(Gamma World) Not a Test #106 - The Burning Troglodytes

The De Facto Explorers have found a tribe of Hoppers, right next to an underground facility in the Glow Zone wilderness across the Big River. They've entered an area that was once a mine.  An area populated by hostile bestial primitives.

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Lathar Bracken: A pure-strain human from River Bend.  He's got the muscle, the face, and a mount for most encounters.  Lathar's trusty beast of burden, No Name, travels wherever he does.   Looking for trouble in all the right places. The two-time champion of the Fair-Town Queen's Joust.  Recently married Thunnelda Haycock.

Sneaky Pete: A mutated weasel scout.  Pete's telepathy and night vision take a backseat when he whips out his electrical powers.  Apparently addicted to his newly uncovered yellow powder found at "The Pool House"

Sonny Helianthus: a nearly 10' tall sentient sunflower artifact examiner with four arms, and trusted Restorationist ties. Knowledgeable,  but not a good one with device repairs or upgrades. 

Slitheran Wurmtail (aka Squiggles): a mutated earthworm scout, in impromptu power armor, looking for trouble in all the wrong places,  and finding it often.   He  has been subject to genetic testing and developed super-human strength, a more human body, and a thick coat of shaggy white hair.  Recently gave birth to a pile of baby worms. 

Luna of the Restorationists:  Recent recruit of the Restorationists, who had uncovered artifacts across the River.  

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The Explorers had a reprieve, back tracking a bit.  The troglodytes could withstand light, but definitely lurked within the shadows and darkness.  Sonny realized that they seemed to stay a distance away based on his proximity to them and his bioluminescence.  

Another wave of of the sub-humans came down from both passageways.  The small horde were wounded by the assort of weapons of the Ancients, but soon swords, maces, and most importantly shields were brought out to stop the rush. 

The Mine Troglodytes

Squiggles and Lathar held back the onslaught with their shields.  Luckily there were more gouges on the fronts of the shields than on the explorers themselves. 

Sonny was the most useful in this bottleneck.  A nine-foot tall sunflower could almost reach over the fray and slam a lit oil flask behind the Troglodytes, torching one, sending rending screams of agony, but not dispatching any of the humanoids.  He turned to an assault rifle, firing overhead to whittle away the Troglodytes pushing forward.  

Lathar and Squiggles decided that pushing back would be preferred.   They tried to advance forward, meeting full resistance.  They tried a second time to no avail.  On the third attempt, Luna and Pete help push from behind and they moved the horde backwards, into the remaining oil fire. The shield-less assistants spun out from behind and pull out pistols to kill more Troglodytes.  

Sonny smiled in satisfaction, "I much prefer these Burning Trogs"

Finally repelling the attack, Luna fell back behind Sonny to reload her flintlock. 

The Explorers pushed the Trogs down the one passageway, forcing them to flee faster.  

Lathar ran back, grabbing the mine cart, and put it back on the track.  Ancient Pistol in hand, he offered a suggestion.

"Push me down the track in the other direction.  I'll scout out and eliminate the ones who fled.  Pete and Squiggles pushed the cart and it slid downhills in to the darkness.  Its sounds stopped after a few second, into the darkness.  The weasel and worm followed forward.  

AGAIN, the cart crashed when the track ran out AGAIN.  This time it send Lathar flying, and while he was on his stomach, two the Mine-Man jumped out from the greater darkness and attacked.  

Lathar:  "Shoot them! Just shoot!  Shooooot them!!!"

Squiggles and Pete responded with weapons fire, even if Lathar could get him.  

Luna was prepping to assist, when she saw figures coming from the opposite passageway.  It was another Mine-Man, with a massive, hulking Mine-Man leading the way.  

"Sonnnnnnnnnyyyyyy!!!!!"

The giant glowing sunflower adjusted one of two backpacks he carried, pulling out a long wand attached to the bag. He took a moment to set a dial on the machine inside the backpack. 

"Move aside Luna, I'm going to liquify him."

The blast from the Children's Alchemical Laser hit the gargantuan Mine-Man, obscuring everyone's vision.  Once things cleared up, a different, horrible monstrosity stood before them.  

The Chaos of the Children's Alchemical Laser Strikes Again...

GM Notes:  I'm very sad I missed Sonny's meta joke "I much prefer these Burning Trogs" until I reviewed the recording for the Actual Play.  The Burning Trogs were are second group for our Hackmaster campaign, of which Hoyce (Sonny) and Steve (Squiggles) were players.  

