Blades in the dark: Servants of Halthar

Game Master Meetch

I don't mind running solo. If it stays social I should be okay with 3 Resolve. If not, Finesse is good for a quick cut and run.

I'll go door. Rolling sway.

Let's play to his paranoia

Tarnikos leans in over the bird.

"Please, sir, these birds are really expensive. We need to keep them alive as much as we can."

Sway: 1d6 ⇒ 4

Okay then, I'll go with the roof crew instead.

Sliding through the attic window, Mender takes him time to move in while making as little noise as possible.

What would a devil's bargain be for prowl?

Stuffing Simon back into her satchel, Briar squeezes through the attic window, careful to not make noise.

Prowl: 2d6 ⇒ (3, 6) = 9

Mender, you’re part of the group action, so you’re piggy-backing off of Velaris’ prowl roll. If you don’t have prowl, you can roll two dice and take the lowest. It won’t affect the success of the roll, but Velaris will take 1 stress of your roll ends up 1-3.

When you lead a group action, you coordinate multiple members of the team to tackle a problem together. Describe how your character leads the team in a coordinated effort. Do you bark orders, give subtle hand signals, or provide charismatic inspiration? Each PC who’s involved makes an action roll (using the same action) and the team counts the single best result as the overall effort for everyone who rolled. However, the character leading the group action takes 1 stress for each PC that rolled 1-3 as their best result. This is is how you do the “we all sneak into the building” scene. Everyone who wants to sneak in rolls their Prowl action, and the best result counts for the whole team. Thee leader suffer stress for everyone who does poorly. It’s tough covering for the stragglers.

Tarnikos, that roll was your admission through the door with Velaris. You’re now both inside.

Stuffing Simon back into her satchel, Briar squeezes through the attic window, careful to not make noise.

[dice=Prowl]2d6

Well done. The group’s roll is now a 6. Mender’s roll will just determine if Velaris takes stress.]

Roof team, you’ll be making your own actions from here. You’ll need to locate the bones. Prowling is a controlled position, limited effect. Survey is a risky position, standard effect. Wreck is extreme effect but a guaranteed failure. Attune is risky position, great effect, as the bones will literally glow in the ghost field. We can discuss any other action you want to try. You can also use a flashback if you did something in the past to make it easier to find the bones.You have a six segment clock for finding the bones, the greater the effect, the more segments you fill. A consequence to a roll COULD be that the clock for the guards hearing you fills up some.

Roof team
What do you do?

"Apologies, and gracious thanks for your hospitality." Mr. Darner sets down the cage and opens it. He turns to one of the guards and hands him a small tube. "Would you mind holding this for a minute? Up where she can see it? Yes. Right there." Hutch resists the urge to palm the guard's cufflinks.

On queue, the bird takes a few uncertain hops to the dish of water. Mr. Darner addresses the homeowner. "We are delivering this cunning messenger bird. She will need to perform on delivery or I may lose my commission, to say nothing for the creature's health." The courier raises a hand and let's out a low whistle.

I'd like to Consort with the bird to impress Cobb. Is there a devil's bargain? Do I need to flashback to training the bird?

I'd like to Consort with the bird to impress Cobb. Do I need to flashback to training the bird?

You can do a flashback to training the bird (study/consort/command), which will be a supporting action to your Sway roll. The action with risk is impressing Cobb, not doing a good bird performance.

Is there a devil's bargain?

There is! The bird doing something fancy or impressive will leave an quite an impression. +2 heat no matter how this goes down. Especially since you’re develops reputation as “the pleasant but unsettling guy with the birds”

Roof team: I misread. Study is Risky/Standard, not Survey

Hutch's eponymous hutch would be a sight to behold if it had more than a few wild birds in it. Things had to start somewhere, and where he lacked in resources he excelled in skills. Training magpies was a family tradition. Hanging the fine metal tube from a hat stand, Felfiz sets about the tedious task of teaching this first bird... something that looked impressive.
Consort: 2d6 ⇒ (3, 2) = 5

I'm probably going to be resisting something...

The good news about a setup action is that 4-6 are all consequence-free successes. You’re setting up a later action. Speaking of which...

Back in the present, the bird twitches and flops convincingly. He’s clearly badly injured and Cobb seems slightly more concerned with the bird’s suffering than the fact that two strange men are in his kitchen.

