Episode: Celestial Gambit

In-Game Date: 2nd Hive – 2nd Low, Narciss, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Greg (Frances Faraday III) Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Ben (Azgard Bedlum) Previous Episode: The Devil’s Hit List Following Episode: The Siege of Zaddfum Trestle Locations: Market Ward, Lord V’s flat, Lady’s Ward, Temple of Freyr, Clerk’s Ward, Hall of Records, Hall of Records Inner Sanctum Notable Elements: Helena Highwater, Zohar Cage, Carver Redforce, Bronx Redforce, Funeral, Creed, Blight Crawlers, Felicia Gravesend, Abyssal Warchariots, Destruction of the Hall of Records

Is that a Holy Symbol in your pocket?

The game opens with a recap of SPU36’s interrogation of Helena Highwater, covered in-depth on the forums here:

The high points include:

• She was a carrying a Zohar Cage that she had picked up from the two boys in the Hive during Episode: The Devil’s Hit List.
  • Glanthur identifies the Zohar Cage as a type of container which is known to be essentially impossible to open.
• It is also discovered through Lord V’s manipulative questioning – that Helena is in fact not a Cleric of Abadar, but rather, of the Raven Queen, a fact she was very actively trying to conceal.
  • Vala chimes in that the Raven Queen is not a major force in the New City, but does have a Temple in the Temple District.
• Additionally, it is learned that Helena was picking up the box in the Hive for her friend Felicia Gravesend, a girl she associates with a Karl, a guy who likes guns, has blond hair, and a dog, and an athletic silver-haired girl that she knows only as ‘Slash’.
  • Helena has a thing for Karl; she knows he’s a ‘bad boy’, but that is why she’s drawn to him.
• Helena doesn’t know much of anything about the boys she made the pickup from.
  • She thinks she’s seen both of them around before, and is pretty sure one is a member of the Fated – like herself.

While the interrogation is going on, Faraday & Glanthur arrive at a plan: Glanthur constructs a fake Zohar Cage containing a listening coin and some dust of coughing and sneezing. Helena is then given the fake box and allowed to depart. The real Zohar Cage is given to Glanthur for further examination and, if possible, a shot at trying to open it. He arranges to have it delivered to the UPL labs at the University for further study.

A Welcome Retirement

The next morning, it’s time for the funeral of Fated Factor Carver Redforce, which SPU36 is expected to attend. It’s being held at the extravagant Temple of Freyr in the Temple District, where the Redforce family are major patrons of the church. Felicia attends, as does most of the who’s who of the city. Bronx Redforce, the son of the deceased Factor and sometimes social adversary of Carredyn. Bronx gives a teary-eyed, furious speech in which he calls out The Esteemed & Accordant’s inability to protect the citizens of the New City. Bronx adds that he can certainly do a better job of helping people without the shackles of these two fumbling organizations, and, seething with anger, announces he is leaving the Accordant. To say Carredyn looks pleased in a very restrained, appropriate fashion is an understatement.

Episode: The Devil’s Hit List

In-Game Date: 2nd Hive, Narciss, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Ben (Azgard Bedlum) Greg (Frances Faraday III) Previous Episode: Stung Following Episode: Celestial Gambit Locations: New City, Silver Spire Inn, City Barracks, Lord V’s flat, Azgard’s apartment, Rec Center in the Hive, Fat Cat’s Deli, Seafarer’s Arch, Lady’s Ward, Clerk’s Ward, Market Ward Notable Elements: Lt. Nexus, Commander Nash, The Steel Fist, Helena Highwater, Vance Vincent, The Hat

The Morning After

SPU36, nursing a combat hangover from the epic brawl at the 12 Factols, begins their day entirely too early, at the Clerk’s Wards’ Silver Spire Inn, over pastries, coffee, and discussion of prisoner interrogation. It seems that there were two groups of mercenaries – those hired by Snowblind, and those hired by the now-deceased Fated Factor Carver Redforce involved in the brawl at the 12 Factols in Episode: Stung.

On to the City Barracks, Faraday & The Hat discuss Vance’s conversation, overheard by Lord V, referencing some large-scale operation. The Hat agrees to keep his men on watch for anything related, though does mention that they don’t have much else to go on. Anything intelligence turns up will be relayed to SPU36.

