The Bloody Hands REBIRTH: Late Returners, Episode 2 [Tricube + Mythic]
The Strange Case of the Late Returners, Episode 2
Early autumn takes some of the heat out of the waning day but the tiredness and frustration on the Guardians is present. Arden and Kate have been sweeping back and forth for hours to try and find the landmarks on the map that Izzia made based on a hypnotized Emily but it is becoming increasingly obvious the map is fraud.
"Did Scholar Kor trick us?" Kate asks.
"No, the map was made with care and I saw him mentally checking the placement, probably against maps he had already committed to memory. I knew something was up when I tried to get a vision about the location Emily was talking about. It felt...weird. A simulacrum. Like a person staring at a painting of a place. But..."
"Yeah?"
"...there was some truth in it. Sort of like lying about a hawk by describing an eagle. Some sort of figment implanted in her mind to hint at the truth by hiding it behind a fiction that is also the truth."
"You know that makes no sense, right?"
Arden and Kate make their way back down out of the mountains with the sun nearly gone. Both have skipped an entire night of sleep and he knows they will not hold up if they push it much longer. He also knows that Angor Mountains are dangerous to stay in over night. Before the Five Generations, this region would have had small little hamlets and some sizeable towns visible in the distance. The traffic from Nallstay to Hub followed the path along the range. Inns and pubs. Traveling fairs. All stuff Arden has mostly scene in paintings and read about but in his mind's eye he can picture it now, looking out across the grassy plains.
He sees a bit of smoke and realizes that at least part of his daydream is true. There is someone living over there. Kate and he and debated earlier about trying to find anyone local, even folks like bandits, and asking them about the gorge and she had been pretty adamant about trusting no one. Still, Arden senses no malice from that distant smoke. A few miles out of the mountains. Once dark hits he might have trouble tracking it.
"Junior Guardian Corazon, let's ride towards those folk."
She grunts but follows suit.
Right as darkness spreads across the plains, the Guardians have found the source of a smoke. Not a house or hamlet, but a small collection of wagons from a caravan surrounding a large bonfire. Children and various people are playing music and laughing as the smell of cooking wafts across. Despite the road worn condition of some of the paint, Arden notes that these are definitely costlier wagons. Thicker walls. Metal supports.
And with money comes protection. In this case, four large men with axes walk up towards the Guardians. Arden raises his hands and nods to Kate to follow suit. A way to show they are not armed. A gruff but not unfriendly voice sounds out from the back.
"Like Arcane Guardians need weapons to be a threat." A laugh follows as an older man, well dressed in expensive travel clothes comes forward. "Though you are not wearing your uniforms. I trust you are not rogue looking to prey upon our traveling troupe?"
"No," replies Arden, "We had to leave in a hurry, but we are on official business. We are tired. No tricks. Just hoping to trade some information and maybe find a place to rest."
He dismounts but Kate stays in the saddle for now. At the old man's gesture, the four guards back up and let Arden approach.
"I am Guardian Arden Ulet. That is Junior Guardian Kate Corazon. We are trying to find what happened to a ore shipment that disappeared near here. Maybe. Then reappeared."
The old man introduces himself as Vyryon Marel. He does not go into his background besides to say that most hear are his family and retainers. Several are curious about the strangers but all that come forth to talk are friendly and respectful. Marel asks for some privacy to talk to the guests. Arden can tell he is from money but does not know how much. Nor does Arden pry. The map is brought up and Arden and Kate talk about Nollo Key Gorge and the strange temple, but the names and description mean nothing to the old man. His people have been traveling these plains for months in a criss-cross pattern.
"Maybe you can help me, as a matter of fact. Do you Guardians knows of a...obelisk. Somewhere here south of Angor Mountains. It looks something like a sun dial pointing at the sunsets for the equinoxes and the solstices as well as north and south. Shaped something like a blade with the shadows tracking the shapes of the seasons?"
Arden does not know this, but says that someone he knows might. Him and Marel make plans to meet back here in two months time, enough time for the nomads to travel south and set up safe camp before the worst of winter hits. In the chance that Marel finds the obelisk before then, he will make sure at least a single rider waits here.
Asking about people who live near here that might interfere with caravans, Marel has heard of the "goat tribe". Short, odd folk who cling to the mountains despite the dangers. Ride large mountain goats as steeds. Speak their own language. Learned to survive the times of chaos by navigating mountain terrain at speed. Sometimes they ride down and attack caravans though nowadays they often just make trades with them with most travelers who stick close the mountains being aware of the threat and bring treats for the goats and other spices and supplies that it might be hard to get into the mountains. The goat folk worship the mountains like a holy mother and fear being too far from them, so even this couple of miles that Marel is encamped is enough to deter them unless the goat folk are desperate.
"How many are there?"
"Many more than us. If they were prone to civilization you'd probably see a full city growing up there."
Pulling out the map again, Arden is able to work out likely spots for that many people even though Marel cautions him about the risk. "They might have calmed down enough to let every other traveler through with just trade, but they will not take intruders on their land lightly."