When you make your action roll to keep Cobb distracted, your position is now controlled. The consequences for failure are reduced. You owe 1 stress for the flashback.

Prowl: 1d6 ⇒ 21d6 ⇒ 3

Sorry!

Can I up the effect on the Study to Desperate for Great effect?

before we do anything, we need to know where Cobb is keeping the Bones... three story house, maybe a basement, should be close enough to find an artifact that powerful with his eyes closed, with just a little shift into the ghost field

attune to the ghost field: 2d6 ⇒ (1, 2) = 3

Do we mark XP for failures, or just devil's baragains and rolling without dots?

Velaris, take 1 stress, but everyone is now inside.
[/ooc]You may trade position for effect. You’re searching faster with less regard for speed. You’re more likely to be heard, though. Let me know which you chose when you roll Study.[/ooc]

Do we mark XP for failures, or just devil's baragains and rolling without dots?

None of the above. You get XP for actions with desperate position and between scores for role playing your beliefs, backgrounds and traumas. I’ll write up the result of your failed atune shortly.

Velaris
You reach into the ghost field and...instead of seeing the bones, you see the ghostly silhouette of a figure strangling someone to death in the attic. The echo looks recent. This happened within the past year. It would seem Cobb is a deranged killer!
What do you do?

Door team
At Cobb’s urging, Pherris offers you both a cup of tea as another bodyguard (Lawton, you think) tries to nurse the bird to health.

What do you do?

It is unlikely that Cobb hid the bones in the attic, so Briar eases open the trapdoor and peeks at what she can see of the top floor. Should no guards be in sight, she checks the doors, looking for either the master bedroom or something like a study.

Prowl: 2d6 ⇒ (6, 2) = 8
Study: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 6) = 10

We... have a problem. Velaris says to the group Hutch is down there entertaining a murderer.

This fact doesn't stop him from rummaging through the contents of the attic, and pocketing anything that looks especially valuable. would that be survey, study, or Prowl?

Briar, I’m sorry, I should have been more clear. Prowl and study are both actions to search the house. Prowl is controlled but limited, Study is risky but standard. You got a six for each so it doesn’t matter, but for everyone else: you can search poorly but quietly or well but sort of loud. No need to do both

Briar starts her search of the house. The place is filthy, dust and grime and dirty plates everywhere. A room papered entirely in stained newsprint, a room where the floor is carpeted in mushrooms, a room where all the mirrors are broken and stacked neatly in the corner.

No bones yet, but you’re making good progress.

This fact doesn't stop him from rummaging through the contents of the attic, and pocketing anything that looks especially valuable. would that be survey, study, or Prowl?

Frankly, it could be any of the three. Survey is risky/limited, Study is risky/standard, Prowl is controlled/limited. Searching for extra goodies might increase your coin haul, but it won’t advance your clock.

I will take Desperate for Great. Also going to take stress to give me an extra die.

Survey: 4d6 ⇒ (5, 6, 3, 1) = 15

Didn't expect it too, but loot is loot.

study: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 6) = 10 6! what goodies? or just a better haul?

Velaris
You loot about the attic, gathering 1 coin worth of easily cartable and fencable treasure.

Mender
Skipping the rooms Briar has already explored, you clomp and sprint through a few other rooms: a library full of water damaged books, yellowed with mold and nearly fused together, spilling down the shelves like a pulpy waterfall. An empty room with four taxidermied rats sitting at a dollhouse table. None of the rats have heads.

No bones, but you’re getting closer.

Velaris joins his allies in creeping out the attic. he puts some distance between himself and the murder scene, trying to find a washroom, or linen cupboard where he could concentrate on the ghost field... unless there were more murders in here... okay, that was an unsettling though Could have just taken over dads role, ha a mice life, eaten at banquets, but no, had to be born a freak, and get a friggin god stuck in my head, Good show, Vel, god show.

Attune, hopefully not to more dead people: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 2) = 4

I think these dice are actually trying to Kill me, or a bunch of people in this house retroactively, at any rate

"Ah, tea. Most gracious. I could sing." Mr. Darner strokes the floundering bird before turning to the host.

Velaris
You reach out to the ghost field and the ghost field sparks back. There’s a backlash through the electroplasmic lights. They pop loudly in their sockets in the 2nd floor bathroom, plunging the whole floor into darkness.

Mender and Velaris, unless you brought an alternate source of light, any movement is desperate and any searching is zero effect.
Velaris, are you using your fine spirit mask to look into the ghost? If so, add it to your items and spend one of your 5 load points.