Another Interrogation from Nexus

Commander Osbourne Nash, Factor of the Accordant and consort of Vala, is running the interrogation, and making everyone’s lives particularly unpleasant is Lt. Nexus, last seen in Episode: Flames of Disaster, where he imprisoned Faraday and spent agonizing hours questioning each individual member of SPU36 regarding the Savior Drive Train Robbery. The info gathered on the prisoners is as follows:

• 13 captives, all of whom were employed by Vance/Snowblind
• Two of the men seem to be leaders.
• Mercenaries were hired outside of Tradegate at a known mercenary hiring hall.
• Part of a larger mercenary unit.
• They believe Vance contracted with their commander for their two units.
• They were told they might be working with the Crimson Wrath Ninjas.
• Talk that after the bodyguard detail they were on, that there would be an op the next night.
• Operated out of a warehouse. In a district of warehouses that are mainly rented for short term. Either in the Market or Guildhall ward.
• Played it safe. They personally were responsible for 0 fatalities
• Given the limited nature of their ‘crimes’, it’s assumed that the combatants from the 12 Factols brawl will quickly have their day in court, be fined, and released.

SPU36, sleep-deprived and exhausted, takes a breather of several hours.

Episode: Stung

In-Game Date: 2nd Clerk’s, Narciss, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Ben (Azgard Bedlum) Greg (Frances Faraday III) Previous Episode: The Sting Following Episode: Celestial Gambit Locations: 12 Factols Notable Elements: Victorians, Dr. Harcourt Ravenswing, Demetri Snowblind, Coyote, Torus, Laszlo, Crimson Wrath

When last we left our heroes

Open curtain on the last scene from the end of Episode: The Sting. Snowblind and Lord V, masquerading as the deceased Factor Carver Redforce have come to something of an impasse, as the disguised detective has sensed the end of his window of negotiation and makes as if to leave, and Dr. Snowblind has gently-but-firmly grabbed the half-elf’s arm.

There is a mutually agreed-upon resumption of talks about the deal that Redforce and Snowblind had arranged, which moves along awkwardly – as Lord V still really has no idea what this deal entails – until a commotion from the other room causes Snowblind to look around with suspicion. He touches his hand to his ear, says “I see” and then crosses his arms over his chest, and begins gathering magic energy into his hands. The Victorians both dive to opposite sides, away from Snowblind, and the undercover members of SPU36 step back away from the Iron Ring commander as he unleashes a withering burst of energy, raising a shield of force energy around himself.

Snowblind’s overly large humanoid guards attack as combat begins.

Showdown at the 12 Factols Inn and Pub

A chaotic fight ensues, involving all of SPU36, Snowblind, his guards, and the Victorians. The level of chaos does not decrease any when, from a side hallway, Vance Vincent, Iron Ring Lieutenant, knocks Esteemed engineer Torus Anthony across the room and yells to Snowblind that “I told you this was a setup”. The furious and brutal battle between Torus and Vance continues as Lord V faces off against the the female Victorian “Mrs. McUmbrella”, Glanthur goes invisible and takes potshots from out of the way, and Carredyn and Faraday square off against Snowblind’s guard-gimps. New SPU36 recruit Azgard Bedlum makes his was through the massive battle between Esteemed troops and Iron Ring mercenaries taking place in the next room over, and targets the elusive “Double Smoker”, H.M. Ravenswing, who proceeds to unleash a chain lightning spell battery on the group, earning their immediate ire.

Episode: The Sting

In-Game Date: 2nd Clerk’s, Narciss, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Greg (Frances Faraday III) Aaron (WTF?!) (Duncan Kasper) Previous Episode: Flames of Disaster Following Episode: Stung Locations: Market Ward, Chinzpeter’s Used Clothing, Lady’s Ward, 12 Factols Notable Elements: Dr. Horace Rushforth, Factor Carver Redforce, Victorians, Dr. Harcourt Ravenswing, Demetri Snowblind

Things to do in the Market Ward when you’re Dead

SPU36 completes their investigation of the double homicide of Carver Redforce and Dr. Horace Rushforth at the Chinzpeter’s Used Clothing Store in Market Ward. Chinzpeter, the Halfling owner is questioned, but has no useful intel, and Glanthur’s wide-area thought-scan produced no relevant results. A hidden note is discovered on the corpse of Carver Redforce, about his pre-death arranged clandestine meeting with a certain “Dr. Dream”. Speak With Dead is performed on both bodies by official police teams, but the results are immediately avaialble to SPU36. Method of killing is found from Dr. Rushforth, which leads Glanthur to the hypothesis that a vibrating weapon was used.

Glanthur and Carredyn take leave to follow a lead involving Dr. Rushforth at a shipping company.

Laszlo comes through with requested requisitions from Accordant armory.

