by gonecase

An item RPG Item: Mailbox has been added to the geeklist Chill - Death on Tour - Character Sheets

A new episode has been added to the database: Tyrant But Deadly Ep 186--Assault on Fallowdeep

A new episode has been added to the database: Season 4 | Ep. 14 | Echoes of the Hearth

A new episode has been added to the database: LUST FOR LOVE OF A CHINESE COURTESAN

by Steve

On July 21st it's a national holiday

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[user=benevolentgamemaster][/user]
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Happy Birthday Peter!

by Patrick McElfresh

How about that smoke y'all? We, in Wisconsin, had a bit of a reprieve on Saturday, so I spent some time reading in the yard before the poor air quality was back Sunday. I finished another Star Trek: Vanguard novel, and I've enjoyed the series so far, and when my current Curse of Strahd game ends, Star Trek Adventures set around Vanguard is going to be an option for what to play next!

As a reminder, I cover bundles from Monday last week to this last Sunday so I can draft the post in advance. I'll cover yesterday's bundle's next week.

Bundle of Holding
:kF::ki::kr::ks::kt:<< these are the links Runs from 7/13/2026 to 7/29/2026

Our first bundle of the week is a revival of the June 2025 Orbital Blues bundle, which you can read about in detail here. The tiers are each priced at $8 and $18 as I write this week's post.

:kS::ke::kc::ko::kn::kd: Runs from 7/13/2026 to 7/29/2026

Next up is a second Orbital Blues bundle. This one includes more recent supplements, so start at the other bundle if you're new to the game. If you're looking for more options for this lo-fi space western, this is the bundle for you.

This single tier bundle is priced at $10, and adds to your collection the Afterburn supplement, which includes a starship section, a toolkit for the GM, and an adventure; eight short adventures in Rogue Anthems; solo adventure The Wanderer; and finally four quickstarts for other games - Atrapos (mythic odysseys), Doomspiral (dying world RPG), Mad as Hell (anti-capitalist demonhunting), and Paint the Town Red (undead PCs chase the lost feelings of being alive).


:kT::kh::ki::kr::kd: Runs from 7/15/2026 to 7/31/2026

Last up this week is the Thrones and Bones bundle. Ok, this might take a little explaining for anyone who doesn't follow D&D 5e variants. You see, a few years ago, WotC tried to do something DUMB. They came to their senses, eventually, after arguably doing their brand significant PR damage.

One of the results was a number of companies feeling like they needed their own systems and couldn't rely on WotC's OGL anymore. One of those was Black Flag from Kobold Press, which underpins their Tales of the Valiant RPG. "Ok great" you say, "why the history lesson?" Well, bundle includes a line orginally aimed at D&D 5e, but later aimed at Black Flag.

These should run easily under either system or even the 2024 version of D&D 5e. While I haven't run these particularly, I currently am running a game with characters built from TotV and "5.5" D&D. It's fine, and not a problem. I like Tales of the Valiant a lot, and not just because it lacks Silvery Barbs...that's just a side benefit.

The low tier of this bundle is priced at $10, and includes the Norrongard campaign setting - a guide to a frozen North and intro TotV adventure The Aptrgangr's Challenge.

The upper tier, as of the time of writing, is priced at $20 total, and adds a trilogy of adventures: Banner of the Bull, Keeper of the Drowned, and Troll of the Town; together "The Bense Trilogy." The "Sagas of Norrongrad," seven standalone adventures, are here too - From Svartalafaheim With Love, The Misfortunes of Grettir the Lucky, The Forgotten Blade, Airships and Landships, The Dreaming Eye, The Heart of the Matter, and The Wolf at World's End. Still need northland adventures? How about Fury of the Forsaken, Tomb of the Frost Giant, and Vengeance of the Valravn? That's quite a few!

by MichaelLavoie

Neil Young - Like a Hurricane
Youtube Video

by ctimmins

What do you see when you turn out the lights?
The game is played in the dark, or at least mostly dark. In this respect, the players are in the same environment as the characters. It's moody and it reinforces the heavy, hopeless feeling of the game. And as each candle goes out, one after the other, it gets harder and harder to see anything. Notes become illegible. Dice rolls are difficult to see. The player across the table sort of fades away. This is good. However, it's also frustrating. When even your readers aren't enough to see your dice rolls, it's a depressing reminder of how old you're getting. Which maybe also is a positive contributor to the negative mood. As the minutes and hours pass, you really start to miss the light. You sorta know how your characters are feeling. This is a great mechanic, especially coupled with simple rules.

Candle burned out long before...
Ten tea candles. They start off with a good flame but they pretty quickly start to burn down. And as that wick vanishes into smoke the flame gets smaller and smaller and it's possible - maybe even likely - that this or that candle is going to put itself out if you keep wasting time. And no matter how you play it, there's just not enough time to accomplish what you need to accomplish before one of those candles either goes out or is put out. Which definitely advances the narrative. Just not in the way you wanted the narrative to advance. It all makes you nervous. And they're the only light. So you end up staring at them, persistently and intensely. But once a candle is out? Totally uninteresting. The past. Done. Over. Gone. This is a great mechanic, especially coupled with a one-shot.

