GM Niles Rippers Campaign

Game Master nilesr

This adventure opens at dinner. Dressed in their finest ANDREJ BULAVIN , XIE XIU MEI , CARL JUNG , RASHEED SINGH , and VICTORIA LAWSON are seated for a refined five course meal hosted by the Ripper Master Johann Van Helsing. At least a dozen other Rippers who operate in Europe are present. The dinner has gone smashingly well with all present being wowed by the stories and abilities of these new recruits. At the conclusion of the dinner, Master Johann Van Helsing gives an opportunity for each Recruit to have the floor and tell some tale of their exploits.

Carl remains seated silently, observing the rest of the table. Hardly one to brag, he's far more interested in what tales the others might tell as opposed to sharing one of his own.

She poked the food on her plate lightly with a fork, finding herself somewhat bored and irritated. She's not one for fancy parties or dinners, nevermind the fact it seems the esteemed son of the manor lord expected some sort of speech. Really, she just hoped this was over soon so she could get back to work on her innovations.

Dotting for now, will regale the present with a tale of heroic banditry or supernatural challenges soon!

@Mei This campaign will feature stuff like this regularly. In fact, a full 1/2 of all the "adventures" are social or investigation type adventures with almost no combat.

I'm aware! This is just how she is, she's not the sort to go on talking about stories. I think she'd more likely ramble on about some strange invention in a language most people won't understand for about an hour, before John hits her over the head with a bottle of wine to just make it stop already.

Andrej looks around, sees that no one else is getting up, and stands, clearing his throat and beginning to speak in a thick accent. He is a short, slender, dark-haired man with a bushy mustache and the sort of thousand-yard stare that's all too common in the gathering.

"I will not tell story of how I first meet Rippers--I was fighting British then, and it is rude to bring up, yes? Someday maybe we can sit, drink, talk of such things, drink some more...but not now." He looks around, making eye contact with any obvious military types, smiling companionably as if to say that there are no hard feelings on his part. "No, I will tell story of escape from Rodina, from Mother Russia. After Pushkin got me condemned again, friends tell me so I do not try to go back to Saint Petersburg. But I have no one to help me until I remember that the Harkers have left people in Uzbekistan, to--how do you say it? Mop up, yes? To mop up the last of the werewolves. So I--" He pauses, overcome by some strong emotion, and tosses back the rest of his drink before continuing. "--I, I desert and run. Run to the British! Ha! Is fine joke. I am finding the Wolfen Jägers--or they are finding me, I am not so good as they. I explain, they remember me, they take me with them when they leave.

"The way out is hard. We do not use roads--we go through Zarafshan Mountains, and I am being glad that I can climb a little. There are bandits in the mountains, yes? Fewer now, though. But we are getting low on supplies--I leave too many bullets in bandits, ha! I am good with rifle. Better with rifle than knife. Knife does not run out, though, so I get some practice with it. We meet up with Jonathan Harker in Kabul. Here it is very good that he is remembering me, because the British there are not being happy at poor podpraposhtik Russian soldier. And I am telling them nothing. You would do the same, yes?" He again looks around at the men in uniform. "Harker has influence, though, and British listen to him. He spins story of how I am Russian agent for Rippers, and, well, he has done this for me, so I am making his story not a lie."

Telling a story about an invention would be cool

She looks up from her meal, a hand to her chin. "Yes- an impressive tale, Mr. Bulvalin. Nǐ de gùshì shì bèipàn, yǒnggǎn hé qiāngzhī zhī yī. Lìng rén yìnxiàng shēnkè.[i]" She humms aloud for a beat, before continuing on as if everyone should understand. "Zhège gùshì qǐfā zài mǒu zhǒng chéngdù shàng, yěxǔ wǒ kěyǐ shuō shuō wǒ de jīqì...?[/i]"

"Miss, while I'm sure whatever y'just said was real interesting, I really couldn't tell you, seeing as I don't know what the hell actually came out of your mouth." Victoria sits lounged in a chair, quite clearly not trained in proper manners. As she speaks, she lets the front legs of her chair slam into the ground with a heavy thump. "No disrespect or nothin', but it's gonna be hard to communicate if we don't speak, y'know, the same language." She exhales, then runs a hand through her short brown hair, brushing her short bangs away from her face. "So, y'know... do y'speak English?"

