick Raden. We have a business proposition.”

No answer.

Thanatos and A’ath move inside, Thanatos on his new swoop bike, and that’s when they see a second excavation droid, this one distinctly spider-like. It stops its work and stares at them with blinking photoreceptors. At the end of the hall is a partially open metal bay door that can be ducked under. Tomla, Nep’Tuk and Nahee are outside, but then the two excavation droids suddenly lurch into motion and attack! The one nearest Thanatos has climbed up on the wall, and clumsily launches at him, a buzzsaw whirring near his head. The crab outside scrambles toward Nep’Tuk, but likewise misses.

Thanatos engages the spider droid, and the mechanical contraption consistently tries to climb the wall above the soldier and drop on his head (for a Leaping Strike ability that missed every time). But the group has new problems. From underneath the partially open metal blast door two aliens pop up, blaster bolts zipping toward Thanatos, and then they duck behind cover again.

The droid outside is finally killed, and Tomla Force Grips the droid Thanatos is fighting, holding it immobile near the ceiling, its legs flailing futilely. Everyone readies actions to shoot the two guys under the door, but they all miss. The attackers run out of sight, giving the heroes a few moments to search the area before advancing. There is a deep ventilation grid that has been destroyed, and Nep’Tuk hears the echoing sound of metal on metal somewhere down below. The other doors in this part of the warehouse have no power routed to them, so the only option is to duck under the half-open bay door.

Before doing that, Tomla slams the droid into the wall, and then drops it, destroyed.

A’ath and Nep’Tuk have exceptional Perception skills (via reroll) and the zabrak detects movement beyond the door.

“We just want to talk! We’re just here for Warrick Raden!”

“No one speaks to Raden!” grunts a guttural alien voice in broken Basic. “Go away!”

But A’ath scoots under the door anyway, triggering a hail of five readied shots! That all miss.

A’ath zips across the hall and clambers through a smashed wall and over broken terrain, and enters the interior of the dark warehouse. Motes of dust float through hazy light from holes in the roof, but the rear of this room is shrouded in darkness. The others don’t have good line of sight to the thugs, so they spend a round preparing a grenade to toss their direction.

But A’ath has a new problem in the warehouse -- grinding gears suddenly spring to life, lights flash from mounted headlamps, and a HUGE lumbering CRAB DROID crashes forward from the rear of the room, tossing boxes aside like matchsticks! On top of this monstrosity sits a Neimodian wrangling the controls, and sluggishly clomping closer to the zabrak who is now pinned between the crab and the five goons outside.

Three of the goons advance, but Nep’Tuk has handed a frag grenade to Tomla, who easily Force Moves it into the midst of the attackers, blasting them to pieces. The crab swings a massive pincer down at A’ath, tearing a hole in the floor, and A’ath stumbles into the hallway, back into the line of fire of two goons. The crab surges after him, plugging the hole and mostly filling the hallway beyond.

“Call them off!” A’ath shouts. “We’re just here to talk!” But conversation has not been a strong suit this encounter, not until Tomla uses the Force to persuade the driver of the crab droid to listen to their side. He halts the crab, seemingly dazed by the suggestion, while Thanatos and A’ath use the diversion to run away from the crab’s lethal claws.

“Who are you? What you what?” His hands tremble on the gear shifts for the droid, ready to launch it back into motion. Nep’Tuk prepares to take him down with a stun shot, because this guy is probably Warrick Raden and they need him alive.

Through Persuasion, and the careful offer of some blaster rifles, the group is finally able to get the Neimodian to calm down. The other two goons have already fled. They question Warrick about a Hutt gangster named Darga, but Raden insists that the Hutt doesn’t want anything to do with them. But the group insists right back, and says they have business with the Hutt, and they want a formal introduction by Warrick, with no surprise fights bursting out like this one did. They show Warrick some of their wares.

They also ask him if the Hutt and the gang known as the Vipers have any bad blood, and if the Hutt would want them dead. Turns out that the Vipers are on Darga’s payroll, and he would be upset if they were dispatched! Rolling their eyes, the group quietly steers Raden away from the front of the warehouse with the five stolen swoop bikes, and tell him that they need to pick up some more wares from their ship. They will pay Raden when they return.

Raden finally agrees to help, and the group gets away as fast as possible, speeding through the streets back to the Banshee, where they immediately set Arno Silvermine and Crash to work with paint and airbrushes to change the way the bikes look.

Within an hour or so, they’re back to the warehouse, where Warrick Raden is still waiting, miraculously enough.

“You ready, yes, yes?”

They trudge through the shattered streets of Zarra, passing through empty buildings and dodging dangerously deep shafts. Eventually they reach the steps of a ruined Neimodian palace that is overgrown with plants. Steep stairs descend to a large metal door engraved with Huttese runes.

Warrick Raden activates a control panel, and announces: “I have come to address the Great Darga the Hutt! I bring guests, and I ask for us to be seen! Yes, yes?”

Soon, a slot slides open, and two glowing red Neimodian eyes stare out. “You’re in for now, Raden!” a voice rasps. “Darga is expecting guests, but not these…creatures.” The voice drips with disdain, and then the slot shuts. A few moments later, gears behind the door spin, and it slowly rises to allow them access.

“Remember,” whispers Raden. “Let me talk, yes? Darga knows and trusts me, yes, yes.”

The group shrugs. Whatever. They have the guns to barter with Darga, about 12 heavy blasters, and hopefully they can get on his good side, and give them time to find out what this mysterious Sarlaac Project is all about.

Raden leads them down dank, poorly lit corridors, until they reach some Gammoreans guarding large doors. They part their vibro-axes and usher the guests inside. As soon as the doors open, gentle music wafts out from an extremely large audience hall. It is filled with tall elaborate pillars and dozens of people, almost none of whom are human. All eyes turn to the doorway, and the music tapers off.

The group slowly advances, led by Warrick Raden, well aware that everyone is armed. This is not a place to start a fight. The group comes to a halt in front of the mighty and very fat Darga the Hutt. Golden rings adorn his fingers, and he holds a golden chalice in one hand.

