Situated deep within the Mana Wastes, the city of Alkenstar blends remarkable technology with a constant air of imminent danger. Haunted by deadly mutants and sitting between two competing wizard nations, the people of Alkenstar are protected by pistol-toting shieldmarshals and arquebus-wielding dwarven snipers. Many of Alkenstar’s citizenry also carry their own personal firearms, whether that be a simple dwarven clan pistol or a more powerful gun, and rarely let their weapons stray far from their sides.
The adventure begins in a dingy bar called the Powder Horn, located in the heart of one of the entertainment districts in the gritty city of Alkenstar, our heroes find themselves thrust together by the true chaos that is Fireday-night limited seating. Crowded even on a normal evening, the Powder Horn is bursting this particular night with patrons eager to watch the opening later of a new play at the Aldivur Company Theater House. Dubbed The First Sin of Pharasma, the play has been heavily advertised for weeks, with fliers and posters plastered about the city, in which a traveling theater troupe has rented out the renowned Aldivur Company Theater House to perform the never-before-seen play, which promises the audience a once-in-a-lifetime experience that is sure to go down in history!
Sitting at a table in the middle of the madhouse that is the Powder Horn, Doc Featherton appears in her element. In front of her, a modest stack of coins slowly grows and dwindles as the cards dictate. On one side of it stands a barely touched beer; on the other, a small notebook with a list of names and addresses.
As patrons come and go, she hails a few acquaintances, ask about a relative's health, and shamelessly advertises her services as the best damned doctor you'll find in this place, I swear.
Finishing her second glass of wine and straining to get the waitress's attention, Zind finally returns her attention to game. She laughs at the hand she picks up and promptly folds.
"Even the Master of Masters wouldn't bet on half the hands I've been dealt tonight. We need to find a better diversion."
Doc, you pitching yourself this late? A large bulky man appraches the table with a drink in each hand. This crowd's too plastered to remember you when they wake up in the morning with their busted lip. Or if they've actually got tickets for that thing down the way means they've enough coin to a sawbones in the uppers. He gives a sheepish grin to her as he passes one of the drinks to the doctor, sliding her previous flagon aside. No offense to your skills of course. But come on - relax for one night. And try this one - its better than that lager swill.
Taking a swig himself, he looks at the elf and...goblin? at the table. So, what's the game tonight? Towers? Golem? And who're your friends?
"Zindarel. Friends call me Zind. Game's three dragon ante ... and I'm losing."
Doc smiles as Booker joins the table, and points at the offered mug.
If I start drinking that poison, Book', I won't remember much in the morrow either.
After a brief pause, she nevertheless takes a big gulp and adds:
But eh, that's what the notebook is for, right? Anyway, should we deal you in, or are you just watching tonight? Maybe Zind will have more luck against you...
A small green hand appears from below the table for a moment and helps itself to the pushed-aside lager swill.
"Waste not, want not!"
Eh, I'll go a couple hands Booker says motioning for doc to send some cards over. Good to meet you Zind. And you. he nods to the goblin. Booker. Friend of Doc's
So, he saws as he glances at his hand. Any of you know what exactly the commotion's all about? You'd think if the play cross the way's any good it'd be premiering somewhere isn't here.
Ah, right you're Book'. That's probably just advertising. Anyone can claim to be a Shelyn-inspired writer, but that doesn't make them so. All it takes is some rich sponsor who fancy themselves a patron of the arts and goes around slipping a few coins in the right pockets to drum up enthusiasm for a dud. Brings in the crowds though, so I'm not complaining. I'm always more interested in the after-party than the play.
And as the heroes are making their hearty conversation, the anticipatory murmurs of excitement echoing off the walls of the Powder Horn are suddenly silenced by a bloodcurdling scream. A man stumbles through the main door, clutching at a gushing neck wound. A gurgling gasp escapes his lips as he topples to the floor. Even as the man’s body collapses, a shambling horde of misshapen humanoids attempts to follow him through, accompanied by a fetid stench of blood and excrement.