Door crew
You hear the popping sound a moment before your marks do. You can still distract them (controlled/standard), but if you don’t, their clock will fill and the guards will go looking for your friends. What do you do?

Tarnikos takes the teacup and upon hearing the popping noise above drops it "accidentally", spilling tea and shattering it.

[]b"Oh my I'm so sorry Mr Cobb. It's these big old hands, you know? I'm a wrecking ball with these things, do we have any rags? I'd hate to damage the flooring and it was such a nice teacup too..."[/b] he continues rambling out apologies a mile a minute.

Sway or Command? 1 Die either way: 1d6 ⇒ 4

Could I tick one of my load boxes to have a lantern? If so, I will light it and keep searching. I will push for Desperate/Great again, assuming that's still okay.

Study: 3d6 ⇒ (3, 4, 6) = 13

Tarnikos
The broken cup and mess on the floor disturb Cobb less than you’d expect, but the noise acts as cover, at least for now. The tea was rather hot though, and your hands are already turning red from the light burn.
Take level 1 harm, Burned. Actions with your hands are lesser effect until you heal them.

Mender
You draw the lanter from your bag Mark lantern on your sheet and use 1 load and continue searching the 2nd floor. The next room you come to is Cobb’s study. A sharp contrast to the awful rooms you saw before, the study is clean and well decorated. Dark wood bookshelves and ornate rugs, plush arm chairs and a pipe still burning in the ash tray. Cobb left this room not long ago. Mounted behind the large desk is an enormous rib bone. It’s maybe five feet long and looks to weigh nearly 100 pounds. Strange runes and odd pictures have been scrimshawed into the bone.

You found what you were looking for. Of course, you had a plan to get such a large object outside and back to your lair...right?

Of course. We rented a carriage and goats, not so much for carrying large objects, but to have in the eventuality that we needed a quick getaway. It is currently waiting in the alley behind Cobb's house.

Does the study have windows? If the bone fits through the window, we could tie a rope around it and lower it to the ground, rather than trying to maneuver it through the narrow attic trapdoor and window.

Of course. We rented a carriage and goats, not so much for carrying large objects, but to have in the eventuality that we needed a quick getaway. It is currently waiting in the alley behind Cobb's house.

Give me a flashback (stress 1) where you acquire the asset: carriage and goats. Roll your tier (in this case zero, so roll twice and take the lowest). If you get a 1-3, the carriage is quality -1, which in this case means the carriage doesn't show up when you expect it to (or wandered off when you left it unintended if you drove it here).

Does the study have windows? If the bone fits through the window, we could tie a rope around it and lower it to the ground, rather than trying to maneuver it through the narrow attic trapdoor and window.

It does have windows. Of course, being right above Cobb in this rickity house, moving it out the window would be a desperate action. The rope and rigging to bring such a heavy object out the window would be climbing gear (two spots of load).

1d6 ⇒ 3
1d6 ⇒ 4

Briar curses under her breath as she fails to spot any sign of the carriage they had rented earlier. She unslings the climbing gear she had brought with her and tries to think of a stealthy way to remove the huge bone from the house. Perhaps through a window in a room opposite the study?

Prowl: 2d6 ⇒ (4, 1) = 5

Briar
Briar, take XP on your prowess track for the desperate action. Your prowl roll is desperate position/standard effect.

You start to slide the huge bone out the window, rigged in with pulleys and ropes and it starts to slip out of your grasp. At the last minute, you grab the rope to keep the bone from crashing to the ground, but it tears your arm out of its socket.

This is a level 3 harm: Dislocated shoulder. With this injury, you'd need help performing any actions requiring your arm (and are likely in quite a bit of pain).

This seems like a good place to discuss resisting consequences. You can resist just about any consequence. There are two ways to resist harm. The first is to roll the appropriate trait (in this case prowess) and subtract your result from 6. The remainder is how much stress you take to resist the roll. You can also use gear to have armor, then mark off the armor to resist the harm without taking any stress at all. You get one harm resistance from light armor and two from heavy.

Because you have such a large gang of ne'er-do-wells we need to keep consequences fairly rough or the game gets a little too easy. Resisting the harm drops the level from severe (you can barely function with your arm in this state) to moderate (-1d for any actions using your arm). During downtime you have to fill a healing clock for each level of harm, so you'll heal faster with moderate harm than severe.