He bellows something in Huttese, which a silver droid at his side immediately translates.

“FOOL! What is the meaning of this, Raden? Why do you bring strangers here with no appointment, into my very home?”

Warrick’s face contorts. “Oh, great Hutt! For-forgive me! They offer guns and business for your mightiness, yes! Yes! I only serve to help you!”

“Silence!”

The silver protocol droid translates, and Darga points. Guards immediately haul Raden up by his armpits.

“You will languish in my prison while you think about your mistake,” the droid calmly translates.

Whimpering, Raden is dragged out of the audience chamber, leaving the heroes staring eye to eye with an angry crime lord.

And there we stopped. A great place to stop actually, and just where I wanted it to end. Everyone leveled to 3rd and we made the adjustments to the sheets right then and there.

Next Session: Darga’s Palace

GAME TIME: About 3 hours.

 

[Nebulous]

Adventure #7: Darga’s Palace

Part 1

The five heroes are staring up at the fat, greasy face of Darga the Hutt, while their guide, Warrick Raden has been unceremoniously hauled away to the dungeons. Apparently, escorting unannounced guests to Darga’s throne room is a No-No.

The Hutt says something in his deep, guttural voice, and the silver droid at his side translates:

“The mighty Darga demands to know who you are, and why are you here? Answer quickly, please.” The heroes have already noticed that everyone else is also heavily armed, so they aren’t keen on starting a fight. But they have this part planned out, and A’ath immediately panders to Darga’s business sensibilities.

The ten Imperial blaster rifles are laid out, and the Hutt slithers off his throne for a closer look. Everyone else in the audience chamber is breathlessly watching this transaction. The Hutt sniffs, asking (through the droid) “Where did you get these rifles? They’re military grade!”

The group is (more or less) honest, and says they were taken after a scuffle with Imperial stormtroopers. The Hutt smiles at this, and Nahee the Duros gets the impression that he is genuinely pleased to hear that [GM Note: In fact, Nahee’s Social Sciences skill sees extensive use just about every game!] The Hutt makes them an offer on the spot: one-fourth of the market price per blaster, and the group accepts his offer without a second thought. It’s better than getting killed. Gammoreans haul the guns away, and they are paid immediately with credits.

The group makes it very clear that they heard Darga was the Big Cheese on this world, and they didn’t want to cross him, hence they came straight here for a clean deal. They apologize that their “guide” Warrick Raden broke protocol. The Hutt waves the apology away, and undulates closer to the newcomers, his hot breath washing over them. He doesn’t seem to be blaming them for Warrick’s mistake.

“Heavily armed I see. Warriors obviously. You might fit in well here! Ho! Ho! Ho!”

The Hutt claps his hands, and servants immediately begin bringing out tables and chairs, and platters of steaming food on metal trays, squirming things not quite dead, or very much alive, plate after plate after bowl after bowl, until the table is laden with an opulent buffet of rare and exquisite and disgusting combinations. A silver lid is removed, and the group is surprised to see a steaming headcrab, the same kind owned by Arno Silvermine on the Banshee! But it is highly unlikely that it is his pet Luci; they only left the spaceport a few hours ago.

Although much of the food they find disgusting, there is still something for everyone to eat that they enjoy, and the booze begins flowing freely as well. Darga chortles and laughs and shoves some screaming wet thing into his maw, chomping merrily and spurting fluids over his flabby gums.

Using the silver protocol droid, who introduces himself as Six-Six, Darga continues questioning the heroes, drawing their names out, their planets of origin, and their recent exploits. He seems very interested that they killed stormtroopers and stole their guns and wants to hear more about it.

“Imperials are coming here as well,” he boasts with a wink. “One can never trust them.”

A’ath tries to get a more information out of him, but the Hutt doesn’t want to talk business. He seems impressed with the group’s exploits though, and finally returns to his throne. The party mingles with the other revelers, eating and drinking and making casual Gather Information checks.

They learn that Darga LOVES violence, although he seems pleased with the newcomers and hasn’t shown them his explosive temper. A few people tell them that they are very lucky. Others mention that “Warrick shouldn’t have done that, the idiot,” and so forth. They find out that Darga has been in control here on Zarra for about ten years, and his pudgy fingers dip into all kinds of illegal activities. He is a rich creature, and everyone currently in the court is trying to siphon some of that wealth away, or at least bask in its glow.

While strolling about, Tomla the Ithorian Jedi has the peculiar feeling that he is being watched. He looks all around, but the room is densely packed and he fails to pick out anyone particularly interested in him. Nonetheless, Tomla fears that someone is watching him…

Nahee the Duros actually speaks Gammorean, and he casually hangs out near some of the guards, trying to listen in on their conversation. Gammoreans don’t speak much, but they do grunt to each other:

“Are you betting on the Karg Brothers this time?”

“Yeah. One hundred credits.”

“Me too.”

That ends their conversation, but it leaves Nahee with the uncomfortable feeling that they’re being led nose-first into a trap. Even with his Galactic Knowledge, he’s never heard of the Karg Brothers, so maybe they’re just famous locally.

Six-Six the protocol droid eventually ambles up to them and says that Darga would like to welcome them as guests at his palace. If they do not have further obligations or pressing matters, he will offer them a spot in their guest quarters. The group needs to find out about the mysterious Sarlaac Project, but HOW to do that is a complete mystery. As of now, their best bet is to wait for these Imperials to arrive and see what they say. The group accepts the droid’s offer, and Six-Six leads them to their guest quarters, which they fear would translate to “Dank Dungeon Quarters.”

 

[Nebulous]

Adventure #7: Darga's Palace

Part 2 of 3

To their relief, the guest quarters are immaculate and clean, with fresh sheets and a temperate climate and iced drinks already waiting. Everyone has their own chamber, and Six-Six shows them the adjacent game room and lounge, and the stairwells to the Kitchen area and the other apartments where some of Darga’s permanent residents live.

