So I'm running Strange Aeons for the first time after having it requested by my group. Having lurked a long time here, I've decided to record my players antics and some of the changes I've implemented to accommodate back stories or just to reflect playstyle. So for those who are going to play this, here there be spoilers. Those who are curious, enjoy and may my groups antics give you enjoyment as they do me.
Gather round ye children and we shall weave a tale, of what came before.
In a carriage ride in Ustalav, a number of adventurers did come to a nameless village from parts unknown. The Cunning Edwyna, Changeling Investigator. The Cagey Bhar, Human Inquisitor. The Driven Maria, Human Alchemist. And finally, the Penitent Lucifer, Damphir Vampire Hunter. Together, the group opted to investigate a case of missing children lost and taken by strange things in the night. Approaching the standing stones however, the party would be ambushed by ghouls and nearly slain, had not another adventurer appeared!
The Stoic Abigal, Aasimar Inquisitor emerged from the shadows though suspicion for her sudden appearance did pervade at first. A notion quieted when the party realized they seemed familiar with one another, though their memories were blank. The standing stones were examined and the ghoul remains as well, the latter leaving behind motes of light that inflicted visions even as it healed them.
Upon each of the standing stones, the emblems of their individual gods or personal marks were seen, as a sickly mist began to creep. Black poppies, symbols of death and dreaming gave way to the theory that this was a shared dreamscape. More so, when it was noticed that the moon for all this time, did not move. So to retrace their steps, the party left and encountered an undead wolf, which likewise left behind a vision.
The visions in question were all different and strange in their individual state. Lucifer experienced a sensation of drowning, as hands around his neck kept him down in the water. Edwyna found herself strapped to a chair, taunted with koans and puzzles she could not solve as she lost fingers for every wrong question. Maria managed to pierce the dream veil, seeing a scene instead where two people discussed their incarceration and cure. Though the lack of records for their stay seemed to put one ill at ease, the property of what the other referred to as 'The chain of nights' seemed to quiet her fears.
All around, the mist continued to come for them. And with a well done perception check, Maria felt eyes upon her from somewhere in the forest though the rest saw naught but empty night. And then the party discovered a cemetery gate, where the gravedigger seemed appalled at how they weren't on the list. When asked further, he revealed he had some information with their names on it and allowed them entry to his workplace. At the rotting cabin, five coffins(with a space indicating a missing one) laid there against the wall and on a table, the papers themselves. Encrypted with a devious code, Edwyna sat to examine them as Bhar approached the coffins and out sprung three skeletons clad in what was once fine clothing. They attacked the party and were held off.
The papers meanwhile, held information of a different sort. Detailing a number of missions that edged into the pale ranging from a hit list to an itinerary for kidnapped children and academics, the skeletons remains adding to that theory. More so, with one identified as coming from an academic family and missing three fingers. The plot had thickened and as one, they settled in for the night as the fog rolled in.
When the fog cleared, they found themselves in a twisted city, with alien structures and a feeling of deep fear as the sounds of pursuit came for them. Lucifer died first, charging to attack after fleeing blindly from the party. Next was Theodore, a Sorcerer who was suddenly with the group as he was dragged into the fog, clawing at the ground before a sound of rending flesh echoed out. Maria and Bhar attempted to fight head on as a team, only to be killed by the creature from the mist. Edwyna strove to hide, but to no avail as even in the dark places the monster was there. As each member died, their blood splattered in a way to spell the following as the last one alive, Abigal read the words.... 'Wake up! Save me!'
As the monster emerged from the fog for her, she woke up with a bleeding nose and sickened....But alive. All of them were alive, though imprisoned in cells. In the darkness, an orderly would be tortured by a sadist doctor who used a number of differing blades to slice into flesh. Bhar attempted to reason with her, but received naught but scorn as she merely said how he and the others would follow.
Edwyna, finding a bit of scrap picked her lock as Lucifer smashed his cell door open, the both of them managing to work together to drive off the doctor after the latter picked up a kitchen knife and slashed her throat. It had less of an impact then normal however, as she transformed into a spider-human hybrid and fled. The others would be freed with Bhar identifying her as a doppelganger, as they stabilized the orderly who identified himself as Lenweigh and their location as Briarstone Asylum.
Emerging from the cells, the asylum seemed to have seen better days. An earthquake had devastated the area, and the signs of pitched battle were everywhere. More disquieting was the strange storm engulfing the place and the yellow mist of the dreamlands in the waking world, which bode ill for those who remembered it. With Lenweigh and his memory of the place, they came to the asylum chapel-now barricaded and guarded by paranoid guards. The party managed to open talks however, and it was agreed that they'd fetch three doppelganger bodies for them to prove they were not shapeshifters.
And so the party moves through the asylum, hunting and being hunted as they strive to survive.....The Search for Sanity.
Cue Title Drop
And thus was the first session done, or actually the first two. The Sorcerer is a new tabletop player and I had originally ran the beginning bit before the city, specifically to help him get acclimated. Unfortunately he couldn't make it and so he ended up in the deep end. Lucky, everyone else is there to help. On the cast in question, the following.
Abigal Hawthorne: A Lawful Neutral Witch Hunter of Iomadae, hailing from the lands of Irrisen. An Aasimar who believes that magic in the hands of the unworthy causes suffering and vows to stop it where she can. Was described to me as and I quote 'Ciri, but dressed like Maria from Bloodborne.' I dug it and so she was approved.
Maria of the River Kingdoms: A Chaotic Good street rat of an Alchemist, who earned her knowledge through whatever she could steal, discover or wheedle teachings out of. Headstrong and prone to doing the right thing, she finds herself plagued with a deep sense of guilt she cannot determine. A trait shared with the Vampire Hunter. The youngest of the party.
Lady Edwyna of House Calder: An incredibly smug, Lawful Neutral Changeling who revels in a good riddle. Whether traps or wordplay, if there is a riddle to be solved? It won't take but a moment. Wields a special kind of mace the player and I worked out earlier, with the head shaped into a question mark.
Bhar of Vudra: A Lawful Neutral Human Inquisitor of Phasmara who has no idea what's going on anymore. The shadows seem threatening, his mind is blank and he has an itchy trigger finger. With strange knowledge of the monsters they face and a stalwart heart, he puts his trust on his current companions and seeks to discover his past with a dogged persistent air.
Theodore: A Chaotic Neutral Human Sorcerer of the Draconic Bloodline. Backstory pretty much nil. This is my newbie player and while I'd normally be more forgiving, part of his characterization is being bipolar so I'm giving this a side eye. He has played him well so far though. My favorite bit being when he tried to distract the Doppleganger by flirting with it.
It was in the middle of combat and it failed, but it's the thought that counts.
Lucifer Tepes: The Lawful Good Damphir Vampire Hunter. Also a worshipper of Iomadae. Is going for apparently a mix between Shirou Emiya and his fatalistic heroic streak and the fighting style of Kotomine. Looks like a mix between a Wild Western Preacher and a Gunslinger but with knives.