Come on, baby, light my fire
Burning your cards as you use them is sorta enjoyable. Honestly, who doesn't love to play with fire just a little? There's something quite final about literally burning a part of your character sheet. I have to wonder, though, how that works out in public spaces at, say, a convention? Then there is the ash, which becomes a sort of physical reminder of the past. The now-useless past. Playing with kids would be concerning. Then again, who'd want to play a psychological horror game with kids? I'm conflicted about the burning cards. It's eerie and it feels very central, though it really isn't. I'm still on the fence about the card burning. Mostly because it detracts from the narrative. It's a critical point. You've sacrificed something significant to control the outcome. But everything full stops while you burn your card.

I was born with a plastic spoon in my mouth
I like the simple character creation process, and I really like how it's quite out of your control but not necessarily consistent. Just don't sit next to a psychopath who knows how the rules work, 'cause they'll give you a doozy. Having a character with just four things feels just right for a one-shot four-ish hour session. Few enough to easily keep in mind. Not enough to spend freely. The best part is stacking 'em up before you play and then being locked in (stuck) with that order. No matter how your theorize it during the stacking, it always feels wrong during play. Isn't it better to burn up your vice early, while there are still options aplenty? Isn't it right to hang on to your hope to the bitter end? But that hope die is deeply attractive, so why not grab it right at the start. You're going to lose hope anyway. Just get it over with? This is a great mechanic, especially coupled with the doom and gloom.

Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'...
You start out with ten big, beautiful dice in your pool, and you only need a single six to be successful. What could go wrong? But every rolled one exits the pool for the rest of the scene. And though sixes are statistically as likely as ones, the game breaks statistics because somehow you always roll more ones than sixes. At the start things looks... bleak but possible. But you have to plan things intelligently or you'll blow through your pool doing stupid stuff that doesn't really matter. Then again, does anything really matter? You know where it's going - no matter what. So, you know, what difference does it make? It's the struggle... And then as the candles wink out and even the freshly replenished pools keeps shrinking, shrinking... it's nerve wracking. Of course you can always save a failed roll. By giving up a piece of your character. This is a great mechanic. Painful, too.

Turn and face the strange
So you've got narrative control, have you? Clearly it's time for good things to happen to the characters. Help arrives. Friendly people. Plentiful food. A firearm, maybe? A good flashlight? You just have to say it happens, and it happens. That's just a trick of the game, though, because everything bad that happens accumulates and anything good that happens evaporates. You can pull yourself together into a happy place for a happy moment. But guess what? It's still dark. They're still out there. And the moments in the game that really seem to shine are the unexpected moments when somebody takes narrative control and wrecks things. Why would they do that? Surprise, they don't have the same goals or plans as you, and they're tired of your pointless scheming. Or... they just like dark things. Don't be too nice to your character. It won't do them any good.

I wish I didn't know now what I didn't know then
The end of turn enumeration of truths is brilliant. Each scene ends in a checkpoint where facts are established. Did we, or did we not, do that? Where is that person? What happened to that object? All this stuff seems important in the developing narrative. And you get your chance to fix it as an indisputable fact. You'd think that would be a powerful thing in a narrative. "We have an operating car," or, "The building is empty and safe," or, "We find a pack of fresh batteries for the flashlight." Yes, those are powerful things. But they're powerful things about the scene that's just about to become the past. You can try to manipulate your reality as much as you want but it's not going to make much of a long-term impact. That's not to say you should throw the opportunity away. Just don't put too much faith into it. It's real. It's just not going to matter all that much.

Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy
It's a definite railroad. Says so right in the rules. You have ten scenes, at most, and you're going to fail in the end. This can't be avoided and you know it going in. No matter how you run the scenes you're not going to change what happens. You're just going to change how it happens, and maybe the timing of when it happens. That gives you so much freedom within the narrative framework, though. You can tell the best horror story you can think of, because you don't have to spare your character. Even if you try, your character doesn't get spared. The game plays out, the candles burn down and go out, and then the end comes. You can be a hero but nobody is going to know it. You can be a clown but nobody is going to laugh. You can be a criminal but you won't profit from it. Because no matter what you fail in the end.

There must be some way outta here, said the joker to the thief
RPG player characters aren't supposed to die. In the entire campaign cosmology, the player character is the one non-expendable thing. The must-have component. The game fixture that can't be dispensed with. It's a roleplaying game. You have to have a role to play. And your character has to be alive for you to inhabit the role. These are given. This is non-negotiable. Except it doesn't have to work that way. We just like it to work that way. When you start the game, you know in ten scenes and a couple hours your four-card character is going to die. They might die with all four cards still safely in hand. They might die with burned virtue, burned vice, burned hope, and burned brink. They might die somewhere in between. They might die thinking they're doing something important. But they are going to die. And they aren't going to do something important. What freedom you have to explore that character! No hit points to worry about. No gold pieces to hoard. You just have your role and your character. It's not what you do, it's how you do it.

Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose
If you are a character lover who would rather quit than lose, this game will do you a world of good. If your character always pulls out when the hit points drop to the single digits, you need to play this game. If you freak out when you fail a saving throw, you must play this game. If your game master has never slaughtered your character in front of your eyes, just for the sheer meanness of doing it, you've really been missing out. Nothing makes you think about what your character would do in a bad situation more than having a bunch of options - and none of them are good. Much less, none of them are really meaningful. Play to your virtue, sure. But play to your vice as well. You have hopes, of course, but you also have deep failures. Because your character isn't a hero. Or a villain. They're just trying to survive. But they aren't going to. It's the end of the world, and we know it...

by Red Wine Pie

Dramatis Personae:
Eric - The Gamemaster
Matt - Dr. Iris von Disdain the High Elven Cleric of the Life Domain
Susan - Drakar Vexborn the Dragonborn Warlock Pact of the Tome
David - Hadrian the Human Warrior Champion
John - Lycara the Tiefling Paladin Oath of Devotion
Peter - Teslen the Lightfoot Halfling Bard School of Lore (Remote)
Callum - Thargrim ‘Tar’ Ironbraid the Dwarf Duellist Warrior Battle Master (Remote)

Continuing adventures on Level 1 of the Mad Mage’s Dungeon and in The Yawning Portal.

[hr]
A short passage, perhaps thirty feet long, is revealed. It is lit by two candles, one set in the right-hand wall and a second on the wall opposite the gate. The passage then turns to the right. The walls are stone, and the passage is ten feet in width and height. The stone is particularly clean with no sign of dirt or cobwebs. As much as they can tell, this passage looks like that the heroes remember from the highest levels of the dungeon. Everyone gathers together, including the Sing-alongs, then all pass through the mirror. It is not Iris who feels something drawn on her back, but Lycara. The Paladin senses the drawing of an eye and a stylised ‘H’, that triggers a powerful Bane effect. A blast of Force energy passes through Lycara, as she hears a whispered female voice say’: ‘this pays for the halflings' passage’ as she staggers out into the stone passage. All the other heroes and the Sing-alongs arrive on the other side of the gate, to see Lycara stagger under the effect of the Rune. The heroes check their surroundings and health, before heading out again to explore. Surely they are close to the surface now? [hr]


The Gate from Level 10 to 1

The candles are the one unusual feature of the stone passageways. Drakar can see that each of the candles are magical, and close inspection reveals they are floating slightly above the small alcoves they are set in. Teslen looks at a few of the candles, and realises they are all copies of each other, and only give off light but not heat. Drakar removes a candle, which puts it out. Returning the candle to the alcove sees it light up again. The halfling bard heads off down the western-heading passageway, checking for traps between each of the candles on both sides of the passage.. Teslen finds nothing else of interest. And the passage turns to the north and then back west. Finally, a passageway leads off to the north, past a set of double doors and then to the east. The candle-flanked passageway carries on to the west, but Teslen recognises the double doors and leads the party that way. From their draft maps, the heroes work out that two of the small goals are close at hand. The Sing-alongs are rather keen to head home though, once they learn this is the first level of the dungeon. So the party looks for the shortest, safest journey to the well that leads to the surface.

Through the double doors, the heroes squeeze (except for Teslen and the halfling band) past the roughly excavated tunnel that leads to a long northern passage, and up to the room full of pillars. There are no creatures on watch in this room, and the goblin corpse has been cleared away from the tunnel. The heroes head swiftly to the pillar room, turn right through the room of demonic reliefs and reach the forty-foot square room at the bottom of the Yawning Portal. The heroes have already paid their own return fees, but they shout up the 140 foot shaft and send up another 5gp to cover the Sing-alongs fare. Iris heads up first, and arrives in a half-full tavern in the early evening. The Sing-alongs come up in twos and threes, and are delighted to be back in Waterdeep. The rest of the party follow, and soon the bar is a-buzz with the arrival of the party and the missing halflings. The drinks are soon bought for the heroes, and after the Sing-alongs tell their story they head back to their homes with a city guardsman as escort.

Teslen finds Three-strings, and learns that Geldrax had made it to Waterdeep from the Skullport portal. So the Harper already knows that Teslen delivered the pouch of gems to the Skullport contact. He gives Teslen the organisations’ thanks, saying that there may be more work for the heroes from the Harpers later. Esvele Rosznar is not in the inn, but the heroes send a page to ask her to meet them later. Durnan asks if the heroes have found out anything about the bad dreams that Waterdeep residents have had. The heroes say they have not, and that they have not had any bad dreams themselves. Durnan says that folks have still been having the dreams while the heroes were gone, and they seem to be caused by an alien intelligence trying to learn about their lives. The heroes promise to keep looking, and that they will be going further down. They also tell Durnan about the magically preserved beer at the far southern end of Level 2. Durnan promises the heroes a 50% cut of the value of the casks if he can organise a group to collect them. The famous explorer and author Volo Geddarm turns up at the tavern later in the evening, so the heroes take a private booth and tell him of their success in finding the Throne of the Coronal. Volo is delighted and promises that the gratitude of the elves will be due to them. He assures them that the reward will be a useful item for adventurers. He also buys some of the non-magical Dwarven relics the heroes found in King Melair’s tomb.