The Russian listens to Mei with bafflement. I'll probably have to learn some Chinese if I want to be able to follow her.

She flusters momentarily, adjusting the glasses on her face. "Zhè bùshì wǒ de cuò, nǐ wúfǎ lǐjiě wǒ de yǔyán. I speak it just fine, thank you. It is simply more comfortable using what is natural. Yěxǔ wǒ yīnggāi bǎ gèng duō de gōngzuò nàrù tōngyòng zhuǎnhuàn..." The last part is muttered rather harshly under her breath, looking away from the group and finding more interest on her plate. "You people like to tell stories? about your triumphs and the like? Perhaps I should talk about some of my own, such as my Děnglízǐ yùndòngyuán device?

Rasheed raises an eyebrow "Děnglízǐ yùndòngyuán device? I... What is that?"

I will wait for Mei to finish before I regale you all with my tale

She grins, suddenly starting to feel like she's in her element. Standing up, er hands go to a holster on her waist and then pulls out an oddly shaped revolver which seems to be missing the part where it's cylinder would be. "My Děnglízǐ yùndòngyuán, or in English... the Plasma Thrower." She turns a knob at the end, and at once lighting starts arcing in the middle of it in a wild but controlled fashion. Mei then proceeds to point it in a direction facing away from the others, squinting as if aiming it.

"A wonderful creation of mine capable of unleashing enough energy to knock a man unconscious in seconds, perfect for fighting against your tougher monsters. I've even managed to improve the battery life of this thing, capable of perhaps... 15 low powered shots before it needs to recharge. Which it does so with an ingenious method of drawing in the ambient electricity in the air, constantly refilling it's internal power cells even when in use. I'm hoping to further refine the process with my next model, causing it to reach full charge in half the time as normal."

She turns the dial again, causing the bolts of power to cut out and places it back in her holster. "Simply my proudest achievement as of now, but in the future I plan on creating similar wonders of science. If things go well, perhaps in a few years these things will become standard issue for all of us." Mei smiles with pride, looking over everyone in the room with her hands at her hips.

Andrej grins. "I am liking it! What is its range?"

She finally deigns to sit back down in her seat, continuing to speak as she does so. "Short, similar to that of a pistol. I have admittedly mused about something longer ranged, but the science is just not there yet..." Trailing off, she says something again in her native language before shaking her head in dismissal regarding whatever it was. "I could build you a copy, though I'm lacking materials for a... more complete version."

The assembled Rippers clap in amazement at Mei's device. The decidedly English crowd frowns at Andrej, but being the polite Gentlefolk they are refrain from making comment.

"Fascinating," Carl says as Xie displays her device. "Physics was never my field, but I recognize a breakthrough when I see one. If you could ever mass produce..."

Rasheed nods and smiles at Mei's explanation "Amazing... truly amazing. I fear I have not a tale or ability that interesting." he says as he stands up "I am Rasheed Singh, and some of you are known faces to me. Since I left my home in the Valley years ago I have met docens of amazing men and women. Some of them were warriors ready to lay their lives for the weak, others were moral compasses for their brethren and I ever met truly wondrous heroes." he clears his throat to make an opening, a window to look for the words in a labguage he still doesn't feel yours " I am but a man, one that bleeds and sweats. I have fought against mindless undead minions, cultists, evil spirits and even a werewolf in Vienna. And I have faced the evil that lurks inside human's hearts: killers, depraved people and worse. But I did it because it was the right thing to do. It was and it is what I have to do, and I hope that I can keep doing it for long years with your help. Bless you all, my brothers in arms... and thank you for your hospitality."

The assembled Rippers nods politely at Rasheed's story. Some of them have indeed heard of the "Lion of the Kangra".

The Ripper Master Johaan nods to the gathered Rippers and bids them farewell.

It has been an interesting evening, and you prepare to return to the lodge for one last brandy. Donning hats and topcoats, you make your way into the street. Thick fog has rolled in, and the streetlights cast
an eerie glow. From ahead comes the sound of slow footsteps ringing across the cobbled street, and eventually two figures loom out of the swirling haze. The pair moves slowly, but gradually they become more distinct, and you can make out a burly young man supporting a frail old woman.

I'm assuming that you all are not armed/armored except for small weapons/items that are easily hidden under clothing etc.

I assume a Ripper claw could be concealed on my arm by clothing? I assume that they retract, Wolverine-style? If not, Victoria is indeed unarmed, but that always made sense to me.

