Happy New Year! The past year has brought lots of changes for me personally, but I'm excited to see what 2018 has in store for life. My first post of the new year is this short adventure.
-Nate
Blood on the Snow
This short scenario is written for use with the Sixth Gun
roleplaying game, based on the comics from Oni Press, using the
Savage Worlds RPG from Pinnacle Entertainment Group. It is
intended for a relatively new group of characters, but can easily be
adjusted for use with stronger parties.
Introduction
Life on the American
frontier is not easy. The basic necessities of life—shelter, food
and water—can be hard to acquire. There's danger from foul weather,
not to mention potentially hostile Indians or even bandits. More
recently, however, an even greater threat has appeared: someone, or
something, has been attacking isolated farmsteads. The popular
opinion is that local Indians are responsible, and that the White
settlers and their military protectors will soon be a reckoning with
the natives.
Adventure
Synopsis
The heroes happen to
be present at a remote location—such as a frontier military
fort—when one of the werewolf's victims shows up on the scene,
having suffered grievous injuries. So long as they are willing to
investigate the matter, the heroes can trace this unfortunate back to
a farm that has been left in ruins. Taking a closer look provides a
clue that things may not be quite what they seem, however. As long as
cooler heads can prevail, the heroes can look deeper into the
situation. That requires keeping suspicious soldiers from
overreacting, negotiating with local Indians, and learning that they,
too, have suffered attacks. In the end, if they are careful, the
heroes can track the culprit to his lair.
For
the Gun Master
For years Hugo Francois LeBlanc, a skilled woodsman and trapper, has lived as an
outcast. He is infected with the disease known as lycanthropy;
with the coming of every full moon, he turns into a wolf and goes on
a murderous rampage. At first he was able to minimize his killing
sprees, claiming a few victims in a remote and isolated location
before the cycle of the moon had passed. He also kept moving from
place to place, always a step or two ahead of those who sought to
capture and punish him. Even so, gradually Henri has started to run
out of territory in which to hunt, ranging always further south. Now
he's reached territory with a more sizable native population,
scattered White settlements and, what is worse, a military presence.
Knowing that they could eventually coordinate with each other, expose
his activities and hunt him down, he's devised a plan to divide and
conquer them.
He's going to start
a war on the frontier.
To that end, Henri
has begun attacking isolated Indian camps and White farmsteads,
satiating his bloodlust while also planting evidence that
incriminates one group or the other. Ultimately, he hopes to incite
the two sides to seek vengeance against each other, thereby creating
chaos in which he can continue to hunt with impunity.
Involving
the Heroes
The start of this
scenario assumes that the heroes are visiting some location on the
American frontier. The frontier fort, presented in another
supplement, is an excellent starting location, since, it is suitably
remote and introduces vigilant but weary military personnel who can
act as a foil to the heroes as they investigate the recent killings.
Alternately, a
settlement such as Smith's Crossing, also detailed in another
supplement, could serve as the launching point. In that case, it
could be a bloodthirsty posse, rather than army soldiers, who seek
revenge in spite of the heroes' efforts to discover the truth of the
matter.
In that case, the
nature of the people who run Smith's Crossing, and the means by which
they do so, can provide an added level of complication to this
investigation.
Scene
1—Running Wild
Note that this
scenario assumes the action is starting at a frontier military fort;
a GM opting to use a different location can adjust the details
accordingly.
To begin, the
heroes have a chance to experience life in the fort and interact with
those who live there. At the GM's discretion, that could be little
more than some vivid description, or might involve the heroes making
checks for useful skills in order to contribute: Healing to help
treat wounded soldiers; Knowledge to recall an interesting tale and
entertain the troops; Repair to fix a broken stove or some other
device; or Tracking to help find some wild game, providing a welcome
change from salt pork, hardtack and beans. There could even be an
opportunity for some Gambling, too.
The
Runaway Wagon
At some point once
the heroes have had time to interact with the locals, they should all
make Notice checks; success means that they hear the rumble of
approaching wagon wheels, and gives them five rounds in which to
react as the wagon comes rumbling past the fort. Each raise achieved
lets that character have an additional five rounds in which to act.
The wagon is drawn by a single horse that is running at full speed
but is nearly exhausted. There is someone slumped over in the
driver's seat. Those who succeed at a second Notice check can also
see that there are people lying motionless in the back of the wagon.
The heroes have a
number of options for dealing with the runaway wagon. One is for a
character to make a Climb check at -2 in order to jump aboard the
wagon. Failure on that check means the character takes a tumble but
is unhurt; a botch means the character suffers 2d6 falling damage,
just as for falling off of a mount (see page 74 of the core
rulebook). Once aboard, the character must then make a Driving check
at -2 to rein in the horse. Another option is for a character to make
two Riding checks at -2 penalties, one to jump onto the horse and one
to bring it to a halt. Of course, the heroes are likely to devise
other means of stopping the wagon, subject to the GM's adjudication.
All in all, this is meant to be an exciting scene, but not one that
threatens serious harm for the heroes.
After they've
gained control of the horse (or, at least, the wagon), the heroes can
learn a little more about the situation. The driver is a woman who is
incapacitated by fatigue and the cold. Bundled in blankets in the
back of the wagon are two children, terribly frightened but otherwise
okay. The kids can explain that they are Ellie and Sam Clayton, from
a farm near here; their parents are Nora, the driver, and Samuel.
They don't know what has happened to him, except that their mother
made them leave the farm in a hurry, without him, “because they
were in danger.” Just what that danger was, however, they don't
know. A Healing check can start Nora along the road to recovery, but
it takes time that the heroes probably don't have.