“What th—zombies?!” The cry comes from inside the bar as the patrons begin a panicked rush for the upper floor. As they rush for the possible safety of the upper story, the burly bartender leaps over the countertop, a heavy length of wood in her hands. “The doors!” she cries out. “Clobber those blighters and shut the door or we’re all doomed!”
Our heroes are quick to notice them and have the chance to act first!
➤ Zakzak (AC 20)
➤ Zindarel (AC 20)
➤ Booker (AC 20)
➤ Doc Featherton (AC 20)
Z1
Z2
Z3
Z4
Z5
Z6
Doc's stomach churns at the sight and smell of the zombies, yet she immediately draws Problem and Solution from their holsters while lining up her shots.
How the hell did those things get in the middle of the city? she says, starting to swear, as she unloads Problem on the lead zombie, followed by a spray of pellets from Solution. She then moves back from the door, preparing to reload.
(◇Into the Fray, move 15ft left of ZS4; ◆Strike ZS4; ◆Strike ZS4 or ZS5; ◆Stride 20ft back)
OR
The goblin smiles as he bounces forward and places a home-made contraption on the table to help aim, then pulls the trigger. There is a loud boom followed by the sound of small metal objects bouncing off stonework and flesh as an evenings worth of stolen cutlery is violently blasted at the zombies.
Spoon Gun vs S1
Attack
Damage
(+ 1 splash to S1 S2 S4 S5)
He then shovels more purloined silverware into the weapon and giggles.
(◆Stride, ◆Strike, ◆Reload)
Doc Featherton gets moving and flies some bullets to the closest zombies before striding back. Both attacks miss ZS4 though. Zakzak also bounces into action and fires ZS1 with a HEADSHOT! before reloading.
Zakzak (AC 20)
➤ Zindarel (AC 20)
➤ Booker (AC 20)
Doc Featherton (AC 20)
ZS2
ZS3
ZS4
ZS5
ZS6
How the hell did those things get in the middle of the city? she says, starting to swear
Booker's gun is already starting to rise from under the table at the sound of the door crash but even he pause for a split-second at the sight before unloading on one of the crawlers at the door.
Great question Doc. Few things to do before answering.
◆ for plus 1 Piercing Splash 10 ft
He then breaks north to take some cover behind a table, reloading the weapon as he call out to the goblin. Nice shooting, but getting pretty close there friend!
"Okay, so we're all seeing this, good. I am sooo glad I didn't get through that last drink."
Moving purely out of instinct, Zind's tree slides gracefully into position as she moves to back up ZakZak. Taking aim, she lets rip at the closest zombie, then twists her body to put both table and chair between her and the door.
◇ Draw Mithral Tree (first shot does extra damage)
◆ Stride
◆ Strike
◆ Covered Reload (Take Cover and Reload)
Booker shoots at ZS4, piercing his decaying lungs, but the zombie is still standing. Nearby zombies are also hit with the debris of the shot. He then reloads. On the other hand, Zindarel's aim is not that precise as her shot goes just above the nearest zombie's head. She then reloads as she takes cover.
The zombies keep moving, though slowly. ZS4 approaches Zindarel and gives her a punch.
bludgeoning damage
The rotten fist connects squarely on her beautiful face! ZS2 also moves and attacks Zakzak!
bludgeoning damage
The goblin is also unfortunate to taste the wrath of the zombie! ZS3 joins the club and also attacks Zakzak!
bludgeoning damage
Poor Zakzak! The fist also lands on his face, probably removing some of his teeth. ZS5 also joins the crowd around Zakzak
Thankfully that misses. ZS6 also comes inside the bar and chases Booker, though at a slow rate.
➤ Zakzak (AC 20)
➤ Zindarel (AC 20)
➤ Booker (AC 20)
➤ Doc Featherton (AC 20)
ZS2
ZS3
ZS4
ZS5
ZS6
Zakzak cheers through a bloody smile as he lets rip with the stolen silverware from the tavern.
Spoon Gun vs S5
Attack
Damage
(+ 1 splash to S2 S3)
He then shovels more tableware down the barrel.