"Y'alright there, you two? She doesn't look too great," Victoria says, approaching the two cautiously. "If the two of you need a hand, we could help y'out. Where're you headed, anyway? Takin' her home, or somethin'?" Victoria adjusts the Ripper Claw fit snug beneath her long sleeve, flexing her hand in case of a trap. "We could get you there, if y'need it. We might even be headin' that way ourselves!"

If a scimitar the size of a cavalry saber, which by itself was usual bringing to balls and such, is too big then Rasheed has his trusty knife, an embelished one he always carry.

Rasheed starts walking the pair, a hand over his blade's hilt. "You seem distressed and tired, what can I do to help you?" even if he fears something isn't right, Rasheed tries to help them before.

Walking stick in hand, Andrej follows, taking a quick look around for any other people on the street.

As demonstrated earlier, she at the very least has her Bolt weapon, but anything else is unlikely.

Mei keeps a healthy distance back, one arm at her hip, while she follows the group ahead. "Tā shì zài yèjiān wéixiǎn, huí dào nǐ de jiā."

Carl never wears armor and his only weapon is an ordinary cane.

"Indeed, she does not look at all well." Carl doesn't get too close, not wanting to crowd around the pair and make them uncomfortable.

As the Team approaches they can see the two are gypsies and notice the old woman is blind. She surveys the group with cloudy-white sightless
eyes before addressing them.

Five do approach. The Listener. The Lion. The Inventor. The Fury. The Wolf. the old woman croaks.

Silver! she calls out, holding out her hand palm up. You assume she wants payment for some deed.

The man with her looks much younger. He merely shrugs in embarrassment, you surmise this has happened before.

@Rasheed the saber is fine. @Victoria the claws are fine.

"This sounds suspiciously like you are a fortune teller or prophet of some sort," Carl says. "Very well, I'm game." He pulls a silver shilling from his pocket and places it in the old woman's hand.

The silver shilling disappears swiftly into the old crone's gown, faster than you would have thought possible.

The Gypsy raises her hand dramatically and hisses

Beware the Son of two Fathers

Another figure looms out of the fog, a plain looking man walking purposefully towards you.

As he draws level with you, the gypsy woman suddenly turns and gestures at the man, spitting an unintelligible curse. A flicker of rage crosses his face, then a demonic surge of anger seems to contort his plain features. With a bestial growl, he knocks the old crone to the ground and takes off running into the fog.

"Beware the who..." Unfortunately, he has no opportunity to get an answer before the man appears and transforms into some kind of monster. It takes only a moment for Carl to recognize one of the Cabal's most common sources of muscle. "Gott verdammt! That's a Hyde!" He looks to the man and old woman. "You should get home. It's quite dangerous at night." The message to get away is quite obvious.

Knowledge Occult: 1d6 - 2 ⇒ (6) - 2 = 4
Wild: 1d6 - 2 ⇒ (3) - 2 = 1
Ace: 1d6 ⇒ 3 Total: 7

Occult, Untrained: 1d4 - 2 ⇒ (1) - 2 = -1
Wild: 1d6 - 2 ⇒ (4) - 2 = 2

It dosn't register to her just what the man is, having only been in London recently, but she trusts the judgment of her fellow rippers that the Hyde- whatever a Hyde even is -was a member of the Cabbal. She gives way to chase as well, pulling out her device to fire when applicable.

Occult: 1d4 - 2 ⇒ (2) - 2 = 01d6 - 2 ⇒ (6) - 2 = 4
Ace: 1d6 ⇒ 5
Total of 9, I guess I know how to make them :') Do we get to know anything about their abilities and such with a raise?

Rasheed draws his scimitar and places himself between the abomination and the gipsy couple "Stay behind, we will take care of this. By Satnam! he says before giving chase.

"A what?" Victoria shouts behind her, already on the chase as she takes off after the man. She breaks out into a full-on sprint, attempting to keep pace with the man as he runs off through the foggy London streets. "Oh, hell with it; doesn't matter what it is, as long as we can cut it down." She keeps running as Rasheed follows, before yelling back to her fellow Ripper. "Hey, I know these streets, I'mma try and cut 'im off! Keep on 'im, we'll pin him down!" As she peels off from the immediate pursuit, Victoria wracks her brain as she tries to think of a path she might be able to take the cut the man off in his tracks.