The group takes advantage of this opportunity to thoroughly question Six-Six, and learn that he is programmed to simply act as protocol droid and liaison for Darga. He does not have many advanced neural pathways for individualism and personality. They wonder how much knowledge is stored in the droid’s databanks, and if they could somehow hack into him, steal what they need, and then wipe his memory. They don’t do it though, not wanting to cause any waves. Not yet.

So far, Darga has been very accepting of their presence and they don’t want to jeopardize that.

They ask Six-Six about the “Karg Brothers,” and the droid tells them that they are some of Darga’s favorite gladiators. The group groans, seeing where this is going. Turns out that Darga is the sponsor for many gladiators who pass through Cato Neimoeida, and he makes quite a few credits off the gambling that ensues.

Six-Six tells them that they are free to move about as they wish, and Darga will contact them if he needs their presence. He leaves, and the heroes ponder what to do next. They have free reign of the palace, within reason anyway, but no clear idea about where to go or who to question.

They decide to split up.

A’ath wants to walk around the palace and get his bearings.

Thanatos, Nahee, Tomla and Nep’Tuk return to the throne room and mingle there. People around Darga might be able to supply some more information. Once again, Tomla feels like he is being watched, the Force skittering warnings over his mind, but he still cannot perceive anyone. But Nahee notices a tall Neimodian with bright red eyes staring intently at the Jedi, and a few questions later he finds out that this is Igren Demos, the Hutt’s majordomo and right hand man.

Meanwhile, A’ath wanders around the guest quarters and into the rest of the palace. He sees a fat Gamorrean carrying a clear bag of credit chips to a door, which opens and someone snatches it from the guard. A’ath keeps walking, and finds the door that leads to the prison quarters, but doesn’t bother trying to access that level.

His trip eventually brings him down to the kitchens, where A’ath hears pans suddenly clatter to the floor, and a stifled scream! He surges in to find a cook cowering behind a counter, fear plastered on his face, his three eyes blinking wildly.

“Careful!” he shrieks. “The dianoga got out of its pen! I don’t know how! It’s somewhere in the kitchen!”

A’ath knows what a dianoga is--a fairly common beast in the galaxy that is sometimes used as a living disposal unit. They’re faster in the water (or slime, or sewage) but clumsy on land. Nevertheless, A’ath doesn’t feel like facing this task on alone. He calls his buddies up, and within fifteen minutes they all arrive from the throne room.

The cook, a three-eyed alien named GRIX, is absolutely terrified. He doesn’t know what got the dianoga so riled up; it’s usually a placid creature content to munch on whatever they throw into the disposal unit, and it lives in its own little watery hole under the palace. It crawled out, nearly attacked Grix, and now he thinks it has slithered into the storage room. Grix is scared that Darga will found out, so he begs the group to help him.

“Stun it if you can, and we’ll push it back into the waste room!”

They set up a barricade of toppled cabinets and shelves, and using some raw fish for bait, Tomla uses the Force to maneuver the fish into the storage room. They hear something slithering and moving around inside, and then a blast of movement toward the bait! Something slimy and ochre-colored barges through the door, big eyes bobbing on twin eyestalks.

Tomla throws the fish into the waste chamber, and the stupid dianoga leaps in after it. A’ath punches the “Close” button, mere seconds before the thing slams into the door, but it can’t get out.

Mission accomplished, and not a shot fired.

Grix is extremely grateful, and promises that he will prepare the heroes any meal they want. They would prefer to deal with information actually, and Grix is willing to talk. He’s been in Darga’s palace for about a year and likes his job, and gets compliments for his cooking. He goes to the market daily and buys the best that he can afford, including these strange little headcrab creatures that were a big hit at the lunch buffet. They’re rare and hard to find though, and Grix doesn’t know when the market will have anymore.

The heroes, on the other hand, know exactly where to find some headcrabs.

Moving on, they keep questioning Grix about Darga and the palace and Imperials, and glean more information about the money and projects that the Hutt is involved with. Grix mentions an old Duros named GOME who is Darga’s moneychanger, and goes on to gossip further saying that Gome is a senile old bat who has a drug problem, but Darga doesn’t know anything about that.

And it turns out that Gome lives in an apartment not far from their guest quarters.

Interesting. Gome surely knows more about Darga’s secret projects.

They ask about the Karg Brothers, who Grix says are vicious Gammorean gladiators, and some of the house favorites. They are sponsored by Darga, and have won many, many battles, and earned Darga many credits. And the next fight happens to be today. They ask if the fights are always to the death, but Grix says no, it really just depends on what kind of bloodlust mood Darga is in.

A flashing red light in the corner interrupts the cook, and he says that means an assembly has been called for in the throne room. He must start preparing snacks at once! The heroes leave and return, just in time to see their old pal Warrick Raden escorted in by guards. He is stripped nearly naked, blubbering and crying and begging for mercy.

“HO-HO-HO,” chortles the Hutt, clapping his fat hands. “No mercy for you, fool. You shall serve as an example to others as stupid as you!”

Six-Six says that Raden has been brought here for execution, and as a sign of their good faith, Darga wants one of the PCs to perform the beheading! A guard brings them a vibro-ax, and Raden becomes hysterical, clawing at their feet and begging them for mercy. Nep’Tuk the Sullustan has NO qualms about killing Raden, but the others aren’t so quick to jump on board. They come up with an alternate plan, and offer to buy Raden from Darga as a slave.

This evolves into a haggle for a price, and through clever diplomacy and wording, the group convinces Darga to sell Raden for 1000 Credits.

“You have balls,” the Hutt admits, obviously pleased with their willingness to defy him, yet do so respectfully. However, Darga insists that their new slave must be treated as a lowly slave, at least while in his court, so Warrick Raden (renamed “Toto!”) is fastened with a studded collar and a leash.

Embarrassed and humiliated in a room full of laughing, jeering patrons, Toto is just glad to be alive, and immensely appreciate of his liberators.

Nep’Tuk still wants to chop his head off.

