Superior Games Books™
T4X 1E8
4813-43 Ave.
Beaumont, AB
Copyright © 2011 by David L. Dostaler. All rights reserved.
Cover Art: © 2011 by Laura E.C. Dostaler. All rights reserved.
Interior Art: © 2011 by Laura E.C. Dostaler and David L. Dostaler. All rights reserved
Copyright Notice: No part of this book may be reproduced in
any form or by any means without permission in writing from the author.
First Printing: December, 7th, 2011
ISBN 978-0-9868840-2-3
Published by David L. Dostaler at Smashwords
Contact Info: If you have any questions or comments about
these adventures please write us a letter using the contact address above. Thank you.
You may also contact us by e-mail at: sendmedavid404145@hotmail.com
Or by phone at: (780)-929-9860
Please be sure to include “Challenger RPG” or similar in the title
of any e-mails so we don’t accidentally delete them as spam. Thank you.
ADVENTURE PACK ONE
WRATH OF THE GODS, A MARVELOUS TIME, KILLER DUNGEON, MONSTERVILLE, INTO THE NORTH, SECRET AGENT CAPER,
AND
THE QUEST FOR THE HOLY GRAIL
by
David L. Dostaler
Table of Contents
Into the North
Secret Agent Caper
The Quest for the Holy Grail
Monsterville
Killer Dungeon
Wrath of the Gods
A Marvelous Time
Vehicle Combat Rules
Introduction
Throughout this adventure pack you will find some similarities: all adventures include text in italics which may be read aloud to the players or paraphrased as you wish, all monsters stat blocks will be in the same format as in the basic Challenger book, and all dungeons will be listed in terms of encounter numbers which can be placed on your own personally-created dungeon as you wish.
To use this book properly you will need a copy of the basic Challenger role-playing game which is available for free complete in the sample in many places across the internet. Even if you don’t have this product, you can easily adapt any system you’re using to suit these adventures, especially the Of Mice Men and Wizards game system which works particularly well with these quests.
This adventure pack contains 7 complete adventures for use with your Challenger role-playing game system designed to get you started and take a band of 1st level heroes all the way to 100th level and beyond. This is somewhat an exaggerated xp gain ratio, but it should serve to illustrate the games mechanics to new players and get you started on creating your own epic campaigns.
About Dead Characters
The following adventures are extremely deadly so if any of the characters in your group die you may create new ones to replace the fallen heroes at the average level of the surviving members of the group. If everyone dies, the GM may laugh diabolically, and then allow the players to create new characters of a level capable of taking on the adventure they’re currently embarking on and try it again.
Adventure Conversion
To convert the following adventures to Of Mice Men and Wizards standards, you should replace any 1 damage attacks with 1d6 damage, convert RR to AR, and so forth. This also works well for other game systems with similar damage ratings and armor systems. RR equals Target Number or Armor Rating, etc. All xp should also be divided by 10 or more.
How to Prepare for Adventure
Generally, you should gather as many of the following items in the shortest amount of time as possible: friends to game with, chairs, a table, dice, pencils, paper, a copy of the rules, this book, snacks, beverages, chips, soda, more snacks, miniature figures, and snacks.
Particularly keen GM’s and players may plan breaks and also create characters in advance, but this is not required. GM’s also tend to read the adventures they plan to play through beforehand to limit the number of awkward silences wherein everyone has absolutely no clue in heck what’s supposed to happen next.
It is recommended that you only play one adventure herein at each sitting: savouring all the fun you can squeeze out of each scenario to the last drop. Experienced GM’s (including myself) tend to laugh uproariously at such recommendations, play all the adventures in one clean sweep—without more than a cursory reading of the scenarios—and then harshly berate the game designer afterwards for any shortcomings in the game because the guy obviously sucks at adventure design and can come nowhere close to your own, personal genius.
A Word for Complete N00bs
If you’re reading this, you’re the GM: the ‘computer’ of a roleplaying game. Familiar with WoW? You’re basically all the servers, the entire Blizzards design team, and the guy who refills the coffee machines and sweeps the floor all rolled into one. It’s your job to fix ‘system errors’ and impose ‘patches’ when you run into any problems during the game. Sure, there’s the temptation to mess everything up, but if you actually owned WoW would you really want to do that? Better to keep the moolah rolling in from your paying customers ‘the players’ I should think.
Because the players are your ‘customers’ they’re always right and you want to keep them happy. You do this by being fair, and judging the rules however you freakin’ want, to make the best game world possible on your ‘server.’ You should input the below adventures into your ‘memory’ so when the players want to quest (!) you can deliver the goods and when they have any questions (?) of absolutely freakin’ anyone in the game world or about the game system itself, you can answer them. If this seems like an outrageously big job, just remember the golden rule of GMing: “When in doubt, make it up.” You can always find the ‘right’ way to do it later and put in a new ‘patch.’
Each of your players will control a character somewhat like a WoW account except all their stats are a combination of the rules from the basic Challenger book and their imaginations, and it’s all written down on a piece of paper rather than a heartless digital file somewhere. You can basically consider them expert hackers who are your only paying customers so you want to keep them happy and keep their ‘hacking’ (imagination) in line so things are fair between them, challenging (so they have fun), and fun for you: the entire design team.
The payoff? Ever been stuck in some wretched part of a computer game and wished you could do something not written? Ever wished you could create your own computer game? Ever wished the ‘server’ was personally run by you and the entire design team was ready to implement any ‘mods’ you ever requested? Ever realized that a thinking, feeling opponent is much better than a computerized one and the ‘chat’ in the game is much more fun than the game itself? Those are your payoffs as the GM.
You’ll also get to put in whatever ‘mods’ and ‘patches’ you want, add new ‘worlds’ ‘adventures’ and ‘pretty much freakin’ bloody anything you want’ to your ‘Server’. Have fun!