Andrej pauses to make sure that the two Romany are all right before following, walking stick in hand.

"Is it really wise to do this on a public street?" Carl wonders aloud before heading off after the Hyde with the rest of the team. He really couldn't let a monster run loose in London's streets either.

@Victoria Yes, London would be Common Knowledge for you. Other cities not so much, unless you invested in Knowledge skills for those cities (or countries) IE Kn:Egyptian Geography etc.

The Chase through Hyde Park Round 1
The Hyde Agility: 1d10 ⇒ 5 Red Joker
Carl Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 5Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 2 Eight of Hearts
Victoria Agility: 1d8 ⇒ 7Wild: 1d8 ⇒ 1 Two of Spades
Andrej Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 6Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 5 Ace: 1d6 ⇒ 4King of Clubs Ten of Hearts
Rasheed Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 3Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 5 Eight of Diamonds
Mei Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 3Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 5 Queen of Diamonds

We will use the SW Chase rules,I'll roll Agility for everyone and post their card draws. You can "attack" someone lower in cards. TRound one was a wash, since the Hyde drew a joker and so no one could "attack" him.

The Hyde sets off impossibly fast, Victoria and the others give chase with Ms. Lawson disappearing down a side alley attempting to cut off the Hyde. Unfortunately she didn't count on his amazing speed, however the chase continues!

The Chase through Hyde Park Round 2
The Hyde Agility: 1d10 ⇒ 10 Ace: 1d10 ⇒ 8 King of Clubs Eight of Hearts Three of Clubs Jack of Clubs
Carl Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 6Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 6 Ace: 1d6 ⇒ 2Jack of Hearts Three of Clubs
Victoria Agility: 1d8 ⇒ 8Wild: 1d8 ⇒ 1Ace: 1d8 ⇒ 8 Ace: 1d8 ⇒ 5 Ace of Hearts Ace of Spades Four of Clubs Eight of Diamonds Nine of Spades
Andrej Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 5Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 1Six of Diamonds
Rasheed Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 3Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 5 Two of Clubs (Complication! See Spoiler below)
Mei Agility: 1d6 ⇒ 2Wild: 1d6 ⇒ 3 Ten of Diamonds

The Hyde continues his sprint with the others following behind in the fog! Victoria manages to cut off the Hyde and finds herself in melee range with the Beast! Mei, Carl and Andrej can barely keep up (no attacks since the Hyde had a King) Rasheed however, faced some unfortunate complication.

Victoria you can make a melee attack if you wish!

Agility: 1d6 - 4 ⇒ (5) - 4 = 11d6 - 4 ⇒ (2) - 4 = -2
Benny...
Agility: 1d6 - 4 ⇒ (3) - 4 = -11d6 - 4 ⇒ (5) - 4 = 1
Again, let's pray for a good one...
Agility: 1d6 - 4 ⇒ (6) - 4 = 21d6 - 4 ⇒ (1) - 4 = -3
Ace: 1d6 ⇒ 3
One benny left. I am hating the Hydes already

"Hey there, big guy!" Fancy seeing you here, huh?" Victoria sprints down the side street as she cuts off the Hyde, launching herself forward as she crosses the man's path. She hops onto an abandoned crate for extra height before leaping towards the Hyde with her arms outstretched, hooking the Hyde's neck with her elbow. She clinches tight with her other arm, hoping to use her weight and momentum to drag the creature to the ground. "Where're you off to in such a hurry, huh? Why not stick around for a while; the moonlight's quite romantic, don'cha think? We could dance!" As her feet touch the cobblestones, Victoria swivels on the balls of her feet as she violently wrenches the Hyde's neck to the side with all the force she can muster, trying to throw the vile creature to the ground.

Strength: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 2 = 8
Wild: 1d6 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 2 = 7
Strength; Ace: 1d6 ⇒ 2
Total of 10.

Hyde has to make an Opposed Strength roll; if he fails, he would be knocked prone. I assumed since the Push action was under the Combat section it could be performed during a chase such as this, and that since she's been sprinting Victoria would gain the +2 from having moved at least 3" in the last turn. If not, I'll roll Fighting as normal.