The heroes rest up over night, regaining full health and all their used abilities. Drakar attunes to the newest magical wand she found, and learns that it is Wand of the War Mage (+1). She keeps this attuned for the time being. Iris doesn’t find out anything interesting about the boar helmet, and decides not to wear it. She does recognise the magical oil flask as oil of slipperiness, which she holds on to. Drakar has a couple of items to get rid of, and the heroes want to buy a better sword for Hadrian and Iris. Selling her Bracers of Defence, the Sentinel Shield and some other minor magical items to Obaya Uday, the heroes go back to the merchant where they bought Tar’s Drow warpick. For 10,500gp they source two +2 longswords, a set of Gauntlets of Ogre Strength for Hadrian and a fine hat for Teslen. Hadrian’s sword is of a standard, sober design. There are engravings on the hilt that Drakar thinks are a language (or part of a language), but he cannot read them. It seems to have been made by an ancient human civilisation, and once Hadrian has attuned to the sword he names it Tyrfing. Hadrian thinks the sword has another minor power, but he cannot yet tell what it is. Iris’ sword is more disturbing, the hilt and guard made of the horns of fiends. The grip is red leather from a demon’s hide. The blade and hilt are covered with images of learning demon faces. Iris feels (even more) confident than usual when she tries the sword.

Esvele Rosznar visits the Yawning Portal the next afternoon, and the heroes tell her that they think they have seen the ring belonging to Kressando, and have a plan to return it to her. They fear that her brother no longer lives, but they will try to deliver proof of this if they can. Esvele thanks the heroes for their efforts and urges them to complete this quest as soon as they are able. Rather than waiting for any reward from the Elves or the Sing-alongs, the heroes gather together again at the top of the Yawning Portal, pay another 6gp for the return trip, and head down the well. From the bottom of the well, the heroes check the secret door to the north, but find the eyehole is closed over. They leave and quickly head west and south to the room with the shattered statue. The heroes take the western door, and enter the old prison cells that contain the head, arms and chest bones of a Tiefling, chained to the north-east wall.

The message ‘TALK TO ME’ written in dried blood above the skeleton’s head had captured the heroes’ interest, and Iris has learned the Speak to Dead spell because of this. The heroes are not really sure what they want to ask, but figure they will learn something interesting from the half-skeleton. When Iris casts the spell, the jaw bone rattles slightly. The skeleton speaks in Infernal, so Lycara interprets and suggests questions. The skeleton was some kind of mage, who worked under Halaster in the past. He says that the Gate access to Levels 3, 16 and 23 was not working in his time. The skeleton mentions a training academy on a lower level. As the time of the spell runs out, the skull intones: ‘Look for the little dwarves under the mountain! One of them hides the key to my heart! Beyond the hall of pillars and a room of statues.’ The skeleton then falls silent. Drakar finds the bronze mask from the party’s belongings, and Teslen leads the party back through the double doors and to the north and east. Here the bas-relief of a large naked man playing a harp stands in an alcove to the north. The sheared-off wooden pole still lies on the ground in front of the bas-relief.

Drakar wears the mask, and looks closely at the statue, and instantly disappears.

[hr]
Drakar is standing in a thirty foot square room, with a twenty foot high ceiling. Behind him is a misty doorway. On the opposite wall is a large wooden-framed portrait of the Mad Mage, Halaster Blackcloak. And under the portrait is a high-backed wooden chair, on which sits Halaster himself. On the floor in front of Drakar is the other end of the ten-foot wooden pole. The dragonborn warlock looks around slowly, barely meeting the eyes of the mage in the chair. Finally, the mage speaks: "Well, don't just stand there like a boob. Ask me three questions about Undermountain. Two of my answers will be true, and one will be false."

One-to-one with Halaster

Not expecting this meeting, Drakar thinks hard before speaking. He asks about the ‘little dwarves under the mountain’, and Halaster tells him that this is ‘among the vampires, north of the Yawning Portal’. Next, Halaster confirms that there is no quick way down to Stardock or to his level at the bottom of the dungeon. He also confirms that Kressando Rosznar is dead. Then, the mage melts into a puddle of white liquid, which dissolves away into nothing. Drakar is left alone in the room. He detects nothing else magical in the room, except for the misty gateway. After a careful look around, Drakar picks up the other half of the stick and steps into the mists.

