View source for The compiled notes (not many) of a brief history of benscondo

2010 Bday game:

The premise:
-Get everyone's favorite character into one group and watch the shenanigans
-A crossover plot that isn't super lame but is still a bit campy
-A game that is diverse in its gamist, narrativist, and simulationist tendencies, with appropriate challenges suited to different kinds of characters
-An opportunity to bring in NPCs in the spirit of the first two items.

The PCs
1.) Jason: Walter of Marin (Out)
2.) Ed: Viho Ciquala, future dictatorial self (~450)
3.) Matt: Antares Darkeye (~200)
4.) Brandon: Thief (~150)
5.) Dieter: Grant Kromminer (~150)
6.) Gabe: Duke Zenra (~150pts)
7.) Justin: Ethan Holme (~400 pts.)
Total: ~1500
1-2 powerful combat characters

The NPCs
-Jagha
-Von Teumar
-The Old Man of the Sea
-Oryxys ???
-Stonewall Jackson/Hrulfgarr
-Von Recklinghausen or Manfred von Carstein ???
-Elizabeth Bathory or one of her cronies
-Archibald Grimm ???
-Anjou
-Nathan character, possibly helmed by Chris
-Hans
-the juice
-kingsnake
-a kid
-garcon
-lord thundermaw

Jagha obviously sets the players on their path.  But to what end?  I think the proper wrapping for PCs is: a simplistic setup, wrapped in a complex conspiracy, wrapped in what is in fact a simplistic, but other true motive.
Is this a true crossover, with little attention to story continuity throughout, or an attempt to reconcile countless realities?  I always tend towards the latter, but I think the former is more appropriate.  That being said, Jagha has always been dedicated fundamentally to the "good", however it must be obtained.
Now all I need is a goal.
I do plan on having the players actually "fetch" each other: some number of them will get the original call...
Perhaps I should start it the way I started the first game that most of the PCs experienced, with the letter from Jagha to appear at the ancestral DuValle residence, that seems fun...and of course they would get promptly ambushed...of course this would preclude "fetching" of any kind, but that might save a lot of time.

Planes/places to hit:
-Amor
-Gemini
-the six kingdoms check
-WFRP: Kingmakers check
-Matt's WFRP: 1st version check
-The shadow-dreamland check
-PA check
-WH40K check


Scene 1: The ruins of the DuValle Estate/Champions
Each character will receive a letter of invitation from Jagha, as was sent in the original game.  They'll fetch each other in whatever order ther players arrive.
The characters gather at the ruined mansion, where Jagha informs them that they have been selected to seek out a series of artifacts from across a range of dimensions: vast wealth should be sufficient for most of the characters.  If Viho refuses or Ethan, the pitch will be Hassan's involvement or new knowledge, respectively.  They will be given a "map" of places to travel from dimension to dimension
Once they are all on board, they will be sent to eastern europe to the Bathory Manse.  There they'll battle some mid range badguys...some hellhounds/beasts, maybe.  Once they win, they can explore the mansion: they will have been told that the mirror is the gateway to the next stop.  The mirror is, of course, shattered, and they will have to put it back together.
Side Plots:
-The house contains the face eating book, rife for Ethan to discover
-Stuff to steal that will cause them problems later
    Encounters:
        -Old man of the sea, in the library.  He'll provide an impetus to "look around"  The library is in fact the recovered "forbidden chamber" after the defeat of von Carstein

Scene 2: PA
The mirror will spit them out in a mirror maze much like the one in the mansion...maybe it will seem like they went nowhere, and I can play this up.  Anyways, they will come out in the BigTop and find Garcon in the service of the Great Milenko.  They can battle it up with him and his goons.  From there they will need to go to the messiah harbinger bunker.  To get there, they will run into Pierre, who will offer to transport them in exchange for viho's armor.  If the characters fail in their bargaining, he will challenge one of them to a drinking contest, then pick a boxing match with a random character.  Then he'll transport them.  Garcon will refuse to be carried by viho.  There they will meet salome and julia: they can fight, or not.  The gate will be down in the bottom, with Garcon kicking and screaming the whole way.  The location actually has strange occult properties, and some searching will reveal a trove of strange occult goodies, that may come in handy later, if they let ethan have his way.
Side Plots:
    -occult goodies: if they don't whack julia, she will be able to help them find them
Encounters
        -The Great Milenko
        -Salome/Dog
        -Julia

Scene 3:  a bridge
The portal, a shimmering pool of water will take them to the six kingdoms, where there is nothing for them to get.  here they must get to the secret pirate's cove where the "3 assassins keep court": To this end, they'll need to get a ride from the Crag "across the sea!"
Side Plots:
-If they want to meet up with the emperor, it should be doable.  The Old Man of the Sea may have an idea
Encounters:
-Jin Mae Tien
-Old man of hte sea
-Kreikil and co.

