SESSION 4 – The Barrow Reveals it’s Secrets: Robot Happy Mutant Apocalypse (part A)

(This adventure is an Alpha Complex themed reskin of the excellent one-page adventure Clown Robot Doctor Apocalypse found here)

Potential allies or walking lootbags?  Yeah, players can be pretty predictable at times.

CAST

Nick:       Cybella - Magic User 1

Syam:     Brychan - Fighter 1;   XXX - Elf1.

Telfer:     Maredud - Thief 1.

Michael: XXX – Magic User 1;    Pelegost - Cleric 1  (Calina of the Twelve Annihilations)

WHAT HAPPENED

On a tip from one of Mary's helpers the PCs ave set off towards a barrow on a nearby farmer's land looking for Miss Elizabeth and her dog Timmy.

Upon gaining entry to a small stone chamber the PCs found themselves facing another door.  Maredud  confirmed no traps and somehow got the door open.  Inside was a small circular room of beige hi-tech material, with two strange pot plants flanking a double metal door with a button to the side (A lift lobby with plastic plants).  The room is back-lit with soft light.

Pushing the button, the players wait a short while before hearing a ‘ding’ and the doors open revealing a small room with brushed metal walls and two more buttons set next to and just inside the door.  Two of them check it out, and come back up to get the others having determined that it is some sort of conveyance device which (they assume) goes down.

The gang goes down and exits on to a landing with a number of optional directions to take.  The characters are baffled by the tan and beige walls, the soft back-lighting, the constant hum of machinery in the background, and the unusual corridors which are comprised of moving floors (travelators and escalators), stairs, ladders and one person lifts.  Some experimentation is needed to operate the lifts,but before long they can at least get them to go up and down by thinking about it.

Before long they become aware that they have skirted an enclosure from which lound humming sounds can be heard, and they find themselves in a small lobby with a circular trap door with a circular handle.  They are very cautious, checking for obvious traps, tentatively opening the hatch, and sending the thief down first to check things out.  The room is cramped and full of machinery which is connected to large ducts big enough for a crouching person to move through, and the machines are making a lot of noise.  There are eight hatches hatches set horizontally into pieces of machinery lining the walls, and inspecting one, the noise increases and a whooshing, chopping sound is added.  The players close the door deciding that some things are best left alone.

Moving further down into the maze the characters bump into two guards, human shaped automatons with silver plastic faces and wearing Boiler suits.  Maredud comes face to face with one wielding a strange looking sword, which the others come under fire from a pistol wielding one climbing up a ladder shaft.  Both are dispatched easily by the party, and Cybella “I’m a weapons collector”) greedily claims the pistol.

Further into the maze, a door opens onto a long horizontal corridor, done out in brown seventies style veneer.  Doors are evenly spaced on both sides of the corridor heading off into the gloom, and dim lights hag at even intervals.  Entering the corridor, they check for traps and Maredud the their notices a wire attached to the door jamb they have come through which leads down t floor level, and semi-concealed   by the floor covering.  They check the doors which open onto identical but empty rooms, following the wire which leads underneath a door a few doors down from the entrance.       

Suspecting that they are expected, the PCs ready weapons and unable to hear anything, they walk in.  Another room the same as before contains desks, boxes and tables covered in boxes and equipment and appears in use.  As they move further into the room four figures step from behind the boxes and desks.  They are all more or less clad the same with black leggings and sleeves, but one, a man wears a white tunic and carries an exotic white pistol, a woman wears a red tunic and carries a similar but red pistol and two (a man and a woman are clad in black tunics and armed with truncheons.  All are very pale.

The white one questions the PCs presence and negotiations commence.  It is revealed that the group are secessionists from an underground society planning an escape to the surface.  The possibility of making some allies appeals to the party, but Cybella becomes frustrated and wants those weapons.  The woman in red also appears frustrated at Cybella's antagonistic comments and remarks to the white one who has identified himself as a High Programmer that “we should just waste these guys boos”.

Cybella takes the initiative, and asks them if they want to see a magic trick. The underdwellers have heard of magic but have never seen it and think it is probably highly treasonous.  Cybella uses the ruse to cast sleep and the two black clad goons drop.  The red one starts working herself into a frenzy, with veins and muscles popping and she starts getting big.  The white one disappears (oh oh!).

Initiative is won, and Mike’s magic user takes the opportunity to use magic missile on the red one before she fully hulks out.  She takes this hit and appears angrier but goes down to sword blows.  Impressed with the magic missile, the High Programmer blinks in behind the party (these guys are all mutants) and sends a high intensity laser bolt through the magic user’s back, who fails to save vs death and goes down.  Mike points out that the MU had about eight flasks of oil in his backpack, and so goes up with a whoosh along with his gear in a spectacular PC death (DM’s note, strangely oil hasn't been as popular with the PCs since then).  He then bolts through the door.

Cybella chases, determined to get the pistol he carries, while the others ensure that the black clad goons won’t get up soon (if ever).  A couple of crossbow bolts hurt him but fail to bring him down, and when he foolishly turns to return fire he is charged down and before he can exit the hallway the PCs finish him with melee.  The PCs set about looting the bodies and the room where the secessionists were working.

Here is a good place to pause, part B of session four will be posted in the next day or two.

LOSSES:  Mike’s Magic User (cleric henchman now promoted to main PC)

GAINS:  Treasure – A small four barreled pistol, a Wakizashi (weight as Shortsword, damage as longsword), Two ‘radios’, ten clear ‘plastic’ bottles of clear fluid, ten foil wrapped food blocks, ten ‘vitamin pills’ (1hp each), one red laser pistol, one white laser pistol, one red armour tunic (AC8), one white armour tunic (AC6), one orange and one yellow tunic (AC7), one belt buckle (ring protection +2), one stun baton.

THE (DIS)HONOUR ROLL 
Here we list those brave adventurers who have been tested and found wanting (more hit points).

NAME                             CLASS/LEVEL     PLAYER         SESSION     HOW

Dode Enemy-Breaker        D1                       Nick               2                  Fell into a pit trap.

Fighter guy                       F1        `              Telfer              3                  Throat torn out by Pretender.

Mike’s Wizard                  MU1                     Mike              4                  Shot in the back by High Programmer