This is the second session of my solo Through Sunken Lands and Other Adventures game featuring the characters Tilly, (a Licenced Rogue and native of Jundarr, the impossible city), and her friend Moonwane, (The Cosmic Champion, from a great city state somewhere in the Western Lands)
Having found themselves reunited in Jundarr along with the little winged cat Whiskers, they have come to the aid of a woman with an ill child and fallen foul of a haughty merchant in the process.
You can read the first session here https://solorpg.co.uk/through-sunken-lands-part-1-jundarr/
I have no idea as I type this what will happen next, to find out read on.
Toolbox
I am using a minimal set for this game
Through Sunken Lands RPG
MUNE GM emulator
Randomlists.com for when I need a random verb or prompt
650 City Encounters by Johnn Four Roleplaying Tips if I get stuck for a plot or an encounter.
Finally, I have used Nightcafe Studio AI art program to generate the art pictures for this post.
Possible NPC Encounters
- Haughty Merchant (the PC’s have already had a run in with this one, has Intelligence 12).
- The Master Thief
- Petty Eldritch Noble
- Priest
- Trader and his wife (the PC’s have already encountered these two NPC’s)
- Shadowy Sorcerer (just because I like the sound of it)
Possible Monster Encounters
- City Guards
- Skeletens
- Gargoyles
- Ghouls
- Slithering Terror (may be found in the city sewers)
- Giant Rats
- Bats (the temple district must have some bats in the belfry)
- Dog (feral or guard dog)
After their somewhat crazy encounter near the city gates, Tilly and Moonwane along with Whiskers the cat make their way back to the Temple District and the Temple of the lady of balance which was once Moonwanes (Moon as we shall from now on call him) home. They have a potion which they hope will cure the poorly child of a woman Moon recently met and who should be waiting for them at the temple.
As they near the temple Tilly begins to remember her battle with the chaos demon and the how it killed their friend Karlock the old priest and lord of the balance before she slew the demon with her runesword which was destroyed in the process. All of this she relates to Moon who walks beside her in silence.
Scene 4 – The Temple.
Oracle Question Are the woman and child at the temple? Yes.
Oracle Question. Are they outside the temple? No. because…
When Tilly and Moon arrive at the temple they cannot help but notice that the doors to the temple have been smashed in. “That must have happened when those henchmen were after you for stealing that scroll, they still looking for you?” Moon looks at the broken doors, “I’m going to have to fix these”
Tilly replies “They got the scroll back so I should be off the hook with them but I’m not sure if the Thieves Guild have forgiven me, you planning on staying here then”.
“Maybe, we have no place else to go”, Moon steps inside the temple and sitting in a corner huddling the child is the woman.
Oracle Question. Is everything as expected inside the temple? Yes,but…
Random verbs accept, lock, screw.
Moon looks around the temple, the place is as he remembered it but he is not surprised to see the temple has been robbed of it religious trappings.
Tilly introduces herself to the woman and tells her of the encounter with the Haughty Merchantand the con tricked pulled by the trader. Moon hands her the potion given to them by the traders wife.
The woman introduces herself as Dithea but when asked about the child she quickly changes the subject.
“thank you for your help, those doors, I can replace them for you, I am a carpenter by trade you see. Screws, a new lock and a bit of muscle to put the doors back in place will see them mended”.
Oracle Question. Is the child Ditheas? Yes
Is the child a girl or a boy (50/50) A girl of about 3 years of age.
Tilly is suspicious of Dithea, “Your daughter, she is a lovely little girl, I am sure the potion will heal her, how did she become so ill?”
Dithea continues to be evasive, “my daughter, yes she is. We can stay here tonight and then perhaps repair the doors tomorrow?”
Moon shakes his head, “we cannot stay here, not with the doors wide open, too dangerous. Best we get lodging for the night, get some food and sleep, then come back here in the morning, the tavern round the corner will do, its rough but the foods okay and they know me, they will put us up”.
