31-The Little Helper
Siri is still too young to do everything, but she has been helping her papa at the bar since her mama died of pneumonia over a year ago. Perhaps 7 or 8, her little head barely peeks over the tops of the tables she serves, and she has to use a footstool to do anything at the bar. What she lacks in experience she makes up for in imitation -- she has years of watching real barmaids at work, and tries to do what she can remember them doing before her papa had to let them go to pay for her mother's medicine. Siri will take orders in her high, girlish voice and then will repeat it back in a sing-song to herself all the way to the kitchen so she doesn't forget (she can't write yet). She doesn't have the strength to carry a fully-loaded platter, and so will have to make several trips per table. PCs who help her papa will earn a special place in her heart.
32-The Granny
Old Sue has been working at this bar since her wild youth, and has nearly 30 years of experience to back her up. She is very set in her ways and will always do things in her own way, on her own time. She hates anything that interrupts her routine (cleaning the tables at this time, taking orders for drinks before orders for food, etc), and keeps a firm handle on the other barmaids at all times. Old Sue isn't afraid to ask an unruly patron to leave (think Soup-Nazi), and is quick to point out that she has seen and heard it all before. Getting on her good side is tricky, but worth it. She probably has a great many gems of wisdom to share, and can remember events in the general area going back several generations.
33-The Mother
Mother of 5, this barmaid has no one to care for her children, and so has made a deal with the bar owner that she can bring her children to work with her (as long as they stay out of the way). Her entire brood usually takes up a small table by the fireplace, and she will firmly shoo them back to their corner if they get too far out of line. She always appears a little distracted and/or tired, will talk proudly about her children given the slightest opportunity, and will firmly refuse any overt solicitations (not wanting her children to see that). Perhaps in her early thirties, she's still quite pretty and would be interested in starting another committed, long-term relationship, but has just about given up on that dream.
This would fit so well into a Dresden Files game -- modern, yet mystical with more than a little tragedy to spice things up. She's a beautifully designed NPC, well worthy of the 5/5.
Notes from running the dungeon with my group:
Exploit 1: The Cure was intended to be a way to force the party into a confrontation with the Beast on its terms. Instead, the party decided to grab a random selection of every plant out there that looked as if it could be ready to bloom, and plant them in pots within the Servant's Quarters, in the hopes of foiling the "flower that only blooms at night" ploy.
Exploit 2: Spell components. Because it was a wizard's tower, the party alchemist was able to find ingredients for almost anything, including sleeping potion (which could be used on the gryphons and even the Cat).
Things I wish I had done differently:
Wish I had included more opportunities for combat. The adventure was intended to provide a way around almost all combat, and that's fine, but it would be good to include a list of optional combat encounters that the GM could throw at his/her players if things start to lag.
Here are some ideas:
I could also have included a few more non-combat disasters. What things could go wrong or out of control without the wizard's direct oversight? Automated tower responses are a rich area that I didn't get a chance to explore.
I needed a better mechanism for deciding when the clock would chime. Probably rolling a die every 10 minutes?
Finally, more thought should be given to the werewolf's behaviour during the day. I think it would generally refuse to go outside, but what if the alarm goes off in the Wizard's Quarters? What if the party flees outside into the daylight? Who knows how a werewolf would react in those situations?
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This is a good start. When reading this, I thought of about a dozen questions that I would want answered if I was a PC in this environment. Here are a few:
1. Emergency procedures. What happens in the event of a natural disaster, hull breach etc? Are the prisoners left to drown, or would there be an opportunity to escape?
2. The elevator can't really be the only way to move between levels, right? Otherwise, what happens when the power goes out?
3. If 5 of the maximum security cells are occupied, it'd be neat to have a list of those inmates' names and what they were in for. Are they gang leaders? I bet there are lots of stories/legends circulating about them on the prison floor, so having that info would be nice.
To be honest, you lost me at "Mermaid Nookie". Some of these items are quite creative, especially in the weapons section, but most are pretty average. The gifts of "gold coins" or "caviar", for example, would probably already be on most GMs' minds, and so they add little to this sub. Try to focus on creating more unique gifts -- like the fresh water pearl or the dolphin mounts. Things that other people wouldn't immediately think of.
P.S. Suggesting Enya's music for the mermaid concert was a great call.
We should have more magic items like this in the Citadel -- simple, amusing, and of a reasonable power level for lowbies. I can already imagine some of the things my group would try to do with it. Great quest sub!
Systems (Divine/ Spirit) (Defining)
Slys started off as a simple image in my head that just wouldn't go away: a monstrous die composed of human faces sewn together at the edges. I'm just glad I finally found time to write it down so that I could focus on something else. Thanks for the feedback! Go to Comment