GM Note : Using the Cinderheim Adventure Generator for the pilot session. "A mutated brute is trying to colonize a precarious pleasure palace." Oooook, this should be interesting. Definitely sounds like an urban adventure which I've never tried via Scarlet Heroes, so, why not?
"A location is struck by a fire, riot... basically a calamity."
Location : brothel, disaster : hostile takeover. Actors : cynical investigator, exquisite dancer, puzzled foreigner. Threat level : 5.
Khadiya VP : 0, Naazim VP : 0
Conflict scene : Support an Actor working against Naazim. Fight Difficulty : 11
The rounded sandstone buildings provide very little shade from the burning sun. Its solar barbs outstretched and reaching toward the world below. The skies are clear, but the desert wind brings the sting of sand on bare skin and the muffled sounds of a struggle. The Chattel Market, normally busy with people, is remarkably empty. Khadiya sees a small man, dark haired and dressed in grey trousers with red vest, being attacked by a figure clad in scale armor made of horn. The large figure wears a blood red mask over its face and wields a savage blade of sharp obsidian embedded in hard wood, raised over head to chop the smaller man.
Khadiya pulls her beech wand from her sash, her right hand upright. A black lizard skinned book materializes, cradled by the air above her upheld hand. Silver lined parchment flips to the page upon which The Emir's Decree is written in azure ink. She reads the incantation, tracing a sigil in the air with the coffee colored wand. A blue mandala forms in the air, its color mirroring the words inscribed in the book.
"Hold!" Khadiya shouts.
Khadiya rolls +INT to cast Command on the armored figure : 6.
The obsidian edge of the macuahuitl comes down on the smaller man's leg, slicing down into the bone. The larger figure's mask turns in Khadiya's direction, the demonic face bearing a wide grin. It strides past the small man and heaves the heavy wood and stone weapon over his shoulder as it prepares to swing the weapon.
The book evaporates back to the ether, and Khadiya reaches back, grasping air. She hurls her open fist toward the approaching figure. A searing beam of blue light lances towards it.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to attack with Eldritch Blast : 13 and inflicts 2-harm.
The bolt scorches along the bone scales and breach through the eyes of the mask. The swing falls short, and the weapon digs a furrow in the sand. One hand comes up to its face as it screams in pain.
"No one will stop Naazim the Heavy Handed. I will make sure of it!" The voice behind the mask is deep and primal. It lurches forward, awkwardly chopping at Khadiya with one hand.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to attack with another Eldritch Blast : 11 and inflicts 2-harm.
Half blinded and wielding its massive weapon in one hand, Khadiya sidesteps the blow and hurls another energetic beam. The beam slices a burning path across the arm holding the macuahuitl. Fabric melts away and its skin begins to blacken and char.
The figure howls with rage and grabs the macuahuitl in both hands. The mask bears a burned scar from its jaw up to its eye. Beneath the mask, burnt skin peeks through. It swings the weapon back and slashes heavily at Khadiya.
Khadiya rolls +CHA and attacks with an Eldritch Blast : 12 and inflicts 2-harm. Blessing of Yrkali adds two to her Harm track.
Khadiya drops into a crouch, and the weapon slashes the air above her. Rising, her hand sweeps upward and the bolt of energy traces a line from inside its thigh up toward its face. Another scream as the mask separates and falls in half, the flesh beneath burned beyond recognition. The figure lands on the ground with a heavy sound.
"Should Yrkali take you, you will be reborn and fight again."
Khadiya VP : 1, Naazim VP : 0
She walks toward the groaning man and kneels down to inspect the wound. The man attempts to crawl backward. Instead, he screams in pain when he tries to use his wounded leg.
"You're a sorcerer!" he screams, panicked.
"The one that saved your life," she coolly responds. "I can try to treat this, or you can die."
He keeps his mouth shut, staring up at Khadiya with disbelief.
"Your choice," she says.
Khadiya rolls +WIS attempting to treat the wound, and marks XP : 4.
He nods. "I am Amal," he says then screams in further pain. "What are you doing?! I thought you said you would treat this!"
"I said I could try. At least you're not going to die of blood loss. Infection? Maybe."
"In... fection?"