(◆Step, ◆Strike, ◆Reload)
Zakzak steps back and retaliates against ZS5 with a HEADSHOT!, even affecting those adjacent to it, ZS2 and ZS3. Hre then reloads with bloody but satisfying grin.
Zind lumpers the tree up to her shoulder for another shot - this time from point blank. Feeling the satisfying recoil of the weapon and seeing the more satisfying impact on the zombie, she reloads and fires again.
◆ Strike #4 for bludgeoning/piercing
◆ Reload
◆ Strike #4 (or over to #2) for bludgeoning/piercing
Zindarel takes another shot, hitting ZS4 with a HEADSHOT!, bringing it down. Brains and broken bones splatter all over the place! After she reloads, she also takes down ZS2 with another HEADSHOT! Now that's how you do that! The headless zombie body falls with a thud on the floor.
Doc feels a mixture of relief and disgust as zombie heads explode left and right. Her guns empty, she reloads Solution, unloads it at the zombie threatening Booker, and then refills its chamber once more.
((◆Reload, ◆Strike, ◆Reload))
for
Bracing himself, Booker fires directly at the shambles next to him, eating some of the buckshot in his own face.
for plus 1 Piercing splash (to him too)
He then tries to push back the undead as he tries to reload his weapon.
As the zombie stumbles a bit away, Booker then circles around the table once more while yelling at the creature. I ain’t food!
Doc reloads and shoots ZS6, puncturing its flesh between its protruding rib bones. The creature seems to not be bothered. Booker also fires at it too, the shot going through its neck, squirting blood at him too aside from the scatter of his weapon. But the zombie is still standing. Booker pushes the zombie back, in which it staggers, giving Booker a chance to reload at the same time. He then moves further away.
But this doesn't stop the zombie to chase him. the zombie moves, albeit slow, and tries to give him an undeadly punch!
Fortunately, the fist goes sideways like a drunk person punching another person. On the other hand, the zombie facing Zakzak and Zindarel, continues to follow them and randomly attacks!
The punch is too short to reach Zindarel.
➤ Zakzak (AC 20)
➤ Zindarel (AC 20)
➤ Booker (AC 20)
➤ Doc Featherton (AC 20)
ZS3
ZS6
Doc wipes her brow and swears in frustration.
Book', I don't know what was in that drink, but it's not helping my aim! she complains as she unloads a bullet towards the closest zombie.
Shen then moves into flanking position and attempts to skewer the zombie with her bayonet, reloading Problem in the same motion.
(◆ Stride, ◆ Reloading Strike)
Zombie before him, Booker slams at the moldering creature with the butt of his gun. Drop you groaner!
for
for
He then continues to circle around the shambler, this time towards the door. Yelling out to any patrons not cowering in cover he cries. Get the doorway shut in case there’s any more out there!
ZakZak knows better than to pull the trigger at point blank range whith friends likely to be hit, so gets super bitey!
/chomp chomp chomp!
Jaws vs S3
Bite
Damage P
Crit P
Bite
Damage P
Bite
Damage P
◆Strike x 3
Doc shoots at ZS3, hitting it on the shoulder but causing not much damage except for the fact that its shoulder bone is now exposed. She then moves into flanking position and pierces it as she reloads. The attack misses.
Booker slams with the butt of his gun the head of the zombie that keeps following him, the gunbutt is so strong it actually decapitated the head of the poor zombie. Moving away and looking outside, he finds that there are more zombies. Is there already a zombie apocalypse?! Instinct should call that maybe somebody should close that door before more zombies rush onto them.
Zakzak chooses to bite rather than hit. His goblin bite actually rips off the head out of the zombie's body. Both the undead head and decaying body fall to the floor with a thud and a thud and a thud. Zakzak's mouth is full of nasty blood though.
Zindarel (21/30 HP)
Booker (37/38 HP)
Doc Featherton (32/32 HP)
As the final zombie falls, the bartender dashes forward to drop the locking bar into place, while Booker is still looking outside of it. The sounds of fighting from the street can be heard through the thick wooden walls, and the door rattles for a few moments as the sounds of groans and scratching fingers can be heard testing the building’s defenses.
