greger

Yeah, I was actually expecting my players to do research, but I guess they are just too new still. But the other times we have played, they have searched a lot for info before going into things. I even tried to hint this time, but I am guessing they were just so excited about a dungeon crawl. Since we are all DnD-players as well. That is right, I believe that wasn't started untill 2005 or something. But there has been done research up there for a long time. So it is an interesting location for future adventures. Might even be up there the serpent people retreat to after this. Even though it is cold. I am sure they have tech to keep warm. I must admit I hardly know anything about the serpent people and tribes and all that from before, didn't even know there were multiple divisions, so I have some research to do. But I am sure I'll manage to come up with ... something.

As a follow-up for my novice investigators (an inventor, a missionary, a museum curator and an archeologist), whom all survived "Edge of Darkness", I decided to do the newly released scenario "Test Subjects" by Michael Fryda. For preparations I had do to some modifications to also move this whole thing to be fit in Norway. (Spoilers after this line) The scenario spans quite a bit of distance, about 2000 kilometers, by my measuring. And while Norway isn't a big country, it is long. So, starting off in Oslo, my investigators, while sitting at a cafe, discussing what to call their investigator organisation they are starting up, with money inherited from the equivalent of Rupert Merriweather for this purpose, spots the ad in the paper, wanting to hire competent people to investigate some tunnels under a house. They were immediatly intrigued, sent of a telegram, spent more time discussing a name (spoiler: they haven't decided yet), and already started stocking up on equipment they thought the might need. While waiting for a yes/no to get the job, they did nothing related to the scenario. No investigation into the person they communicated with, or the property which they had an adress to. I would have thought they would, but, oh well. At the house for an introductory talk with the groundskeeper, they asked to see the entrance to the cave, which they got to, and set off to get equipment for the next day. One of the things they got, which I would never had thought of myself was... a canary in a cage. They all failed their initial climb roll, but they all passed the dex check, so no damage done. When they got to the first portal, they right away noticed something was up, because they were quite actively using their lights to check out the cave walls, and noticed something was not right. I had previously done a thing where, when magic points are spent, the characters get a somewhat feeling of accomplishment, which of course happened when the first person went through the portal. She thought that was so strange, that she was ready to call it quits for the day. Went back through again, and started getting headaches. A second person also did the same, and they were ready to go home. Luckily, the last two investigators were not having it, so they marched on. They got out of the caves in "the other house" in Oslo, were quite confused by that, as they had travelled 5 km very quickly. And decided that it needed further investigation. They figured out that there were two more portals from that place, naming it "the hub". Taking one of the tunnels and crossing the portal, the canary had had it, and decided to die during the crossing (RIP Tim). They came into a small hole in the ground, as a dug out little cellar, and found a box there with some seal pelts, and a polar bear pelt. Before they stuck theirs head above the ground, they had guessed that they had ended up on Svalbard. That's when the cogs started running in their heads, about how they could exploit these portals to transport supplies and stuff for people who wanted to be at Svalbard to do research or hunting or whatever. They had no idea exactly where they were, so they took pictures, nothing time and shadows and all that, so that they could figure out the location of the hut, later. Going back down the hole, a few of them were starting to think that it might be best to go back home, and rest for the night. But one of the guys decided to march on to the next portal, ending up somewhere in Finnmark, while the rest waited. He explored that location for a bit, then went back down, talking to the others through the portal. He told them that he had seen their own traces throught the other portal in that location, so they all decided on taking the shorest routes possible back to the hub. That is when one of them found the glass disc, and they all decided to get the hell out of tunnels (for now). I decided to let Lo’thysss thank them over the PA, then blow up the portals down below (thought the investigators only heard noise, and don't know exaclty what happened.) Now, that is about where we ended last night, I was trying to hint that there wasn't much more to this scenario, but they are not having it, and are now set on starting their investigations into this more. They will try to head back into the tunnels, and are dead set on finding out more. So, I now have till next Tuesday to come up with a continuation on this scenario-turning campaign. From what I have read, I am thinking that maybe an adaption of "Darkness Beneath The Hill" might work. Or just come up with something by myself altogether. Also thinking that maybe this could in some way be tied together with the sarcophagous from Edge of Darkness. But I am also now certain I need to make it a bit more dangerous for them, cause again, they all managed to stay quite sane. I am also quite new at being a keeper, so I sometimes forget stuff I can do, and I guess that also lightens it for them. But, we are having fun, so, that's good. Oh, btw, for the handout of the glass disc, I decided to make a 3d model in Blender, and then share that with them through a webviewer for 3d objects.