Roof crew
No matter how this goes down, Briar will probably need someone's help getting the bone downstairs. I'm assuming that since Briar traveled from the 3rd floor to the second, all three members of the roof crew are in the darkened study. You have Mender's lamp lighting the way.

Door crew
Cobb's servants scramble on the ground to clean the spilled tea and shattered cup.
Hutch, you notice an enormous rib bone swinging by a rope dangling in front of the window. Cobb hasn't noticed it yet.

What do you do?

Prowess: 1d6 ⇒ 1

If I resist this, my stress bar will be all filled up. What happens then?

[dice=Prowess]1d6

If I resist this, my stress bar will be all filled up. What happens then?

When a PC marks their last stress box, they suffer a level of trauma. When you take trauma, circle one of your trauma conditions like Cold, Reckless, Unstable, etc.

When you suffer trauma, you’re taken out of action. You’re "left for dead” or otherwise dropped out of the current confict, only to come back later, shaken and drained. When you return, you have zero stress and your vice has been satisfied for the next downtime (see Vice on page 156).

Trauma conditions are permanent. Your character acquires the new personality quirk indicated by the condition, and can earn xp by using it to cause trouble. When you mark your fourth trauma condition, your character cannot continue as a daring scoundrel. You must retire them to a different life or send them to prison to take the fall for the crew’s wanted level.

BUT! You needen't take the stress at all. You still have enough load left to have cleverly brought armor. The armor would brace your shoulder and strain it instead of dislocating it. You'd mark off armor use (but it'd refresh next score) and you can complete the job instead of dropping out and picking up a trauma.

Let's go with some light armour then.

The weight of the bone almost wrenches Briar's arm out of its socket, but the stiff leather jerking she's wearing provides just enough support to instead only strain her shoulder. It's still painful, and she grits her teeth to stop from crying out, but at least she can still somewhat use her arm. She hisses at the others to help with the burden.

Velaris holds his breath, and curses his luck, and this madmans house, and his own fool ideas. he pulls his mask out from under his cloak. cold ebony embraces his face, and he peers at the world through specially treated lenses, dreading what he might discover.

Velaris holds his breath, and curses his luck, and this madmans house, and his own fool ideas. he pulls his mask out from under his cloak. cold ebony embraces his face, and he peers at the world through specially treated lenses, dreading what he might discover.

Pssst...read up the thread. Mender found the bones and Briar hurt herself trying to get it out (it's just one bone and it's HUGE). I did a quick time fast forward to put you all in Cobb's study. Briar is desperately struggling to keep the bone from crashing to the ground (the wagon you hired to transport the bone never showed up. You must be too small-time to get reliable drivers...)

"Ah... I fear we have overstayed our welcome!" Mr. Darner walks to the door opposite the window, giving Tarnikos a feigned look of consternation, before turning back to Cobb. "If you would kindly see us to the door I'll have my bumbling companion out of your hair. My thanks again for your hospitality. You have been the consummate host."

Sway: 1d6 ⇒ 3

that's what I get for not refreshing... you guys were busy last night

Velaris questions the wisdom of touching the bones barehanded... but Briar looked about to break, so he hoists up the other end of the obscenely heavy bone. then he has an idea. W've still got the climbing gear up on the roof, right? he said Down to 3 load We use that to haul this thing up the attic, and to the roofs. we get it a few buildings over, and then one of you goes and gets a reliable carriage

Yes, i do know he's basically proposing the opposite of Briars plan... but dangling in front of the guy's window seems unwise at this juncture

Roof crew
Getting the bones back in will also be a roll, so lets have you get them above the window line while you discuss so that you don't put yourselves in jeopardy as you move the bones in and out of the window.
You're all talented, professional criminal types, so I'll give you some information. If you lower the bones to the ground, you'll need to go outside and carry them away quietly. That won't be easy. BUT if you bring the bones back in, you'll need to carry them in the dark to the 3rd floor trap door, into the attic and out a fairly narrow window, then across more than one (thankfully adjacent) roof top, disconnect the climbing gear and reattach it on another rooftop and lower it without drawing THEIR attention. Between the two, continuing to lower it down is the safer option.

Door crew
Pherris steps out of the room toward the entrance hall. Cobb's demeanor suddenly shifts and the bewildered, stressed look shifts into something cold, his brow furrowed in rage.