The Chase through Hyde Park Round 2, Continued
The Hyde continues his sprint with the others following behind in the fog! Victoria manages to cut off the Hyde and finds herself in melee range with the Beast! Mei, Carl and Andrej can barely keep up. Rasheed however, faced some unfortunate complication. In the fog Rasheed runs right into a malfunctioning lamp post! Fortunately with a quick turn of his hips and some luck he dodges the post and continues on with the chase. Meanwhile Victoria sprinting from the side attempts to tackle the Hyde!

Strength: 1d12 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

Ms. Lawson, although smaller than the Hyde, manages to take him off his feet!

Ok, now the chase is over and we will begin a normal combat round. I won't use a map for this fight as it seems like a pretty straightforward fight. However, not everyone is right near Victoria and the Hyde so it will take some of you longer to get into the fight. The Fog means that anything outside of 20' is obscured and takes severe penalties. Also, gunshots will almost certainly bring the Police.

Distances
Carl Medium Range (60' or 30 squares)
Victoria in melee range with the Hyde
Andrej Long Range (100' or 50 Squares)
Rasheed Long Range (100' or 50 Squares)
Mei Medium Range (60' or 30 squares)

Initiative
Carl Medium Range (60' or 30 squares) Three of Hearts
Victoria in melee range with the Hyde Nine of Diamonds
Andrej Long Range (100' or 50 Squares) Ace of Hearts
Rasheed Long Range (100' or 50 Squares) Six of Diamonds
Mei Medium Range (60' or 30 squares) Jack of Clubs
Hyde Two of Hearts (this is bad for the Hyde...)

The Hyde's form begins to shift and contract...he now appears to be a normal plain looking man again.

Round 1, The Fight with the Hyde
Andrej
Mei
Victoria
Rasheed
Carl
Hyde

Everyone is up and can post actions. Refer to the distances for where you are in relation to the Hyde/Victoria

Ah! It looks like she got him. Andrej grins mirthlessly and runs towards the action.

Running die: 1d6 ⇒ 2

Total movement of 8".

Mei simply keeps running, hoping to get in optimal firing range.

Running: 1d6 ⇒ 5

She moves forward a solid 11"

Rasheed keeps running towards them Run: 1d6 ⇒ 5

11' too!

Carl keeps running to get closer to the creature.

Run: 1d6 ⇒ 5

Well, at least we're consistent!

Not me, though :-(.

As she successfully topples the Hyde to the ground, Victoria snaps out the blades of her Ripper claw as she pounces on the now-prone monster. She plants a foot on his chest and grabs at the collar of his shirt, other arm poised to strike. "Sorry, did I trip you up?" Victoria says, breathing heavily. "I'm afraid that's my fault; Mother always told me I had two left feet." With her last quip, Victoria stabs her Ripper claw downs towards the Hyde's neck with animalistic ferocity, hoping to end the fight before the creature has a chance to fight back.

Initiative Round 1
Carl Medium Range (60' or 30 squares) Three of Hearts
Victoria in melee range with the Hyde Nine of Diamonds
Andrej Long Range (100' or 50 Squares) Ace of Hearts
Rasheed Long Range (100' or 50 Squares) Six of Diamonds
Mei Medium Range (60' or 30 squares) Jack of Clubs
Hyde Two of Hearts (this is bad for the Hyde...)

The Hyde's form begins to shift and contract...he now appears to be a normal plain looking man again.

Round 1, The Fight with the Hyde
Andrej runs forward and is now merely 60' from the fight.
Mei runs forward and is now merely 5' from the fight.
Victoria stabs the Hyde through the throat, killing it.
Rasheed runs forward and is now merely 45' from the fight.
Carl runs forward and is now merely 5' from the fight.
Hyde

Combat Over

The rest of the Rippers arrive to find Victoria standing over the corpse of the plain looking man. Victoria is covered in blood and her Ripper blades are as well.

"Well... that was easy enough," Carl says. "But perhaps we should leave, just in case someone comes to investigate and sees a bloodstained young woman standing over a clearly dead man."

That's a switch, isn't it?

"Bozhe moi! I am never being on your bad side, Gospozha Lawson. Does he have anything of interest?"

"Easy? You weren't the one who tackled the bastard." Victoria pauses again, breathing heavily as she snaps the Ripper claws back into their sheath. She starts to look the body over, ripping off a piece of the man's shirt to wipe some of the blood from her body. "Maybe we ought to drag 'im back with us... leaving the body might not be the smartest decision. Then again, anyone spots us with a dead body..."