"You'll need to see a surgeon, I'm afraid. This is beyond my ability to treat."
"A surgeon? They could take my leg."
"They could. They could also save it," Khadiya turns to leave.
"Wait! Aren't you going to help me?!"
"I already have."
Investigation Scene : Infiltrate a location where the activities relate to a clue.
The pens are located near The Chattel Market. After the sudden attack by the armored figure, Khadiya understands why the streets are vacant. Curiously, so are the pens. The Market is where people can often be purchased after a successful raid or taken in as indentured service. The lucky ones, if they can be called that, are inducted into Hamada's army. Of all the rulers, Lady Hamada is, perhaps, the most patient and thoughtful.
"Naazim took the pretty ones away," a gruff voice says.
"Pretty?" asks a nasal voice. "Everyone in the pens was dirt covered and scrawny. None of them seemed strong enough to even take up a knife!"
Khadiya rolls +DEX to sneak closer to eavesdrop on the conversation and marks XP : 11.
"You know how messy power struggles can be. Look what happened when Naazim first took over. Now he wants a share of the market."
"I guess. I wouldn't want that kind of power anyway. Taking care of the gang and all our needs?"
"And wants."
"Yeah, that, too."
The voices fade into the distance as the pair walk away discussing money and how best to spend it.
Khadiya VP : 2, Naazim VP : 0
Action Scene : Plunder needed resources for the plan.
Khadiya follows behind the two men, unable to overhear the rest of their conversation but close enough to follow them. The two stop at another pen and kick at the door.
"Get up! You're not a pretty one, so let's see how well you fight!"
"But I'm not a fighter!" a voice pleads from inside the pen.
"Well, that's a shame. You're up against Nasir, and he's got a lot of fighting experience."
Khadiya rolls +INT to cast Burning Hands : 9.
Khadiya raises both hands to her shoulder. The grimoire materializes in the air in front of her. Against the wind, the pages turn and open to Conduit of the Scorching Sun. She reads the blue sigils etched upon the parchment, her hands come together, fingers splayed out like a fan. Flames erupt from her fingers and the two men scream as their clothing turns to ash and skin begins to blister under the weight of searing heat. Khadiya steps closer and focuses the fire on her victims until charred bones start to show beneath the burning skin.
A series of slow claps sound from Khadiya. "It's been a while since I faced a sorcerer."
Khadiya turns and sees a muscular man, bare chested with mud colored trousers. His head is shaved. He seems to have no weapons. The man cracks his knuckles and confidently walks toward Khadiya.
"Let's see what you'll be worth," he says, charging forward and punching at Khadiya.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to use Eldritch Blast : 6 and 1-harm received.
Her hand reaches back to draw arcane energy into a bolt, but Nasir is faster. His fist impacts near her diaphragm, forcing the breath from her. He smiles and pulls back his other fist with another attack.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to use Eldritch Blast : 9, 2-harm inflicted and 1-harm received. Borrowed Time expires.
The fist strikes Khadiya across her cheek, causing her head to snap back. She falls back a couple of steps against one of the pens. Khadiya pushes away from the pen and swings her fist at Nasir, energy crackling around her hand. The bolt leaps from Khadiya into Nasir's chest. His skin turns an angry red.
Nasir grimaces but remains quiet in spite of the burning heat. His eyes narrow, and he charges at Khadiya for a tackle.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to use Eldritch Blast : 9, 2-harm inflicted and 1-harm received.
The tackle catches Khadiya by surprise and drives her back against the pen with another outrush of air. She grunts from the impact, her eyes burning with unnatural light. Her hands grasp both sides of Nasir's head, and she channels the eldritch bolt between them. Nasir shrieks as elemental energy pours into his skull and the bones of his face crack beneath the heat. He collapses to the ground of the fighting pit, tendrils of smoke drifting lazily on the wind.
Khadiya VP : 4, Naazim VP : 0
Khadiya walks over to the burnt corpses in front of the pens and searches for the key. The man inside is thin, bookish with sandy hair and emerald eyes. His clothing looks rich and foreign. She uses the key to unlock the pen.
"Thank you," he hurriedly and hoarsely says. "I don't even know why I'm here."
"You are new to Hygaea," she states, either explanation or observation.
