Tower of Dread — Halloween Hootenanny XV

Game summary for October 29, 2022, Tower of Dread campaign, Dread Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Ace Dargen (Human played by Dylan Whittinghill), Daniel Porter (Human played by Preston Harmon), Donnie Brockovich (Human played by Casey Scruggs), Jayson Gould (Human played by Parker Harmon), Opal Quinn (Human played by Kaliegh Belda), and Wade Marshall (Human played by Andrew Renfrow). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The Marketing Department at Harper Mills took an evening to relax at their favorite skyscraper bar.  Their not-so-stellar co-worker Damon went around filming some video, and everyone had a good time.  The next morning after flying in to work on their corporate transport choppers, they discovered Damon was not in the office.  Siobhan from Human Resources went into their boss, Michael’s, office for a few minutes and then came out and told Marketing to go see him.  They went in, and Michael told them Damon had been let go.

The group went back out to their cubes and talked about Damon for a few minutes.  Then, a video came online showing Damon being escorted to the front doors where some of the mutant animals outside swarmed and ate him!  Then, a notice came over the PA telling all Harper Mills employees that the company was downsizing to 20% of current staff.  Employees could either voluntarily walk out the front doors to be eaten by the animals or they could come up with “their own way” of reducing their numbers.  Scattered throughout the building were safes that would open to your fingerprint scan, but you could only open one safe.  One of the admins in the cubes next door opened a safe, pulled out some scissors, and killed a co-worker!  The other admins said it was crazy to fight each other, and they turned their heads toward Marketing!  The admins swarmed forward!  Ace hit one with a computer and another with a keyboard.  He then dragged him, Michael, by a cord wrapped around his neck and threatened to poke his eye with a pencil if they didn’t back off.  They didn’t back off. 

The group retreated to the stairs and ran into Norman Russnak who was waiving a pistol.  They shoved Michael into Norman, and both tumbled down the stairs, killing Norman.  They ran down and grabbed his pistol and found it empty.  The admins started piling into the stairwell, so the team ran up a floor and wedged a chair under the door handle, temporarily blocking it. 

The team went about frantically searching offices and rooms for safes, finding a few and getting a collection of bizarre “weapons.”  They encountered several co-workers, and violence ensued.  They figured out they could open more safes with the help of other people, or at least their fingers!  Frail old Opal used a yo-yo to eliminate her office rival.  In one office, Wade came face-to-face with Axel Aaron, his office fight club competitor!  Twice, Axel had beaten Wade.  But neither of those times did Wade have a ball pein hammer!  It was the last time Axel squared off with Wade. 

They continued working their way up the tower thinking they would take the helicopter and escape.  Several times they saw Siobhan with a submachine gun shooting people, but the team avoided her.  They found several people dead throughout the building.  They found Jimmy, who had just thrown someone out a window.  They tossed him out too.  An announcement told them 20% of the required cuts were complete and you couldn’t just hide due to “surprises.” 

Not long thereafter, they watched a group of people get burned up from flames shooting from the sprinkler system.  The group had found some firearms but no ammo for them and some ammo but no matching firearms.  They came across a floor where an axeman had gone crazy on some co-workers.  They saw him down the hallway with a fireaxe and wearing a football helmet!  The team lined up in the hallway and prepared to engage.  The big man charged them while Opal squirted him with Windex.  Meanwhile, Ace tripped him but got his foot cut off in the process!  Daniel jumped in with a kabob skewer and suffered a bad shoulder injury, but he took the crazed man down! 

They used a belt as a tourniquet for Ace and a stapler to close up Daniel’s wound.  They then continued trying to ascend the tower.  At the food court they were attacked by a quadcopter drone that wiped out a whole group of admins!  They fled up several floors and were chased by a horrific hybrid monkey mallard monster.  They outran it and found some people prying open the elevator doors.  A hissing spider-mallard-rattlesnake emerged and killed one of the men, but his pistol fell to the ground!  The snake creature killed Jayson!  However, the group killed it and got the gun but were attacked by some kind of bullfrog-squirrel-bat creature. 

The group found the server room, and it was guarded by more drones!  Some quick shooting destroyed them, and much of the building infrastructure was destroyed.  The team then rushed the roof and found there was no helicopter there!  They rushed back down the stairs and came face-to-face with Siobhan!  She opened fire with her SMG as Ace opened fire with the pistol!  Donnie was gunned down, but so was the fearsome head of Human Resources!  Off in the distance, they could hear a helicopter.  An announcement came over the intercom saying they had reached their 20% and would see everyone bright and early in the morning!

Chronoshift: Spelljammer — Game Session — 022

Game summary for October 25, 2022, Chronoshift: Spelljammer campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Intevar Dagella (Centurian Drow Silent Hunter played by Casey Scruggs), Jiraiya (Hurwaeti Freebooter played by Andrew Renfrow), Ruby Rue (Blink Dog Rogue Cohort played by Dylan Whittinghill as secondary), Scraggy Lodgers (Werebear-Kin Gunslinger / Witch played by Dylan Whittinghill), and Zzyym (Zif Esoteric / Academy Sorcerer played by Kaliegh Belda). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

After speaking with Botticelli a while, they convinced him to ride with them to Refuge and then decide if he wants to depart or would rather become their new cook. 

