Post by liliyana on Jul 6, 2015 21:26:39 GMT
This is the first episode of a game my husband ran in Planescape, and except for my character (who was treated as an NPC I was helping out) all of the characters had been pulled from previous games that had been played in various systems. It's still the most talked about game, among a group of people who have gamed together for over a decade.
The characters were:
Captain Jonathan: A pirate who's air ship had been destroyed and scattered across the planes after a misadventure, leaving him with only the ships control computer which was a band of metal he wore around his head and called him Wesley and was generally unhelpful but hilarious.
Simon and Remy: An esper and his thrall who was deathly protective of her master. He had escaped from a world where magic was suppressed and he had been hunted for helping a rebel.
Abraxus Spellchaser: Adopted son of Nerrick Spellchaser. For a birthday present Abraxus had been dropped on Simon's world by his father and told to find a way out. With Simon's help they both escaped.
Xallis: Mad Priest serving the god of chaos, the reason Abraxus, Manuel, Simon, and Remy escaped in one piece.
Manuel of the Planes: (cue spanish guitars every time his name is mentioned), rogue, planes traveler, "the portal whisperer"
Kara: The worst Valkyrie ever. Based on the legend of a real Valkyrie who fell in love with a Viking warrior, married him, and devoted her life to protecting him.
Opening Scene:
Xallis, Simon, Remy, Manuel, and Abe have landed in the middle of a battle between the Einherjar and the Frost Giant. Realizing that they've landed in a rather precarious situation (having just escaped one) they decided to fight there way up the mountain towards a cave that's barely visible on the side. On the way up they are passed by a warrior rolling down the mountain yelling Kara's name. The giant flies off a cliff ledge and the warrior stands, looks around, strikes a manly pose and yells "I am invincible!". A frost giant promptly crushes him with a rock, the last word barely making it out of the warrior's mouth. Other warriors are screaming about Ragnarök.
Reaching the cave just ahead of a massive avalanche, Xallis trips over a corpse and a spear just inside the mouth of the cave. The avalanche seals the entrance of the cave, just after Abe rushes in.
Xallis, thought insane, is rather knowledgeable. He points out that most of the time, dying in this place means you wake up with a hang-over around dinner-time and promptly informs us that she will be waking up at any moment and insists we wait for her instead of further exploring the cave and looking for a way OUT.
Xallis goes to grab the spear, but recoils when energy knocks away his hand. Abe decides to use is Arcane/Astral sight to look at the spear, and low and behold discovers that it's Odin's spear, Gungnir.
The woman vaults awake, alive, and to her feet, grabbing the spear immediately without any misfortune.She immediately begins glowing. Aasimar, but what you would expect from a Valkyrie: tall, blonde, and shaped like something out of your fantasies.
She begins rapidly talking at us in the local tongue. None of us speak it.
Simon decides that the best course of action is to start talking into her mind, which only agitates her.
Abe tries talking to her in the common tongue of the plane, Asura. She understands and begins repeating her questions:
"Who are you and what have you done with Helgi? What have you done with the All-Father?"
Unsatisfied with our complete confusion and protestations that we have done nothing with either, she begins accusing us of being Loki's spies. Abe having a flash of inspiration, asks if Helgi was the lunatic who went skydiving without a chute (he was).
Angry and frustrated, she stalks off into the cave. Xallis, being too crazy to bother with caution immediately follows her. So the rest of the party shrugs and follows her. Realizing she has company, she finally introduces herself as Kará.
Just after introductions have finished, they hear a high pitched and terrified scream from deeper in the cave. Kara, with the others following, rushes towards the voice arriving in a small valley on the other side of the mountain. The valley has a lake, some scrub, a great deal of snow, and a pack of wolves with ice-white fur and about the size of horses surrounding a man.
The man is the source of the screams. Manuel rapidly twists his hands and suddenly the man drops from between the wolves and next to Manuel. The wolves of course are not about to give up their dinner so easily and are quickly disposed of by the members of the party not screaming like a terrified girl.
The man, having regained his feet and his composure, introduces himself as Captain Jonathan Tiberius Oldblood of the ship Proteus. He has a problem with his ship though. All that he has is the helm of the ship, a small circlet around his head, and the wheel of the ship, currently sitting 60 feet under the water of the lake. Where it rests of a bed of over ten thousand gold coins.
Manuel opens up a new set of portals, pouring the missing component of Jonathan's ship and the coins out onto the shore of the lake. Which, was wonderful for about 30 seconds. Then the dragon leaped out of the lake to protect the hoard the Luckless Fools had just emptied from underneath it.
The party tries to defend themselves, but none seem to be able to breach the dragon's scales. Kará, having watched the adventurers pathetic attempt, summons a horse with a whistle, mounts it, and charges in, Gungnir solidly in the creature's breast. Xallis follows with a brilliant flash of white light, blinding the beast. The rest of the party proceeds to eviscerate the dragon.
Most of the party decides now is a good time to take a moment to breathe a deep sigh of relief on the defeat of our first dragon (and packing as much of its worldly goods into our bags as was possible). Kará, of course, having her own ideas, shouts something then calls forth her own pair of wings, flying off towards the battle.
Manuel announces that he's found a portal, but it's back the way we came. Hurrying back through the cave, eager to get off the plane, they emerge to a wondrous sight: a rolling wave of non-existence headed towards them.
Manuel points towards the foot of the mountain and informs the hapless adventurers that there's a quarter of a mile between them and the portal. Realizing time is VERY short, the party uses Dimension Door to jump most of the way, landing next to Kara.
After a brief conference Kara agrees to follow the party, surprising everyone except Xallis, who appears to have expected this. Manuel has been examining the portal, and declares it leads to Niflheim.