 

[Nebulous]

Adventure #7: Darga's Palace

Part 3 of 3

But lack of a fun execution has left Darga in one of his moods, and he demands for everyone to join him at the gladiator match! Shifting slowly out of the room, the crowd follows Darga to the gladiator pits, where frantic betting is already taking place. They find themselves elevated over an enclosed pit underground, looking down on rough terrain and scattered boulders. Lights click on around the perimeter, and after Six-Six announces of the combatants, and the last call for bets, the doors on either side of the arena open.

From the north lunge two hungry cat-like creatures; from the south emerge two scrawny Wookies bearing steel-shod spears. The five heroes place their bets on who they think will win the fight, and before they know it the battle is over, with both Wookies slain, and one of the cat-creatures thoroughly skewered. The crowd goes wild as money exchanges hands, and then Six-Six speaks through the intercom system and introduces the next round of combatants:

The Karg Brothers! (the crowd cheers)

Wrex, the Assassin Droid! (the crowd cheers again)

Zayda the Rodian Killer! (more cheers)

The gammoreans pound their chests and thrust their axes at the roof. The droid whirls his shoulder-mounted cannon in all directions, and the Rodian gazes coolly up at the Hutt.

Turning sly eyes at the heroes, Darga finally says what they dreaded he would say:

“I want you to be my champions, newcomers. Fight in the arena against my best gladiators. Stun settings only! Do you accept?”

Fearing that declining Darga’s offer will place them in a worse predicament, they take the turbolift down to the lower level. But Darga insists that Warrick Raden (Toto!) must join them in battle. Whining softly, the thug can only comply. They give him a blaster pistol (and I give the PCs stats from the adventure book for Raden), and the fight begins!

But in the brief interim while they traveled from the upper level to the lower, the gladiators have switched positions. As soon as the interior door opens, the group sees that the droid and rodian have taken cover, and before the heroes can move from their clumped position, a concussion grenade streaks into the midst! Stun damage hits four of them, and they quickly scramble for cover to avoid that little mishap again.

Wrex the Droid is their #1 problem. His grenades have full range over the board, and will quickly pound them senseless if they can’t take him down. He’s immune to Stun too, so they don’t feel guilty about lethal force. The rodian doesn’t fire (no range for stun yet), and the THREE gammorreans (hey, wait, where’d the fourth one go?) are slinging energy balls around.

The fight is six on six, and early on the PCs figured that, yeah thanks Mr. GM, we’re screwed.

Rather than relate a play-by-play of this whole two hour fight, I’ll hit the highlights. (First off, the music was Burly Brawl from Matrix, which was perfect). Thanatos and Nep’Tuk find cover early behind a rock, while Tomla feels confident with 10 rounds of Damage Reduction to protect him. The Jedi doesn’t want to blatantly use his powers, and carries a pistol he never actually fires.

The gammoreans start throwing their energy balls once they advance some, but I don’t think they hit anyone, or they hit for low damage. The grenades from the droid are problematic, but several high rolls knock Wrex down the condition track, although he is incredibly hard to hit behind cover unless they aim. It wastes his time while he struggles up the track and takes a Second Wind.

The floor of the arena itself is another major obstacle. Most of it is rough terrain, which severely limited their movement. The rodian advances, trying to ping Stun shots off the Jedi, and the gammoreans eventually drop their ranged weapons and switch to vibro-axes. And they sure as hell aren’t pulling their punches!

One gammorean is actually able to line himself up for a Devastating Charge on the Jedi, which inflicts enormous damage. (GM Note: we had to pause the game and try to calculate per the rules exactly how these guys were dishing out so much punishment; I think it was 2d10 +17 for the charge).

With some lucky shots on the behalf of the heroes, and three missed shots from Wrex’s grenade launcher, they are able to destroy the droid before he inflicts serious damage. He could have easily laid the whole party down had he hit consecutively.

But the gammoreans make it into melee range, and they are horrible opponents. Toto “Warrick Raden” is cut down by a gladiator, and only saved from death by his final Force Point. The PCs themselves are spending Force Points, desperately trying to get rolls high enough to hit their enemies, all of whom have very high Reflex Defenses.

It’s not until there is a single Gammorean left standing that the FOURTH brother turns up. He had been hiding in a secret tunnel under the arena, and pops up to help his brother flank A’ath the zabrak. It is bad news for A’ath, and both gammoreans hit him, grinding A’ath into the dirt.

Thanatos is likewise cut down, and the fight boils down to a heated match with injured parties on all sides. It’s Tomla who ultimately takes down the last two gammoreans with a couple of well-placed Ithorian “belches.” Or whatever they’re called. The brothers are slammed against the wall, and crumpling unconscious, and the crowd erupts into a cacophony of cheers.

There are three heroes standing, but all very injured. Tomla would cheer himself, but the exertion would probably knock him unconscious.

Standing as tall as they can on wobbly legs, the winners gaze up at Darga the Hutt, who is glaring down at his newest combatants with malevolent glee…

GAME TIME: About 4 hours

 

[Nebulous]

Adventure #8: Dungeons & Droids

[GM Note: We were down two players this session. Looking over the notes the story seems disjointed, but it flowed much smoother in actual play. A lot happened].

The adventure picks up immediately after the last episode. A’ath and Thanatos are barely conscious and dragged (gently) by their armpits to the throne room. “Toto” (Warrick Raden—the group’s new slave now) is likewise a mess, nearly killed by a Karg Brother in the arena. Darga the Hutt is very pleased with the results of the gladiatorial match (“HO! HO! HO!”), and he compensates the victors with glittering fire-eye gem necklaces draped over the necks.

GOME the moneychanger accepts a big bag of credit chips, and the gammorreans escort him away. Only A’ath remembers the vague hints from the three-eyed chef Grix that Gome the Duros is a loony and a drug addict, and that he might have more intimate knowledge concerning Darga’s business affairs. For now, the moneychanger is ignored because there are more pressing matters.

Tomla notices that that the Neimodian IGREN DEMOS stares intently at him with large red eyes…uncomfortably so. The majordomo has never spoken to them directly, and Tomla is not sure what to make of his inquisitive stare.