Once you get a handle on the basic way to run things (by playing these adventures and randomly browsing the Challenger rulebook) you can feel free to run wild and make this game your own: designing your own adventures, characters, rules, worlds, and sweet magical loot. Good luck, and let the adventures roll!
Adventure One
Into the North
You live in the mighty kingdom of Sileeria in the world of Korg. It is a magical place populated by beast-men, dragons, and demon lords. You are one of a select few, the best of the best, those hardy and stalwart heroes known as adventurers. You are a beacon of hope to the people in troubled times, and these are troubled times indeed.
Recently there has been a rash of break-ins throughout the northern trading village of Goran. The wise and respected leader of your people, Duke Gerrald, has requested that you assemble with a troop of the finest warriors the land has to offer and lead an expedition into the northlands where the thieves are rumored to have fled.
The Meeting with Duke Gerrald
The Duke, Gerrald, lives in a stately manor with many servants and butlers about. He has several very pretty serving girls, but you are led away before you can do anything about them. The butler pushes in a set of double doors and you see a scene right out of the Night Before Christmas: a crackling fire, dogs laying about on each other, and a friendly red-faced man wearing a black, bear skin coat that makes him look like a Viking sitting behind a polished oak desk. He waves to you. “I’m glad you could come so soon, heroes, the world needs more men and women like you.”
The Duke is generally straightforward and helpful, giving everything the heroes need to them and providing any information they might request. He sends a band of his ten best warriors with them, supplies, donkeys, gives them winter gear for the journey, and will provide each of them with 20 pieces of gold to buy any extra supplies or favours they may need on their journey.
If they so ask the Duke is willing to provide them a reward of 200 gold pieces each from the cities coffers, but that’s all he can afford. When they are ready to go he gives them a final word of warning:
The Duke frowns with concern for your safety. “I know you’re used to beating people up here where it’s warm, but up north….” He trails off. “Things can get cold, dead, and weird pretty freakin’ fast. Believe me, I know.” He pulls up his pantleg to reveal his leg cut off below the knee with only a wooden post in a boot. “Frostbite. Take care and bring warm clothes, my friends. I bid you good luck and may the thieves rue the day they set foot in our kingdom!”
Witnesses to the break-ins are scant, but it is known that the leader of the thieves was a ferocious dwarf accompanied by some fell beasts, one of which could breath fire. They stole most everything of value they could find in at least 50 homes, and seemed to have a particular leniency to things made of gold.
The North
A frozen tundra sparkles into the distance as far as the eye can see, broken only by massive glaciers and dark gray storm clouds whipping blizzards in the distance. You can see one point of sparkling light on the horizon. Perhaps an outpost or trapper’s cabin. You’re badly in need of supplies now, though you were careful with your food, right? so you feel a strong desire to make for this apparent ‘settlement’.
It’s up to the PCs whatever they’d like to do, but if they don’t head out to the settlement they’ll likely run out of food and oil and then either starve or freeze to death. If they hunt wild animals, build igloos, or otherwise use such tactics you can feel free to call for skill checks, make them role-play, and otherwise ‘work’ for their supplies.
Feel free to describe icy winds, hit the PCs with avalanches, snowstorms, hungry wolves, polar bears, crazed natives, and just about anything else you want. Now is also a good time to have some of the PC’s men freeze to death to illustrate the point.
Old Ned
If the PCs actually head out to investigate the pinpoint of light on the horizon they find a crazed old man in an abandoned trading post who has a stockpile of whale blubber and oils from the last time a whale was caught not far from here. He’s a wily old coot and will try to con the PCs out of as much money and goods as possible without giving them anything. The PCs can fight him, haggle with him, role-play, or otherwise do whatever they’d like.
You see three long structures made of frozen wood, windows unlit before you. It appears you’ve found an abandoned trading post. Maybe you can find some leftover goods and supplies here?
When the PCs investigate you can have the old man pop out at them.
You here a flurry of snow and a blur of movement catches the corner of your eye. Before you can spin around a bent old man stands before you grinning crookedly. “Hello boys, welcome to Fort Ice, ha ha ha, I hope you’ve come to trade?” His yellow eyes twinkle under mad white hair that wreaths around his head.
He’s quite mad and has some slight magical powers allowing him to teleport and change his shape, but nothing too elaborate. If interrogated he’ll reveal that he saw a band of elves led by a dwarf in a white suit heading up north with a sledge full of some shiny goods he would have loved to get his hands on.
The Cane
As you head farther north and the temperature continues to drop you spot a short pillar in the ground before you. It appears to be a spiraled red and white pole. Could this be the North Pole?
The pole is actually a giant candy cane dropped by the dwarf on his way north. It can be used by a magical character as a stave of mesmerization. Any creature it is pointed at must make a will save at +2 (10%) or be mesmerized for 1 round +1 round per successively failed save as long as the owner of the staff concentrates on that subject. Harming the subject negates the effect. The staff has five charges.
Any character who approaches the staff finds the hooked end is buried under the ice and the staff tastes like mint. Also, a pack of white wolves descends on the party. They’ve found that animals like to come and lick the staff so they hunt here. If half the wolves are killed the others flee.
There are 10 wolves.
Winter Wolf HP 1 RR 14 Damage 1 Movement: 4 Gold: 0 (meat and wolf pelt) XP: 50 each. Special: Any wolf who hits a target locks their jaw onto the target preventing teleportation, flight, and use of magic, and also increasing the RR of any other wolves attacking that creature by 2 to a max of RR 18. Escape Artist RR 15 releases the captive.
Seal Carcass
The next day you find the markings of hoofed creatures and a large sledge in the snow. There must have been at least a half dozen of the creatures and the sledge was quite large. You find a broken section of ice bordering the sea and the bloody carcass of a half-eaten seal. It was apparently ripped apart and hacked up by a dwarven axe.