Deciding the realm of the dead is preferable to oblivion, they quickly jump through the portal.
And that, dear readers, was the beginning of a rather memorable campaign, full of love, muffins, and curiosities.
The characters were:
Captain Jonathan: A pirate who's air ship had been destroyed and scattered across the planes after a misadventure, leaving him with only the ships control computer which was a band of metal he wore around his head and called him Wesley and was generally unhelpful but hilarious.
Simon and Remy: An esper and his thrall who was deathly protective of her master. He had escaped from a world where magic was suppressed and he had been hunted for helping a rebel.
Abraxus Spellchaser: Adopted son of Nerrick Spellchaser. For a birthday present Abraxus had been dropped on Simon's world by his father and told to find a way out. With Simon's help they both escaped.
Xallis: Mad Priest serving the god of chaos, the reason Abraxus, Manuel, Simon, and Remy escaped in one piece.
Manuel of the Planes: (cue spanish guitars every time his name is mentioned), rogue, planes traveler, "the portal whisperer"
Kara: The worst Valkyrie ever. Based on the legend of a real Valkyrie who fell in love with a Viking warrior, married him, and devoted her life to protecting him.
Opening Scene:
Xallis, Simon, Remy, Manuel, and Abe have landed in the middle of a battle between the Einherjar and the Frost Giant. Realizing that they've landed in a rather precarious situation (having just escaped one) they decided to fight there way up the mountain towards a cave that's barely visible on the side. On the way up they are passed by a warrior rolling down the mountain yelling Kara's name. The giant flies off a cliff ledge and the warrior stands, looks around, strikes a manly pose and yells "I am invincible!". A frost giant promptly crushes him with a rock, the last word barely making it out of the warrior's mouth. Other warriors are screaming about Ragnarök.
Reaching the cave just ahead of a massive avalanche, Xallis trips over a corpse and a spear just inside the mouth of the cave. The avalanche seals the entrance of the cave, just after Abe rushes in.
Xallis, thought insane, is rather knowledgeable. He points out that most of the time, dying in this place means you wake up with a hang-over around dinner-time and promptly informs us that she will be waking up at any moment and insists we wait for her instead of further exploring the cave and looking for a way OUT.
Xallis goes to grab the spear, but recoils when energy knocks away his hand. Abe decides to use is Arcane/Astral sight to look at the spear, and low and behold discovers that it's Odin's spear, Gungnir.
The woman vaults awake, alive, and to her feet, grabbing the spear immediately without any misfortune.She immediately begins glowing. Aasimar, but what you would expect from a Valkyrie: tall, blonde, and shaped like something out of your fantasies.
She begins rapidly talking at us in the local tongue. None of us speak it.
Simon decides that the best course of action is to start talking into her mind, which only agitates her.
Abe tries talking to her in the common tongue of the plane, Asura. She understands and begins repeating her questions:
"Who are you and what have you done with Helgi? What have you done with the All-Father?"
Unsatisfied with our complete confusion and protestations that we have done nothing with either, she begins accusing us of being Loki's spies. Abe having a flash of inspiration, asks if Helgi was the lunatic who went skydiving without a chute (he was).
Angry and frustrated, she stalks off into the cave. Xallis, being too crazy to bother with caution immediately follows her. So the rest of the party shrugs and follows her. Realizing she has company, she finally introduces herself as Kará.
Just after introductions have finished, they hear a high pitched and terrified scream from deeper in the cave. Kara, with the others following, rushes towards the voice arriving in a small valley on the other side of the mountain. The valley has a lake, some scrub, a great deal of snow, and a pack of wolves with ice-white fur and about the size of horses surrounding a man.
The man is the source of the screams. Manuel rapidly twists his hands and suddenly the man drops from between the wolves and next to Manuel. The wolves of course are not about to give up their dinner so easily and are quickly disposed of by the members of the party not screaming like a terrified girl.
The man, having regained his feet and his composure, introduces himself as Captain Jonathan Tiberius Oldblood of the ship Proteus. He has a problem with his ship though. All that he has is the helm of the ship, a small circlet around his head, and the wheel of the ship, currently sitting 60 feet under the water of the lake. Where it rests of a bed of over ten thousand gold coins.
Manuel opens up a new set of portals, pouring the missing component of Jonathan's ship and the coins out onto the shore of the lake. Which, was wonderful for about 30 seconds. Then the dragon leaped out of the lake to protect the hoard the Luckless Fools had just emptied from underneath it.
The party tries to defend themselves, but none seem to be able to breach the dragon's scales. Kará, having watched the adventurers pathetic attempt, summons a horse with a whistle, mounts it, and charges in, Gungnir solidly in the creature's breast. Xallis follows with a brilliant flash of white light, blinding the beast. The rest of the party proceeds to eviscerate the dragon.
Most of the party decides now is a good time to take a moment to breathe a deep sigh of relief on the defeat of our first dragon (and packing as much of its worldly goods into our bags as was possible). Kará, of course, having her own ideas, shouts something then calls forth her own pair of wings, flying off towards the battle.
Manuel announces that he's found a portal, but it's back the way we came. Hurrying back through the cave, eager to get off the plane, they emerge to a wondrous sight: a rolling wave of non-existence headed towards them.
Manuel points towards the foot of the mountain and informs the hapless adventurers that there's a quarter of a mile between them and the portal. Realizing time is VERY short, the party uses Dimension Door to jump most of the way, landing next to Kara.
After a brief conference Kara agrees to follow the party, surprising everyone except Xallis, who appears to have expected this. Manuel has been examining the portal, and declares it leads to Niflheim.
Deciding the realm of the dead is preferable to oblivion, they quickly jump through the portal.
And that, dear readers, was the beginning of a rather memorable campaign, full of love, muffins, and curiosities.