In The Plastic Jungles
| In The Plastic Jungles | |||||||||
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| Factions Involved | |||||||||
| ShadowHaven | Blood Mages | ||||||||
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Basilisk Frostbite Tombstone Ramen Shamen Newt (As played by Discogoblin) | 2 Blood Mages | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 2 Blood Mages | |||||||||
| Tombstone smacked down to impersonate a cat. | |||||||||
Summary
Some runners end up in the Plastic Jungles through various shenanigans and happen to meet up. Along the way, Ramen Shamen is tricked out of some venom and it is used to poison Astrid Novak, who hires the nearby runners to retrieve her stolen items.
Background
In the Plastic Jungles, there are two blood magic mystic adepts of the hermetic tradition. Some scavengers found one of the mystic adept's athame, and were killed for it. Also Astrid Novak was robbed of some magical supplies.
The Meet
The five runners, despite massive amounts of distrust, manage to actually get into the old greenhouse Astrid Novak is recovering in. She's at a street doc after having been poisoned with naga venom. The runners quickly realized she was poisoned with something, and Ramen Shamen suspects the person who stole their venom.
The Plan
The runners quickly head off to where Ramen Shamen gave the mysterious person their venom. Inside the building, they find that everyone inside has been stabbed and is dead. Newt and Ramen Shamen realize that they've both seen the same person (Newt had previously sold a red piece of metal to the same person). The team does some preliminary investigation and discovers that the people inside were minding their own business when the mysterious person came in and threw knives into everyone's necks. Newt does psychometry on the crime scene and experiences being murdered, and during that experience sees the mysterious person find a golden knife in the squatter's possessions. The knife in the vision is recognized as a blood athame. As Newt comes out of the vision, Frostbite is poking her. The two quickdraw and stare down each other for a moment.
The team thinks for a bit and Basilisk remembers that there was a place a couple blocks away that everyone seemed to try to stay away from (and the vibes were really bad).
The Run
The team heads sneakily to the place, and Tombstone trips over a metal trashcan and makes a ton of noise. Tombstone then SMACKS DOWN to impersonate a cat who bumped into the trash can. The team makes it up to the building, and the BGC is aspected to Blood Magic. Newt climbs on top of the building while Basilisk picks the lock to get inside. The team discovers that there are three people inside, one of whom is tied up. Of the other two, one is performing a ritual. The team decides to break in...
The team breaches the building, but Newt's chemical seal breaks while going through the ceiling. Ramen Shamen realizes that the blood ritual is almost complete! The team fights the two blood mages, and during the second pass the ritual completes and a great form blood spirit is summoned! However, after it materializes but before it can act, it is killed along with the two blood mages (though Basilisk goes down).
Aftermath
The team goes back to the street doc Astrid Novak is at and returns what remains of her property (some of it exploded from a grenade). She pays the team in magical supplies and foci and with her thanks.
Rewards
- 28k nuyen worth of magical supplies, foci, reagents, etc. up to availability 16 (or 1/2 that in nuyen) - 7 RVP
- 6 karma - 6 RVP
- 2 CDP
Optionals:
- Astrid Novak at Loyalty 3 for -5 RVP
- For Newt: Force 5 Weapon Focus (Blood Athame in the form of a ceramic knife) and 500 nuyen for -9 RVP
- For Tombstone: Catlike and Animal Empathy for -10 RVP
Game Quotes
Player After Action Reports (AARs)
Tombstone
That was probably the most embarrassing thing I have ever done. It worked funnily enough though.
Ramen Shamen
I'm still furious I let myself be tricked into giving up my venom, and then immediately seeing it be used against another. A lesson learned the hard way, I hope Mrs. Novak can forgive me.
Newt
"Well, I can add great form blood spirits to the list of encounters I've survived. It was a close one for sure, but the other team members were competent enough to prevent disaster. I'm still mad at myself for not putting one in that blood mage's mouth when I had the chance. For all those people to die for that ritual. Disgusting. I've kept his Athame for myself; I can feel it whispering its offers but I will not be tempted. If those people had to die for this knife, then I'll make it into something worth keeping."