[hr] To the rest of the party it was as if Drakar suddenly turned 180 degrees, and began walking away from the bas-relief. Drakar tells the heroes what he saw and said, and the heroes agree to head north to look for the ‘little dwarves’ next. Avoiding the goblins and bugbears to the west, the heroes travel north through the room of pillars, up the stairs and down to the end of a t-junction. A long passage leads west to an open room, while to the east the passage ends at a north-south passage. The heroes head west first, and Teslen sneaks ahead by thirty feet to peer into the room. The forty foot square room is supported by five thick black pillars. Teslen spots movement, and sees two floating, tentacled creatures behind the pillars. The floor is covered in humanoid bones, spilling out of the alcoves to the north and east. Following Teslen’s information, Tar rushes in and attacks the closest Grell. He hits six times, and the creature is badly slashed. Hadrian follows on and attacks the other creature at the other side of the pillar. The Grells lash out with their tentacles, and one bites Tar with an irritating maw. Teslen blasts one Grell with a poison spray that kills it, while Drakar hits the other with three Eldritch blasts. Before the Grell can flee, Iris shoots it down with three magic missiles. A search through the room shows that there are dozens of corpses and skeletons, but no magic or secret doors. The heroes head back to the east.


Grells in the Pillars

The northern branch of the passage has a door on the western wall, while the southern branch carries on to another north-south passage. Teslen listens at the door, but doesn’t hear anything. The door is unlocked and opens easily under the halfling’s push. The room behind the doors is forty feet long and disappears into the dark to the north. Three large stone plinths each have a damaged statue standing on them. But what immediately grabs Teslen’s attention is the tall, pale and darkly dressed man ten feet away, and seven other humanoids arranged behind him. The man steps forward, holds out his hand and demands that the heroes pay a toll of 10gp per person to pass through The Undertakers territory. The men are all dressed in dark clothes, with ashen complexions and reddened eyes, like the Undead. The other five heroes shuffle at the doorway, while Teslen looks closely at the eight humanoids trying to extort them. He pulls out his lute and begins to sing a song praising the humanoids, while trying to indicate to the other heroes that they are only pretending to be vampires. Iris still tries to Turn them with her holy symbol held out, but the boss merely laughs at her and doubles his demand to 20gp per person. Then Teslen casts Web on the four humanoids against the east wall near him, and Hadrian and Tar rush in to attack the bandits.


Facing the Vampire Bandits

The magical web catches two of the bandits and holds them firm, while two others struggle free. The leader is wearing a breast plate under his vampire clothes, but Tar hits him four times and Hadrian another six. He yells in pain and surprise and orders his underlings to attack. Another competent looking warrior moves up to battle Tar, while two bandits go for Hadrian. None of them are able to harm the heroes. Lycara runs in front of Teslen, and is able to knock down the unwebbed bandits. Drakar blasts two of the bandits, killing another. Iris draws Fiend Queller, and attacks the lieutenant. Tar kills the leader, before killing the last unwebbed bandit. Hadrian kills the lieutenant, and demands the remaining bandits surrender or die. They hastily agree, then try to give the heroes a sob story about how they were forced into this gang by the leader, and that it wasn’t their idea to pretend to be Undead to extort adventurers. The heroes loot the bodies of the leaders and take the survivors’ weapons away. After some interrogation, the heroes learn where a fresco of little dwarves is, so they allow the two bandits to leave by the Yawning Portal. They give the bandits the coins they need to pay for the way up the well. Drakar checks around the three statues in the centre of the room. They look like Waterdeep nobles in formal dress of centuries gone by. The names carved on the bases are Elyndraun, Ruathyndar and Onthalass. Someone has come along and crossed the names out with chalk, and written names in Goblin under each: Smelly Bottom, Stupid Skull and Born Toothless respectively. At the centre figure Drakar detects a faint trace of magic from two segments of a broken white staff. Iris holds them together, and casts Mending to join the pieces together. A wailing voice begins repeating “Help! Thief! Criminal!” over and over again for a minute, until the voice slows, slurs and then falls silent. The magic has drained away. Nothing comes in answer to the staff’s call, and the heroes leave it behind and head west through the open passage. The door to the north is the one that leads to the ‘little dwarves’, while another door to the south ends the passage. Teslen hears nothing at the north door, and Tar pushes it open. There is a short passage to the north, with another closed door at the end.

This door is quickly opened, revealing a smaller room with a small wooden table at the front and four damaged wooden chairs. The far wall features a striking stone fresco featuring a rugged mountain, hollowed out with caverns containing tiny sculpted figures of dwarves. Behind the mountain, rays of carven sunlight fan out to the ceiling. There is an old deck of cards sitting on the wooden table, a total of 96gp in mixed currency and a silver ring engraved with dwarven symbols of fertility and potency. In the floor under the fresco is a carved stone tub, which contains a bed roll, some thieves’ tools, and unmatched equipment from explorer’s pack. Teslen, Iris and Drakar look carefully at the fresco, and the little dwarves in particular. Teslen is the first to spot a small irregularity in the head of one of the dwarves, and when he manipulates it a small stone key is revealed. The key seems too small for a door, but would fit a small chest or box. The heroes take the key, the ring and the coins and plan where they will search for the locked container that fits the key.


Players at Home and Remote - Teslen meets Rocky

https://rpggeek.com/wiki/page/fstngamers_undermountain

by fezzwick

An item RPG Item: Champions (First Edition) has been added to the geeklist 2026 RPG Challenge: Run 5 RPGs New to You in 2026

by Rachel Carpenter

After-action report from confrontation with Shub-Niggurath in the Arkham Museum on Saturday, June 20, 2026, Part the First: (Note, this is the actual date the game was played, not necessarily the story date...)