RR perception 14 reveals a small silver bell that, when thrown, detonates as a grenade of 1d6 damage to any one target it strikes (RR 10 to hit man-sized creature).
The Workshop
A large building looms up under the shadow of nearby mountains. The windows are tall and brightly lit as if from heated forge-fires within. Several side buildings doubtless hold supplies and the individual cabins of the thieves. You can see a steel railway leading up into a nearby mountain.
This is the workshop of Saint Nick the thieving dwarf. He’s captured a load of elves and shrunk them with magic. They are now his mind-controlled slaves and do whatever he requests of them. At first he had them craft him magic items and wondrous pieces of gold and art from the loot he plundered, but now he’s decided it’s a much greater insult to them to have them fashion toys for children.
It is his personal mark to leave behind wooden trains and small bears at the residences he steals from. He’s not finished with Goran, so he hasn’t left his trade marks yet.
Nick the Dwarf has a bag of extra-dimensional space he stores his loot and ‘toys’ in, a magical flying sledge which obeys only his command, and a team of eight reindeer beasts who are loyal only to him and guard him fiercely. He also has one special reindeer who is huge and muscled, has a red nose, is ill-tempered, and breaths fire.
Currently he’s in his cabin gloating over his new loot.
Encounter Areas
There are three primary areas the PCs could explore: the workshop, the cabins, and the mines. Each one is listed below. There is also a stable where the reindeer await their next victim with the magical sled that only obeys the dwarf, Nick.
The Workshop
You push in the large door and find row upon row of tiny shrunken elves hammering mercilessly on cheap wooden trains and stuffing dolls and teddy bears with a vengeance. The furnaces are constantly being fed coal by the little elves in chains and melting great amounts of gold and other metal for a metal-forgery off the side of the main building which is currently unattended. The elves look up at you and scream psychotically, raising their miniature hammers.
There are about 40 elves but they’re all chained up, so only 5 can attack at a time and if the PCs leave they can’t follow.
Shrunken Mind-Controlled Elves HP 1 RR 10 Damage 1 on a hit Movement: 2 Gold: none XP: 50 or 100 if freed from mind-control.
Anyone who looks closely can see the swirling dead look in the elves’ eyes that means mind control. Anyone who breaks their chains frees the elves so struck free and gains their eternal loyalty and gratitude. The elves explain they were captured by a mad magical dwarf wearing a white robe long ago and forced to thieve, plunder, and build toys and bars of metal for the dwarf for many years. They also tell of their captured ‘brothers’ in the dwarf’s coal mine situated in the mountains. They will not let the PCs rest until their brethren are freed and they’re desperate to return to normal size.
If they see the dwarf, Saint Nick, they will stop at nothing to kill him. They can tell the PCs his name and general capabilities and also that he was named a saint by the dwarves for his demeaning capture of the elves and their subsequent slavery and servitude.
The Freed Elves fight for the PCs as A. +0 D. 1 Move: 3 henchmen.
The empty forge contains 55 bars of gold, 70 bars of silver, and 200 bars of various other metals which are doubtless worth a lot but are very heavy (-1 all rolls if over-encumbered). Several crude weapons and sculptures lie about, the dwarf’s failed attempts at art and weaponcraft. Each bar is worth 100 coins of the appropriate type.
The Mines
Half a mile into the mountains you find a large cave, supported by rotting posts, in which you can see nothing because it is so dark. You can hear the distant sound of explosions and the tapping of miniature hammers and picks on the rock.
Before anyone can step into the cave a snow man rolls up out of the snow and stands up. RR 20 to spot before this and not be surprised. The snow man has buttons, a top hat, a corncob pipe, and a carrot nose. He is clearly Frosty the Killer Snowman RR 18 (20 with surprise for one round if applicable) HP 7 Damage 2 on a hit Movement: 10 Gold: none. XP 2,000 Special: When he’s first hit for damage Frosty starts singing a demented song and everyone must roll a Will save for fall under his mind control effect. Mind Controlled characters 50% dance around smiling stupidly, and 50% attack their companions until Frosty is killed.
Destroying the Top Hat of Evil is worth an additional 1,000 xp.
The elves trapped in the mines and scared out of their wits by the snow man who’s killed many of them. They mine coal for the dwarf’s workshop. The mines are also unstable and there is a 1 in 6 chance every 10 minutes a cave in occurs nearby (won’t kill the PCs but might scare them into hurrying).
If the elves can be convinced Frosty is dead they desert their posts and will stop at nothing to free their brothers and kill Saint Nick the Thief Dwarf. They also desperately want to return to normal size. See Workshop above for Freed Elf stats.
The Stables of the ‘Reindeer’
The Elves will not go near this place. Any PCs who enter the long building that is the stables see the huge magical sledge Saint Nick uses as his mode of escape after theft. It cannot be operated without Nick’s command and he has his ‘bag of toy holding’ with him elsewhere.
The reindeer are fierce and beastly, over-muscled, feral, frothing at the lips, mad-eyed, and with sharp protruding horns far too large for their species. They are not stabled and will attack anyone entering here viciously until dead. They are not required for the sleigh to fly.
There are eight reindeer.
Psychotic Beast Reindeer HP 3 RR 15 Damage 1 Gold: 0 XP: 500 each.
“Rudolph” is out disemboweling something so he’s nowhere to be seen at the moment.
Saint Nick’s Cabin
All of the other cabins are filled with useless junk, worthless plunder, and stacks of magical cookies which will turn anyone eating one into a mind-controlled shrunken elf.
You see a fat small dwarf wearing a red robe with sheep-skin linings. He has a despicable look to him, dark hair, and he’s examining a golden candlestick with some contempt. Beside his chair rests a large gray bag teeming over with loot and the scattering remnants of broken items of value which didn’t pass his inspection.