The bartender quickly addresses the heroes. “Name’s Martelle. We oughta follow the rest up to the second floor and get a view of the street, see what in the Hell is going on out there.” she says while panting. "Let's head upstairs, I know we have all questions to ask. Follow me." she adds and moves herself up the second floor, motioning our heroes to follow.
At the Powder Horn's second floor, a wide, open area provides additional seating for patrons of the bar. A waist-high railing surrounds a ten-foot-by-ten-foot opening to the bar below, and each of the room’s walls sports a pair of large windows overlooking the street and alleys below. It is packed with worried patrons, most of whom are crowded around the northern windows overlooking the street. From here, it’s clear that zombies are shambling out of the Aldivur Company Theater House before spreading to the rest of the city. Zombies shamble about the town square and main road below.
Zakzak tries cleaning his teeth as he walks, noting that the zombie isn't the worst thing he's eaten - being a Goblin and all.
He follows Martelle, and then looks concerned at the large number of undead walking around.
"My biggest question..." Zakzak points out at the zombies "is do you have many more teaspoons?"
"The other is whether you know what is going on?"
Damn. Not sure we got enough bullets for all of those shamblers. Are they really coming out of the Theater House?
As she says this, Doc quickly assess the injuries of her companions. Noting the nasty looking bite marks on ZakZak's body, she adds:
Do you want me to look at those wounds? I'm pretty sure that you don't want them to get infected, and those zombies' teeth were not looking clean...
Yeah ZZ: you took some chomps down there. Booker says, having followed Martelle up after moving a couple of tables further in front of the barred door himself - just to be safe. Effective though. Wherever you got that strange gun of yours it works great on those dead.
He gazes out. Sure looks so Doc. Wonder if just from there or some sort of Geb attack. Martelle - you see how many people are safe down below? And how many food stores this bar's got? No idea how fast the Shieldmarshalls may get here, especially if this isnt the only spot dealing with a zombie problem tonight.
Patting ZakZak on the shoulder and offering him a piece of bread from one of the few intact plates in the bar and a toothpick, Zindarel reloads her weapon and follows the others up the stairs.
Looking out the window, she lets out a whistle, saying "That does NOT look good. We can set up here and whittle their numbers from afar, but something tells me that at some point someone is going to have to go in there."
She leans out and gets a better look around, trying to count the number of civilians versus the number of undead roaming about.
Doc takes a small but very sharp knife out of her backpack, and looks at ZakZak's wounds with deep concentration.
That's... nasty. I see some zombie teeth still stuck in. I'm sorry ZakZak, but I'm gonna have to cut them out before disinfecting. Brace yourself.
She cuts quickly around the embedded teeth, then staunches the bleeding and start applying poultices and bandages.
((Risky Surgery, Treat Wounds))
"Thanks, I built it myself" ZZ strokes his Spoon Gun "Bits from here, buts from there - just trash around Absalom!"
"Yeah Zombie flesh was a bit gross" he smiles as he accepts the offered snacks and toothpick off Zindarel.
As Doc cuts the teeth out, ZZ quietly shoves them down the barrel of the spoon gun along with a fresh load of cutlery "Thanks Doc!"
Anytime, Zakzak!
Stashing her knife, Doc then quickly checks and reloads her gun, before joining the zombie-watching party, and checking if the zombies are just hanging there, or appear engaged in any sort of coordinated action.
What'd you see out there? Booker says to Zinadrel, moving to join her in glancing out the window onto the streets below.
"Well," Martelle heaves a sigh and points to a small drawer that Zakzak can open and will find shining cutleries, "actually I am not even sure." she responds to Zakzak's question. "But," she stands up and gets closer to the window and points out at the theatre, " and you're right, it seems to be coming from there." she tells them, agreeing to Doc Featherton. Zombies shamble about the town square and main road below. Across the street is a small market catering to the patrons of the district. "Just west of the market is the home of the man who runs the playhouse, which also serves as a storage facility for the theater, and west of that lies the theater itself. On this side of the street," Martelle continues to point some visible landmarks of the vicinity, " is that 20-foot‑wide alley, separating this Powder Horn from that adjacent two-story building."
