FLOTSAM and JETSAM - Variations

[Lordabdul]

Hey there, I’m going to start playing The Star Brothers soon and I’m thinking of doing a couple of changes to the scenario. I’m hoping that some people will have some good comments and additions that I can incorporate!

First, some of my players are experienced with CoC and will probably immediately think of Deep Ones when they see that they’re just next to Innsmouth. I don’t really want to move the scenario elsewhere, so I’m thinking that most people in Ipswich might talk about the “road to Little Neck”, which would move from its real world location further inland between Ipswich and Innsmouth... and then people don’t really talk about the strange and derelict houses further towards the ocean. The town sign might even be broken, lying down in the bushes, so that investigators would not even know where they are unless they spot it, or until it’s too late... any other ideas?

Another change is to add an “in media res” introduction scene, a bit like the classic action/intro set piece would would see at the beginning of a movie. It might be the end of the previous case that the PCs did for Strange But True, or a flashback to the first thing they did together, so we get a glimpse of how they met. I’m thinking about something purely mundane but still a bit dangerous or weird... like we would start being chased by a murderous clown in a toy store, or a violent mobster in the back of a butcher shop, or whatever that previous story led them to. Any good suggestions?

Thanks!

[knifesedgegames]

I think the push towards the idea that this is an alien investigation helps take their mind of Innsmouth. I made a point of asking each investigator where their beliefs lie in terms of magic, ghosts and UFOs, which steers the tone somewhat. 

[Nyorlandhotep]

I am going to run this Friday and Saturday to mixed groups of experienced and new players. I am considering replacing the Hybrids by some sort of monster hunter - a nasty, amoral individual that wants to capture Otys - perhaps to experiment on him, perhaps to summarily exterminate him - I still need to work out the details, could be a sorcerer, a priest/inquisitor type, a mad scientist, or a government agent, but the point is that he does not have the best interests of Otys in mind - he will hunt Otys and kill/torture him. Having two factions (deep ones and hunter) chasing Otys should create more mystery and dramatic tension, and eventually add a difficult moral choice for the characters to make. What do you think?