Saint Nick the Thief Dwarf HP 10 RR 16 Damage 1 Movement: 3 Gold: 5,000 in assorted stolen goods. Bag of toy holding 2,000 lbs. capacity. XP: 10,000 Special: Saint Nick has a magical bell he can ring to control all shrunken elves in his vicinity instead of his 1 damage attack. If he fears for his life he’ll toss 17 bunches of magical mistletoe at the party and run for it.
Each mistletoe requires an RR 17 mental skill check or Escape Artist check to evade its effects by shielding your mind or your body. He tosses equal numbers at as many party members as he can and multiple mistletoes require multiple skill checks. Anyone who fails this ‘save’ becomes hopelessly lovey dovey with any nearby members of the opposite sex for 2 rounds at which point the befuddled character will attempt to ‘kiss them’ under the mistletoe and break the curse. If they are unable to find a member of the opposite sex or are unable to kiss such a character they fall to the ground stunned for 1d6 rounds while mumbling “Jingle Bells”.
The Grand Escape
Nick runs for it and the magical sledge in the stables, cursing the PCs and vowing revenge. Any PC still in possession of their senses when this happens gets a free attack on him (no penalty for failure basic attack) and can give pursuit.
He jumps in his magical sledge which rises into the air and he escapes out into the night sky. Any surviving reindeer fly after him and flank him for defense.
If the PCs manage to board his sleight a fierce fight breaks out but if he’s killed the sleigh ceases to function and plummets towards the earth (and death). The PCs will have to hop onto reindeer’s backs, into his bag of toys, or something weird to escape and live.
If one or more of the PCs are left behind, Rudolph shows up and they can jump on his back and give pursuit.
Rudolph “The Beast” Killer Reindeer HP 5 RR 15 Damage 1 or 1d6 fire once per encounter. Gold: 0 XP: 5,000 Ability to fly.
Rudolph is psychotic and will attempt to bite the genitals off of anyone who tries to ride him, but he’s also very stupid and will fly towards the convey of Saint Nick and his demented Reindeer.
The Dwarf Escapes!
When the PCs finally take out Saint Nick he disappears in a poof of fairy powder, laughing diabolically. It appears he’s spontaneously resurrected himself and plans to still rob the village of Goran.
The PCs can trash his sled, loot it, and do pretty much whatever they feel like but they should find some of his magical fairy powder which teleports them to Goran. They then must lie in wait somewhere and wait for him to come down the chimney and pilfer the last of the village valuables after which point he plans to leave behind toys, cackle merrily, and set the whole place on fire (with Rudolph if available).
In the final battle he has only 1 hp RR 15 (weakened). Apart from his magical bag and 5,000 gold pieces of loot he also has magical fairy powder (1 round invisible as per the power). 7 1d6 silver bell grenades (RR 10 to hit most targets), and a magical glass ball that, when broken, will free all the elves and restore them to their normal size which they’re forever grateful for.
Victory!
The Duke smiles and shakes each of your hands in turn. “I can’t thank you enough for stopping that mad dwarf, what was his name? Nick? We would’ve been in a lot more trouble this winter if it wasn’t for you lot. As reward I’d like to present you each with the promised 200 pieces of gold and the villagers have agreed you may keep the stolen loot as a further reward for your valiant efforts.”
Each PC additionally gains 2,000 xp for completing this adventure.
Adventure Two
Secret Agent Caper
You were so successful on your last mission that it isn’t long before the Duke summons you once more. “I know this isn’t quite what you’re capable of, but there’s been something disturbing found in the basement of the Pub of the Three Dragons. The innkeep, Harold, would be much obliged if you can check it out and make sure it’s safe. Thanks. Oh, yes, I almost forgot: the last ten guys who went down there didn’t come back, ha ha.”
Once again the Duke is willing to pay the PCs, this time 400 gold pieces each if they can bring back the ten lost men or their bodies. He doesn’t see any reason to pay them in advance this time, but if they press the fact he’s willing to lower their reward and pay up to half to them up front.
The Pub of the Three Dragons
Harold is a midget monkey sorcerer who hoots at you and waves his magic wand. He can now speak your language and it’s clear he’s none-too-happy. “What the HOOT! There’s some HOOTING HOOT HOOT in my basement driving away all my HOOTING customers. If you can get rid of the HOOT HOOT thing then I’ll give you free beers for life.”
Anyone who tries to steal his wand makes a mad monkey as enemy for life but gains a wand of speak all languages. He has no other good treasure but he does have a wizard hat with stars on it. He can show the PCs to the basement but nobody in the village of Goran is willing to go down inside with them.
If the PCs enter and explore they find a lot of beer in barrels and bottles and several footprints through the dust where the other men went. There’s no sign of anything else weird until they find the portal hidden behind a shelf at the back wall.
In the back left hand corner of the room, concealed behind a shelf you see a blue swirling disk of energy. It seems to gaze hungrily at you and you find yourselves irresistibly drawn toward it. Fangs sprout along the edges and a demonic voice boasts, “Ha ha ha, more food for my energy maw, prepare to die, witless mortals.”
As soon as anyone tries to ‘take it out’ the voice laughs more loudly:
“You think you’re puny weapons are enough to stop, Akklkssioosine the beast lord? Think again, piddly bipeds!”
When the PCs come up with something brilliant or deal at least 10 damage to the thing the portal screams in outrage and dies. Hacking off the teeth may be another idea. Every round the portal attempts to suck in at least one PC (all others held by gravity well, no teleportation or magic can escape). RR 15 strength or similar to evade being sucked in.
If the PCs manage to kill Akklkssioosine the Beast Lord they gain 10,000 xp but regardless in the explosion of his death they are sucked in to the other side.
