Eight friends from the Jefferstown DP&D after-school roleplaying club are caught up in a raging "anti-Satan" campaign going around town. A friend of theirs, Troy Bridges, has been killed and the rumor-mill is pointing fingers at them. Now the friends are trying to find clues and proof that something sinister is brewing.

from photo by Jolien Coryn on Unsplash. Photo is from Belgium, pretend it's in Alabama. Much like most of my experiences as of late.

See: Introduction

I have typed up my rules-changes, base assumptions, and general overview in the launch post. See that if you are looking for clarification about how this might differ from the as-written product.

Character Start (1 of ?): Everette Bauer

  • Character. (1d8) 3 >> Everett Bauer = "You know where to score everything, for a price." +$300 to start and +1 item. 20hp.
  • Cash. (1d6) 3 x $100 + $300 = $600 starting cash. [Doug's Note: That's a lot of cash for a kid, man. Especially in the 80s.]
  • Weapon. (1d8) 7 >> Handgun, d6 damage. $500.
  • Item(s). (1d8) 4 + (1d8) 1 = Player's Handbook (re-roll 1 die per each Obstacle or Combat) and First Aid Kit (heal 1d6, once).

There's no real background hints for Everett, so we'll say his dad owns a used car lot [good example for a bonus location once the statistically significant ones are placed]. John Bauer is married to May Bauer, who was a teacher before she was fired for a drinking-during-class habit.

May is the connection to Reverend Phillips. She thinks that that the devil is to blame for her lifelong struggles.

  • Start. It's not written as such, but I'll say the starting hex is the character home. I'll put the Bauer household to the right-hand side of the bottom (Hx1111).
  • Paths. (1d4) 2 paths lead off (Hx1010 and Hx1110 will do).
  • Staring Condition. (1d4) 2 >> Discarded bag with $50 ($650 total) + 1 Item (d8 1 >> +1 First Aid Kit, 2 total).

Everett's Attempt

The phone call was from...

  • (1d8) 7 >> Marlon Knight.

...Marlon.

Marlon: Hey, man, my folks are bugging out. Preach has called a special sermon about Troy. That fucker Tommy had the nerves to suggest that you waxed Troy because of a drug deal.
Everett: I don't handle drugs.
Marlon: I know! Kimberly got pissed on your behalf but just be careful.

Everett scratched at his polo shirt collar. Shit. Just one more school year and then his ass was going to be heading up to UAH and get away from all this mid-Alabama horseshit.

Leaving his home, he catches something flapping in the breeze. The street is...

  • {GMAWH96} 5, also "The Rising Tide."

...normal. Strangely so. Like the vibe is pretending to be the same. Maybe he's just feeling paranoid. He heads out, north. The group has been talking about needing to do something to prove their innocence but Mary Jean has wanted to lay low. Maybe he can stay at Ross or Essex's house, since neither has particularly attentive parents.

  • --> Hx1010. Location Roll (1d12) 9 >> MAJOR OBSTACLE, (1d10) 8 >> Daggers & Devils. Impediment. A film crew making a documentary about this town fighting back. CR5. Failure = -1/2 Cash. Success = +Item, +Weapon.
  • Impediment Check (+0). (d6) 5. Success. +Item (d8) 7 = Sweet New Kicks (+1 to Flee). +Weapon (d8) 7 = a second Handgun.

Everett is three blocks over when he stumbles upon a group of people. At first, he's confused by the lights and the crowd. Then he realizes that it's a media van and the crowd are doing "people on the street" type interviews while a group films them.

On the side of the van are the words, "Daggers & Devils." Marlon had been talking about this. Some US Senator from Indiana had set up the "Helping Our Lonely Youth Act" (HOLY) which was going to spend money running propaganda from for Conservatives by targeting anyone caught up in "un-American" behavior. Stuff like watching cartoons or enjoying reading books that aren't the bible. This film is being paid for by money from this act, or is a promotion piece for it, something like that.

Trying to show the world how dangerous kids playing RPGs really are.

If Everett gets spotted, it's over. Some local will point to him as "the enemy" and no doubt this film crew will be all over him for the rest of the night.