Quick Situation Update
:d10-1: Darrell Simmons and William Yorick had successfully sealed Rhan-Tegoth away (again) in the Frozen North (Alaska).
:d10-2: Akachi had called out from her museum shift to stay with Wendy, who was suffering from food poisoning. She called Tommy Muldoon to replace her.
:d10-3: Doctor Vincent Lee... was around.
:d10-4: Skids had gotten his illegal gambling empire back on track.
:d10-5: Dexter Drake was still working as a stage magician on The Spell of the Seas (cruise ship) while investigating elder threats for the Guardians.
:d10-6: Father Mateo was keeping an eye on the Lightless Pyramid.
:d10-7: Monterey Jack had returned from Egypt early due to Mandy Thompson's concerns about Tommy Muldoon. He showed up at the Museum to only to find that Mandy Thompson and Mark Harrigan had lost most of the weekend during their fight with Abhoth.
:d10-8: Mandy Thompson wrote up a report with what she could remember of her and Mark's investigation, then went home.
:d10-9: Mark Harrigan, Monterey Jack, and Tommy Muldoon had sealed Shudde M'ell away, though the elder creature didn't go without a fight, having thrown Tommy into the outer wall of the Museum Atrium... and the wards!
:d10-1::d10-0: Fallen Investigators: Patrice Hathaway, Kate Winthrop, Amanda Sharpe, Sister Mary, Rex Murphy, Gloria Goldberg, and Diana Stanley.
:d10-1::d10-1: Ongoing Effects: Permanent-1 Max Sanity on Mandy Thompson (penalty from Strange Lights over the Streets of Arkham)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Previously...
"Let's get you up then," Dr. Lee helped Tommy up. The rookie's vision swam briefly, but Tommy managed to stay upright.
"I don't like this," said Mark.
"Dr. Lee, you sure Tommy's fine?" Monty asked.
"I'm as sure as I can be without taking him to the hospital."
"You on patrol today?" Dr. Lee asked Tommy.
"Yes."
"This is ridiculous," said Mark.
"I'll just go back to my place. A shower, a nap. I'll be fine."
"You're not fine."
"No, I'm not. But I don't have much choice."
"Enough. Tommy, you're coming back to my place. I'll keep an eye on you. If you get worse, I'll call HQ. See what they can do," said Mark.
"And if I don't get worse?"
"Then I'll drive you to the station for 5 AM Roll Call. There's no way you're up for riding your bike right now," said Mark.
Tommy smiled. "Wouldn't even try it in my state."
Monty handed Tommy his jacket from the floor.
Tommy reached in the pocket, found his keys and handed them back to Monty, "take care of her for me?"
Monty smiled, "Sure."
"You're not allergic to dogs are you?" Mark asked.
"Nope," Tommy smiled. "Looks like I finally get to meet Buster."

And now the continuation:
Mark sat down at the table and took a drink of his black coffee. What a night. Tommy was settled in the spare room with Buster keeping watch over the cop. With things in Arkham hitting new lows, it was time to make a few calls.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" grumbled Captain Schaeffer. Mark had called the captain's personal cell.
Mark glanced at the clock, 1:40 AM. "Yep, pretty good idea, captain."
"Well?"
"Tommy got hurt."
"He been admitted to Arkham General?"
"No."
"Then Roll Call's at 5 AM."
"Captain!"
"Mark, I want to help. I do. But the mayor's on my ass. About everything. I need a paper trail. No paper trail, Muldoon needs to be here. Sorry."
"Understood, have a good night, captain." Mark hung up. Next call- the Guardians' switchboard line.
"Jackson here," a familiar voice responded.
"Hey Jackson. It's Mark."
"How's Arkham?"
Mark paused to gather his thoughts.
"That bad?"
Mark huffed, "The situation is bad. The people are doing the best they can. But honestly, they need more support."
"The new wards on the Museum should be a help."
"Yeah, except one of their investigators got slammed into them during a sealing tonight."
"Shit, you need me to patch you through to Healer's Ward?"
"No. I don't think it's an emergency. He's sleeping. But he's their primary mage. Might be dealing with magical exhaustion too. Any chance someone could take a look at him in the next few days?" Mark could hear Jackson typing. "Looks like Dr. Banes' Thursday is completely clear. I'll leave him a note to get back to you."
"Thanks, Jackson."
"Hey, take care of yourself too."
"Buster and I are fine."
"Yeah well, Arkham's not exactly next door if you need backup."
"Yeah, I'm starting to realize that. Mark out."
"Jackson out."
Mark had one more call to make. He didn't want to wake Wendy, but Akachi needed to know.
The Shaman picked up on the first ring. "It is nearly 2 AM."
"I'm aware."
"The Museum.-"
"Is fine. And everybody's still alive." Mark could hear Akachi's relief. "Tommy got hurt. He's sleeping it off at my place. But he shouldn't have been there in the first place."
"I know he's been doing double duty-"
Mark cut her off, "something's wrong with his magic. It's why I agreed to cover his shift in the first place. He needs a break."
"I did not realize... if I had known I would not have called him in."
"I figured and that's why I'm calling. He's insistent on working his patrol tomorrow, well, today. But I'd really like him to not be in a position to have to cast anything until I can get him checked out by one of our medics."
"You can arrange that?"
"I made a call. I should know more tomorrow, today," Mark corrected himself.
"Tommy will be removed from the duty roster and I will ensure that everyone knows not to call him in," said the Shaman.
"Thank you."
"Good night."
"Good night."