The Other Side
When all PCs are on the far side you can describe their predicament to them.
You appear to have landed in an underground chamber, possibly in an alternate dimension. The rock is gray and of a type you’ve never seen before. Your companions also look very strange. They are all wearing black and white suits, dark glasses, and carrying various metal rods and strange devices you’ve never seen before.
The PCs have landed themselves into an alternate dimension set somewhere around the 1950’s in which they’ve been transformed into secret agents working for the Queen of Scotland.
A wall slides aside and as you back away and try to draw your regular weapons a short man wearing a scientific suit approaches you and smiles as he waves. It appears as if he knows you. “Welcome double-o 1, 2, 3…(etc.) You’ve arrived far ahead of schedule, well done! It appears the Soviet States of Arabia are planning a Nuclear bombardment of Taiwan, our greatest ally. As members of the secret service of her majesty “Bolf” the Queen of Scotland, you must help protect the world.”
If anyone freaks out or otherwise acts strange the man just gives them a weird look and continues on:
“Yes, I realize you need to practice your “Persona” but really (insert code name of PC). We don’t have time for this now. The Soviet Arabian Democratic Government has found something called ‘project x’ which is hidden somewhere in the capital city of Egypt. You must go and find it, it could mean the world. Our only lead is a woman in Portugal named “Sexy Beast” you must find Sexy Beast and convince her to help us.” The man coughs into his hand and smirks. “I know it won’t be any trouble for you, your cars and gear are already packed on the jet.”
Several men with machine guns escort the PCs to their jet which, indeed, is crammed with sweet cars and gear boasting the latest in weird spy technology. All the classics should be there along with anything the PCs want and seems reasonable to you. Some ideas are: radar, heat seeking missiles, machine guns, invisible cars, nitro, seat ejectors. Tracking devices in shoes, laser pens, paper clips which are actually massive bombs, and so forth. There should also be at least one car that can turn into a submersible sub.
The Flight to Portugal
As the PCs are taking flight a young woman brings them refreshments and asks how many times they want their martinis shaken and stirred and how many ice cubes they want in them.
This young woman can teach them to use all their gear and weapons, train them about the history of the Soviet Arabians, and pretty much whatever else they’d like.
As soon as they’re flying out over the ocean at about 20,000 feet the doors to the pilots swing open and a Russian woman in nothing but her skimpy dress with rhinestones steps out holding a gun.
“Prepare to get blown away by my beauty, agents one, two, three, (etc.)”
Russian Agent Polovo HP 15 (1 damage bullets, she wears a bullet proof dress). RR 20 (kung fu dodge) Damage 1d6 (subduing karate kick or sleep darts). Gold: none, dress bullet proof, comm link to Arabia, purse with explosives. XP: 5,000 Special: Instead of dealing damage she can kick the gun out of any PCs hands.
If anyone shoots at her and misses the cabin de-pressurizes and the plane goes into a death roll, everyone loses their weapons and must grab parachutes to escape. Of course, there aren’t enough so someone is going to have to grab the waitress, pilots, and the Russian Agent.
If the PCs are smart enough to use Kung fu and similar they quickly find Polovo is a master but if they try their seduction skills on her she is easy prey and quickly betrays her country. She also tells them that “Sexy Beast” is a trap in Portugal. Apart from this she knows nothing and thinks they should probably still go.
The Ocean
If the PCs somehow land in the ocean at least one of the cars is a submersible sub which they can use to quickly reach Portugal with the help of at least one navigator who knows what he or she is doing. They probably run into at least half a dozen sea monsters and Arabian Soviet Democratic subs, but those challenges are left up to you.
The Trap in Portugal
The address leads the PCs to a one time meeting at a night club where everyone is dancing and speaking in Portuguese. Of course, they all known English as well if anyone cares to talk to them.
The PCs now have another opportunity to order their favourite drinks and try to hunt down the proprietor who is the only one who knows who Sexy Beast is and where she can be found.
To find the proprietor at least 3 waitresses must be seduced. It appears he’s ‘in the back’.
When they find the proprietor he tells them they must play him a 20 million dollar game of cards to find the woman. If they pull a gun he tells them anyway. It is RR 15 to beat him at cards.
Sexy Beast is apparently ‘further in the back’. When the PCs pass about 50 thugs with machine guns HP 1 Damage 1d6 RR 15 Movement: 3 XP: 50 they find a pool in the back surrounded by frigid ice sculptures which large vents of liquid nitrogen constantly shoot up into.
She’s wearing a bathing suit and sitting in the water. After the PCs give their opening lines she responds:
“That is what you think, Mr. (and Ms.?) double-o 1, 2, 3 (etc.)” She snaps her fingers and twenty men with machine guns rise up out of the pool.
The PCs can attack in which case a horrendous firefight breaks out. Men: RR 16 Damage 1d6 machine gun bullets HP 1 Movement: 2 (scuba suits) XP: 100 each Gold: none.
Sexy Beast RR 17 Damage 1 (bite) HP 1 Movement: 3 XP: 100, 1,000 if seduced. Gold: 0
Putting the liquid nitrogen into the pool kills everybody. If Sexy Beast and her men win they tie the PCs to the ice sculptures with a slowly rotating liquid nitrogen nozzle spraying toward them and leave.
If the PCs win and capture (or win over) Sexy Beast she reveals the location of the secret base in Egypt containing project x but she can’t say what it is either.
If the PCs win but kill everyone they can find the address of secret x tattooed to Sexy Beast’s back (or the lining in her bra or whatever) for no good reason.
Obligatory Race Car Scene
Outside the club as you’re driving for the plane (or nearest airport/sub if it’s destroyed) you see two black vehicles in your mirror.