The heroes soon make their way back to the guest quarters, just as their comlinks blink. It’s ARNO SILVERMINE contacting them. Aboard the Banshee, the pilot wants an update on their progress, and mentions that he has had terrible luck finding a doctor to de-fang the crabheads. In fact, the little bastards have multiplied even more! He has them quarantined in the latrine, with only Luci on the loose, as she seems fine. Arno does not really think that a PC impregnated his pet, but no one knows how long this unknown alien species has been gestating. Arno is very worried about this, but the PCs are not willing to sell Luci’s offspring to the Grix, Darga’s chef. That’s just taking it a step too far. For the time being, Arno Silvermine will lock the beasts in the latrine and keep the PCs updated on activity in the starport. He’s ready to leave as soon as they are.

Well, the PCs are all alive, if not exactly well, and a few of them are given medical treatment in the guest quarters. They’re able to heal to max within a couple days. The next morning though, Tomla the Jedi is wakened from his trance by a strange dream: a woman’s voice is saying “HELP ME…FIND ME…” He can discern no source of the voice, and does not think that it was a physical voice in his room. Someone, somewhere (maybe somewhere on this whole planet!) needs help. The palad—um—I mean, Jedi is up for the task.

A’ath heals fairly quickly over the next day or so with constant attendance by a medical droid. Tomla and Nahee the Duros pilot aren’t hurt nearly as bad, and the Jedi can heal fast anyway. Their main goal is to still learn the nuances of the SARLAAC PROJECT, and from what Darga has said, Imperial representatives should arrive in the next few days. The timeline is uncertain. The group isn’t quite sure what to do, so they play casual and soak in the atmosphere, with Nahee throwing back some drinks in the throne room and listening in on the Gamorrean Guards again, who seem to be a wealth of gossip.

“Me lost bad,” one mutters dejectedly.

“Me won good,” the other says, smirking. Apparently, two of the gladiators are still alive: one of the Karg brothers and the Rodian warrior survived the battle. Their current whereabouts are unknown, and the party does fear revenge. But the question is, would they dare assault them in Darga’s own palace, under his roof? Or just call it quits and be glad they’re alive? They’re mostly worried about the surviving Gammorean, who might be motivated for revenge more than the other. The Rodian actually played by the rules until the odds turned against him.

The next morning Six-Six arrives separately at the door of Tomla, Nahee and A’ath. He brings GIFTS from Darga the Hutt, and they are no less than ready and willing Twi’lek whores! They’re from Darga’s personal harem, which means they just sit in his lap in bikinis.

[GM Note: A prostitute saying “Yum! Ithorian!” provoked the Jedi response of “You will remember that I’m quite large,” Mind Trick]

No, the Jedi is not particularly interested in Darga’s “gift”, although Nahee and A’ath accept the offer. It would have been rude not to, of course.

They still don’t know exactly what to do, so they settle down and absorb the laid back atmosphere of the palace, basking in the fact that Darga likes them so far. They find it highly ironic actually that the Hutt has come to like them so much, when in fact the five heroes are the most dangerous people in the palace, and the biggest threat to the Hutt’s empire. After a day of recuperating, Six-Six approaches Nep’Tuk and A’ath (and these two characters specifically) and tells them that he would like to speak with them privately in the AVIARY.

So…to the aviary.

Strange birds chirp in their roosts, eyeing them and hopping foot to foot.

A’ath has seen the aviary while wandering around the palace, but never actually entered it. The smell of wet vegetation strikes him, mixed with loam and rot and moldy feathers. Odd birds watch over their conversation, but Six Six says that they will be safe here in the aviary; no one around to observe.

Six Six then admits that he has TWO masters, one of whom is obviously DARGA…

…but the second master the party knows…SWITCH the Gangster Droid on Zel Nonn Station!

How about that. As it happens, Six Six has been monitoring communication signals leaving the palace, and has found an encrypted signal that Switch cannot crack. Previous communication between Six Six and Switch alerted Switch to the presence of A’ath and Nep’Tuk on Zarra. Long ago in adventure #2, the droid gangster Switch asked them to be his informants, but only A’ath and Nep’Tuk agreed, probably never intending to follow up on the verbal contract. But Switch the Gangster has contacts on Cato Neimoida, and wants feedback from his informants. In particular, Six Six has copied the encrypted info from the palace to an Imperial transponder, but Switch is unable to crack the code.

But Nep’Tuk is good enough to do it. The Sullustan pores over the microchip, hacking through the security measures and finally unveils that Igren Demos, the Hutt’s majordomo, has been sending late night messages to an Imperial transponder well outside of the solar system. The information conveys details about Darga’s slaves, the quality of the slaves, and mention of “A PRISONER…”

At this juncture, they’re not sure if Igren Demos is working against Darga or not. They keep the information to themselves though for future use. Poor Darga; he’s surrounded by traitors and spies, and ironically he trusts the PCs more than anyone!

After Six-Six is given a copy of the decrypted information, he casually mentions the droid race, and whether the PCs are attending or betting. Apparently, Darga is a big fan of a fast-paced and violent race that features remote-controlled droids. It takes place in the gladiatorial pit. Nahee the Sullustan does some snooping around the throne room again, listening in on the guards, and one mentions that GARG hasn’t recovered yet from the last droid race; his brain is jelly. Sounds great, and they decide right away to not get involved personally in this event. They keep poking around for clues, and since this is the third day of their visit at the palace, many of the regulars are getting used to seeing them around. They find out that Darga is VERY pleased with PCs, and as they see that he is surrounded by traitors or liars or spies. Maybe that just comes with the territory of being a crime lord.

A short while later Six Six returns to their rooms with good news. They’ve impressed Darga so much that he trusts them with special passcards, enabling them to secret entrances to their guest rooms! Later, a widespread lucky INT check reveals that the card might access lifts and doors other than the obvious ones…This will come in useful very soon.

But in the meantime - DROID RACE!

This was fun. Because Nahee eavesdropped on the Gammorean Guards again (they’re a constant source of tabloid information) and learned that the last gammorean loser hasn’t recovered yet, the party is very wary and they refuse Darga’s offer to join in his race. Not a problem really, Darga doesn’t mind if they just watch, and four other individuals including Igren Demos and Grix the Chef are asked to pilot droids.