Next: #107 - 

Lead Legionaries: Critter Control's Shocking Encounter at the Trailer Park

If the end of winter is doing anything for me, it's unveiling blogging posts that are giving me some inspriation, which has been lacking for the last few weeks *cough* months *cough*

Lead Legionaires posted a great AAR for Critter Control's Shocking Encounter at the Trailer Park, using the solo rules of  Majestic 13, an alien hunting game from Snarling Badger Studios. The game looks fun the shots were great, and the terrain board is simply outstanding.  

RPG Campaign Tour Challenge - Review and Index

After doing the #CharacterCreationChallenge for January, I anticipated catching up on a few posts, including a few quick wargaming AARs, a full return to the Gamma World actual plays, and, of course, fulling embracing the fun that is #ZineQuest.   

And then NukeTown had to reference the #RPGCampaignTour Challenge early enough to catch up within February.  Twenty-six of the prompts were answered, with me using AI to figure out topics I more preferred to write about.  I chalk it up to as a success.   It supplanted a very lackluster #ZineQuest, in my opinion, helped hammer out some details and ideas about my Gamma World campaign, and allowed for some great bonding time with my players as they reminisced about almost 130 episodes at the time. 

Day 1 - Campaign Introduction and Overview

Day 2 - About Your Tour Guide

Day 3 - Where the Heck Are We?

Day 4 - Is There a Map?

Day 5 - Can You Tell Us About the Campaign's History?

Day 6 - Where Shall We Start?

Day 7 - What's the Weather Like Today?

Day 8 - Tell Us About Local People and Culture

Day 9 - Who's in Charge Here?

Day 10 - What's the First Thing We Should Do?

Day 11 - Where Would We Go To Find "Adventures"?

Day 12 - What Do People Do For Entertainment?

Day 13 - Where Can We Get a Drink and a Bite to Eat?

Day 14 - What to Order to "Eat Like a Local"?

Day 15 - What Are Some of the Things in the Setting That Are Best Avoided?

Day 16 - Are There Any Direct Threats?

Day 17 - Can You Tell Us About Any Famous Battles or Wars?

Day 18 - Forgot to ask, how do we get around?

Day 19 -  Any "Must See" Sites?

Day 20 -  Are There Any Mysteries As Yet Unsolved?

Day 21 - What are the major organizations of the campaign?

Day 22 - Tell us about notable Flora and Fauna!

Day 23 - Arteries of Survial

Day 24 - Contraband and Chaos

Day 25 - Where can I do some shopping?

Day 26 - Are there any dramatic events from the campaign you can share? 

Day 27 - Do You Have Any Amusing Anecdotes From the Campaign?

Day 28 - Is There Anything We Should Know Before We Head Home?

There are two schools of though with these blog challenges, ones who believe they must be completed completed within the challenge month (or a valiant attempt to get them done ASAP), or the folks who get it done when they get it done.  Everyone I was following for this ended the month between Day 22 and all the way back to Day 6.  

A quick search later, and I can give props to The Other Side and  Adventures in Oz for getting in under the deadline!  

I am hoping and praying another cool RPG challenge doesn't materialize for March.  I sincerely need to start my prep for Mepacon and a return to the painting bench for the new projects piling up. 

RPG Campaign Tour: Day 28 - Is There Anything We Should Know Before We Head Home?

At last we've finally reached the end with Day 28 of the #RPGCampaignTour for my Gamma World campaign "This Is Not a Test".  We end the challenge with another interview question directly to my players: Our imaginary tourists to the campaign asking, " Is there anything we should know before we head home?"

Collectively: "The longer you stay, the more you realize the atomic weapons of the ancients are far more prevalent than imagined!"

Gamma World (and the secondary sources I'm pulling for inspiration) more than suggests that nuclear war plunged the world into darkness and chaos, with wild transformation that would make Godzilla seem mundane.   The number of times atomic/nuclear devices are used as a plot device as well makes  the possibility of a second war... or at least a "Beneath the Planet of the Apes" ending is quite likely.  

At least all of them have been partial or mini-bombs. Civilization still has a slim chance of moving into the next century

RPG Campaign Tour: Day 27 - Do You Have Any Amusing Anecdotes From the Campaign?