If any of the PCs fancy cars survived they may now use all of their nifty doo-dads and the craziest driving they can think of. Be sure to include plenty of enemy cars shooting harmless machine gun bullets at them, bridges to jump the cars over, and opportunities for mad stunts (which nearly always succeed).
Once the PCs have the drive-like-a-madman thing totally out of their systems they can reach the airport/plane or whatever and head out to Egypt. If they still don’t know where it is they’re supposed to be headed you can always have some allied agent get shot by an assassin with a silencer and hand them over a note in his dead hands.
Car RR 10 HP 5 D. 2 (ram) Movement: 24 (top speed). XP: 500 Gold: 0
Egypt
You land in the capital city of Soviet Arabia which is, of course, Egypt. There are many camels, pyramids, and men with French wigs around, but otherwise the place seems just like New York.
When the PCs leave their plane/submarine or whatever and start to make their way towards the address they’ve found about a million ninjas jump out of nowhere and attack them. They could surrender, but where’s the fun in that? None of the ninjas will use any weapons other than their fists because they want to capture the PCs.
There are 1,000 ninjas.
Ninja HP 1 Damage 1 RR 14 Movement: 4 Gold: 0 (ninja sword, blow gun with sleep darts, etc.) XP: 100 each.
When all the PCs have been captured or escaped, or defeated all the 1,000 ninjas (should be max 10,000 xp for doing so) Marilyn Monroe or some equally famous woman comes up to them and flirts with them for a while after which point she either beats them up and takes them to the secret base, or falls in love with them and leads them to the secret base.
On the way there, should the PCs wish, they can use any plan they want to escape and find the place on their own terms.
The Secret Base
You enter a deserted parking lot, but before you can do anything else a huge Eiffel tower splits the ground apart and rises high into the sky. People nearby scream and you see a miniature Statue of Liberty sprout out the top holding a laser cannon which points vaguely in the direction of the UN. A large speaker blares out over those assembled, “Today democracy will rein over the world! No more will the communist states of America hold sway, no longer will the British Empire control 75% of the world. Freedom at last!”
As the laser starts firing at satellites to bounce back and hit various parts of the world, the PCs as secret agents can spring into action or not, depending on their preference. Anyone smart may roll an RR 10 check to determine these people would not have the power necessary to shoot a laser of this size and it must be powered by magic, possibly a portal back to their home-world.
Within the building there are a load of flunkies and aimless guards who can be snuck past or fought as the PCs wish. Flunky HP 1 RR 10 Damage 1 Movement: 3 Gold: 0 (gun) XP: 10.
The PCs can see a shimmering blue portal at the top of the inside of the Eiffel tower. It looks just like the one that brought them here. They have two basic choices now: they can use the elevator, or they can climb the metal supports (no stairs). RR 15 to reach the top.
The elevators are wired with explosives (RR 16 to spot or disable) and about halfway up the speaker voice says:
“Ha ha ha, not so fast agents 1, 2, 3, (etc.) Freedom will not be stopped so easily…”
At this point the PC(s) should automatically detect the explosives and are allowed 1 or two rounds to do something about it (or bust their way out to safety).
The Portal at the Top of the Eiffel Tower
Beside the portal holding a control box is a patriotic Frenchman wearing a wig and a crazed expression and a helpless girl tied firmly to a support strut. She’s blonde and wears a revealing white dress. Behind her, on the other side of the metal support a bare-chested and muscular man is also tied up, crying out feebly for help. He’s wearing a Speedo.
Breaking the ropes requires RR 17 strength, a weapon, or RR 15 use rope. The Patriot is RR 15 HP 1 Damage 1 (gun) Movement: 3 Gold: 0 XP: 500 Special: Before he dies he’ll hit the self destruct button on the Eiffel Tower control switch box by accident and curse. The PCs have a very short time to escape.
As all of this is going on you see about 50 jets flying in toward your tower, guns blazing, apparently the Communists don’t take kindly to people trying to force democracy on them with giant, magically powered, lasers.
As everything blows up on all sides, guns blazing, self destruct going or the patriot firing lasers back at the attacking planes (women and guy screaming the background) a giant hairy monkey leaps off of a concealed platform in the top of the tower and hoots menacingly, beating his chest. Apparently, it’s King Kong making his debut movie by smushing the PCs into jell-o and throwing them off the precipitous tower.
King Kong HP 15 RR 16 Damage 1d3 (half of 1d6) Movement: 5 Climb +15 Hoots loudly and swats airplanes in his free time. Gold: 0 XP: 15,000
Giving him the girl will pacify him as he hoots and lumbers off with her.
Anyone who jumps in the portal disappears. You should play up the drama for all it’s worth and impose your own challenges for evading gun fire, escaping a giant enraged monkey, and climbing around the precarious tower to pull of stunts. When everyone’s done fighting and blowing up stuff the patriot (if alive) or someone else (if he’s dead) informs the PCs that the laser is damaged beyond repair through the firefight, if they want to leave they’ll have to leave now.
Allow the PCs time to say their goodbyes, safely escort prisoners, gather loot, or whatever, after which they should head home. If they want to stay the portal blows up in their faces and snatches them through (or you could design a modern campaign, but that’s up to you).
Home sweet Home
You find yourself back in the basement of the Inn of the Three Dragons. There is no portal in sight and you’ve no idea how much time may have passed. You’re disappointed to find you’re wearing your old clothes and you have none of the sweet gear and loot you’d picked up on the other side. However, there’s someone here you didn’t expect, wearing a leather jerkin which makes her/him look really weird.
Whoever was the most interesting character the PCs brought with them to the final battle appears with them dressed in leathers that suit the time and without any of their usual fancy equipment. This NPC will need help learning the ropes of the new world or getting back to his/her old one. This NPC is also carrying the ten previous men sent through the portal in his or her pocket. Weird magical vortexes deposited them there out of limbo and any wizard can tell that they will gradually return to normal size.
