*** SPOILERS, KEEPERS ONLY!! - Need some basic guidance for running Two-Headed Serpent

[tempus42]

*** MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!!!! ********

I've recently read the full Two-Headed Serpent campaign book cover to cover. I get the whole concept fine, but I think I missed a few key points that are making me uncertain about exactly how to approach running the meta-plot of this campaign.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated, and I apologize in advance for my ignorance!

 

1) I get that the heroes start working for Caduceus, eventually get suspicious, discover that they're really working for serpent people, and then need to wipe out or at least put a stop to TWO different factions of evil serpent people bent on wiping out humanity!

2) It's clear that the Congo chapter is where the true nature of Caduceus is probably discovered, but to get there, the heroes have to have become suspicious enough of Caduceus for them to explore the basement levels and find the gate, right? What exactly is expected to make them suspicious in the first place?

3) But if the heroes are poking around Caduceus HQ, what's to stop them from finding the memo that points directly at Snake Island as the gateway to Mu? If they find it, why wouldn't they be likely to short circuit everything else and just go there?

4) When and how would the heroes first be expected to be introduced to Rose Meadham and the Inner Night? Not until they turn up together in Calcutta? There must be a time when they cross paths earlier, but I think I missed it, because how else would the heroes possibly consider switching sides? (Also, what exactly is with all the Rose Meadham clones being held in various areas anyway? I don't think that was ever really explained anywhere...)

5) I have a feeling all of my confusion stems from the New York chapter not being a self-contained "scenario" but instead being the linchpin of the metaplot that is expected to unfold somehow between all the other chapters. Does anyone have any good, concrete advice on exactly how, if at all, the New York bits should be fed to the players to get them to follow the "right" paths?

[Scott Dorward]

You're right in that the New York chapter is meant to be a metaplot that twists between the chapters. You should definitely play it out as much as you can, letting your players have lots of opportunities to interact with people at the Caduceus offices.

There should be plenty of events to make the heroes suspicious about Caduceus. The campaign starts out with the heroes discovering that they've been lied to about the organisation's true motivations. From there, they are sent out to use what is effectively a nuke on a civilian population in North Borneo and to neutralise a largely peaceful cult in Oklahoma for what appear to be ideological reasons. The main hook, however, is the Mafia subplot, where the heroes are pushed into investigating their employers by outside forces. The implication that Caduceus may be involved in smuggling heroin should stir up some interest.

With respect to point 3, there are some guidelines in the text about when the memos about Mu should come into play. If the heroes are poking around the offices early in the game, these memos simply won't exist yet. You are in complete control over when these clues turn up. Don't feel pressured to reveal them early if you don't want to.

The heroes have a chance to encounter Rose Meadham in the Iceland chapter, although not in person. She is speaking to the other serpent people in the control room, using a remote video connection. There are some guidelines there for how she might interact with the heroes.

Hope this helps!

[Tarondor]

When the PC's arrive at the Aid Camp in Chapter One, what is the expected reaction of the Bolivian soldiers in the camp? The PC's have just defeated their fellow soldiers. Even if the average soldier doesn't know this, the serpent-people leaders will. Why isn't there immediate violence?

[klecser]

14 hours ago, Tarondor said:

When the PC's arrive at the Aid Camp in Chapter One, what is the expected reaction of the Bolivian soldiers in the camp? The PC's have just defeated their fellow soldiers. Even if the average soldier doesn't know this, the serpent-people leaders will. Why isn't there immediate violence?

The text says that any surviving Bolivian soldiers and Karnassh "run into the forest," which doesn't necessarily imply that they return to the aide camp. Given that the Inner Night's goal is to find Tyrannish, I find it completely plausible that they don't return to the Aide Camp within the time structure of the investigator's time there. Their mission priorities might be complex. An argument could be made that, if the investigators don't kill the attack squad, there would be greatly increased tension in the scenario in wondering what happened to them. Are they still out there, preparing another ambush? If the investigators get to the Aide Camp, expecting a fight and don't get it, well, that is just another anxiety that is lodged in the back of their minds, keeping them on their toes. 

Edited October 29, 2020 by klecser