"Yes," he replies.
"The only why is because you allowed yourself to be caught."
"My caravan was raided, and I awoke locked inside a cart. You said this was Hy-" his voice trails off questioningly.
"Hygaea."
"Hygaea," he says, disbelieving, as if she were mocking him. "Hygaea was destroyed."
"Was?" Khadiya asks, pointedly looking around her.
"This can not be. I must return home."
"You are," she replies.
"No, I must return t-"
"There is no return. Head any direction you like, you will find only desert."
"The desert must end somewhere."
"Does it?" Khadiya shrugs and turns back the way she had come. "If it does, none have returned to say so."
"Wait! What am I supposed to do?"
"Not get sold," she shouts over her shoulder.
Investigation Scene : Ambush an Actor who holds a clue.
Walking away from the fighting pits, Khadiya passes the pens once more. A lone figure walks by each pen and checks their condition. The man is dressed in simple lizard skin, short black hair and a sword that swings by his hip. He tugs on each door when he passes by. Each door as solid as the one before.
Khadiya rolls +DEX to sneak up on the man to get a clear shot : 5.
Khadiya sets a bolt in her crossbow and stalks forward. Not as quiet as she preferred, the man notices her approach. His sword comes free of its scabbard, and he marches towards her.
"What are you doing?" he shouts.
Khadiya rolls +DEX to fire the bolt : 8, 2-harm inflicted.
The bolt flies towards the man and pierces the leather armor near his shoulder. He jerks from the impact and snarls, his feet kicking up sand as he charges at Khadiya, sword held in one hand and raised to stab.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to strike him with an eldritch bolt : 8, 2-harm inflicted and 1-harm received.
Khadiya drops the crossbow and readies herself to receive the charge. Her hand crackles with energy. At his approach, she shoves her hand outward and unleashes a torrent of energy into him. The leather darkens, and his skin blisters. The bolt cuts down her assailant but not before his momentum carries his thrust against her side. The blade tears open a light wound in her arm; she gasps from the sudden cut.
Her bruises and the fresh cut will need to be tended to. She takes a few minutes to rest, dressing the cut on her arm. With that done, she searches the corpse for a key. He seemed to have been a jailer or custodian. Instead, she finds a hastily scribbled note :
"Bring the valuables you find to the brothel for sorting. We'll separate what's sellable from what's useable and what's worthless there. It will be our new base of power."
Power? Khadiya scoffs. Lady Hamada might have something to say about that. Yrkala was hers by combat, and she had an army behind her that supported her cause. These intruders may have started a fight they couldn't win. But if Khadiya could prevent the fight from ever starting...
Khadiya VP : 5, Naazim VP : 1.
Action Scene : Pass incriminating evidence to an Actor who can make sure important people learn of the evidence.
GM Note : Convenient...
Khadiya heads towards the brothel in The Chattel Market. Not nearly as upscale as the ones toward the city center, but this was visited by the ones who could barely afford to live beyond The Market. Passing a dirt intersection, the wind still kicking up abrasive sand, Khadiya barely heard the sound of footsteps behind her.
"Causing trouble?" a figure asks. Dressed in tans and browns, he wears a mask over his face, hood to cover his head and soft soled boots. His voice was not so easily masked. Mahdi was one of Hamada's Ghostwise, a scout that, by all rights, should have been able to sneak up on her.
"Me?" she asks. "Preventing, more like." Khadiya hands the scrawled note to him. "The streets are empty, Mahdi. There's an underground struggle taking place under your nose."
"I'm not city folk," Mahdi concedes. "I'm off in the desert most days. Care to tell the tale?"
Khadiya explains what she's learned so far about Naazim, The Market and the brothel. Mahdi nods, listening attentively. He takes another steady look around The Chattel Market as if seeing it for the first time. He nods to himself and turns back to Khadiya.
"I will see this delivered to Lady Hamada," he says, holding up the note. "You're sure you want to do this?"
"Or do what?" asks Khadiya. "Much as I dislike this power, I can put it to use, and Yrkala has become my home."
Mahdi shakes his head, she thinks she sees a smile in his eyes. "A sorcerer with morals. Wonders never cease."