The Story
The Duke gladly pays the PCs their 400 gold pieces each and eagerly asks about their quest. He doesn’t believe them if they tell the truth, and neither will anyone else except for the monkey innkeeper Harold who believes every word (and will probably fall in love with any female the PCs brought back from their mission).
Each PC should be awarded 5,000 bonus xp for successfully completing this adventure and they find the submersible car outside the inn waiting for them. It will soon run out of gas and weapons, and no one has any clue how to repair or fuel it, but for a time it may be fun anyway. Its weapons deal 1d6 damage on a hit and add +2 to attack because of superior accuracy. The car will wear out faster if not used on dry roads and level ground.
Adventure Three
The Quest for the Holy Grail
You’re all sitting around in your favourite pub on a Saturday night like usual, having known your companions for the better part of five years now, when you hear news of a great debacle: Someone has broken into the Citadel of the Mouse Queen and stolen something of great value; anyone who retrieves it shall receive a great reward.
If anyone asks what this ‘great reward’ is, think of something outrageous and make that the reward. If anyone comes up with anything semi-reasonable to be the reward, you can use that as well. If no one can think of anything, you can just make it 100,000 pieces of gold.
If the PCs actually decide to go and see the Mouse Queen in the Citadel they find the whole place to be made of gold and a great stream of stalwart adventurer’s marching on the place to claim the ‘great reward.’ If anyone asks what was stolen, no one has any clue.
You enter the vast domed enclave of the Citadel and are surprised to find it made of solid gold. It appears the rumors are true. You’re just about to polish a bit of rust off the gold, when you see about 30 mouse guards snarling at you, whiskers barred.
If anyone attempts to steal the gold it’s RR 18 to do so undetected. If the mouse guards catch anyone being untoward, they attack viciously and sound the alarm. Mouse Guard RR 15 HP 1 Damage 1 Speed 3 Gold: 3 XP: 1,000 each. There are 30 guards and within 6 rounds 100 more will come: Squad of 10 mouse guards RR 20 Damage 3 Speed: 3 Gold: 15 XP: 5,000 per band.
If melted down, the Citadel is worth at least 1 million gold coins but doing so will start a vast war between the humans and mice and you may feel free to have bands of feral mice-men attack the PCs at random throughout the rest of their careers.
If the PCs actually make it to the throne room without incident you can read them the following:
You see a huge throne set with a giant emerald upon which the Mouse Queen, Sharon, sits. She has the longest whiskers you’ve ever seen and the biggest—but no, you’re distracted by the concern on her angular, pointed, furry face. She beckons you nearer with a tiny clawed hand. “Welcome, brave heroes.” You start to reply but she’s talking to someone behind you who raises his spear and grins, huge muscles bulging. “No doubt you’re wondering why I have summoned you here and offered such a great reward.”
If the PCs decide to fight any of the other heroes they are all 1st to 10th level characters from the basic book with stats along these lines: Hero RR 10+level HP 1+level Speed: 3 Gold: 100 XP: 1,000 x level. They can have any 5 powers from the basic book, or anything you can think of. These powers take effect only when one of the PCs miss them.
“A golden chalice was stolen last night from our most impenetrable vault. But this is no ordinary golden goblet, it is said that the chalice is imbued with such Holy might that it will make the owner immortal and is known in some lands as The Holy Grail. It has no doubt fallen into the hands of evil which will use it for diabolical purposes, retrieve it and you will be greatly rewarded.”
The PCs can investigate or question the Mouse Queen further but all they can learn is that the thief broke in at somewhere around midnight, he was working for the Black Scorpions, he wore a chiffon nightgown, and his name is Eric and he lives on 1030 Blackmoore street in the city of Torm.
The PCs can head to the assassin’s residence, or to the Castle of the Blackmoore Assassins.
The Assassin’s House
You find that the assassin’s residence lies right next to your favourite pub, you must’ve passed it by a thousand times and never noticed the evil smell of poisons, the boarded up windows, and the deadly spiked traps on all the windows. It appears the house is empty, but you never can tell, can you? It is now around 1 AM and very dark.
Any PC attempting to enter anything but the door springs a deadly poisoned trap. RR 14 to disable, spot, or evade with an Acrobatics skill check. If the PC is hit he or she takes 1d6 damage and 1 poison damage per minute until healed or dead. At death the character can make a single physical strength save to negate the poison and remain at 1 hp.
If the PCs enter through the door they make it within without incident. Have all PCs roll a RR 16 perception check when they enter the house. If they fail they see nothing, otherwise read the below:
You see a man wearing a chiffon lace nightgown crouched up in the ceiling, short blade dripping with poison and preparing to jump down upon you with a smirk on his face.
Eric the Assassin RR 14 HP 3 damage 1+1 per minute poison as above Speed: 4 Gold 200 xp: 20,000. If he surprises the PCs he’s RR 16 on all of their first rolls against him.
If anyone captures him for questioning he says the following:
“It was a job alright? I stole the Holy Grail, gave it to Prince Evil Death Ray the Third, and was on my way, okay?”
If further pressed he reveals the location of Blackmoore Castle where the Black Scorpions and Prince Evil Death Ray the Third can be found. He also tells them the defenses are impenetrable and the only way they can get in is to be invited to the Prince’s upcoming wedding next Wednesday. The man has no clue who he’s marrying and all he will say is “Some rich hot tart, sirs.”
Blackmoore Castle
As you approach the castle night falls and you see a load of other adventurers, of higher levels than yourselves, approaching the castle ahead of you. As you look on from the cover of a nearby bush you see them all being killed by countless arrows, fireballs, and various steel bear traps and snarling dogs in the grounds outside the castle who viciously rip them apart. Using your above-average intellect scores you think that a frontal assault might be a bad idea.