TA-TONK-A-DONK is Darga’s prize droid. They’re technology from the Outer Fringe, never fully explored outside of Darga’s palace. Igren Demos is a driver, and the party learns that he is a frequent participant in the droid racing and often wins (with his +5 Int bonus). Without further ado, the racers don their helmets and goggles and the race begins! Each player rolled for one of the combatants in the race, and by pure luck, Igren Demos is knocked out in the second lap, his droid exploding into a ball of flame. The majorodomo is rocked to his knees from the psychic backlash, and the fat Hutt laughs.

I’ll spare the details of the race, but ultimately it is the chef Grix that wins, and he is given a reward by Darga, amid much clapping and cheering.

Later the next morning, the whispers continue. “HELP ME…FIND ME…” Tomla is disturbed by this but doesn’t know what to do. They start wondering if they should inspect the dungeons, but don’t think that they’ll be welcome there. The group returns to the Throne room, and just as Darga is asking how they are enjoying their stay at the palace, a group of armed men boldly struts through the front doors. There are three humans and one black-furred Wookie who looks particularly ugly and vile, a permanent sneer on his hairy lips. This is the Iron Ring slavers, and they have a group of chained aliens behind them, all of whom look miserable and malnourished.

They slavers are extremely angry with Darga the Hutt, blaming him for the poor quality of the slaves they purchased from him. They want a refund. Darga is even angrier for these guys barging into his home and making demands, and the argument begins to escalate. Darga rolls his eyes at the PCs, and A’ath takes the initiative and steps into the conversation, instigating a Skill Challenge [I still don’t fully understand how these are supposed to work, but they needed 3 Successes before 3 Failures; it worked reasonably well, with some tension and creativity]. Players make their arguments based on Social Sciences and Persuasion, and the Jedi uses the Force to discern that it would be more difficult to make Darga change his mind than the slave traders. Darga would never allow himself to look weak in his court.

Ultimately, the PCs convince the slavers that there are other avenues to sell the slaves, and that they should leave. As they’re leaving, A’ath spots one of the female twi’lek slaves flipping a small pill into Darga’s gem-encrusted wine goblet on the table. He immediately tells Six-Six what he saw, Darga overhears, and the guards are ordered to close the doors before the slavers leave!

Uh oh.

The situation turns ugly as accusations fly, but A’ath does not point out exactly who put the pill in the wine. In fact, there’s no proof at all, and the human slavers are adamant that they did nothing wrong. The female twi’lek stares at her feet, but both A’ath and Nahee see sweat beading her forehead. Guilty.

Darga isn’t letting up though, and the slavers are routed to an interrogation room. The wine goblet is taken away under A’ath’s supervision, and they are able to do a simple chemical analysis on it. Sure enough, there is a foreign substance in the wine that registers as a mild poison. Nothing fatal, but it would have sickened the Hutt. Ultimately though, in an interesting decision, A’ath decides not to blame the female slave for planting the poison, but one of the human slavers instead! Cries of outrage nearly erupt into a gunfight, but the slavers are outnumbered. The human is torn away from the group, and the others are told to leave. But with one caveat: the slaves must remain with Darga. The Iron Ring slavers are just glad to still have their lives.

The black furred Wookie growls menacingly at them…

Once the group has returned to the guest quarters they call Six-Six and ask him to bring the twi’lek slave to A’ath. The reason is for questioning, but A’ath makes it look like sex. Why else would he want her? Six-Six complies, saying that Darga will gladly and permanently give A’ath the slave for free. He owes them for all their help and is very appreciative. This brings their slave total up to two! Toto has some company now.

The slave girl answers their questions easily, and says that she was forced by her masters to poison Darga, but she messed up the timing. Having Darga sick might have given them advantage in the negotiations. The twi’lek slave is clear about how much she hates Darga and wouldn’t mind seeing him sick…or worse.

They eventually learn that the human slaver blamed for the poisoning was fed to Darga’s pet dianoga, the same one they dealt with last session. He has a Snack Pool where he occasionally throws victims to the beast to watch them be drowned and devoured.
Yes, Darga enjoys his little games very much.

By now, the group isn’t quite sure what to do. They have to stick around until the Imperials arrive because that is the best way to learn about the mysterious Sarlaac Project. The group decides to wander around the palace and try out their new datakey. As fortune would have it, the key allows them to unlock special turbolift access. Previous levels coded as Red turn Green. They descend well past the upper dungeon levels, and the door slides open to reveal a dark hallway. Flicking florescent lights reveal a floor that is grimy and wet, and they hear water plopping into puddles. To their left is a locked metal door, but the passage to their right opens up into a larger prison room with multiple cells. Apparently, they’ve found a sublevel of the palace that they should not have been able to enter.

But they’re not alone down here. There is one occupant behind the bars: an older human female, maybe in her fifties or sixties, lying comatose on a dirty hospital bed. Her chest slowly rises and falls, and there are intravenous chemicals hooked into her. It appears to be a life support system. Tomla tries to contact her mentally, but the woman seems to be on some sort of feedback loop saying “HELP ME…FIND ME…” and cannot answer. There is a lock on the door that could be broken, but they decide that IF they rescue this woman, their stay at the palace will effectively be over. Furthermore, without getting inside the cell, they can’t adequately inspect the monitors to see if she would die without them or not.

They decide to leave before they’re caught.

Tomla, A’ath and Nahee take the turbolift back to the main level, unseen by anyone, and they’re almost back to the guest quarters when they spot Gome the Moneychanger. He’s mumbling to himself and acting weird, and then he verbally counts the PCs and taps a number into his datapad. Gome enters his apartment, but Tomla plants a simple suggestion in his mind: “Follow us to our room.” A few seconds later the door opens and a befuddled Gome exits, shambling down the hall after the party without a question.

Once back at their room, they quickly determine that Gome is not exactly crazy or drug-addled at all. He’s highly autistic, a Duros Rainman, and is a masterful counter. In fact, he counts everything all the time, no matter what or where, and enters it into his datapad. They keep him busy counting the tiles in the floor while the group talks among themselves about what they should ask regarding Darga’s business.