Instead, if they
want to learn more, the heroes have one main option, to follow the
wagon's route back to the farmstead from which it originated. Those
who succeed at a general Knowledge test can recall where that place
is located, and the fort's personnel can help with that, at the GM's
discretion. Failing that, the heroes can make a Tracking check to
retrace its route. Whatever the case, the action can continue in the
next scene.
The
Overzealous Cavalry Officer
A good option for
adding more roleplaying to this and other scenes is for the GM to
play up the part of Lieutenant Danforth Jeffreys, the fort's
cavalry commander. He jumps to the conclusion that this is the
result of an attack by Indians, and wants to respond in force. The
lieutenant can therefore be played as a foil for the heroes, and
possibly even incite combat if they don't manage to keep him in
check.
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Scene
2—The Scene of the Crime
Refer to the map
above when the heroes arrive at the Clayton family's farm. It
consists of a small house with a main room and kitchen (1A), along
with bedrooms for the children and parents (B and C). These have
clearly been ransacked, with items strewn about the floor and nothing
of value remaining. There is also a cattle barn (2) with a fenced
area for cows, along with an outhouse (3) and a horse barn (4). While
the latter two are empty, the prior of these contains the slaughtered
remains of several cows. What is more, the front gate to the cattle
pen stands open, and several wolves have wandered in to pick meat off
the of the dead cattle.
Wolves—Use
the stats from page 157 of the Savage
Worlds Deluxe rulebook.
In addition to the
wolves, there is plenty of evidence that local Indians are
responsible for this attack. Numerous native arrows stick out of the
ground, and walls of buildings; additionally, a Tracking check
reveals footprints that seem to have been made by people wearing
moccasins, rather than boots or other more modern footwear. A raise
on that check, however, reveals that the tracks in and around the
farm seem to have been made by the same individual, while others,
leading away from the farm, were made by a group of individuals. Just
what this implies—that one person committed the crime, but that a
group then came along to witness the aftermath—is up to the heroes
to deduce.
Scene
3—Two Sides to Every Story
Another Tracking
effort can lead the heroes from the farm to the Indians' camp; refer
to the map above. It consists of four tepees clustered together in an
area that is out of the wind; each is home to one brave and his
family. There is also a place where they've driven stakes into the
ground to tether their ponies. That makes it harder for the heroes to
sneak up on the camp, since the ponies can also make Notice checks
opposed to their Stealth efforts.
Braves—Use
the stats from page 84 of the Sixth
Gun RPG.
Ponies—Use
the stats for riding horses from page 160 of the Savage
Worlds core rulebook.
As
long as they can have a look at the camp, they can find even more
evidence that seems to implicate the Indians in the attack. In one of
the tepees, Samuel Clayton is bound and gagged. This is not because
they took him prisoner, however, but because they found him wandering
and recognized that something is not right about him. They do not
know that he has been infected with lycanthropy, though.
Developments
Just
how this situation plays out depends on how the heroes decide to
approach it. Those who are looking for a fight can easily find one,
since the Indians are wary of retribution from the Whites. Should
that happen, then it could lead to an ongoing series of skirmishes,
with more and more people from both sides of the conflict becoming
involved in the growing conflict.
On
the other hand, if cooler heads prevail, then the heroes can learn a
good deal more about the situation. Standing Bear, the Indians'
leader, can explain that his people didn't attack the farmstead, but
that they found Samuel Clayton left for dead. They've been keeping
him bound because “There is something wrong
about him.” Should anyone think to ask about any people other than
farmers, soldiers and Indians in the area, Standing Bear can confirm
that they were visited by a White Man, a trapper and trader from the
north, named Hugo. Indeed, he can even lead them to Hugo's hunting
camp.
Scene
4—Hunter and Hunted
If the heroes manage
to track down Hugo, they find that he's a formidable foe. His
campsite is surrounded by bear traps that are hidden in the snow.
Those who move through one of the trapped squares must make a Notice
check at -2 to avoid it, or suffer 2d6 damage and become immobilized.
At that point, it takes a Lockpicking check or a Strength test to
disable the trap. This also, of course, alerts the werewolf to their
arrival.
Henri
Francois LeBlanc—Use the
stats for a Werewolf from page 78 of The
Sixth Gun RPG. Note that
the loup garou
has kept some spoils from his previous kills, including miscellaneous
money worth a total of $100.
Hugo fights to the
death. Keep in mind that it takes silver weapons to hurt him, so this
should press the heroes into being creative about how they fight him.
Epilogue
As long as the
heroes can expose Hugo's ruse, they can prevent a war between the
Indians and settlers. While there isn't much monetary gain for them,
they have won some potentially valuable allies.
Further
Adventures
Elements
from this scenario can also lead to other adventures; a few of the
possibilities are detailed below.
In
the tent the heroes can find evidence of multiple previous “lives”
for Hugo Francois LeBlanc, any one of which could involve another
plot. This might include an undelivered letter that holds clues to a
strange plot, a map to an unfinished mining claim, or the like.
The
Indians are grateful for the heroes' aid, and may come to them
looking for help with future difficulties involving White settlers
or other tribes.
Recognizing
the heroes' abilities, the commander of the military fort, Captain
Anders Arneson, might also have jobs for them in the future, such as
helping to track down and bring to justice a notorious band of
outlaws.
There's
also the matter of recently widowed Nora Clayton, who could become a
romantic interest for one of the heroes.