Day 27 of the #RPGCampaignTour for my Gamma World campaign "This Is Not a Test", and the players were tasked away with answering the inquiry: "Do you have any amusing anecdotes from the campaign 

Sonny and Pete recommend the Invisible Airlords from episode #95 - The Charcuterie Toll, which will be taken care of in a episode scheduled to be published later this year.  

Lathar amusing anecdote is from the Stone Pavilion storyline, especially where the Children's Alchemical Laser turned his body into what would be best described as a Werther's Original.  I'd start with episode #49 through 57, it's a quick read.

And Squiggles wants to talk about the secret underground worm orgies that happen during the Queen's Joust in Fair-Town, but I have to draw the line somewhere. 

RPG Campaign Tour: Day 26 - Are There Any Dramatic Events From the Campaign You Can Share?

Day 26 of the #RPGCampaignTour for my Gamma World campaign "This Is Not a Test", and again I turn to my players in an interview for "Are there any dramatic events from the campaign you can share?"

First Place: Sonny Saving Lathar

Lathar Bracken was a pure-strain human who had no such stringent requirements when it came to his women... or his liquor. 

During a wintertime stop at Fair-Town, Lathar had gotten plenty drunk and began wandering the streets.  Sonny, the groups educated mutant sunflower, was the only one awake to notice that he wasn't in his room, and he tried his best to follow his tracks.... It was a comedy of errors, including discovering that he had challenged his ex-girlfriend, the blue skinned Kirothian leader, Elona, to a duel!  Thankfully she just called him an idiot and he wandered off, with a group called the Pathfinders.  Upon finding this group and invited to a bonfire and drinking, Sonny learns that they've stripped the poor human naked, strapped him to the front of a side-by-side ATV and were about to drive him off as a sacrifice to something called the "Pathinfinder Run"

The roar of an internal combustion engine could be heard. Emerging out of the woods was some sort of vehicle. There was a pair of skis attached to its front. There was space for two riders, elevated off the ground, and it was moved by a pair of oversized tracks. As the vehicle roared passed, Soony could see a naked Lathar strapped to the front of this device. The other campers cheered it on...

Before the vehicle disappeared, Sonny made a silent prayer to whatever useless deities were listening, and using his teleportation, he landed on the back of the vehicle, Destination: Unknown.

As the vehicle and its internal combustion engine peeled out in the darkened woods, the sunflower climbed forward from the back of it.  There were punches, flintlock pistols discharged, and persons and plants nearly falling off.  

The sunflower continued to fight the duo trying to sacrifice Lathar, when the reached their destination: 

A fire-breathing beast.   

Thankfully Sonny forced the driver to take a sharp left away from the beast, and only the other Pathfinder dude was engulfed in flames.  Ultimately, Sonny forced the driver to flee the scene, and to the upper gates of the town, where he forced the town guard to arrest the surviving Pathfinder.    

Ultimately Sonny got something to cover up the naked Lathar, got him back into his room at the inn, and made sure to wedge the door shut so he couldn't get out for the rest of the night.  

The high point of this story is that Sonny is the least-combat worthy of all the characters, and this action sequence, which took the vast majority of one night's session, was one of the most bad-ass scenarios and character has been through.

Runner Up - Squiggles, our Mutant Earthworm friend, still armed with a flintlock and a superscience weight belt used in warehouses, had suffered some grievous wounds while the group explored "Rho Facility."  But, as luck would have it, the had also befriend a piece of Living Metal named RHA-9, obviously an artificial medic with all its syringes and liquids.  

Squiggles was the most wounded so they let the Living Metal go to town.  A few injections later, Squiggles suffered horrible bouts of screaming, but was miraculously healed.... and grew a layer of shaggy fur....

RPG Campaign Tour: Day 25 - Where Can I Do Some Shopping?

Day 25 of the #RPGCampaignTour for my Gamma World campaign "This Is Not a Test", and the desire for commerce is there, "Where can I do some shopping."

In this world, the shopping bug might be quench by the Fair-Town Bug Mart.  

The Bug Mart is simply a flea market, on the still fairly level macadam of an ancient schools.  While the Queen's Joust is once a year, the bug mart is every week, folks bringing in crafts, but mainly the odd artifacts they've uncovered .    Odd dishes, weird containers, a box of Western Pacific breakers? Definitely.

It's unlikely, but you might get your hands on something cool, like a glow suit, before the agents of the Restorationists sweep down and clean out the too valuable stuff.

Now, a complete run of Boys Life magazine in the 80's, complete with a little red wagon?  Lucky for you, they'll foolishly miss those....