2 hours later:
"Who's a handsome boy?" Mark shouldn't have worried about Tommy getting along with Buster and the husky seemed to really like the cop too. "Good boy, now don't chew up any of Mark's shoes, okay?" Mark laughed as they finally made it out the door. Tommy was moving pretty stiffly this morning,
"You sure you're up for patrol?"
"I'm good. And it's not like I have much choice." Mark had told Tommy about his calls with Captain Schaeffer, Guardian HQ, and Akachi.
Dropping Tommy off at the station, Mark drove to the Museum. Akachi and Wendy were already there. The teenager was yawning into her coffee mug.
"Morning, munchkin," Mark greeted her.
Wendy scowled, "Not you too!" Tommy called her that all the time.
Akachi laughed. Mark smiled, "at least you're feeling better."
Akachi turned to Mark, "did you forget to do something last night?"
Mark closed his eyes- Schaeffer, HQ, Akachi...
"Window," hinted Wendy.
"Awww shit," said Mark.
"Language," Wendy giggled as Akachi glared at him.
"Sorry, I can call in a clean-up team."
"Much obliged," said the Shaman.
Mark dialed, Jackson picked up on the first ring, "Forget something?"
"Any chance of a clean-up team?"
"We've had a busy morning and I doubt it's going to let up. How bad's the damage?"
"1 window. Not much else."
"Can it wait 'til Thursday?"
Mark got Akachi's attention and mouthed Thursday. She nodded. "Thursday's fine."
"Stay out of trouble."
"You too. Mark out."
"Jackson out."
"We should put up a tarp 'til Thursday," said Mark.
"Already done. And I cleaned up the glass. No need for the curator to have a coronary," said Akachi. Wendy snorted.
Just then there was a loud clap of thunder. The lights flickered, then blinked out. Somewhere in the Museum there was a loud crash. Followed by the screams of visitors. And another crash.
"Just another day in Arkham," muttered Mark.
Akachi turned on a flashlight, threw it to Mark, then flicked on her Coleman lantern. Wendy... summoned a small ball of mage light.
"Look, Tommy taught me a new trick."
"That's called wasting energy you should be saving," Mark addressed the teen.
"Tommy said it would help me learn control."
Akachi shrugged and threw the girl a flashlight. "If you start to feel tired, switch to this. I agree that you need practice, but exhausting yourself is foolish."
"Cool," Wendy stowed the flashlight in her pocket.
Mark shook his head, "I guess we better figure out what's going on now."

The investigation began in earnest. Evacuating museum visitors took some time. But once the grounds were clear, the trio was free to proceed.

Lost

from the start,

Shub-Niggurath was behind this latest wave of chaos to strike Arkham!

It was up to Akachi,

Wendy,

and Mark

to keep the Museum (and the city) safe.

[Oh my gosh, 2 locked green dice at game start! That's horrible!]

Akachi chose to Break on Through, [1 Green Die Unlocked!]

opening a gateway to The Dreamlands!

Wendy [Yes, I'm using the Amanda Sharpe standee from Eldritch Horror for Wendy going forwards. Sorry for any confusion.]

took the path that Akachi had opened for her,

gaining 2 Clues and earning the group's first Elder Sign! [+1 Elder Sign, #1] "Only 11 more to go!"

Mark... heard something... and found some supplies [and a monster. He also unlocked the last Green Die!]

Akachi interpreted some Ominous Portents

before Shub-Niggurath could curse them all!

She also gained a powerful Blessing, the group's 2nd Elder Sign, and a Clue [+1 Elder Sign, #2]. "Just 10 more, my friends!"

The clock was relentless.

With shadows lurking in every corner of the Museum,

the Stars (were} Align(ed) To Bring Madness

[+1 Doom]

Wendy investigated a Repugnant Tome, finding an Elder Sign, an Other World gateway, and a monster for her trouble

[+1 Elder Sign, #3]. "Easy, peasy."

Mark faced down terrors in the Medusa Exhibit

and found another Elder Sign! [+1 Elder Sign, #4] "Don't get cocky."

The door was ajar! Akachi stumbled through, finding an Elder Sign

and an open portal to Yuggoth!

[+1 Elder Sign, #5]

Wendy went off on her own to the City of the Great Race. There she faced terrible monsters, but was rewarded with yet another Elder Sign. [+1 Elder Sign, #6]

The clock chimed...

bringing Doom

and summoning a Monster to Yuggoth!