So, ran this last night. We had fun. I had done some changes, and nothing happened as I anticipated. Don't want to spoil anything for anyone, but I can't seem to figure out if there is anyway to write hidden/spoiler-text, here. Edit: Wrote about it in its own thread (with some spoilers) https://basicroleplaying.org/topic/13171-i-ran-test-subjects-scenario-with-adaptions-spoilers/

Just completed Edge of Darkness with my group of four investigators. It was really fun, though not really deadly. To make the adventure a little more familiar, I translated all the names, handouts and settings, to Norwegian. I used great sources online to find pictures and news clippings etc, from 1920, and used old maps and census to turn it into something that fit with Oslo and put the farm house in an area called "Sørkedalen". Found scans of old telegrams that I managed to 'shop out the original text, and add my own. Created new handouts with a little bit of programming, to make it easy to put text on custom backgrounds. I used all real locations, also for library at the university, and the hospital for the initial gathering. Since we don't have raccoons in Norway, that became a badger. I also did some changes to the story, based on things I read in misc threads online. When the investigators first meet Rupert, he didn't manage to say much, because he started coughing as soon as they entered the room. Pointed them to a letter and a small key, and just about managed to utter the name of a street, before falling into a coma. The key had a number of it, and on the street mentioned, there was a bank, so the investigators figured bank box, went down there, only to be followed by Ruperts son. As the investigators struggled to get the bank box opened, not being family, he barged in, and demanded his fathers things. Only to be met in the box, by a not saying that if continued his non-sense, he would be stripped of all inheritance. The investigators got the things from the bank, and started their initial investigation. They telegrammed New Oreleans to ask for info on the murder there, and just got a response that all info was sent in copy to the local police department. So they got some info there. They drove up to the house, stopping by the little store first, where they got directions by Ma Peters, and was told about the disappearance of whatsherface. Outside the house they didn't look that much around, but found the badger. My thought before we started was that I could not imagine they would ever decide to look in the attic before exploring anything else, but, since they had heard a sound from the cellar, they imagined that was where the terror would be, and instead one of them stuck his nose up the door to the attic, luckily being able to dodge and only get a tiny bit of damage. As that happened, Red Jake ran up from the cellar, grabbed at his things, but got captured. They managed to get him to talk a bit, and decided it was too late in the day to stay, so asked him if they could drive him anywhere, and went home for the night. The next they, one of them saw a note in the newspaper about the disappearance, and that it was persumed she was taken by a bear that had been observerd in the area. So, they decided it would be sensible to have some weapons as protection. They got back, hesitated for a long time with going down into the cellar, and when they did, they were skeptical about the chest. Fearing that the markings on the outside might be to keep something inside it. While waiting for midnight, one of them explored outside, and found the body. They decided to wait with the reporting to the police, figuring that the lurker was more important to deal with. Anyway, the rest went more or less according to described. They nailed windows and doors shut before starting. But they had a zombie scare by the farmers wife, but a critical hit with the shotgun, firing off both round, took her head off. The ritual went well, the got rid of the lurker, with most of their sanity intact, but really struggled afterwards with what to do with the body. What they thought would be tricky to explain before was now a total mess. So.. they burried her in the woods. Anyway, now I am not quite sure where to take them for the next session. They want to find out more about the Sarcophagous, but I think that will be slow and hard. I have some scenarios I am considering adapting to Norway, trying to tie them in with the story I have told so far. On my list of contenders are Blackwater Creek, Test Subjects or some haunted house scenario. But would be nice to find something that can add some continuity to their finds, but at the same time, they are starting an investigator society, and so they might just get tasked with missions, I guess. In between the other stuff. I had tons of fun, and this was the second scenario I have ever GMed. We did The Haunting a few months back, but I did nothing to change that, and it was a spur-of-the-moment thingy, because our DnD-GM was sick that day.

On page 158, it says So, I wouldn't be too hung up on the amount of time for the bout. I mean, decide what works best for the story.

@klecser As I mentioned, I am playing through Edge of Darkness now, but I started it in spring of 1920, and I have moved and translated all of it to be set in Norway, where we live, so that all players and myself are in familiar territory. So I am considering different options to continue from there, when that is solved. And you said it can be good for beginners, and not very lethal, which are both qualities I like, at least for now. So this is definetively an interesting scenario now.

I am looking for a scenario to put my investigators through after finishing up "Edge of Darkness", and this looks very interesting. Two questions, though, Are the specified geographic locations important? Or can they be easily changed? And, is the time setting changable?