Scene 4: WH40K. 
They must recover a OMG-15567.49 revision B signed and authenticated.  They will start in the "underhive" of the ship.  Security above is tight: if Ed heads up there in his armor, he will be in big trouble, and they will likely blow the shit out of him: Terminators can do that.  Options would get it tubed to them, go the scribes, or something else.  The portal is in the central archives.
Side Plots:
-Occult knowledge
-Thief and Ethan show up as psychers.  trouble ensues.  time dependent
Encounters:
-the gang from the one shot. 

Scene 5: The shadow dreamland
The characters must recover a small bag from grimelda.  From there they'll need to get to the dark fountain.  If they got occult  bidness before, they can use it.  Otherwise they might need to get help...Anyways, from here they can basically just walk straight to their next location.
Side Plots:
-The Quarry
Encounters:
-Grimelda
-Aia (?)

Scene 6: Kingmakers WFRP
The characters must sort out the family tree of the stadler-lowengeists: the commoners have taken to calling all of them Hans.  The characters as a whole may be out of sorts here, and this could be quite funny. Through this they will need to battle the giant, who has the next access point.
Side Plots:
-More occult goodies
-Treasure to steal
-Invitation to a ball for Duke Zenra
Encounters:
-Hanses...nuff said
--Lord Thundermaw

Scene 7: Roman WFRP
g  Courtesy of "The Lady and the Fool".  The northman will lead them there..maybe.  After a drinking contest.  then he'll pick a fight with one of them. Von Teumar will show up somewhere, maybe when they try to get the bottle of wine.  Or earlier. The portal is in the river under the mountain: Ignotus/Jacob will show it to them.
Side Plots:
-occult bidness
Encounters:
-Robert and Skaven
-Von teumar


Scene 8: Amor
From Amor: a coin of the country "???" which will have been a coin from the blasted lands: one in each major dragon's trove, and other similar locations
Side Plots:
-???
Encounters:
-Jagha?
-Oryxys

Scene 9: The Last Scene: Gemini
A ship.  they will be in a spaceport.  The ship is in the possession of a particular crime lord.  They can battle him, gamble against him, or just steal it. 
Side Plots:
None
Encounters:
-Aedil
-Ules?




A Letter:

Your character receives a letter, dropped somewhere where only he would find it: it is written on fine, hand cut parchment, and sealed with black sealing-wax stamped with an ornate circle. 
Upon opening, it says the following:

"Your presence is requested, at high noon upon the 27th of March 2010, Saturday, at the DuValle family estate, to discuss a matter of grave importance in which your assistance is required.  You will be compensated for your travel expenses, and duly rewarded should you choose to assist in this sensitive matter.

Sincerely,
Baba Yaga"



Proceed as follows.  I have endeavored to secure your arrival in each plane near the time and place of the object of power:
I
Go to the Manse at Cachtice, near Csejte Castle, and find there the Great Mirror in the Library.  It is the First Doorway.

II
Find the malfunctioning service droid.  From there proceed to the deepest level of bunker 37

III
Cross this third realm to where the 3 assassins keep court.  There you will proceed.

IV
Obtain a OMG-15567.49 revision B signed and authenticated.  The portal is at the center of the great library.

V
The witch Grimelda has a bag of bones, which you must obtain from her.  From there proceed to the shadow fountain.

VI
Construct an accurate family tree of the Stadler-Lowengeist family.   At the den of hte giant, find the next portal.

VII
A bottle of 1000 Chateau d'Chasseau.  The portal lies at the center of the river that flows in two directions.

VIII
Find the white cat.  It will lead you home...or whatever destination you might desire.