Mark found The Key to Beyond

A bit of fancy spellwork led Akachi to find additional Elder Signs in Yuggoth

bringing the group's total to 8! [+2 Elder Signs, #8]

"Just a little longer!"

Wendy

used her abilities [Blessed Child]

to gain much-needed supplies and insights,

while Mark dealt with Vermin in the Pipes!

Time continued to tick away...

[Phoeey!]

A sense of impending Doom fell over the hushed Museum.

[Oh shit! Pardon the language, but at this point I realized that I had well and truly botched this play... Nothing for it but to keep playing at this point. Whoops!]

8 Elder Signs found, 4 more to go. Can our investigators find them all and seal Shub-Niggurath away in time? And what's happening with Tommy? Tune in next Monday to see what happens next!

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Comments:
The pieces are starting to fall into place. Mistakes were made, but I corrected myself going forwards. Sometimes with a game like Elder Sign, you get caught up in the characters and the narrative and you forget something- like Shub-Niggurath's Monster Task Requirement :whistle:... I'm not in favor of punishing characters for my mistakes, especially when I play fast and loose with expansion content, so, we'll just keep on keeping on and call it a day.

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Past Mythic Mondays:
Mythic Mondays- Arkham Adventures: Back to the Beginning
Mythic Mondays- Against Azathoth with some Grave Consequences
Mythic Mondays- Grave Consequences on the Streets of Arkham
Mythic Mondays- Grave Consequences in the frozen North
Mythic Mondays: Rhan-Tegoth Rematch, Part I
Mythic Mondays: Rhan-Tegoth Rematch, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Akachi returns to Arkham, Part I
Mythic Mondays- Akachi returns to Arkham, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Cthulhu calls
Mythic Mondays - Sisters in spirit take on Atlach-Nacha at the Gate, Part I
Mythic Mondays - Sisters in spirit take on Atlach-Nacha at the Gate, Part II
Mythic Mondays- My First Final Hour
Mythic Mondays: Uh-oh! Better hit Undo! aka First Impressions: Undo: Forbidden Knowledge
Mythic Mondays- First Impressions: Eldritch Horror
Mythic Mondays- The Killing Cold
Mythic Mondays- The Killing Cold: Redux
Mythic Mondays - Meanwhile with Mandy, Part I
Mythic Mondays - Meanwhile with Mandy, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Mandy and Akachi try to save the Museum, Part I
Mythic Mondays- Mandy and Akachi try to save the Museum, Part II
Mythic Mondays - An Arkham Nights 2023 Interlude
Mythic Mondays- The Cop and the (Ex)Convict, Part I
Mythic Mondays- The Cop and the (Ex)Convict, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Strange Lights over the Streets of Arkham, Part I
Mythic Mondays- Strange Lights over the Streets of Arkham, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Breaking News in Arkham
Mythic Mondays- Alaska's on its own, Part I
Mythic Mondays- Alaska's on its own, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Monterey Jack's back, Part I
Mythic Mondays- Monterey Jack's back, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Alone against Azathoth, Part I
Merry Christmas 2023: Mythic Mondays- Alone against Azathoth, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Lots to learn, Part I
Mythic Mondays- Lots to learn, Part II
Mythic Mondays- Three against Shudde M'ell, Part 1
Mythic Mondays- Three against Shudde M'ell, Part 2
Mythic Tuesdays- Three against Azathoth, Part 1
Mythic Mondays- Three against Azathoth, Part 2
Mythic Mondays (occasionally on Tuesdays) - The Shaman & The Rookie, Part 1
Mythic Mondays (occasionally on Tuesdays) - The Shaman & The Rookie, Part 2 & Happy Veterans Day
Mythic Mondays- Four against Arkham's darkness, Part 1
Mythic Mondays- Four against Arkham's darkness, Part 2
Mythic Mondays- The Rookie and the Soldier, Part 1
Mythic Mondays- The Rookie and the Soldier, Part 2
Mythic Mondays- Meanwhile up North... Part 1
Mythic Mondays- Meanwhile up North... Part 2
Mythic Mondays- Into the Sands, Part 1
Mythic Mondays- Into the Sands, Part 2
Mythic Mondays- The Researcher and the Soldier, Part 1
A Sunday in Arkham
Mythic Mondays- The Researcher and the Soldier, Part 2
Mythic Mondays- Something's wrong in Arkham, Part 1
Mythic Mondays- Something's wrong in Arkham, Part 2

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In other news, the files are all done, approved, and available for Eighteen Eggs! Wahoo!

Happy Monday and happy playing!
-Rachel

Thank you for reading my blog. If you liked it; then please click the green thumb [microbadge=23724] at the top of the page. If you really liked it; then please subscribe. And follow me across social media with my Linktree:
https://linktr.ee/rachelncarpenter

Disclaimer:
Prydera and the Guardians are very much my creations. Charge the Circle, Read the Runes, and The Seventh Seal are also mine. Pythia belongs to the ages, though the particular version that appears in the Mythic Mondays campaign is very much mine. I have altered the backstories of many Arkham characters significantly to suit my storylines. Buster (Mark's dog) is also mine.

by Lux_Bux

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