Oracle Question. Does Dithea agree to go to the tavern next door? No, and…
Dithea refuses to leave the temple and is adamant that her child will be safe in the temple and must remain here. She notices an exit at the far side of the temple and asks where that leads. Moon tells her it goes to the cellar and leads directly into the Jundarr Sewers, its even less safe than here in the temple.
Unable to persuade Dithea to leave the temple, there is no option but to make the best of what they have.
Both Tilly and Moon need to eat. Tilly agrees she will go and buy some food for them all. Moon and Dithea will see if they are able to make the doors into the temple more secure until they can be properly fixed the next day.
I would like to find out why Dithea wants to remain in the temple overnight so get three random verbs.
Random Verbs prevent, appear, unpack.
I am not sure what that can mean at this time but I have some ideas. I will end this scene. Lets see if anything happens to Tilly whilst she is out getting food.
Scene 5 – Tilly goes shopping.
Oracle Question – Does anything happen to Tilly on her way to the market district? Yes, and… (+1 intervention point)
Randomly choose an encounter from 650 City Encounters. A messenger stops a PC on the street and hands them a bunch of flowers from a secret admirer.
It is well into the afternoon when Tilly sets out from the Temple. She decides to go to the market district where she should be able to get some provisions without having to pay (well she is a Rouge). As she makes her way down the streets towards the market, a lad stops her and hands her a beautiful bunch of flowers, “excuse me lady, I was told to give you these”.
Can Tilly tell what sort of flowers they are? Yes.
Taking the flowers from the messenger, Tilly recognises that the blooms are all poisonous plants. She tries to click hold of the lad before he runs off.
Tilly has to make a Dexterity check to see if she can, needing a roll of 14 or less she rolls a 9, success.
Tilly grabs hold of the lad by his arm and snaps at him, “who told you to give these flowers to me, you scrawny little runt”
Oracle Question. Does the lad tell Tilly who gave him the flowers? No, and…
“get off me” says the messenger lad, “it was a man, said he was a secret admirer, I never seen him before”
Tilly keeps hold of the lad, she asks what this man looked like and the lad replies that the face was hidden in the folds of a dark hood and he could not make out the mans features.
Tilly asks how long ago did this take place, she thinks the man must be close by and have pointed Tilly out to lad.
Oracle Question. Is the man close by? No.
The messenger tells Tilly that the man gave him the flowers to deliver a little while ago. He described Tilly to him and said he would find her in the market district, as indeed he did.
Realising she is going to get nothing more of use from the messenger lad she eases her grip on his arm. Sensing his chance to get away, the lad breaks free of Tilly and runs off. Tilly has little to gain from going after him so turns her attention to getting food and disposing of the unwanted flowers. Her gut feeling is that the thieves guild know she is back and the flowers are a sign that they have not yet forgiven Tilly for bringing the guild into disrepute.
Tilly walks around the food markets, she manages to swipe a couple of loaves of bread without anyone noticing, deciding clanking ceramic bottles are too risky to try and pinch she pays for wine, as she looks for something to go with the bread she spots the trader and his wife selling their fruit and veg. She walks over to them.
The traders wife smiles at Tilly, “If you have come for another potion lass, you are too late, they have all gone, how is that child doing?”
Tilly holds up the flowers, “Child will be fine, its food I am looking for now and to find the person who sent me this bunch of poisonous blooms, don’t suppose you know anything about them”?
Oracle Question. Does the trader or his wife know anything about the flowers? No, and…
The trader turns to Tilly, “no lass and if you want my advice I would get rid of those flowers quickly. Take what food you want, we are finished here. Time to leave Jundarr before any more trouble comes our way”
The traders wife hands Tilly a basket and a small mirror, “fill this with whatever you need and take this mirror, use it so that you may see tonight”.
Tilly looks at her with a puzzled expression “what do you mea…” The woman puts her fingers to her lips and say nothing.
Tilly fills the basket with as much fruit and veg as it can hold and heads back to the temple.
“and get shot of those flowers” shouts the trader. Tilly drops them under a stall.
next post. A long night in the temple.
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