• A pair of Listening Coins to be used for bugging,
• Merciful Bullets for Faraday
• Spell batteries (like scrolls but powered by an electrical charge)

Rhyming and Stealing

A sting is planned. The time before is used to gather materials, some members gather intel on Redforce for Lord V to make a convincing presentation as the deceased. Lord V spends the day costuming himself, Carredyn, and Vala, who are disguised as Redforce & two bodyguards. Lord V’s disguise is ingenious, utilizing multiple layers of obfuscation to magically make Redforce appear as though he is well, but with physical disguise he makes the body look pale and allow a false slit of the throat to show through the seeming, thus appearing as though he had just been raised from the dead. This does not appear to have been noted by any of the targets in the operation, but it is still totally bad ass.

Episode: Flames of Disaster

In-Game Date: 2nd Market – 2nd Clerk’s, Narciss, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Previous Episode: Hold The Line Following Episode: ??? Locations: Clerk’s Ward, Lady Drayon’s Boarding House, City Barracks, Market Ward, Chinzpeter’s Used Clothing Notable Elements: Pantagh Zealotbane, Burning Building, Vance Vincent, Murders, Dr. Horace Rushforth, Factor Carver Redforce

Fallout

It’s the evening of 2nd Market day of Narciss, some long amount of time before the Seraph Immaculate will assault and take over Crater Spring base in Episode: Hold The Line. In the wake of the Savior Drive Train Robbery in Steel Ark, SPU36 is due to face heavy interrogation because there are so many unanswered questions about that incident. In fact, Faraday was even briefly taken into custody, and though he’s been released, he hasn’t rejoined the unit. So that the team can make sure they have the same understanding of events as they transpired, Carredyn has gathered the rest of SPU36 (sans Laszlo) at The Scribe’s Rest Pub, located in the Hall of Speakers District of the Clerk’s Ward, safely away from any prying eyes.

It’s only moments after all parties agree that they’re all on the same page and prepared for the next day’s interrogations that a commotion outside draws their attention: Caddycorner to the pub, Lady Crayon’s Boarding House, known as an out-of-the-way mid-range whorehouse for those looking for discretion, is currently burning. A lot. Their beers unfinished, Carredyn throws a handful of silver pieces across the table as the group sprints for the burning building.

Backdraft

Inside Lady Drayon’s, the scene is essentially a conflagration, with people – both patrons and employees – trapped in different places all over the building. Carredyn and Lord V head up the central tower to rescue the civilians located there, as Vala and Glanthur head to the east wing, but before they can open the door, three mercenaries burst forth from the door across the room, and seeing the cleric and dwarf, charge them, saying “More Accordant hardheads! Get em!”. The Mercenaries begin to overpower the law-officers, but then Carredyn, charging down a set of steps from the top of the tower and leaping from a brings death from above with a battlecry, cleaving one of the attackers nearly in two and breaking the morale of the others.

Episode: Hold The Line

In-Game Date: AN AMBIGUOUS POINT IN THE FUTURE Players/PCs: Greg (Frances Faraday III) Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Previous Episode: Steel Ark Following Episode: Flames of Disaster Locations: Crater Springs Base Notable Elements: Red Mercury, Seraph Immaculate, Laszo, Magnus, Vance, Blue Knight, Ishmael Spear, Garnet Enfield, Montgomery Lynch

Enjoy your stay at Crater Springs

Flash Forward to AN AMBIGUOUS POINT IN THE FUTURE. SPU36, with their recent addition of Magnus Quicksilver, Cypher gunslinger and acolyte to Faraday, have traveled to the Esteemed’s Crater Springs base in the Outlands. It’s near the spire, and as in many such places, conjuration magic does not function here. The commanding officer at the base is Assistant Commander Ishmael Spear.

Along with their attached UPL R&D team, the group is here to do some testing with an R&D team based out of this facility, though that team will not arrive until the next day (3rd Hive). A dignitary from Arborea, Lady Garnet Enfield, is visiting the base, and is waiting to meet with a diplomatic contingent led by Hans Whipsawn. There are soldiers on base, but they’re mostly low-level recruits, the elite forces are involved in an extended sortie in Fortitude.

It’s coming right for us

Laszlo informs the unit that SPU36 is to participate in a mock defense exercise, though that never gets off the ground, as Seraph Immaculate forces are sighted in the area, and are marching on Crater Springs base. Unfortunately with the base running on what is essentially a skeleton crew, there isn’t much of the way in terms of forces to defend the base, and there are still non-combat recon units out in the field that have to be brought in to safety. Asst. Commander Spear & Lt. Laszlo discuss briefly, and it’s decided that out of necessity, SPU36 will command the low-ranking soldiers stationed at the base and try to hold back Seraph Immaculate forces long enough for the recon teams to return to the base. A distress call has gone out the only allied unit near enough to intervene, Which is the Howling Bravery, Captained by Montgomery Lynch. They’re on their way, but it’s not clear when they’ll arrive.