"Yes, but if anyone knows the real location of this temple, it seems like it would be then. I think I have to take the risk."
"Ah, well. How about you stay with us tonight and get plenty of rest. You'll need your strength."
Arden agrees and he and Kate join in with the music and dance.
That night, Arden dreams. In his dream, he floats up above Marel's camp and drifts north and east towards the mountains. The night sky slowly turns red and then deepens and finds himself pulled down to a group of travelers. It is a surprise in the dream to find himself looking the caravan of the Returners. Emily Mason and a man Arden takes to Emmanuel Burgos are talking to some others. The second shock is that the others are wearing red robes. Arden recognizes The Bloody Hands. He thinks he is witnessing the capture of the caravan and then the third surprise hits.
Emily and Emmanuel are nodding. Even in the dream vision, it is clear they are not captors or being coerced. They are working with The Hand. What is more, in his dream-vision, Arden sees Emily, Emmanuel, and all the other Returners are standing around and their hands are glowing bright red.
He wakes up in the floor of a dark wagon. A couple of guards snore nearby. He runs to a nearby wagon and crawls inside trying to wake no one but Kate. He tells her, in whispers, that they have to ride back to Yarlkin right now. He now understands the strangeness he has been sensing since he started investigating this case.
As they preparing their horses, Marel and a young woman around Arden's age approach. She is Marel's granddaughter.
"We have to ride. I realized we were played a fool. Thank you, Vyryon. I tell you want, though Corazon and I have to ride fast to try and get back before the trap is sprung, you are welcome to follow our paths. I can map it out for you. The man whom I think can help your cause is there. I'm sure he'll be happy to share his knowledge."
"Ride to a Veil'd place?" Marel looks at the young woman who looks nervous at the suggestion. "No, thank you. Two months? Right here? Before the first snow falls?"
"It is a deal." It is a sign of how distracted Arden is with worry for Yarlkin that he does not notice the worry the nomads have about passing through a Veil.
Kate and he ride back west in an echo of their previous night, only this time they face through the sun as they push their horses to full speed and cut the time down by half. Not knowing the state Yarlkin will be in by the time they get back.
== RAW MECHANICAL NOTES ==
+++Scene, Chaos Factor 4
Expected: Finding the ravine.Altered. Using Perilous Situation from Mythic Magazine 40: 51 Isolated 62 Nature + 67 Objective Lost. The Ravine does not match exactly where it should be on the map, forcing Arden and Kate to search for it.
Question (Nearly Impossible): Does the Ravine move or change in any way? No. This means that the map is wrong.
Question (Unlikely): Is Izzia setting them up for some sort of trap? Exceptional No. This was his best attempt to help. Knowledge about this area is just too scarce/incorrect over the time since the collapse of the Empire.
Arden has heard stories about the rustlers and knows it is a risk but thinks that perhaps he can communicate with them if he tries. Hard Crafty. Success. He and Kate scour around until they a (1:6 so very small) very small band of folks. Since it was just one success, it will take some hours (3:12 so we'll say it is sunset, not as long as it could have been). Using Tricubes Solo: we get that this is a nomadic group but are friendly. ("Small Settlements": 3 + 1)
Random Realities: 1, 5 + 4, 5
Exiled royalty who have finery and nice horses. They have a few well trained guards with the main families but are honorable. They are looking for a lost obelisk. This two "secrets" are not known to Arden. At least not yet.
Question (Very Likely): Do they know about the location of the ravine? Still no. This helps Arden to realize that it is more remote than they expected. It also means that it seems very unlikely the gorge should have been on the route the caravan was taking. They were either sent there or diverted there.
Question (Very Likely): Do the nomads know of any groups attacking caravans? Yes. Mythic Characters Element: 92 Triumphant 19 Creepy + 85 Small 36 Foe. So a group of small, creepy people. The reason why the nomadic group might not know the ravine is because they are avoiding the hunting grounds of these folk.
How big is the group of creepy folk? 5:6. It is quite a sizable encampment.
Arden makes a Standard Crafty check to see if he can work out with the nomad's leader the direction to the encampment, since it is likely connected to the Nollo Key Gorge.
Question (50/50): Is this direction towards the mountains? Yes.
Arden and Kate share a meal with the nomadic folk and stay the night with them before setting off in the morning.
Question (Likely): Do the nomads exchange any information? Yes. The leader is Vyryon Marel. He asks in turn if Arden has any information about an obelisk. Using the image oracle 2, 1 + 6, 6 it is shaped like a blade and the base shows a compass that does not align with the cardinal directions. Arden says he has not but promises to find Marel in the future and let him know if he can find any information in the Hub library.