He considers ducking down behind the Dairy Queen and sneaking out by the creek but thinking better of it, walks closer to the van. Glancing inside, while everyone is distracted by a fat woman in a big yellow dress talking loudly about how "six-sided dice are clearly Satan's playground," Everett spots a gun and a pair of running shoes. Hmm. He snags both before he can think about it and then heads on down.

He thinks he hears someone call his name, but no one seems to be following him.

  • Paths. (1d4) 3. +Hx0910, +Hx1009, +Hx1109. Will go to Hx1009.
  • Location Roll (1d12) 7 >> Lesser Obstacle (1d6) 6 >> Mr. Jackson, Gym Teacher (CR4). Sounds like he makes you run laps.

A bit of a rules question, here. Book says "You can choose to flee from an impediment without making a flee check" but I assume that means you have to backtrack, etc. This is how I will run it.

If that's right, then it's basically "you can try it." If you succeed, you get new paths. If you fail, you backtrack and take a penalty. If you flee, you backtrack but do not take a penalty.

As another rules call, I'm going to say the new shoes will give a +1 bonus to this one.

  • CR4 vs (1d6+1) 3+1 >> 4. Success.
  • Mr. Jackson is coming out of a {bar | store | house | other} 1 >> bar. Silly Sally's.
  • BONUS LOCATION, SILLY SALLY'S. Icon = Weird, Smiling Mouth. No game impact. Kids are not allowed.

The next trouble is as Everett is walking around the side lot of Silly Sally's and hears a familiar voice. Mr. Jackson. The coach is shouting about Everett skipping school and how bastards like him are why a great student athlete like Troy is dead.

The old, very drunk, fool is shouting something about running laps when Everett takes off. Thanks, in part to the shoes he just stole, he manages to get ahead and of the coach before it gets worse.

  • Paths (1d4) 3 >> +Hx0909, +Hx0908, +Hx1008. Will go to Hx0908.
  • Location (1d12) 8 >> Another Minor Obstacle (d6) >> 6. Mr. Jackson again. Shoot.
  • CR4 vs (1d6+1) 1+1 >> 2. Failure. -$50 ($600 total) and has to backtrack with a 3:6 chance of a different lesser obstacle [will reroll Mr. Jackson, because that would be silly.]
  • Back to Hx1009. Obstacle check, 2. Yes. This time (d6) 2 >> May Bauer (CR4).
  • CR4 vs (d6) 5 >> Success.

Unfortunately, it's not enough. The coach somehow manages to catch up with Everett. Only briefly wondering what would happen if he pulled out one of his guns and threatened the old, drunk man Everett gives in and runs a few laps before telling the coach he is heading home.

Only, as he gets back to Silly Sally's parking lot, his mom is there waiting for him. She screams at him that Tina (aka, the lunch lady) had spotted Everett "hanging around the bar" - HOW!?, Everett thinks, he was only here like five minutes ago! - and threatens to go home and clear out his room.

Everett comes up with an excuse and says he was going out to a special prayer group meeting being put on by Imogen Dare. Mom stares and buys this, and reluctantly lets her son go.

He picks a different direction to travel.

  • -->Hx1008. Location check (d12) 2 >> Shane's Video Store = +1 to next Combat/Impediment check.
  • NOTE: (2) is now up for "bonus location" if it gets re-rolled.
  • Paths (1d4) 3 [Man] >> +Hx1007, +Hx1107, +Hx1108.
  • -->HX1007. Location (d12) 5 >> REVEREND PHILLIPS! Combat. CR6. HP11. D6 Damage. Level up if you win. Due to my own Rule, this location is also the church. The First Church of the One True God.
  • With shoes, going to attempt flee. -1 from Reverend, +1 for Shoes. (d6) 6-1+1 = 6 >> Critical Success. Gains the bonus = +1 Level. Neat!
  • LEVEL UP! (d6) 4 >> Masterclass weapon. The gun found by the film crew get +1 to attack and 1d6+1.
  • CLUE! The idea is that you find things to help prove the conspiracy, but there's no "clues" [etc] in the book as far as I can tell. Instead, I'll draw another card and make sense out of it, somehow. {GMAWH65} Sport's Equipment...