If the PCs try a frontal assault anyway, they face the following deadly opponents: 1,099 Archers RR 24 HP 200 Damage 10d6 Speed: 5 Gold 10,000 XP: 10,000 Perception +40, 100 Wizards RR 20 HP 20 Damage 20d6 fireballs Speed: 24 fly Gold: 2,000 XP 10,000, and Impenetrable Death Traps RR 20 to spot or disable damage 2d6 Reflex save to drop to 1 hp, up to three traps hit each trespasser.
If the PCs somehow manage to kill all these people and traps, a band of vicious dogs assaults them. Dogs RR 26 HP 150 Damage 6d6 Speed: 7 Gold: 0 XP: 20,000 and Bear Traps RR 26 spot or disable damage 3d6 Reflex save to drop to 1 hp. Xp: 20,000.
If the PCs try anything sneakier they may gain entry into the castle or learn that the Prince Evil Death Ray the Third is planning an upcoming wedding on Wednesday. If they can be invited to this wedding it may be a spiffing way to enter the castle.
The Wedding
You should let the PCs come up with their own way to get into the castle or get invited to the wedding. Some options are: hopping into to the bride’s carriage, forging an invitation, stealing an invitation, buying the Prince a present and getting invited, or simply wandering in as the guests arrive.
The bride is a very scared but very beautiful farm girl who wants nothing to do with the Prince and will try anything to escape, but she’s guarded by a big Buffoon RR 16 HP 1 Damage 2 Speed: 2 Gold 20 XP: 1,000.
Inside the Castle (Without Wedding)
Amazingly you make it within the castle and sneak into the keep. You gain 20,000 xp for sheer daring. Within the keep you see a maze of corridors and an evil voice laughs in your minds. “Welcome, uninvited guests, you’re just in time for my pre-wedding bridal shower, ha ha ha ha.”
The corridors start shifting around and forming crushing wall traps. The heroes will have to do some fancy footwork (RR 14) to evade getting smushed and find a way through your maze to the villain (now’s the time to draw a random, maze-like map). You can proceed to The Dungeon below.
Inside the Castle (With the Wedding)
Magical lights in all colors light up the night sky, booze pours freely, and many men and women laugh gaily at the marriage of a very despicable man. The villain himself, Prince Evil Death Ray the Third, takes the stage. He’s a thirty-year-old man with an evil leer wearing a badly fitting tuxedo with overly long duck tails out the back. You immediately sense great evil radiating off him and wonder if you’ve somehow turned into a paladin. Before anyone can take him out, he snatches up the bride, who looks horrified, kisses her roughly and runs away into the keep cackling melodramatically, “I will now kill you all, fools. The Holy Grail is Mine!”
Everyone goes silent for a second, then they shrug and keep dancing.
The PCs will have to fight his two orc guards RR 10 HP 1 Damage 1 Speed: 3 Gold 5 XP 500 each and bash down the door to the keep: RR 20 strength or RR 10 pick lock or thievery.
Inside the castle they see his duck tails zooming around corners as he laughs maniacally with the woman in his arms. If anyone manages to catch the zany loony he puts his dagger to the young woman’s throat and, being heroes, the PCs are forced to let him run for it again. If they somehow manage to peg him, he dies but laughs, and says, “You’re too late to stop it, you’ll never find it, mwa ha ha…”
Once the PCs make it through the maze you’ve doodled, they reach The Dungeon.
Final Encounter The Dungeon
The smell of water and the sharp tang of gold meets your nostrils as you gaze upon a black stairway leading down into oblivion in Blackmoore keep. You wonder vaguely why you haven’t seen any of the Black Scorpions yet. Just as you’re thinking that a trap door swings around in the wall and a small green goblin steps out in front of your path onto the landing of the stairs. He grins wickedly and raises a small, rusty dagger. “None shall pass.” He belches and pats his fat stomach.
The Goblin is actually an elite Terrorist Ninja Zombie Controlling Wican Witch Doctor Supernaturalist. RR 20 HP 12 Damage 1d6 or any curse effect you want, he can hit all party members if he wants. Speed: 24 lightning move or teleport and fly Gold: 1 and Magic Rusty Dagger +1 which melts all non-magical steel armor touched (but not doors). XP: 5,000.
If the PCs chat with the Goblin they must answer his three riddles to pass without harm, otherwise they must fight him or find some other way of outwitting him. The three riddles are:
“What’s small, round, comes in a yellow box, and has a hole in it?” A. a Cheerio.
“I Hate That Monkey” A. Pirates of the Carribean
and “What sucks, happens yearly, and rhymes with axes?” A. Taxes.
The PCs are allowed one false answer each, but that’s all the goblin will allow. Answering each one of his riddles is worth 5,000 xp to the group and a bonus 1,000 xp to whoever answered it.
As the GM you should doodle 10 encounter areas on your own piece of scrap paper of the dungeon below and assign the areas as you wish.
Dungeon Room 1
You push in a fungusy door and see a stagnant pool of water which glows with a bright blue light. As you are about to close the door it snarls, jumps off its hinges and attacks you.
Animated Door (Invincible) RR 15 HP: infinite Damage: 1 Speed: 3 Gold: 0 XP: 2,000 The only way to kill this door is to swim to the bottom of the pool and claim the blue sword of Sedarath which is the only object which can kill it. Swim RR 14 or Hold Breath RR 10. Retrieving the sword takes 2 rounds.
The blue glow comes from the sword of Sedarath which is a +2 longsword with the ability to blow holes in things like a stack of dynamite once per day (1d6 damage and bursts stone and suchlike). It also grants the owner +4 swim and the ability to breath underwater. It is rumored to be the only weapon that can kill the Heart of a terrible sentient Dungeon known as “The Terminator”.
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