Khadiya narrows her eyes and continues to the brothel.
Khadiya VP : 7, Naazim VP : 1.
Investigation Scene : An allied Actor can get you a clue at personal risk. Skill test to assist.
"Hey!" a hoarse voice whispers. "Over here!"
Khadiya stops near the brothel and looks toward the sandy alley where the voice had come from. The round sandstone building provides shelter for the thin man with emerald eyes. The two floors offering just enough height to create shade from the sun. She crosses the distance and stands in front of him, one fist on her hip.
"What are you doing here?" she asks forcefully.
"Where am I going to go?" he responds. "I don't even know where here is!"
"I told you where here was, but I want to know what you are doing here," Khadiya says, pointing at the ground in front of her feet.
"Maybe I don't like being abducted and want to pay them back. Look, I can help you get in. Unless you got a key, I doubt they're going to invite you in. You help me pay them back; I help you get inside. Easy, right?"
"What do you need me to do?"
"If you can climb up there," he points to the roof, "you can get in through the second floor."
"Me?" she asks. "What are you going to do?"
"If you swear to do this, I will be the bait."
"The what?"
"You'll see. Just make sure you save me, alright?"
"I think your idea of self-preservation is a little off but alright."
Khadiya rolls +INT to cast Spider Climb on herself : 10.
Khadiya approaches the wall as the man exits the alley and heads to the front of the building. Her hand opens, the book appears and turns itself to Embody the Spider's Walk. She performs the incantation, the mandala flares to life and breaks into four glowing rings of runes. Two rings attach to her wrists, spinning a lazy circle. The other two slide around her ankles.
Not troubled by the vertical surface, Khadiya walks along the wall as if it were any other floor. Nearing a window on the second floor, she crouches beside it and peers in. The room is extravagant compared to the rest of The Chattel Market. A bed that actually seems comfortable. Soft pillows. A burgundy rug with an intricate pattern traced in gold. And a tanned woman with wavy black hair. Blue bedlah lined in silver with a similar blue sirwal.
Khadiya rolls +DEX to sneak into the room and marks XP : 3.
Not much of a thief, Khadiya's foot scrapes loudly against the sandstone as she enters. The dark haired woman turns, startled, and sees Khadiya coming through her window while crawling on the ceiling. She lets out a scream. Almost instantly, a guard outside the door bursts in.
"What's go-" the guards words catch in his throat, turning toward the window that the dancer is pointing at. "How?"
Khadiya rolls +CHA and shoots the guard with an eldritch bolt : 11 and 2-harm inflicted.
His hestitation is all she needs. Kneeling on the ceiling, her hand flings a bolt of energy at the guard. It strikes him in the sternum and sends the guard into the wall. Her knees and toes release, and Khadiya lands on the floor.
"Please don't hurt me," the woman says. "When you came in..." her hand waves to the window.
Khadiya doesn't have the time to determine if she is lying or not. "The guard outside. You're a prisoner?"
The woman nods. "Basilia," she says, tapping her chest. "I dance here, but I think Naazim has other plans for me."
"You have met Naazim?"
"Yes. Unmistakable. He is nearly seven feet tall, large, like an ogre. He looks and sounds like a savage, but there is something in his eyes."
"Where is he now?"
"Downstairs, most likely."
"Wait here," and Khadiya walks out the door.
Khadiya VP : 8, Naazim VP : 1.
Action Scene : Sabotage to prevent the foe from using it.
Khadiya leaves Basilia in the room and takes a quick look outside the door. From the second floor, she can see over the railing down to the first. To her left and right, rooms, likely similar to the one behind her, line the walls. She looks up toward the ceiling, an elegant chandelier, far more valuable than a brothel in this area is likely to afford, sheds light throught the two level room.
Tables have been turned to sorting piles, valuable goods on some, worthless detritus on others. Barking orders down on the first level, a giant man paces and gesticulates, ordering his surrounding crew where particular goods should be placed. Near the front door, the emerald eyed man is talking animatedly with another. That other man in rust colored leather slaps him on the head and pushes him into a chair. The group of men gather at his plight, laughing amongst themselves, their duties momentarily forgotten.
"A perfect distraction, stranger," Khadiya mumbles, looking back at the chandelier.