A few days later, a pair of winged coldsnap basilisks drifted into the ship’s air envelope.  Void creatures, they began to revive when exposed to air.  Gunny was able to swivel the ballista and skewer one!  Scraggy alerted the rest of the team and warned them to avert their gaze lest they turn to ice.  The team tried to figure out a way to engage the basilisks without looking at them.  Gunny was turned to ice first.  Zzyym hit one of the basilisks with magic missiles.  Scraggy shot one with his musket, Jiraiya punched one square in the snout, and Intevar unleashed a volley of arrows.  The team unleashed a torrent of attacks at one of the basilisks, but the dreadful gaze of the creatures kept turning people into ice! 

One of the basilisks collapsed unconscious on the deck and was killed by a coup de grace from Ruby Rue.  The other snatched up Gunny and flew out of the air envelope, disappearing into wildspace!  Intevar and Ruby drained the blood from the basilisk and coated Zzyym, who was restored.  However, they knew they didn’t have enough to coat Scraggy and Jiraiya.  The revived Zzyym added its mind to the task at hand.  They mixed some of the remaining blood with Zzyym’s two potions of resist cold, and while not guaranteed to work, it was the best shot they had.  Miraculously, both were restored to flesh! 

Chronoshift: Spelljammer — Game Session — 021

Game summary for October 18, 2022, Chronoshift: Spelljammer campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Hekera Nephera Mawhesk Vyk’sebekenka (Sebek-ka Fighter played by Preston Harmon), Helg Ingvar (Aasimar Cleric played by Chris Harmon), Intevar Dagella (Centurian Drow Silent Hunter played by Casey Scruggs), Khesen Pavel (Human Brawler played by Parker Harmon), and Neko (Half-Orc Magus played by Peyton Harmon). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The group spoke with Admiral Antarra and agreed to hire on for a mission.  He asked them to deliver a sealed missive to the commander of the Elven Navy at the Rock of Bral in Realmspace with information about the Black Widow Nation.  In exchange, he offered to pay their crew costs for the journey as well as send them with a letter for Cap’n Gyudd, a merchant on Bral, to get the Perry “topped out” in the shipyards.  The team agreed and then went to the Skyport shipyards and negotiated a deal to sell the Elamshin damselfly for 17,700 gp.  They then reinvested half the money in cargo to take with them to Realmspace to sell.  Before heading out, they took the entire crew of the Perry to a tinker gnomish pastry shop for donuts.  The place was amazing.  Amazing in that it had not exploded.  But, the food was good, and the effect on crew morale was palpable. 

The party headed out to space, and two days’ out came across the smoking wreckage of a ship!  There were several pieces of smoldering hull and four large brown scavvers circling a trapped tortle!  The party immediately moved to rescue.  Neko burned one with scorching ray but was immediately snatched up in the creature’s maw!  Hekera cut one right in half when it approached him.  Khesen moved in and killed the one trying to eat Neko, and he flew from its mouth bobbing up and down through the gravity plane.  He made an astounding maneuver and caught the side of the cargo barge and scrambled back aboard.  Intevar came rushing up out of the hold firing her bow and hitting one of the beasts.  Helg stepped out and cast searing light coupled with targeting foreknowledge, which blasted a scavver to smoking pieces.  Gunny Havoka fired the ballista at a scavver but missed terribly.  Hekera and Intevar got hit by the acidic breath of the scavver right before Hekera cut the last one down, but he also fell off the ship in the process.  He was able to scramble back aboard.  Meanwhile, Khesen tied off a rope and jumped 30 feet into space toward the tortle!  He got to the wreckage, and they were able to drag it over to the ship.

The tortle introduced himself as Botticelli, former cook of the ill-fated Star Skimmer tradesman vessel.  The ship had been attacked by a vessel shaped like some kind of squid-snail-like creature with a ram.  Most of the crew had been taken captive by squid-headed men… mind flayers!  There were a few survivors among the wreckage after the Star Skimmer was destroyed, but all except Botticelli had been eaten by scavvers.  In thanks for his rescue, Botticelli offered to make them an excellent meal. 