The Aftermath
A vast fortress, which takes up the entirety of a rocky island.  The walls are immense and crafted of well fitted jet black stone. 
Interior: a long, gloomy hallway, lit intermittently by halogen light.  At its end, a bunker-like room illuminated by countless computer screens.  Long strings of data and shifting images occupy the majority.  At the center, a circular wooden table polished from what appears to be an uninterrupted cross section of a massive tree, is covered in half eaten meals and a jumble of newspapers and computer printouts.  Sitting on the table is a slender teenage girl, blonde, in a powder blue dress with a white apron and immaculate white stockings.  She is picking at her lip nervously and staring at a screen across from her.  Beside her, a scrawny boy with acne and a man with salt and pepper hair stand, their heads close together, their eyes and fingers flitting like looped film footage over three pieces of paper the color of slate.  To one side, a well muscled young man in a white tank top and a Bearded man in a monk's habit sit across from one another, their eyes locked as if in a duel.  Behind the young man is a bear of a man, seated cross legged on the floor, his nose in a book. 
"Well?"  The girl on the table says after several minutes.  There is no answer.
"Ender." 
"What?"  Puberty hasn't been kind to the boy's face, and he wears his hair long to cover the scars. 
"Did it work...is it working?"
Ender throws a glance over his shoulder at the man, who shrugs and smiles.  "It's complicated."
The girl rolls her eyes.  "I get that.  So?"
"Your answer is a moving target: you first have to create a projection of a multiple dimensional reality onto three dimensional space, with only one time dimension, and then model that with a bunch of equations."
The girl stares blankly.
"Don't worry, I won't bore you with the details Alice.  DM's done all of that: but all that can really get us is probabilities, probabilities that change constantly.  Opperman thinks we need to perform another terminal manipulation to lock it in."
"Look, I know that you think that because I'm a construct, I'm better at this stuff than the others.  And it flatters me.  But here's the deal: even Salome is better at it than I am.  What I'm hearing is 'probably', but I have no idea what a 'terminal manipulation' is supposed to be."
The man speaks up. "One of the special circumstances of my equation, but a particularly special one: one that coincides across all threads of possibility.  In other words, a choke point."
"They've tied the knot: now they need to pull it tight"  The bearded man on the floor is putting down his book.  "Or rather, Dzain, Aefra, and Jagha are.  In the labyrinth itself."
A phone rings, and the monk jumps.  The boy across from him laughs and pulls an iphone from his pocket.  "Oh man, it never gets old."
"It keeps making a different sound." The man is smiling and reflexively fingering a small emblem around his neck.  "And I'm nervous."
"Oh I know it makes a different sound."  The boy smirks at Alice, who chuckles a bit. "I keep changing it. Relax, Ambrose."
"My apologies, Xavier.  Hopefully I haven't disrupted your connection?"
"Not at all.  They're still in position.  You want a detailed profile of their thoughts and emotions?  Some of them are...inappropriate...please say yes."
Alice laughs louder.
"No, no, that's alright.  The monk is turning pink." 
Xavier puts the phone to his ear.  "Salome, sup?  Ok, great.  See you soon."  The phone is replaced in his pocket.  "Ok, everyone's looking the other way...metaphorically speaking, to keep these math freaks over here happy."  He pauses a moment.  "You know Ender, I would have taken your lunch money.  Probably beat you up a couple of times.  Sorry about that."
"It never happened, but thanks."
"Well, with all these realities, you know...maybe it did."
"I think Opperman already explained about us being singularities.  So it really, really didn't."
"Oh.  Great.  Anyways, Salome's trick worked.  Apparently it got messy, but Neba's got it under control.  Damn, I love to watch that guy work.  Makes Jet Li look like that broomstick kid."
"You were saying?"  The man is rising from the floor, so that he looks more like a piece of furniture than a person.  "It sounds like things got hot.  Do they need assistance?"
"Doesn't sound like it.  I mean, they're on the run, but it's not exactly easy to follow salome.  Or Neba, for that matter.  No need to go to plan B, Christopher."
The bear-man nods, but remains standing.
A siren shatters the air, but nobody jumps: rather, everyone drops into low, loose stances except for Xavier, who remains sitting, and Opperman and Ender, who glance up at a screen.
"Ok people, it's coming.  Xavier..."
"Already on it.  She's on the way down."
Alice hops off the table and lifts a metal pole from its place against the wall.  She positions herself next to christopher, who begins stretching his hands and neck.
A young woman in a shimmering bronze breastplate and chainmail sweeps into the room, and immediately all eyes are upon her. 
Ender stands up straighter, and begins to speak.  "twenty seconds, guinevere."
She says nothing.  An instant later.  Two more people dash into the room, a man in a dark robe and a red haired girl.  The robed man appears to be bleeding, and the monk steps to his side. 
"Did we miss it?"  The girl says through ragged breaths.
"No.  On my mark.  3, 2, 1."
The room goes silent.  a minute goes by.  Then another. 
The closet door opens.  A scrufy blond man, a suited woman, and a woman with wings step out.  The suited woman nods to the girl in armor.
"And?"  Her voice is flat.
Opperman and Ender have shifted, and are furiously typing on a pair of computers.  between strokes, Opperman speaks up.  "It's looking good.  It'll take a few days to be sure."
"Jagha, what is to become of those men?"
"Who knows?  They will find their way."
"But they are trapped, in the system called Gemini?"
"In a sense.  But they are...resourceful.  They will find a way out."
"But isn't the point to stop just that?  There was a back door in the labyrinth, a way for our enemies to flank us.  And this...journey, it was meant to close that door. So they should be stuck."
"Not exactly.  They are barred from the labyrinth. But there is no reason they cannot cross dimensional barriers: and their ship can do just that.  I'm sure they will make the most of it: those who wish to return home will succeed, undoubtedly."
There is a moment of silence, then Xavier speaks up.  "Sometimes, Jagha, you seem a little...cold blooded to me.  No offense or anything."
The suited woman smiles.  It is a thin, cold smile.  "Granted.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I must go and sign the deed to Carstein's remaining estates over to Ms. Bathory.  And to thank her for the use of her house.  And of course Emir, for his assistance."