Khadiya rolls +INT to cast mage hand : 10.
Limbs still encircled by the bands of glowing runes, she walks up the wall and across the ceiling. Her dark wand appears and waves a series of signs in the air, and a mandala opens, a spectral hand emerges from the center. She directs it to the chain preventing the chandelier from falling and takes a hold of it herself.
She counts to three silently then heaves the chandelier, assisted by the summoned hand, and barely pulls the source of light from its cradle. Gravity takes over and the chandelier is pulled from her hands. It falls and crashes on to the group of men beneath her.
Action Scene : Finale.
Naazim turns at the crash, his crew broken beneath the weight of the chandelier. He turns his dark gaze upward and spies Khadiya kneeling on the ceiling. Naazim sneers and walks to the table with valuable goods and rummages through the pile. From her vantage point, Khadiya rains a bolt of blue white light on Naazim.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to attack Naazim with an eldritch blast : 7 and inflicts 2-harm.
The bolt tears into the giant man, scoring a red welt across his shoulder and back. Naazim's back spasm, and he grimaces with a sharp intake of breath. The grimace becomes a grin as his hands find the object of his search : a bow. He turns up to Khadiya, an arrow ready to take flight.
Khadiya rolls +INT to drop to the floor and cast Armor of Agathys : 9, 2-harm received.
The fall from this height sends a shooting pain through her legs, however, she rolls forward to alleviate some of the impact. She comes to her feet and casts Rime Cloak of the Ancient Past, the wand and words summoning another mandala that flares to life then shatters into shimmering shards of ice. Her skin encased in a sheet of pale blue ice. The arrow finds its mark, crystal slivers spray back from Khadiya's shoulder as it deflects the attack. Naazim snarls and charges at her, pulling a sword off the table.
Khadiya rolls +CHA to attack Naazim : 8 and 4-harm inflicted, 1-harm received. Armor of Agathys expires.
Khadiya lances Naazim in the leg, the eldritch bolt slicing into his thigh. Undettered, Naazim swings the sword and strikes Khadiya in the arm. The rime sheathe turns the blow aside, more ice fly from the blow, then the rime cloak shatters. Icy shards swirl around Khadiya in a miniature whirlwind and tear through Naazim's flesh. A multitude of tiny cuts from razor thin edges. Naazim screams and collapses to the floor.
She turns to the man with emerald eyes and simply nods.
"Thank you," he says, "I wasn't sure if you would actually save me."
Khadiya smiles, "You were on the way."
"I see that. Thank you all the same." He gets up from the chair and walks up to Khadiya. "Nevan," he says. "Nevan Ferguson."
"Well, Nevan, let's pray that the rest of your stay is not nearly as eventful as today..."
Khadiya the Branded
Khadiya has flowing black hair and light brown eyes. Her tan skin is marked with white arcane sigils along her arms and back. She wears teal brigandine made of lizard skin and bone over her black sirwal and white tunic. Khadiya carries a pair of daggers, a crossbow and her adventuring pack.
+2 Charisma
+1 Dexterity*, Intelligence
+0 Constitution, Strength
-1 Wisdom*
Borrowed Time : You have the Blessing of Yrkali and, once per day, may increase your Harm track by +CHA when you take a life. The blessing resets at dawn.
Fragments of Forbidden Knowledge : You have the ability to invoke eldritch power. It counts as a basic move using Charisma.
Infernal Grimoire of Yrkali : You possess a spellbook and have the ability to cast spells. It counts as a basic move using Intelligence.
Cantrips Learned : eldritch blast, mage hand
Eldritch Invocations Discovered : devil's sight, thief of five fates
Spells Inscribed Within : Conduit of the Scorching Sun (burning hands), Embody the Spider's Walk (spider climb), Rime Cloak of the Ancient Past (armor of agathys), The Emir's Decree (command)
Gear : adventuring gear (5 uses), arcane focus (beech wand), blanket, common clothes, crossbow (2-harm 3 ammo near reload), daggers (1-harm hand), herbalism kit (4 uses), leather armor (1-armor), rabbit's foot, rations (5 uses), scroll case of arcane research notes (5 uses), 5 gold
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