After leaving his mom, Everett cuts over to visit Shane's Videos. The gang likes hanging out there because Shane has the best selection of horror and "international cinema" [including some really cool stuff from Japan]. Just browsing the selection gets Everett pumped up.

Thinking about it, Everett decides to swing by the church: The First Church of the One True God [Doug's Note: This name is taken from the Dark Places & Demogorgon Ultimate Edition version of Reverend Phillips]. Whatever weird stuff is going on this town, it seems to be related to this church and it's followers.

Sneaking inside through a side door, Everett makes it to the rooms where he spots a door left partially open. A metal table inside has a jersey on it. A bloody jersey. #47. This is Troy's! Why would the church have Troy's jersey? Everett grabs it up and stashes and goes to get out to tell the others when he hears the voice...

Phillips: Curiosity is a sin, child.

Everett runs back to the video-store so fast he never once stops to look back behind him.

  • --> Hx1107. Location (d12) 12. The Oxford Mall! Since I'm going to make this Double Sized, 1d4 to figure out which other hex is there (1d4) 4 = Hx1108.
  • Can sell items at 1/2 value, so selling the extra gun nets $250 [850]
  • Paths from mall: (1d4) 4. +Hx1006, +Hx1106, +Hx1207, +Hx1209.
  • --> Hx1106. Location (d12) 12. Time to whip up a bonus location. Let's say "Bauer's Used Cars" and give it the following: CR5. Impediment. Success: 1d6x$100 [once]. Fail: Flee cops called and lose one item.
  • CR5 vs (1d6+1) 4+1 = 5 >> Success. Steals (1d6) 5x$100 in cash from his dad.
  • -$1000 [$350]. Level Up (to 3). (1d6) 3 >> Medical Cache, +3 First Aid Kits [now up to 5!].
  • Paths from Bauer's Used Cars... (1d4) 2. +Hx1105, +Hx1205.
  • -->Hx1006. Location (d12) 4 >> Local Game Shop. Won't spend the money to get the item or the heals.
  • Paths from Gameshop (d4) 2 >> +Hx1206, +Hx1307.
  • --> Hx1208. Location (d12) 1 >> Jefferstown High School...

Your Neighborhood Doug, here, Space Pilgrims...

One of the oddities about this game is that some things feel like location-based prompts and some feel like time-based prompts. For instance, you have the one with the mom that reads "Your mom tries to clean out your room..." which makes no sense in the context of any location that doesn't have you going home everyday. The school is another. "You get stuck spending the day at school..."

Then you get the one with the coach trying to make you run laps.

Others, are very location specific and do not seem to have a specific time element.

It feels a bit like the hex-map was written with both ideas in mind, which is fine, but potentially hints at something like a different mental construct along the way.

How I'm going to work this one is JEFFERSONTOWN HIGH SCHOOL demotivates you, the opposite of the video store. NOT that you get stuck there for a day. I'm not really playing with that sort of speed.

Now that we have a number of give locations out of the way, I'm going to drop this to a d10. 1 = New Location. 2 = Hospital. 3-4 = "Empty" [with 2 joining in once hospital is located]. 5 = Phillips. 6-8 = Lesser Obstacle. 9-10 = Greater.

  • -1 against next Combat/Impediment.
  • New paths (1d4) 1 >> +Hx1209.
  • -->Hx1307. Location (d10) 6 >> Lesser Obstacle (d6) 1 >> Book Burning. CR4. Success: -. Fail: -Book, -1Hp.
  • CR4 vs (d6-1) 5-1 = 4 vs 4. Success!
  • New paths (1d4) 3...there's not really three left to do so both +Hx1306 and +Hx1308 are "activated".
  • -->Hx1206. Location (d10) 5 >> Once more versus the Reverend!
  • CR6 vs (1d6+1) 2+1 >> Fail, Reroll with Book >> 6+1 = Success. Does (d6+1) = 4+1 damage. 6hp remain. 6 vs (1d6+1) 1. Fail. 2hp. -1 Item. -1 First Aid Kit. 6 vs (1d6+1) 5. Success! (1d6+1 damage) 5+1 = Phillips is defeated.
  • Level Up (to 4). (d6) 4. Masterclass Weapon. Going to just say that Everett has improved with his gun even more. +2 to Hit, +2 to damage.
  • Paths (d4) 1. Only +Hx1305 is possible, so it gets picked.