Episode: Steel Ark

In-Game Date: 1st Low-day through 2nd Lady’s day, Narciss, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Greg (Frances Faraday III) Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Tom (Lord Vän Berial) Previous Episode: Blue Devil Following Episode: Hold The Line Locations: New City, Crystal City, Lower Ward, Driftwood Station Notable Elements: Savior Drive, WLC, Daylight, Red Mercury, Seraph Immaculate, Laszo

Proving Grounds

17 Days have passed since the Destiny’s Reach Incident at the end of Episode: Blue Devil. SPU36 has been designated as an R&D unit in a partnership a University team called Unified Portal Logistics, or UPL. Along with that partnership has come an addition to the unit, Detective Lord Vän Berial. Undertaking long daily shifts of intense training due to their now-raised security clearance, the unit has spent the majority of their time at the Crystal City proving grounds, testing weapons made out of a substance called Red Mercury, which – so the UPL team & Accordant brass believe – can counteract the Damascus Steel applied science being used by the Seraph Immaculate. Red Mercury needs a power source, however – in this case a roughly man-sized device called a Nephilim Connector.

Outside on the proving grounds, the unit is wrapping up their last consecutive day of training (ten in a row!) with a a combat sortie against an illusory group of soldiers patterned after the few Seraph Immaculate troops the Esteemed forces in the Outlands have encountered so far. It’s a routine combat until Lt Laszlo dashes out of the command center, running for the Nephilim Connector sitting in the middle of the combat field. “We’ve got a situation”, he yells as he dodges a bullet from a sniper that appears on the tower above the bunker. Bullets richochet off the device as Ingram tries to active it. The source of the bullets is one of three attractive young females – all human-looking, and all attacking with either spells, bullets, or fists. Laszlo activates the Nephilim Connector, and the illusory soldiers disappear while all of SPU36’s weapons begin to softly glow, channelling power from the device. A few moments of harrowing combat later, the device is damaged to such an extent that is ceases functioning – but not before Frances looses two bullets from his pistols into the head of the the spellcaster. There’s a scream as the sniping girl uses her gun to create a wall of fire, and the melee combatant and sniper escape with the body of the fallen spellcaster.

Episode: Blue Devil

In-Game Date: 3rd Guild – 3rd Clerk’s day, Retributus, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Greg (Frances Faraday III) Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Brent (Milo Thorngauge) Previous Episode: The Fortress in the Pit Following Episode: Steel Ark Locations: New City, Destiny’s Reach, Outlands, Civic Festhall Notable Elements: Factol’s Judgement, Mammoth Jupiter, Seraph Immaculate, Laszo, Dr. Snowblind

A Heroes’ Welcome

Following the major Iron Ring bust at the end of Episode: Fortress in The Pit, SPU36 is being hailed as heroes, and is being recognized at an Accordant/Esteemed gala where new advances in policing and military science are being introduced.

All of society’s big players are in attendance – Vala and Frances seem to know everyone. Notably present are the Factols of most of the Factions in the New City.

• Accordant Police Commissioner Deklan Archer
• Esteemed Commander-General Bolt Rustrock
• Godsmen Factol Gideon Anthony
• Guvner Factol Alpha
• Cypher Factol Li Shu Xun
• Signer Factol Dr. Summersun Hyde, Esq.

After SPU36’s official recognition and the appropriate applause for the local heroes , there are speeches by higher ups and etc. Following some character-specific intrigue, Laszlo reveals near the end of the gathering that – due in no small part to his politicking – SPU36 has been selected for a high profile assignment that is entirely ceremonial in nature. It seems there is some mid-level diplomatic function at an Esteemed facility in the Outlands where the unit has been asked to serve as an honor guard.

Destiny’s Reach

The morning after next, all of SPU36 – including Lt. Laszlo – exits the New City into The Outlands, where they are picked up by The Factol’s Judgement, an Air Titan Class Variable Motor Fortress – or more popularly known as a War Zeppelin. The steamtech juggernaut is a masterpiece of a vessel, kept aloft by both magic and engineering know-how. It’s not fully operational yet – no weapons systems, for example – and this is it’s maiden voyage; it will be christened at the ceremony. While aboard, the team is introduced to the exceptionally disagreeable Angelika Levi, an elf and ambassador for the Faction Council. She’s very specific about her importance and how it’s the team’s badges if anything bad should happen during the ceremony.

