This session opened up with the gang following up on an old plot hook that’s been mouldering around since the very first session: they wanted to go check up on the Brutorz-riding Commanche tribe to the northwest. The party was tempted to go check out the Cyclops people I mentioned that lived up in the mountain regions. And they could have checked up on the Baltar and their now-removed pure strain human tribe members. Or even the mutant badger people that had been demanding tribute from Yamtown for the past few sessions. But no, it was all about the Commanche this time.

The party sets off to the northwest. A few days into their journey they spot the sun glaring off something in the distance. (One thing about these random encounter checks: they happen rarely enough that the game world feels very airy, almost empty to me.) Anyway, I think Misha‘s pure strain human was going to cover Rawle‘s mutant hedgehog while he ran up to investigate.

Turns out it’s this big bug-looking floaty thing. Rawle hails it and it comes up to examine him. He hears it speak with a vocoderized voice: “New specimen detected. Does not match any on file. Preliminary analysis indicates extreme mutagenic development. Aquiring specimen for further study deemed expeditious.” Rawle tried to run away but got shot with a weighted net. Then Misha started shooting. If it wasn’t clear how imbalanced this blaster rifle was before, it became so now. Misha nailed this thing two turns in a row and caused a great deal of damage. The thing turned to flee and The Last Redoubt helpfully calculated how many more shots Misha would get. Misha missed both.

The party decided to follow the thing to see where it went– maybe to a base or something. They find some oily substance on the ground and presume the thing must be “bleeding.” They find it wrecked beside a boulder and a stream with smoke coming out of it. The Last Redoubt’s character moves to engage with it this time and a dialog ensues:

“Danger! Mutant barbarian approaching! Please send assistance to unit 42-1138K!”

“How do you know I’m a mutant?”

“You’re not a mutant…?”

“No!”

“Ah, why didn’t you designate so in the first place! Please assist self! Self has been damaged!”

At this point a panel opens up on the thing. There’s all sorts of lights blinking in side. The Last Redoubt goes to the creature… and just starts randomly ripping stuff out of it. The lights all go out and the rest of the part grabs anything they could carry off of the thing and then run as quick as they can before “assistance” can arrive.

The party resumed their journey to the Commanche camp. When they got there they found a few teepees with some people laying around, covered in furs laying next to fires that had long gone out. They were blue skinned– not their normal color! Dan Wolfgang drew a yam in the dirt and somebody relit the fires. After a while the party decided to camp a good bit away from the tepees.

That night, they see these lights moving around in the camp. They quickly put out their fire and regret having start one at the indian camp. But they lay low and no trouble comes of it. Heading for home they encounter a couple of stray Brutorz. These mutant percherons are friendly… and Misha and Last Redoubt’s characters now have mounts as long as they can handle riding bareback.

The players get back to town and Dan Wolfgang’s “Blood” (a mutant dog) decides to invent a new written language for the tribe– like Japanese kanji if I heard right. The first few ideographs are a big hit and everyone starts painting symbols on everything.

The party then heads off to the Followers of the Voice to see if they can trade the stuff they ripped off of the robot. On the way out there they find a dead body… humanoid… looks like it was bitten down in small bites maybe. The players bury it and pile rocks on top of it.

They get to this stone pyramid and go inside. There’s a row of guards on either side and on the throne there… there’s a princess! The players make a little small talk and lay out their robot parts hoping to get a decent offer. Rawle compliments her stunning good looks and she says, “that’s very sweet of you.” He then volunteers that if she gives them some good weaponry, they’ll us it to go kill more robots. At this she glares at him and says, “don’t ever speak to me again.” The party then accepts five doses of mind boost, 4 doses of radiation drug and (I think) 3 cubes that can power Misha’s blaster rifle. (Five shots each.)

Going back to Yamtown, they are about to head up into the mountains to go see the cyclops people. The encounter dice indicate something big has happened, so it turns out that the mutant badger people are back with an army of two hundred. Hunter (played by The Last Redoubt) goes out to parley. The guy is demanding tribute– gold and artifacts. Hunter offers them the black bracelet and the drone that announces Hari Seldon’s candidacy. This makes the guy even madder.

So it’s come down to a fight and the players have done what they could to avoid it. Hunter races towards the large number of mutant badgers– he takes some fire from guys with pistols but he manages to get in range to start life leeching. Misha starts shooting his blaster for about ten rounds straight. He kills about one badger a turn because the rifle is so powerful and because there’s so many badgers packed in together. Hunter is gaining a hundred hit points or more every turn, taking a handful of hits, and (unbeknownst to the badgers) basically draining the life out of them en masse. Not even two minutes into the battle and the badgers have been decimated twice.

Once again the mutant badgers are beating a retreat from Yamtown. That’s three for three. (!!!)

—

Campaign Log:

Days 1 and 2: Travel across clear terrain to the West. Encounter with a Sand Ert.
Days 3 and 4: Travel across desert terrain. Encounter with Baltar, Zed, and the last remnants of the True Men.
Days 5 and 6: Travel back across desert terrain. Group of 21 members of the Brotherhood of Thought sighted to the south.
Days 7 and 8: Travel across clear terrain and back to Yamtown.
Day 9: Feast day… and encounter with four Badders demanding tribute.
Days 10 and 11: Resting.
Day 12: Zed leaves with 15 pure strain humans. Players head southeast.
Days 13: Players encounter 21 mounted Badders.
Day 14: Half of Yamtown burned down by Badders.
Day 15: Wilbur returns.
Days 16-19: Sonic discovers a small city in the desert in a radioactive area.
Day 21: A group of 20 Badders are ambushed near Yamtown.
Day 22-29: Journey to Commanche camp… encounter with a robot and two Brutorz.
Day 29-38: Journey to trade with the Princess of the Followers of the Voice.
Day 39: The battle of Yamtown.

The grave yard:

Bob (Mutant Humanoid: MS 9, Int 10, Dex 16, Cha 7, Con 11, PS 14, Hit Points 46, Experience 285. Multiple Body Parts (Third Eye), Radiated Eyes (Intensity 9), Shorter, Poor Respiratory System, Teleportation. Chain-mail dress, pistol, sword.) Killed by the pummeling vines of a Seroon Lou.

Harlan Slugton (Pure Strain Human: MS 16, Int 13, Dex 14, Cha 18, Con 12, PS 12, Hit Points 37, Experience 35. Ugly Sword.) Killed by the pummeling vines of a Seroon Lou.

Experience Awards:

• Wilbur = 50 + 35 + 47 + 0
• Twitchy Henry = 0 + 0 + 47 + 0
• Feric Helstrom = 12 + 0 + 3047 + 767
• Hunter = 0 + 0 + 47 + 767
• Sonic = 0 + 0 + 247 + 767
• Blood = 0 + 0 + 47 + 767
• The Mixed GM‘s Character = 0 + 0 + 0 + 767

Equipment:

• Wilbur: Chain mail and sword, Cappuccino machine (6 gold)
• Twitchy Henry: Chain mail and sword (6 gold)
• Sonic: Sword and pistol (4 gold)
• Blood: Chain mail (4 gold)
• Hunter: Sword (4 gold)
• Feric: Chain mail, blaster rifle, and three cubes (4 gold)

Unassigned loot:

• 5 Doses of Mind Boost, 4 Doses of Radiation Drug
• 30 Chain Mail, 30 Shields, 30 swords, 120 Gold
• 6 pistols