You're right he says, crossing into the kitchen and drawing a sharp chef's knife, I have been an impeccable host. And you two have been dreadful guests. You brought this...filthy animal into my home. Destroyed my things. Being so loud, so loud so loud so loud! You, you you...you...awful people!

There's a loud click in the hallway of the front door locking from the inside and Pherris returns, pocketing the key. Lawton cracks his knuckles and rolls up his sleeves to reveal thick, muscular arms.

He speaks for the first time, his voice like gravel that started smoking at a young age. The master doesn't like rude people. He doesn't like them one bit ahtall.

DOOR CREW, WHAT DO YOU DO?

Can I do this?
Resist(Resolve): 3d6 ⇒ (5, 1, 2) = 8
What do I do from here? I know I take 1 stress, but what does Hutch actually do? I was thinking of offering a nice bottle of wine (Gear) but I'm not 100% sure how resisting works.

Okay, No one said Velaris was a good thief

okay, it's possible we are actually the worst thieves in Duskvol. Let's lower this as quietly as possible. if you can, would you hold it steady, Briar?

Prowl?: 2d6 ⇒ (2, 6) = 8

Can I do this?

[Dice=Resist(Resolve)]3d6
What do I do from here? I know I take 1 stress, but what does Hutch actually do? I was thinking of offering a nice bottle of wine (Gear) but I'm not 100% sure how resisting works.

That...that is a fantastic question. You can't undo what happened (threatened by Cobb, locked in, etc.) just make things...less bad. Let me check what our options are for resisting consequences. One moment.

Roof Crew
Velaris, you get an XP in the prowess track for performing a desperate action

The bone lowers gently to the ground and Cobb is none the wiser (he's...he's a little busy, but you don't know that.).

Now for the getaway! You're going to need to get out of Cobb's house and carry the bone away. Your original plan anticipated a carriage, but there's no reason why you couldn't flashback to a contingency plan in case the carriage didn't show up. Prowl is the most effective (risky/standard) way to get the bone away quietly, but swaying a passing carriage to help you cart it off would be desperate/standard.

Ok, I read it over a bit, and I think we can undo this slightly.

Hutch, you begin to give your thanks and make your exit, but before the words escape your lips, you notice a slight twich in Cobb's eye. The man isn't...right. Isn't stable...and trying to leave now will certainly push him over the edge.

Now to discuss what exactly happened, mechanically. Because you failed your distraction roll, Cobb isn't distracted. But I certainly can't give you a NEW consequence just because you resisted the old one. So instead of completely revealing your scheme (which is what would have happened if I didn't advance the killer clock), you instead just add one more segment to the noise clock. One more and they'll start looking for your friends (and probably lock the door on you anyway) but for now you're still in a risky position to keep him distracted as the roof crew gets out...and you find a way out of the house without pissing Cobb off.

Does that sound good? Anyone who has played before have a different take on what we should do?

Actually, you know? That's wrong too. You earned a notch on the "killer" clock. You paid the price. You don't get the notch. You said some weird things, Cobb responded in a crazy way but didn't draw a knife and didn't lock the door. No additional movement on the noise clock. I won't cheat you out of what you earned.

Door crew
Cobb's demeanor suddenly shifts and the bewildered, stressed look shifts into something cold.

You're right, he says. I have been an impeccable host. And you two have been dreadful guests. You brought this...filthy animal into my home. Destroyed my things. Being so loud, so loud so loud so loud! You, you you...you...awful people!

Pherris clicks his tongue. Oooh, got the master angry. That's never good.
Lawton shakes his head. Not good ahtall. Shud I get the mopenbucket then?

Pherris gives him a quick shake of his head. Something's not right here, but you're not in any immediate danger...and when you cast a glance behind you, the bone is gone again.

WHAT DO YOU DO?

At the popping sound in Briar's arm, Mender will say in whispered tones "Once we get away I will treat that for you."

Once the bone is lowered to the ground, Mender will ask the others to slide down the rope so they can lower down Briar. "What we want to do is untie our treasure then use the pulley to lower you down. You will want to tie yourself off to this end, and then once we're all down we'll lower you down. That way you do not further injure yourself. Can you manage to tie yourself off on this end or do you need help?"

Mender, that's an excellent plan, but there's just three of you upstairs, so I want to be sure I understand. You want Velaris to rappel down one floor, then untie the bone and secure the rope so that Briar can come down. How will you get down?