Everett breathes hard. He had made the mistake of going by the school. Since Troy's death, he and the others in the club had been avoiding the place. The air there is toxic. Some have been worried about grades slipping. not Everett. Still, he kind of misses it in the sense of taking up a major part of his daily life in more normal times. Plus, that's where his customers are. The kids looking for LPs and t-shirts their family won't let them have. Kids wanting access to games and dice.

Some of his customers were the ones who started pointing fingers. "Look at how Everett tried corrupting us, think about what he did to Troy!"

It was what happened next, though, that completely shocked Everett. Outside the East-Jeffersontown Public Library, a group of people, including some other students, were burning books. Like, actually burning books.

Madness.

Everett got past that, but as he was walking through a small park, the one with the rusty swing set that kind of worked, he heard a shout about the devil and turned to see Reverend Phillips charging right at him.

With a knife!

Everett tried fleeing to behind the toilets but Phillips gave chase, so Everett shot in the general direction of Phillips. Even now, a few minutes later, he is not sure if he wanted to kill the man. He just wanted the man to stop trying to stab him.

Three shots in, and Phillips fell in a crumble. Everett started hyperventilating, a condition which got much worse when the Reverend stood back up and then ran off into the woods at the edge of the park.

What the fuck, man?

  • Backtrack to Game Store. Obstacle Check (1:6) 3 = No Obstacle. -$50 [$300]. +2hp [back up to full] + 1 Item (d8) 5 >> Monster Manual -1CR for Combats.
  • Backtrack to Mall. Obstacle Check (1:6) 1 = Obstacle (d6) 2. Mom, again.
  • CR4 vs (d6) 4 = Pass. Slips by his mom.
  • -->Hx1006, Location (d10) 5 = HAHAH. Goddamn. Maybe literally in this case.
  • CR6-1 vs (d6+2). 5 vs 3+2 = Success. 2+2 = 11-4 = 7hp remain. 5 vs 1+2 = Fail. -2HP and -1 First Aid Kit. 5 vs 4+2 = Success. 5+2 = 7. Phillips is driven off, again.
  • Let's get a location for that one...draw a card... {GMAWH71}. Museum.
  • Does Phillips look more monstrous or inhuman? (Even) >> {GMAWH31} Yes. He is changing.
  • LEVEL UP (to 5)! (d6) 4... hmm, I'll roll one more time for something new. 4...again, on a different dice. Fine. +3/+3 to the gun. Everett is getting reallllllly good at shooting stuff. Specifically, the damned preacher. This is starting to feel like a metaphor.

Outside the Jeffersontown Museum of Natural Science - which is mostly about how cool the local Native American Tribes were and has one display implying dinosaurs were killed in the Flood - the Reverend attacks again. Only now it is obvious that something is up.

He's...taller. Skin a strange color. Fingers longer and sharper. Foregoing the knife, the Reverend rakes at Everett with claws. Again, a few shots into the changing man puts him down but after running away from the fight, Everett has no doubt he will get back up.

...Taking a Break, Here

Considering how often Everett is fighting Phillips and "power leveling," I feel like it's not too unlikely this has about three locations left before the end. However, I'm in a bit of pain right now due to some stupid crap involving my hateful joints, so I'm going to call it for now.

If Everett doesn't make it, and possibly because of how I'm playing it, it doesn't seem exactly likely he will fail, then I'm not 100% sure how I'll handle the next kid's starting spot. The 11x13 hexes seems like a LOT considering how fast stuff shows up. With the persistent map rule, it would be silly to not put them in the same rough half, give or take. And this is with me already adding 2-3 new locations not in the original module.

I'll save up the more for a fuller review once I finish the module, though.