Chronoshift: Spelljammer — Game Session — 020

Game summary for October 11, 2022, Chronoshift: Spelljammer campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Hekera Nephera Mawhesk Vyk’sebekenka (Sebek-ka Fighter played by Preston Harmon), Intevar Dagella (Centurian Drow Silent Hunter played by Casey Scruggs), Khesen Pavel (Human Brawler played by Parker Harmon), Neko (Half-Orc Magus played by Peyton Harmon), Ruby Rue (Blink Dog Rogue Cohort played by Dylan Whittinghill as secondary), Scraggy Lodgers (Werebear-Kin Gunslinger / Witch played by Dylan Whittinghill), and Zzyym (Zif Esoteric / Academy Sorcerer played by Kaliegh Belda). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

Conversation continued with Tanthalyn, and Zzyym deduced he really hates working for the priestesses of Lolth and worked with him to concoct a way to freedom for him!  They allowed him to leave with all of his possesses in the flitter along with the tracking ring.  He gave them Cosette’s necklace.  They blew up the man-o-war and would claim they killed all the drow (including Tanthalyn).  Thus, Cosette would have her necklace and no need (or means) to track Tanthalyn.  The Black Widow Nation, by the time they got representatives from Realmspace to investigate, would only find a burned out man-o-war wreckage.  The party was successful, got paid, and Tanthalyn got his freedom.  A winning solution for everyone involved.

They searched the rest of the ship and gathered up what they could take.  They found a prison, a half-orc magus named Neko!  With no other place to go, he joined up with the team.  Scraggy and Ruby spread gunpowder all through the ship, and Zzyym lit it on fire.  The team sped off in the Elamshin as the elven warship exploded. 

Back at Skyport, in orbit around the water world Archin, they discovered the Perry had arrived safely.  They met with Cosette who was overjoyed at the return of her necklace.  She gave them the agreed payment with a bonus and threw in the deed to the Perry and a month’s pay for the crew!  She then took them on a wild tour of the best social spots in Skyport and threw a lavish party at her home.

At the party, the team tried to smooze with the wealthiest and most influential citizens of the base.  Hekera regaled them with tales of their daring exploits.  Intevar, the exotic drow, tried to be mysterious and intriguingly aloof.  Khesen began learning the interest and motives of the guests and started matching their interest.  Ruby and Scraggy began doing hilarious tricks with Ruby’s blinking abilities.  Neko began discussing the art and wealth of the patrons with them.  Zzyym began a guessing game with the party-goers and the values of all their jewelry and was stunningly accurate.  All-in-all, the group proved themselves quite the entertainers and made contacts with some very influential people. 

There were seven of particular note:

Admiral Gerard Antarra | Naval Commander of Skyport

Brandywine Del Croix | Renowned Poet and Playwright

Curate Hannah Gloryshine | High Priestess of the House of the Rising Sun Pantheon, Solar Resplendent Temple

Grandmaster Azure | Commander of Magical Defenses of Skyport

Hrokka | Ambassador to Skyport from Archin’s Sebek-ka population

Maddox Arduin | Spoiled Merchant Son

Ronald Telbar | Successful Skyport Merchant

Chronoshift: Spelljammer — Game Session — 019

Game summary for October 4, 2022, Chronoshift: Spelljammer campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Crimson “Pyro” Deathcloud (Tiefling Alchemist played by Peyton Harmon), Hekera Nephera Mawhesk Vyk’sebekenka (Sebek-ka Fighter played by Preston Harmon), Helg Ingvar (Aasimar Cleric played by Chris Harmon), Intevar Dagella (Centurian Drow Silent Hunter played by Casey Scruggs), Jiraiya (Hurwaeti Freebooter played by Andrew Renfrow), and Khesen Pavel (Human Brawler played by Parker Harmon). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The team quickly began moving down the hallway trying to kick open doors.  Hekera kept slamming his snout against the doors and struggling to bust them open.  He got one open and revealed the galley.  Within they found more stinky mushroom stew.

The next door was the helm room, empty.  There was a lot of blood around the helm, and shrapnel in the walls.  The grenade blast from the communication pipes and ripped through here! 

Another door seemed too tough to open, but the one on the end was opened, and two ogrillons attacked! The team focused their attacks on the pair, and another drow slipped up behind them!  He was blurry and surrounded by ring of blades.  He blasted Crimson with a trio of scorching rays that also tripped Crimson and put him on the ground!  The team was then fighting on two fronts, and the drow moved up, slashing Crimson with ring of blades and stabbing him with a poisoned short sword.  Fortunately, his antitoxin kept him from becoming poisoned! 

Hekera positioned himself between the drow and Crimson while Intevar sickened him with a ghoul retch flask!  The drow continued its attack with magically elongated arms and a hastened attack.  Crimson fell unconscious and was then slain!  This violent drow asked who the party was, and Helg answered.  Between blows, they began discussion. 

He was very curious why they were on his ship.  Helg told him they were chasing Alton.  This drow, Tanthalyn, learned how they were tracking Alton, and he revealed himself to actually be Alton.  He started negotiating what it would cost for them to just go away.  Talking back and forth, they learned Tanthalyn is with a group called the Black Widow Nation, and some of the team recognized it as a powerful drow organization out of Realmspace.  He was obviously not upset about the death of any of the priestesses, but he said he could not offer them the necklace.  He told them it was out in space expanding into the portal growing before them.  He told them the Black Widow Nation is a group with much power, influence, and reach.  Helg knew, though, that the reigar are not a group to trifle with either.  Now, the team is talking among themselves and trying to figure out if there is any deal that can be reached.