In due time, they learn that Darga is dealing Tibanna gas with the Imperials, and that it is being mined on Bespin, also known as Cloud City. Tibanna gas is used for blaster bolts and larger turbobatteries on spaceships. It is a very expensive commodity, and Gome says that it has made Darga very rich (“Very rich, very rich, definitely very rich, very rich.”) They mention the Sarlaac Project, but Gome doesn’t know anything about that, other than it is a nasty, icky monster. They don’t have any more information on the Sarlaac Project, but then they start thinking about the name itself. The Sarlaac is a huge monster that dwells under the sand. The Great Pit of Carkoon on Tatooine is the most famous example. Could such a creature be on Cloud City? And what would Darga and the Imperials want to do with it?

They also learn from Gome that Darga has a place to stay at Cloud City and sometimes oversees the mining process. They wonder why the Imperials would deal with him in the first place and not just take the facility for themselves and mine the Tibanna gas. Maybe there’s more to it than they understand.

This is about where the session ended. The group has some new clues, and some new mysteries. Who is the old woman in the dungeon hooked to life support? Why does the Empire need such huge quantities of Tibanna Gas? What exactly is this Sarlaac Project? Soon enough the Imperial Liaison will be arriving and some of these questions might be answered.

In the meantime, they keep their eyes and ears open and never stop watching their backs.

GAME TIME: About 4 hours.

 

[Nebulous]

Adventure #9: A Knife in the Dark

[GM Note: There was a long interval since the last time we played, so we recapped the major plot points:

1) Igren Demos and his Imperial transmissions. You naughty majordomo.
2) Darga the Hutt deals with Tibanna Gas from Cloud City and oversees the mining operation, selling large amounts to the Empire. The autistic Gome the Moneylender spilled these beans. Definitely spilled them, definitely spilled.
3) The Iron Ring slave traders and the attempted poisoning of Darga. One of them got fed to Darga’s pet dianoga. Yummy.
4) The Imperial liaison is on the way sometime soon. The group just has to wait, and see how this plays out. Darga likes them and they’ve gained his trust.
5) And most IMPORTANT of all…the old human woman in Darga’s dungeon. Tomla has been hearing cries of HELP ME…FIND ME…for the past two days, and they found the source of those pleas. The old woman is alive, but they don’t investigate further, afraid that it would prematurely jeopardize their mission, which is to learn as much as they can about the Sarlaac Project.

We were also down two players and on a short time frame, just enough for one brutal encounter].

Only a few hours have passed since the heroes retired to bed. The guest quarters are quiet, bathed in darkness and the occasional light from small glowlamps. Nahee, Nep’Tuk, Thanatos, A’ath, Tomla and the slave “Toto” are all in their respective chambers.

Tomla the Ithorian Jedi is deep in his meditative trance, eyes closed to dreamy half-slits. But during his recuperative reverie, something akin to sleeping but not quite, the Jedi feels a disturbance in the Force. A black shape appears before him, faceless, featureless, just a blob of ebony. Unfamiliar thoughts skitter across his mind, and then words with dire meaning clearly imprint themselves upon his consciousness:

“NO SECRET LASTS FOREVER!”

What exactly does this presence know about Tomla?

The Ithorian begins to wake, just in time to notice that someone has entered his bedchamber. Not good.

Next door, A’ath the Zabrak also wakens when the door to his room silently opens. Someone is standing there in the shadows, just barely illuminated from dim light in the hallway, but with the distinct outline of a blaster in hand!

A few doors down, Thanatos the Chiss fails to hear his door slide open, and a third similar figure steps menacingly toward him, the muzzle of a blaster pointed toward him.

A’ath reacts first, reaching for the blaster conveniently stowed under his pillow. A hot streak of red plasma streaks toward the intruder, showering sparks from the wall. Missed. Still, A’ath screams as loud as he can for help, hoping to wake his companions.

Thanatos blinks. Nahee and Nep’Tuk are oblivious; the doors to their rooms shut and effectively sound proof.

Tomla the Ithorian ignites his lightsaber and simultaneously reaches out the Force and grips the intruder around the throat. The creature is humanoid, with a bulbous bald head and wide eyes that Tomla thinks might be a Bith. The Bith thrashes back and forth as its feet are lifted off the plush carpet, cries of protest choked in its gullet. Tomla squeezes harder.

What ensues is a desperate battle for survival. Except for Nahee and Nep’Tuk, who are sleeping like babes.

A’ath cries for help are sufficient to waken Thanatos, who avoids a dishonorable coup de grace at the hands of the Bith assassin. Gasping in surprise, Thanatos rolls aside just as a blaster bolt sears a sizzling hole in the pillow where his head was. The Chiss pops up, rattling off a retaliatory hail of shots himself, winging the Bith assassin.

A’ath keeps firing at his attacker, but the room is dim and the Bith seems to have the advantage. Tomla easily crushes the neck of his attacker and drops the corpse, but as soon as Tomla leaves the room, a hidden knife in the dark swoops at his belly! Instinct saves him, and Tomla bats the hand aside, a hand attached to a lithe and attractive female Twi’lek, one of the whores from the previous day actually.

But she doesn’t seem to like them anymore. Maybe they didn’t tip her enough.

To complicate matters, the Twi’lek’s knife is slathered with green poison, and she points the business end with a considerable amount of skill. She misses, but a sinister black-furred Wookie hidden in the stairwell follows up with his own attack. A bowcaster bolt explodes from the darkness, showering sparks near the Jedi. Tomla is in trouble. They’re being attacked from all sides it seems. Growling, the Wookie lines up his next shot from considerable cover in the stairwell.

[GM Note: Jedis are fricking powerful].

Regardless, what happens for the next five or six ROUNDS with Tomla and the Twi’lek is a hilarious dance of misses and missteps for both participants. They just cannot hit each other. Tomla swings, lightsaber humming through the air, and the Twi’lek prostitute jabs and jabs and jabs again, but her attacks are blocked by the Jedi every time.