+++Scene, Chaos Factor 5
Expected: Arden and Kate hunt down the creepy folk.Random Event occurs. Expose Cooperation. Move away from a thread (choose): Solving the Returners (it seems way too soon to shut down the Marel thread, so I went with the next most likely)
That night, Arden has a dream that explodes into a vision. In the dream, he sees two groups of people talking and realizes this is the caravan that "went missing". The other group are wearing the tell-tale signs of dark red robes with bright red handprints on it. The groups seem amicable. And in this vision (Hard Crafty Roll, spend 1 karma) he clearly sees Emily joining in on the talks. In his vision, all of the folks have hands painted red.
Arden wakes up and gets Kate. The reason the ravine cannot be found is either it was a trap by Emily or some place hidden that only the folks working with the Bloody Hands would go. The "Returned" aren't an innocent group of victims. They are in league with The Hands.
Question (Very Likely): Will one of Marel's people go back with them? Exceptional No. Marel's folks avoid going into the Arcane Order's lands. Something that Arden does not catch.
Kate and Arden will need 2 Brawny successes each to get there in "time". Arden has to spend another Karma (down to 2) while Kate nails it. They very nearly halve their return trip and find...
== DOUG'S NOTES ==
I have been going back and forth about ways to "reclaim" this blog. While the "average of one post per day" levels back in August does not make sense, there is the problem that around 2/3s of the time when I want to solo RPG I want to just sit down and be happy in my space and it's a good time and then I have to spend 2-3 times the amount of effort than the play to bring this over. I like the degree to which sharing (even if there are not a lot of actual, if any, readers) makes me sort of contemplate what I am doing but also it was making a lot of my play more about worrying about DIALOGUE CHOICE 1, he said and trying to figure out how to make combat or picking lock seem exciting.
After the first part in this arc, I realized that playing it in my style and then typing up a full report just was not hitting the joy for me. I had fun playing. I had fun going back and thinking about what I was playing. I did not have so much fun going through and trying to take those little sparks of imagination and making them into a full short story or novel level of creative writing (some sense is required, stuff that happened sometimes needs to be slightly tempered but there's a balance between the style of storytelling that is RPG and the style of storytelling that is full on creative writing prompts).
I tend to sit at a computer with several physical books and pdfs and physical dice around me, maybe small tokens or I use a quick graphics program to make a kind of stand in map of things. I type in stuff, work out things, generate ad hoc tables. Pull in from different books. I stop and start abruptly. Sometimes go back and retry things when I am not sure if the vibe is holding up. There is a theater of the mind portion where I play out dialogue (in my mind, though a few times I'll speak out loud if I need to think about accent or inflection) and then I think up lore. Sometimes the lore does not work and I'll go back and joyfully cross out stuff or chalk it up to confusion on the characters' behalf.
A good example of this is the icon of the Returners. In the original playthrough I wrote it was a character with red hands which felt off and too convenient later. It morphed into the compass on fire which I liked better because it shows how a perfectly reasonable company logo can be taken in an odd way when looked at in a different context. The Sherwin-Williams Paint logo is a good example (and partial inspiration for a logo that could be hiding an alternate meaning, no critique of the company itself):
At any rate, this post is one of the first ones to actually emulate and show my actual play style and I think I will stick with it. No matter how much I love my stories and my lore, I think there is more value with me sharing my own style of play over anything else.
Another big change is this is the post where I decided I wanted to go back to Mythic GME. Prior to this blog I primarily played using Mythic but early on I decided to try out some alternates and months in I kept wondering when/if I would get back into a game that used it and figured now was the time. There is a playtest going on for the Mythic app and I am helping with that and it was a good excuse to take the plunge.
I am deeply glad that I did. My brain just works best with the sort of structure that Mythic provides. Plus, this way I can still use Tricube Solo to help generate some prompts and ideas but can move away from some of the thread and scene mechanics that it brings. Those work well with some other games - such as the ongoing but now delayed Eustace Delmont campaign - but for others it kept feeling a bit off rhythm to the sort of rhythm I like.
== CREDITS ==
This game uses Tricubes Solo, the Tricubes one-sheet "The Guardians of the Shadow Frontier," [both by Richard Woolcock and Zadmar Games] and The Mythic Game Master Emulator (2nd Edition) [by Tana Pigeon].
Additional tables come from Cezar Capacle's Random Realities, Ben Milton's Maze Rats + Knave 2nd edition, and Madeline Hale's Table Fables. Other sources should be be credited in the raw play notes.
Graphics come from a variety of sources. Pixabay is a source of some of the stock art and illustrations I use to create the original graphics.
The painting is "Gypsy Encampment, Ben Eay" by David Farquharson (1898). I am opposed to the standard fantasy appropriation of the Roma peoples and will do my best to avoid those tropes (even the "good ones") in the depiction of the Marels who are going to be something a bit...differnt. This painting still feels like a great piece to undo some of my personal energy in the previous version of The Bloody Hands with the outside-Veil depicted large as a gray, dark, bleak place. There is a reason why some folks would not want to enter into the anti-magical, controlled territory. Nomadic lifestyles are one way to achieve this. REBIRTH has a bonus theme of science vs magic with the Guardians themselves being something of the cheats.
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