Episode: Fortress in The Pit

In-Game Date: 2nd Clerk’s Day, Retributus, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Greg (Frances Faraday III) Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Previous Episode: Night of a Million, Million Ninjas Following Episode: Blue Devil Locations: The Pit, The Fortress in the Pit Notable Elements: Blue Knight, Eryan Dream, Vance Vincent, Torus Anthony, Flesh-Hive Beast, Clockwork Flesh Golem, Kidnapped Girls, Zombie Snipers

Treasure! Horrible, Wonderful Treasure

After defeating the Dark Abashai at the end of last game, SPU36 searches it’s lair, located beneath the floor of the chamber the the creature had stone-morphed out of. It smells terrible and the treasure is disgusting, but a surprising amount of treasure is found and distributed (See Loot List).

As NPC Maddox attempts to open the door to the next chamber, the vibrations that the PCs have been feeling throughout the chamber increase steadily beyond the point of any normal happening, and then the world essentially ends as the underground landscape of the New City reshapes itself around them, as the city is known to do from time to time. The group is tossed and turned in countless directions for many minutes, eventually falling much deeper, into an underground lake in complete darkness.

Friendly Puppies go Boom

SPU36,relying on Ioun torches, creeps across the shore of the lake after crawling out, and plants Glanthur’s Heuristic Seismograph in the ground, revealing the landscape to be the crumbling remains of an underground keep. The group slowly moves through the across the shore and through the ruins toward the keep. The barking and snarling comes from all around them as they are attacked by one pack, than another, of twisted yeth hounds. After several facepalms followed by eye-rolling and a promise that this entire scene will suck if the players don’t use the mass darkvison scroll the DM has provided them with, the aforementioned spell is cast, allowing the group to take in their surroundings. Climbing onto a decaying structure for a better view, Carredyn, Glanthur & Vala fight off more yeth hounds while Frances is nearly shot in the dome by a zombie sniper. The gunslinger dodges out of the way, almost falling off a ledge that crumbles beneath him.

Episode: Night of a Million, Million Ninjas

In-Game Date: 2nd Clerk’s Day, Retributus, 1471 CE Players/PCs: Greg (Frances Faraday III) Geoff (Vala Van Derek) Dave (Glanthur Breakblade) Collin (Carredyn Whipsawn) Nick (Maddox Dupree) Previous Episode: SPU36 Following Episode: The Fortress in The Pit Locations: The Central District, City Barracks, The Great Gymnasium, The Pit Notable Elements: Infernal Rose, Fu-Lan “The Fist”, Harcourt, Laszlo, The Hat, Galatea Van Derek, Kidnapped Girls, Redcloaks, Blue Knight, The Crimson Wrath, Dark Abashai

When last we left our heroes

Carredyn files his report with Lt Laszlo. The Lieutenant is not exactly pleased with the damage to the platform. The next day, The Hat arrives with an intelligence briefing, and a report that Sgt.Duncan Kasper & Detective Padraic Phelan are laid up in medical after a fairly violent fight during their Iron Ring reconaissance. The Team splits up, with Francis, Glanthur, and Carredyn heading to interrogate the prisoners, and Vala & Maddox going to track down Fu-Lan “The Fist”.

The Great Gymnasium

Maddox & Vala do some information-gathering at The Great Gymnasium in The Guildhall Ward, and question some monks who have heard of Fu-Lan. It seems he teaches at a recreation center in The Hive. They head to a train platform to rendezvous withe the rest of SPU36, but are intercepted by The Hat in a steam-carriage on their way to the train platform. He informs them of an emergency, pulls them inside, and they speed off toward a kidnapping scene in the Market ward. There, they find out that a eight wealthy teenage girls have been kindapped, including Galatea Van Derek, Vala’s sister. The men doing the kidnapping seemed to be mercenaries or warriors of some kind – rough individuals wearing piecemeal armor, one of whom was a spellcaster. They seemed to be led a by a gentleman in a cloak and blue armor. Because of the political implications of this incident, They rush to The Barracks to meet with Laszlo.

It Goes Boom

Frances, Carredyn, and Glanthur question the captive Redcloak gang members at the Central District sub-station, and are met with terrified, stuttered answers. They don’t know what happened, they don’t remember attacking SPU36, etc. The young elves are obviously hiding something, when one finally blurts out that their leader, Seth Two-Blade, had made an arrangement with “Bonewrack”, at which point, his eyes roll up in his head, blood erupts from his nostrils, and he dies. The other 3 gangers are totally freaked out, and demand to be taken to a “safe” area before they will answer anymore questions, so the team relocates to The Barracks.