Next door, A’ath and his would-be-killer exchange more shots, both of them injured now, but it is Thanatos the Chiss who takes the brunt of the assault. A deadly CRITICAL sends him spiraling unconscious for the rest of the fight, but rather than finishing him off for good, the Bith assassin goes to assist the Wookie.

Fortunately, everyone has Force Points galore to spend this fight, which helps. But Nahee and Nep’Tuk are blissfully dreaming of their Twi’lek lovers from the day before, oblivious to the battle raging outside their rooms. In fact, Nep’Tuk wears earplugs and black eye blinders.

A’ath downs her attacker, and then she and Toto (their Neimodian slave boy, now awake and terrified and we’re cramming his stats real quick because they’re in need of help) exit into the hallway to find their friends…

…but the black-furred Wookie has readied an action…and rolls a critical hit.

The bowcaster tears a HOLE through Toto’s chest, and although we didn’t realize it until later, their new slave had no Force Points left to save his hide. The last point he had was expended during the gladiatorial fight in the arena. Toto collapses, convulsing, and then lies still. Dead.

On the plus side, he absorbed a devastating strike against A’ath.

The green Twi’lek poisoner and the Jedi are having fun. She’s FAST, and acrobatic, and keeps diving past him with impressive acrobatic bouts.

[GM Note: Every assassin used Force Points to their advantage this battle].

The Jedi…

…wow…the Jedi. This fight would have been a washout if not for the Jedi. Yes, the enemies were designed for a larger group, and two of the participants were asleep most of the time, but the Jedi ruled supreme. He can’t deal extraordinary damage, but he deflected most attacks, or absorbed damage and negated it. Damage just…gone. Again and again. It’s a hard fight anyway, and even the Jedi is pushed to his limits.

The Wookie slaver and the final Bith assassin take as much cover in the room and stairwell as they can. All this time, Thanatos the Chiss has been bleeding out, waiting for his 10-Round chance to make a Constitution saving throw…that he fails. So he’s still down for the count.

[GM Note: I find this to be a weakness of the Star Wars system so far; seems like someone goes down each fight, and it’s hard if not impossible to get them back up on their feet. Part of the problem is the high end damage crits inflict, knocking almost everyone to 0 hit points in no time].

Several critical hits work for the assassins, and the battle definitely turns for the worse. If not for the Jedi ability to negate damage or deflect bolts, it would have been a bad situation. Still, this encounter would have been significantly different with two more PCs input, but was done deliberately.

But Nahee is still dreaming about his Twi’lek prostitute, who is currently trying to kick the Jedi’s ass and failing miserably.

She finally does manage to land a blow on the Jedi, burning a Force Point to do so, but the poison doesn’t take effect (I actually did it wrong, he should have been poisoned). Hell, the Jedi could have probably Force-purged from his body anyway. Still, Tomla manages to get a grip on the green Twi’lek, and this time he squeezes hard enough to snap her neck. She falls limp to the floor, her dagger clattering harmlessly away.

There’s still the Bith and the Wookie, and A’ath maneuvers closer, trying to line up shots. He finally ducks into an alcove next to the room where the Bith is hiding, and the two of them start exchanging shots around the corners. At one point they’ve even gripped each other’s wrists and are firing missed shots into the ceiling and walls!

But A’ath’s luck can’t hold out forever, and the Bith finally gets a lucky shot in, rending the Zabrak scoundrel unconscious.

Tomla the Jedi focuses on the Wookie who retreats down the stairwell, trying to pull his bowcaster away but fails. Both of these guys miss attack after attack after attack at each other, plasma bolts exploding off walls and a lightsaber showering sparks and chunks of plaster to the stairs.

The final Bith tries to coup de grace Nep’Tuk, who has just woken up, and the sullustan has a readied action with his blaster! A bolt rips out, killing the Bith, and Nep’tuk casually steps into the hallway, announcing to everyone that he “took care of the problem.”

It’s down to the spar between the Wookie and Jedi, and the Jedi finally wins, bringing his saber down in a vicious cut and severing the Wookie’s gun arm at the shoulder. Howling in agony, it rolls the rest of the way down the stairs.

Well, what a fine mess.

They gather up the bodies and weapons and toss everything into a pile in the adjacent game room, wondering who sent these guys to kill them in the dead of night. Surely it wasn’t Darga, the fat Hutt likes them too much. It must have been a separate party. They wait an hour to see if anyone comes to investigate the noise, but no one does. Still, there’s no point in trying to hide the carnage. They can’t really. There are blaster scores all over the place, and no small amount of burn damage.

Healing right now is a matter of necessity, not so much for the Jedi who can regenerate himself quickly, but Thanatos and A’ath are severely hurt. It’s a matter of medkits and medpacs, and maybe some assistance from Treat Injury and some med bots.

They’ll tell Darga about the assassins when they see him again, which won’t be a whole lot longer. The last thing that happens is that Six-Six the droid comes to their quarters, telling the PCs that the Imperial liaison will be arriving soon, and that Darga wishes to speak with them IMMEDIATELY.

So they head toward Darga’s throne room, wondering what the Hutt has to say…

And there we stopped.

[GM Note: The whole party levels to 4th, even the ones counting sheep during the fight.
We get the feeling that we’re missing part of combat, maybe a rule somewhere we’re overlooking. Then again, we’ve been playing a lot of 4e too, and the tactical aspects of that game are vastly different that Star Wars. It’s weird not having shifting or 5 foot steps].

 

[Nebulous]

A Campaign on Hold

Well everyone, that's as far as we made it in Dawn of Defiance. We lost some players, and 4e came out, and we've not really thought too much about Star Wars since then. I really enjoyed it, but we all agreed that it had some balance problems. Combat was too swingy, and the Jedi was really, really great at some things and crap at others.

Thanks for reading anyway. I had never planned to go through the entire 20 level campaign arc, probably cutting it off somewhere around 12th. Maybe we'll get the chance someday to kickstart it, i dunno, or a SW one-off.

Nebulous