“So here’s the deal,” she continues without a second thought. “I see that you all clearly have more fight and experience in you than most of the folks out this way, you’re a bit more smartly armed, and who knows what to expect of the guard. We could wait things out, see what happens, but it’s not exactly like the number of zombies out there is shrinking. If we don’t put a stop to this now, the whole city could be overrun. So here’s what I’m proposing — you lot head to the theater house and see if you can’t figure out where all these zombies are coming from. Put a stop to them if you can or come back and let us know if you can’t. You put an end to this mess and you’ve got free drinks for life here at the Powder Horn. I’m pretty sure any of the rest of us that survive can probably scrape together a purse for you if the city doesn’t pay out a reward."
"What do you think of this deal?” she ask the heroes, and they can even see the crowd that gathered together at the second floor looking scared but silently pleading, waiting for their response with their puppy eyes of despair.
Zindarel (21/30 HP)
Booker (37/38 HP)
Doc Featherton (32/32 HP)
"What do you think of this deal?” she ask the heroes, and they can even see the crowd that gathered together at the second floor looking scared but silently pleading
That it's a bum one. Booker says with a sigh. Already boxed in with no chance to prep. But can't always wait for the conditions to be right, and longer this goes more people'll be hurt.
Booker reloads his gun as he looks out amongst the market. Those things aren't fast but getting surrounded will go sour quick. That place - he points to the building 30 feet to the west Know who lives there Martelle? And you got any meathooks or the like in here? I have some rope; we can grapple-swing over there that's that much less street we'd need to fight to.
Well, yeah... it's a crap deal, but it's better than nothing. It's a bet on our lifespan, isn't it? After all, we do drink here quite a lot... Also... I'm not sure that the Shieldwardens will be that excited to come help us. Knowing the Law here, they might just quarantine the area and leave us to our fate. We might be better off trying to take care of things ourselves, as best as we can.
"I go where Zindarel goes" the Goblin suggests "...and I have plenty of spoons" he adds proudly.
ZakZak makes a good point... Those of us who do not rely on silverware may run out of bullets before too long. You wouldn't happen to have some ammo lying around, Martelle?
"All the reloads we can get our hands on would be good. I wouldn't mind taking a minute and getting this gash looked at before we go, either.
"As to the swinging idea... how about we simply exit the inn to the south and circle all of the buildings on foot. Same results - getting us nice and close to the theatre entrance - but a little less crazy."
"There is part of me that wants to look into the theatre owner's home first, see what they were up to in there, if anything - then go to the theatre itself. But I'm game for either one."
"On that building is where lives a gunsmith. Name's Rickard Thuss's and his place is gunnery, living with his wife Maggie." Martelle responds to Booker. "You need ammo? Might ask Rickard, good fella, sure enough, he will give you what you need, now with the situation we have." she adds to Doc. Martelle gestures to the window along the west wall. “That clothesline is bolted in pretty well. If you can shimmy across there without falling into the alley, they might be able to help you out some. Rickard is a gunsmith and is likely to have some extra ammo on hand, maybe even some weapons."
Martelle pauses a bit and continues, considering Zindarel's option to check the theatre owner's place. "You can also make a break for the house across the square. It’s owned by Aldivur, the theater’s operator, and is also used to store costumes and props from the theater. You should be able to lock it up from the inside and keep the zombies out while you look for anything useful. You’ve got two paths forward, whaddaya think?"
I like the idea of the gunsmith myself, especially if we can move to the house without getting on the street Doc says as she starts to work on patching Zindarel's wounds.
Same. Booker agrees.
The guard grabs a few coasters and crumbles them up as he leans out the window, then chucks them across the alley at the window opposite.
"All right. Gunsmith it is."
She takes up a position at a nearby window to keep overwatch on the others as they make their way across the line.